Day 14 - Bangkok, Thailand

Our last day in Thailand was soon upon us.  Ramona rose early in the morning, grabbing breakfast long before I awoke.  I visited the Executive Lounge for breakfast and coffee, then had breakfast pastries down at the main restaurant.  It was teeming with visitors from all over the world - I lost count of the main languages I could hear.  One interesting sight, was of a business man, sitting with an orange-clad monk.  Both of them were intent with conversations; and both of them were intent on their mobile phones.  A strange sight, nonetheless!

Returning to the room, Ramona wanted to visit the pool, so we changed and had an early morning swim.  The infinity pool was cool and refreshing, and offered a unique view of the surroundings.  The pool here was on the 14th floor; an adjacent building featured a pool on the top floor, easily the 30th floor or higher.  Probably not something I'd be too comfortable with...

Ramona made arrangements for us to get a massage later in the day, in preparation for the 20+ hours we'd soon spend on our return flights.  As she headed out for a bit of shopping at the mall, I opted to hang back in the lounge and work on the blog and pictures.

Once I had that situated, I headed out to join Ramona for the massage she'd booked for us.   Arriving at the small, unassuming store front I found Ramona inside.  We were warmly greeted and offered tea.  Shortly after, we enjoyed a couples massage, steam room and warm bath.  Just the thing to relax us before our flight!

Back at the hotel, we took a quick dip in the pool before getting dinner in the executive lounge. With our time in Bangkok winding down, it was time to hail a taxi to the airport.

After a brief check-in, we made our way through security and found our gate. Ramona stopped for a last minute massage and we were soon on our way.  Next stop : Tokyo!

Day 13 - Thailand, Bangkok

After a spectacular night view of Bangkok, we were ready for a good night's sleep.  Fortunately, our luxurious accommodations made that easy!

One of the nicest things about the executive floor was the smell.  When we first stepped off the elevator, there was a warm, pleasing scent.  I still can't place it, but it makes me think of sunflowers and chrysanthemums.  I will certainly miss that, when we're gone - it seemed to put me to sleep with ease!

When we awoke, we headed to the Executive Lounge on our floor for breakfast.  The servers greeted us warmly and made sure we were well taken care of.  In the morning light, I could see much more of Bangkok, both the city - and it's traffic.  There was a decent amount of congestion on the roadways - something to consider if you have to travel by roadway.

I could also see much more greenery in this capital than I could see in Kuala Lumpur.  Something I would have to mull over in the future.

We had less than 48 hours remaining in our stay, so we expected to see just the things we could work into our trip.  Our plan for the day was to take advantage of public transportation and get to things we could reach rather easily/quickly.

First up: we would walk to the adjacent MRT station to get travel passes to get a around the area.  It was on the next block, so it was easy to get there.  At the station with passes in hand, Ramona noticed we were near a Pier that had access to a water taxi.  We took the train from Surasak to Sathorn Pier.  At the Pier, we purchased a hop-on-hop-off pass from the Chao Phraya tourist boat company.  This boat cruised up and down the river, with multiple stops at nearby points of interest.

Once onboard, we had a marvelous view of the city skyline, seeing the mixture of temples and skyscrapers.  The waterways were thick with tourist boats of all kinds, including both pleasure craft and the eponymous long boats often seen in the movies and tour videos.

Our first stop was Wat Arun, a temple complex featuring the co-called "Tower of Dawn".  The name held an interesting meaning for me, as the Tower of Dawn was the goal in the Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time game for the Playstation 2, introduced in the early 2000s.  The soundtrack for this game, produced by Stuart Chatwood, featured an incredible soundtrack, often referred to as "Moroccan Roll", due to the synthesis of Eastern instruments and vocals with heavy synth effects.  The track titled "Tower of Dawn" is by far my favorite track!  There was an abysmal movie, loosely based on this game, that wasted the talents of Ben Kingsley, but I digress....

At the tower, we learned the intricate decorations were made from crushed seashells and minerals for coloring.  I can't imagine how many people or how many man-hours went into this work.  We climbed many steep steps to get a good view and pictures.

After circling the complex, we headed to an adjoining area to reach another temple complex, this one featuring the giant reclining Buddha we'd heard about in Malaysia.  This one turned out to be significantly larger than the one in Malaysia, by a long shot!

