12 Day Malaysian Driving Tour

My husband and I had the pleasure of touring Malaysia with our daughter and son-in-law for the past two weeks. Each location offered a different type of experience but gave us the flavor of this beautiful peninsula. Here are some highlights:

An afternoon pitcher of Singapore Slings

Singapore - (3 days) - Although Singapore declared it's independence from Malaysia in 1965, this modern, well-organized city makes a good starting point for a Malaysia tour for the following reasons: 1) United flies its new luxurious Dreamliner from Denver to Changi. The cup holders, the large windows with dimmers, and the charging devices at each seat make the 30 plus hour flight from Denver almost a "dream." 2) The city is well-organized and clean. Until you cross the border into Malaysia, you don't really appreciate the significance of the "no spitting" laws and the clean bathrooms. 3) The botanical gardens with world class orchids, the tasty dim sum in Chinatown, and the photogenic Merlion in Marina Bay are worthwhile stops. Finally,  no trip to Singapore would be complete without drinking a Singapore Sling, a lovely concoction of cherry brandy, orange, pineapple and lemon juice - a refreshing cure for jet lag,.

A typical fishing village near Lumut

Lumut (2 days) - After an all night bus ride on a 1980s style bus with reclining seats that don't quite recline, spongy shocks that don't quite absorb, and roads that are paved but not really flat or smooth, we arrived in the industrial town of Lumut that includes an industrial sized shipping port and a ferry to the local tourist destination of Pangkor Island. Our short visit was punctuated by an early morning bike ride through small fishing villages and palm oil plantations famous in Perak State  ending at a fancy Chinese temple located on the shores of the Straits of Malacca. A highlight for our guests was renting motor scooters (cash and go - no paperwork or licenses required) on Pangkor Island.

A view of the houses built on the pier (quay)

Canopy walk in Penang National Park

Very tame butterflies

Monkey eating the remains of our coconut

Penang (3 days) - Penang is a "must see" on any Malaysian tour. It's got delicious hawker (street vendor) food, "World Heritage class" historical sights, tropical nature and  the sandy beaches of Batu Ferringhi. We enjoyed seeing old fishing houses (still inhabited by original clan members) built right on the pier  called Clark Quay. We trekked though the jungle in Penang National Park where we enjoyed intermittent views of the sea, felt like members of Swiss Family Robinson on the canopy walk strung between gigantic Banyan trees, and laughed at the antics of monkeys scraping the coconut meat out of the shells after we enjoyed the interesting (but not my favorite) coconut water. A final stop at the beautiful, colorful, peaceful Butterfly Garden capped off a great visit.

Taiping (Lunch stop) - After 8 days of exotic food and questionable bathrooms, many of us were ready for some Western comfort. I highly recommend the McDonald's located near the Lake Gardens for a cup of coffee and a bathroom. The hamburgers are predictable but that, too, was a welcome respite for several of us from this  taste bud challenge of Malaysia. A short walk to the Lake Gardens provided beautiful photos and some well-needed tranquility from the bumpy roads and impatient, bumper-to-bumper traffic on the E1.

Afternoon tea

Cameron Highlands (Overnight) - A drive to Cameron Highlands would not be complete without a stop at a hut on the side of the road to purchase honey collected from the tops of the trees from the Orang Asli - indigenous people. This honey is almost better than pure maple syrup on our traditional Western pancakes. Continuing on our journey, we arrived to Brinchang just in time for 5:00 tea which we sipped on the upper terrace of one of the local tea plantations. A few miles further down the road and we arrived at the Equatorial Hotel.

