Stairs up to Batu Caves, Kuala Lumpur
Inside Batu Caves, view looking way up!
Trevor, the ex-Canadian/permanent traveler, my trekker guide
A drink Brian and I had to try after the lady told us foreigners will not like.....she was so right! It tasted like grass and it was jelled! ewwhhh
Pretty Bessie
View from trekking thru the jungle along side the ocean, beautiful!
Cameron Highlands, Tea Plantation. These trees live and produce tea leaves for 120 years.
Little girl on the bus, kept sneaking to take pictures and then show her mom.
After the trek on Monkey Beach, Panang
Ponggal celebration in Little India, Panang Love how they decorated the cows, whom they consider to be sacred animals.OK enough pressure, sorry I haven't updated for a while time is flying by and I've had a cold
:( and had a few sad days where I thought I had lost my journal but happily it appeared! :)
So after arriving into Butterworth, Malaysia via sleeper train (not sure why they call it that cause it's really hard to sleep on!) we carried onto a town called Panang where the most exciting things I found where outside of the city. The city itself didn't offer much but Panang Hill accessible by tram was a beautiful view of the island and lots of monkeys you had to watch out for as they loved to steal your food/belongings! Did meet some more interesting people including a long ago Canadian (he's been on the road for 21 years now),Trevor who took me on a 4 hour trek to Monkey Beach. What a great trek, started off in a fishing village, Taman Negara, on the north side of Panang saw a floating village, then trekked along a path thru the jungle that looked down onto the crashing ocean below and then out to a beautiful beach. Along the way we got to see giant lizards but luckily they were just as scared of me as I was of them! Then we had to make sure the monkeys didn't steal our packs once we got to the beach!
Between the monkeys and the temples, not sure which I am more tired of!
Before going on our trek we went to Little India for a Roti Chanoi breakfast which is bread with a lentil sauce that you dip it into. As we were eating on the roadside tables, a celebration/parade came by with people chanting and cheering. They were dressed in bright, beautiful attire following a carriage pulled by 2 cows with men on it. Apparently this was the Ponggal celebration that the Malaysian Indian people celebrate as a thanksgiving for a bountiful harvest and it ends up being a 3 day party.
The next day I headed up to Cameron Highlands to meet up with Brian again. Decided to go the cheaper way and had a stop off in Ipoh that was half way there only to have just missed the next bus to Cameron Highlands and either had to wait 7 hours or take the city bus to the local bus station and leave in 3 hours so I opted for that. I was writing in my journal while waiting at the bus depot, when I noticed a strange man sit about 5 feet away from me but I managed to avoid his staring and kept on writing and he left. A little while later as I was still writing he sat down about 2 feet away from me, still ignoring him but smelling something odd and very strong I looked up from my journal into this crazed man's eyes and watched him lift up a bag of milky colored liquid and sniff it, then I realized it must have been glue. I head about glue sniffers but never had gotten that close! I looked about and everyone was watching so I figured I had enough protection and he finally left me alone. Amazing the things you see off the beaten path, I just wouldn't have experienced this if I had chosen the more expensive, tour operated trip! Then on the local bus up to Cameron Highlands, I met a very nice young lady who is a nurse in Ipoh and is getting married in April which she invited me too. It is an arranged marriage and she told me all about the Indian customs and her views, it was very interesting and even made sense. I would have loved to have gone to it if I was still in the country. Well visiting, a little Malay girl was so curious about us she kept popping her head over the seat to see us and started taking pictures, I even caught her taking one when I was sleeping, they are so curious about westerners you have to laugh!
Cameron Highlands, what a difference with the altitude! I even had to wear my fleece at night and in the early mornings! But the countryside and views were so amazing and beautiful! I did a countryside tour of the tea fields plantations and factory which were amazing as well as a Bee Farm, Strawberry farm and a few other stops. Very peaceful countryside totally different air about it from the oceanside places I had been to with great food!
