The new adventure begins in Kathmandu, Nepal. We finally left S.E Asia for the final leg of our trip. We were a bit worried as to what was going to happen in India about our visa as it was a connecting flight to Kathmandu via Delhi and the new rule is you cannot enter, leave and re-enter India within 2 months so we had to go somewhere to get special approval. But in the end Jet Airways were fantastic. We were met off the plane and told to wait at the terminal entrance. We were then escorted through to transits and assured that our bags would be collected on our behalf and moved onto the connecting flight. So officially we didn’t enter India and our visa would be fine. No need for special permission or anything and thankfully our bags did arrive in Kathmandu!! In the transit Duty Free we also managed to pick up the cheapest alcohol ever. A big bottle of Absolut Vodka and captain Morgan Rum for about EUR6 – a complete steal!!
It was an early morning arrival at about 6.30am. We got our visa on arrival very quickly with no problems and headed out to somewhere completely different. We had no idea where we were going to stay and at the airport exit there is a small tourist office who called us over. They told us about a hostel in town that looked clean and in the area we wanted to go to, Thamel, which is the backpacker district, and it also meant that we would get a free taxi transfer so we didn’t have to handle the onslaught of drivers that were waiting for us on the other side of the sliding doors!
Thank fully the driver came and got us so we walked out to the car with him which deterred most drivers trying to hassle us even though we still had more than a handful trying to steer us to another car. Once we got our bags in and climbed into the car, another guy also got in the front passenger seat. He was a local so I thought it was perhaps a friend of the driver who was going to drop him off somewhere too, but he was like an escort for us. He was going to take us to the hotel and settle us in. He was really nice and friendly but he obviously got some money somewhere along the line. He also tried to sell us immediately into the trekking, but it was the last thing I was thinking about at that time! We had been travelling all through the night and I hadn’t slept a wink. I was knackered and just wanted to get into a room and sleep for a couple of hours – not talk about trekking and hiking up mountains!
But what can I say about my first impressions? Well…the roads are utter madness!! I thought Vietnam was bad but this was just insane. There is absolutely no order and bikes, rickshaws, cows and buffalo, motorbikes and cars and taxis (which by the way are all Maruti Suzuki’s that, well let’s just say they woulnd’t pass the MOT test back home!!) are all hooting and weaving in and out along these tiny streets. You would think that surely they must be one way only, but no, 2 way traffic comes from all angles! The streets were old and busy and noisy, the buildings all higeldy pigedly. It had a great atmosphere even from the car.
The hostel was nice. It too had a nice atmosphere and was clean and seemed to be in a good location. Upon arrival we got settled in and was immediately introduced to the in-house travel agent to talk about trekking! We briefly discussed it but I put my foot down as talk about going to the office broke out and said I wanted to sleep first. So we arranged to meet at 12pm. They were really hot on it and obviously didn’t want to lose us to someone else. They were quite pushy which I didn’t like, but at the end of the day we did want information so we agreed to go to the office.
At 12pm we met the agent and took to the streets for the first time and WOW! I fell in love with Kathmandu immediately. Thamel is full of narrow streets that all meet up at junctions and spread out to the outer city limits. They are full of shops selling all sorts of local textiles, clothes and statues and jewellery and my goodness could I shop here!! You do however walk along the streets at your own will and risk. It’s madness! Cars and motorbikes drive like lunatics and you have to be really careful if you want to make it to your destination with all 10 toes intact! And the beeping – oh the beeping. It was even worse than Vietnam. The streets are so small and the horns soooo loud that when they speed past you, horn blaring it takes a moment before your ears stop ringing! No one cares, everyone has right of way and pedestrians seem to be the least of anyones concerns! But it makes it all the more fun.
We arrived at the office and settled in to be talked to about tours. I won’t bore you with the ins and outs, but basically we were in there for about 3 hours going over options. We haggled down to a decent price for a 6 day trek up into the Himalaya’s, checked out some other offices but came back to this one as it seemed to be the best. After being in the office for what seemed like a day we set about walking around this enchanting city. However, the monsoon rains had other plans. No sooner had we stepped out of the office the heavens opened and I mean OPENED. I have never in my life seen so much rain, so forcefully fall. We ducked into a local restaurant for some lunch in the hope that it would let up and within 15 minutes the streets were flooded. It was crazy, there was water everywhere. For a city that obviously deals with this every year, the sewer system seems to be in less than good working order! We ordered a local dish – momo (which is basically a steamed or fried dumpling with minced chicken or beef in) which was delicious, but by the time we were done it was still raining. Albeit not as bad, but we had no idea in this maze of streets where we were so we grabbed a rickshaw back to the hotel. This was great! We were squished up in the back going along the flooded streets hoping that a wheel wouldn’t get stuck in a hole that was invisible under the water, which would catapult us out!!
All in all it had been a great first day!
We had 2 days in Kathmandu before we left for Pokhara which is the jump off town for the trekking. So the following day we set off for a walk around the city. We followed a walking tour in the Lonely Liar which would take us all around the small streets and out to Durbar Square which is where the city’s Kings were once crowned and from where they ruled. It’s the traditional heart of the old town and Kathmandu’s most spectacular offer of traditional architecture. It’s also a UNESCO World heritage site since 1979. The walk down was just amazing. Kathmandu sets your senses on fire, there is just so much to take in. The noise and craziness, the daily life, the culture, the smells (not all nice) and the colours are astounding. Especially the colours. Most of the women wear saris and they choose the most beautiful bright colours. Blues, reds, hot pinks, oranges, lime greens with glittering gold outlines walk past you making a rainbow in the streets. There are men carrying massive loads of boxes or whatever on their backs supporting the weight with a strap around their head, and I mean they are carrying some heavy stuff up and down the hills and manic streets. There are children running around and the further entangled you get in the streets away from the main tourist drag the more amazing the scene becomes. Local life going on, people hanging out on the streets, playing and talking. The streets themselves become more muddy and dirty, as for within Thamel, the tourist district is impeccably clean. And everyone is sooooo friendly. Tymon was going beserk taking photos as it’s simply one great shot after another and they loved it. Everyone wanted to see them and it was rare that someone wouldn’t let him take a photo. You simply want to capture everything you see to share.
Durbar Square was great, full of temples and very peaceful compared to everywhere else. We were approached by several guides and we finally decided it would be better to get some proper information on the place rather than aimlessly wander about with our noses in the LL. Religion is central to Nepali life. Hinduism and Buddism have mingled into a blend of the two, where both are worshipped in harmony alongside each other. Kathmandu is full of temples small and large all over the city and places like Durbar Square which are complex like full of temples are extremely busy with locals coming to pray. The young and the old pray fervently coming to take the paint dye off the temple to place the third eye on their foreheads. Everyone is wearing the third eye of Shiva and women also have the red smeared through the middle parting of their hair. This indicates that they are married. If they wear yellow, they are widowed. The culture is so strong here and it’s beautiful to watch.
We also went to the house where the Living Godess lives. I find this such a strange custom. The Kumari Devi is a young girl who lives in a building in Durbar Square. There a several stories as to how the practice of having a Living Goddess came about, but my personal favourite is that a King from the 1760’s was a paedophile and had sex with a young girl. She died as a result of this and in penance he started worshipping a young girl as a Goddess. There are actually a couple of Goddesses in the Kathmandu Valley but the Royal Goddess in Durbar Square is the most important. She is selected from a particular caste of Newari (one ethnic group) gold and silversmiths. She is usually between the age of four or five when chosen and must meet 32 strict physical requirements ranging from the colour of her eyes and the shape of her teeth to sound of her voice. She must also have been born at the correct time and have the appropriate horoscope.
Once they have selected a number of candidates they are put together in a dark room where terrifying noises are made, men dance by in horrific masks and 108 gruesome buffalo heads are on display! The girl that stays the calmest is declared the new Goddess as these things are unlikely to scare her if she is a true incarnation of Durga! Remember these are four and five year olds!!
She then moves into the house in Durbar Square and is kept inside at all times. She is not ever allowed outside except for half a dozen times throughout the year for festivals!! Our guide told us that she does not live with her family but has guards, however, the parents can visit. She gets schooled inside and cannot meet anyone other than the people teaching her and looking after her! Sometimes she will come to the window in the courtyard to wave at tourists and worshippers but you cannot take any photos of her.
Her reign ends with her first period, or any serious accidental loss of blood. Once the first sign of puberty appears she reverts to the status of a normal mortal and the search for a new Kumari begins. She gets paid a retirement income and is then left to live freely. However, that life will most likely be a lonely single life as the legend is that anyone who marries a Kumari will die within six months!! It’s said that marrying an ex-Kumari is extremely unlucky!! I’ll say!
So all in all, in my humble opinion, it sounds more like a prison sentence to be chosen as a Goddess than something to be honoured by!! Can you imagine being stuck in doors all day every day never being allowed outside to play, being taken away from your parents and then being left to grow into an old spinster!? Great – thanks for that!! Lols.
But in Nepal, it is a great honour for the families and thousands enter their daughter every time!
It was an exhausting day as we had taken in so much and the city does batter your senses, but we were so satisfied. After being in Malaysia and Singapore, which, don’t get me wrong were great, they are much more civilized that the rest of S.E Asia and being in Nepal was a bit like going back to Cambodia and Vietnam. Although completely different in so many ways there are certain similarities. For instance, unfortunately we have not escaped the hacking up of phlegm routed deep down inside that is then gobbed out on the street. It is actually even more intense here in Nepal that anywhere in S.E Asia. It is utterly disgusting!! Honestly everyone does it all day everyday, women, children, grandma, everyone. No one tries to hide it or do it in any kind of polite way, it’s down right plain dirty. I asked the guide about it and he just said that as the pollution is so bad, people get a lot of dust and dirt in their mouths and throats and it’s the best way to get rid of it. He found it funny that we find it so rude and nasty. Here it’s just normal! Another similarity is the rubbish. My god, they certainly have no concerns about their surrounding environment. While the roads and pavements are generally clean in the tourist areas, once you get into busier more local areas of the city there is rubbish everywhere. They throw everything on the floor, in the gutters and the ‘rivers’ are piled high with rubbish! I’ve never seen anything like it.
But, Kathmandu just really brought back the feeling that we were travelling. Getting down and dirty and witnessing something so totally different. This is what you come to experience when you pack your bags! This is what it’s all about!
