We spent a couple weeks diving and relaxing in the South of Thailand but we decided to move on to Malaysia a little earlier than originally planned. Diving was fabulous but we felt the South Islands were entirely different from the Central and Northern areas of Thailand. Inauthentic food, masses of tourists, a few scams and littered beaches meant we were quick to move on... We cant love every place unfortunately!
Our journey through Malaysia would be one packed with ups and downs, excitement and turmoil, as well as some seriously good food!
First stop Langkawi, an island on the Northwest coast. The first two days were great, we hired a moped and explored the island inside out. This is by far the cheapest and easiest way to explore the island as filling up the bike cost around 70p. We went for an Indian meal on our second night, with the idea of trying something new. We ordered a curry with a 'roti tisu'; what we thought was a type of naan turned out to be a flatbread covered in sickly sweet condensed milk... That was put aside for pudding and a plain naan was swiftly ordered!
Unluckily our time in Langkawi took an abrupt turn for the worse. On our third morning we awoke at 4:30 am when our wardrobe fell over resulting in both of us being splashed by cold water. We both jumped out of bed into almost waist height water, turned on the light and found that the room had flooded with what looked like brown river water. We both went straight into action mode, save our stuff! This meant frantically searching for what ever we could pick up, passports and valuables being of the main concern. We then waded out of our room in search of the highest point possible, dump what we'd managed to save so far, regroup and attempt to salvage the rest of our belongings.
The rain didn't cease until gone 11 am, which meant that water levels in the room and around the hostel continued to rise. By the time it actually stopped, the water level was 1.5 meters in places and around 1 meter in our room.
Nevertheless, we survived and can tell the tale of the flood in Langkawi. A scary start to Malaysia, but don't worry guys it gets much better! The rest of Langkawi was good fun, we spent most of our time eating local food, drinking beer and relaxing. We also helped the owners of our flooded guesthouse clear up and recuperate. It was satisfying watching it come back to life eventually.
Six days later we left on a direct ferry to Penang where we would be staying in Georgetown. Along with us came Esme, a fellow flood survivor and therefore our Malaysian kin. We stayed in a hostel called Red Heritage Inn, which was fantastic. Clean, large beds and showers that had jets in the walls, luxury!
To call the food in Penang great is an understatement! We had our first experience of a Mamak shop on the night of our arrival. The food was incredible, tandoori chicken, naans, curry sauces and a claypot vegetable byriani for a pittance. Just writing about it now makes our mouths water and we think you could travel to Malaysia for these speciality restaurants alone. They will be sorely missed on our departure from this country. For us, a lot of the great moments in Malaysia involved its food, especially the street food which generally surpassed the quality of the average restaurant (Mamak shops not included!!!).
The most memorable day we had in Penang would have to be the short trek we made through the national park to turtle beach. The walk was an ideal morning getaway from the city of Georgetown. We hopped on the local bus and within an hour we were at the entrance to the park. After a quick bit of negotiating with the water taxi to pick us up, we had set off on a leisurely stroll into the jungle. We arranged for the water taxi to pick us up from the other side of the peninsula, which turned out to be a great idea as four other people jumped on the band wagon when we got to the beach.
The next stop three days later, was a four hour bus ride to the Cameron Highlands, a region full of fruit farms, including numerous strawberry and tomato farms, as well as huge tea plantations. We three flood amigos decided to do the Mossy Forrest tour, which included a guide who spoke impeccable English, a ride in an old Landrover Defender, a short trek through a forest that was truly 'mossy' and a visit to the Boh tea plantation.
We started the tour above one of Boh's tea plantations; standing in the sun, we looked over the vast mountainous landscape, where peaks were intertwined with plantations and pickers shanty towns for as far as the eye could see. Our guide then explained the rich history that Malaysia has with tea, that they drink the same black tea as the Brits and that it's become the national drink. He talked about the process from picking to the point where you drink it and the different grades of tea you get dependent on what part of the plant you pick. All interesting stuff!
Next we took a ride up the mountain, straight to the highest peak and close to where we would start our Mossy Forrest trek. Sadly on the journey up the clouds seemed to come from nowhere and cover the peak in a thick blanket of cold and wetness. Although we did see the funny side and climbed up the tower to see tremendous view that went for about fifty meters. We even took a photograph!
The trek was great, we learnt about the importance of the mossy ecosystem, the use of different plants and even got a bit of a viewpoint in as well (we had descended enough to be below the clouds!). The smell of being in a dense green and wet forest was a nice reminder of home. After our tour we went down to the Boh tea factory for a bit of lunch and some warm black tea. Even though it was full to the brim, it was a welcome relief from the colder air higher up the mountain.
After a beautiful change of scenery in Cameron highlands for two days we headed down towards the south to Melacca, which meant saying farewell to our flood buddy Esme. It's been an adventure, we've had a great time even though what brought us together wasn't ideal to say the least. Adios Esme, keep on enjoying yourself. For us, bring on the South of Malaysia!