Steamboat meal

Hike up Trail #1

 Our rooms on the top floor (yes, I noticed it was floor number 13) provided beautiful views of the surrounding lush green mountains shrouded in a misty fog. As long we didn't look down to see all the strawberry and vegetable farms carved out of the mountains and covered with ugly plastic tarps, we could almost imagine being in Paradise. One of our favorite meals this trip was "Steamboat" (or Chinese fondue) in Brinchang. The fresh vegetables, spicy broth and tasty food was even more delicious because we got to cook it ourselves. After a good night's rest, we again explored the jungle by hiking up Trail # 1 to Gunung Brinchang. Although the start of the trail was tricky to find and we'd been warned to get a guide, and then told "but there are no guides available", we managed to both find the trail and find our way home with only a few minor scrapes from the saw-like blades of the jungle flora. The drive south out of Cameron Highlands is one the most beautiful I've seen anywhere in the world. It was like living in scenes from the movie Avatar.  Definitely a "must-see."

Petronas Towers

Kuala Lumpur (2 nights) - Warning! KL is not a driving friendly city. The last 3 kilometers to our hotel took almost as long as the rest of the drive from Cameron Highlands. (OK, I'm exaggerating a little but 40 minutes to drive a mile and a half is not pleasant). But after we parked our car at the Trader's Hotel it was time to relax. Our first stop was the Sky Bar on the top of our hotel for spectacular nighttime views of Petronas Towers. The next couple of days were spent walking around the city, taking in the Christmas sights and decorations, and taking advantage of things a city offers: going to a movie, eating food in air-conditioned restaurants and enjoying the cleanliness and functionality of modern plumbing. The thing that impressed me the most about this stop in KL was the energy and effort every service person put forth to make sure our Christmas was merry. Their gestures were greatly appreciated.

Trishaw rides in Melaka

Istana - Sultan's Palace

Melaka aka Malacca ( 1 night) - A fairly quick 2 1/2 hour drive south on the expressway brought us to one of the oldest trade ports in Malaysia and Asia for that matter. Settled first by the Portuguese, then followed by the Dutch, and later the British, modern Melaka is a mix of food, cultures, religions and languages. We walked along the Melaka River (described as the Venice of the East) and took a "super cheesy, super touristy and totally worth it" trishaw ride in a colorful, pink Hello Kitty trishaw with the hit song, "I'm Gonna Pop Some Tag" blaring and the sub-woofers in the back of the cart giving us a nice back message. We ate Chinese food with some Portuguese spices and we hiked to the top of A'Famosa where we snapped a photo of St. Francis Xavier (the father of the Jesuits) who actually preached in Malacca. We visited an Istana which is the Malay word for a Sultan's Palace and walked through a garden where the Sultan's daughters and wives would have played. Visiting Malacca is important for getting a part of the picture of Malaysian history and it's a short bus ride from Singapore, but be prepared for the crowds.

Our tour of Malaysia centering mostly on the west coast and central peninsula was wonderful but by no means complete.  We'll need another month to cover the east coast noted for its pristine beaches and world class diving and the states of Sarawak and Sebah. However, for a good flavor of the nation, I recommend this itinerary.

My New Digital Piano

There has been a slow down in blogging but for good reason...I've been playing with my new toy, a Kurtzweil digital piano. I've missed playing the piano for the last couple of years and thought I wanted to buy a Yamaha Clavinova but just couldn't justify the expense and weight (in case we want to bring it back to the States) for an instrument that might only be played for several years here in Malaysia. Then, I started looking at digital pianos but was afraid they would feel something like the keyboard I purchased in Turkey that never gave much enjoyment:sticky touch,  lack of octaves, no sustain pedal, electronic sound, etc.

Relunctanly, I "test drove" several digital pianos a couple of weeks ago. After only a few minutes of playing, I was pretty sure I would enjoy having one in our Lumut home. Both the Yamaha and Kurzweil had similar feels and sounds but I actually liked the touch a bit better on the Kurzweil. The deciding factor, however, was the price.  In Malaysia, the Yamahas were $300 - $600 more than the same model listed on Amazon in the US. (This makes no sense to me because the shipping from Japan (or China) would be less I would think but it might just be the Yamaha name.-I could write an entire blog about the love for brand names: Coach purses, Mercedes cars, Yamaha pianos, etc...) However, the Kurzweils were within dollars of the Amazon price so at least I knew I wasn't getting ripped off. Besides, I think it's kind of cool that the original Kurzweil pianos were inspired by a bet between Stevie Wonder and Ray Kurzweil to see if a synthesizer could be made to sound like a piano. The short answer is "yes". I love the sound of this piano.