Our final day in Kathmandu, we had agreed for the guide from Durbar Square to meet us at our hotel and take us around some of the towns on the outskirts of Kathmandu. First stop was Pashupatinath, the ultimate city of Hindu spiritural power, housing Nepal’s most important Hindu temple. Devotees of Shiva come from all over the subcontinent and many Nepalis choose to be cremated on the banks of the holy Bagmati river. It was on this day that I witnessed my first dead body.
Along the river in the complex of Pashupatinath Temple they have cremation ghats (platforms) on which Nepalis are cremated daily. Bodies are carried in on stretcher like boards, wrapped in shrouds and are laid out on top of a wooden pyre. It’s rather formal and business like. There are many people surrounding the ghats but there is no crying or somber mood. There are rituals carried out about the body and we saw the unwrapping of one in order to be blessed before being covered and set alight.
How did it feel? Surreal. You can’t quite contemplate the fact that there is a dead human being, being set on fire. That there are infact 3 or four raging fires of humans infront of your eyes, but it is a powerful place to contemplate death and mortality. In the end, the ashes are swept into the river, along with any shrouds that were removed before the cremation and any other debris to take it’s journey to the sacred Ganges in India. Although, at this time of year as the rains have not fully come in, the river is rather low and barely flowing, so a lot of it just sits and coagulates!
Infront of the main temple is where members of the royal family only can be cremated and is where the funerals of 10 members of the Nepali royal family took place after the massacre in 2001. “On June 1st 2001 they were gunned down in a hail of bullets during a gathering at the Royal Palace by the deranged, drunken Crown Prince Dipendra who eventually turned the gun onto himself. However, he did not die straight away and despite being in a coma was pronounced King of Nepal! His rule ended 2 days later when he was declared dead!
The real motive behind the massacre will never be known, but many believe Dipendra’s murderous, drug-fuelled rage was prompted by his parents’ disapproval of the woman he wanted to marry. In the days that followed the massacre a tide of emotions washed over the Nepali people – shock, horror, grief, disbelief and denial. A 13 day mourning period was declared and in Kathmandu impromptu shrines were set up for people to worship their King and Queen. About 400 shaven headed men roamed the streets around the palace carrying photos and half a million people turned out on the streets for the funeral procession. All over the city barbers were shaving the heads of other men, a mark of grief in Hindu tradition.
Following the disbelief and shock came suspicion and a host of conspiracy theories, many concerning the new King and his son.
A surreal royal exorcism followed on the 11th day of mourning, as a high caste priest, dressed in the gold suit, shoes and black rimmed glasses of the King and donning a paper crown, climbed onto an elephant and slowly lumbered out of the valley taking with him the ghost of the dead King. The same ritual was carried out for Dipendra also, except that a pregnant woman dashed underneath his elephant en-route, believing this would ensure she gave birth to a boy. But she was trampled by the elephant and died, adding a further twist to the tragedy. No one will know what happened that night and as one reporter said ‘We lost the truth; we lost our history.’ Only stories and anecdotes are left to content themselves with.” Lonely Liar
There are also many Sadhus in the complex. Sadhus are Hindu’s who have left their homes, jobs and families and embarked upon a spiritual search. They usually wander around half naked, smeared in dust, faces painted brightly, with matted dreadlocked hair, carrying nothing but a trident and a begging bowl. Some are simply beggars disguised in religion (a bit like monks if you ask me) but apparently most are genuine in their search. So no need to say that Tymon spent a fair amount of time negotiating fees to take photos! (Yes, exactly you have to pay to take a photograph!) But you have to check out his website: www.melikepainting.com as he got some fantastic shots!!
After that slightly depressing start to the day, we went to the much more joyful and beautiful Bodhnath. Thousands of pilgrims gather here daily to walk around the stupa under the watchful eyes of the Buddha which gaze out from the central tower. There are colourful scripture flags hung all over the stupa and square and it’s absolutely beautiful. It has a very old quaint feeling about it and reminded me a little of Delft. The shops surrounding the stupa all add to the charm selling everything from beautiful artwork, butter lamps, ceremonial horns, drums, singing bowls and other paraphernalia essential to Buddhist life. It’s wonderful and you get great views from the roof top terraces of the city and hills.
Our final stop for the day was Monkey Temple in Swayambhunath, another Buddhist temple. It’s aptly named Monkey Temple as there are hundreds of monkeys and it is soaring above the city on top of a hilltop. The complex is centered around a gleaming white stupa topped by a spire painted with the eyes of Buddha. (These eyes appear all over Kathmandu.) It’s another lovely complex with ancient carvings on every spare inch of space and the smell of incense and butter lamps hangs in the air. Of course no temple complex is complete without some shops selling masks and jewellery and paintings. Tymon fell in love with a little mask, which personally I find rather frightening, so we spent a while haggling the price for that before heading back into Thamel, back to the hostel.
That night the Netherlands were playing Cameroon so we cracked open the rum, met up with some nice people and sat in the lounge area of the hostel to watch. However, I was soooo tired, so when the screen froze I took it as my chance to get away to bed. Play resumed after about 20 minutes I was told and they were just lucky that it only froze. If the power had gone out that would have been worse! I don’t think there are many capital cities in the world where electricity is unavailable for up to 16 hours a day! Electricity cuts are a fact of life in Kathmandu. Electricity is currently rationed across the city shifting from district to district every eight hours or so. (They had a similar structure in Indonesia) so in most hostels you will find a schedule of planned electricity cuts. At first this is kind of endearing, but after a while it’s just plain annoying!
So it had been another incredible day! The following day we were leaving bright and early to Pokhara, to start our trek into the Himalayas!!
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Luxury, Food, Sleep and More Food!!
We arrived back in KL earlier than my parents but had been given the confirmation to take to the hotel so we could check in before them. Last time we had arrived in KL it had been really easy to get about and find our way to the hostel so we decided to get the monorail from the station drop off to the hotel. There was a station right by it so it would be easy. However, outside it was raining, pouring and when we got to the monorail station there was a big crowd of people and we were gutted to find out that it wasn’t running. We were told we could take a bus so we walked across the road to get the bus which was packed out and dropped us off about 5 minutes down the road actually right at the end of the road where we had stayed the first time round. We got off that bus and tried to figure out where the hell the next one would leave from. We walked in the rain around the corner and finally found a stop with the right bus. Or so we thought. On we got and asked if it went to the road the hotel was on. On the map we had it looked like a very long road and in the end the guys on the bus had no idea where we wanted to go or had never heard of our hotel. I mean it was a big 5 star hotel, I thought a bus driver would have heard of it. They then told us to get off at a shopping mall and told us that our hotel was in the shopping mall!! Confused and annoyed we got off the bus and asked the guard in the mall who said it was a 15 minute walk up the road. It was still raining so we hailed a cab and finally within minutes we were pulling up into a driveway of a huge glittering hotel. The doors were opened by doormen, our luggage taken in on trolleys and we were ushered to reception. The lobby was massive with dual spiral staircases going up in the middle and a piano lounge bar underneath them.
I thought perhaps we would have some trouble checking in without dad as it was all in his name and on his credit card, but it was no problem. We established which room we were in and grabbed our bags off the trolley, as the porter was not about, which would also save us having to tip (there’s nothing worse than tipping rubbish cos you can’t afford a lot. It’s best not to bother at all in that case, but then you feel even worse cos you’re staying in a 5 star hotel and don’t tip!!) and headed up to the room.
The room was amazing, very big and plush with a huge king size bed and the bathroom was about the same size as our spare bedroom at home. It was great!! We dumped our bags, looked at each other and ran and jumped on the bed like little kids! After 8 months travelling – this was bliss!
We showered and watched TV and waited for my parents to arrive. I rang reception to ask them to call us when they checked in and a couple of hours later my dads voice was on the phone saying they were down stairs. They were coming up in the lift, so I ran out into the corridor like a child on Christmas morning and the doors pinged open and there they were. Oh it was soooooo good to see them. I hugged my mum and we both shed a tear – what a reunion! Haha.
We settled them into the hotel (after finding out that we had actually been given their room as it was better with a balcony view of the twin towers – but they did refuse to take it and swap with us – we tried!!) and we got ready to go out for dinner.
Dad has been to KL quite a few times on business and he said he knew of a good place nearby, so we went for a walk to find it. The thing was that it had been a while since Dad had been in KL and he had to get his bearings. We walked and walked and were looking for an Irish bar on the corner, but we came to the main junction and couldn’t find it anywhere. It was getting late so we found a steak house and went in.
It was so surreal to be sitting in KL with my parents having dinner. It was lovely. We ordered some wine which was amazing and steak and the whole meal was delicious. A real feast for us.
Breakfast was included in our stay so we got up early and went down and oh my lord – what a spread!! Bread and cheese and olives and curry and fresh made omelets, fruit and whatever you could imagine! It was brilliant. I gorged myself on brie and bread – yummy!!
That morning we went back to hand in our passports as clearance had come for our Indian visas, so we decided to meet up with mum and dad later at the KL Tower. You can go up the Petronas Towers (the Twin Towers) but you have to queue early in the morning and then return at a designated time for your 15 min slot to walk along the bridge and quite frankly the KL Tower is higher and much better. It’s like a much bigger Euromast in NL. The views are pretty impressive and you get a great 360 degree view over the city with a headset with a lady who sounds like she’s being held at gunpoint, telling you what you can see from each window.
Following the Tower, mum and dad headed back to the hotel to sit around the lovely pool and Tymon and I went for an extra walk around town, as this time we were staying in the classy part! It was much nicer than seedy China Town. We headed towards the Twin Towers which are the tallest Twin Towers in the world…now. There’s a big shopping mall attached to one of the towers so we went to have a look around and grab some lunch before heading back towards the hotel. We walked through a lovely park which had a huge playground in for kids and a fountain pool area which was packed. It was so lovely. I have never seen such a large play area for kids in a public park; it was so nice, something that would be great in the UK – although it would probably be vandalized within a week!
Back at the hotel we joined mum and dad by the pool for a quick swim before relaxing in the room, taking a bubble bath and getting ready for dinner.
That morning while we had gone to do our visas mum and dad had gone for a walk again to look for this Irish restaurant/bar as dad was adamant he knew where it was. It had taken them a while but finally they had found it. It was closed down! That was why we had walked right by it, but dad knew where things were now so we grabbed a cab and headed to a road not far away which was full of bars and restaurants. We went to a lovely Latin bar for some pre dinner drinks and it was so sophisticated. I was just gutted I didn’t have anything nice to wear. I am so sick and tired of living in the same 5/6 outfits everyday no matter what the occasion!! But the drinks were great and dinner even better. Dad took us to a tapas restaurant that he has been to before where they do suckling pig which he wanted to have. But the tapas just looked too good for Tymon and I so we ordered that which we shared and then the suckling pig. But it was a whole charade that came with the pig. First they brought it whole to the table and then with a plate the waiter gets one of you to make the first cut with it. Tymon did the honours and after you’ve made the first cut you then smash the plate. It was all quite good fun. They then take the pig away to cut it up properly. It was much better than the pig we had had in Cantho, Vietnam, but I have to admit – I’m not actually a fan. I thought I liked suckling pig but infact I don’t really. I like pork belly with a bit of crispy skin but the rest of it has too strong a flavour for me. But another gorgeous meal had been eaten and completely stuffed we headed back to the hotel.
