What do Washington Monument and Millennium Monument have in common? Well, both monuments have similar architecture. The Millennium Monument in Putrajaya is shaped like an obelisk. For history lovers, this is a significant monument which speaks volumes about the country?s milestones and important periods from Post-Independence up to present times.

The Millennium Monument is a 68m high column which opened to the public in 2005. It is located on the waterfront in the centre of Putrajaya. From a distance it looks like a giant pencil standing on an oil rig but is designed to be in the shape of the hibiscus flower when viewed from above. A multilevel platform wraps itself around the base of the column. You can walk up this platform but you cannot go inside the obelisk itself.

As you walk up this ramp you pass a series of engraved glass panels which trace important milestones in Malaysia's history in chronological order. Each panel relates to a year in history and there is information on the key event which occurred that year together with an illustration. It is nicely done and I imagine the glass panels must have been quite expensive.

Millennium Monument also plays an important role to the cruise boats at the lake nearby. The lights from the monument are the main guide for the cruise boats at night. Built using solid metal structures, this is a monument out of the ordinary and you need to get a 360? view of it. Don?t forget to snap some photos!