Next stop was Kuala Lumpur, I believe it's the capital city. Stayed at the original Backpackers Inn with a fun little rooftop patio. Went and saw the Batu Caves and Petronas Twin Towers and the night market in little India.
Sorry computer is acting up and not adding my pics either!!?? Will have to finish updating later....right now in Krabi, Thailand, going to do a beach/snorkel/island tour now!!
Thanks for reading will try to get back on here real soon! :)
:( and had a few sad days where I thought I had lost my journal but happily it appeared! :)
So after arriving into Butterworth, Malaysia via sleeper train (not sure why they call it that cause it's really hard to sleep on!) we carried onto a town called Panang where the most exciting things I found where outside of the city. The city itself didn't offer much but Panang Hill accessible by tram was a beautiful view of the island and lots of monkeys you had to watch out for as they loved to steal your food/belongings! Did meet some more interesting people including a long ago Canadian (he's been on the road for 21 years now),Trevor who took me on a 4 hour trek to Monkey Beach. What a great trek, started off in a fishing village, Taman Negara, on the north side of Panang saw a floating village, then trekked along a path thru the jungle that looked down onto the crashing ocean below and then out to a beautiful beach. Along the way we got to see giant lizards but luckily they were just as scared of me as I was of them! Then we had to make sure the monkeys didn't steal our packs once we got to the beach!
Between the monkeys and the temples, not sure which I am more tired of!
Before going on our trek we went to Little India for a Roti Chanoi breakfast which is bread with a lentil sauce that you dip it into. As we were eating on the roadside tables, a celebration/parade came by with people chanting and cheering. They were dressed in bright, beautiful attire following a carriage pulled by 2 cows with men on it. Apparently this was the Ponggal celebration that the Malaysian Indian people celebrate as a thanksgiving for a bountiful harvest and it ends up being a 3 day party.
The next day I headed up to Cameron Highlands to meet up with Brian again. Decided to go the cheaper way and had a stop off in Ipoh that was half way there only to have just missed the next bus to Cameron Highlands and either had to wait 7 hours or take the city bus to the local bus station and leave in 3 hours so I opted for that. I was writing in my journal while waiting at the bus depot, when I noticed a strange man sit about 5 feet away from me but I managed to avoid his staring and kept on writing and he left. A little while later as I was still writing he sat down about 2 feet away from me, still ignoring him but smelling something odd and very strong I looked up from my journal into this crazed man's eyes and watched him lift up a bag of milky colored liquid and sniff it, then I realized it must have been glue. I head about glue sniffers but never had gotten that close! I looked about and everyone was watching so I figured I had enough protection and he finally left me alone. Amazing the things you see off the beaten path, I just wouldn't have experienced this if I had chosen the more expensive, tour operated trip! Then on the local bus up to Cameron Highlands, I met a very nice young lady who is a nurse in Ipoh and is getting married in April which she invited me too. It is an arranged marriage and she told me all about the Indian customs and her views, it was very interesting and even made sense. I would have loved to have gone to it if I was still in the country. Well visiting, a little Malay girl was so curious about us she kept popping her head over the seat to see us and started taking pictures, I even caught her taking one when I was sleeping, they are so curious about westerners you have to laugh!
Cameron Highlands, what a difference with the altitude! I even had to wear my fleece at night and in the early mornings! But the countryside and views were so amazing and beautiful! I did a countryside tour of the tea fields plantations and factory which were amazing as well as a Bee Farm, Strawberry farm and a few other stops. Very peaceful countryside totally different air about it from the oceanside places I had been to with great food!
Next stop was Kuala Lumpur, I believe it's the capital city. Stayed at the original Backpackers Inn with a fun little rooftop patio. Went and saw the Batu Caves and Petronas Twin Towers and the night market in little India.
Sorry computer is acting up and not adding my pics either!!?? Will have to finish updating later....right now in Krabi, Thailand, going to do a beach/snorkel/island tour now!!
Thanks for reading will try to get back on here real soon! :)
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