After another eat till you burst breakfast, for our final day in KL we went to a butterfly farm and bird avery. Both were really big and open with nets high above so that they are enclosed, but for the most part it’s as if they are free. Both were really nice. The bird park was a bit too big for mum to walk around so after seeing the best part her and dad went back to the hotel while Tymon and I finished up. Towards the end of the park it started to pour with rain and at the entrance they only had organized taxis that you had to pre pay a fixed amount for which was quite a lot. We didn’t want to pay that as personally I think it’s a big rip off and before I forget actually the taxis in KL are disgusting! By law they are supposed to be metered, but when you get in they won’t put it on and will charge you a lot up front. When you stop a taxi and ask them to put the meter on they refuse so you have to flag down about 5 taxis before you find a legit one. It’s so annoying. But when we confronted several drivers they said it’s a pact that taxi drivers have made as the metered fares set by the government are too low. They just don’t cover the time and cost for the drivers, and I have to admit, fares are really cheap! What would cost you GBP10 in a black cab back home would cost you about GBP3 in KL. So you can kind of understand their viewpoint but it’s still really irritating.
But anyway, we couldn’t find a cab so we waited by the main road hoping to get one but a local guy at the bus stop with some tourists said that none would stop as they all have to go via the registered pre paid booth. The next thing you know he is offering to drive us into town. He said he was a private tour guide and he said he’d take us for a decent price so we agreed and got in the car. Now ordinarily you’d think this was a recipe for disaster, but the Malaysians are so friendly. We didn’t feel threatened or that he was going to drive us off into the middle of nowhere so we hopped in back to town. And it was fine, he dropped us off as promised where we needed to go. We did a spot of shopping before going to collect our passports. Mum and dad needed beach towels for our next stop, Sibu Island, so afterwards we went to the market mall to see if we could get them some cheap ones. I found some in a personalized embroidery shop so we decided to buy them as a present. We got their names and the Malaysian flag put on and 2010 so they would remember this vacation!!
Their response was funny – dad just opened the bag and looked at it and said ‘oh Cathy…’ and stuffed it back in the bag. He didn’t even realize that they were personalized! Hahaha. But hopefully they liked them, even though it meant more baggage for them to take home.
That night came another, if not the best dinner! Oh my goodness it was such a feast every day! Tonight we walked back to the main strip where we had been the night before and went to an Italian, and we knew we’d hit jackpot when at the back of the restaurant we saw a ham counter with all the antipasto meats – wow! We swiftly ordered some crisp white wine and a plate of meats, which on arrival I nearly demolished all by myself. The serano ham was incredible and salami oh yum – it was heaven!! We’d also ordered mains of pasta etc but couldn’t finish. It was all soooo utterly delicious, probably the best Italian I’ve had, but it was too much. Already in 3 days I felt like I’d gained a stone! (And probably had lols!) So with a belly that could pass for a 6 month pregnancy we returned to the hotel for our final night in utter luxury before heading to Sibu Island where we had a completely different kind of trip awaiting.
Dad had managed to find a hotel on a small island not far from Tioman Island in S.E Malaysia. He said it was going to be very basic huts on the beach and the resort was all there was. It was on a cove island all to itself and you had to walk through the jungle across the island to get to next resort. It sounded great – complete relaxation. We’d pre-purchased our bus tickets so arrived at the bus station and boarded for the 6 hour journey. Dad had already booked a pick up for us to take us to the island so when we got off the bus the driver was waiting for us. We piled into the private minibus thinking that we would have a quick 10 minute ride to the jetty to get the boat to the island, so were surprised when we found out we had another 3 hour journey out to the coast. The traffic was really bad so when we finally hit the narrow winding roads, we were all holding on for dear life as the driver put his foot to the floor! Finally we arrived at the jetty and got on the boat for the 20 mins journey to Sibu.
It was so funny to see mum and travelling like this, on a bus and getting on a boat and putting on life jackets. Tymon and I and dad to some extent, are so used to schlepping from place to place by bus or train, but it was strange to have mum and dad do it too. But in a good way. I was so happy and proud to be sharing this whole adventure with them.
20 minutes later we pulled up to a beautiful strip of beach surrounded by coral that was twinkling beneath the surface of the turquoise ocean. Beth, the lady who dad had been dealing with was waiting to meet us. She helped us off with our luggage and the porters came and took them to our cabins. I really wasn’t sure what to expect but was thinking it was going to be along the same lines as some of the huts we had stayed in in Thailand, but the cabins where so much nicer. They were really nice and spacious with a nice open bathroom (not completely, but open at the top with a view out) and they weren’t like saunas. Good first impression! As for the rest of the resort, there was one main hut which was the bar/lounge area and a balcony where we ate dinner overlooking the beach and ocean. It was perfect, idyllic and exactly what dad had been hoping for – a break away from it all. Mum was stressing about her hair as she had no hair dryer so I just explained that that’s the way to be on the beach – au naturel!! All our meals were included, breakfast, lunch and dinner and they were set meals which at first I was a bit dubious about, but after the first dinner which was a BBQ I had no worries. Well maybe one – my hips and butt were in for another bashing!!
We were on Sibu for 5 days and it was superb. Dad was right, there was absolutely nothing to do and nowhere to go apart from the beach and ocean. We snorkeled and the coral was beautiful and it was everywhere, so many fish and Tymon even saw a reef shark one day. I was gutted I didn’t see it, although seriously relived also as I think I would have had a heart attack if I had seen it. We sunbathed, drank a lot, ate a LOT, read, played scrabble (which we bought in KL as Tymon and I are now quite addicted) and cards. We only had one days rain but the rest was lovely and hot and cloudy in the afternoon which was nice so it was cooler. It was perfect temperature at night also so the fan was just right – no need for aircon, which they didn’t have anyway.
One day we decided to walk across to the other side of the island to the other resort. It was about a 20 minute walk through the jungle and all four of us went so that meant taking it slow. As most of you know mum suffers real bad from arthritis and has bad feet and unfortunately she isn’t doing too well with her knees at the moment, so it was a really challenging walk for her. All I want to say is – mum I am sooooooo extremely proud of you. You did so well and I can only imagine how frustrating it is for you, but you did it! You were amazing and I hope you are proud of yourself, I know it wasn’t easy for you.
On the otherside the resort was much bigger than ours but also much less intimate. It didn’t have half the charm or appeal as ours so we were really pleased. Also there was no coral this side so we really had gotten the best deal! None of us were eager to walk back through the jungle as we had all gotten bitten to bits! There were sooo many mosquitoes, so we got the resort to take us back on the boat. It only took 5 minutes to round the cove and it was way better than going through the walk again!
We also did a dive trip seeing as we are newly licensed. We went out to a nearby reef island and it was ok. It was nice to be back under water and hone up on our skills but the reef was pretty lifeless and the water real murky. I’m looking forward to the next trip to be able to do some diving in some great places like the Philippines.
As the week went on the oddest thing happened. Mum and dad were up usually fairly early and one morning dad said that at about 7.30am he looked out of the balcony and the tide was completely out for miles. All the coral was exposed and it had looked really spooky. When he told us how far out it had gone I didn’t really believe him as it seemed impossible that it would be out that far, but the following morning we set our alarm and low and behold the tide was out. Far far out. We walked out inbetween the coral and could see all the plants flopped out all jelly like. It was really bizarre. The most puzzling thing was what happened to the clown fish (Nemo’s). Clown fish live in one anemone and don’t leave it, they are fiercely protective of it, so it seemed impossible to think that they got swept out to sea and would return. When we asked the dive instructor about it he said that the anemone was attached to the ocean floor by a cord like stem and the clown fish retreat into this stem when the tide goes out to hide and wait it out. How cool is that? When we were looking at them all exposed the clown fish were in them – madness. We walked to the end of the cove and along the rocks to the point where the cove rounds off and the water starts. Underneath the shallow water we could see the coral shining and shimmering and coral really does look way more beautiful underwater that out of it. Let’s just hope the tidal movements don’t destroy it!
So what else for Sibu…did I say it was heaven? After much relaxation it was time to get back on the boat and head down to Singapore for the final part of the trip with my parents.
The journey to Singapore was much shorter. We had a private transfer again which was great so we could relax and sleep back down the windy roads. We got dropped off right at our hotel and unlike last time we were in a much better hotel. The Royal Chulan it wasn’t (hotel in KL) but it was very nice.
We had 2 days in Singapore with mum and dad before they flew onto Hong Kong so after freshening up we went for a walk around the area. We were staying in Little India so walked through all the streets lined with local restaurants and market stalls selling saris and bangles. We brought some drinks from 7 11 so we could have some drinks in the hotel before dinner.
That night in order to say thank you for taking treating us so much Tymon and I took them for dinner at the all you can eat Japanese restaurant that we got taken to last time we were in Singapore. We were so excited to have the crab and lobster and all the yummy food!! And it didn’t disappoint. It was just as good as last time, although they had hot lobster instead of cold which wasn’t as good, but everything else was just the same so we slowly started through the food stuffing ourselves full!
The next day, after a disturbing night for mum and dad (they moved rooms twice due to noise and aircon problems) and after breakfast that we got given because of the problems, we jumped in a taxi down to Sentosa, the island of Singapore. There’s a lot to do supposedly down there, what with casinos, and a fun parks and beaches, but I have to admit, it’s the most confusing place. We arrived at some sort of main mall type place where they have a big Vegas type show on and the entrance for Universal the mini version and asked around as we had no idea where we needed to go. We finally found out we needed to take the monorail to Sentosa side which we did and then we were right back in the same situation. There were signposts everywhere but not a lot going on. We started walking in one direction but couldn’t walk on the road so had to go back. We found ourselves walking along to the beach which was ok, it looked nice if you had come prepared for the beach but seeing as we had just spent a week on the beach we were hoping to something more. But there was nothing going on so we walked back got in a cab and asked to go a boat quay where we thought we could perhaps pick up a cruise tour. However, on arrival there was only one but it was leaving for another 2 hours or so, so we gave up. We hopped into a cab, dropped mum and dad off at the Singapore Eye (the same thing as the London Eye) and Tymon and I went back to the hotel.
