Crowds swelled at tourist spots around the country, particularly in Malacca, Johor and Penang, as visitors took advantage of the three-day weekend to go for a short break.

Also packed with visitors were popular shopping malls and outlets while hotels saw good business.

In Malacca, visitors thronged parts of the Unesco Heritage City and Alor Gajah, especially along Jonker Street, causing a traffic snarl. Even alternative roads were congested with motorists trying to evade the jams.

What used to be a half-hour drive from the city to Alor Gajah via the Alor Gajah-Jasin Highway became an almost two hour journey yesterday due to the heavy volume of cars.

Policeman Sjn Mejar S. Arangkannal, 55, from the Malacca police headquarters was volunteering for a non-governmental group to bring food to three families in Alor Gajah.

He said he was caught in a twohour jam from his quarters in Bukit Beruang here.

“I was supposed to deliver the food by 1pm but I only managed to reach Pengkalan at 3pm,” he said.

With tourists pouring into the city yesterday evening, most hotels were fully booked.

In Johor Baru, the long Labour Day weekend saw Singaporeans making a beeline for the state’s various attractions. Among them was accountant Kelvin Tan, 32, who took his family to the Legoland Malaysia theme park in Iskandar Puteri.

He said his two children, aged six and nine, had been pestering him to take them to the theme park.

“My wife and I decided to give them a surprise. We left Singapore quite early to avoid the congestion along the Second Link,” he said.

Assistant manager K. Delvaraj, 41, brought his family to Johor Premium Outlets for a shopping spree.

“We got some good bargains compared to back home,” he said.

In Kuala Lumpur, locations such as the Petronas Twin Towers and Central Market saw huge crowds.

Source:
courtesy of THE STAR

by Mohd Farhan Shahandr & S.N. Murali

If you have any stories or news that you would like to share with the global online community, please feel free to share it with us by contacting us directly at [email protected]