Now...to the reasons why a post about a digital piano is on my pjinmalaysia blog...First, it's to illustrate how I entertain myself when there is both a shortage of local activities besides shopping, and an abundance of time while my husband is at work. This extra time is turning out to be a real blessing because I can spend time learning things that I never would have had the patience for before. This new piano is a perfect example. I'm learning how to be a one-man band complete with drums,a bass, saxophone interludes, vocals, and piano accompaniment all in the comfort and solitude of our little Lumut home.

Before living in Malaysia, I never would have had the patience to learn how to use all the bells and whistles on anything electronic besides the transposer or the metronome. I would have been too busy practicing for the next choir rehearsal or school music class to learn anything more than the basic piano notes. Now, I have time to listen to Avicii, try to mimic the sounds on his hit single "Wake Me Up" and pretend like I'm a rock star belting out the words on stage. I can welcome my husband home from work with my seductive (I wish) Nora Jones-like voice singing "Come Away with Me." And, I can always switch on the organ stop with full diapasons and give us an uplifting Sunday postlude experience.

In addition to the fun with the piano, here are some other new things I've learned thanks to WiFi and the digital age.

1) I can  find most sheet music at www.sheetmusic.com and download it instantly. (I can also find lots of music for free but I'm trying not to stoop to the low level of cheating/copying and blatant disregard of copyright laws that is so prevalent here. Hopefully, I'm keeping some musicians and music companies employed and keeping a clean conscience.)

2) I installed an app on my notebook that allows me to view my purchased sheet music right on notebook. (I might need to get some super magnifier cheater glasses to read it, but it's still pretty cool that all my music is in one little place...)

3) I can purchase (although I haven't yet) an electronic page turner so, with a touch of my foot, I can have my digital pages turned. This could come in really handy on the 13 page long  Beyonce's" Halo". (No, I'm too old to memorize and no, I don't play by ear.)

It's been out of necessity that I upgraded/updated/ and learned some new skills. It's been thanks to this opportunity to live in Malaysia that I've had the time. Gotta go practice.....

Cooking Lesson #2 - White Tom Yum Soup - Seafood

Saturday afternoons are turning out to be great times for cooking lessons. My husband is at work and my cooking teacher and her assistant finish their regular job at 1:15 which leaves us just enough time to shop for ingredients and make a Saturday night feast before they need to head back to their village to join their families.

Today I wanted to learn to make Tom Yum Soup - a spicy favorite of both my husband and me. I also wanted to make it with seafood- shrimp, squid, and crab - to be specific, because that seafood is plentiful here and I needed to learn how to clean a squid. Although Tom Yum Soup is a Thai dish, it is quite popular here in Malaysia. It's a nice, spicy bowl of delicious flavors.

Our first stop was the grocery store. Last cooking lesson, my teacher brought all the ingredients but today wanted to help with the shopping because many of the ingredients have English titles next to the UPC codes which helps me identify some of the ingredients.

Here are the foods that were new to me today:

Lemon tree leaves - We removed the stems and the spines of the leaves and used them for flavoring.

Lemon grass - We smashed the hard stalks with the flat edge of a meat cleaver and then sliced into 2" lengths.

Fish Balls - I don't know what these are but they are located with the fresh noodles and tofu. We washed the balls and added them to the soup.

Big, flat mushrooms - I just tried to Google them to get a name and they were kind of like a Chanterelle or a large Oyster mushroom but not exactly like either.

Baby Corn - We sliced the corn in half lengthwise and then sliced the halves diagonally including the bits of stalk.


Here's the cooking technique that was new to me... cleaning a squid.

First Rin pulled the head off. Then she pulled the black ink pouch from inside the head and discarded it. She cut off the eyeballs and snipped the head in half. She snipped the body into 1/2" wide rings. The she washed all the pieces really well.


