Adventures, And Butterfly Kisses :)

Hey we're in Georgetown Malaysia and who knows when we're leaving :).

When we first arrived Chris found us a great place off the main street with a big bright room and free Wifi. Chris decided since we've had deadlines of 2 weeks and 1 month in the last few countries it was time to stop for awhile. The quick wifi helped his decision since he's been itching to make changes to both sites. We've been travelling so much that he hasn't had a chance to do much the the sites themselves. Hopefully you notice they look a bit different with a couple extra bells and whistles :). Tee hee.  A lot of the time consuming changes no one will ever see, but it makes it much easier and smoother for us to add posts and other goodies. And as an extra bonus... MY MOVIES ARE NOW AVAILABLE :). Tee hee. Ok, my videos suck, but and through a bunch of countries I had the video set wrong so if you watch it bigger then the size of a stamp it's almost impossible to see.... but hey, some are just plain fun :). So now when you look through the photos if one comes up black wait a moment for it to load and then the video will pay for you :). If you want to see all the videos you missed previous you can see them at http://www.flickr.com/photos/smckee/sets/72157623053585675/ thats from India until now :). There's another set with Europe and Africa too if ya wanna take a look :). Again they're more fun then skilled :).

So normally I wait till we leave before writing an entry, but we've been here so long that either I'll forget, or it'll be a massive entry..... so I figured I'd do an entry here and later add another one :).

So while Chris has been slaving away I've been mostly wandering around town, hanging out with the old Malay guys over tea at the Indian restaurant, being lazy in the excessive heat and made myself go shopping to replace some ripped and falling apart clothing (I hate shopping and it took about 5 days!!!!). Christmas came and went rather uneventful except to talk to family and friends at home :)..... And new Years we headed out to see some fireworks at the pier :).

It hasn't all been extra lazy though. I have had a few adventures, and met some fun people along the way.  The best adventure was definitely when I headed to Penang National Park :).

I took the bus there and met a nice woman named Radha who was also heading to the Park solo. We chatted for a bit, then headed our own way at the gate. Radha was meeting a friend she'd met the day before that works at the park and said he wanted to show her around today. So I headed on my way along the paved very civilized trail. It was nice and cooler to take the jungle trail since the trees covered me in shade. I enjoyed myself seeing the different plants and just wandering along. I stopped to watch some fun monkeys with black faces and little white fur around there eyes and mouths. They were so cute, but definitely shy. When I was stopped Radha and her friend Mei caught up to me and asked me to join them :).

Why not.... we kept along the trail and it lead us to Turtle beach. Radha and I were overheating and looking a the water longingly until Mei said the one thing that discouraged us....jellyfish. Oh well, so close but not a great idea to swim. So we said hello to the baby turtles in the turtle conservation area. I'm not sure how t works, but they try to protect the eggs and the littl guys till they can set them free. I was able to pick up a little sea turtle that looks like our Mr. Raisin, only not alive not mummified :). Too cute.

So it looked like the end of the trail, and if I was solo chances are I would have stopped here and been stung by jellyfish.... but since I was not alone Mei led us to a small sign at the end of the beach that had an arrow pointing into the thick jungle. So no more civilized trail this was the kind of trail I like. Twisting, turning, lots of fun trees, parts of the trail eroded away leaving only roots to help us keep our footing. The trail went up, and up and up... Radha and I were boiling and breathless and Mei patiently waited when we took breaks and slowly went up. I did feel slightly good bout this since Radha who is younger then me was having a harder time then me.... This of course was short lived when the trail hit the top and did the same vertical twisting and turning down. I am the slowest person around going down trails, but they still waited :).

The trail was fun though and brought us to the nicest beach cove that was totally secluded :). Yay!!! There weren't even boats around. Mei set up his hammock :) and Radha headed for the water. I was begining to regret not wearing my swim suit, but eventually opted for swimming in my undies and t-shirt. I just couldn't resist. Besides it was 1000 degrees out I figured I'd dry soon enough :).  We relaxed on the beach for a couple hours. Mei prepared with his large cans of 12% beer that I only stole sips from Radha's rather then have my own. I figured in the heat with strong beer I'd never make back the way we came. I guess Mei was thinking the same thing since he asked us if we would like to take a boat back so we could stay on the beach longer. YAY!!!! I was glad since I really didn't feel like getting all sweaty agian and would rather lounge on the beach and swim some more :).

Then TADA!!!! Out of nowhere a boat appears..... well ok, around the bay a boat appeared and the boatman came to shore. His name is Moktav and although he didn't stay long when he was leaving he called over asking if we wanted some fresh prawn..... Yes Please :). He had a bunch of lovely prawns he just caught and had on the boat in a cooler of ice.

