Silver-leaf Monkeys & Firefly Cruise, a stunning afternoon & evening in Kuala Selangor

By intlnabers On February 18, 2013 · Leave a Comment · In Asia, Expatriate Life in KL, Malaysia, Travels

Another delayed post is delivered…..

When my parents were here back in November ’12, we also took them on this great adventure: The Silver-leaf Monkeys & Firefly cruise out in the wilderness of Kuala Selangor, about 1 hr outside of the city limits of Kuala Lumpur. We booked through Kuala Lumpur Travel Tours and I have no complaints. What a fun afternoon & evening!! The driver picked us up from our house in a private air-con van at 4pm and dropped us back off at home around 11pm….so yes its a long day but so worth the experience, at least for the first time, and especially for visitors :). The driver asked for half of the money up front to pay for our dinner, drinks, etc and we paid the other half at the end of the night, ensuring he wouldn’t leave us high & dry anywhere- LOL.

The tour consisted of the following:

– We drove out to the quiet town of Kuala Selangor (about 1 hour away from KL), where en route we stopped alongside the road to look at the palm oil trees as well as a local ceramics shop where the artist showed us his homemade “loot” & a spin on the pottery wheel. Very cool to see and a nice break to stretch the legs :).

– From there we drove a few minutes more to Bukit Melawati, a famous hilltop that offers panoramic views of the Straits of Malacca as well as the mangrove swamps of the Kuala Selangor Nature Park. Here you will find remnants of an old bunker/fort that the locals had built back in the early 1800’s to protect themselves from the foreigners who had already invaded to the south of them in Malacca. Later on, the Dutch used it to monitor the comings & goings of the harbor down below, as well as any intruders on “their” new land. Here at this hilltop, there are literally hundreds of “silver-leaf” monkeys sitting around, waiting to be fed. This particular species of monkeys are vegetarian and very friendly. They differ from the other monkeys found in Malaysia- the ones you see at the Batu Caves, golf courses, and parks- who eat anything and everything and can be quite aggressive at times. The Silver-leaf monkeys are very friendly, gorgeous in color, and are soft to the touch. They love sweet potatoes and long beans, specifically, and will eat it all out of your hands! They also jump onto your shoulders, climb on top of your cars, and generally just love wandering about the crowds of people. You will note in the pictures that my mom and I watched from afar while the guys enjoyed the monkeys crawling all over them- LOL!

– After this, dinner was calling so our tour guide took us close by to the Kuala Selangor river where a very nice halal seafood restaurant served up some delicious malaysian delicacies. The sunset was stunning and we had a nice time recharging.

– The tour ended at dark at the Kuala Selangor firefly park. We joined up with about 4 other people on a very small & quietly motored boat. This boat took us to a quiet mangrove where one of the largest colonies of fireflies lives in the entire world! I wish I could show you pictures, but they were not allowed, and most likely would not have turned out anyway. The entire area of the river looked like blinking christmas lights….it was quiet, serene, and very fascinating to watch the fireflies light up. Although it was fun, the boat ride was a bit long (about 30 minutes) and somewhat of a letdown due to the excitement of the monkeys from earlier. Nonetheless, it was a fun way to end the day & a wonderful tourist activity in all!

Here are some pictures of our fun day out!