Jan 30 2011
Well it's that time again. Time to start
writing the blog. This coming Sunday morning Michael and I will be flying to
malaysia to visit his parents. A few days there then we are off to Cambodia for
a week. A couple days back in KL and then it's off to Hong Kong for a few days.
Three weeks total. Can't wait. I'll post our itineray soon with some links to
the hotels we are staying at in Cambodia - they look quite nice. Stay tuned for
another adventure!
Awaiting our departure
Feb 05 2011
Well.... the
day has come. We are patiently waiting at the airport sitting in the Premium
Lounge thanks to Facebook Checkin - free admission with food and drinks.
Slightly more comfortable than sitting in the departure lounge. Our flight is
due to leave at 1:30AM on Feb. 6 and due to arrive in Hong Kong at 5:19AM Feb.
7th. Gonna be a long night!!!! Well - not much else to report yet - thanks to
our buddy Sia for the lift to the airport in the snow - only saw one car spin
out in front of us. Stay tuned for more once we arrive.
Wednesday morning in KL
Feb 08 2011
Well... we did arrive safely. As there is no Internet in the house, we had
to wait and go to Michael's sisters office to use their computer. So here we
are - in an office where they design custom precious and semi-precious
jewellery! We arrived on Monday around noon in KL and got to Michael's
family's house by 3PM - a very long and tiring flight but at least got
caught up on some of the movies I've been wanting to watch. That night was
an amazing dinner out at a local seafood restaurant with the family and
Michael's cousins who will be visiting us in May. Delicious food!! Yesterday
(Tuesday) we headed downtown for a bit of wandering around and some quick
shopping at Mark's and Spencer's (shorts and tops). Dinner last night was at
home with a good mix of local foods - again, very delicious. Today we are
back d/t KL at the shop. We plan on wandering around d/t today, maybe hit
the aquarium, maybe a stop at the Petronas Towers. No set plans - just
wandering and relaxing. Stay tuned for more!
Are those fish nibbling at my toes?
Feb 10 2011
Well.... yesterday was a full day (and late evening) in downtown KL. We hit
a few malls in search of really nothing - however we did price out some
iPads and Galaxy Tablets - not huge deals so we will wait. I have to admit,
downtown KL has some amazing spots. All the streets are lined with outdoor
cafes, bars and shops. As it is still Chinese New Year, everything is
beautifully decorated with lights and lanterns. Quite beautiful. After
spending some time in the malls, we decided to head to the Aquarium. This is
a great spot to get out of the heat and see some amazing sea life - they did
a great job, especially the moving walkway through a huge tank filled with
every sort of fish you can imagine. It's really quite eerie having a huge
shark swim up to you and over your head. The sting rays with their smiles
are always fun! Later in the evening, me, Michael and Emily went for dinner
while Jun dined with clients in another room. A late night as we didn't get
back until almost midnight. Today was a slower start to the day - up for
breakfast and then back to bed for a rest. Tough! Emily had the day off so
after she ran some errands, she came and picked us up for a drive to where?
You guessed it - a shopping mall! This time it was the Sunway Pyramid Mall -
in the shape of a huge pyramid. This was a MASSIVE mall - huge inside with
an ice skating rink, midway and a water park. A great sushi lunch was
followed by a 30 minute "fish spa". Many tiny fish nibbling at your feet
eating all the dead skin. For someone with sensitive feet (me), it was quite
a challenge at first but after about 10 minutes all was fine. I have to
admit, our feet are quite smooth now. It was fun, yet bizarre! Tonight was
dinner at home and chilling with family - they talked and I pretended to
understand! Tomorrow we will repack out belongings as Saturday we head to
Cambodia. Stay tuned!