I had a fire started so fast you would be impressed.... well ok, there was tons of dried things on the beach and  a lighter so not terribly impressive. Radha got the sticks for cooking ready and the prawns all ready for cooking. I have never cooked prawns before, so it was neat to ee them change from green to pink so quickly. They were so sweet and delicious we were loving it. I opened up the fire to cool it down but then Moktav came back with a large plastic bucket with two good sized fish swimming in it. I got the knife and asked how to kill and gut them (I figure he caught the fish we should do the rest). I used to gut fish when I went fishing with my friend Brian, but it's been awhile and I didn't want to look stupid in front of a fisherman.... my bad, Moktav just shrugged, emptied the water and put the live fish right on the hot coals. EEEK!!!!! Poor little fishes gasping and boiling to death. I didn't know what to do, didn't wan to look rude but felt sad for the fishes... Panicked all I ended up doing was blowing n the coals and trying to kill them quick.... Ya think this would have put me off eating them wouldn't you..... well.... Yummy fresh fish cooked over a fire on a beautiful beach.... sorry fishes, but you were yummy :). Again Moktav took off and I again started opening the fire (I should have known). He returned again with another big handful of prawn and a bunch of smaller fish. They all got plunked on the fire and this time Moktav stayed and enjoyed the feast :). He says he comes by everyday and if I was to come again I should bring sweet potatoes. I told him I will definitely be coming back with my Chris and we will bring some along :). YAY!!!!!

The sun was getting tired and when the light was that crazy dusk glow we all went for a swim. What a perfect day :). After we got out of the water and the first mosquito came out to say hello another boat came around the corner. This time it was Mei's boat to bring us back to the park entrance. Excellent timing I'd say :). From there I had the less exciting freezing bus in wet clothes, but all good :).

I did head back to the park yesterday and said hello to Mei. He was working and taking a family to Monkey Beach so I figured I'd meet him there. Again the trail at the beginning was paved, but then more of a natural path. Along the way I saw a German couple I had seen on the bus lurking in the trees by the waters edge. I crept up slowly to see a big mnotor lizard :). Yahoo!!!! In true German style the woman told me it was a male and he was 1.8m long :).  Tee hee. And me without my camera!!! Oh well he was cool looking and just lounging on this big rotten log :). YAY!!! I had been sad when I didn't get to see them with Chris and Sayaka in Bangkok, but now I saw this big one, and close by was a smaller one that was either a female or juvenile male (says the lizard experts. They came to SE Asia to search for lizards :).

Chris has come out to play a couple times and we headed to Penang Hill one day to take the funicular up there :). Nothing too crazy exciting, but at least it was a bit cooler up there. I think it was a cold 27 C!!!! Crazy, some locals were actually wearing light sweaters and jackets???? This is the coolest Chris and I have been since Thailand and we're still boiling. It's funny to think that in Toronto if the temperature hits 28 C we all walk around sweating like crazy and hiding in the AC. It only lasts a few days a summer if it even gets that hot and thats almost as cool as it gets here??? Blows my mind, and bakes my brain a bit. I've been drinking mass amounts of water and always red faced and sweating like crazy... So glamorous :).

Also Chris joined me to see the Butterfly Farm. No they don't milk the butterflies, and we thought the name strange too. Until we found out they collect all the eggs off the leaves everyday and keep them in an area and feed the caterpillars and stuff..... I guess it is a bit of a farm. The entrance fee is 25 Ringgit, so a bit steep. (that's the cost of our hotel room and about $8 Canadian). We both really wanted to go nd were not disappointed. The butterflies are beautiful and so colourful. They come right up to you and aren't camera shy. Yes I have a zillion photos of butterflies, but they are so nice :). We saw two massive moths that had cool patterns on them. They were facing each other and I took there photos...... I didn't realize  till later they were... um... busy. Oops. So they are Atlas Moths and the largest kind of moths in the world. As adult moth form they have no mouth and only live two weeks, they apparently look like birds when they fly and are poisonous so no one tries to eat them. They do all their eating when they are in larva form..... bet you always wanted to know that :). Hey I'm a geek and love this stuff :). They also had a bunch of stick bugs and  an area with some groovy looking lizards. What a really nice place. It claims to be the first of it's kind in the world and started some time in the 80's????? I know there are two at home and I've been to the one in Niagara a few times. I love it there as well. All you Toronto- Hamilton people if your tired of the cold winter head to Niagara and go to the Butterfly conservatory. Wear a light shirt under your parka and enjoy the misty air and the sight of pretty butterflies :).  YAY!!!!!! We had planned to go to the tropical fruit farm too, but spent too long with the butterflies. Not sure if we will head there. It's also 25 Ringgit but then where else can I be told what these trees are and what the different fruits are. I think they give you samples too. They have some crazy fruit here :). Have to see.

OK, off now, but since we aren't leaving town I shall write another update soon :).

Have fun and I hear the weather in Toronto area is milder :). No more -25 my Mum says it's about +2C :). YAY!!!! Enjoy the mild weather and make sure you spend some time outside while it lasts :).  On the other hand I hear it's about the same in Ireland and you crazy Irish aren't used to that kind of cold. Have a couple whiskies and that should warm your toes :).

Take care everyone, and send me updates.... Write some comments, or anything :). I've been here awhile nd I check my email almost everyday. SO WRITE MEEEE!!!!!! Tee hee. So subtle :).

Sheryl :)

Comment on this post: