Tahoe Johnson’s Journey to Southeast Asia

The hotel we stayed at – picts

The golf course Tim found – only payed 9 holes, but hit two balls on each hole – sea in background

Stream with 7 wells to to slide down and swim in.  Josh tried to pull ski tricks

Cable Car Ride – like in the Alps or France – steep!!!!! – kind of scary – a marvel of engineering

Steel suspension bridge – one support held up by cables.

The rare beautiful sunset in the palms

Josh trying ski tricks into water pools – beach – pool – location of our upscalse hotel – other activity,etc picts

 – Range Rover like Dads – a little newer for the Bro’s

This Island is off the northwest coast of Malaysia – just north of Penang.  It is considered one of the premier vacation spots for Malaysian nationals, but also European and S.E.Asian tourists.  This was going to be our first “real” sandy beach location (Tioman Isand was during monsoon season, so not at its best).  We opted to go more upscale for a couple of nights at a resort that had a pool – give the kids a break from the heat and humidity of sightseeing in big cities.    Holiday Villa was our “splurge” and everyone needed the respite just to hang out at a pool – especially the kids – and to be in a “real room” with a bathroom that was more western and actually had a shower area with a curtain so one was not constantly walking into a wet bathroom.  We happened to be going right around Chinese New Year so all the prices were inflated and we had a hard time finding just a room for the other two nights we were going to be there.  Activities:  renting motor bikes and a very small car (no taller than Annika) to see the sights of the island- you have to drive on the left – took a while to figure out shifting and control pannels – ie turn signal in the US would make he windshield wipers go; Tim renting a motor bike and finding a golf course on the other side of the island; renting a jet ski (Josh was in heaven driving it himself and hitting every wave trying to catch “air” – a true free ride skier); swimming at a series of stream pools  that could have been in Tahoe!; eating out late at candlelit tables set right out on the beach; playing night beach soccer, lying on the beach staring up at the stars; market shopping- girls obviously liked that.  The beach was pretty, but the water was not good for swimming – lots of small jelly fish – so even here, we were hot! A highlight was to ride a cable car to the top of the mountain. The pictures don’t do justice to the steepness of the grade – the worst was going over the edge when coming down.  It was a marvel in engineering, especially at the top where a steel bridge suspended on cables crossed a steep gorge.

 Next Stop will be the Andman Sea – southern Islands of Thailand – Ko Lipe, Ko Bulon, Ko Hai