First impressions of Mmmmalaysia

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Welcome to ultra-modern Malaysia! Or it seems that way based on the other countries we have beem to in the last few months. It is like home with chain restaurants, super-highways, pricey cars, and little india. If only home was this cheap! Malaysia and Singapore will be good countries to do last I think, I little bit more like home to integrate us back into Western culture. It seems too soon to be thinking about coming home...time has been a strange concept for me during this trip. Each day flies by so quickly but when I look back it seems like ages ago that we were exploring Angkor Wat or even in Vietnam. Perhaps it is because we have done so much is a relatively short period of time. Any other ideas? I just can't grasp it.

Coming to Malaysia was always the point on the calendar when I thought to myself "that is when I will know that the trip will be almost over..." That is when I can start thinking about and preparing for what awaits me in Canada....Groan. I have mixed emotions about coming home. I think the integration back into life there will be tougher than I expect. I am not sure how but I will be sure to post a post-travel blog and tell you. In some ways I am excited about coming home. There is Geoff waiting for me so that will be exciting and I am going back to waitress at Mexi's to keep me busy. I think keeping busy will be important. I am still waiting to hear from school and Geoff and are also planning to do a little travelling of our own this summer around the maritimes. I need to get the travel bug in that boy so he will come with me next time! For now I try not to let these thoughts occupy my mind too much. I am in Malaysia and there is lots to explore here and a busy 2 and a half weeks ahead!

The guys who run our hostel are an outgoing bunch of Indian-Malysians. I stayed up on our first night and had a few beer with them and helped celebrate one of their mates' birthdays. They offered to take Brookes and I to the horse races the following day. Brookes is a bit under the weather but I took Shan and Rashis up on their offer and went to the races. Complete with trumpet flare and all this afternoon did not disapoint! They are into the betting, although I took it easy but managed to loose about $12. No beginners luck here! I have never been to races before but it is quite the atmosphere. Of the 6 other foreigners I saw there I was the only female. There were not many local females either. Largely a smoke and drink with the boys kindof pastime I guess! Fun nonetheless and expecially exciting on the home stretch of each race when everyone starts yelling numbers and names to encourage their bets. And the celebrations and disapointments afterwards are fun to watch as well. When I bet these emotions were also in me...it is the difference of having a stake in the race..what a rush!

A new day and Brookes is still suffering but I took some time to explore the city a bit on my own. First I checked out the Penang Museum. It is a collection of exhibits documenting the culture and history of Malaysians. The culture is made of up of Indians, Indonesians, Chinese, Thai, Japanese, and EuroAsians. They call it a Kaleidoscope of cultures. They all seem to co-exist quite harmoniously today and it has been the way for many centuries. It is eveident when I went back out on to the street and walked through Chinatown and Little India. I decided to go for a stroll and ended up at Fort Cornwallis. The fort was built by Francis Light upon discovery of Penang Island in 1786. I especially liked the lighthouse, which is still used today, it looks different from what we see in the maritimes in Canada. I ate a delicious lunch and fresh orange juice at what they call a "hawker" stand. Usually these portable places have no or few places to sit but they cook up the most delicious food around. Last night I had Satay and Samosas, today it was rice with spicey chicken, veggies and shrimp in a delicious sauce. I am not disapointed by the food here at all, mmm!

Brookes was feeling well enough to accompany me to Penang Hill, a big hill on the edge of the city of Georgetown. We took a bus (mistakenly, during rush hour) to thebase of the hill where we took a series of fenicular trains up to the top, about 800metres above sea level. All along the way there are beautiful gardens and lush jungle, and a tunnel. The view from the top was of the entire city and the sea. We arrived at the top just as dusk was falling and light began to turn on below us. Unfortunately we also arrived at the top just as it begn to rain. We stayed at the top for half an hour anyways peering through the fog and haze. We couldn't see much on the way down but we were entertained by a group of Malaysian boys who had syched up their cell phone mp3 players to the same song and were dancing and singing all about- a funny sight!

We leave tomorrow for the Cameron Highlands, home of cooler weather and maybe a trek and some tea drinking.

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