Malaysia

The last post about our summer trip to Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia. 

We had booked the last few days of our trip at the Perhentian Islands because we were sure there would be nice weather. Our whole trip had been risky booking it during the rainy season. However we only got caught in the rain twice so it couldn't have gone better! 

The Perhentian Islands are like a mini Europe over in Southeast Asia. Left and right you hear Italian, French, German, and English. After visiting Krabi, Railay, and the surrounding islands the Perhentians didn't quite meet the expectations we had set. Also being an island, everything was much more expensive and you don't have very many options of things to do or for going out to eat. We had booked 4 nights and it was more than enough. After the third day we didn't know what to do. 

But even before arriving on the islands we had a stop over in George Town. We were on the West side of Thailand and we took a van down to the first point in Malaysia which is George Town. We only had just one evening and the afternoon of the following day. We enjoyed walking around trying to find something to eat but in the end opted for KFC. 

Freshly made pineapple juice 

George Town was a British Colony in the late 17th Century. It was very interesting seeing the mix of cultures. There are colonial style buildings right next to chinese temples. The town is very quaint and has lots of inviting restaurants and cafes. 

My stomach wasn't feeling very good after eating lunch. So we asked for the nearest pharmacy and they directed us to a an all-natural chinese pharmacy. The man gave me a foul smelling little packet and told me drink it with water. We quickly started looking for a modern pharmacy. 

 After our day wandering around George Town we were ready to get on an over night bus ride to get to the Perhentians. We arrived really early in the morning along with 30 other tourists and we were all boarded onto speed boats that dropped you off at the island where you booked your hotel. 

We stayed on the largest island. The days consisted of having the breakfast buffet, then going to one of the beaches and laying out, reading, relaxing, going to have lunch, then going back to the beach until about dinner time, showering, and then out for dinner. On the second day we rented kayaks and kayaked over to Turtle Bay. It was beautiful quiet cove. Another day we chose to hike to the other side of the island. We would have liked to visit other islands but the water taxis were terribly expensive. 

After four days on the island we took the speed boat back over to the mainland and it was a race to catch our bus over to Kuala Lampur. Our water taxi was terribly late and we knew we would miss our bus. When we arrived we tried asking around to several different tourists agencies. Finally someone, somewhere, somehow knew where we had to go so they told us to take a taxi to X. So we arrived at point X and the bus had just left. So we were chasing the bus in a taxi on the highway. We finally found it and it had pulled over and stopped to wait for us. Thank God! 

We only had a day in Kuala Lampur. It is similar to Singapore is incredibly Westernized. We got a cheap hotel right in the heart of China Town. We walked around to see the Petronas Towers, and wanted to go up to the top of Kuala Lumpur Tower but it was too expensive. And on our last day in Malaysia we went to some botanical gardens and a bird park.

 Then we were finally on our way to catch a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore, Singapore to Istanbul, Istanbul to Bologna after a wonderful exciting 3 week trip in Southeast Asia! 

Andaman Sea

A very late post about our time in South West Thailand. Apart from are urban and nature adventures we had, we also wanted to get some time in on the beach and Thailand is famous for the many beautiful islands in the Andaman Sea. Everyone talks about Phuket,  but after doing some research, we discovered that Phuket isn't really recommended for visiting and staying. It's too touristy and there other places you can stay that are cheaper, smaller, more cultural, and where you can still easily get to the islands.         

So we booked a hotel in Krabi and that was our central point for 5 days. We used the numerous little travel agencies that help you book trips to all the islands to organize our time there. To visit most of the islands you have to take a speed boat. For about 20 euros for the day they come and pick you up at your hotel and take you to the "port." You're loaded into a speed boat with about 20 other people and you stop to go snorkeling, stop at at least 2 islands, and lunch is provided. Unfortunately this is really the only way to see these islands without spending a ton of money on a private boat. These days were really stressful. The boats were over crowded and there was enough time to actually relax and enjoy the island. It was just enough time to get some photos. 

 

Our first day in Krabi we found a private boat that was going to Railay. We waited for 4 more people to join our boat and we went over together. Railay was the absolute best part of our trip. It was quiet, slow paced, beautiful, and relaxing. If we had known, we would have booked a hotel at Railay and stayed there much longer. In fact we went there the first day and we didn't know what to do the last day in Krabi so we decided to go back. 

In Railay we had a small adventure. There was a high point where there was supposedly a good view of the island. However to get there we had to climb up this hill. It had a big rope running down the hill to help you climb up. It was very deceptive and thought it was just first bit up hill and then there would be a path. But we were wrong. The further we went up the more vertical it became. It was a very exhausting difficult climb. It was slippery and we were both wearing flip flops.  Going up was thing and going down was even more difficult. 

View at the top of the difficult, muddy, slippery climb

The other days we visited the Phi Phi Islands and Hong Islands along with the spot where they filmed The Beach and some other places that I honestly don't remember the name of. 

This was a nice change from the bustling city and constant van rides. However, spending more than 5 days would be difficult unless you chose just one island to relax on and not move around. So this was definitely a good way to end our time in Thailand before heading into Malaysia. 

Northern Thailand

So apart from cooking classes and jungle hiking, we also took a very long, full day trip to visit some hot springs, the famous White Temple, the Golden Triangle, the border of Thailand and Myanmar, AND the Karen Long-Neck Tribe.  Yes, all of this in one day. 

Wat Rong Khun, is the White Temple in Chiang Rai, slightly East of Chiang Mai. The white temple is actually really quite new, with construction starting in the 1960's that was eventually finished in the late 90's. As you can see the whole temple is white- 97% as the other 3% are slivers of glass. The color white symbolizes purity and goodness. 

After visiting this temple, which was a breath of fresh air from other temples since it's so different. We raced on over in the tour van to catch the boat to visit the Golden Triangle. 

The Golden Triangle is where Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand all meet, being divided by the Ruak River. It gets it's name from the opium trade. Luca wrote an article about it for Cronache Internazionale, you can read it here: The Business of the Evil Flower. 

This part of the trip is really only interesting if you know some of the history. Apart from seeing the river, we stopped on an island of Laos and walked around for a bit. They gave us a memorabilia stamp on a separate piece of paper and if you wanted you could try the local whiskey that has either a snake, scorpion, or tiger's penis soaking in it. We passed on trying the local whiskey, but we did try some Laos beer. 

 Along with riding down the river where Thailand meets with it's Northern neighbors, we got into the tourist van and drove to the Myanmar and Thailand border. Again, here there is a bridge that is historical for the many people who died on it while trying to cross it during some period of unrest. Luca knew a little of the history and so appreciated seeing it. 

                                 

To finish off the day trip, we visited the Karen Long-Neck tribe. It was a very strange experience. We had to pay to visit their village, where all the women were sat in an open space "hut" working on making scarves which they also sell. It almost felt like they were on display and it didn't feel right taking their photo. 

These women start wearing the golden brass rings around their neck as young as 5 years old and will continue to add rings until they're in their 80's. The started to wear the rings for 3 reasons. The first it was a means of protection from tigers, which go for the throat. Secondly it was considered beautiful. Lastly, the longer your neck, the closer you are to the spirits. However, we didn't know if these women are forced to continue this tradition just as a means to earn money, or if it really is a continued practice in their tribe. 

These people are originally from Burma, but fled the country in the 1980's. They live out in the countryside of Northern Thailand, where the men of the tribe make their living from working the fields.