The story
Kek Lok Si Temple Lights in Air Itam
Kek Lok Si Temple in Air Itam, Malaysia's largest Buddhist temple, transforms into a lantern-lit spectacle each year around Chinese New Year, with thousands of traditional lanterns illuminating its pagoda, prayer halls, and walkways. The light-up season typically runs for several weeks from mid-February, drawing roughly a million domestic and international visitors annually.
Kek Lok Si, meaning Temple of Supreme Bliss, sits on a hillside in Air Itam, just outside George Town, and holds the distinction of being the largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia, a status built up over more than a century of construction and expansion by the island's Chinese Buddhist community.