Going where I’ve never been

We’ve entered Thailand for the fourth and final time after a wonderful, originally unplanned month in peninsular Malaysia. As you may remember, we began that month in a bit of a slump that came from general “nomad-fatigue” combined with increasingly mixed feelings about the impending return to the US.

I’m happy to say that the slump didn’t last, and that we departed Malaysia as reinvigorated, satisfied travellers. The big turnaround of course came with our discovery of Juara Beach (see below), and progressed with a stay at Taman Negara (a 130 million year old rainforest that, although not as memorable as Tioman due to the number of tourists and lack of visible monkeys, was still an awe-inspiring place) and peaked at the Cameron Highlands, a former colonial British hill station with chilly temperatures, endless tangles of lush forested hiking trails and no shortage of strawberry farms, tea plantations and the best Indian restaurant yet (we ate 10 of our 12 meals at the same table).

By the time that we made it full circle and arrived back in Penang, we were about as street-wise as it gets: we were buying Indian music, ordering “teh o ais” with confidence (leave out the “o” and your “iced tea” becomes a glass of condensed milk and sugar with a hint of tea), eating nasi lemak for breakfast, nasi campur for lunch and tandoori for dinner (tandoori’s don’t do lunch!), judging the time of day with the calls of the muezzin from the local mosque and shoveling sloppy piles of rice and curry into our mouths with our right hands.

Street-wise or not, yesterday was a reminder that there are always more lessons to be learned! We decided to “treat” ourselves and book a minibus straight from Penang to Krabi in Thailand, saving ourselves the hassle of a walk to the ferry, ferry to the bus station, bus to Hat Yai then another bus to Krabi. It would cost a few dollars more, but would be much quicker and, come on, we deserve to take the easy road sometimes!

We were told to be ready to go “before 8:00.” I ran at 5:45, we were eating masala tosai by 7 and waiting with our bags packed by 8. Around 8:50 the minibus pulled up and we climbed in before being taken around the island to pick up other passengers.

There are two way to get off of Penang: the ferry, which takes you directly to the bus station in Butterworth, and the bridge, located on the other side of the island. Being in a minibus, of course the plan was to take the bridge. Something happened (our driver’s explanation had too few English words in it to be decipherable) and traffic was horrendous; not stop-and-go, just stopped.

It was past 11:30 before we even got off of the island, the time that we’d expected to be making our way through immigration. Once we finally broke away onto open roads, our driver high-tailed it to Hat Yai, where one couple was dropped at the bus station for a connection while we were taken to the travel agent’s office.

The connecting minibus to Krabi had left at one; it was now 2:15. The girl at the desk told us “30 minute!” so we scampered off for a quick bowl of soup, our first bite since the light-ish 7 a.m. tosai. We made it back quickly, only to discover that 30 minutes actually meant an hour. We gritted our teeth and tried to laugh at how we used to be charmed by the laidback nature of the Thais, the lack of urgency with anything.

Eventually a tuktuk pulled up, and the girl gestured at it, saying “Krabi!” Surely there was no way we were taking a tuktuk; the long leg of the trip hadn’t even begun yet!

We piled in and were taken to a gas station, then to yet another bus station where we were quickly herded into a minibus blaring Thai pop music at ear-splitting levels. Once it was full we got to see the same gas station yet again, then were finally on the road. It was now the time that we’d expected to be arriving in Krabi.

We kept our sense of humor about it all pretty well, dreaming of the (affordable!) beer that we’d be buying upon arrival. After an hour on the road we’d relaxed, knowing it was the last leg…or was it?

There was a strange sound and we had a horrible thought – flat tire! That’ll take awhile! The driver pulled over, the assortment of passengers (including an old Chinese woman, a young couple with a newborn and two leopard-printed twenty-somethings straight out of a Phuket go-go bar) piled out and surveyed the damage. It wasn’t the tire, it was the fan blade, which had shattered, tearing a hole in a radiator hose. Awesome.

