Well, I’m going to skip an entry on the goings on at Ko Phi Phi, Thailand. If you really care to find out what kind of place it is, Wikipedia is your man. Stunningly beautiful, glad I went, but I have nothing of any value to relate, truth be told. Also, any lengthy reference to it might take away from the paradise that is Penang, Malaysia to a Thai-weary backpacker in need of some politeness, cleanliness, and safety. The border crossing between Sandao, Thailand and Malaysia was a nice taste of what was to come. The town of Sandao was dirty, crowded, and chaotic with elephants sharing the roads with the cars and bikes. The customs officers demanded a 10 baht “holiday/Sunday” fee for our driver that we’d refused to pay him. One final scam in a land full of them… However, on the Malaysian side, a friendly smiling customs official waved us cheerily through after reading the American quotes on the pages of my passport. Only the large sign that said “Be forewarned, death for drug traffickers under Malaysian law” gave any sign of a serious border crossing.
A few more hours of driving and we were in Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia. As we arrived at 11pm, we had little idea of what a gem we’d stumbled upon, but the cheap lodging we found happened to be in a pre-WWII colonial house and for only marginally more, we traded our bed bug infested, mosquito bitten, non-air conditioned bungalow at Ko Phi Phi for a air conditioned, comfortable, clean room in Penang. The next day (well, today) we did a little walking tour and discovered that, true to its motto, Penang really does “Have it all.” In about six hours we’d seen the British built supreme court, town hall, and Fort Cornwallis (named for the British General of Revolutionary War fame), gone through a Chinese mansion and clan house (ORNATE), eaten naan and drank masala tea at a little hole-in-the-wall in Little India, and listened to the Islamic call to prayer while we wafted incense at one of the largest Buddhist temples (Kek Lok Si Temple).
Nathan, Meredith and I have all agreed that minute for minute, this is the best day we’ve had on our trip so far. Every meal has been a delight, the people have been friendly, and as we speak we’re canvassing bar options to feed my unfortunate Guinness addiction. Probably the best part of today has been: The Turtle Liberation Pond at Kek Lok Si Temple. Once you get past the odd name, you can only imagine how ironic it is. Picture a superheated pond about the size of a courtyard fountain. (Sarah, stop reading here). Then add about 300 turtles. Big, hefty turtles. The problem was there was only maybe a square meter of rock to dry off and get out of the water for these poor tired and hot turtles. The solution? If you were ever wondering how many turtles you could fit on a one square meter, three-four turtle high dog-pile, a careful look here could tell you. It was a frenzy (the first time I’ve ever used this word referring to turtles) of turtles as surprisingly beefy turtles kicked each other off in a mad struggle that seemed more like king of the hill than a relaxing jaunt on a rock. It was pure turtle madness and you couldn’t help but laugh your head off when a turtle-landslide caused by one unfortunate turtle swept all in its path into the water with several satisfying shell on shell thunks.
Anyway, we’re enjoying a nice break from the chaos of Bangkok and the sleazy backpackerness of Phi Phi, but it’s only a little break because it’s off to Medan, Indonesia on Wednesday! Malaysia, we’ll be back.
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