The heart of South-East Asia, Malaysia's call is irresistible. It's economical, it's fascinating. Its geography is wild and the people are friendly. Contradictions co-exist, the idyllic and the modern, skyscrapers and heritage buildings, cosmopolitan and ethnic, multi-cultural yet religious.

Malaysia has two physical segments. Peninsular Malaysia has Thailand in the north and Singapore in the south. East Malaysia comprises of Sabah and Sarawak States in the north-west of Borneo. The two are separated by South China Sea. The Malaysian federation has 13 States. Capital Kuala Lumpur, or KL as it's is commonly called, and Labuan are federal territories.

The climate is tropical. The temperature ranges from 21 deg C to 32 deg C. In the Highlands, it can be still cooler. November to February is rainy season in the east coast of the peninsula, May to September in the west coast. The population is multi-racial.

The Malays constitute 57 per cent, Chinese, Indian and other groups constitute the rest of the population. The Portuguese, Dutch and the British also contributed to the diversity of Malaysia's cultural heritage. Bahasa Melayu is the national language. Islam is the official religion. Other religions are also followed. The national flag has 14 stripes: 13 representing the States and one for the two federal territories of KL and Labuan. The crescent represents the official religion. Ringgit (RM) is the currency. The standard time is 8 hours ahead of GMT. Petroleum, palm oil and rubber form the backbone of Malaysian economy.

The tourist attractions are wide-ranging: Unique arts and crafts, dance forms, cuisine, historical traditions, fascinating natural scenes, architecture, primeval rain forests, eerie and mystical caves, golden beaches, orang-utans, tropical greenery, cascading rapids, waterfalls, virgin forests and fabled mountains. There are facilities for trekking, white-water rafting, snorkeling, cave exploration, mountaineering, bird-watching and what not.

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