Wednesday 7 August 2013
Saturday 3 August 2013
The final chapter of Burma
The ancient city of Bagan is truly a marvel that one could sit and admire no matter who you are or where your beliefs lie. Over two thousand Pagodas scatter the flat landscape around the Aye Yarwaddy River creating a truly epic sense of awe.
We stayed in a town called Nyang-U which is part of the Bagan region but is the newest town and where the main infrastructure can be found. It was full of great restaurants and market places; it even had a Weatherspoons, that did about the best burger you can find anywhere in Southeast Asia! A taste of home! The owner had lived in Bristol and had taken the recipe from a local pub near to a student house Lot's had lived in! Small world or what!
Our best day in Bagan was our second, which we spent touring the temples by horse and cart. Our lively horse was called "Rambo", who lived up to his name! The day started off with the guide taking us to a few of the less known Pagodas. These are looked after by people called "key holders", often ex-monks, who devote themselves to keeping up small Pagodas. They freely explain the rich history surrounding them which adds a more personal touch to the experience. They supplement this by selling small souvenirs, although travelling with backpacks makes it difficult to buy any!
After a tour of some of the smaller temples, we decided to grab some lunch. We found a vegetarian restaurant, which Nat was a bit sceptical about to begin with, although this was dumbfounded as it turned out to be an incredibly tasty meal. Unlike the Shan state, Bagan has similar inhabitants to the people of Yangon. There is less wealth per capita and traditionally eat more vegetarian food than meat. We ate a pumpkin curry and a spicy chickpea chapatti..scrumptious!
In the afternoon we visited some of the larger temples including the mighty Dhammayangyi temple just outside of Old Bagan. Even though they have not been preserved as well and you cannot go to the top of them due to structure instability, collectively they almost seem more impressive than the temples of Angkor Wat. The risk of a snake falling on your shoulder at any moment, the pigeons flying above your head and the monks praying silently gave the temples a rustic charm about them. More often than not, we were the only ones wandering around these magnificent structures. Seeing these temples with no other tourists around really allows you to appreciate the unique history surrounding the region of Bagan.
As we climbed the last temple of the day, the surrounding landscape started to open up before our eyes. From the top your view spread over miles and miles of flat land, and hundreds of temples next to one another. A perfect way to end the day and see the magnitude of beauty yet to be discovered by the outside world.
That night we had our first taste of Mongolian and Nepalese cuisine. Unlimited chapatti's and rice, along with flavoursome curries and pita breads filled with spicy vegetables made for an excellent end to our time in Bagan. Last stop, one day in Mandalay before we fly back to Thailand. We will miss Myanmar, and more so, it's people. The friendliest and most helpful we have met on our trip so far. We urge anybody who is coming to South East Asia to visit this country now, before the world fully discovers it!
We stayed in a town called Nyang-U which is part of the Bagan region but is the newest town and where the main infrastructure can be found. It was full of great restaurants and market places; it even had a Weatherspoons, that did about the best burger you can find anywhere in Southeast Asia! A taste of home! The owner had lived in Bristol and had taken the recipe from a local pub near to a student house Lot's had lived in! Small world or what!
Our best day in Bagan was our second, which we spent touring the temples by horse and cart. Our lively horse was called "Rambo", who lived up to his name! The day started off with the guide taking us to a few of the less known Pagodas. These are looked after by people called "key holders", often ex-monks, who devote themselves to keeping up small Pagodas. They freely explain the rich history surrounding them which adds a more personal touch to the experience. They supplement this by selling small souvenirs, although travelling with backpacks makes it difficult to buy any!
After a tour of some of the smaller temples, we decided to grab some lunch. We found a vegetarian restaurant, which Nat was a bit sceptical about to begin with, although this was dumbfounded as it turned out to be an incredibly tasty meal. Unlike the Shan state, Bagan has similar inhabitants to the people of Yangon. There is less wealth per capita and traditionally eat more vegetarian food than meat. We ate a pumpkin curry and a spicy chickpea chapatti..scrumptious!
In the afternoon we visited some of the larger temples including the mighty Dhammayangyi temple just outside of Old Bagan. Even though they have not been preserved as well and you cannot go to the top of them due to structure instability, collectively they almost seem more impressive than the temples of Angkor Wat. The risk of a snake falling on your shoulder at any moment, the pigeons flying above your head and the monks praying silently gave the temples a rustic charm about them. More often than not, we were the only ones wandering around these magnificent structures. Seeing these temples with no other tourists around really allows you to appreciate the unique history surrounding the region of Bagan.
As we climbed the last temple of the day, the surrounding landscape started to open up before our eyes. From the top your view spread over miles and miles of flat land, and hundreds of temples next to one another. A perfect way to end the day and see the magnitude of beauty yet to be discovered by the outside world.
That night we had our first taste of Mongolian and Nepalese cuisine. Unlimited chapatti's and rice, along with flavoursome curries and pita breads filled with spicy vegetables made for an excellent end to our time in Bagan. Last stop, one day in Mandalay before we fly back to Thailand. We will miss Myanmar, and more so, it's people. The friendliest and most helpful we have met on our trip so far. We urge anybody who is coming to South East Asia to visit this country now, before the world fully discovers it!
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