So after relaxing on the beach and eating easter treats, it was time to leave Koh Samui. David and I had to be in Kuala Lumpur by the 30th for our flight to Sri Lanka, so we decided to meander slowly down to Malaysia. Our first stop in Hat Yai (the Thailand border) was a long drawn out process of waiting for the ferry, then waiting for the (very uncomfortable) mini bus, then waiting at a 'rest stop' for an hour - all in all a 4 hr journey actually took 9hrs and we arrived at 10pm. Thank goodness that our driver knew a hostel, because I feared that this might be the first time that our policy of not booking any accommodation was going to fail. Actually the place we stayed at had a lovely intrepid explorer feel to it. The sort of hostel you would have gotten in the 70's, complete with cockroaches. There was some kind of cheap charm about this place, from the plastic chairs to the whomping sound of the single fan highlighted by the solitary drop light. Perhaps a throwback to the Casablanca era of gangsters and cigarette smoke. But the staff were lovely and I was so happy to sleep that I didn't even notice that the bed was made of concrete.
Next was a bus to Penang. Very uneventful, although a strange border guard did ask for my email so that he could send me a book. Georgetown is a quite, clean place that would have been lovely during the British colonisation. Unfortunately we didn't have time to get out of the city and visit the hills, but we did take the train up to the top of Penang hill. At 710m the view was quite nice, but the Devonshire tea was better. David and I sat for 2 hours debating and enjoying a lovely garden complete with water lillies and a delicate breeze.
Finally we took the train down to Kuala Lumpur and made our way to the Birds Nest guesthouse (a cute backpackers with a garden out the back just a very cosy vibe about it). David had been talking about this place for as long as I have known him and I watched as he relished in having an oven again. I can appreciate how great it is having someone so interested in cooking travelling with me, because I got to sample pancakes, scones and a blueberry yoghurt cake in the two days that we have been here. And this he did with almost NO ingredients - AMAZING. Tonight we say goodbye to South East Asia and hello to Sri Lanka.
Next was a bus to Penang. Very uneventful, although a strange border guard did ask for my email so that he could send me a book. Georgetown is a quite, clean place that would have been lovely during the British colonisation. Unfortunately we didn't have time to get out of the city and visit the hills, but we did take the train up to the top of Penang hill. At 710m the view was quite nice, but the Devonshire tea was better. David and I sat for 2 hours debating and enjoying a lovely garden complete with water lillies and a delicate breeze.
Finally we took the train down to Kuala Lumpur and made our way to the Birds Nest guesthouse (a cute backpackers with a garden out the back just a very cosy vibe about it). David had been talking about this place for as long as I have known him and I watched as he relished in having an oven again. I can appreciate how great it is having someone so interested in cooking travelling with me, because I got to sample pancakes, scones and a blueberry yoghurt cake in the two days that we have been here. And this he did with almost NO ingredients - AMAZING. Tonight we say goodbye to South East Asia and hello to Sri Lanka.
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