Thursday, October 22, 2009

Palawan Island - P is for Paradise

Palawan Island is only an hours flight from Manila. The first stop is Puerto Princesa, the island's capital city. Puerto is a clean (very unusual for Philippines) little town, it doesn't have alot going for it, but it does serve a very good base for the area. We stayed at Manny's Guesthouse a lovely old converted dutch house. Manny was a good host, producing coffee in the mornings and discounted tours. Our only problem was that at 3am it sounded like it was in the middle of a rooster farm with canine fencing.

We decided to check out the Underground River in Sabang which is in the running to be one of the Natural Wonders of the world. Eons of water erosion has produced a 8km long cave complex. You can catch a small paddle boat 1.5km into the cave. The cave was very cool, but with only 1 light per boat (operated by clueless lady up front) the tour was only ok. Formations that look like corn (?!), mushrooms (ok) and the Virgin Mary (it is a catholic country after all) were pointed out to us.















The next day we headed to Honda Bay for our first dose of island hopping. And a nice dose it turned out to be. The water around Palawan is like that of the travel photos, a clear azure blue. We saw some cool fish while did snorkeling on a submerged reef, had a lovely lunch on snake island where the mangroves burst with life, and finished the day with a sunbake on a "private" island.

The following day we headed by bus to El Nido on the north tip of the island. With the poor state of the roads, we had an 8 hour (actually considered a good time!) slow and bumpy ride. The bus stopped every few moments to let locals crawl over chickens and boxes to any available seats. When the seats were full, people just climbed onto the roof. But the journey was well worth the effort. We found a reasonable beach surrounded by majestic limestone cliffs. Ha Long Bay eat your heart out. The first day it rained so we just sat on our veranda reading.















We booked an island hopping tour (the one thing here), hopeful of the brilliant sunny day that greeted us as we awoke. For the rest of our time in Palawan, the weather gods turned it on! We saw a couple of hidden lagoons, Umbrella island, the boatmen BBQ'd fresh fish on a secluded beach for lunch, and we snorkeled our little hearts out. A great day.

We followed it up with another tour to hidden beaches and great little lagoons. Lunch was fresh fish again, although this time it had been chopped up with a cleaver. Quartered fish anyone? Unfortunately the coral wasn't in the best condition, making snorkeling a little less rewarding than other spots. Dynamite fishing and Crown of Thorns star fish taking their toll.

We hired a scooter and headed out to a long quiet beach. The road was such a rocky monstrosity that a new term was coined for our frequent stops: stretching the bum. We found it after about an hour in the saddle. The local village kids took a great interest in us, asking our names and getting their photo taken. I had to shoo them away to get some peace (and a swim). We sun baked blissfully unaware that the local sand flies were making merry with our exposed legs. For 3 days Tash made a great effort at removing her entire skin from the itching, while getting annoyed at Greg's lack of bites!

With the recent bus ride still fresh in our memories, we hung around for another day to share a banca (local boat) ride to our next stop, Port Barton. Ear plugs proving essential on our 5 hour ride on one of these growling boats. Port Barton is a fantastic place to relax. We had an A-frame detached beach front room, metres from the water for the equivalent of $15AUD. Its a place to read relax and watch sunsets. It is also home to a wonderful little place called Jambalaya.

Jambalaya only has 3 small tables for 2. Its been inspired by Zydaco music, from the deep south of the USA. Old album covers are everywhere, Zydaco music coming from the speakers. Little hand written signs with homely suggestions and requests hang on the walls. Loads of books wash around the shelves, the beach is an arms length away! All of which would count for less were it not for the food and service. We had to the entire planet's most polite waitress (you're welcome, thank you, you're welcome, is everything ok?, you're welcome, thank you etc.). We feasted on the best bowl of special cornflakes in the world. It contained: Cornflakes, bran flakes,
choc cereal, white and black sesame seeds, coconut (caramel and normal), cashews, dried apricots, banana and loads of fresh milk. Quite a Bowl!

We decided to go back for dinner and get garlic (GARLIC!!!) bread, succulent cajun tuna and jambalaya rice. Followed by an awesome choc banana crepe, a top ten meal. All to soon we had to say goodbye to this paradise and head to Puerto once more. We took a jeepney (think half old army jeep, half bus, painted as bright as possible), squeezed in with the locals who looked bemused. The following day we said a sad goodbye to a fantastic place, but its time to move on once more..........

Manila - A CIty of Contrast


Manila is a big, dirty, gritty city. Its quite in your face. We landed at Clarke, unaware its a 2 hour bus ride north of the city (worse than landing in Avalon instead of Tulla). We got to our hostel (called a pension house here) in Malate & were immediately struck by the number of armed guards. Every one of them with shotgun or pistol close at hand. The other thing to notice straight away was the poverty. Across the road from our accommodation was a family living on the street. Unfortunately not an unusual occurrence.

