The following day was fairly relaxed with visit to couple of places in Kuala Lumpur. On the way we passed Masjid Jamek, one of the oldest mosques in KL and located close to Merdeka Square at the confluence of the Klang and Gombak River.

The mosque is known for its Moorish architecture.Close to the mosque is Masjid Jamek LRT Station, which interconnects two separated stations: one serving a common Ampang Line, and another serving the Kelana Jaya Line.

The station was sparkling clean with no litter on tracks, unlike stations in India. There are cleaners at the station who ensure that cleanliness is maintained and the system has incorporated cleanliness as a norm.
Aquaria KLCC

Since the time I started working on promoting Malaysia as a tourist destination, one thing that I really liked about the country was that it is endowed with verdant rainforests, fascinating animal life and diverse flora and fauna. And when all these elements are present in a single place, what would you say? Captivating. Aquaria KLCC is conceptualized and built based on the journey of water from land to sea. It takes you through lush rainforests, waterlogged mangroves, majestic rivers, and colourful coral reefs. Interested in knowing more, read on…

Aquatic life always interested me, unfortunately never got to see the unique species, as Mumbai has a shoddy little Taraporewala Aquarium. So a visit to Aquaria KLCC was a unique experience in itself. It is situated at the basement of the Petronas Tower, which means it is right in the heart of the city, and it has around 250 different species and over 20,000 land and aquatic animals from Malaysia and around the world.

Tickets are priced at RM 38 for adults and RM 26 for children (age 3-12 years). Upon entering the aquarium, you will see a colourful gallery that explains the evolution of fish – the world’s first vertebrates. It’s a stunning blue water exhibit which was exciting.As you move forward you come across the touch pool where visitors are allowed to touch different creatures like lobsters, starfish etc. I touched the starfish, it was fun and even though it does not have a shell it seems like its got one, that was fun.
Starry Nights
Then I came across a Green Turtle (Chelonia mydas), named due to the green colour of the fat under its shell. It is also listed as an endangered species.

A little bit about turtles now. Turtles have been around since the dinosaurs. Having lived for million of years they now face a possibility of extinction. Studies show that if nothing is done about this then they will cease to exist in 10 years. So keeping this in mind, Aquaria KLCC has started a Turtle Conservation Program - Adopt a Turtle under which they will rehabilitate the endangered turtles and terrapins. Read more on Adopt a TurtleRiver Terrapin (Batagur baska), another species which faces extinction in 10 years. The species in the conservation and rehabilitation programmes are the endangered Green turtle (Chelonia mydas), the endangered Hawksbill turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata); the critically endangered River terrapin (Batagur baska) and the endangered Painted terrapin (Callagur borneoensis).The Green Iguana, a huge lizard, found largely in Mexico, Brazil and Paraguay, and here in Aquaria KLCC. They are typically about 1.5m in length from head to tail and they have a row of spines along their backs (can be seen in the picture if looked closely) and along their tails which help protect them from predators. No wonder their really long tails can be used like whips and can be painful when they strike.

Another kind of lizard, climbing up the glass cage.
It was literally like a journey through the deep forest, discovering new species. I was absolutely speechless and amazed when I saw the Common Marmoset (Callithrix jacchus).
I’ve never seen an animal like this before. Known as the New World Monkey, they are found only in Brazil. I saw two of them, one quietly sitting on one branch and the other jumping swiftly from one branch to the other, click on the image to see the Marmoset clearly.
Also seen here were Green snakes, Malayan Horned toads and tarantulas. From the forests you move into another zone to see the coral reefs and the magnificent aquatic life.

This huge 5.3 metre high cylindrical Forest Tube tank enchants with its varied aquatic exhibits that languidly swim within the water column up to the treetops.Right below was a pool/aquarium with similar fishes as the tube but it had 3 gigantic tortoises, moving around slowly and peacefully. Unfortunately it was really dark inside so my picture has come out quite bad, so can’t upload it.

Moving ahead on the coast (as this aquarium section is named), I spotted the Lionfish or Scorpion Fish and Foxface. Lionfish, which have stripped attractive appearance, are voracious. When they are hunting, they corner prey using their large fins and then they fully swallow the prey using their lightning quick reflexes. So compared to them the Fox-face is a much more peaceful and lively fish to have in an aquarium.Next was a pool with small black fishes and Green Turtles.
Now comes the climax of the journey – a 90-metre-long tunnel for visitors to walk through. When I reached I understood exactly the reason why my guide was getting so excited to show us the tunnel. The rich marine life, seen through the acrylic glass, is mind-blowing. As soon as I entered the tunnel I saw sharks swimming above my head, there were a lot of them. Sharks swim freely in the big tank along with other kinds of fishes, don’t they eat the little ones up? After doing some amount of reading on the Net, I found out that the sharks are trained, definitely. They were the first to be brought in the main tank and for a month, the divers fed them with headless mackerels. Over a period of time, other fishes were brought in and by then, the sharks were already accustomed to headless mackerels. However, the corals also help to protect the other fishes.I saw many Cownose Rays, flapping their wings in a smooth manner, totally unruffled by the sharks. Also to be seen here are parrot fish, Moray eels, Remoras etc.

One can also see rays and sharks being fed by trained divers in water, which is a major attraction here.The spirit of independence is visible even underwater.Dazzling fishes in the coral reefs.
The cute and small Sea Jellies. An interesting fact, they have been around for more than 650 million years, they outdate even dinosaurs and sharks. They do not have lungs, gills or any special breathing organs. They breathe with their entire body. A parting shot.
Aquaria is worth visiting once, though its not as big as underwater park in Singapore or Australia, but the diverse and enthralling marine life makes it a memorable experience.

Other posts on Malaysia:

Kuala Lumpur: City of Lights

Genting Highlands: A Misty Ride

Eye on Malaysia

Malaysia's Independence (Merdeka) Day

A Jungle Trek & a Cultural Show in Kuala Lumpur

Putrajaya & the International Fireworks Competition

Cameron Highlands: A Walk in the Clouds

Cameron Highlands - A Botanical Paradise