Penang, Pearl of the Orient

I should not forget to blog about the trip that I made to Penang in early July together with 3 of my lady friends. Penang is that tiny little island on the northwestern part of Peninsular Malaysia. We met up with an old friend and colleague living in Penang who was kind enough to bring us around and show us the best places to eat the local food.

Top on our agenda is a train trip up the famous Penang hill to enjoy a panoramic view of Penang island. The fare for "pensioners" was only RM4 for a return trip, that's less than $1.50!

We patiently waiting in this crowded eating shop to sample their famous duck noodles and spicy Penang "laksa". Had to wait for other customers to finish their meal so we can occupy their table.
In Penang, food is always in our minds since the local food is cheap, unique and very tasty. For dinner, we visited this open air restaurant where we ordered various types of local delicacies from the stalls around.
This is the famous Penang pancakes. These are soft, fragrant and stuffed with sliced banana and sweet corn.
Duck meat porridge and crispy "lobak". It is served with 2 types of sauces.

And here are pictures of two plants with lovely flowers that I saw on the way up Penang Hill. I believe they belong to the orchid family.


July happens to be the peak of the durian season in Penang. We wanted to make a trip to the durian plantation to view the fruits on the branches overhanging the roads. However, as we did not have sufficient time we made a stop at this stall to sample a few varieties instead.
My friend claims she is an expert on durians so we allowed her to make the choice for us.
On our drive back to Kuala Lumpur we stopped by at the historic town of Taiping. The name of this town means "peaceful" but many battles have been fought here in the past. Now it is well known for its scenic Lake Gardens.
Lots of lotus plants growing in the lakes with the Taiping hills in the background. Did I inform you that my family lived in Taiping for several years? I still have fond memories of this town.

My lady friends are already planning another trip to Taiping, this time to climb Maxwell Hill.

Whata catch!

My brother and I went on another fishing trip several weeks ago. That was before I started my job. I must show you what we caught. A 5.2 kilo barracuda!

To be truthful, he caught the barracuda and I caught several other smaller fishes and a couple of large squids. However, he was kind enough to let me claim the credit for landing the barracuda :)

It was so big that, after donating half of it to friends, we still had enough for several meals.

My gmail has been hacked!

I'm furious and shocked. Out of the blue, one night I discovered I could not get into my gmail address. Then I started receiving calls from my friends and relatives asking whether I was stranded in Greece and needed money urgently. They said that although the mail did not sound like mine but they were worried that someone may have kidnapped me and forced me to send the note. My friends said that just in case it was a real emergency, they did not want to later regret not helping out when they could save me. I'm so touched!
I'm still very angry with the hacker. Why pick on innocent old me? Not only have I lost the addresses of my contacts, but I also lost valuable information from my 6 years collection of mail. And I feel very upset that he/she is still able to read all my mail to that address.

I've obtained a new gmail address. Not only have I upgraded my "status", the new title and image should warn would-be scammers not to mess around me!

A change in the season

The signs of the southern hemisphere autumn are all around. It will soon be cold and wet in southern Australia while my friends in the northern hemisphere will be enjoying their summer.
It's also the Easter holidays and Rundle Mall is crowded with people out to enjoy the sunshine and festive atmosphere.

A very popular singer entertaining the crowds.

The family went for a drive to Noarlunga to visit friends that recently bought a house on the beachfront. Aldinga reef is a protected reserve as it has a spectacular underwater cliff just offshore which harbours a wide range of corals and sponges and a wide variety of reef fish. I'm determined to dive there one day!


Walking on the beach was so tranquil and relaxing. No huge crowds, only a few surfers and para-surfers. Got very sunburnt in spite of wearing a thick layer of clothes.

The beach was so clean and unpolluted that these huge barnacles could thrive undisturbed on the rocks lying at the water's edge.

I was fascinated by these unusual plants with bright red berries growing along the road. They must be some type of cactus.

On Anzac Day we drove up to the hills to visit the famouse German village of Hahndorf . I've been there many times but I never seem to get enough of this charming place with its delicious German food.

Hahndorf was founded by Capt. Dirk Hahn in 1839. It started off as a German colony and later became a tourist attraction due to the annual beer fest celebrated with German beer, open air BBQs and folk dancing.

Enjoyed strolling along the main street and visiting the quaint shops selling all sorts of homemade items such as knives, candles, toys, wines, chocolates, cakes, etc.

Hahndorf is also the home of the Beerenberg farm, a brand famous for its strawberry jam and lots of other fruity products too.

We can vouch for the quality of their strawberries. We picked two bucketful of huge, yummy sweet ones to take home to eat with melted chocolate.

As mentioned, Hahndorf is famous for its unique food. I could smell the delicious aroma from this open air spit roasting lamb... or is it pork?