And then there were none
Feb 11 2011
Today we headed back to downtown KL with Michael's sister Emily. She took us
around the old downtown section which is mixed with Chinese and Indian. Many
amazing sights, sounds and smells (some good.... some not so good). Lunch
was at a very local spot - there was only one other Caucasian in the joint -
but it was good and super cheap. A stroll through the central market lead us
to a neat little shop selling wood carved wall hangings. Michael bought a
small framed carving for happiness and prosperity. Following our shopping
expedition, we began our hunt for the winning national lottery ticket. Emily
has decided that she, Jun, me and Michael are going to win the 22,000,000 RM
(equivalent to $7,000,000 USD). But no.... we can't just buy 1 ticket.... we
need to buy 100 tickets between the 4 of us. Thank god they are cheap! Cross
your fingers folks!! Later in the afternoon Emily decided she should go back
to the office so Michael and I walked around the newer part of KL (this is
where we have been spending most of our time). I got a hair cut and Michael
bought a new holder for his iPhone - big spenders! As it was hot out (about
34C plus humidity) we decided to find a nice patio and have a beer. The
Pavilion Mall has a cool strip of restaurants so we picked a Spanish place,
had a beer and a small tapas plate. From our table, we had a great view of
the square outside the mall (where I took the teacup picture). It was
sprinkling by this point but not too bad so the square was full of
pedestrians. Suddenly the skies opened up and as the title says "and then
there were none". People fled like roaches with the lights on - it was
hilarious. Within a split second there was not a soul to see. Too funny!! A
quick jaunt through the mall was followed by a taxi ride home, repacking,
dinner and blog update. Tomorrow... Cambodia Stay tuned...
Our first 2 days in Cambodia
Feb 13 2011
Our first 2 days have been filled with sites, sounds and chaos..... traffic
wise that is. Saturday: We arrived in Cambodia Saturday morning after an
uneventful flight. Customs was quick - baggage however was almost 30
minutes. As we stood around the carousel where our bags were to be
delivered, we quickly realized that it appears no one was getting their
bags. After a while, Michael strolls past the other 2 carousels where bags
were being unloaded from other destinations and there they were. Grab the
bags... grab a taxi and away we go to our hotel. We are staying at Blue Lime
- a very nice little hotel in the heart of all the action. Great service,
nice room and a pool to die for! With cool water - which is a welcome after
strolling around in the heat all day. After we checked in we decided to hit
the streets. We VERY quickly found out that there really are no traffic
rules - it's a free for all. Most cars travel in the direction they are
supposed to - but not all. Sometimes you'll see a car traveling the opposite
direction - and everyone seems OK with that.... hmmmm. Crossing the street
is certainly a challenge - there are no breaks in the traffic so it's kind
of like the "Frogger" game - you start out and just move in and out of the
traffic in hopes of making it across the street. We are so good at it now we
feel like locals! Very proud!! We spend most of Saturday walking along the
riverside quay. Many restaurants, hotels and tuktuk drivers wanting your
business. We decided the best thing to do was walk to the farthest point of
interest that we wanted to see - that was Wat Phnom. This is a very old
temple situated in the middle of a roundabout. A small admission fee and we
were in, clambering up the steps and checking everything out. As we
descended the other side Michael spotted a monkey in the three - then
another and another - a while troop with babies and all. Very cute. After
the temple, we wanted to the Central Market - if you are looking for
something you'll find it here - mostly knockoffs but interesting none the
less. We continued along and headed back to the riverfront for a beer -
happy hour had already started. After about 4 hours of walking around the
city, we headed back to the hotel for a quick dip in the pool and a brief
rest before dinner. We decided to take a tuktuk back to the riverfront for
dinner and dined at Metro - a nice corner restaurant serving tapas portion
dinner entrees - very tasty and reasonably priced (although if you eat in
this area this area there really are no great deals as all the tourists go
here) but it was good.) Later that night we headed out to a local bar called
Blue Chili for a beer and to watch the drag show - entertaining to say the
least!! It was certainly good for a laugh but we had fun. Back to the hotel
and into bed - a long day as we were up at 5:30AM to catch our flight but we
saw a tons of sights. Well worth the tired feet. Sunday: Today we hired a
taxi to take us to the infamous Killing Fields and the Genocide Museum. From
1975 to 1979, the Khmer Rouge took over Cambodia and tortured and
slaughtered more than 3 million Cambodians. In January 1979 the true picture
of what had occurred came to light. As a result, an amazing monument has
been built in the area now known as the killing fields. Wandering through
the fields reading the signs of what happened is an eerie feeling. Such
horrifying things occurred there and so many mass graves - 166 in total with
88 having been exhumed. It's hard to fathom how brutally horrible human
beings can be to each other - but walking through here brings it home - it
is no longer "just a movie" After this tour our driver took us to the
Genocide Museum. Here is where over 9000 Cambodians were held ans tortured
before most were taken to the Killing Fields and executed. A horrific piece
of history but something you must experience if you ever travel to Cambodia.