That night, NL were playing in the WC so we decided to head to Orchard Road which is the main shopping street like Oxford Circus to find a bar that dad knew from when he had been in Singapore for business. But unfortunately as with in KL it had been a while and he wasn’t exactly sure where on orchard Road we needed to be. The taxi driver managed to mention the name of an office tower that dad recognized the name of so we got dropped off there. There were a couple of Irish bars and sports bars but dad didn’t think there were the ones so we went for a walk further up the road to find it. However, time was running out. Kick off was imminent and Orchard Road is a long road. It could have been anywhere. So, we headed back to where we had got dropped of and went into a sports bar. We managed to secure a table as it was pretty busy and got to the business of drinking, eating and hupping for Holland. Dad went across the road to have a look at the other bar incase they had a better table, but when he came back he said it was full – but…it was the bar that he had been talking about!! Hahaha. You got there in the end dad!!
And that was it – their time was up and they were leaving first thing in the morning for HK. I couldn’t believe it, time had flown but it had been soooooo good to see them and so great to share the experiences with them. Mum has never done anything like this and I was so happy for her to have travelled to this part of the world.
Tymon and I had another 2 days in Singapore until our flight to Nepal and it was also Tymon’s birthday. The night we had been in Orchard Road, there was a supermarket next to the bar, so I made up and excuse and took mum in to buy a birthday cake for Tymon. It was a bit difficult to pass it off so that he wouldn’t know, but I had a cover. The day mum and dad left was Father’s Day, so he thought I was sorting something out for dad. He didn’t question what was in the bag so I managed to get the cake back to the hotel with no questions asked. Phew! Mum left it with the restaurant staff so the next day at midnight I arranged to have it brought up to the room!
On Sibu we had met a really nice guy called Guy who lived in Singapore so we invited him over to the hotel to have some drinks and watch the football (a Brazil game) and we were pretty chuffed when he turned up! Even though I looked a right mess as I just been to the gym!! Finally.
Anyway I’d arranged for the cake, an Oreo cheesecake, to be delivered to the room, but then Tymon wanted to go down to the Lobby to watch the football, so I then had to sneak about at reception to ask if they could bring it to the Lobby, but then the lady said the cake was in the fridge in the bar we were sitting at so she wouldn’t be able to get it out without him seeing it! So it was all going wrong. But!...thankfully the game ended and after a bit of chat with 10 minutes to go to midnight, Tymon said we should go back up to the room. So I loitered behind and told the lady that the original plan was back on.
Back in the room, 5 minutes later there’s a knock on the door. Tymon opens it and there’s the lady with another guy holding the cake singing Happy Birthday! Lols. Bless her, and Tymon was totally surprised! Ah, mission accomplished! Midnight came and Tymon was 31!! Old bastard!! Hahaha! We ate the cake which was really good, continued on the bacardi and talked the night away.
For his actual birthday I surprised him with a picnic in the botanical gardens. I went back to the store where I had brought the cake as it had a fantastic deli counter and brought parma ham and salami and old Amsterdam cheese!! Olives and garlic butter and baguette. Oh it was like a Saturday afternoon after a trip to Aldi back home. Brilliant. It was a lovely day and I hope he enjoyed it.
And that’s it really; our time in S.E Asia was over. A new adventure was waiting in Nepal and India.
The last 8 months have seemed like a life time and it seems so long that we were in SA.
2 months to go, 2 countries….
I thought perhaps we would have some trouble checking in without dad as it was all in his name and on his credit card, but it was no problem. We established which room we were in and grabbed our bags off the trolley, as the porter was not about, which would also save us having to tip (there’s nothing worse than tipping rubbish cos you can’t afford a lot. It’s best not to bother at all in that case, but then you feel even worse cos you’re staying in a 5 star hotel and don’t tip!!) and headed up to the room.
The room was amazing, very big and plush with a huge king size bed and the bathroom was about the same size as our spare bedroom at home. It was great!! We dumped our bags, looked at each other and ran and jumped on the bed like little kids! After 8 months travelling – this was bliss!
We showered and watched TV and waited for my parents to arrive. I rang reception to ask them to call us when they checked in and a couple of hours later my dads voice was on the phone saying they were down stairs. They were coming up in the lift, so I ran out into the corridor like a child on Christmas morning and the doors pinged open and there they were. Oh it was soooooo good to see them. I hugged my mum and we both shed a tear – what a reunion! Haha.
We settled them into the hotel (after finding out that we had actually been given their room as it was better with a balcony view of the twin towers – but they did refuse to take it and swap with us – we tried!!) and we got ready to go out for dinner.
Dad has been to KL quite a few times on business and he said he knew of a good place nearby, so we went for a walk to find it. The thing was that it had been a while since Dad had been in KL and he had to get his bearings. We walked and walked and were looking for an Irish bar on the corner, but we came to the main junction and couldn’t find it anywhere. It was getting late so we found a steak house and went in.
It was so surreal to be sitting in KL with my parents having dinner. It was lovely. We ordered some wine which was amazing and steak and the whole meal was delicious. A real feast for us.
Breakfast was included in our stay so we got up early and went down and oh my lord – what a spread!! Bread and cheese and olives and curry and fresh made omelets, fruit and whatever you could imagine! It was brilliant. I gorged myself on brie and bread – yummy!!
That morning we went back to hand in our passports as clearance had come for our Indian visas, so we decided to meet up with mum and dad later at the KL Tower. You can go up the Petronas Towers (the Twin Towers) but you have to queue early in the morning and then return at a designated time for your 15 min slot to walk along the bridge and quite frankly the KL Tower is higher and much better. It’s like a much bigger Euromast in NL. The views are pretty impressive and you get a great 360 degree view over the city with a headset with a lady who sounds like she’s being held at gunpoint, telling you what you can see from each window.
Following the Tower, mum and dad headed back to the hotel to sit around the lovely pool and Tymon and I went for an extra walk around town, as this time we were staying in the classy part! It was much nicer than seedy China Town. We headed towards the Twin Towers which are the tallest Twin Towers in the world…now. There’s a big shopping mall attached to one of the towers so we went to have a look around and grab some lunch before heading back towards the hotel. We walked through a lovely park which had a huge playground in for kids and a fountain pool area which was packed. It was so lovely. I have never seen such a large play area for kids in a public park; it was so nice, something that would be great in the UK – although it would probably be vandalized within a week!
Back at the hotel we joined mum and dad by the pool for a quick swim before relaxing in the room, taking a bubble bath and getting ready for dinner.
That morning while we had gone to do our visas mum and dad had gone for a walk again to look for this Irish restaurant/bar as dad was adamant he knew where it was. It had taken them a while but finally they had found it. It was closed down! That was why we had walked right by it, but dad knew where things were now so we grabbed a cab and headed to a road not far away which was full of bars and restaurants. We went to a lovely Latin bar for some pre dinner drinks and it was so sophisticated. I was just gutted I didn’t have anything nice to wear. I am so sick and tired of living in the same 5/6 outfits everyday no matter what the occasion!! But the drinks were great and dinner even better. Dad took us to a tapas restaurant that he has been to before where they do suckling pig which he wanted to have. But the tapas just looked too good for Tymon and I so we ordered that which we shared and then the suckling pig. But it was a whole charade that came with the pig. First they brought it whole to the table and then with a plate the waiter gets one of you to make the first cut with it. Tymon did the honours and after you’ve made the first cut you then smash the plate. It was all quite good fun. They then take the pig away to cut it up properly. It was much better than the pig we had had in Cantho, Vietnam, but I have to admit – I’m not actually a fan. I thought I liked suckling pig but infact I don’t really. I like pork belly with a bit of crispy skin but the rest of it has too strong a flavour for me. But another gorgeous meal had been eaten and completely stuffed we headed back to the hotel.
After another eat till you burst breakfast, for our final day in KL we went to a butterfly farm and bird avery. Both were really big and open with nets high above so that they are enclosed, but for the most part it’s as if they are free. Both were really nice. The bird park was a bit too big for mum to walk around so after seeing the best part her and dad went back to the hotel while Tymon and I finished up. Towards the end of the park it started to pour with rain and at the entrance they only had organized taxis that you had to pre pay a fixed amount for which was quite a lot. We didn’t want to pay that as personally I think it’s a big rip off and before I forget actually the taxis in KL are disgusting! By law they are supposed to be metered, but when you get in they won’t put it on and will charge you a lot up front. When you stop a taxi and ask them to put the meter on they refuse so you have to flag down about 5 taxis before you find a legit one. It’s so annoying. But when we confronted several drivers they said it’s a pact that taxi drivers have made as the metered fares set by the government are too low. They just don’t cover the time and cost for the drivers, and I have to admit, fares are really cheap! What would cost you GBP10 in a black cab back home would cost you about GBP3 in KL. So you can kind of understand their viewpoint but it’s still really irritating.
But anyway, we couldn’t find a cab so we waited by the main road hoping to get one but a local guy at the bus stop with some tourists said that none would stop as they all have to go via the registered pre paid booth. The next thing you know he is offering to drive us into town. He said he was a private tour guide and he said he’d take us for a decent price so we agreed and got in the car. Now ordinarily you’d think this was a recipe for disaster, but the Malaysians are so friendly. We didn’t feel threatened or that he was going to drive us off into the middle of nowhere so we hopped in back to town. And it was fine, he dropped us off as promised where we needed to go. We did a spot of shopping before going to collect our passports. Mum and dad needed beach towels for our next stop, Sibu Island, so afterwards we went to the market mall to see if we could get them some cheap ones. I found some in a personalized embroidery shop so we decided to buy them as a present. We got their names and the Malaysian flag put on and 2010 so they would remember this vacation!!
Their response was funny – dad just opened the bag and looked at it and said ‘oh Cathy…’ and stuffed it back in the bag. He didn’t even realize that they were personalized! Hahaha. But hopefully they liked them, even though it meant more baggage for them to take home.
That night came another, if not the best dinner! Oh my goodness it was such a feast every day! Tonight we walked back to the main strip where we had been the night before and went to an Italian, and we knew we’d hit jackpot when at the back of the restaurant we saw a ham counter with all the antipasto meats – wow! We swiftly ordered some crisp white wine and a plate of meats, which on arrival I nearly demolished all by myself. The serano ham was incredible and salami oh yum – it was heaven!! We’d also ordered mains of pasta etc but couldn’t finish. It was all soooo utterly delicious, probably the best Italian I’ve had, but it was too much. Already in 3 days I felt like I’d gained a stone! (And probably had lols!) So with a belly that could pass for a 6 month pregnancy we returned to the hotel for our final night in utter luxury before heading to Sibu Island where we had a completely different kind of trip awaiting.
