week 2: 25 dec to 31 dec

 It's been a busy week again this week. Christmas Day was quiet, we had the donushi that we got for Danae's birthday and fruit for breakfast, opened presents, did a bit more unpacking. We tried to book into some of the hotels around KL for Christmas lunch, but they were all booked out, so we had toasted sandwiches instead (we still haven't done a real grocery shop yet). In the afternoon we got invited to the Assistant Defence Attache's place for drinks and ended up staying for dinner, they have a great view of the towers from their lounge room and just live around the corner from us.

Boxing Day we left for Penang. It took just over 4 hours to drive there with a lunch stop. We stayed in Georgetown at the Oriental Hotel, it was ok for what we paid, again because we decided to go fairly last minute we were very limited by what was available and we found it even more difficult finding somewhere to accomodate the 4 of us.Geogetown was a very interesting mix of cultures and the food was great!! We visited museums, historic sites and saw temples and mosques.

Before we even arrived in Malaysia Lachlan had seen the singing rojak man on youtube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bD-EznoOcb0) so one night we got a cab to Gurney Drive in search of the rojak man. After walking past about 60 hawker stalls and almost at the end, we had almost given up, then we looked across  and saw him!! and there was a vacant table right in front of him. The rojak was delicious. Rojak is a kind of salad of fried bits of whatever chopped up and mixed with some shredded vegies and a sauce on top. It is one of those dishes that is different almost everywhere you try it, but here you got to choose what fried bits you want.

dancing rojak man

Outside of Georgetown we went to Batu Ferengi and the Spice Garden (we had thai for lunch there and the food was great, so was the view). Steve and the kids swam at a beach, while I sat at a table a few metres away under a palm tree sipping my new favourite drink, limau ais (iced lime juice with a dash of sugar syrup). We did a little shopping at Gurney Plaza.

After 4 nights in Penang we drove back to Ipoh and the big surprise was a day at the Lost Wotld of Tambun theme park and staying the night there. The theme park was small compared to the ones on the Gold Coast, but not too crouded. There was a petting zoo, a water park and a few rides. The kids enjoyed it and spent most of the time in the water park. We checked into the hotel there later in the afternoon and spent a bit of time cooling down in the a/c and went back to the park in the evening where they have just the hot springs and spa open. It was kind of surreal sitting in the hot springs in the rain.

We came home the next day and stopped at IKEA on the way to get a few things for the apartment and spent New Years Eve downstairs by the pool with the other Aussie couple and found a good spot to see the fieworks, even though they were mostly blocked by another building.

Happy New Year to all our friends and family back home.