A few kilometers outside of KL are the Batu Caves. They are full of Hindu art and the highest one has a Hindu temple inside it. My knowledge is embarrassingly bad, so I was there more to admire the pretty things than to actually understand what I was looking at.

We first entered the art cave. It held statues of, I think, famous Hindu stories, mostly centered around Rama. Again, we didn’t know what they were, but the countless Hindus posing next to the statues made us think they were probably important.

The walk to the Temple Cave was made treacherous by the presence of uncouth monkeys. They stole food, blocked off parts of the steps, and even threw water bottles at tourists. Any thoughts you had about monkeys being cute and cuddly creatures are completely incorrect. They are terrors and exist to annoy and bother. After successfully dodging the monkeys and monkey shrapnel, we made it to the Temple Cave. The cave itself was quite spectacular, with a gaping hole at the top that lent a neat spotlight effect to the place (above).

Back in town, we headed to the former colonial center of KL to walk through some old European style buildings. We made it about half way before we were introduced to the concept of a monsoon. At the first sign of raindrops, everyone around us ran for cover. This is not silly little mist rain. This is pound you into the dirt rain, and people take it seriously. Because they did, so did we.

Before the rains

Indian dinner