Dad had managed to find a hotel on a small island not far from Tioman Island in S.E Malaysia. He said it was going to be very basic huts on the beach and the resort was all there was. It was on a cove island all to itself and you had to walk through the jungle across the island to get to next resort. It sounded great – complete relaxation. We’d pre-purchased our bus tickets so arrived at the bus station and boarded for the 6 hour journey. Dad had already booked a pick up for us to take us to the island so when we got off the bus the driver was waiting for us. We piled into the private minibus thinking that we would have a quick 10 minute ride to the jetty to get the boat to the island, so were surprised when we found out we had another 3 hour journey out to the coast. The traffic was really bad so when we finally hit the narrow winding roads, we were all holding on for dear life as the driver put his foot to the floor! Finally we arrived at the jetty and got on the boat for the 20 mins journey to Sibu.
It was so funny to see mum and travelling like this, on a bus and getting on a boat and putting on life jackets. Tymon and I and dad to some extent, are so used to schlepping from place to place by bus or train, but it was strange to have mum and dad do it too. But in a good way. I was so happy and proud to be sharing this whole adventure with them.
20 minutes later we pulled up to a beautiful strip of beach surrounded by coral that was twinkling beneath the surface of the turquoise ocean. Beth, the lady who dad had been dealing with was waiting to meet us. She helped us off with our luggage and the porters came and took them to our cabins. I really wasn’t sure what to expect but was thinking it was going to be along the same lines as some of the huts we had stayed in in Thailand, but the cabins where so much nicer. They were really nice and spacious with a nice open bathroom (not completely, but open at the top with a view out) and they weren’t like saunas. Good first impression! As for the rest of the resort, there was one main hut which was the bar/lounge area and a balcony where we ate dinner overlooking the beach and ocean. It was perfect, idyllic and exactly what dad had been hoping for – a break away from it all. Mum was stressing about her hair as she had no hair dryer so I just explained that that’s the way to be on the beach – au naturel!! All our meals were included, breakfast, lunch and dinner and they were set meals which at first I was a bit dubious about, but after the first dinner which was a BBQ I had no worries. Well maybe one – my hips and butt were in for another bashing!!
We were on Sibu for 5 days and it was superb. Dad was right, there was absolutely nothing to do and nowhere to go apart from the beach and ocean. We snorkeled and the coral was beautiful and it was everywhere, so many fish and Tymon even saw a reef shark one day. I was gutted I didn’t see it, although seriously relived also as I think I would have had a heart attack if I had seen it. We sunbathed, drank a lot, ate a LOT, read, played scrabble (which we bought in KL as Tymon and I are now quite addicted) and cards. We only had one days rain but the rest was lovely and hot and cloudy in the afternoon which was nice so it was cooler. It was perfect temperature at night also so the fan was just right – no need for aircon, which they didn’t have anyway.
One day we decided to walk across to the other side of the island to the other resort. It was about a 20 minute walk through the jungle and all four of us went so that meant taking it slow. As most of you know mum suffers real bad from arthritis and has bad feet and unfortunately she isn’t doing too well with her knees at the moment, so it was a really challenging walk for her. All I want to say is – mum I am sooooooo extremely proud of you. You did so well and I can only imagine how frustrating it is for you, but you did it! You were amazing and I hope you are proud of yourself, I know it wasn’t easy for you.
On the otherside the resort was much bigger than ours but also much less intimate. It didn’t have half the charm or appeal as ours so we were really pleased. Also there was no coral this side so we really had gotten the best deal! None of us were eager to walk back through the jungle as we had all gotten bitten to bits! There were sooo many mosquitoes, so we got the resort to take us back on the boat. It only took 5 minutes to round the cove and it was way better than going through the walk again!
We also did a dive trip seeing as we are newly licensed. We went out to a nearby reef island and it was ok. It was nice to be back under water and hone up on our skills but the reef was pretty lifeless and the water real murky. I’m looking forward to the next trip to be able to do some diving in some great places like the Philippines.
As the week went on the oddest thing happened. Mum and dad were up usually fairly early and one morning dad said that at about 7.30am he looked out of the balcony and the tide was completely out for miles. All the coral was exposed and it had looked really spooky. When he told us how far out it had gone I didn’t really believe him as it seemed impossible that it would be out that far, but the following morning we set our alarm and low and behold the tide was out. Far far out. We walked out inbetween the coral and could see all the plants flopped out all jelly like. It was really bizarre. The most puzzling thing was what happened to the clown fish (Nemo’s). Clown fish live in one anemone and don’t leave it, they are fiercely protective of it, so it seemed impossible to think that they got swept out to sea and would return. When we asked the dive instructor about it he said that the anemone was attached to the ocean floor by a cord like stem and the clown fish retreat into this stem when the tide goes out to hide and wait it out. How cool is that? When we were looking at them all exposed the clown fish were in them – madness. We walked to the end of the cove and along the rocks to the point where the cove rounds off and the water starts. Underneath the shallow water we could see the coral shining and shimmering and coral really does look way more beautiful underwater that out of it. Let’s just hope the tidal movements don’t destroy it!
So what else for Sibu…did I say it was heaven? After much relaxation it was time to get back on the boat and head down to Singapore for the final part of the trip with my parents.
The journey to Singapore was much shorter. We had a private transfer again which was great so we could relax and sleep back down the windy roads. We got dropped off right at our hotel and unlike last time we were in a much better hotel. The Royal Chulan it wasn’t (hotel in KL) but it was very nice.
We had 2 days in Singapore with mum and dad before they flew onto Hong Kong so after freshening up we went for a walk around the area. We were staying in Little India so walked through all the streets lined with local restaurants and market stalls selling saris and bangles. We brought some drinks from 7 11 so we could have some drinks in the hotel before dinner.
That night in order to say thank you for taking treating us so much Tymon and I took them for dinner at the all you can eat Japanese restaurant that we got taken to last time we were in Singapore. We were so excited to have the crab and lobster and all the yummy food!! And it didn’t disappoint. It was just as good as last time, although they had hot lobster instead of cold which wasn’t as good, but everything else was just the same so we slowly started through the food stuffing ourselves full!
The next day, after a disturbing night for mum and dad (they moved rooms twice due to noise and aircon problems) and after breakfast that we got given because of the problems, we jumped in a taxi down to Sentosa, the island of Singapore. There’s a lot to do supposedly down there, what with casinos, and a fun parks and beaches, but I have to admit, it’s the most confusing place. We arrived at some sort of main mall type place where they have a big Vegas type show on and the entrance for Universal the mini version and asked around as we had no idea where we needed to go. We finally found out we needed to take the monorail to Sentosa side which we did and then we were right back in the same situation. There were signposts everywhere but not a lot going on. We started walking in one direction but couldn’t walk on the road so had to go back. We found ourselves walking along to the beach which was ok, it looked nice if you had come prepared for the beach but seeing as we had just spent a week on the beach we were hoping to something more. But there was nothing going on so we walked back got in a cab and asked to go a boat quay where we thought we could perhaps pick up a cruise tour. However, on arrival there was only one but it was leaving for another 2 hours or so, so we gave up. We hopped into a cab, dropped mum and dad off at the Singapore Eye (the same thing as the London Eye) and Tymon and I went back to the hotel.
That night, NL were playing in the WC so we decided to head to Orchard Road which is the main shopping street like Oxford Circus to find a bar that dad knew from when he had been in Singapore for business. But unfortunately as with in KL it had been a while and he wasn’t exactly sure where on orchard Road we needed to be. The taxi driver managed to mention the name of an office tower that dad recognized the name of so we got dropped off there. There were a couple of Irish bars and sports bars but dad didn’t think there were the ones so we went for a walk further up the road to find it. However, time was running out. Kick off was imminent and Orchard Road is a long road. It could have been anywhere. So, we headed back to where we had got dropped of and went into a sports bar. We managed to secure a table as it was pretty busy and got to the business of drinking, eating and hupping for Holland. Dad went across the road to have a look at the other bar incase they had a better table, but when he came back he said it was full – but…it was the bar that he had been talking about!! Hahaha. You got there in the end dad!!
And that was it – their time was up and they were leaving first thing in the morning for HK. I couldn’t believe it, time had flown but it had been soooooo good to see them and so great to share the experiences with them. Mum has never done anything like this and I was so happy for her to have travelled to this part of the world.
Tymon and I had another 2 days in Singapore until our flight to Nepal and it was also Tymon’s birthday. The night we had been in Orchard Road, there was a supermarket next to the bar, so I made up and excuse and took mum in to buy a birthday cake for Tymon. It was a bit difficult to pass it off so that he wouldn’t know, but I had a cover. The day mum and dad left was Father’s Day, so he thought I was sorting something out for dad. He didn’t question what was in the bag so I managed to get the cake back to the hotel with no questions asked. Phew! Mum left it with the restaurant staff so the next day at midnight I arranged to have it brought up to the room!
On Sibu we had met a really nice guy called Guy who lived in Singapore so we invited him over to the hotel to have some drinks and watch the football (a Brazil game) and we were pretty chuffed when he turned up! Even though I looked a right mess as I just been to the gym!! Finally.
Anyway I’d arranged for the cake, an Oreo cheesecake, to be delivered to the room, but then Tymon wanted to go down to the Lobby to watch the football, so I then had to sneak about at reception to ask if they could bring it to the Lobby, but then the lady said the cake was in the fridge in the bar we were sitting at so she wouldn’t be able to get it out without him seeing it! So it was all going wrong. But!...thankfully the game ended and after a bit of chat with 10 minutes to go to midnight, Tymon said we should go back up to the room. So I loitered behind and told the lady that the original plan was back on.
Back in the room, 5 minutes later there’s a knock on the door. Tymon opens it and there’s the lady with another guy holding the cake singing Happy Birthday! Lols. Bless her, and Tymon was totally surprised! Ah, mission accomplished! Midnight came and Tymon was 31!! Old bastard!! Hahaha! We ate the cake which was really good, continued on the bacardi and talked the night away.
For his actual birthday I surprised him with a picnic in the botanical gardens. I went back to the store where I had brought the cake as it had a fantastic deli counter and brought parma ham and salami and old Amsterdam cheese!! Olives and garlic butter and baguette. Oh it was like a Saturday afternoon after a trip to Aldi back home. Brilliant. It was a lovely day and I hope he enjoyed it.