We decided to go for the A Taste of Germany Platter which includes 6 different types of German sausages and a pork knuckle and a good helping of sauerkraut. Yummy! but almost too much for the 3 of us.


Back in Adelaide, I always enjoy shopping in Chinatown, walking along Rundle Mall and finally enjoying a picnic by the River Torrens. I greatly value the time I can spend with family members, especially so in view of the many uncertainties and tragic events happening in the world today.


Did I mention the reason we visited Australia this time? Well, it is to celebrate my birthday and these are the cupcakes lovingly made by my daughter.

Holiday in Sabah

Now that the situation at Fukushima is somewhat less tense, I shall blog about my recent trip to Sabah, East Malaysia. Hopefully, it can take your mind off the tragic events in Japan, Libya, Jerusalem and other parts of the world....for a while.

A group of us decided to take advantage of the cheap airfares offered by the local airlines to visit the western part of Sabah about 3 weeks ago. The city of Kota Kinabalu was the starting point of our adventure. Since we will be traveling a considerable distance, we decided to hire a car with driver.
Lots of interesting food along the way. We stopped for a drink of burnt coconut at this roadside stall. Apparently the coconut juice can cure a lot of ailments, including joint pain.

Here's how it is done. Notice that they are only using fallen leaves and twigs as fuel. Very cost effective and environmentally friendly. There is a lot of juice in one coconut so each couple shared a coconut.

Burnt jagung (maize) is a specialty in another region so we had to stop by to sample a few. It was very aromatic but tasted slightly dry.

This root is called Tongkat Ali. Apparently it has aphrodisiac qualities. We were informed that not only is it fairly rare, it is extremely difficult to pull it from the ground - hence the high price. The root is very much sought after by local men, especially older ones with young wives haha. We actually stopped by this stall to purchase chopping boards made from local hardwoods.

Rows of rows of stalls selling cheap highland vegetables and fruits near Kundasang. If it was not the difficulty carrying it back by flight to Kuala Lumpur, I would have bought some.

Sabah is famous for its seafood which is much cheaper compared to Peninsular Malaysia, cooked or uncooked. The shellfish are so fresh, huge and sweet-tasting. No need for elaborate sauces. This is the steamed fish we had in Kudat in a restaurant by the seaside.

And this is the steamboat (shabu-shabu) we had in a restaurant at Kundasang near the foothills of Mount Kinabalu. Perfect food in the cool, hilly weather.

We were taken to the local market at Kudat to see the fresh seafood on sale. Spied this lorry unloading huge squid/cuttlefish caught from the waters near the Philippines. I'm not surprised since the southern Philippine islands are actually very close to this part of Sabah.

After several hours drive through very scenic mountainous terrain, we finally reached our destination Poring Hot Springs. We jumped into the tubs for couples and spent several hours soaking in the warm water. Obviously, no pictures. Although it is unlikely that the sulphur-rich waters could restore our youth, nevertheless there is a hope of a better complexion.

Our Sabah friends took us to this river for a natural fish spa. I have never seen such a sight before in my life. The river was teaming with large, black fish that literally jumped out of the water to grab the fish food in our hands.
Imagine five fishes sucking on all five fingers at the same time. Luckily they had no teeth!

Some of us could not bear the ticklish sensation when the fish nibbled at our legs and feet.
Another highlight of the trip is the golden opportunity to view the rare Rafflesia flower, the biggest flower in the world. This one is considered medium size - about the size of a truck tyre.

That's me providing documented proof that I was there. They say that the flower has a very strong unpleasant odor but this one has no smell. Maybe if I get closer.....

Kudat is in the northern part of Borneo island. We were driven a few more kilometers to reach the Tip of Borneo, the northernmost point of Borneo. Apparently the famous explorer Magellen stopped by at this site during one of his voyages to the far east. I don't think he found it very hospitable at that time otherwise he would have established a trading port.

This is the tip of the Tip. Lovely view, with the South China Sea on the left and the Pacific Ocean on the right, and of course Philippines straight ahead.

One of the objectives of this trip is to climb Mount Kinabalu, the highest mountain in Southeast Asia. Realizing that some of us are still not fully prepared, we decided to make it a goal on our next trip to this part of Malaysia. Therefore, the majestic mountain remains unconquered....by me.

I just can't imagine how someone could achieve the climb in only 2 and 1/2 hours. Most people achieve the feat within 2 days since the final part is timed to view the sunrise at the peak. My friends informed me that, at my current level of fitness, I should consider myself lucky if I can make it to the midway point in 6 hours! And, I'll probably won't be able to move for days after the climb. What???

Anyway, we all declared we had a fantastic time and should do more such trips while our health permits. Good company, good fun, and lots of happy memories.