"KUCHING ~ CAT CITY" Kuching by longsanborn

I was in Kuching many many years ago. I was actually working there for 3 months before I moved back to Miri, my hometown. I would visit Kuching several times after that, either with my family or alone. I have fond memories of Kuching city. It is a nice quiet city, clean and the most well-planned city in Sarawak. It has to be since it is the capital city of Sarawak state and the Sarawak's Chief Minister lives there.

Note: Since it's been years since I've been there, I have to depend on my memories to write this Kuching page.

Whenever I visited Kuching, I used to stay in Kuching Hilton or Holiday Inn Kuching Hotel. These 2 hotels are located near the Sarawak river and the waterfront/riverside esplanade and very close to downtown Kuching.

Within the town, there are several museums such as the well-known Sarawak Museum, Chinese Museum, Cat Museum, etc, which are definitely not to be missed when visiting Kuching.

Interesting landmarks are the Astana (the Rajah's former palace), Fort Margherita, Tua Pek Kong temple and Main Bazaar. The Kuching waterfront, which is really a riverside esplanade, is situated right next to the main hotels and commercial heartland of the city, and offers a pleasant walk in the evening.

When you are tired of strolling, the old shops on the opposite side of the waterfront will gladly sell you all manner of 'antiques' and tradecraft.

Some other interesting areas near the centre of town include Padungan Street, which is the main Chinatown area of the city. Shops here appear virtually unchanged from 20 years ago, and offer fascinating insights into life as it was then.

Meanwhile, Carpenter Street and India Street still maintain their old world charm. The old Courthouse building forms the link between Carpenter Street and India Street, and is well worth a quick stroll as you re-live the faded colonial splendour (now restored and modernised).

Kuching also has many well-manicured parks dotted around the city and they are also great to visit.

Gunung (Mount) Santubong and its village is an area outside of Kuching city, located across the Sarawak river, on a peninsular which jutts out into the South China Sea. Because of its close proximity to the sea and natural tropical rainforests, major hotel resorts sprung up and claimed the best corners and beaches to set up their business.

Damai Beach is Sarawak's main beach resort area. Pristine sandy beaches by the South China Sea are Damai's main draw, but there are also fine jungle trails all the way to the jungle-covered Mt. Santubong for hikers to explore.

Damai boasts three international-class resort hotels - the Holiday Inn Resort Damai Beach, Damai Lagoon Resort and Santubong Kuching Resort. Each is well-landscaped with its own secluded beach and free-form swimming pool. All the resorts offer jet skiing, windsurfing, water-skiing, tennis, mountain biking, squash and a fitness centre.

Sprawling over 90 acres of prime sea-front land, the beach resorts are framed by the lush tropical forest of the majestic Mount Santubong. All of the idyllic resorts offers an abundance of land and sea-sports activities for complete fun and relaxation.

All along the Santubong beachfronts, privately-owned seafood restaurants opened up business and you can enjoy your evening dinners while watching the sun sets, and eating the most freshest seafood you'll ever tasted.

Once accessible only by river, Damai, on the Santubong Peninsula, is now just a 40 minutes drive from Kuching by bus or drive.

• Pros:Clean and safe, Lower cost of living, well-planned city
• Cons:Can be a bit boring
• In a nutshell:Kuching means Cat, so it is usually known as Cat City