And that’s it really; our time in S.E Asia was over. A new adventure was waiting in Nepal and India.
The last 8 months have seemed like a life time and it seems so long that we were in SA.
2 months to go, 2 countries….
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Malaysia, Truly Asia (You Have To See The Advert To Know The Song...)
So with a heavy sad heart we arrived in KL at 4.30am on the night bus. It was a pretty luxurious, so for the first time I actually slept pretty well!!
We were dropped off pretty central, although it was hard to tell at that time in the morning, but a very friendly local who had also got off the bus helped us with the map and figure out where we were. We were actually close to China Town and as with all big cities; it was going to be expensive for decent accommodation, which is why we headed there as it was supposed to be cheaper. Even if the Lonely Liar did say that when they were there last most of the hostels in the area were full of bed bugs!! But luckily a guy had driven by on a scooter with a flyer for a place not in the book which was a short walk and is where we headed. On arrival and when we got into the room it was – well cheap and nasty! Just what we expected!! The room was a twin room, the size of a box with a shared skanky bathroom that looked as if it hadn’t been cleaned for about 1 month! But the beds did look ok and the room fairly clean so we took it. At that time in the morning we really didn’t fancy trekking about.
The plan for the day was to grab a couple of hours sleep and then get up around 9am to go straight to the Indian consulate to sort out our visa. But as usual, once we fell asleep, when the alarm went off I felt as if I had been hit over the head with a hammer. I was so groggy and tired that we decided it could wait until the following day. We promptly fell back asleep.
Once up and about a few hours later we went outside to realize that we really were in the heart of China town. Our hostel was at the end of a huge wide road that was sheltered full of stalls selling the usual. Fake bags and clothing and watches. I was surprised as for some reason I had envisioned KL to be a bit more classy than that, but I guess we were just in the non classy part of town! First impressions were the area was really run down. Once outside of China Town we soon stumbled into the Indian district and the buildings while slightly colonial looking also looked like they would crumble if the wind blew strong!
We had been in contact with my parents a fair bit as we were trying to organize them flying out to meet us. The plan had been simple. They would fly into KL then we would get an internal flight up to Perhentian Islands, NE of Malaysia, then back to KL, a quick stopover in Melaka and then head on down to Singapore with them. However, once we started looking into accommodation we realized that sods law, it was the school holidays the time they were arriving and we couldn’t for love nor money find any accommodation on the islands. ANYWHERE!! Dad spent hours, I spent hours, we spent 2.5 hours that first afternoon in KL in a travel agents trying to find something, but it was all fully booked. It was crazy. We decided to leave it in the hands of my dad and left the travel agents rather frustrated although we were dry. We had avoided the huge thunderstorm and down pour which is typical of KL at this time of year. Stiflingly hot, but wet!! We continued to walk around the Indian area and actually stumbled across the consulate office for India so we popped in a picked up the application forms for the following day. The rest of day we wandered about. We stopped off at a local restaurant for some Murtabak, the dough baked like bread with meat inside, which we had first sampled and loved in Singapore, although it was nowhere near as good. We had a look through the market come mall which wasn’t very fascinating and then took a walk out to the centre area to see where we would end up, which was walking around a ring road like area. It all seemed very seedy although we could see the KL Towers looming over the town letting us know there were better areas to be in. All in all this time round in KL we didn’t really do much as we wanted to save all the big things like the KL towers for when my mum and dad arrived, so we headed to one of the big shopping malls for a look around. I tell you what; the Malaysians know how to do shopping malls. It was MASSIVE!! I have never been in such a megatropolis in my life. It’s so big it even contains Asia’s longest roller coaster!! As you are walking along window shopping you can feel this rumble and hear faint screams as it plunges off to goodness knows where. It’s not like it’s screeching around the middle of the mall and for some bizarre reason we didn’t actually go and have a look. We heard it was quite expensive so we didn’t bother. What we did do was go to the cinema and watch the final Shrek in 3D. It was brilliant. I love Shrek and it didn’t disappoint, even though it felt like we were sitting in a freezer, literally – the aircon was sooooo cold!!
The following day we got our visa sorted and dropped off our applications and we were very glad that we had decided to come straight to KL and sort it out as we were told it would take a minimum of 5 days for the application process alone to go through. We would than have to come back and submit our passports for a day for the visa to be put in. If we had left it until my parents arrived and we were back in KL we would have come into all sorts of trouble time wise!!
The plan with my parents had also been fixed by this time. We would travel around Malaysia and for a little bit South to Melaka and then travel up to the Cameron Highlands before returning to KL to meet them. So as soon as we had dropped off our applications we got our bags and grabbed the local bus to the bus station which had been moved out of town to go to Melaka.
As the local bus pulled into this makeshift bus station, which was chaos by the way, no sooner as the doors opened and we had stepped off we were accosted by people asking us where we were going. But it wasn’t like in other countries in Asia where you just want them to back out of your face of punch them. This was like just overly efficient. They gave us space, but wanted to get us on the next bus. The first destination they were shouting was actually for Melaka so they lead us off straight away into the ticket booth area, where we also stopped by a few other counters to check out the deals, but we had a good one and before we knew what was happening we were whisked off to the bus which was waiting for us as it was just about to leave and we would have had to have waited for another 1.5 hours otherwise. Our bags were put on and we were given the front 2 seats on this very plush bus and off we went. It was like we had been given special treatment rather than harassed within an inch of our lives.
It was so nice to be on a decent bus as well and we were like the cats that got the cream. We also acted like them when we pushed the seats back as far as they would go and curled up to go to sleep, even though we had only been awake for 3 hours or so!!
It wasn’t a long journey to Melaka only 2 hours so we were there before we knew it. Melaka is an old Dutch town and really historical and beautiful.
We got on a local bus from the main bus station which the Lonely Liar recommended would take us straight to the backpacker district and it actually did. It was easy and before we knew it we had found the street with the budget hostels and Tymon had found us a nice place with aircon to boot which was great as it was bloody hot! It also had a kitchen which was sooo exciting, so we went to the bottom of the road to the supermarket and went shopping!! It was very exciting! Although we thought we would easily be able to get some nice food for dinner with the money we had but we were like right paupers at the till and had to give stuff back!! How embarrassing!! Lols. We’d only gotten chicken fajitas and some soda with some goodies like broad beans but we ran out!! But once back Tymon cooked up a storm in the kitchen. He was so happy with the pots and pans and made delicious fajitas. We sat on the roof top overlooking Melaka before hitting the sack with our books.
The next day we had a leisurely start, as if we ever do anything else, and headed out to see the sights. It’s a very historical town so we went to the old quarter and fort with a lot of war burial grounds of English and Dutch men. The streets are cobbled and it’s so peaceful and quaint. At the entrance of the fort we met a bicycle tuk tuk driver who was an old guy and just chatted away to us like there was no tomorrow. He was so proud of Melaka and wanted to tell us all about the history so we agreed to go with him after we had looked around for a quick tour. We told him straight up that we wouldn’t pay him a lot and we settled a price beforehand as usually no matter how lovely, sincere, friendly or old these people seem there’s always a catch and you end up getting stung!
Anyway the fort was lovely and as always moving to walk around the graveyards. It’s just so humbling knowing that all over the world are buried and lost soldiers who fought for our world today. And look what we’re doing to it!
We met a guy and a girl, a Dutchie and a UK girl who were travelling together and we got talking and agreed to meet up later that night for some drinks as we continued looking around and finally met up again with the bicycle tuk tuk driver. We squeezed in the back and let him chat on as he drove us to what we thought was going to be a nice old traditional tea house, but what in the end was just a plain old local restaurant, one that he got commission for taking us to obviously. But it had been a nice experience with him. We left him in the restaurant with his ridiculously expensive beer (alcohol is not allowed if you’re Muslim so it’s really expensive to buy alcohol in Malaysia!)and took a wander through China Town. It wasn’t the best China Town, infact there wasn’t really much going on at all, it was a more a bric a brac town, but nice all the same. We were pretty tired by this point as it was really hot and it’s hard work doing nothing you know. So we headed back to the hostel to chill out.
That night we met up with Harriet and Chris on the rooftop for some drinks and chats and had a really good night. We sat up till 4am and it was really nice to have a girl to chat to, we got on really well. I was hoping that maybe we would be able to travel a bit further with them but they were spitting up in 2 days time and Harriet was flying to Borneo! But we had agreed to go to the zoo together with them the next day.
I was a bit skeptical about going to the zoo as I don’t really like them. I always get really sad but I have to admit this one was pretty ok. It was a really big zoo and the enclosures were fairly spacious. Although they chained the elephants up as they were closing and you could see they were distressed as they were rocking backwards and forwards which was really sad to see. I mean that I just don’t get. Put them in a proper enclosure for god sake so there’s no need to chain them! We had hoped to be able to go to the butterfly park too but we had left pretty late due to our late night so before we knew it, it was 6pm and everything was shutting so we jumped back on the bus back into town. Across the bus station was a Tesco’s and we were craving a nice bit of meat so Tymon offered to cook dinner for the four of us. We went to get groceries and it was soooo much cheaper than the local supermarket we had gone to previously. We got quadruple the stuff for less!! You gotta love Tesco’s! We brought some steak and potatoes and salad and raced back to the hostel as we were all starving!! We had another really lovely evening and the food was yummy!! It felt so nice also not to be eating out in a restaurant and to have a bit of a homely feeling. Chris and Harriet both had really early starts to the airport so they went to bed early and we got talking to another 2 guys from Sweden. I even got them into poker so we played a game. To make it a little more interesting we all put in RM5. It was a loooong game. As soon as you get money involved everyone plays it safe as you want to win so I think in the end we played for about 4 hours!! But – in the end I won!! Whoo Hoo! I earnt my bus ticket up to the Cameron Highlands which was our next stop the next day, so that was a bonus.
I was really excited to get to the Cameron Highlands. It sounded really beautiful and also it was higher up so it would be cooler! I was really looking forward to wearing a jumper in the evening. The bus was pretty plush again so we settled in for the ride. It was going to take about 6 hours and we’d heard it was a pretty hairy ride, twisting and turning up the into the Highlands, but as usual we didn’t have to worry about that as we conked out as the wheel started turning.
The ride up wasn’t actually as bad as we had heard. It was twisty and neither of us could stomach to read but it actually went by fast and the views up were just magical. We drove through vast valleys of tea plantations and it was stunning. So much tea!!
