I must say, one hasn’t seen Malaysia yet until he visits Kuching.

Being the heart of Sarawak, the largest state of Malaysia lying in East Malaysia, Kuching is home for many indigenous groups including Ibans, Bidayuhs, Melanaus and Orang Ulu. Unlike the metropolitan Kuala Lumpur in West Malaysia, Kuching is much more quiet and much more Malaysian. It is small enough to walk around and big enough to harbor many landscapes that can fascinate any travel photographer wannabe like me.

Living in a city with the population of only 450,000, many people in Kuching cannot speak English but they are friendly and kind to foreigners. During my first week here, my friends were very kind to take me around to most beautiful spots in Kuching. Below are my 5 favorite places I have had a chance to visit in Kuching.

Waterfront

The Waterfront, now transformed into a landscaped esplanade, was an important place in the founding of Kuching. Take a leisurely stroll along the Waterfront to explore its historical buildings and admire the modern sculptures, open-air theatre and the musical fountains. While doing so, imagine the scene back in 1839, when English adventurer James Brooke first landed here and created history in Sarawak.  [Source: www.isarawak.com.my]

Sarawak Museum

Originally built in 1891 to house and display arts and crafts of the indigenous people of Borneo, the Sarawak Museum has gained a reputation for having the single most comprehensive collection of Borneon artefacts to be found anywhere. After extensive extensions, the Sarawak Museum now straddles both sides of Jalan Tun Abang Haji Openg, with both buildings connected by an overhead pedestrian bridge. The original 1891 building was designed in style of a Normandy town-house and was extended to its present structure in 1911. The new wing, just across the road, was built in the 1970s and has a reconstruction of life in the prehistoric Niah Caves.  [Source: www.isarawak.com.my]

Bau Town

Bau  is situated within Kuching Division. It is an inland district about 35 kilometres by road from Kuching. It is also known as the ‘Gold Town of Sarawak’ due to its rich gold ore deposits and gold-mining activities in the past.  However, gold mining operations in all the mines had ceased before the turn of this century as the remaining gold deposits deep underground was difficult and expensive to extract , making the operation unviable at the present market price for the gold ore. [Source: www.etawau.com]

This lake was once a gold mine. It’s the most beautiful lake I’ve ever seen. Too bad it’s not safe.

This lake is called “Tasik Biru” in Malay or simple “Blue Lake” in English. (Thanks Jong for the information)

Green field

Just 30 minutes driving from the city, you can see many green fields. The scene is peaceful. These pictures below were taken outside Batman Wall and Fairy Cave.

The beach

There are many beaches in Kuching. The most popular among locals are Damai beach and Sematan beach. Too bad when I went to Sematan, my camera battery died so I couldn’t take many pictures.

Tags: Bau Town, Beach, Cave, Kuching, Landscape, Sarawak, Sarawak Museum, Semathan beach, Waterfront