Here are the added benefits to Saturday afternoon cooking lessons:
My house smells great. Dinner is ready. The dishes are done. I have time to blog. Life is good....

Here's the recipe

Seafood White Tom Yum Soup (By Rin)

1 packet of White Tom Yam Soup Mix

2-4 TBSP of evaporated skim milk

3 stalks of celery plus the heart - sliced

1 bunch cilantro (celery parsley) - chopped

5 or 6 lemon tree leaves - spines and stems removed

8-10 small/hot chilies - stems removed and sliced open lengthwise

2 stalks of lemon grass - smashed with a cleaver and sliced into 2" lengths

1 lemon - quartered

1 yellow onion - sliced

big flat mushrooms, torn in half or thirds

1 carrot sliced into 1/4" x 1" pieces

1/4 cauliflower - broken into small flowers

2 tomatoes - quartered

5 baby corns wit partial stalks at the bottom - slice in half and then into diagonal pieces

Assorted fish balls

Choice of seafood  ( I used shrimp, crab, and squid)

1. Prepare the seafood. Cut the tails and eyeballs off the shrimp. Pull off the heads from the squid and remove the ink packets. Cut the head in half. Cut the body into 1/2' rings. Pull the legs off the crab and cut the bodies in half. Walk all the seafood very well. Set aside.

2. Wash the fish balls. Set aside.

3. Fill a large soup pot about 3/4 full. Bring to a boil.

4. All the lemon grass. Boil for several minutes.

5. Add the crab, cauliflower, carrots, lemon tree leaves, baby corns, tomatoes, chilies, Tom Yam Soup mix, fish balls.

7. Squeeze in several quarters of lemon juice.

8. Boil the above mixture for several minutes.

9. Add mushrooms, squid and shrimp.

10. Add evaporated skim milk 1 tbsp at a time and mix in well.

12. Add onions and celery.

13. Let soup mixture cook for 10 minutes

14. Finish with cilantro on top.

Children's Day at a Malaysian School

Raven and me after her performance

Raven, one of my students,  sent me a text several nights ago...

"Teacher, can you come to my school? It's Children's Day and there will be a singing competition and I will be singing."

"I would love to!" I replied.

Several texts later Raven was able to provide an exact address so I could locate the school on Google Maps I arrived at the school at the appointed time and was grateful that Raven, the self-confident, insightful and friendly 8th grader had the foresight to tell me to call her when I arrived and so she could meet me outside. I definitely drew a lot of stares in this mostly Chinese/Malay school and it would have been very difficult for me to garner the courage to walk in alone.

The first hour or so of the assembly was awards. Most of the time I just watched the students and teachers, but I tried to pay attention to the English awards because the MC called students up with both their English classroom names and their Chinese names: Wong Fu Jack Foo, Sing Le Abigail Chin, Fang Ze Frank Fong, etc.

I really enjoyed being a "guest" as I watched the teachers trying to keep their students quiet, respectful, and paying attention all while sitting cross legged on a concrete floor for three hours. It was easy to pick out the "angels" who the teachers are eager to pass on to the next grade. Many of the teachers were wearing those final two weeks of school "tired eyes."

The students sat by grade on the hard concrete floor for the duration of the assembly.

Eventually, the singing competition began. There were about 20 contestants, a mixture of boy and girls, from ages 10 - 14.. It reminded me of any school talent show except the songs were in Chinese and the hand motions accompanying the songs were very pronounced and stylized like Chinese theater. Some of the students really could sing, some could sing but had no rhythm, and still others probably should have been pre-screened by faculty to save some embarrassment. Ah...that's just my "teacher-trying-to-keep-a fragile-child's esteem-in-tact" point of view. The reality was, the students were just as kind to the non-singers as they were to the good singers. There was no laughter at boys singing in their falsetto voices, no putting hands over ears during out of tune notes, no talking when students forgot the words. As a matter of fact, it was quite the opposite. If the singer was hesitant, the students joined in and sang along. If a student forgot the notes, the students helped out by singing. If the singer was not in time with the music, the audience gently clapped to bring the performer back on track. In other words, the students in the audience were respectful, kind, and supportive. In other words, it was a breath of fresh air.