Once we completed these tours, we headed back to the hotel for a dip and
lunch. Then it was off to the Royal Palace - what an amazing place - such
beauty and opulence like you have never seen before. As we were walking in
to start out sightseeing a young boy about 8 years old approached me to sell
me water. We declined the offer and he said "when you come out?" I agreed.
We spend almost 2 hours wandering the magnificent gardens and buildings of
the Royal Palace. The second I stepped through the gate, there he was,
running up to me with a bottle of water in his hand smiling and saying "when
you come out... when you come out".... I bought the water! Dinner tonight
was at a local training restaurant where street youth are trained how to
work in the hospitality sector. Service was amazing as was the food - great
place to go and an even better cause! Now we are back in the room updating
our blog - having read this I feel as though I am missing something but
can't think of it - if I have I'll update next time. Stay tuned... stay cool
(oh sorry that's what we're trying to do!)
Good Night Phnom Penh
Feb 16 2011
Well we have not update out blog... bad bad bad.. Anyway it is our last day
in Phnom Penh. We went to the Russian Market and bump around. the market
looks like when Michael was young in Malaysia. Fish, meat, chicken and
vegetable were sold without refrigeration. We bought some gifts from a store
that helps out street kids parents so they can send their kids to school.
Took a tuk tuk (great transportation) to a seeing hand massage. It took us
some asking and pointing we finally found it. It was across the post office.
It was not the great massage place but it help people who are blinded by the
landmine. We have dinner at the hotel so we can get up early to catch the
boat to Siem Reap. I would come back to Phnom Penh. So for now we bit good
night to Phnom Penh and hope to see you again.
Hello Siem Reap
 |
| Angkor Wat |
Feb 16 2011
Tuesday, Got up early in the morning to take a boat ride to Siem Reap. We
have breakfast just across the street. Not a great one but it is breakfast.
We sat on top of the boat so we can see the floating villages along the
river banks. It was fun sitting on top of the boat but for 5-8 hours the
novelty run out within a few hours our bum were not agreeing with us. Ouch!
Later we sat down in the boat. We were warn that the lake level is low, we
ran aground and it took the boat captain half an hour to take us back to
higher water. what an experience. At Siem Reap we have to travel up the
river to the boat dock. The river was so shallow that the boat has to
navigate very slowly. They were using a bamboo pole to push the boat along.
After seven and a half hours we reach Siem Reap. Our hotel send a tuk tuk to
pick us up and when the reach the hotel it was around 3pm. We then book our
3 day pass to Angkor and go for the sun set at Angkor. It was cloudy and we
did not get much of a sun set. We did climb up Phnom Bakheng. What a climb
the stairs were steep. As usual there were Buddha Shrine up there. We stay
till they whistle us to go down. We when out to look for dinner restaurant
and bar were so close to us. So we just pick a restaurant. Steve order some
fresh rolls and when it arrived it has a very fishy smell, Steve could not
eat it and Michael have to eat it all.We have chicken curry and stew
tamarind chicken. Food was excellent. Later we when for a walk we when to
the night market and bum around the store around Siem REap town. Siem Reap
look like there is money here compare to Phnom Penh. One more thing when we
arrived here there was a Cambodian wedding going on it was loud. Tomorrow
looking forward to Angkors' Wednesday.. Got up in the morning and have
breakfast at a restaurant close to us. Then we have our tuk tuk driver took
us to Angkor Wat. What a site, the complex it big in compare too Chichiniza
in Mexico, it has so much carving and relieves on the building as usual they
are still putting things back together since after the war. The Angkor
religion was first back on Hinduisim then followed by Buddism. You can see
both religion standing side by side. Anyway Steve is not feeling well from
the breakfast, but we continue on to Angkor Thom to Bayon temple. It is the
temple which you can see the four face deities which you can see in most
tour guide book. We then proceed to Baphuan which is a step pyramid style
temple, then royal palace and to the temple of the Leep King. In here the
temple is build in ground, where all the carvings and deities are. We have
to cut short the trip to continue on tomorrow. Right now Steve is laying in
bed and feeling a little better. So we hope to catch up on our blog
tomorrow. Till next time good night.
