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Penang Hill, Malaysia

September 28, 2011 / / 0 Comments

One weekend, we joined a local group of outdoors enthusiasts on a hike up Penang Hill, one of the highest spots on Penang Island.  The hike started getting hot and heavy in the beautiful Penang Botanical Gardens, built up to a climax at the Crag Hotel and rolled off at Flagstaff Hill, the destination of Penang’s famous Swiss-made funicular railway.

The Crag Hotel, pictured above, was built by the British in the 1890s and has lain abandoned since 1977 except for a brief appearance in the film Indochine.  Despite the years of neglect, the buildings and fixtures remain elegant, and the views of Penang Island are excellent.  If I had a million dollars…

Besides the Crag Hotel, the highlight of this hike was the wildlife –

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Langkawi Island, Malaysia

September 27, 2011 / / 5 Comments

Because I have such a huge backlog of pictures and experiences to share, and I don’t have time to make such involved galleries as I did for Inle Lake and Bagan, I’m going to try something new – a lightning round of posts.

For each location that I visited, I’ll create a post including 5 pictures or less, choosing the sights and experiences that most deeply impressed me.  The only exceptions I’ll make are for stories with an environmental theme.  In those cases I may include more than 5 pictures.

Here’s the first one – Langkawi Island, Malaysia.  Langkawi is located on the northwest coast of peninsular Malaysia.  It’s a well an over-developed island paradise, with extensive white-sand beaches, waterfalls, mountains, and plenty of clear blue seas for watersports.  As soon as you get off the ferry, rent a Kia hatchback or a scooter and the island is yours!

The other great thing about Langkawi is that it’s the only place in Malaysia where alcohol is duty free.

The first picture, above, shows  a viewing bridge at the top of the Langkawi cable car.  From the bridge I could see much of the island as well as the limitless blue sea.  But the best part of standing on the bridge wasn’t the view.  It was closing my eyes and letting the sound and touch of the sea breeze overwhelm my senses, feeling as though I was hovering in between that opening in the mountains, high above the canyon below.

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Monster Agave Penis

September 24, 2011 / / 0 Comments

Technically, it’s called an inflorescence.  This one is by far the biggest I’ve seen, and I’ve seen a lot of agave penises in recent months.  I estimate this one is 40-50 feet tall.

I’m now in Jinghong, the largest city in Sipsongpanna, a minority-majority autonomous area in China’s Yunnan province.  It is one of the most beautiful cities I’ve seen in China. Every major street is lined on both sides with towering tropical trees that shade the sidewalks, and most of the buildings, street lamps and even billboards feature artistic flourishes inspired by the traditional architecture of the Dai ethnic group, giving the entire city a unique and exotic air.

The people are also warm and friendly, a nice departure from most Han-dominated Chinese cities.

Keep tuned for more posts from Malaysia and Laos!

Landslide

September 8, 2011 / / 0 Comments


Today’s post is dedicated to Stevie Nicks.

I’m in Laos! Today’s trip from Phonsavan to Luang Prabang should have taken about 6 hours.  Instead, it took about 9.5 thanks to this huge landslide.  Though they’re not all visible in this photo, there were 5 excavators working simultaneously to re-build the road.

If not for our driver having a friend on the other side of the landslide with whom he could exchange passengers, we would still be stuck there.  That road was in bad shape.  When we crossed the collapsed area by foot to reach the other van, I took one crazy step that ended with my entire lower leg submerged in mud.  Luckily, another passenger was there to help me pull out.  The ridiculous thing is, this happens often enough for them to have 5 excavators on hand.  There must be a more permanent and efficient solution.

I’m not sure if there’s any connection, but the mountains along the highway show evidence of slash-and-burn agriculture.  You can see the huge bald spots (lighter green) all over the mountains in the picture below.  I was surprised to see crops growing on such steep slopes.  The resulting erosion may contribute to mudslides like this one.