We had to stay in Manila a day longer than planned because of a Typhoon (called Ramir). It was to be the third one in about a month, and predicted to make land in northern Luzon just when we were meant to be in the area. Even though the travel agents in Manila were pretty apathetic about the whole thing, we decided it would be pretty stupid to get caught out, so we brought forward our flight to Palawan. The rice terraces of northern Luzon would have to wait.

To kill our time we went to the Chinese cemetery on the local elevated train. The security checked my waist and our bag for weapons (for a train!). The cemetery is massive and has grand monuments with second stories, toilets and kitchens for the dead to use in the afterlife (or for the living to use during celebrations). Morbidly interesting.


While known in the past as the Pearl of the Orient, we didn't stick around long enough to try and experience the other side of this intense city. Essentially we were impatient to head off to the island paradise that is Palawan......

Sunday, October 11, 2009

KL - That's Kuala Lumpur


Once we had gathered our bearings we realised our bus from Melacca had dropped us 8 mins walk from our hostel - sweet intro. Ashamed to admit, but the first activity we did in KL was go shopping mall....Careful to avoid the international brands (Top Shop, French Connection, Next etc) which seemed a similar price, we managed to get some killer bargains and some beautiful Malaysian clothes. The next day we headed out earlyish to the Petronas Towers to get tickets to the viewing platform. But we arrived too late and tickets were sold out... fortunately there was another shopping mall at the base of the towers!

We did do some sightseeing. We caught the Hop-on, Hop-Off Bus which does a handy circuit of the city. We checked out the beautiful and light National Mosque. Before we were allowed in we both had to put on purple - jedi like gowns to cover our heads and legs.


We visited the Islamic Museum where they have very cool mini replicas of mosques from all over the world. We walked through Chinatown and got accosted with loads of fake designer handbags, DVD's, purses and watches. Little India was cool, Tash got another henna tattoo for $4.

Now for a change of scenery.........

Melacca - Or is it malaka


We arrived in Melacca/Malaka/Melaka with Tash feeling a bit poorly (well ok, she had food poisoning, the both ends kind, and from bloody Spag Bol!), it seemed that the Cameron Highlands decided to leave a lasting impression. But she fought through.

Riverview Guesthouse gave us (me) a brilliant welcome and Tash escaped to the bed. The guesthouse itself is a converted warehouse. Beautiful dark wooden floors, high ceilings and a great feeling. With Tash still out of action I found a great Indian Tandoori place for dinner that was so good I brought some takeaway (forrrr Tash, yeah, well that's my excuse anyway). But on the way home the heavens opened and I was stuck. Well, until the owners came and found me in their car.


Melaka old town is world heritage listed and with good reason. With Tash up and about, the next days were filled with walks amongst the old buildings. Harmony Street has Chinese, Muslin and Christian temples/mosques/churches on it. The Dutch were the main settling colonial power here and for some reason they painted the town a pinkish orange. Quite a striking colour. There is a thriving artist community and plenty of antiques. Junkers Street has a great little restaurant that did a luscious laksa and a local sweet called Cendol. Its loads of finely shaved ice with Cendol (which is a green jelly thing), red beans, coconut and palm sugar syrup. Its absolutely delicious, if a little difficult for fragile stomachs. We went on a river cruise that showed plenty of water monitors (large lizards) living in the estuary and finally the skeleton of St Peters church where there's a great view of the straits.

Another great meal we had was at a local institution called Capitol Satay. Here the satay sauce is brought out to the table and kept bubbling hot by a gas stove. You choose your sticks of meats/vegetables and cook them in the sauce. Its famous and there was a wait on the street to get in. We had 23 sticks, 108 for the single record holder- kinda pathetic). Our last breakfast we had The Tarik, a Malaysian version of tea that is sweet and poured between cups to get a creamy texture, and vegetable marsala flat bread (buggered if I can remember it's name).

On to Kuala Lumpur.................

Cameron Highlands - Tea with cool comfort


The Cameron Highlands is a vast area of rolling green hills, tea plantations and forest. Keen to escape the heat and get a good cup of tea, we headed for these lush surroundings. We stayed at Father's Guesthouse - lovely, clean and friendly. Just what we needed after our accommodation horrors in the jungle.

