A mural near Carpenter Street depicting old trades in Kuching. — Photos: MELODY L. GOH/The Star
There are a few cities with laid back vibes in Malaysia but none more so than Kuching, Sarawak.
The city looks a little bit like Penang’s George Town but with a river running through the middle. It also has a bit of an Ipoh Old Town (in Perak) atmosphere, minus the colourful umbrellas and fancy laneways.
And just like the two heritage cities, Kuching too has numerous large-scale murals strategically located for maximum visibility.
However, unlike George Town and Ipoh, the murals in Kuching don’t define the city, they merely act as helpful landmarks for tourists. “Didn’t I walk past this artwork 20 minutes ago?”, you might find yourself asking when exploring Kuching on foot.
One of the famous cat statues in Kuching. — Photos: MELODY L. GOH/The Star
The heart of the city is pedestrian-friendly; even on bigger roads like Padungan, Ban Hock and Tabuan, it’s still pretty safe to walk on either side.
However, there is a lot of ground to cover, if you wish to go beyond the tourist areas, that is. Kuching may only feel like a small city at first, possibly because it doesn’t have as many skyscrapers as most other state capitals in Malaysia (which is a good thing!), but in reality it is double the size of Kuala Lumpur.
For first-time visitors, two to three nights is enough to cover main attractions like the Borneo Cultures Museum, Kuching Waterfront, Semenggoh Wildlife Centre, Fort Margherita, DBKU Cat Museum, Sarawak Museum, Carpenter Street and the newly reopened St Peter’s Catholic Church.
If you want to include Bako National Park, Kubah National Park, Gunung Santubong or Kampung Budaya Sarawak in your itinerary, add an extra day or two to your trip.
Mee kolok is a favourite with locals and visitors in Sarawak.
For foodies, Kuching is definitely a must-visit as a good variety of local and native cuisines can be easily found here. Start with Carpenter Street, a touristy area but with lots of coffee shops and a food court selling mostly Chinese fare. Think mee kolok, Sarawak laksa, kueh chap, mee tomato and the like.
On Padungan Road you will find more variety, as well as few Western-style cafes. Look for the restaurants selling Bidayuh food (there are couple here), and a coffee shop that sells “traditional buns”. These are fluffy buns with either sweet or savoury fillings that are baked daily.
The Kuching Waterfront is where you should go to look for Sarawak’s popular kek lapis. There’s a famous shop selling the cakes in many, many flavours – and colours – but if you want one with the “original” flavour and colour, check with the sidewalk vendors instead.
There are tons of shops selling souvenirs here too. Even though this is typically a tourist-heavy spot, the souvenirs sold in this area are actually pretty cheap. We recommend getting some woven bags, traditional beaded jewellery and cloths with traditional Sarawak motifs.
If you skip this area, you can still get your souvenirs at the airport, albeit at a much higher price.
One of the murals covering the facade of a building.
While exploring Kuching, you can also play &ld
