January 22nd - February 2nd: Bali - Kuala Lumpur - Langkawi - Ao Nang

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After our day in Padang Padang we headed back up to Ubud for a few more days. The place is irresistable and none of us had any reservations about spending our last few days in Bali there. This time we found accommodation right on the main road, Monkey Forest Road, called Sagitarius Homestay. Walking into the entrance on the crowded street, one would never guess at the length or size of the estate. Everything in Balinese cities seems to be hidden behind the roads. Darcy wandered into the labyrinth a little further and ended up overlooking a beautiful garden which he found out was owned by an English lady. She owned a property, even ran a few rooms as a homestay and had been living here in Ubud for a number of years. During the first day we made another excursion into the Monkey Forest and had ourselves a few more curious monkey experiences. The night life was exceptional, and there were bars filled with quality live music. One particularly talented band, that we had seen the previous visit as well, was still playing in an open-air bar just a ways down the street and we dropped in to listen again. We wandered around the area a bit more, taking a trek through some offbeat paths. There, I think, is where one finds a real taste of Bali. Wandering through stone paths beside moss-covered walls, overlooking abundant green and flooded rice fields lends a sense of soothing calm to you. Besides this, we discovered a number of pleasant-looking guesthouses, homestays and even places to rent out. I would certainly like to take one of those offers up if ever I return to Bali. Our last night there we managed to wander out of the beaten path and find a jazz cafe (with some difficulty) with a very professional band and a dynamite singer. Very well put together and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

We spent our last night in Bali in Kuta, which is the most popular party destination around the island. It was very overrun with tourists and very over-developed as a result. The beach was a pretty stretch, though, and we managed to catch a purple and orange sunset amongst the crowds of people there. After a hop to a couple bars and ending the night with dessert at a "Mexican" cafe, we retreated to our room. Our flight was the next day, and being only four hours was not too terrible. We arrived in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in the afternoon with plenty of time to get to our booked hotel. Something remarkable about arriving in KL airport was the complete lack of immigration, customs or any filling out of forms, with only a simple stamp required. After trudging arduously through and being held up at many airports on this trip, it was a welcome relief and we practically breezed through the place. We caught a bus through to the city, hopping off in a dimly lit transport tunnel. Temporarily confused, and told different things by different people, I accidentally waved off the man who was supposed to take us onwards. He seemed quite put off, and for the rest of our ride to the hotel he did not speak a single word. We stayed in the Quality Hotel, which was average for the price paid. The first night we ventured a couple blocks from our hotel to find a place to eat, managing to get to a mall complex called Sogo. There, on the fifth floor, we found a very Malaysian style food court. There, I had a little bit of culture shock, from the layout and the people, though little else has yet to give me culture "shock". Which I am disappointed in, for I think therein lies the excitement and adventure of travelling. But, I digress.

The next day, making use of the train transit lines in the city (which was a remarkably clean and modern one), we went to the Central Market and the twin towers that were once the tallest in the world. The market was in a large building and had two floors. After a bite to eat, Krista and I having odd tasting, not-so-lemony, lemon chicken, we ventured around. Although the prices were probably a bit higher than other marketplaces in Asia, the quality of everything was very good. On the top floor we wandered through a series of clothing stalls with more than a few things catching our eyes. On the bottom were trinkets, handicrafts, jewelleries, carvings and more. After quite some time there we still hadn't seen everything. We each purchased something, and we all refrained from spending on the more expensive things that really caught our eyes. On to the next stop, we came upon the beautiful silver and glass towers. Rising so far that I could not bend my neck far enough to see the tops, blinding in the sunlight, they were quite a spectacle. There may be many tall towers in the world, but these had a style to their architecture as to make them truly unique. The next day we departed, taking a bus from Kuala Lumpur to a ferry port north of Penang. From here the ferry took us on to the island of Langkawi. This island was much more tourist-ridden than we had been expecting and the atmosphere was a little less than relaxed as a result. We managed to grab a room at the AB Motel literally right next to the beach and so were saved from some noise.

We rented motorcycles, again! With them we rode to a small, out of the way beach called Tanjung Rhu, which was very pleasant. There, as with everywhere on the island, one could see the rock formations that rose out of the ocean, just off the shore. Backtracking a ways, we visited a cable car that took us to the top of the tallest peak on the island. It was quite a spectacular view, all the way up and at both platforms. I could see the entirety of the island. Back to our home base, we went a little further ending up on another pleasant beach and watched the sunset and parasailors go down in front of us. That night we came upon a place a short walk down the beach from our motel, called Yellow Cafe. There were hammocks and bean bag chairs, the latter of which lay right down on the beach itself. How could we resist? We spent most of our night there, enjoying drinks and conversation. The next morning we went on a less interesting joyride, to get the last use of our 24-hour rental. We departed the island the next morning, making our way through both Malay and Thai customs. From there we took a songthaew (a truck with seats in the box) to Satun, then a long bus ride to Krabi and finally arrived in Ao Nang after another songthaew.

Ao Nang was, according to Darcy and Krista, very much changed and overrun since their last visit here about five years ago. It certainly seemed that way, with the white faces outnumbering the brown at least 5-1 from my estimation. We spent our day there taking a longtail boat to Railay Beach. The beaches there were incredible, the sand having an almost surreal texture. The cliffs along the shoreline, near and far, were massive and have the place a wild atmosphere. In a rarity, we watched spectacled (you'll see what I mean) monkeys dart past us on the fences and through the trees. We looked on as rock climbers scaled them over the ocean and on the beach, and then proceeded to have our own rock climbing adventure (unofficially). Up a rocky pathway that rose steeply up the cliff on a different side, aided by ropes laid out for people, we began a trying climb. There were saw a beautiful view from a view on the side of the cliff, overlooking the small peninsula. Taking the advice of friendly guy, we took the other pathway a very, very far and steep way down to see the lagoon. This involved actually rock climbing, scaling down and then up at least three vertical rock faces. At the bottom was an incredible caldera that rose in a circle around us, though the tide was out and the water was low. The sun, unfortunately, did not allow us to take a picture of the place. It was a very good exercise with a rewarding scene at the end, much worth the exertion. That night we discovered a side street filled with night life, had a few drinks and enjoyed a very talented band.

That's all for now.

Jord::

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Photos

Leathercrafts
Custom made leather belt by Balinese leather craftsmen in Sanur.

Comments

[Nan]

Love to read your blogs
Very interesting and descriptive entries Jordan. Nan