If there is one thing Asia does well, it is the massive shopping centres. The Sunway Pyramid is no exception, claiming over four million square feet of retail space.
The building itself is quite captivating. As the name suggests, its architecture is dominated by a large Egyptian-style pyramid, crowned by a guarding lion, and flanked by two colourful domes, the Orange Atrium and the Blue Atrium. The mall is divided into four shopping precincts: Fashion Central, Oasis Boulevard, Asian Avenue, and Marrakesh. The complex also includes ten cinemas, an ice skating rink, and a 48-lane bowling centre.
Sunway Pyramid is a bit closer to Petaling Jaya than it is to Kuala Lumpur. Public transportation is not direct. The easiest method to get to the mall from Kuala Lumpur is to take a commuter train to Setia Jaya, a 20-minute ride, and switch to a Rapid BRT bus, a 30-minute ride. The bus stops at Sunway Lagoon, which is about a 10-minute walk from the Sunway Pyramid, over a pedestrian bridge.
Opened in 1997, in anticipation of the new millennium, Sunway Pyramid was the first themed shopping mall and entertainment complex in Malaysia. It has very recently expanded to its current four million square kilometre state.