An hour later, our rescue minibus came and we were squeezed in with its original passengers. Finally, finally at nearly 9:00 we were dropped in Krabi town, too exhausted to even care about that beer anymore.

Lesson? The Krabi-Penang route is not our friend, in either direction. This supposedly single leg/7 hour journey was a 7-leg, 15 hour trip on the way down, a 4-leg, 13 hour trip on the way back. Someday, in our next life, when we traverse that route again, we will know to fly (or even walk)!

Today we are recovered and refreshed, ready to head to Khao Lak for our grand finale, a four day liveaboard diving trip to the Surin/Similan islands. After that we will go straight to Bangkok and depart Asia on March 4th.

Though there is plenty of apprehension and anxiety on both our parts about jobs/culture adjustment/what will we eat?, we’re eagerly anticipating  the reunions with family/friends, the thought of a clean bed, a bathroom that we don’t have to wear shoes into and, of course, the ability to get from point A to point B without going through ten points in between!

Malaysia, thus far, has been both the most modern and westernized place we’ve been (no litter, sturdy buildings, orderly traffic), while at the same time the most exotic (veiled women, gorgeous Indian dress, music, Chinese temples, Muslim mosques, a crazy mix of cultures all coexisting) – we are more than pleased so far!

It wasn’t easy getting here, although it should have been. In a nutshell, we took a bus from Krabi to Hat Yai where we were presented with one option for getting over the border: a minibus that seemed quite overpriced for a three hour journey. Declining that method in the name of thrift and adventure, the entire trip ended up taking 15 hours and covering a lot of ground, from Krabi to Hat Yai to Pedang Besar to Kangar to Alor Setar to Butterworth and, finally, to Penang by a midnight ferry.

In the end, we only saved a few dollars but we did have a number of encounters that left us with a great first impression of Malaysia. This country is made up pretty evenly of Malays, Chinese and Indians, the majority of which are devout Muslims. Right away I stuck out in my shorts and exposed blonde hair, as 99% of the women in those first few conservative towns were veiled and certainly didn’t show their knees. We definitely drew some attention, but not in an uncomfortable or unfriendly way; rather, we were greeted by some of the warmest and most helpful people yet!

At the border crossing we were easily stamped in on a free 90-day visa and congratulated by the immigration officer on our new president. The guards on the other side repeated the congrats, told us where to get money and catch further transport, then wished us a great visit. We walked in Pedang Besar, still a bit uncertain about how to get to Butterworth; upon asking a Chinese woman for information, she went out of her way to explain that we needed to go to Kangar first, called the train station to see if there were any more trains that day and, upon finding out that there were not, walked us to a spot where we could flag down the bus, told us what the fare should be, advised us not to trust taxis and wished us safe travels.

In Kangar, as we searched for the second bus station, a veiled girl pointed the way and shouted a genuine “Have a great day!” after us. A bus driver rescued us from some touts who were trying to get us to overpay a bus fare, then chatted Obama news and his wishes for no more wars with us for the duration of the trip. Everyone that we met wore huge smiles, spoke perfect English and went well out of their way to assist us and wish us well. It added much needed smiles to a frustrating travel day!

Our first morning in Penang began much the same way; we were wandering around Little India, marveling at the incredibly diverse population, beautiful architecture and rich culture all around us (not to mention the food…more on that in a moment) when a Chinese man on a bicycle approached us. He asked where we came from, about our trip, what we hoped to see, what we hoped to eat, how we felt about our new president, etc. I think we were both expecting there to be some strings attached, since there usually are in Asia (especially when the opening question is “where are you from?”), but no – this guy was as genuine as it gets! He gave us some sightseeing suggestions, chatted a bit more and then pedalled off, wishing us well. We passed him a few minutes later at a fruit stand where he waved us over and bought us each slices of fresh papaya. When we attempted to pay he would have none of it, telling us that he is the host and we musn’t insult his generosity. What wonderful people!