Leaving the complex, we started walking down the street to another complex.  As we crossed the street, a gentleman at the corner stopped us and pointed out that we could attend several Buddha temples for free today, as it (Wednesday) was a special holiday and many of them were open for free.  There was also the Fashion Expo, a place where we could get inexpensive "high fashion" for very good prices.  He flagged down a passing Tuk Tuk taxi and indicated the locations to the driver.

He quickly took us across town to another temple, followed by another.  As we rode, Ramona's suspicious nature picked up, so she Googled common scams in Thailand.   When we went to India, our tour to the Taj Mahal included stops at several clothing and rug vendors, who tried to sell us their goods.  As a captive audience, the high-pressure sales were intended to ensure there was some "sucker" would who buy under such circumstances.  And sure enough, our Tuk Tuk driver brought us to a men's tailor for handmade suits.  The online reviews said that odds were 50-50 of getting a good, quality suit - many of them are shoddily made and since they lacked labels, it was difficult to hold them accountable or even warn others away via social media.  Tired of the high-pressure sales tactics, we left the shop and bid our Tuk Tuk driver farewell.

A short distance away, we spotted a restaurant that was listed on TripAdvisor, so we stopped in for lunch.  Ramona was intrigued by the fresh lime juice and pad thai, and I had a dish of broiled pork.

Walking a block or so up the street, we hailed a new Tuk Tuk driver and caught a lift back to the pier, where we rejoined the tourist boat.  At another pier stop, we hopped off to ride the MRT to a nearby mall.  We poked around for souvenirs and such, but really didn't see what we were looking for.  After a time, we eased back to the MRT and returned to the hotel.

A night market, known as Asiatique, was said to be an excellent night stop.  We headed back to the Pier and boarded a boat that took us there.  The market was bright and lively, featuring stall after stall after stall of souvenirs, gifts and trinkets.  As we worked our way back and forth, we found a few items we thought would make good gifts.

Ramona stopped for a quick massage, then proceeded to a makeup store to pick up a few things.  I think she was pleasantly surprised to get so many things for so little money.  As the evening wore on, it was time for more (delicious) lime juice before boarding our water taxi.

Back at the pier, we returned to the MRT station and the hotel.  Room service beckoned for dinner, so we ordered up a few appetizers before bed.  This would be our last night in Bangkok, and it was certainly a great ending to a good day.

Day 12 - Penang to Bangkok

Our time in Malaysia was soon winding down.  Starting our day in the usual way, we decided on a morning stroll and went for a walk.  The Penang streets were already bustling by the time the sun rose, so we were cautious and careful as we navigated the streets.

We stopped to take pictures of a few interesting doors.  When we were in Scotland, Ramona took pictures of several colorful doorways.  Here in Malaysia, we'd learned that in the old days, doorways had the Chinese name of the families who lived there.  Over time, these were replaced with numbers, but in many places, the Chinese letters remain.

Returning to the hotel in the midmorning, we took our luggage to the lobby and headed out to lunch at restaurant high above the city.  At the Top View restaurant, we were treated to a "set lunch", featuring a full-course meal and a spectacular view.

Our meal was exquisite - the presentation was excellent!

At last, it was time for our last outing together, our debriefing session.  We gathered in a group and walked over to the Lightbulb.

Once there, we broke into small groups and discussed some of the cultural similarities we encountered and some of the differences.  It was an interesting discussion as each of us brought our unique perspectives to the equation.  Sadly, our discussions ended almost as quickly as they began.  Soon, it was time to return to the hotel to catch our busses to the airport.  Before long, we were on our way to Penang International airport.  For most of the group, they would be catching a  flight from Penang to Kuala Lumpur, then onward to home.  For Ramona and I, we would catch a flight from Penang to Bangkok, Thailand, to continue our international travels and get a bit of rest and relaxation for us.

We said our goodbyes to the students and headed off to our gate.  Before I could get too comfortable, our plane arrived at the gate and we had to board.  Our flight from Penang was a bit delayed by the on boarding process, but we were soon on our way.  A scant two hours later, we found ourselves in Thailand!

The weather was quite similar to Malaysia, just as hot, but a tiny bit less-humid.  We passed through immigration and customs, and headed for the taxi pickup.  We found a taxi service that would transport us from the airport to our hotel for only 750 Baht (30 Baht to the USD, or roughly $25 USD).  Our driver got us to our hotel in under a half-hour, excellent - considering the traffic.