When we arrived at the bus station there was one pick up bus for a hostel called Father’s Guesthouse. We’d read about it in the book and it sounded decent so we hopped in. It was only a 2 minute drive through the tiny town centre which comprises of one street with about 52 shops/restaurants in. The hostel sat atop a hillside overlooking the town and it was a really lovely place. Most all of the tourists that got off the bus had piled in up to Father’s Guesthouse and when we got out a man gathered us all up and was so enthusiastic about the place. He was the owner and showed us around with so much gusto Tymon and I just looked at each other and laughed. The place was great. There was the main brick house at the top with the restaurant and big living room and down the hill were the barracks. These were the cheap accommodation rooms which is where we stayed and it was pretty cool. They are actual old barracks for the British Army, cylindrical tin huts which are really basic, just a bed really but they were all full and it had a real camaraderie feeling to it. The shared bathrooms were pretty gross, but it felt like camping, just with a roof over your head. It was nice.
We went for a walk through ‘town’ and grabbed some food which was the worst food we have this trip. Oh it was sooooo bad, it had been sitting in the back for what could have been days, and it was hard and dry and just disgusting. We picked at it for a few minutes before leaving it all and asking for the bill and going somewhere else.
Our plan for the Cameron Highlands was to go for some hikes through the hills and plantations so the next day we got a map and decided to start with an easy route. Problem was the map in the Lonely Liar was rubbish and the other map we had was actually a photo taken from the hostel wall on Tymon’s camera. To say it was a bad map is a bit of an understatement. It took about 45 minutes to get through town and find the start point! I thought it was one way but Tymon was sure it was another and seeing as he is usually right when it comes to map reading we went his way only to find ourselves back at my point 10 minutes later. So slightly smug, we finally started the walk! It took us by a little river and we walked to the forestry department where once again the map failed to show us which way to go. We had to ask a few people and look at a big map and we decided in the end to just see where we ended up – surely it would be easier. So after a few wrong turns we finally got to the golf course which had been the goal. It was so lovely the golf course was in the middle of the town and you could walk around it with lovely vintage boutique Tudor hotels around the side and cafes. We followed the signs to one of the strawberry farms which is what the Highlands are also famous for. It was a pretty big farm at the top of the hill where they sell all sorts of strawberry goodies. Jams, fresh strawberries with cream and chocolate, popsicles which we had and oh my lord – they were sooo good. They were the fruitiest and most strawberry flavour I’ve ever had. Oh I’m salivating now writing about it. They were yummy. We also had some fresh ones with cream and chocolate. Once full we continued back around the course and took another trail back towards the hotel. This took us up a hill and into the forest for a really great track. It was windy and twisty through the forest and thankfully easily signposted when we had to change tracks to head back in the right direction. It was a really great walk, very enjoyable – all we were missing was a dog and it would be a perfect Sunday afternoon. (Even though it wasn’t Sunday – I don’t think…Lols.)
That night we cuddled up in the living room with some hot chocolate and really good food from the kitchen watching the movie of the day.
We spent five days in the Highlands, mainly relaxing at the hostel, playing scrabble and watching movies. We met another couple and decided one day to do the walk up the highest hill top which was another awesome hike. It was very steep uphill through the forest and as we got the top it really was climbing up tree trunks and vines. Totally cool, and the views from the top over the valleys were amazing. All the patterned hills formed by the tea plantations look stunning. We started walking down and kept walking and walking and walking and we realized that the way back was a looooong way. It was all on the road too so not as fun as hiking in the woods. In the end we flagged down a convoy of 2 cars and asked if we could sit in the boot and hitch down the hill. And thank goodness we did. The drive was about 15 minutes, so god knows how long it would have taken us to walk! Even once at the bottom of the hill we found out we were still miles away from town. There was a small market so we wandered about and some local woman miraculously started speaking Dutch straight away to Tymon, as if she knew where he was from. Lucky guess I think, but it’s amazing all over Asia how many locals speak Dutch. It’s funny when they start saying ‘kijke kijke, mooi dingen, mooi pakkie.’ (Look look, beautiful things, beautiful suit) As it was a national holiday it was really busy everywhere and we needed to get a cab but there was none anywhere. We asked some locals to call us one who said that no one would come out as the traffic was so bad, which was completely not what we wanted to hear. In the end we managed to persuade someone to call a friend to come and get us which would take an hour so we found a café and sat down for coffee. I couldn’t walk anymore, my feet were killing me, I had blisters on my little toes and all I wanted was to go home!
Finally the cab came and we flopped for the night. I can’t tell you how much I loved the Highlands and Father’s Guesthouse. It was so homely and the owners were great. They gave us free movies and the atmosphere was great. A really sorted hostel. So if you ever find yourself there you know where to stay.
Our last day we rented a scooter and went for a ride around the area to another strawberry farm which I had seen on the bus on the way in. It was overlooking the valley plantations and it looked gorgeous, plus they did afternoon tea, scones and jam with tea so we went to check it out. It was breathtaking. I could have stood looking at the view for hours. It was so vast and so neat and tidy and you just have to wonder how on earth they begin to make these grooves and plantations, it must take so much work to maintain them. The afternoon tea was delicious and it was a first for Tymon to have scones and jam. He liked it – I mean what’s not to like right? It was expensive for what it was and a complete tourist trap but just one of those things you have to do.
And that was it. After 5 wonderful days hiking and relaxing we headed back to KL to meet my parents. I was sooooo excited!! It had been just over 8 months since I had seen them which is actually the longest in my entire life that I have not seen them so I couldn’t wait. We were also looking forward to a little pampering, so the next blog will be from a 5 star hotel! :0)
We were dropped off pretty central, although it was hard to tell at that time in the morning, but a very friendly local who had also got off the bus helped us with the map and figure out where we were. We were actually close to China Town and as with all big cities; it was going to be expensive for decent accommodation, which is why we headed there as it was supposed to be cheaper. Even if the Lonely Liar did say that when they were there last most of the hostels in the area were full of bed bugs!! But luckily a guy had driven by on a scooter with a flyer for a place not in the book which was a short walk and is where we headed. On arrival and when we got into the room it was – well cheap and nasty! Just what we expected!! The room was a twin room, the size of a box with a shared skanky bathroom that looked as if it hadn’t been cleaned for about 1 month! But the beds did look ok and the room fairly clean so we took it. At that time in the morning we really didn’t fancy trekking about.
The plan for the day was to grab a couple of hours sleep and then get up around 9am to go straight to the Indian consulate to sort out our visa. But as usual, once we fell asleep, when the alarm went off I felt as if I had been hit over the head with a hammer. I was so groggy and tired that we decided it could wait until the following day. We promptly fell back asleep.
Once up and about a few hours later we went outside to realize that we really were in the heart of China town. Our hostel was at the end of a huge wide road that was sheltered full of stalls selling the usual. Fake bags and clothing and watches. I was surprised as for some reason I had envisioned KL to be a bit more classy than that, but I guess we were just in the non classy part of town! First impressions were the area was really run down. Once outside of China Town we soon stumbled into the Indian district and the buildings while slightly colonial looking also looked like they would crumble if the wind blew strong!
We had been in contact with my parents a fair bit as we were trying to organize them flying out to meet us. The plan had been simple. They would fly into KL then we would get an internal flight up to Perhentian Islands, NE of Malaysia, then back to KL, a quick stopover in Melaka and then head on down to Singapore with them. However, once we started looking into accommodation we realized that sods law, it was the school holidays the time they were arriving and we couldn’t for love nor money find any accommodation on the islands. ANYWHERE!! Dad spent hours, I spent hours, we spent 2.5 hours that first afternoon in KL in a travel agents trying to find something, but it was all fully booked. It was crazy. We decided to leave it in the hands of my dad and left the travel agents rather frustrated although we were dry. We had avoided the huge thunderstorm and down pour which is typical of KL at this time of year. Stiflingly hot, but wet!! We continued to walk around the Indian area and actually stumbled across the consulate office for India so we popped in a picked up the application forms for the following day. The rest of day we wandered about. We stopped off at a local restaurant for some Murtabak, the dough baked like bread with meat inside, which we had first sampled and loved in Singapore, although it was nowhere near as good. We had a look through the market come mall which wasn’t very fascinating and then took a walk out to the centre area to see where we would end up, which was walking around a ring road like area. It all seemed very seedy although we could see the KL Towers looming over the town letting us know there were better areas to be in. All in all this time round in KL we didn’t really do much as we wanted to save all the big things like the KL towers for when my mum and dad arrived, so we headed to one of the big shopping malls for a look around. I tell you what; the Malaysians know how to do shopping malls. It was MASSIVE!! I have never been in such a megatropolis in my life. It’s so big it even contains Asia’s longest roller coaster!! As you are walking along window shopping you can feel this rumble and hear faint screams as it plunges off to goodness knows where. It’s not like it’s screeching around the middle of the mall and for some bizarre reason we didn’t actually go and have a look. We heard it was quite expensive so we didn’t bother. What we did do was go to the cinema and watch the final Shrek in 3D. It was brilliant. I love Shrek and it didn’t disappoint, even though it felt like we were sitting in a freezer, literally – the aircon was sooooo cold!!
The following day we got our visa sorted and dropped off our applications and we were very glad that we had decided to come straight to KL and sort it out as we were told it would take a minimum of 5 days for the application process alone to go through. We would than have to come back and submit our passports for a day for the visa to be put in. If we had left it until my parents arrived and we were back in KL we would have come into all sorts of trouble time wise!!
The plan with my parents had also been fixed by this time. We would travel around Malaysia and for a little bit South to Melaka and then travel up to the Cameron Highlands before returning to KL to meet them. So as soon as we had dropped off our applications we got our bags and grabbed the local bus to the bus station which had been moved out of town to go to Melaka.
As the local bus pulled into this makeshift bus station, which was chaos by the way, no sooner as the doors opened and we had stepped off we were accosted by people asking us where we were going. But it wasn’t like in other countries in Asia where you just want them to back out of your face of punch them. This was like just overly efficient. They gave us space, but wanted to get us on the next bus. The first destination they were shouting was actually for Melaka so they lead us off straight away into the ticket booth area, where we also stopped by a few other counters to check out the deals, but we had a good one and before we knew what was happening we were whisked off to the bus which was waiting for us as it was just about to leave and we would have had to have waited for another 1.5 hours otherwise. Our bags were put on and we were given the front 2 seats on this very plush bus and off we went. It was like we had been given special treatment rather than harassed within an inch of our lives.
