i-City brightens up Malaysia
Development ranked among most colourful places in the world
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s city of digital lights, i-City, has been listed in the top 25 of the most bright and colourful places in the world by CNN.
The urban development located in Shah Alam, Selangor, made the 21st spot in the list, joining the ranks of globally renowned locations led by Australia’s Great Barrier Reef which came in first.
Other top locations in the list include Holland’s tulip fields (13th), Rio de Janeiro in Brazil (16th), Times Square in New York (23) and Venice (25).
“i-City in Selangor, is a peculiar blend of a hi-tech development centre and an amusement park that includes an ice palace called the Snowalk, where the indoors is kept at freezing temperatures to preserve chambers of ice lit with coloured lights,” the CNN list read.
“In the evenings, outdoors in the tropical heat, millions of twinkling lights illuminate the trees in every artificial colour imaginable.
“It’s a Christmas yard display amped up to the nth degree,” the list said.
The 25 locations selected, said CNN, were places where nature’s palette concocts colours that seem unreal, or where designers have turned ordinary neighbourhoods into wonderlands.
In response, i-City said it welcomed the accolade which has now put it firmly on the global stage.
“It is very much an honour to receive the accolade as one of the world’s most colourful places in the world together with beautiful cities such as Cape Town, Tokyo, Argentina, Italy and France.
“A convergence of both technology and art, the digital lightscapes showcase will constantly be updated according to themes and festive celebrations,” the i-City statement said.
Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) president Datuk Hamzah Rahmat said the listing was good news for Malaysia’s tourism industry.
“It’s not easy to get in such a list and the accolade given to i-CIty also shows the big role that the private sector in Malaysia plays in helping to promote tourism in our country,” he said.
Civil servant Anisyuhada Zulkifle, 29, said she first visited i-City as a university student and was captivated by the colourful lights.
“The lights there are simply beau- tiful beyond words. Not only are the trees covered in lights, they also have lights shaped like flowers, so it’s very unique,” she said.
A graduate student, who only wanted to be known as Fatin, said i-City was also enjoyable for its many attractions.
“I don’t like taking pictures that much, but the sights at i-City are a unique experience that you won’t forget easily,” said Fatin.
The list can be accessed at http:// edit ion.cnn.com/t ravel/ article/ worlds-most-bright-colorful-places/ index.html