Results tagged “Travel” from Cordinc Blog

We just had our first long weekend trip in Malaysia. We travelled to Melaka (also known as Malacca) over the Easter holiday. At least it was a holiday for us working for a UK organisation, as the Christian festival is not a public holiday in Muslim Malaysia. Thus we erroneously thought it would be quiet. Instead, the town was full of people - apparently it was the last weekend of the mid-term school break and anecdotally we were told many people from Hong Kong come for the Easter weekend (although we couldn't confirm that).

Melaka is known historically as the capital of a powerful Sultanate and then later a Portuguese, Dutch and lastly British colony before independence. Now it is known for a sizeable Chinese population and delicious Chinese-Malaysian food (Nonya cusine). We also discovered that there are two types of the very tasty Laksa (soup with noodles) and we prefer different types. While away we ate four meals a day - apparently not uncommon. All the food was excellent, including the street food from the main market (which despite notices stating otherwise, was open on Sunday night).

Time spent eating in Melaka is time well spent. There are also some colonial ruins (the British destroyed most of the older buildings during the Napoleonic Wars), a recreation of the Sultan's Palace, and a few other tourist attractions. We walked around these sites, but didn't enter any. The town is a very pleasant place, makes good use of its central river and is easier to walk around than KL. Getting there on the bus from KL is cheap and easy (13RM for a 2 hour trip leaving every 30 minutes). I can definitely see us popping down for another weekend.

I recently wrote this article for the internal High Commission newsletter - thought it could go here too.

Determined to get out and about more, we booked ourselves on the MM adventure Firefly tour. We were picked up from outside a local hotel mid-afternoon (with two other tourists) and driven through the palm plantations around Kuala Selangor to Bukit Melawati, followed by dinner, and finishing with the fireflies. If the traffic is good there are other stops, but unfortunately for us the traffic was bad.

Bukit Melawati is the suprise highlight of the day, with a train trip to the top to feed the local Silver Leaf Monkeys. The photogenic monkeys are surprisingly well-behaved - happily leaving people alone if there is no food visible. Although they quickly move to grab any food on offer (sweet potato is definitely a crowd pleaser). If the food is out of easy reach, you will soon find a mohawked monkey perched on your shoulder or head, perhaps with an unsteady baby monkey in tow.

Dinner is a set seafood meal at a local Chinese resturant on the Selangor river as the sun sets. Then it is on to the fireflies at an eco tourist center (restoring palm plantations to firefly habitat). Rowing down the river the fireflies flash in overhanging trees like a cheap christmas light show. The boat often getting so close passengers are brushed by the strobing branches. Then it is back home by around 9.30pm after a very enjoyable day - recommended.

Recently we spent a long weekend on Koh Lanta in southern Thailand. From KL it is a short (and cheap on Air Asia) flight to Krabi and then a transfer to the island itself. Koh Lanta bills itself as a less party-oriented than other nearby resort areas (like Koh Phi Phi). This is definitely a relative measure, as a drive along the island's main beaches showed packed tourist shops, bars and hotels. Although, the further south down the island we went the less touristy it became.

Our hotel, LaLanta Hideaway, is the most southerly on the island and backs onto a national park. Thus it is quiet and remote from the tourist strip - which is exactly what we wanted. The weekend was spent lazing around the hotel and the beach it backed onto. We walked, swam, kayaked, had a massage, and ate. A very relaxing trip.

The only downside is the transfer from Krabi airport to the hotel. It took 2 hours 20 minutes on the way out and 3 and a half hours on the way back (when we got caught in traffic). Compare this to the flight time of 1 hour 30 minutes.

Over last last weekend was both Australia Day and Thaipusam. I went to both and saw how they are celebrated here in KL in different ways.

Australia Day appears to be the premier event in the local diplomatic community. The Australian diplomatic mission is one of the largest in town and they aim to impress with their national day celebrations. However, it wasn't like any Australia Day event I've been to before. For a start the invite said lounge suit. My memories of Australia Day are t-shirt optional (because there is a pool) with a BBQ followed by fireworks and the Hottest #100. The event here is far swishier. It was held in a large exhibition hall, with projection screens and unobjectionable Australian music playing.

My first impression was of a school ball. Not helped by the first food station encountered being a chocolate fountain. Although after that the comparison fails, with a large array of excellent food options available, including Waygu beef, lamingtons and a whole fresh tuna flown in specially that day (morning in Australia, evening in KL). All presented on little bite-sized dishes so it was easy to try a wide range of dishes. The audience appeared to be largely the KL diplomatic community with some local VIPs. Speaking to many of them, they were deeply impressed with the event and the cost implied. It seems the Australians set the bar high and dare other diplomatic mission to try topping it. With austerity all the rage in the rest of world, I don't think anyone else makes the attempt.

Thaipusan is a Hindu festival from southern India, where followers make offerings to Murugan. This may be in the form of a pot of milk or the hair from a freshly shaved head or even piercing the body with needles and hooks. In Malaysia, the holiday is held at Batu Caves with over a million visitors during the 3 day event.

We visited on the first night and rarely have I seen so many people. The caves were packed shoulder to shoulder, as were the stairs upto the caves and the assembly area. Around that was a large expanse of food stalls, trinket shops, shrines, head shaving areas and more. All rammed with more people. Gratifyingly, the large red crescent blood donation area was also completely full. It was a bit overwhelming. There was loud drumming, people hooked (literally) into decorated canopies, and colour everywhere (mainly yellow). It was all quite good natured.

I have now arrived and am (somewhat) settled in Kuala Lumpur. Internet access has been restored and our baggage has even arrived with no problems. Below is the Fort Kickass we created out of all our worldly possessions. So far, so good. I am setup and ready to start work again - although I writing this to delay that start another hour or two.

I've just returned from a short city break to Budapest. It was a pleasant trip - most of the time was spent walking around or in cafes. A slideshow is viewable here.

I've just returned from an underwhelming two week break in Sicily. A Flickr slideshow is viewable here.

An enforced gap in contracts meant I suddenly had a week free, so time for a quick extra long weekend to North Cornwall. We stayed in Boscastle and visited various local towns like Polzeath and Tintagel , with a quick stopoff at Stonehenge on the way home (just to say I've been). A pleasant trip, although the weather could have been better. Although when the weather is good, the area is packed with tourists - for us the place was largely empty. It was a short trip (with bad light), so only a few photos in the Flickr slideshow viewable here.

Following on from last week's photos of Ephesus here is a set of photos on Flickr from the rest of our trip to Turkey. Although there is only one photo of the Lycian Coast (and it is of our gulet), I can heartily recommend a cruise around this area as very relaxing. Other places visited (and featured in the photos) include Cappadocia, Istanbul and Priene.

I recently returned from a holiday in Turkey. While there I visited the ancient ruined Roman city of Ephesus. At its peak in the 1st century AD it had a population of over 250,000, but there is not a great deal of evidence for that extent now. Although it did feel like there are nearly that many people present when we visited.The best photos are now a set on Flickr, available here.