It was so nice to be on a decent bus as well and we were like the cats that got the cream. We also acted like them when we pushed the seats back as far as they would go and curled up to go to sleep, even though we had only been awake for 3 hours or so!!
It wasn’t a long journey to Melaka only 2 hours so we were there before we knew it. Melaka is an old Dutch town and really historical and beautiful.
We got on a local bus from the main bus station which the Lonely Liar recommended would take us straight to the backpacker district and it actually did. It was easy and before we knew it we had found the street with the budget hostels and Tymon had found us a nice place with aircon to boot which was great as it was bloody hot! It also had a kitchen which was sooo exciting, so we went to the bottom of the road to the supermarket and went shopping!! It was very exciting! Although we thought we would easily be able to get some nice food for dinner with the money we had but we were like right paupers at the till and had to give stuff back!! How embarrassing!! Lols. We’d only gotten chicken fajitas and some soda with some goodies like broad beans but we ran out!! But once back Tymon cooked up a storm in the kitchen. He was so happy with the pots and pans and made delicious fajitas. We sat on the roof top overlooking Melaka before hitting the sack with our books.
The next day we had a leisurely start, as if we ever do anything else, and headed out to see the sights. It’s a very historical town so we went to the old quarter and fort with a lot of war burial grounds of English and Dutch men. The streets are cobbled and it’s so peaceful and quaint. At the entrance of the fort we met a bicycle tuk tuk driver who was an old guy and just chatted away to us like there was no tomorrow. He was so proud of Melaka and wanted to tell us all about the history so we agreed to go with him after we had looked around for a quick tour. We told him straight up that we wouldn’t pay him a lot and we settled a price beforehand as usually no matter how lovely, sincere, friendly or old these people seem there’s always a catch and you end up getting stung!
Anyway the fort was lovely and as always moving to walk around the graveyards. It’s just so humbling knowing that all over the world are buried and lost soldiers who fought for our world today. And look what we’re doing to it!
We met a guy and a girl, a Dutchie and a UK girl who were travelling together and we got talking and agreed to meet up later that night for some drinks as we continued looking around and finally met up again with the bicycle tuk tuk driver. We squeezed in the back and let him chat on as he drove us to what we thought was going to be a nice old traditional tea house, but what in the end was just a plain old local restaurant, one that he got commission for taking us to obviously. But it had been a nice experience with him. We left him in the restaurant with his ridiculously expensive beer (alcohol is not allowed if you’re Muslim so it’s really expensive to buy alcohol in Malaysia!)and took a wander through China Town. It wasn’t the best China Town, infact there wasn’t really much going on at all, it was a more a bric a brac town, but nice all the same. We were pretty tired by this point as it was really hot and it’s hard work doing nothing you know. So we headed back to the hostel to chill out.
That night we met up with Harriet and Chris on the rooftop for some drinks and chats and had a really good night. We sat up till 4am and it was really nice to have a girl to chat to, we got on really well. I was hoping that maybe we would be able to travel a bit further with them but they were spitting up in 2 days time and Harriet was flying to Borneo! But we had agreed to go to the zoo together with them the next day.
I was a bit skeptical about going to the zoo as I don’t really like them. I always get really sad but I have to admit this one was pretty ok. It was a really big zoo and the enclosures were fairly spacious. Although they chained the elephants up as they were closing and you could see they were distressed as they were rocking backwards and forwards which was really sad to see. I mean that I just don’t get. Put them in a proper enclosure for god sake so there’s no need to chain them! We had hoped to be able to go to the butterfly park too but we had left pretty late due to our late night so before we knew it, it was 6pm and everything was shutting so we jumped back on the bus back into town. Across the bus station was a Tesco’s and we were craving a nice bit of meat so Tymon offered to cook dinner for the four of us. We went to get groceries and it was soooo much cheaper than the local supermarket we had gone to previously. We got quadruple the stuff for less!! You gotta love Tesco’s! We brought some steak and potatoes and salad and raced back to the hostel as we were all starving!! We had another really lovely evening and the food was yummy!! It felt so nice also not to be eating out in a restaurant and to have a bit of a homely feeling. Chris and Harriet both had really early starts to the airport so they went to bed early and we got talking to another 2 guys from Sweden. I even got them into poker so we played a game. To make it a little more interesting we all put in RM5. It was a loooong game. As soon as you get money involved everyone plays it safe as you want to win so I think in the end we played for about 4 hours!! But – in the end I won!! Whoo Hoo! I earnt my bus ticket up to the Cameron Highlands which was our next stop the next day, so that was a bonus.
I was really excited to get to the Cameron Highlands. It sounded really beautiful and also it was higher up so it would be cooler! I was really looking forward to wearing a jumper in the evening. The bus was pretty plush again so we settled in for the ride. It was going to take about 6 hours and we’d heard it was a pretty hairy ride, twisting and turning up the into the Highlands, but as usual we didn’t have to worry about that as we conked out as the wheel started turning.
The ride up wasn’t actually as bad as we had heard. It was twisty and neither of us could stomach to read but it actually went by fast and the views up were just magical. We drove through vast valleys of tea plantations and it was stunning. So much tea!!
When we arrived at the bus station there was one pick up bus for a hostel called Father’s Guesthouse. We’d read about it in the book and it sounded decent so we hopped in. It was only a 2 minute drive through the tiny town centre which comprises of one street with about 52 shops/restaurants in. The hostel sat atop a hillside overlooking the town and it was a really lovely place. Most all of the tourists that got off the bus had piled in up to Father’s Guesthouse and when we got out a man gathered us all up and was so enthusiastic about the place. He was the owner and showed us around with so much gusto Tymon and I just looked at each other and laughed. The place was great. There was the main brick house at the top with the restaurant and big living room and down the hill were the barracks. These were the cheap accommodation rooms which is where we stayed and it was pretty cool. They are actual old barracks for the British Army, cylindrical tin huts which are really basic, just a bed really but they were all full and it had a real camaraderie feeling to it. The shared bathrooms were pretty gross, but it felt like camping, just with a roof over your head. It was nice.
We went for a walk through ‘town’ and grabbed some food which was the worst food we have this trip. Oh it was sooooo bad, it had been sitting in the back for what could have been days, and it was hard and dry and just disgusting. We picked at it for a few minutes before leaving it all and asking for the bill and going somewhere else.
Our plan for the Cameron Highlands was to go for some hikes through the hills and plantations so the next day we got a map and decided to start with an easy route. Problem was the map in the Lonely Liar was rubbish and the other map we had was actually a photo taken from the hostel wall on Tymon’s camera. To say it was a bad map is a bit of an understatement. It took about 45 minutes to get through town and find the start point! I thought it was one way but Tymon was sure it was another and seeing as he is usually right when it comes to map reading we went his way only to find ourselves back at my point 10 minutes later. So slightly smug, we finally started the walk! It took us by a little river and we walked to the forestry department where once again the map failed to show us which way to go. We had to ask a few people and look at a big map and we decided in the end to just see where we ended up – surely it would be easier. So after a few wrong turns we finally got to the golf course which had been the goal. It was so lovely the golf course was in the middle of the town and you could walk around it with lovely vintage boutique Tudor hotels around the side and cafes. We followed the signs to one of the strawberry farms which is what the Highlands are also famous for. It was a pretty big farm at the top of the hill where they sell all sorts of strawberry goodies. Jams, fresh strawberries with cream and chocolate, popsicles which we had and oh my lord – they were sooo good. They were the fruitiest and most strawberry flavour I’ve ever had. Oh I’m salivating now writing about it. They were yummy. We also had some fresh ones with cream and chocolate. Once full we continued back around the course and took another trail back towards the hotel. This took us up a hill and into the forest for a really great track. It was windy and twisty through the forest and thankfully easily signposted when we had to change tracks to head back in the right direction. It was a really great walk, very enjoyable – all we were missing was a dog and it would be a perfect Sunday afternoon. (Even though it wasn’t Sunday – I don’t think…Lols.)
That night we cuddled up in the living room with some hot chocolate and really good food from the kitchen watching the movie of the day.
We spent five days in the Highlands, mainly relaxing at the hostel, playing scrabble and watching movies. We met another couple and decided one day to do the walk up the highest hill top which was another awesome hike. It was very steep uphill through the forest and as we got the top it really was climbing up tree trunks and vines. Totally cool, and the views from the top over the valleys were amazing. All the patterned hills formed by the tea plantations look stunning. We started walking down and kept walking and walking and walking and we realized that the way back was a looooong way. It was all on the road too so not as fun as hiking in the woods. In the end we flagged down a convoy of 2 cars and asked if we could sit in the boot and hitch down the hill. And thank goodness we did. The drive was about 15 minutes, so god knows how long it would have taken us to walk! Even once at the bottom of the hill we found out we were still miles away from town. There was a small market so we wandered about and some local woman miraculously started speaking Dutch straight away to Tymon, as if she knew where he was from. Lucky guess I think, but it’s amazing all over Asia how many locals speak Dutch. It’s funny when they start saying ‘kijke kijke, mooi dingen, mooi pakkie.’ (Look look, beautiful things, beautiful suit) As it was a national holiday it was really busy everywhere and we needed to get a cab but there was none anywhere. We asked some locals to call us one who said that no one would come out as the traffic was so bad, which was completely not what we wanted to hear. In the end we managed to persuade someone to call a friend to come and get us which would take an hour so we found a café and sat down for coffee. I couldn’t walk anymore, my feet were killing me, I had blisters on my little toes and all I wanted was to go home!
Finally the cab came and we flopped for the night. I can’t tell you how much I loved the Highlands and Father’s Guesthouse. It was so homely and the owners were great. They gave us free movies and the atmosphere was great. A really sorted hostel. So if you ever find yourself there you know where to stay.
Our last day we rented a scooter and went for a ride around the area to another strawberry farm which I had seen on the bus on the way in. It was overlooking the valley plantations and it looked gorgeous, plus they did afternoon tea, scones and jam with tea so we went to check it out. It was breathtaking. I could have stood looking at the view for hours. It was so vast and so neat and tidy and you just have to wonder how on earth they begin to make these grooves and plantations, it must take so much work to maintain them. The afternoon tea was delicious and it was a first for Tymon to have scones and jam. He liked it – I mean what’s not to like right? It was expensive for what it was and a complete tourist trap but just one of those things you have to do.
And that was it. After 5 wonderful days hiking and relaxing we headed back to KL to meet my parents. I was sooooo excited!! It had been just over 8 months since I had seen them which is actually the longest in my entire life that I have not seen them so I couldn’t wait. We were also looking forward to a little pampering, so the next blog will be from a 5 star hotel! :0)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)