Malaysia

I just returned from Malaysia and it was great! We arrived in Penang on Monday and stayed through Thurs. Our ship wasn’t allowed to pull up directly to the dock, instead we had to drop anchor out further in the middle of the ocean and take tendered ferries across the harbor to get to the dock…it was quite a process! Malaysian Currency is the Rinkett The conversion rate is about 3.4 rinkett to the US dollar. The three main ethnic groups in Malaysia are Malaysian, Chinese, and Indian- Quite an interesting combo. Penang has an amazing shopping mall. On the first day we entered a huge mall with so many cute things and CHEAP shoes…..so many shoes! I did a pretty good job and only bought one pair of heels and one pair of tennis shoes-they are cheapies-I needed some temporary replacements because my Nikes were ruined during my jungle adventure….In the evening Michael, Adrienne, and Greg went to some other city in Malaysia so Celina and I were on our own. After we had finished shopping, we hopped in a carriage….that was pushed by a man on a bike from behind….I know, I know this already sounds like trouble…but we hopped in and asked him to take us to the ship….along the way he began taking us on this scenic route and along dark abandoned streets….we were really scared. I saw (once again) a ton of rats along the way. Finally we arrived safely back at the dock and we headed back to the ship.
On the second day, we woke up and left for our trip to the Cameron Highlands. The Cameron highlands are about 4 hours away by bus and are extremely beautiful. Unlike some of our friends who found a lot of hustle and bustle in the big cities of Malaysia, our trip was really relaxing and mellow. We did a lot of hiking through jungle, and visits to places like tea plantations, and strawberry farms. The natural scenery was beautiful and the weather was perfect….back in Penang, the temperatures are hot and humid, but in the highlands we were able to enjoy cooler weather….it kind of reminded me of being in the mountains in Colorado…during the summer of course! On our way to our hotel in the highlands, we stopped at this really old Chinese temple inside of this huge cave…it was really neat and really old. We also had lunch at this weird Chinese restaurant….the food was ok, but I had to pee, and I still don’t know how to use those squatters very well! Our hotel was really nice, and Celina and I got to be roomies again! We walked around this little town in the highlands and then we had some good nan (remember the Indian bread that looks like a tortilla) at this little pub/restaurant. I went to sleep pretty early but got well rested for our trip to the jungle the next day!

We woke up bright and early and split up into cars of 7 so that we could go to the Highlands. First we stopped at this really high tower. We had to climb some really steep stairs about 4 stories high, but once we got to the top we were able to get an amazing view of the Highlands. The scenery was incredible. We also stopped at a tea plantation and got a cheesy yet interesting lesson on how tea is made and processed in Malaysia. Tea is one of Malaysia’s biggest exports and the work that tea harvesting provided is one reason why the culture is so diverse….many people from countries like China and India came to work on the plantations. We got to sample some of the tea and I was even able to purchase some to bring home with me.
After visiting the tea plantation we made our way to the highlands. The driver of our car ended up being our main guide through the highlands. We started out on this nice little track, and before I knew it we were in the middle of the jungle. The ground was really soft and squishy….only later did I find out that we weren’t even standing on the ground, but instead we were standing on a canopy of grass and shrubbery that grew above the ground and roots of the trees. For some reason I was the dirtiest girl of all time…I kept on slipping and so my pants and shoes were filthy….I wouldn’t have felt so bad, but everyone else came out of the jungle relatively clean-haha…..I am such a mess! Our path was actually pretty difficult….there were no distinct paths and we had to just follow our guide as best we could and hope that we didn’t get lost…we walked through a lot of muddy places and did a lot of uphill climbing. Throughout our hike, We were able to see different kinds of trees, flowers, and plant life. We also got to see the pitcher plant….aka…the carnivorous plants! I must admit that I was somewhat disappointed to find that the plant was relatively small and that it wasn’t carnivorous at all, but instead it was insectivorous. The plant only traps and eats bugs! I was expecting to encounter a huge man eating shrub like the one on Little Shop of Horrors. Regardless of my disappointment, the hike was beautiful and I had a good time.
After leaving the highlands, we headed back to the tea plantation for lunch…we had bananas, rice and some weird chicken….strange for a box lunch.
After we lunch we headed to this little village where we were able to try our hand at blowing a poisonous dart out of a long wooden tube. I did a bad job…..I missed the target entirely, but at least I hit the tree! We also got to see some cutie babies…there were a lot of kids just sittin around….I found this cutest baby girl and she kept on waving to me! I love her so much…..She was my favorite. After the village we were told that we were going to this strawberry farm that also specialized in serving amazing strawberry snacks!! But before we got to go to the farm we had to stop at this lame hot spring….it was dirty and so lame….but we made the best of it and pretended it was kind of cool!
Finally we were heading to the strawberry farm and wouldn’t you know it, our car broke down….well actually it just overheated! The 4 girls in the car just sat inside while the boys got out and helped collect water to pour on the engine….I think…..
Finally we made it to the strawberry farm and I had an AMAZING strawberry Sunday!! It was so good! YUMMY! We left the farm and headed back to the hotel where we had dinner before heading out to that same little pub to have more good tea and nan with a group of SAS kids.
The next morning we left at about 9 am and headed back to Penang. We made a stop at a lame market which sold nothing but strawberries and flowers….I was sad because we aren’t allowed to bring fresh fruit or plant life onto the ship so this was a lame waste of time for us….we also stopped at a Chinese restaurant for lunch….it was kind of gross-not because I am a sissy but because it really was gross! Our last stop was at this shop where people hand painted different fabrics used for clothes, or decoration….the process was kind of cool, but the stuff they sold was pretty expensive so I didn’t buy anything.
Once we were back at the dock, Celina and I decided to head back to that amazing mall to buy some last minute stuff…It was about 4:30 and our on ship time was 9 so we figured we had plenty of time. We shopped a little, and had some pizza hut before heading back to the dock. We were in line by 8pm and as we waited to board the ferried boats, we began to panic with the realization that we weren’t going to make it onto the ship by 9. It wasn’t just us, there were at least 100 SAS kids in our same situation. We waited and waited and finally were able to board a boat…by the time we got onto the actual ship, it was 9:40 pm…..ridiculous, we had just waited an hour and 40 minutes to get back onto the ship. I was so sad that I was going to get dock time….(4 hours worth) but luckily the ship administration issued us warnings instead of giving us dock time in Vietnam…this was really good considering Jenn is meeting me in Vietnam and we have a jam packed schedule! However, if I am ever late again in any of the remaining ports I will get an additional 4hours of dock time added to what ever time I get. So basically I can never be late again, and I don’t intend to!

I miss you and hope everyone is doing well. I’ll write after Vietnam. Love you, Val