What to do in Malaysia for 2 weeks; Italian in Malaysia

So, while I'm in Malaysia, sorting my life out, Gian took a break from work life and traveled all the way to the other side of the world to see me and go around Malaysia! :) He's on a flight back to Glasgow at the moment and I'm absolutely gutted that he's no longer beside me (again). Sigh. I miss him already.

Anyway, 2 weeks in Malaysia isn't very long. I probably only managed to show him about 1% of everything here, since I myself haven't seen or discovered every single thing in my own country! So, I had to plan things out quite thoroughly so we wouldn't have to rush through things but also at the same time, see and experience a lot. Utilizing my organizational skills to our advantage. An amazing thing is that it was my first time visiting most of the places I went to with Gian! Perfect! It was a proper travel for the both of us!

So the itinerary for this trip was;

1) KL (4 nights)

2) Ipoh (1 night)

3) Penang (4 nights)

4) Sabah (4 nights)

Ipoh, Perak

I brought Gian to Ipoh for a night before we headed to Georgetown! It was a good chance for us to stay in one of Seksan's amazing buildings, Sekeping Kong Heng! A boy, did Gian absolutely adore it. I made the right decision in introducing him to my favourite architect of all time. He now adores him just as much as I do. I mean, look at him on this hammock! 

The first thing he did was jump onto it when we went to the communal space of the retreat home haha. It was unbelievably relaxing, I admit. I love everything Seksan designs because it's so simple and yet so well thought out! I recommend a room here (RM222 a night), if ever you go with your significant other! It's worth a visit. And it's super happening downstairs too, with Plan B, Burps and Giggles, the artsy market and the street food!

Here's a fancy shot of me walking up the stairs. So beautiful! To your right, are the private bedrooms and to your left, the dorms.

Ipoh is basically a makan place. One of the primary things to do there is relax and eat. I brought him to a lot of places to try good food! Chicken taugeh, tau foo fa, red bean dessert ... it was endless. The wee heritage tour around the city was really nice too! Was lovely to take a walk and learn a bit about the history of Ipoh in the evening.

One of the highlights of our trip in Ipoh was going caving! I wanted to bring Gian to Gua Tempurung but out of sheer lack of luck, the cave was closed for maintenance (so they say). So they brought us to another cave called Gua Kandu. It turned out to be amazing!

It's very underrated, there aren't much lights like Gua Tempurung so you'll need to bring a torch light, and you actually have to climb rocks and jump off things! It was so fun and unexpected! My shoes were destroyed. We also learnt that the Japs were hiding in these caves when they invaded Malaysia! Scary yet interesting. They developing the area right now, I think to open it to other travelers in the near future! I'd recommend going, definitely! It was unexpectedly fun and a nice wee workout. 

But I'd also like to try the extreme adventure package for Gua Tempurung. Maybe next time!

Oh and omg I did not know these cave temples existed! These temples are AMAZING! So beautiful! And I've never seen anything like it in Malaysia! I can't believe I've never visited til this day. The people in the temple don't even care about visitors, they just allow everyone to come in and explore! Fun times.

Taiping, Perak

The next day, while on the way to Penang, Gian and I stopped by Taiping Lake Gardens, because I wanted to show him the amazing trees! We stayed there for a bit to watch the sunset and walk around the garden itself! Listening to the insects, prayer announcements, and an occasional animal from the zoo. It was very relaxing!

Georgetown, Penang Island

While in Penang, Gian and I stayed in 2 hostels, one named Clockwise Hostel and another called Frame Guesthouse. Clockwise was relatively simple and cute, a good place if you want cheap accommodation with simple facilities. Frame, on the other hand, is gorgeous! A wee bit more pricey but the space itself is wonderful! 

While in Penang, eat like the locals larh deyh! What is breakfast without kaya bread and soft boiled egg? :) We tried this tepi jalan cafe called Ton Soon Cafe one morning. It was packed with people! Gian was kinda confused by the environment. It's kind off a shocker for a Westerner I suppose haha. But it was a nice start o the day! Seeing aunties screaming at their workers, having 57 people walk passed your table going to the screaming auntie to order, drinking about 2 cups of kopi peng per person and every totaling to practically nothing. What is life without Penang food really?