Our check-in experience exposed us to the service-oriented culture of Thailand.  Our porter and concierge were overly gracious, eager to make our stay comfortable.  They took our luggage and brought us up to the Executive floor room Ramona had reserved for us.   Wow!  What a setup!

Day 10 - Sunway to Penang

Yesterday was marvelously refreshing! Today started a bit later, with Ramona heading out for a massage in the early morning.  I took the rest of the morning to rest and relax, and get caught up on blog post entries.

Later in the morning, I went down to get breakfast and met up with many of the students.  They recalled the things they had seen and done on their trips and shared many of their wonderful pictures.

I spent most of the morning resting up for the last leg of our trip in Malaysia and getting to know a bit about our next area.

When Ramona returned, it was time for our next bus ride and flight. Downstairs, we loaded onto our bus and soon headed to the airport.  After a brief stop at the counter  we were soon through security and awaiting our flight.

Many of the students were reflecting on things seen on the trip, and of the new opportunities they would have back at school.  I was particularly encouraged by a new graduate assistanceship that they worked out. Their entrepreneurial spirit never ceases to amaze me!

We boarded our flight and were soon off for a short flight to Penang, a mere 38 minutes away.  We scarcely had time to enjoy the peanuts and orange juice that were handed out before we had to prepare for our landing.

On the ground in Penang, we collected our luggage and proceeded to the bus depot.  Our guide met us at the door, greeted us warmly and helped us load our luggage into a trio of smaller, eight-passenger busses.  Georgetown, the capital of Penang, would soon greet its guests from WMU!

As the busses lurched away from the curb, I noticed that Penang certainly felt more humid than KL or Sunway, perhaps due to its nature as an island.

Our bus driver careened through the streets and before long, we pulled up at the Georgetown Sentral hotel.  We unloaded our luggage, checked in and made plans for the evening.  While the students opted to group up and head out, Ramona and I decided to go with the Andersons, David and Diane, and find a place to eat.

We opted to go to a nearby mall, in search of a sit down restaurant.  Walking down our street, the mall was on the other side of a rather busy divided roadway.  With no crosswalk in sight, we waited for a group of locals to make their bid to cross and we joined them.  Fortunately, we all arrived safely on the other side.

A recurring theme I kept telling Ramona, many older cities simply aren't pedestrian-friendly and don't lend themselves to foot traffic.  In the 1980s, the Malaysian government worked to increase automobile ownership by funding a national car company, Proton (a joint works with Lotus).  The national car was inexpensive and greatly improved the mobility of the average Malaysian. As ownership grew, however, so did congestion, to the point that now the streets are crowded with scooters, motorcycles, cars and busses.  Perhaps they have too much of a good thing?

At the mall, we circled around a bit before finding a restaurant called Tao.  This location featured Asian cuisine and an all-you-can-eat buffet.  We got a table and soon began to order a variety of dishes.  The food and conversation kept flowing as we tried dish after dish.  I was particularly impressed by the presentation of each dish - it was clear the chefs wanted to make each item look as appetizing as they tasted.

As the evening wound down, we made our way across the busy street and back to our hotel room. The lack of working wifi made posting the blog or uploading pictures difficult, so I opted to wait until morning to try and do either. 

Day 11 - Penang

When we turned in for bed last night, loud music and singing came from a club on the adjacent block.  It certainly didn't keep me awake - I tend to sleep like the dead, these days.

Our first full day in Penang would certainly be another busy one.  We rose and headed down to breakfast, and were met was a mass of other tourists in the dining room.  The room was literally packed from end-to-end with other tourists.  This was not something we'd encountered so far on the trip.  As luck would have it, there was a convention in town and there were hoards of attendees.  Just like us, these tourists were also getting ready to go on their various excursions.  This made the dining area completely chaotic.  The waitstaff, too, seemed a bit at a loss, trying to direct all the various people to whatever tables and seats were available.

I grabbed a plate and started picking up food.  While picking up a vegetarian dish, a Chinese tourist walked up to me, took the tongs from my hand and proceeded to put some on his plate.  Then as I turned to get sauce, he took the ladle from me to get some as well.  Well, if you ever needed a good example of the differences between cultures, here you go!  I was flummoxed for only a moment then wrote it off - I saw the busses were lining up, so I assume he was afraid of missing his tour group.