The only thing better than the people is the food! Penang is a culinary wonderland, absolutely bursting with Malay, Chinese and Indian food at every turn. The smells are incredible and mingle with the various incenses that burn at the temples, mosques and churches; this is a true melting pot of a place. We’ve made many Chinese food discoveries from the innumerable hawker stalls, tried several Malay specialities and of course indulged in absolutely amazing Indian food from canteens staffed by enthusiastic, overzealous Indian men who also love their food! I will list some new favorites below…

*Rojak (Malay) – A salad made of cucumber, jicama, pineapple, apple and tofu, topped with a tamarind/palm sugar/chili sauce and crushed peanuts.

* Char Koay Teow (Malay) – fried wide rice noodles with prawn, egg, bean sprouts, Chinese sausage and chilies.

*Assam Laksa (Malay) – Noodles in a sour fish soup seasoned with tamarind, mint, onion, pineapple, chili and ginger.

*Lok lok (Malay) – Basically you have a street stall absolutely stacked with satay sticks of every imaginable meat, veggie, dumpling or wonton creation. Each are color-coded according to price (each costs 5-15 cents) and you simply graze; pick a stick, dunk it in the big vat of boiling water to heat it, then dunk it into any one of the available sauces (sweet/sour, peanut, spicy) and enjoy. Just hold on to your sticks and the vendor will add up what you owe at the end…a dangerous game!

*Chee Cheong Fun (Chinese) – big steamed rice rolls stuffed with shrimp or meat and served with an oily chili sauce, peanuts and sesame seeds. This is one of many delicious dim sum dishes (basically all sorts of small dumplings that allow diners to pick, choose and sample til full!)

*Wonton Mee (Chinese) – yellow noodle soup with big prawn-stuffed steamed wontons and barbequed pork.

*Curry Mee (Chinese) – yellow noodle soup with a thick coconut curry sauce and various meats.

*Garlic Naan (Indian) – All naan bread is delicious, but we can’t stop eating the garlic, which is indescribably savoury. They throw a thin (but large) disk of dough into the tandoori, cook it on the side of the oven for a few moments, scoop it out, glaze it with buttery, delicious garlic cloves and serve it piping hot with a side dish of dhal (lentil curry). Cost? Less than 50 cents!

*Kashmir Naan (Indian) – Another wonderful naan bread, stuffed full of dates, nuts and spices. A meal in itself!

*Tandoori Chicken (Indian) – That incredible red roasted chicken that they skewer and cook in the tandoori – served with spicy curry sauce and best with hot naan bread.

 *Masala Thosai (Indian) – A huge rice/lentil “crepe”stuffed thick with a curried potato and onions, served with three kinds of dipping sauces. A super filling meal, 50 cents.

*Nasi Kandar (Indian) – All sorts of things – the Indian version of a “point place,” where there are trays upon trays of curries and meats and yogurt dishes and spicy vegetable casseroles…point and have it scooped onto a big plate of rice!

*Samosas (Indian) – Sort of like a hot pocket, but way better dough, fried hot and stuffed with anything from spiced mutton to potato curries. We can share a couple for 50 cents.

*Pulled Tea (Indian) – Tea mixed with milk and sugar then “pulled” – tossed from one cup into another until it is nice and frothy, then served on ice. Perfect with spicy Indian food!

Other delights include the fresh fruits vendors; not only do they serve up juicy slices of pineapple, papaya, banana, dragon fruit, kiwi and starfruit at rock bottom prices, they also make any sort of fruit juice you can imagine! 30 cents will get you an icy cup (or bag) of pure (healthy) deliciousness – they put nothing but fruit and ice into the blender.

We have only touched the surface of food and friendly people (pretty impressive for 3 days, huh?) and I can promise that this won’t be the last time that you hear me rave about Malaysia – tonight’s dinner alone should be full of new delights!