We also went to the usual places to eat like Pua Chu Kang Cendol, New Lane Hawker Centre (which is not as good as I remember, sorry), Bali Hai and too many to remember to be honest. I got him to try Kuey Teow, Chee Cheong Fan, Assam Laksa, Yong Tau Foo, Cendol, ABC ... everything larh ok.

This is Ah Lai Kopitiam located under a massive tree. Also brought the Italian here for breakfast! Super cool and simple place, with a friendly auntie and a massive tree housing a lot of kerengga but they won't attack you (I guess?!).

So, I've been toe Georgetown more times than I can count, but for some reason I didn't visit all of the places I brought Gian to while he was here, which is great because then we both get to discover these places together! Although of course, I'm more familiar with the history and culture of my country, Gian was overstimulated by it. He couldn't control his excitement! Like a puppy with a new toy!

We went to go see Khoo Kongsi where we learnt a bit more about the history of the clans. I, of course, knew all about it since I had to study it a few years back in Taylor's (Cheah Kongsi power!). Gian was all like "I want to be in a clan too! My family is boring". Hahaha. They weren't joking when they said Khoo Kongsi is extravagant. They like to lansi a bit, which is fine. I mean, why not right?

We also went to the Blue Mansion. Again, such an amazing chunk of history that I never visited. Why?! It baffles me sometimes but at least I went this time! The mansion is beautiful and the story behind it is very ... Asian hahahaha. Poor Chinese man turned richest business person in Asia and somewhat a philanthropist with like 4 wives scattered all around the continent, builds a house for his children and loses it to bankruptcy, then it turns into a squatter and then restored to its former glory. Amazing. 

The tour itself was mostly the guide chatting away and making lame Malaysian jokes but it was still pretty entertaining (RM16 p/p I think). We didn't get to see most of the house because since it's a hotel now, it was booked out to guests and the guide thought, well maybe it'd kinda be breaching privacy ya know lol. But what we did get to see was lovely! Props to the architect who spent 6 years of his life restoring this beauty! Lots of investment and dedication went to this project for sure. Those porcelain ornamentation though!!! But it paid off at the end, seeing as this is the top heritage site in Penang!

We also went to the Peranakan Museum, which used to be a mansion owned by a member of the triad during the Baba Nyonya days. Wicked what gangster money can buy sial. The house was amazing! Filled with art nouveau elements, artwork and nyonya artefacts! Worth a visit as well (RM20 p/p).

Another amazing place to visit is the Kek Lok Si Temple! The biggest temple in South East Asia is located in Malaysia? Go figure. It's pretty rad though! The view from the temple is spectacular and the ornamentation again is very lovely. A peaceful place too, with the massive statue of Kuan Yin overlooking you and the city! Magnificent, and only about 20 minutes away by car from the city centre.

One place I was happy to bring Gian to was probably one of my favourite parts of Georgetown, the Clan Jetty! I didn't only bring him to the Chew Jetty, which is the current iconic one, but also the other next to it! They're all so different but equally as beautiful! Gian absolutely loved it. The evening we were at the Lee Jetty, the sun was setting and the hue of the environment was basically pink and yellow! The photograph doesn't do the atmosphere justice! You just had to be there! It was like we were in an old Chinese film.

And of course, Georgetown is known for their art and mural paintings! I've currently lost a bit of interest with Ernest Zacharevic since I've seen his work too many times, but lucky for us, the city is filled with work by different artists!

Before we left Penang, Gian and I went to an exhibition called Same Same, as part of the Georgetown Art Festival. It's basically an exhibition about the many different mixed-race people or interracial couples/families in Malaysia! So amazing to be able to relate to the images and stories! Me and Gian pun same same. Check out the Same Same project Facebook back here! It's a very fun and inspiring project!

Kundasang, Sabah

I brought Gian to Kundasang in Sabah on the first day we landed from KL. It was a tiring travel since we woke up at like 5am and had as little as 3 hours of sleep before flying over (omg). I was falling asleep while driving to Kundasang. We're lucky I didn't drive off the cliffs.

Anyway, Kundasang is where the Kinabalu Park is so of course we'd stay there for the night, with the moths and frogs and other creepy crawlys that'd potentially hide under our beds. 

