The Racun Cycling Gang does regular rides through Putrajaya. Putrajaya is the administrative center of Malaysia, much like Brasilia is for Brazil and Canberra is for Australia. And like those capitals Putrajaya is a planned city, albeit the newest of the three. The seat of government moved from Kuala Lumpur to Putrajaya in 1999.
The 32 km2 / 8,000 acre greenfield site presented architects with a blank canvas to cover with buildings and bridges in all manner of of traditional and modern design. Much of Putrajaya is lit up at night, and the spot and colored lights make the buildings look even more spectacular. Our ride started below the International Convention Centre. Sadly we weren’t allowed to ride up the hill and circle the building.
We rolled down the hill from the International Convention Center and rode along the Putrajaya lakefront. We passed in front of the Pullman Putrajaya Lakeside Hotel.
We then crossed the Seri Gemilang bridge toward the Ministry of Housing and Local Government buildings.
The next spectacular building we passed was the Energy Commission’s Diamond Building. This is the first office building in the counry to obtain the Green Building Index platinum rating.
After the short sharp climb to Wisma Putra or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs we shot back down the hill and covered a roughly semicircular route from east to west. We then turned eastward again across the Seri Wawasan bridge to get to Persiaran Perdana or Perdana Boulevard. Persiaran Perdana runs north-south and is the longest boulevard in Putrajaya.
We headed north on Persiaran Perdana to the circular Dataran Putra. Around the 300 meter circle are the Prime Minister’s office complex, the Putrajaya Souk and the Putra Mosque.
From the mosque it was a straight ride southward back across the Seri Gemilang bridge to our starting point below the International Convention Centre. Here is the final look back across the bridge.
Old Roots, New Routes 