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Published: April 13th 2009
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PAPILLONS
The butterfly farm has over 120 different species. MALAYSIA, THAILAND AND INDIA
After leaving Singapore the Voyager developed an engine problem. I was thinking that perhaps it was a virus and we had caught it from the Crystal ship when we were docked next to her in Singapore. Actually, the Captain told us that we may have snagged a heavy fishing net while cruising down the Saigon River. As a result we had a very short stay in Penang, Malaysia. But we made the most of our time there and covered a lot of territory. We went with Cecile in her private car for a tour of the countryside. As we drove up the eastern coast of the island our guide pointed out some of the still visible damage wrought by the devastating Christmas Day tsunami of 2004. About fifty people were lost to the giant waves and there was much flooding and damage to the port. For that reason our ship was at anchor rather than at a dock. The Malaysian government was in the process of rebuilding the port when it was hit by the economic tsunami last year. So now there is no forecast for a completion date. Our guide told us about an Indian
family who was on the beach the morning of the tidal wave. Their baby was sleeping on a small air mattress when the wave swept over them and took the baby out to sea. With the second wave the baby and mattress were safely deposited back on the beach close to the greatly relieved parents.
We stopped at the butterfly farm and were truly awed by these winged beauties. There are 120 of different species and colors of butterflies in the tropical setting. For some reason butterflies and dolphins always make me smile. I guess they must have a very good public relations program.
Our next stop was a spice farm located in a tropical jungle. After a thorough spray down with mosquito repellant, we hiked single-file up the hillside along a very narrow, muddy track. As we were passing a large leaf hanging over our path, Kevin noted that a rather long snake was entwined around the greenery. I asked the guide if it was poisonous but he didn’t know. We tried to get the snake to move away but it stayed poised in the strike position. So I held my breath and moved as swiftly as
I could. Not being a big fan of snakes it took all of my courage to pass within inches of the viper. Fortunately the snake didn’t lunge and I made it safely past the asp. Whew!!!!
Once back in Georgetown, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site due to its unique architecture and the largest collection of pre-war houses in Asia, we stopped at the Eastern and Oriental Hotel. This is one of a string of colonial hotels built by two Armenian brothers in 1885 to comfortably accommodate European travelers, planters and traders in this part of the world. Raffles in Singapore and the Strand in Rangoon are in the same category of timeless luxury and served as watering holes for many famous writers and heads of state. Somerset Maugham, Rudyard Kipling and Noel Coward were frequent guests and this is supposedly where “Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the noon day sun” originated. The E&O was lucky to survive both the war and the tsunami with only minor damage. Our guide Raymond, who is of Chinese ancestry, told us stories of the Japanese occupation of Penang and how his relatives were tortured and persecuted by the
Bob Woodward
Bob's lectures were insightful. occupying forces. His family had fled China after the Japanese invaded there. But all too soon they were again living under the flag of the Rising Sun here on the Malay Peninsula. Now Penang has a vibrant Chinese community, a large Indian population as well as many Malays. It is often referred to as the Pearl of the Orient for its natural beauty.
While the ship was anchored in Penang, Captain Dag dove down to inspect the ailing engine pod. He later said that the water was too murky to see much. So we sailed off for Phuket, Thailand at reduced speed and ended up with about five hours to explore this resort town. While sitting in the tender waiting to go ashore, a jet ski came up and who should be on it but a former world cruiser who we had sailed with the previous two years. Dennie is one of the most intrepid and adventurous travelers I know. She left the world cruise last year and has been traveling around Asia since. She is a widow who is out to see the world.
Phuket is a beautiful beach town which suffered extensive damage and loss of
Moving Leaf Insect
That's not a leaf...it's an insect! life in the 2004 tsunami. It appears to be fully recovered. We visited the gorgeous Amari Beach Resort and had a great Thai lunch. Their spa is superb and housed in hillside thatched rooms overlooking the crescent bay. We had a couples massage in an open air treehouse.
While we were having a nice afternoon ashore, Captain Dag was again diving to check out the pod. I doubt if this duty is in a ship captain’s job description but Dag is one of a kind. He was able to cut away some of the fishing net but it was still necessary to cruise on one engine up to Cochin, India. Our call in Sri Lanka was cancelled for the second year in a row due to the war that has engulfed this beautiful island nation.
We had four sea days en route to Cochin, India. The Indian Ocean was showing her best side as we enjoyed smooth seas and warm weather. There was plenty to do on board like listening to Bob Woodward of Watergate fame discuss the current political situation in Washington. He and his wife were right down the hall from us and they were traveling
with their two young daughters.
Kerala is our favorite part of the Indian sub-continent and is popularly known as “God’s own country.” It is located on the southwestern tip of India and was on the main east/west spice routes for centuries. Columbus was looking for Kerala when he ended up in the Caribbean and mis-named the local inhabitants Indians. Cochin (or Kochi) is the port city in this land of coconuts. This state has the highest literacy in India at 97% and is home to the first elected communist government. My sister Annette and her husband Tom recently spent two weeks in Kerala researching the religions and cultural aspects of this region. We cruised into port past the Chinese fishing nets. We later learned that these nets are pretty much ornamental fixtures now. Apparently the tsunami altered the ecology of the area and the fish are few and far between. We did see the river porpoises frolicking in the delta waters. This is a world of teak and peacocks, dust and spices, colorful saris and smiling faces. We toured around JewTown with Dr Tinkle where he found some wonderful souvenirs. A jeweled rug, a hand embroidered silk jacket and
Malay Spices
Fragrant but HOT! an Indian style porkpie hat were among some of his purchases. We saw the Dutch Palace built in the 16th century and the Pepper Exchange which is the NYSE of the spice world. We ended up at the Taj Malabar Hotel for an al fresco lunch overlooking the backwaters.
Regent sponsored a special event for everyone on Gundu Island. We took a local ferry boat to this coconut covered island where we were treated to colorful performances of dance and Kalaripayattu martial arts along with a sampling of local cuisines. There was a palm reader in attendance and he told me I would live a long and happy life which was great but all I wanted to know was if the ship’s pod would be fixed soon. He couldn’t tell me that.
Regent had flown in some engineers and mechanics to Cochin to have a go at the engine. Unfortunately they were not able to repair it so we set off directly to Dubai bypassing Bombay and Abu Dhabi cruising on one engine at 13 knots. Regent had its hands full dealing with all of the ensuing problems such as missed ports, alerting new segment passengers, arranging for
changes of shore excursions, planning for provisions and entertainment and a million other details. We just hope the problem can be fixed quickly.
But as Captain Dag said: “We are westbound waiting for orders.” We have plenty of food and fuel and wine and water--so what’s not to enjoy on our slow boat to Arabia?
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