This is our second time here. We did a city tour & the
Batu Caves last time and found some great food in a food court of sorts under a
mall. This time we booked a private birding tour.
setting up the gangway
We were met by our guide Weng Chun and he was just a super
guide. (reminded us a bit off Domi in Panama.) Besides seeing LOTS of birds,
there were a couple of different types of monkeys and many butterflies. Jenn,
you would have gone crazy with trying to photograph them.
We started our day in a rural area; Pulau Indah for
Mangroves and secondary forest which was very close to the port.
This small area was teaming with birds. Most were new for
us, but some we had seen in other countries.
After a long morning of birding we headed to lunch. He
checked with us to see if we liked spicy food. Then made sure we didn’t have
any allergies or weren’t vegetarians etc. We went into the town of Kelang and
he took us to a place that was Malaysian Indian food. He gave us a couple of
options. Greg went with the curry dish of fish and a couple of different sides
of vegetables. I opted for the Roti. They were making the thin pancakes (like
naan) and pulling then out very thin and then cracked an egg and rubbed it all
over and then folded it and then grilled it. It came with 2 sauces to dip it
into. One was dahl and the other was a curry sauce. Holy cow, was it good. I
ate quite a bit of Greg’s veggies too. Rick & Janie, it reminded me of the
place in Penang where we ate at a very local place and they were washing the
dishes with a hose out in the ally. Our guide Weng showed me the sink to wash
my hands and I could see them doing that out back. He said not to use the bathrooms
there as they would be nicer at the park. I wasn’t desperate or I would have
insisted. I’ve seen and used some pretty grim bathrooms.
the guide's car
Marina Pulau Indah
Greg & Weng
Common Mynas
White-throated Kingfisher
Zebra Dove
Crested Serpent-Eagle with a snake
Blue-tailed Bee-eater
snake
Yellow-vented Bulbul
Raffles's Malkoha
Javan Myna
Asian Koel
Collared Kingfisher
I think the cow is judging us....
Collared Kingfisher
Yellow-vented Bulbul
Chestnut Munia
Yellow-bellied Prinia
Yellow-bellied Prinia
Collared Kingfishers
Pacific Swallow
Chestnut Munia
Chestnut Munia
Collared Kingfisher
Common Sandpiper
Olive-backed Sunbird
Olive-backed Sunbird
Pink-necked Pigeon
Spotted Dove
Pink-necked Pigeon
Pink-necked Pigeon
Brahminy Kite
Crested Myna
Crested Myna
Crested Myna
Brahminy Kite
We birded from the car getting out when necessary to get a
better look at the birds. The first birds we saw was a pair of Woodpeckers. We
saw a Crested Serpent-Eagle with a snake and other interesting birds. We drove
further and found a couple of storks flying overhead. We also saw a new kind of
Lapwing. We saw 10 Savanna Nightjars in one place. I had no idea that they
would group together like that. The guide seemed surprised too. He had pointed
out 1 and then as I was scanning the area I just kept counting and got to 7, then
9 and then he found 1 more.
Blue-throated Bee-eater
Blue-throated Bee-eater
Blue-throated Bee-eater
Brown Shrike
Brown Shrike
Purple Heron
Brown Shrike
Zebra Dove
Painted Stork
Long-tailed Shrike
Zitting Cisticola
Zitting Cisticola
Savanna Nightjar
Paddyfield Pipit
Red-wattled Lapwing
Painted Stork
Black-winged Kite
Painted Stork
Purple Heron
Brahminy Kite
Weng taking us to the restaurant
making the roti
Greg's Fish Curry and veggies
my roti
Then we went to our last birding stop at Shah Alam
Botanical Garden (Lowland forest) and saw a lot more birds. It was a beautiful
urban park and despite the thunder on and off most of the day, we got no rain.
After spending several hours here, we stopped for a cold drink before heading
back to the port. (about an hour away)
Black Hornbill
Common Iora
Baya Weaver nests
Oriental Magpie-Robin
Black Hornbill
Oriental Pied Hornbill
Hooded Pitta
Spectacled Monkey
Hooded Pitta
Greater Racket-tailed Drongo
Red-eyed Bulbul
Black-and-yellow Broadbill
Black-and-yellow Broadbill from the back
Greater Racket-tailed Drongo
Spectacled Spederhunter
Asian Brown Flycatcher
Blue-tailed Bee-eater
Weng
We saw at least 59 different species of birds today and at
least 35 were new to us.
Blue-tailed Bee-eaters, Red-eyed Bulbuls, Yellow Wagtails,
and Spectacled Spiderhunters and many more! Plus, those adorable Spectacled Leaf Monkeys.
What an awesome day. I was thinking to myself that while
everyone else was out seeing the glamorous side of Kuala Lumpur we were tromping
around mudflats (with Mudskippers) and fields. What a fabulous day! Though, we
did enjoy the city tour and Batu Caves last time as well.
The evening show was the Kikyo Brothers a Japanese Juggling
act. They have won numerous awards and really did a very fun show and they were
amazingly talented. I have to say that this cruise has done well with getting
such diverse and interesting performers.
We have a later start tomorrow for our day in Langkawi.
I’ve got a huge group of 24 tomorrow. Yikes!
Kelang, Malaysia https://photos.app.goo.gl/tPveEjJLEmP2fgMB9
Enjoying your blogs. Jane
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