Pangkor

November 30, 2013

We sailed into Pangkor after three days at sea for just a couple of days.  We packed those couple of days full of adventures and swimming pools before taking a much needed break from the heat.  More on that though in the next post!

Here is a few from the top of the Dutch Fort looking out to sea. Those are all yatchies wandering around with us on this tour. 

Yours truly in the Dutch Fort.

Boys will be boys!

The Chinese Temple on Pangkor Island - it looked like an amusement park!

A local fishing boat getting built - only 1.8 million Malaysia Ringgit! (That’s about $600,000 US.)

A view of the inside of the fishing boat - they build these boats without plans - just local wood and tar.

These toilets making beach going less appealing.

Who knew???  Payback’s a bitch jelly fish!

Hot, Hot Pangkor

We did a short stop in Pangkor Marina. It was the hottest we have been so far and standing in the sun felt like being in a fryer.

 

Sunset view from the Royal Yatch Club in Selangor. We stopped here overnight on our way to Pangkor.

 

Jellies in the water meant no swimming for us. So we spent our time catching jellies instead. Ali named this fella Jimbo.

 

Garden decorations at the Dutch Fort in Pangkor island.

 

This fellow at the Chinese temple is interactive. The ball in his mouth moves inside of it and you rub it for good luck. What is amazing is that the ball is carved in place as the mouth and the ball come from a single stone.

 

Remember this guy from Haw Par Villa?

 

The temple is very colorful and fun.

 

It had a mini version of The Great Wall. One more thing for Ali to check off her list.

 

It was a pretty big temple. After climbing the Great Wall we were pretty high up.

 

Local fishing boat at the fish packing plant. There I tried jelly fish chips. The were tasty and crispy, but the aftertaste was nasty.

 

 

We also stopped at the local ship builders. It was amazing what these guys can do without any prints or ISO plans as well as the absolute lack of safety regulations.

Selamat Datang Melaka

A traditional city colonized by the Dutch, English, and Spanish - Malacca is a UNESCO World Heritage Site with lots of charm and old architecture. It has been my favorite stop in Malaysia so far.

Our midweek arrival meant quiet streets and easy photography.

We met with my cousin Nicole, her husband Peter and their friend Christine. They live in Switzerland and were traveling in the area. Who would have guessed this is where we were going to meet?

Ali being trapped in the land of Totoro.

We stayed at the River View Guest House. I hope you can see how it got its name.

The next morning we went to the maritime museum. This is the headpiece of an antique Malay ship.

We met with Nicole and Peter one last time to say goodbye. They were heading back to Singapore.

After a short bike ride we went to yoga where Ali taught her first professional class as a yoga teacher. Want hot yoga? Just open the windows and turn off the fans. The heat and humidity made the class tough, but I made it through all of it!  Yeah sugar mama!

Then we went for a stroll on the river. This place is really a night destination when the sun is not beating down and the lights come on.

We decided to do the tourist trap and took the river cruise. All along the river front lies historical houses and building, most of which are covered in murals.

I Heart KL

Yep, KL was fun indeed.

So I give you all this photo!

Not the most vegan sign ever. Let’s see if we can sneak this one past the vegan police.

 The city is a combination of new an old. This is the textile museum which Ali was very excited to visit.

With the abundant rain and moisture nature is quick to regain its threshold. If humans were gone this place would quickly be jungle again.

But instead it is malls and Christmas already.

The shopping malls here are 5 star with beautiful sculptures, decorations, and fountains!

We left the city to go to Batu Caves. There we visited the Monkey God.

The tallest Indian God in Malaysia. We went to see small altars in the cave. It was a long and slippery climb.

The best find in KL. Why buy the cow when you can get one of these? It should take care of all you needs: milk, feathers, plowing, and female companionship all in one!

Magic in Melaka

November 24, 2013

We had no idea what to expect in the UNESCO living heritage city of Melaka, but Omar and I loved the town and had a blast walking through narrow streets and along the river front.  I found a fantastic yoga studio, a short bike ride away and managed to get myself a job for a couple of days!  Man, back to grind for me! ;)

 

The old Dutch buildings leading up to the Dutch Square.

Stadthuys, the old town hall, in the Dutch district.

A view of the Melaka River, with foot paths on either side and old restaurants and guest houses that back up to it.

Porta de Santiago - an old fort built in 1512 by the Portuguese.

We stumbled into the Customs Museum.  What we thought would be a dud, turned out to be a blast - exhibit after exhibit of confiscated items!

And how the smugglers got caught bringing in illegal material - drugs to animals to dirty mags!

Part of the Maritime Museum here - Melaka was the world's busiest port!

Arrr matey!

And within the heritage buildings you find things like this . . .

Body builders are in over here!

Heaven!  Custom made beaded shoes.  T.S. Ling, the shoe maker, is actually a National Craft Awarded designer for this sadly dieing art.  Three months to make and and over $300 US for a pair.  The question is did I or didn’t I???

A view of Melaka from St. Paul’s Hill.

These trishaws were everywhere!  You should see them at night with their LED lights and boom boxes going!

The owner of Victory Chocolatier with his giant chocolate sea turtle!

Omar and I took a private class and learnt how to use chocolate molds and make filled chocolates!

Soo good and soo vegan!