Best of all,  mingled in among some of the rock star wanna-be's, there were several students who really could sing...Raven being one of them. She has a knack with a microphone, a stage presence that helps her connect with the audience and a voice that stopped all the quiet whispering in the room. It was beautiful and well worth the morning.

Singing competition contestants after their performances.

Although the winners of the competition will not be announced until graduation in several weeks, I'm sure that Raven will take first prize. And, I'm so glad she gave me the opportunity to be part of this school event.

Who and What You'll Meet on a Bicycle

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While cycling around Penang Island several days ago, we passed a man riding a bike with his miniature schnauzer sitting calmly on his front rack and a cat cage bungee corded to the back. While catching my breath at the top of a very steep hill, I decided to wait for the bike and dog to see if I could snap a photo. Also waiting in the shade at the top of the hill was a tandem bicycle with a young man with an older Chinese woman standing beside it and a single bicycle with a young Chinese woman holding it up. The young man and young woman were speaking French and I mentally made up the scenario that the couple were married and the older woman was the man's mother-in-law.

Several minutes later the man with the dog arrived.  I asked if I could snap his photo. He smiled and said, "Sure but why not take the whole family?" He invited the three bike riders to stand beside him. After snapping a few photos, we started the usual get-to-know-one-another questions...

The young man, Emilien, is from France and his wife, Xinhan, is from Shanghai. They are nearing the end of a two-year 38,000 kilometer (23,700 miles!) world bike tour on a tandem bicycle. The older man, Rickee, and his wife are from Penang and they had been following Emilien and Xinhan's blog/website for over a year. The four had  met the previous day and were getting to know each other with this island bicycle tour.

Meeting these amazing cyclists generated rapid-fire questions from me so Rickee suggested we get off the dangerous-shoulder-on-a-blind-curve-of-a-narrow road and meet for coconut water at the cafe half-way down the mountain.

A few minutes later while sipping coconut water(not my favorite but it sure works like Gatoraide to re-energize you)at an outdoor cafe we learned that Emilien and Xinhan plan to end their tour in 10 days in Singapore, find jobs, and settle down. I pulled up a quick mental map of Malaysia and realized we are "on the way" to Singapore. We immediately invited them to our home for a clean bed, a hot shower, and a meal.

Last night they arrived as planned. Our French/Spanish next door neighbors also joined us and we all enjoyed a meal learning about places I'd only head about and but can't even picture on a map.

I'm anxious for them to wake up because I have even more questions....

If you are interested in learning more about their trip, here's the website:

http://theglobelovers.com/worldbiketour/

Motorcycle Mama in Malaysia

At 53 years old I learned to drive a motorcycle. My husband was convinced this could be our mode of transportation for several years and was a patient, enthusiastic, encouraging teacher. The first several heart-pounding attempts to "ride solo" amounted to a drive down our lane in 1st gear and making sure I understood the brakes. Several days later, I got brave enough to shift into 2nd and make a u-turn in the cul-de-sac. Four days of that actually got a embarrassing as the maids and gardeners looked on.

The first day I decided to take the motorcycle for a ride while Eric was at work  consisted of  straddling the Yamaha 150cc and walking it from the car port to the street. Once on the street I mentally went through all the steps to start it: squeeze the clutch with my left hand, put in neutral with left foot, squeeze the brake with right hand, push the ignition with right thumb, rev the engine, gradually release the clutch and turn the throttle. I tried not to close my eyes as I started rolling.

The neighborhood workers got a big kick out of my progress. Some even clapped their hands when, after a slow spin around the neighborhood in 2nd gear, I arrived home safely in one piece albeit it with turn signal blinking. (Why don't turn signals don't automatically turn off, anyway?!...)