Temples, Cooking and Floating Villages
Feb 18 2011
I'm baaaack... feel much better now - thanks to Michael for updating the
other day. Yesterday we were back at the temples with our tuktuk driver
Thong. we visited about 6 temples yesterday - from small to very large,
although never as large as Angkor Wat. Some of the temples included Ta
Prohm, Banteay Kdei, Pre Rup, Ta Som, and Krol Ko and Bantreay Perei. One of
the most unique temples was the Ta Prohm. This temple is almost completely
overrun by the jungle - with massive tree roots growing through almost every
ruin. Very eerie feeling - could imagine what it would be like at sunset -
spooky. Some of the temples were in utter ruins - restoration had barely
begun - so it was quite interesting to see them in their current state.
Another amazing temple - totally different from the rest was Preah Neak
Pean. This temple consisted of a huge fountain in the middle of a pool,
surrounded by four separate pools, each with steps leading to the water.
This was a beautiful and quiet spot when we arrived - very serene and
different from the others. After about 6 hours of temple hunting, we
returned to our little hotel for a rest before heading out to dinner. Dinner
on "Pub Street" last night was at Khmer Family Restaurant. Michael has Khmer
chicken curry, I had ginger chicken (good for my tummy) and a delicious
plate of morning glory - a local water vegetable. This plus 2 beers and a
large bottle of water - all for $12.50! Crazy cheap food here - and soooo
good. Friday: Today we had booked two tours through a company called "Beyond
Unique Escapes". A portion of all their tours goes to assisting very poor
villagers. We booked a cooking class for the morning and a tour of the
floating villages for the afternoon. As luck would have it, we had a private
cooking session. this course included a visit to a local family to see how
they live and cook. We also provided them with 2kg of rice as payment for
the visit. I gave all the children of the family (all 10) some notepads and
pencils - they were thrilled and all had huge beaming white smiles. Our
cooking class consisted of Fish Amok, Khmer Green Mango Salad and Sticky
rice balls with palm sugar candy inside. We spend about an hour preparing
and cooking before we had an opportunity to enjoy our food - very delicsious
if I do say so myself. We we really were not very hungry, we decided to only
sample our food and asked that the rest be given to the family. Done! After
lunch, we were picked up and transported to the dock to catch our boat for a
trip to the floating village. What a way of life - certainly not for me I
have to admit. As the dry season comes on, all the entire floating village
must move further and further out into the lake. As wet season approaches,
they have to move closer to shore again. we were told by our guide that the
lake changes from approx. 10-12,000 sq.km in the wet season to only 3,000 sq
km in the dry. It was a fascinating trip and provided ample opportunity for
tons of pics! After about 3 hrs, we headed back to shore and then returned
to our hotel for a shower, rest and blog update. Tonight is a massage for
$10.00/hr, dinner and maybe a club for a bit. Tomorrow we have decided to go
to watch the sunrise at Angkor Wat - so this means leaving the hotel at 5AM
to fight the crowds - we must be insane! After that, one last temple,
Banteay Srei "Citadel of the Women". That's it for now. Stay tuned for
more!!
Good Night Siem Reap
Feb 19 2011
Tonight is our last night in Siem Reap so we will bit her good nigh then...
So what happen today... We woke up very early in the morning 4:30 am to
catch our Tuk Tuk ride to Angkor Wat to watch the sunrise. It was kinda of
cloudy so we did not have a very good picture of the sunrise. But it was a
full moon so we did get some good picture. After that we have our breakfast
with our Tuk Tuk driver. We then visit another temple. This one is call
"Citadel of the women" in Cambodian Banteay Srey. This temple has beautiful
craving and the color is orange red. On our way to the temple we were
treated to the nature beauty of Cambodia and to see Cambodian people way of
life. We saw the making of palm sugar in the villages and they sold them on
the street to the locals and tourist/visitor like us. Tonight we are going
to see the giant Muppet parade, dinner then good night to Siem Reap. Next
update will be Malaysia/Hongkong.. till then good night to all.
Back in Malaysia
Feb 20 2011
Yesterday we left Siem Reap after an amazing 8 days of touring around
Cambodia. What an a amazing country - a special thanks to our new friend
Thorng - our TukTuk driver for the week - we hope to stay in touch and have
his business card so if anyone is traveling to Siem Reap, please let us know
so we can share his info with you - you won't be disappointed!!! We arrived
in KL after an uneventful flight and took a taxi to Michael's parents house.
A quick trip to a new suburb to check it out and then back to get ready for
a big dinner out. 13 people with some amazing gourmet Chinese food - Mmmmmm.
Today will be a little more laid back - we will walk to the local market for
a look and likely have a light bit. After that... it's any ones guess. We
leave KL on Wednesday for Hong Kong until the 27th then it's home. I'll
update again once we are in HK, unless something huge happens here. See ya
soon!
