For our two-week spring break,
we sojourned from dry Abu Dhabi eastward to a wet, exotic
trifecta: Maylasia, Indonesia, and
Singapore.
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| On top of Penang Hill: 10,577+ Km from home |
After an overnight layover in
Singapore, we arrived in Penang, Malaysia.
As a child, I
remember Charles Kuralt of CBS news reporting about
Vietnam War peace talks from Penang (though I had no idea where it was). The lovely Alison located the ultimate
British colonial haunt in fashionable George Town at the
Eastern and Oriental Hotel, or simply the "E & O." Naturalist writers Josef
Conrad and Somerset Maugham found inspiration at this Sarky hotel, and so would
we. With a stately
echo dome above its entrance, the hotel possesses dark, long-planked mahogany floors, ornate wainscoting, and a
superabundance of bulky, 19th-century furniture. Our latticed windows opened up to the sea.
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| The elegance of colonial Penang |
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| Island Hospital, Penang |
On our
first morning, Alison awoke in excruciating pain,
and we quickly
learned we needed to sample some Malaysian medical
tourism (we later learned we were not alone; many nearby Indonesians and
Chinese also visit, though mostly for Botox and plastic surgery). Anyhow, we discovered Alison had suffered a
prolapsed disc. We left the
ER $150 poorer, but with enough medication for her the resume our
trip. We were very impressed by the
service, care, and attention Alison received.
That afternoon while Alison rested by the
pool, I visited the Penang Museum, which highlighted its colonial history. I especially liked the sprawling opium beds
and ornate three-inch shoes (for bound Chinese feet). Later I walked to a clock tower built in 1900 for
Queen Victoria's diamond jubilee; during WWII, a bomb fell near it and now the
tower lists a bit to one
side. After a lunch of spicy chilli
shrimp, I rode a rickshaw back to the E&O; I hope to be
as agile as my driver when I turn eighty.
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| Steve's Solo Sightseeing |
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| Dining by Hawkers |
"Dinner by hawker's" is a popular way of eating in Malaysia. Throughout our journey we tried several different spots including the famous Gurney Drive and the Red Garden in Penang. The Gurney Drive area offered fifty-some
makeshift hawker stands for us to peruse and choose. Alison sampled
dumpling soup while I stuck with fried prawns and calamari. Due to the abundance of fruit, fresh-squeezed
juice is a good choice for beverages to accompany the spicy foods. On the
return trip, our driver tried out some conspiracy theories for the missing
Malayian Airlines flight 370, including the US government forcing the jet to
land at Diego Garcia Airport because it contained Korean-captured US drones en
route to China.
On our
last full day in Penang, we hired "Sonny" to transport us
around "the Pearl of the Orient.” The morning was full of Bhuddas: sleeping Bhuddas, lotus Bhuddas, Bhuddas from
every country across the Orient. Later,
we took a walk in the humid
botanical garden and saw our first wild monkeys. In the afternoon, we divided our time between
a funicular tram up Penang Hill and a seven-story pagoda; both sites occasioned
some stunning views of the city.
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| Reclining Buddha - Thai Temple |
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| Thai Buddhist Temple |
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| Hall of International Buddhas |
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| Prayers at Burmese Buddhist Temple |
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| Buddha at Chinese Temple |
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| Pagoda at Chinese Temple |
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| Making a wish for good health |
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| Botanical Gardens and Penang Hill |
The next day we rode the train across the Malaysian
countryside on a six-hour trip to the nation’s capital,
Kuala Lumpur (at the cost of about $2 an hour).
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| Train from Penang to Kuala Lumpor |
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Arriving in the afternoon, we happened across a fish spa. Tiny speckled garra rufa fish nibbled on the dry
dead skin of our feet. Perhaps because
my lack of pedicures, the fish found my soles tastier than Alison's.
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| I hope our feet were a tasty treat for the fish! |
The next morning we boarded a
local train to the famous Batu Caves. Beginning at the foot of the caves, we bounded up the 729 steps to the top, which housed an extensive Hindu
shrine at the top of the outcropping. I
worried about Alison's back, but she made it up in fine form.
Now I have a suitable relationship
with primates: I leave them alone,
and they me. Alison, thinking herself
another Dian Fossey, chatted with the monkeys, uttering playful musings, and shared flowers
with them. At
one point after snapping a photo of the vista below, she absentmindedly reached
for the bannister and knocked a grey beast off his perch. He leapt back up, growled, and then
bared his teeth at her.
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| Going up, across, and down |
Following this misadventure, we loped across the parking lot to
finally locate a cabbie who knew the location of the Forest Reserve Institute of Malaysia (FRIM). After slathering ourselves with the recommended
ne plus ultra bug lotion (in addition to the 2 mosquito bracelets and a
mosquito patch), we began a three-hour trek to the top of the world for
a canopy walk among the trees. As we are
a litigious society in the US, this walk would never be permitted because of the
consistent unsure footing. I could only
hope as much here. Anyway, the terrain
was very uneven, and
often rocky. I
had not hiked in this manner since my days four decades previous
as an Eagle Scout at Osceloa, Missouri.
Look at the sweaty
messes we ended up.
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| Waterfall to cool us off before the last leg down |
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| Welcome to paradise! |
The next day we left early for Lombok, an
Indonesian vacation hotspot a friend of Alison's had recommended over nearby
Bali. The setting was picturesque: aquamarine water juxtaposed against
volcanic-ash, black-sand
beaches (a lovely romantic respite after touring and
hiking). Recently the Qunci Villas secured a
position rated in the Top Ten in a study of 25,000
hotels worldwide. Not only did we have a beach-front property,
but our own private swimming pool.
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| Romance |
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| Remember the movie South Pacific - That mountain in the background is Bali |
Singapore was our final destination. There, we spent an animal day at the
world-renowned Singapore Zoo. The
giant pandas appeared especially playful:
Kai-Kai ate bamboo ravenously while Jia-Jia circled a well-worn
path. Both of us were impressed with the
zoo's design: we found ourselves closer to the animals than we had ever been. After a dinner of signature
Singapore chilli crabs, we boarded a tram for the Night Safari (the
only one in the world). At one point, Alison was so near a tapir that she
could have touched him (although after her experience with the monkeys, I'm
glad she did not).
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| What an amazing zoo! |
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| Only night safari in the world! |
On our last day, we navigated the Singapore subway in order to
tour the vaunted National Museum of Singapore, known for
its engaging and interactive technologies. In
addition to the new exhibit on the people’s collection, the exhibits on Oriental
fashion and film stood out.
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| Raffles Hotel - Birthplace of the Singapore Sling |
We lunched at the Raffles Hotel, a contemporary of the E & O, and birthplace
of the Singapore sling. After a liquid
lunch with some Italian
appetizers, we left for the Changi Airport, one of the top airports in the
world filled with shopping, gardens, two hotels, entertainment for the family,
and very efficient signs. There we spent our last Singaporean dollars for a few
hours at the Ambassador Lounge, where I showered and Alison caught up on social
media before our Etihad flight back to the United Arab Emirates.
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| Cheers from Singapore |
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| One of the nicest airports in the world |
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| Sunset over Lombok and our holiday |
