Langkawi–Part 3

3rd and 4th September 2018

3rd September 2018

The last whole day in Langkawi and a visit to Langkawi Wildlife Park.

The 20th best zoo in Asia!

There was also an aviary full of friendly budgies (with a 50 ringgitt fine if you trod on one), come to think of it a quarter of the zoo was Australian roadkill!

Finally something I haven’t seen since I was a child – Hedgehogs.

Not the world’s greatest zoo but it was small so not too much walking and it was flat. I found myself enjoying it.

BTW they were repairing the fence to the croc enclosure and had pulled out a 4 metre section while they welded it so there was actually nothing between the saltwater crocs and the visitors. The crocs must be well fed.

Bought a Char Keoy Teow from a hawker’s stall in the afternoon to have for dinner that evening.

Not the best I have ever had but it wasn’t bad – only two prawns.

Bought the ferry ticket for tomorrow at the jetty. Managed to get a senior concession!

4th September 2018

After breakfast we packed ready to leave, outside it was pouring down. When we arrived at the ferry terminal we had barely left enough time to get on the ferry especially after nearly getting on the Penang ferry by mistake.

On the bright side if it is going to rain what better day than the day of departure?

Langkawi–Part 2

1st to 2nd September 2018

Langkawi has 99 islands so it made sense to go on a boat trip to explore some of them as well as some of the mangrove waterways.

1st September 2018

There are monkeys living in the mangroves that live off soft shell crabs and have learnt to swim (though these probably make a living off the tourist boats).

Above the river circle eagles the smaller brown one (see Langkawi statue) and a larger sea eagle. They would swoop down for fish stirred up by the boat.

The trip included a visit to a bat cave. I thought the most interesting thing was some of the stalactites which curve toward the sunlight – this is apparently caused by algae.

On the way back to the floating restaurant for lunch we came across a boat crash. These boats travel at very high speed and passengers are told not to move about unless the boat is stopped; in this case someone moved from one side to the other and it flipped over.

Final destination – a beach?

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2nd September 2018

Today was a visit to the Agrotechnology Park where they grow fruit.

We were driven round the park in a truck with stops for photo opportunities. In the middle of the journey there was a stop where visitors could sample the fruit grown at the park.

Overall a moderately interesting visit.

Next – a visit to the memorial for Mahsuri. Legend has it that she is the cause of Langkawi’s poverty stricken past because when she was killed on trumped up charges she cursed the island for seven generations.

The story of Mahsuri is told in tableau form.

Her grave is in the “village”

No wonder I stay so young Winking smile I must have fallen in.

That evening we ate the fruit (Rambutan) we picked on the farm visit before going out for dinner and a walk around the night market – If we had known before eating that the night market was on we would have bought our food there.

Langkawi–Part 1

30th and 31st August 2018

30th August 2018

Took the ferry from Kuala Perlis to Langkawi for a few days visit. I have visited before but that was many years ago.

The 31st August is Malaysia’s national day so the flags were out and the ferry was full.

The journey is only 1 hour which means it was too early to check in at the hotel so a visit to the Hot Springs fills in a bit of time.

The water is certainly warm but the place had a bit of a run down look to it however at 5RM ($1.50) entry you can’t complain too much.

On the way back to Kuah we called in at the Galeria Perdana which is a Dr Mahathir Museum. Dr Mahathir is much revered in his Kedah state.

The museum was full of gifts from his time as Prime Minister of Malaysia – There was so many precious objects but my el cheapo camera was not up to the task of photographing them. According to the brochure the collection is 9000 items but they only display about 2000 at a time so the display constantly changes.

Had lunch at a Malay seafood restaurant which was a buffet style place – something I hadn’t come across before. You took what you wanted and they came around and charged you afterwards. Lovely food.

Checked in at the hotel, then in the evening visited Eagle Square to see the massive statue and the sunset.

31st August 2018

The major visit today was to the SkyCab.

A cable car takes you up into the mountains. Being the Malaysia’s National Day it was going to be very busy so we arrived early to avoid the rush when the day trippers from the mainland arrived.

At the top the view was terrific. Below you was the Sky Bridge, allegedly the longest curved bridge in the world. To get there you could pay a few ringgit for a little railway or you could walk down for free (we chose the little railway).

Once back down from the cable car there were a number of lesser attractions included in the entrance fee – one was the 3D Museum. The 3D museum was basically a photo op with some spectacularly large pictures as a backdrop.

Back to the hotel to recover followed by an evening meal involving beer and coconuts. Good day out.

A Trip to Foreign Parts- August 2018

This trip doesn’t involve the camper – I wanted to get away from the Australian cold so am making a short visit to Malaysia. I haven’t been for three years and this is probably not the ideal time to go as it is the wet season.

My usual Canon camera is playing up too so am making do with a tiny Olympus TG 320 well past its use by date. The following photos illustrate how poor it is when trying to deal with anything other than an outdoor daylight shot.

Am visiting friends in a town called Jitra in northern Malaysia near Alor Setar and not far from the Thai border.

After the flight from Sydney to Kuala Lumpur and an eight hour wait for the domestic flight I was pretty exhausted by the time I arrived but, after a nanny nap, spent the evening visiting the local Tesco for essentials like a six pack of Tiger beer followed by a meal at a popular Chinese restaurant (the camera again showing its shortcomings).

Tomorrow will be a quiet day in preparation for a few days visiting the island of Langkawi.