Fast forward two months and I'm now a "motorcycle mama in Malaysia." Like my fellow Malaysian bikers, I can now weave the cycle through rows of cars waiting for the green light and join the ten or more scooters and motorcycles at the front of the line.  Waiting for the light to turn green, my left foot stomps the whatchamacallit down into first, I rev the throttle with my right hand and I smile confidently at the 14 year old boys envying the bike. (Darn..and I thought it was me they were looking at) As soon as the light turns green they try to prove their masculinity with their Chinese scooters and race into the intersection. I  let them feel manly as they ahead down the road, but  it's not difficult to catch them as they putter forward, smoke billowing from behind, illuminating a slightly flat rear tire.

This motorcycle mama can now ride in the motorcycle lane with confidence and no longer panic when a fellow cyclist chooses to ride against traffic. The unwritten law in that situation is that I move to the right of the motorcycle lane and the guy (I've never seen a girl riding against traffic) moves to the left...Considering we drive on the left here (British style) that little "unwritten rule" used to be quite scary. Do I go left, right, stop, die?...

I thank Eric every day that he bought a biggish motorcycle. (I know 150 cc is small by US standards but almost everyone has very tiny scooters over here so ours is big in comparison.) I actually feel safer being to ride at the speed of traffic, especially when I need to change lanes to make a right turn than I do on my bicycle, or I did when I used to ride the motorcycle really slowly. To put the "speed" thing in perspective, the normal speed here in town  is about 60 kph (about 30 mph). On a small highway, I once got the speed up to 80 kph (49 mph) but it felt like my helmet was going to blow off so I slowed down.

My favorite ride is to and from the gym. I've mentioned the sweating problem of exercise caused by intensity, humidity, and no air conditioning and the motorcycle ride is the perfect anecdote. The wind in my face - I have to leave the helmet face guard up for the first few blocks to prevent fogging - and through my shirt acts like the perfect evaporator air cooler. And on a really good day, I make all the lights, so sweat doesn't pour across my eyelids, down my chin, and out the bottom of the helmet while waiting for the light to turn.

Now it's time for a bit of honesty. I like to think of myself as a" motorcycle mama", but I can't honestly put myself in the same league as some of the local "mamas", I would need to add a few more "rider skills" to my repertoire. For example to be considered a really competent motorcycle mama I would need to be able to:

1. Light a cigarette at a red light. Smoke the cigarette as much as I can, and let the lighted butt dangle between my left fingers until the next red light where I can finish it.

2. Light the cigarette and continue bringing the cigarette to my lips with my left hand while driving with my right hand. I guess here's where a scooter could be an advantage...no clutch needed.

3. Text while driving the motorcycle.

4. Text while driving on the wrong side of the motorcycle lane.

5. Pick up three children from school and give them a ride home: toddler standing in the basket in front, elementary age child squeezed in the middle (gives a whole new meaning to middle child) and oldest child hanging off the back with one or two school bags hanging off his or her back.

6. Drive with high heels or flip-flops.

7. Carry 3 natural gas canisters.

I guess I've got some more practicing to do.

NB. The motorcycle as transport is nice in theory. Rain, speed bumps, a week's worth of groceries, and two riders at one time make this NOT such a comfortable ride for the long haul. But it sure is fun for short errands!

Monkeying Around at the Monkey Park

Located less than 5 minutes from my house is a monkey park. I've heard many stories about the naughty monkeys in this park so I was a little bit shy about going....

Here's a conversation I had with a taxi driver:

Driver: Have you been to the monkey park yet?
Me: Not yet, but I'd like to!
Driver: You must go in the evening. The monkeys are more active then. Also, bring them some food. They like food.
Me: Like bananas?
Driver: Yes and mangoes, rambutan, durian, papaya. It doesn't matter. They like it all. But be careful. The monkeys are naughty.
Me: How so?
Driver: They will attack you.
Me: Oooh. Yuk.  Have they got diseases?
Driver: I don't know. Just be sure to put the food in a plastic bag. Tie the bag shut. Throw it out of the car window before you get out of the car. Then they won't attack you.
Me: Plastic bag. Got it.....(thinking a bit) Do they eat the plastic bag?
Driver: Sometimes. And sometimes they are clever and open the bag and just let the empty bags hang from the mangrove trees.