We stayed in a place called Mountain Kinabalu Lodge! You definitely need a car to get there, and a 4WD to be safe. It was a super nice place with a great view of the trees and the mountains (as seen in the photo above)! And they have resident kittens of whom entertained me 75% of the time I was outside doing yoga or eating durian. They also ate a lot of insects and moths as they need to "tambah sihat", quoted by the Sabahan caretaker. The staff members were super funny and cute! They provided a simple breakfast and like a ton of fruit too which was a win.

Also, there's like super tons of moths there ok. Moths that would get them westerners excited cause they've never seen one as big as my face before. It was super fun to look at them because moths usually just stay still when they land, but I freaked out when one of those noisy green beetles flew directly into my face! I don't mind insects, IF THEY DON'T FLY INTO ME. Anyway, ya, try the place out the next time ya visit. :)

In the evening, we went to the Poring Hot Springs which was about another 1 hour drive away from where we were staying, within Ranau. That hot springs is weird as fuck. Took me a while to realize what to do! There were outdoor baths and all that but they looked like ... I dunno ... they didn't look like hot springs haha. People weren't behaving like they were hot springs either, which confused me, a lot. I only realized an hour later that you had to use the pipes to put the hot spring sulphur water into the tubs. Weirddd.

We also went to the waterfall nearby which was super nice and relaxing. Nothing extravagant because it was just a wee waterfall! But there were fish that eat up your dead skin on your feet which is funny and ticklish, especially for Gian. It was interesting though! A weird experience is still an experience regardless ... right? It was nice to take a nap in the warm water and people watch too.

The next day, we went to the Kinabalu Park. We didn't get to see as much monkeys or rafflesia as Gian anticipated though haha. It ain't that easy to find elephant nosed monkeys in the wild ok!! But as you see in the photos below, we encounter a few of critters.

The squirrels/shrews at the mountain are super friendly and curious! Look at this pal of mine! Haha. A bunch of them were just curious about the shiny lenses on Gian's camera and my phone. They kept photobombing in a lot of our photos, so lets just let them have the limelight.

And this thing. Wtf is this thing even? I've never seen it in my life! It looks like an alien! But there it was, crawling on moss literally 20cm away from me and I was like GASP WTF TAKE A PICTURE! I don't know what it's called and I'd really love if someone could tell me what it is because I wanna Google the shit outta this thing.

And also this wee frog! It's about 4cm in length and I spotted it while we were climbing Bukit Ular. Gian is amazed by my observational skills but hey, I'm Malaysian. I think it's in our instincts to be this observant and highly alert in the jungle. I mean, I use to get giant pythons and freakin' monitor lizards in my back yard (who we assume has eaten a number of our cats)! I'm not about to let him or myself get bitten by a poisonous centipede or something ok.

Anyway, if you love to trek (as do I) and like to discover a some cray flora and fauna (there were tons of animals we saw and a lot of tropical birds! Haven for bird watchers), definitely visit Kinabalu Park and Kundasang in general. It's wonderful to be surrounded by nature (as cliche as it sounds). It's peaceful! But remember to bring mosquito repellent if you're one of those bug magnets (like Gian haha). You won't regret it.

I brought Gian to the centre of Kundasang because I remembered how much I loved the view when I first came with my parents! The mountain was covered in clouds, just like when I first came. I had never seen the top of Mount Kinabalu and thought I'd never get the chance until I actually climb the thing but lo and behold ...

... SHE PEEKS THROUGH THE CLOUDS! I did not realize how massive and tall Mount Kinabalu was. I mean, it's not the tallest in the world but daymmmm son. We had this in Malaysia and I still haven't climbed it?! For shame! I simply must! I'm a disgrace for not doing it sooner! 

Anyway, it's beautiful. It was my first time seeing the top part of the mountain and I didn't realize the edges were so pointy and downright coohl looking la ok. Within minutes, the clouds engulfed the her again and the top was outtasight. I'm happy for those few minutes, we managed to catch her in her glory!

Kota Kinabalu & Islands, Sabah

We stayed in Kota Kinabalu for 3 nights. I knew that Gian would love it because it's not often we get access to such beautiful beaches, sea creatures and seafood in Glasgow. Time to soak this all in eyh!

While in KK, we stayed about 15 minutes away from the city centre in a new hostel called Skypod Hostel! Super lovely place! Service was excellent and they provided free breakfast! These places are the bomb man! They also provide a shuttle bus service to the city centre so if you wanna save money, just use their service.