Moments later, I found a table and joined some of the students.  They, too, were a bit overwhelmed by the crowd in the lobby.  However, they mostly seemed to take it in stride and did their best to find something to eat and get ready for the day.

Wrapping up breakfast, we grouped up in the lobby and boarded our bus.  We would spend the morning touring several cultural sites in Penang, before returning for the evening.  Our first stop was a Buddhist temple across town.  Our driver began to wind through the streets to our destination.  Unlike KL, the traffic was considerably more chaotic - busses, cars and scooters seem to flow in-and-out of lanes, like some strange dance where only the drivers know who leads and who follows.  It's certainly not for the faint of heart...

Our first stop was to the wharf, to see the clan jetties.  These were small homes on the waterfront.  They are used for places to gather and worship, as noted by the intricate altars I many of them.

Our next stop was another Taoist temple.

Next, an interesting mosque.

Followed by another temple.

We then focused on Buddhist temples.

Finally, our last stop a temple featuring a reclining Buddha.  This was on the largest in all of Malaysia, but still smaller than the biggest in the world, located in Thailand.

With our tours behind us, our bus took us Penang Hill, an 800m rise overlooking the island.  At the base, we bought tickets to ride the funicular train, a specialized rail car intended to climb steep slopes. 

As we climbed aboard, we were slowly pulled up the side of the mountain, watching the city disappear below, swallowed by jungle foliage.  At the summit, we exited the car to find the tempature was many degrees cooler.  For the first time in a week, the air temperature and humidity were actually reasonable.  Penang Hill featured a series of walkways, crisscrossing between several paid attractionss.  There was a butterfly house, an earthquake/tsunami simulator, an owl museum and a smattering of stands selling snacks and souvenirs.  We paused on a lookout, to take in the sights of the island.  We could see all the way to the coast, as well as the city of Butterworth on the mainland.

Walking away from the lookout, we proceeded further into the park.  We reached a second lookout that was covered in heart-shaped locks, obviously a place where young sweethearts would place their locks as a testimony to their undying love.  Ahh, the joys of youth!

Nearby, there was a large sign with the letters "LOVE" on it.  Clearly a place for a photo op, Ramona and I opted to have a local photographer take a series of pictures.  Perhaps one of them will be nice enough for our Valentine's Day card next year?

With much of the park behind us, we decided it was time to head back to the hotel.  We boarded the funicular train again and headed back down the mountain.  Just as our guide had suggested, we saw the city bus we needed to take to return us to the hotel.  After winding our way back through town, we found a stop just a few streets from our hotel, outside the mall we'd visited last night for dinner.  With little else to do before dinner, we decided to take a good look at the stores in the mall, in case there were a few last-minute necessities before leaving.

But, before we could enter the mall, it was time to stop and get our usual McDonald's ice cream!  Trust me - in this heat, there's nothing better than an ice cream cone that costs the equivalent of a quarter!  For variety, we each opted for a sundae instead of our usual cone.  Ice cream consumed, we ventured into the mall, and were besieged by more tourists!  This small mall was considerably busier than the Sunway Pyramid mall.  Large tour groups, noted by their matching tour ID cards congregated in nearly every available space we could see.  We wound our way through the masses and were rewarded for our patience.  We discovered the mall also had a series of attractive displays that existed to create photo ops for the guests.  We hadn't seen these when we came last night, so made a point of getting several pictures taken.

We soon left the mall, headed back to our hotel.  One of the other major challenges of Penang, is that it's not really a pedestrian city.  While there are sidewalks, crosswalks are few and far-between.  Moreover, the crazy nature of scooters, cars and general traffic makes it very difficult to cross busy streets.  After several aborted attempts, we found a break in the traffic and crossed.  Quickly!

Safely back at the hotel, we found the wifi was not working.  Uh oh!  Ramona still needed to book our hotel rooms in Thailand, and the lack of wifi was a real problem.  Eric pointed out a Cafe nearby, that we could reach without crossing any major streets.  We quickly headed out and in just a few minutes, we found our destination : a cute Cafe called "The Lightbulb".  To take advantage of the free wifi, we opted to buy a pair of fruit smoothies.  In a few moments, our drinks were served - in lightbulbs!  The concoctions themselves were pretty tasty, and the lightbulbs only served to heighten the experiences.

With suitable wifi attained, we turned our attention to booking our travel - and updating our blog!