Hong Kong or bust...
 |
| Tian Tan Buddha |
Feb 25 2011
We arrived in Hong Kong Wednesday afternoon to much cooler temperatures than
Malaysia and certainly Cambodia - approx. 23C - very nice!! We found our way
through the MTR - the Hong Kong subway. It's great - well signed and simple
to find your way. With the famed Octopus card it makes it even easier - you
buy this card, put cash value on it and use it everywhere - from public
transit to a bottle of water at 7Eleven. Toronto..... get with the times.
This thing is amazing!!! Anyway - we checked into our hotel - where the
lobby is currently under construction. The room is OK - nothing special but
then again we aren't here to stay in the room. We overlook Nathan Road which
is a major through way in Kowloon - across the bay from Hong Kong which is
where we are staying. After a quick rest, we headed out to explore - first
down to the waterfront - we made it just in time for sunset - WOW - amazing.
We'll be down there again for some shots tonight after dinner. We wandered
around the harbour front and admired the beautiful lights of Hong Kong as
dusk set in - it is truly STUNNING! Dinner that night was a local Hotpot
Restaurant - packed with locals (always a good sign) and delicious -
although we smelled like hotpot when we left. After dinner, we wandered the
streets and took in the night sights. Quite different from Siem Reap I must
say. Thursday: Today we took the MTR over to Hong Kong and then all the way
across to Lantau Island to see the Tian Tan Buddha. When we arrived there
the Gondola ride was closed for maintenance so we took the bus for our 1/2
hour ride. Great scenery as we travelled through green and then along the
white sand beaches. We arrived at the Buddha and spend about 2 hours
wandering around seeing the sights. This Buddha is the worlds largest seated
outdoor bronze Buddha - and it is huge. We hiked up the stairs and wandered
around taking pictures and then toured through the museum. A wander through
the Wisdom Path (no - it didn't work), by the Po Lin Monastery and then back
to the bus after about 2 hours. We arrived back at the start point and then
went shopping - found a nice pair of jeans at Guess and Michael bought 2
pair of pants at Armani Exchange - great deals! From there we took the MTR
back into Hong Kong and started our touring around. To the mid-level
escalators we went. This is a 1 KM long combination of escalators and
walkways up and down the steep incline between Central and Midlevels. It was
a great experience as we travel through some residential areas, quaint
streets ans through SoHo - an amazing area full of outdoor cafes and
restaurants - where we stopped for wine and tapas for dinner. From the
Midlevels we headed to the Tram for a ride. These are Double-Decker trams
that are very thin and tall - traveling through the streets of Hong Kong.
Traveling this way by night was pretty cool as all the neon lights were lit
and you were so high you could almost touch them. All this travel for 2HK
dollars (1 CAD = approx. 7.7HK) so very cheap. From there back to the MTR
and home to our hotel - wow - 12 hours of hiking around - exhausted. Friday:
Today we decided to wander around Kowloon. First stop was a great little
men's shop - bought a pair of jeans and having them hemmed as we speak so I
can wear them for dinner tonight. Then it Dim Sum - very good - 5 dishes for
less than $10CAD - again... the food is very cheap (and good). Our first
sightseeing stop was the Goldfish Market - a bunch of stores along one
street that sell goldfish and other fish and accessories. Quite cool to see.
Next was the Flower Market on Flower Market Road. This was a block of flower
stores and stalls - any type of flower you could imagine. From here we went
to the Yuen Po street Bird Garden. According to the guide book, birds are a
favourite pet here in Hong Kong and elderly people take their caged birds
for walks to this garden. The sounds were beautiful as were some of the
wooden ornate cages - would love to bring one home but too difficult. After
this we wandered through several street markets, had lunch at a local
restaurant (packed) and then wandered back to the hotel for a rest before
dinner out tonight. Dinner tonight is at 6:30- 8:30 (very popular restaurant
so we have to leave by 8:30) which is OK as we'll have an amazing view of
the harbour and the nightly laser show at 8:00PM. After dinner we'll likely
wander around and maybe hit the nightclub across the road from us - but
we'll see. I think this will be it for the blog for this trip - although I
may do one last quick update tomorrow night. Thanks everyone for following
and until next time..... everyone take a vacation :)
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1 Comments
Safe trip and have lots of good food.
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