Anyway, so the next few days we mostly focused on beaches and snorkeling. I wanted Gian to see our coral reefs! I mean, definitely there coral reefs that are more beautiful in Simpadan, Semporna and Mabul, but we'll save that trip for next time (because we'd have to stay there for minimum 3 weeks not 3 nights! Haha). We went to Mamutik, Manukan (photo above) and Sapi Island!

For islands that are really near a city, these beaches were great! And I myself was excited about seeing so many different marine life! It was Gian's first time seeing huge coral reefs so he was like a kid in a toy shop! Everything was awesome. 90% of the beaches were clear and blue, except some parts of Manukan Island which unfortunately caught a bit of litter from the pirate island nearby (Gaya Island is currently being invaded by Filipino squatters who don't have proper plumbing or wastage management, hence the litter ugh). We did our part and tried to clear as much plastic as we could find! Apparently the cleanliness of the beaches have improved throughout the years so that's good to know!

This is Sapi Island! Also a great place to go to if you want to be up close and personal with the coral reefs (during low tide of course). I felt like I was hovering over the sea creatures and they were swimming about 20cm away from my stomach! So amazing! But be careful because the coral are pretty unexpectedly sharp. I scratched myself a lot, and so did Gian.

Regardless, snorkeling was awesome! We were surrounded by so many different sea creatures! I saw a moray eel, sting ray, jellyfish, tons of clown fish (Nemo!), parrot fish, Dory (like Dory), a huge fish with a beak, another shiny long sword looking one and so many others that I can't even name or describe! We even saw anemone that (a ton of) Nemo(s) stay in, with eggs!!

Here is a video of one of the anemone that I was observing for a good 20 minutes! Nemo is hiding inside! It's so mesmerizing to watch it as it flows with the waves of the sea. For real though, like proper hypnotizing! I was there for so long my ass cheeks got a little roasted!

Here's another video I added just to show you how diverse the coral reef is! Can you imagine that you're accessible to such beauty and awesomeness in Malaysia? 20 minutes away from KK? You can see this just by snorkeling! I can't imagine how it's like diving! I must get my license!

One other place that I'd like to suggest is the sunset bar area near Shangri-La in Tanjung Aru. It's like 15 minutes away by taxi from the city centre! It was a super nice area in KK, truly. A bit crowded during the sunset itself but who can blame 'em? It was a prime spot to watch the giant ball of gas disappear! And look at those colours in the sky! A mega treat for your eyes.

Kuala Lumpur

There are really a lot of things you could do in KL, one of which is shopping, which Gian is not interested in, so our list of activities decreased by half lol. Tbh I don't like KL very much because it's too busy and polluted (I'm from Subang, which is becoming equally as stressful as KL ugh). But I brought Gian to super awesome places he wouldn't even expect himself! 

One of them being Batu Caves! I haven't been to Batu Caves myself (I don't know why ok don't ask) but the day we went, it was good, no monkeys, it rained when we arrived into the cave and subsided within 15 minutes, and the steps were not as difficult as people say, I mean c'mon, I've climbed much worse than that! I thought it was quite nice to see the temple in the cave, though the selling of Hindu merch was a bit of a throw off lol.

Soon after we went to L45, a community library in Bangsar designed by one of Seksan's protege. This library is gorgeous! So simple and elegant, with some beautiful details. The wee archi-student inside of me was squealing, a lot. It began raining cats and dogs after we entered the library so lucky for us, we go to relax there for a bit until the rain (in which Gian loved because of the thunder and lightning) disappeared. I was half napping half reading travel books while Gian read some art and design magazines.

It's a wonderful concept! I recommend anyone who wants a nice quiet place to do work, to read or even just to relax in silence to go and visit L45! It's an amazing space.

However, be aware that they have certain rules about photography, in order to respect the students who are staying in the accommodation portion of L45. First important one being that you can only use your phone camera to take pictures, and even with that, limit it to a maximum of maybe 10? We should respect the rules!

Just a stones throw away was Sekeping Tenggiri, another one of Seksan's work that I had to show to Gian! It's soooooo beautiful! Such a wonderful retreat home in the middle of the city, I can't even express how much I love it! Gian was proper in love with it and basically wanted to live there (although he wanted to live in almost every place I brought him too haha). But c'mon, look at the photo! Who wouldn't want that as their home right?