Monkeys eating durian or pineapple ( couldn't get close enough to tell)

Here's a conversation I had with a neighbor:

Neighbor: Have you been to the monkey park yet?
Me: No,. I think I'd like to, but I don't want to be attacked.
Neighbor: Yes, the monkeys are very naughty. I take my kids but they won't get out of the car. I throw the bag of rotten bananas out the window. After the monkeys have grabbed the bag and climbed to the top of a tree,  I venture out of the car.
Me: What else do the monkeys eat?
Neighbor: Peanuts, tin cans, plastic lids..Pretty much everything.
Me: I'll have to go sometime...

Here's a conversation I had with a different neighbor:

Neighbor: Have you been to the monkey park yet?
Me: No, but it's on my list.
Neighbor: It's hilarious. I go every night. Last night this monkey took the car keys from a Malay father's hand...apparently the keys were in the bag of fruit. Then the monkey climbed to the top of a very tall mangrove tree to enjoy his booty. The Malay family was begging the monkey to come down. "Please monkey, please monkey, give us back our keys." The monkey ate the fruit. The monkey tried to eat the keys. The monkey pressed the alarm button on the car. Beep, Beep, Beep. The Malay family kept begging. The monkey kept teasing. The, the monkey held the keys out at arm's length and dropped them into the swamp. Kerplunk.
Me: Oh, no! And then what happened?
Neighbor: The dad reached into the mucky, dirty, poop-filled swamp and tried to retrieve the keys.
Me: Was he successful?
Neighbor: Not while I was there.

Monkeys on mangrove tree in swamp

Anyway, tonight while biking through the neighborhood, I made the random decision to bike on over and see what everyone has been talking about. I hadn't planned ahead so I didn't have any food, which based on some of the stories, seemed like a good idea.

There were a mixture of brave souls at the park following monkeys around trying to snap cute pictures with their cameras. There were many who were charmed by the monkey antics but who remained locked in their cars and snapped photos through their tinted glass.  There were the "couples" who appeared to be on dates. The brave boyfriends cautiously left their cars to approach the monkeys while their reluctant dates cowered in their hermetically sealed vehicles cheering on their brave men.

One girlfriend who must have been getting hot wearing heavy clothing from head to foot, cracked her car window about six inches to let in some fresh air and took a loud slurp of her super-sized soft drink. A ballsy monkey must have heard her slurp jumped right up to the open window to have a taste. She shrieked all while trying to roll up the window as quickly as possible.

And then there's not-so-brave-but-really-need-some-Facebook-photos me. Having only brought my cell phone,  I needed to get up close and personal. My first several attempts were not too bad. The monkeys would walk towards me until they figured out that I had nothing to offer. Then, they'd turn, scratch their butts or armpits and walk away. I got a few pictures. But I wanted to capture the expressions on their faces, their babies hanging from their mom's fur, their playful rough and tumble behavior. I got a little braver.

Unfortunately one monkey was not pleased. She (I learned that she was a "she" for reasons I'll explain a little later) pulled back her upper lip, bared her teeth and starting walking towards me with a low growl. At first I started kicking my feet, backing away from her, emitting my "I'm scared phenoms" and saying "No, No!" But then, I remembered that I'm about five feet taller than her with opposing thumbs that used to be able to play a Bach Fugue, and I'd watched the movie "Gorillas in the Mist" with Sigourney Weaver playing Dian Fossey, the gorilla lady so, I held my ground,  looked her (the girl monkey) straight in the eye, raised my upper lip, and showed her that my teeth are bigger than hers.

Just then her monkey boyfriend approached from behind....behind her...that is. Obviously I'd interrupted a little monkey business at the park. With my big teeth and gums showing,  I gradually backed away slowly walked to my bicycle. The two monkeys lost interest in me and resumed their activity while the song "Discovery Channel Song" played in my head.

