Pulau Penang

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Greetings from Thailand! Before I tell you how we got here, let me briefly relate our final stop in Malaysia - an island off the northwest coast known as Penang. The British East India Trading Company dropped roots here back in the 1700's (to compete with the Dutch), and the architecture heavily reflects the influence. It has the delightful mix of cultures that we found in KL and Melaka, but it was a little run-down and dirtier than the others. Not exactly our favorite destination, but we made the most of it!! We toured the old fort, took our first walk along the Indian Ocean, somehow ended up in Little India during a big celebration (complete with lots and lots of Bollywood music)...and, of course, we ate. A lot. The photos shall tell the tale. I cannot say enough good things about the Malay food!!! I will miss it terribly and am seriously contemplating opening a restaurant when we get back...

Had a funny moment while walking along the waterside - a petite Indian teenage girl came running up to me, introduced herself, shook my hand, and said it was really nice to meet me. Then she disappeared as quickly as she'd appeared. Maybe she'd never met a blonde. Maybe it was a dare. Who knows? I'm kind of used to it, after a month in China. On the bus ride from Melaka to Penang, I had such a following of gawking men that I ended up going straight back onto the bus and letting Jeremy get us our lunch. I'm starting to think there are advantages to being a brunette...

Today was a very, very long day consisting of nearly 11 hours on a poorly air-conditioned mini-bus from Penang, across the Thai border, and to the seaside resort of Krabi on the west coast of Thailand. The only plus was meeting a guy named Mark from Seattle, who's backpacking China, Russia, and SE Asia for the next 6 months. It was pouring down rain and thundering like we haven't seen since we left Florida, so it was actually quite the treat! Hoping for the weather to clear in the next few days so we can get some beach time in and work on our non-existent tans...

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Photos

Sri Rambi Cannon
A product a the Dutch East India Company, dated 1613, and raised from a shipwreck in 1880. Legend has it that women who were infertile could conceive by placing flowers in the cannon barrel as a form of special prayers.