Also, while we were walking around the Masjid Jamek area, we came across the old theatre which was showing a local production called MUD. Weyhhhhh it's damn nice! I didn't expect it at all! We decided to go to the musical impulsively because it was explaining a wee bit about the history of KL! But the production value and quality is so damn high! It's a participatory musical (they invite audience members on stage and everything), and full of awesome props, choreography and music! Just a tad touristic but would totally highly recommend to anyone visiting KL to watch

MUD the Kuala Lumpur Musical!

Ah yes, and we also went to the Heli Lounge Bar to watch the sunset ... except ... it rained ... a lot. So no, we didn't get to watch the sun setting between the towers in KL, but we did manage to go up when the rain toned down a bit! It was a shame because I remember the sunset being amazing and I wanted Gian to see it too but it's ok, the view was pretty spectacular too,

I mean look at the Petronas Twin Towers! Guuuurl you lookin' foooine. One day, we will go up to the bar again and hopefully we have enough karma points for it not rain during sunset!

On the final day of Gian's visit, we had to attend my best friend's nikah and wedding reception! He was more than happy to be a part of it because he got to experience something extremely Malay and Muslim right before his very eyes. He also got to be Farhan's kipas boy hahahahahahaha. That was pretty funny. 

During lunch, we were chatting about our cultures and he realized how different our backgrounds are. I mean, he always understood me before, but now that he's experienced even a fraction of my culture, he can connect pieces of my personality and habits together, which I'm super happy about! :) YOU GET ME RIGHT? Anyway, I'm glad he got to attend one of my best friend's wedding too!

So, there are many places I still haven't brought him too and to be perfectly honest, 2 weeks wasn't enough for him nor I. If I had a choice, I'd make him stay for a minimum of 4 weeks, so we could at least go to Sarawak, Melaka, Terengganu (and it's islands) and even Singapore. We agreed that the next time we're here, it'd be a huge mega South East Asia trip, and Subang is the HQ haha.

Baba, I hope you enjoyed your time in Malaysia, albeit it being only for 2 weeks. I hope you love it as much as I do, and I can't wait for us to continue traveling the rest of the country and the world together! :) 

I shall abruptly end this post with this picture of me and Gian with amazing tops on.

xxx

Tips for foreigners coming to my motherland:

1) Prepare a lot of cash because many places still don't understand the concept of debit.

2) In KK, taxis probably don't have meters and will charge you based on where your locations is (this might be expensive to you so just be aware). Carry the address of your hostel/locations you want to head to with you so you can show them when ya wanna go.

3) Georgetown is walk-able but beware of heat from 1pm - 4pm and don't get a heatstroke.

4) Malaysia in general is meant for cars. Don't expect buses or trains to function properly (except maybe the LRT/Monorail in KL). However, Penang is looking to upgrade ther public transportation system so look out for that!

5) Before you go to the cities you wanna visit, make a list of food and local restaurants/street vendors that you want to try because if you don't, you will be far too spoiled for choices and end up unluckily choosing something weird and probably not that good.

6) If you are pale, bring sunblock SPF 99999999

7) People are generally nice to foreigners so don't worry too much. Maybe worry a little bit about language when you go to super local places but other than that, it's aight.

8) Ideally, bring a small, light-weight back pack with you and a bottle of water at all times.

9) Again, if you know a local, find them and stick to them.

10) Sometimes, it's worth spending 1pound extra a night on an amazing hostel with an amazing space. You won't regret it.

11) Don't be alarmed by the immense diversity and cultures in Malaysia. You are not in China, you are not in India, you are in Malaysia. And if you say otherwise, you will be cruelly judged by locals.

12) Prepare to gain weight, cause it's not possible to be on a diet here.

13) Don't bother with long trousers or formal shirts. Bring it only if you know you're going somewhere fancy for dinner/drinks.

14) Alcohol is quite expensive (300% tax + 6% GST mind you). Just opt for cendol or teh o ais.

15) Also, bring a lot of aloe vera gel because chances are, you will still get sun burnt regardless of your sunblock SPF 9999999999999999.

16) If you're driving, download Waze. Waze is your guardian angel.

17) Also, carry around Teck Aun 'Chi-Kit' pills cause chances are your stomach will be too weak for the delicious (and 75% spicy) street food and might need some herbal relief. ;)

ok bye