Next time I'll bring fruit in a baggie. And, I'll be smarter than the average monkey. I won't put my keys in the bag.

A Daytrip to Taiping- Malaysia

The name Taiping has had me enthralled since moving to Malaysia. I didn't know why I recognized the name Taiping, but it sounded like something I'd read about, and because it's only about two hours away, I knew I needed to visit. Today was the day...

The drive north was uneventful but the arrival to the historical center confirmed that this was a good destination for a day trip. The clean, fresh air and the thick fog, slowly lifting to reveal the lush green mountain behind the calm lakes and ponds of the Lake Gardens, was a welcome respite to the rather industrial setting of Lumut, our home.

Our first stop was to walk around the Lake Gardens. I could feel the British influence with the gardens looking a bit like a miniature Hyde Park with palm and mangrove trees. However, the presence of wild monkeys and the picnic areas with Chinese-style roofs and bridges reminded me that I was in Malaysia. I walked within five feet of a mama monkey wielding a large stick in one hand and cuddling her newborn baby in the other. Needless to say, I was trying to snap pictures without rousing her wrathful, protective attention.

Mama monkey with baby cuddled in left hand and large stick (can't see) in right.

The next stop was the Allied War cemetery marking the deaths of over 850 war causalities with over 500 unidentified soliders killed during the Japanese occupation of Malaysia during WWII.

The next stop, a fact-finding trip to the base of Bukit Larut (Maxwell's Hill) informed me that we need to be in line at 7:30 am for the first-come-first-served 30 minute, 13 kilometer Land Rover trip to the top of the 1250 meter above sea level mountain. Unfortunately, tickets were sold out for today. The 13 kilometer hike to the top will be a goal for another day.

Base of climb to Maxwell's Hill

Labu Pottery at Perak State Museum

The next stop on the journey was the Perak State Museum. The building itself it nice to see and some of the artifacts inside helped me to better understand the culture and the flora and fauna of the area. The expressions on some of the stuffed animals made me think the taxidermist had a sense of humor, ( a lot of the dead animals were smiling...maybe he heard the radio commercial  telling us to smile- see earlier blog post---) but I'm not sure I actually want to see some of these animals in real life to confirm my theory. The wild cats, the giant flying rodents, the armored ant and termite eaters, the 24- foot long crocodile skeleton, and the python skeleton of the same length are kind of creepy and not something I want to meet in real life.


All during the day I was haunted by the idea that I should know Taiping for some reason. Thank goodness for the internet as I'm sure now, that I was confusing Taiping, China with Taiping, Malaysia. Here's what Wikipedia says about the Taiping Rebellion, that occurred in China. (I vaguely remember a tick on a time-line I'm sure I had to memorize in high school World History class.)

The Taiping Rebellion was a massive civil war in southern China from 1850 to 1864, against the ruling Manchu-led Qing Dynasty. It was a millenarian movement led by Hong Xiuquan, who announced that he had received visions in which he learned that he was the younger brother of Jesus. At least 20 million people died, mainly civilians, in one of the deadliest military conflicts in history.

So then I wondered where Taiping, Malaysia got its name. Prior to being called Taiping, it was called Klian Puah. (Klian means "mine" and Puah is a type of mango) .Again from Wikipedia I learned that the discovery of tin brought lots of Chinese workers to Malaysia although the vicious  deadly fights among many of the different Chinese clans forced the British to intervene. In addition , 

many Hakka had fled China when the Taiping Rebellion broke out there and found work in the mines of Chung Keng Quee ... from 1860 to 1884.

Although there has been a decline in tin mining deposits in the area, tin, rubber and rice continue to be important products in the Taiping economy. Many of the businesses maintain the Chinese shop house architecture while many government buildings have the Colonial architecture style. There are Catholic, Methodist, British and International schools along with the traditional Malay schools.Taiping is also the wettest place in Malaysia and a heavy downpour beginning in early afternoon confirmed that fact.

Although the tourist guides books give scant mention to Taiping, it is well worth a day trip.