As usual, we decided a scooter would be a great way to explore the area (they are useful little things). We set off, stopped at a butterfly farm, honey bee farm and of course a tea plantation. As we sat on the veranda overlooking the rows and rows of tea hedges, the clouds rolled down the valley. 2 hours later, the rain finally cleared and we headed out to the scooter to finish our exploration. The scooter however, had other plans. Half way out of the car park the chain broke. After another 2 hours and every spare male and his tool kit, we were on our way. By this stage it was getting dark and cold so we stopped for some tasty night market food. Wild mushroom tempura, Yum!


The next day dawned bright and clear and we (read: Tash) decided it was time for some more walking. (Greg may have been suffering from a bit of travel night runs) We headed out on trail 9A - a lovely walk though the sub-tropical rainforest. Strangely, at one point we found 5 dogs barking madly at a small pack of monkeys in the trees. At the end of the trail we headed up to the BOH (Best of Highlands) tea estate. The Lonely Planet mentions the walk is only 45 minutes. It does not mention however that the walk is completely up hill. An hour later we finally reached the top, hopeful that the place served food as well as tea. Thankfully we were rewarded with tuna and cucumber sandwiches, followed by tea and scones with strawberry jam.


Eventually we persuaded ourselves to set off on the 6km walk back to the main road. When we got there (downhill is so much easier!) the signs told us we still had 9kms to go. But before this information had time to settle in our minds, a beaten up old land rover (and there are hundreds of the things around here) pulled over with the offer of a lift, which we gleefully accepted. Being used to Thai hospitality we were amazed that our saviour asked for nothing more than conversation.

Next stop Melacca.........

Taman Negara - time for some jungle action

It was time to head to the jungle. We decided to catch the famous jungle train so we headed to nearby Kota Bharu, which also happens to be famous for its night food market. We wondered around the market trying to decide and settled on some Nasi Ayam Percik - bbq chicken marinated in a spicy coconut gravy, stuffed Roti Canai and a feast of local sweets. The meal was lip smack'n, finger lick'n good! The next morning we had to get up at 2:45am to catch the 4:18am jungle train (did not need to get up so bloody early, we followed bad advice). Luckily we slept (well Tash did) for the first few hours and awoke to see the train gliding through thick mountain jungle. It was a slow but beautiful journey. 8 hours later we arrived in time to catch the 3 hour slow boat up the river to Kuala Tahan which sits on the edge of Taman Negara jungle.

After checking out a few options we concluded that accommodation at Kuala Tahan is overpriced and very grotty. We reluctantly settled on Tersek View Motel (we heard rumours it was the only place in the area that was bed bug free).
The next day we headed out for some jungle trekking with some lovely fellow Aussie travellers we had met along the way. First we headed to the Canopy Walkway which is suspended 20-30m above ground between huge trees. Not long after we started I decided not to torture myself again (I've already done two of these bloody things on this trip).

We then followed a series of trails through the jungle. While Taman Negara is a beautiful national park, sightings of exotic wildlife (ie. elephants, tigers, leopards) that inhabit the park are very rare. But one thing we did spot were hundreds of leeches.... They were everywhere and anywhere. If you paused for a second, a little brown leech would poke its head up from the ground and come creeping towards you. This is where Greg the Big Brave Man, became a Scared Little Mouse. As we wondered the jungle Greg spent every second checking, and rechecking his legs for a little creature that is about 2cm long. Inevitably we all got leeched and Greg accepted his fate stoically. Hot and sweaty from jungle trekking we ended the day with a leech free swim in the river.
Our next mission was to try and find the nearby bat cave Gua Telinga. After dodging leeches and jumping over tree roots we finally arrived at what we thought was the entrance to the bat cave. Using the ropes we crawled into the darkness as far as we could. But couldn't seem to find a way through. Confused we crawled out and headed out and back along the path where we soon found a big sign to the cave. Feeling braver we crawled into the cave and followed ropes through different caverns. The number of bats (and the horrid smell of bats) growing. We then emerged into a cavern that was full of hundreds of little bats. We sat in silence as they whooshed around our heads. Greg went exploring to see if there was a way through and concluded must be one-way. We started to head out and luckily bumped into a tour guide who explained we could keep going through. He showed us the way out - a small crack, half filled with water! Soon we found ourselves at the exact point we had tried unsuccessfully to enter earlier. We surfaced from the cave wet and covered in mud - but happy we had made it all the way through.
That night we went on a guided night walk. With a group of 17 it was amazing we saw anything. But we did see snakes, scorpions, stick insects and some cool glowing mushrooms.Its so hot and humid here that its time to cool off.......

Perhentian Islands - a tropical interlude

WHAT a bus trip! We set off at 5:00am packed to the gills with people and bags. Apparently late, we hammered along. We happened to be in the back, bouncing around and getting thrown from our seats as we cannoned into one of the frequent potholes (yet rest stops lasted for ages?!). We arrived with sore butts and out of breath. Next step was a speed boat ride - we decided to head to Pecil Perhentian which is the smaller, cheaper island.

