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Published: November 18th 2012
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**After an unplanned break from our travels we are currently in El Salvador, although we still have a few blogs before then to catch up on...**
Reluctantly we boarded the late afternoon speed boat from the Perhentians back to the mainland. Our intention was to head back to Khota Bahru, but it turned out that it was the final day of the Muslim fasting so the roads were jam packed and we opted instead for a taxi to a nearer town with a train station - Tanah Merah. We arrived, checked out the hotel options (we could only find two) and selected the one nearest to the train station for the next days journey. It wasn't a great choice - possibly one of the most grim places we'd stayed so far - so we headed out for dinner and got caught in the rush at the nearby Pizza Hut with locals celebrating the end of Ramadan and their fasting period. The next day was a religious holiday, so when we walked to the station at dawn the roads were eerily quiet the early morning mist added to the feeling of it being a ghost town.
The train took us
down the Eastern side of Malaysia on whats known as the 'Jungle Line'. It was a slow journey, but with beautiful views of jungle/inland cliff scenary - it really lived up to its nickname. A few monkeys showed their faces as well. We arrived at Gemas another short stop, we were pretty tired from the last couple of days travel so we stayed at a real hotel ....the well named Hotel Tropicana. Next day was a train to Tampin followed by a bus to our next proper destination - Melaka. We took a room near to the famous Jonkor Street - a long semi pedestrianised stretch full of eateries, cafes, antique shops and heavy with Chinese influence (Chinese dragons signalled the start of the street). Nearby were numerous temples. One word described our first impression of the place - busy! It was the end of the religious celebrations and the streets were packed with both locals and tourists enjoying the weekend. Once settled we found a nice bar, had a good meal and spent some quality time people watching.
Next day we ventured further into the Colonial part of the city, crossing and walking alongside the river. Superbly coloured
and decorated trishaws gave the many tourists lifts, but we were put off from such a ride by the booming dance music played at full volume from speakers in the back!
The old Dutch fort was a nice green area, with an ancient church on top and excellent views. The views didn't quite match those of the revolving tower lift on which we ascended though - this gave us fascinating definition between the old colonial areas and newer built parts of the city. After further strolling and a relaxing break in the park, we again settled down at one of the many bars on Jonker street -Tina enjoying a rare pint of Guiness or two.
Despite our amazing time in Penang, we struggled to enjoy the mixture of cultures that Melaka had to offer. It seemed a lot more geared around tourism and perhaps due to the holidays it felt a little claustraphobic. For that reason we moved on after two nights and took the short bus ride to Kuala Lumpur. KL was a huge change from the rest of Malaysia and another city full of contrasts. The old and new of this Asian city was very much
in evidence. In one street you could take in a view of immense modern tower block buildings, old colonial shop houses, street vendors selling virtually anything and open rivers of rainwater (and more than likely sewage).
We concentrated on getting the main sights in first, the famous Petronas Twin Towers - they lived up to their reputation as hugely impressive - the shopping centre and park/fountain complex at ground level were of equally modern and epic proportions. Unfortunately the price prevented us from taking the view from the central walkway - we went for an even higher and equally impressive view of the city from the KL Tower - the 7th tallest broadcasting tower in the world at over 400m high. Then there was the Petaling St and Central markets - hustle and bustle shopping areas with plenty of bargaining opportunities.
Meeting up with a local couple Arshad & Nurul was a highlight, firstly to watch a couple of premiership football matches on a big screen ( the Malaysians love English football as much as the English do, despite the awkward time difference), then to go to a friend of theirs 'open house' (a kind of annual celebration
that many households hold offering food and drinks to their guests). It was great to have some local knowledge and very kind of them to show the sights of their city and help with understanding of the local cuisine! We are hoping to show them the sights of Northamptonshire when they visit the UK next year.
Other KL activities included a trip to the Batu Caves - an enourmous cave complex that doubled up as a Hindu shrine complete with Monkeys, chickens and pidgeons. It was pretty impressive. A Malaysia day holiday and parade also took place to mark the anniversary of independence from British rule. It was an interesting sight to behold, with marching bands, groups of military personell, convoys of classic cars - even a group of taxis driving passed. That's the nearest to go to a taxi before you are ripped off!
The final way to describe KL was with its food. Local cuisine from street vendors to classy restaurants. A modern influence with fast food chains and shopping mall food courts. Both Indian & Chinese restuarants and cafes serving delicious cheap eats. Finally, a real favourite, the 'Beef Noodle Shop'- it served what the
sign told it would and very well indeed.
Singapore, an eight hour train journey further south was another big change. By far the most modern place visited so far but with old style shop houses still to be seen outside of the central areas. It was great to meet our friend 'Red' that we'd got to know in Mongolia here- he used his local knowledge to help navigate the efficient MRT system and visit Chinatown, the Malay area and another Little India district. The most impressive features of Singapore though were the huge skyscrapers and the most modern of buildings and shopping areas. The gardens of the bay area - a recent addition on reclaimed land - backed onto the 3 tower Marina bay hotel - the most incredible looking hotel, with a swimming pool on top. Unfortunately slightly out of budget... Nevermind! Singapore was great for a few days, but we had volunteering in Sri Lanka and the cricket world cup to look forward to just around the corner!
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