Though shared traumatic experience, we met Veronica, an Argentinian on her way home for the first time in 3 years after studying Chinese in China, and Jarna, an Aussie taking advantage of 3 weeks between Singapore work commitments. We became nigh on inseparable for the next 3 days. As the beach got closer, the boat slowed to a stop and we were informed that 2 ringgit each would get us to the shore (After asking about this, I was given the excuse that the brand new concrete pier with a boat drawn up to it was 'broken', hehe no shame)

After finding accommodation we hit the beach. And that's pretty much what you do in the Perhentians. The water is beautiful and clear, snorkeling is great, the sand is white and you don't get bothered. We did a couple of dives (saw sharks and turtles!). We played Sahibba (Malaysian scrabble, strangely has very few consonants, tough game!) during the nightly monsoonal rain.

After the relaxing interlude, it was time to bid Veronica a very fond farewell and move onto the next stop, jungle!

Georgetown, Penang - Intro to Malaysia

The first thing we noticed about Georgetown was the cool fusion of Malaysian, Chinese and Indian cultures. We tasted the most succulent tandoori chicken, glistening BBQ pork belly and sizzling satay skewers hot off the coals. We wondered the streets and saw a mix of colonial buildings, historic mansions, Chinese temples, and bollywood video stores. Little India, Chinatown and the colonial district all within close walking distance. We happened upon an Indian celebration with a music and dancing taking over the streets. Next moment we were watching a traditional Chinese opera set up on the sidewalk.



We left Penang with strong memories of some of the most tastiest, exciting and interesting food we have experienced. (Note: Greg did experience the worst Indian in the history of the world - he was reminded of this fact every time we went to the loo for the next 3 days, which was frequently)

The West Coast - Koh Lanta and Koh Phi Phi

The day we woke to leave Koh Phangan was cloudy and windy. Our big car ferry barely moved but I think a few sick bags were required on the smaller boats.

We travelled to Krabi before heading out to the islands. Unfortunately my continuing deafness and now ear inflammation meant I had to do something. We spent 300Baht and 3 hours at the local hospital to be told that I had wax and to see an Ear, Nose and Throat guy. So we turned up to said guy, who just happens to have a clinic on the main street, and 15min later I had clean ears, drops, pills and a 4 day no swimming order. I was thrilled to be under a no swim order amongst tropical islands!

As it turned out the no swim for 5 days was Ok, because it was still monsoon. The cloud and wind whipped up the Andaman sea, making the beaches less than desirable. We decided that the larger, yet lesser known Koh Lanta would be quieter, cheaper and therefore better than the famous Koh Phi Phi. With the beaches off the To Do list, we got a scooter & explored, finding windy roads and beautiful vistas. But there was just nobody around. Tumbleweed rolled along the main road. Things were closed, so we decided the get the boat over to Phi Phi.

Phi Phi Island is a tremendously beautiful place, and everyone knows it. Its so overdeveloped that the only accommodation in our budget was complete crap! (And it was suggested to us as one of the better budge options). After reheated Pancakes (read: microwaved carpet, almost inedible) we were ready to leave again. But we stuck it out and headed on an afternoon and evening boat trip to the smaller Koh Phi Phi Ley which is a national park.

Our first stop encompassed all that is wrong with Phi Phi. A beach called Monkey Beach, complete with litter and tens of people goading, trying to feed and kicking sand at monkeys when they came close. We felt really uncomfortable (no-one else seemed to) and were glad to leave. We passed a large cave where swallows nests are collected for the Chinese delicacy Bird's Nest. Its actually fibrous swallow spit. Yummy!


While I watched jealously, Tash went snorkeling and saw some beautiful tropical fish (putting returning to dive ideas in our head). She had a close call with some dozy bottom feeder of a boat driver wielding a long tail boat propeller.












We saw the set of the film "The Beach" after some swimming (me very carefully) using some ropes, wildly crashing waves and maneuvering ourselves into a hole in the rock (that was fun!).


With dinner provided, all we needed to do that night was to satisfy Tash's craving for sticky rice with Mango.

I'm going to say something that will shock, confound and leave those reading this aghast. We have been very disappointed with the Thai food. I know, I know, I can barely believe it myself. Tash had a dish on Koh Lanta with half cooked prawns, most of my curries were little better than coconut soups. Of course a there are a few exceptions around. What has become of Thai cuisine? TOURISM. To get the good food, get off the beaten track. We're getting off to Malaysia!