This was a day to remember. We skipped our Orangutan Island excursion and decided to do the city by ourselves. We can only take the bus rides so many days in a row and this one was going to be 2 hours each way and a 30 minute boat ride each way to the island. After yesterday, we were done with bus rides. So, we pass through the terminal and hit the currency exchange to turn in Chinese Yuan and get Malay Ringgits (are you impressed yet?). We actually know all the currencies for all the countries. I’m telling you this trip has been educational in so many ways.
After getting through the barrage of taxi drivers telling us how they will give us the best deal, one of the last ones seems to get our attention. Before I know it, we’re hopping in his taxi which is a well maintained SUV for an hour overview drive around town. Five and a half hours later we know his life story and we love him. His name is Zul and he was an incredible guide for the entire day. We started with a Christian Cemetery (we just like reading headstones) that had huge headstones which were being upended by tree roots. From the trees were jasmine flowers so the scent was wonderful. Then we stopped at a chocolate store where we bought dark chocolate mango bars. Then off to see the Sleeping Buddha and this was something to see. We thought we’d had it with Buddha’s and Temples but this was exceptional. The place had big Buddha’s, little Buddha’s, shrines everywhere all made out of gold. Then there was this enormous reclining Buddha (don’t know why he’s called sleeping; his eyes were wide open). Behind him were hundreds of tiled cubicles with ornate urns. On the glass protecting the urns was a picture of the deceased with inscriptions. In the center of all this was a crematorium. It was one of the most emotional and calmest places you could be; with people coming and going, praying, lighting incense, removing shoes and placing them under a sign that said BEWARE: there are shoe thieves!
Across the street was a Burmese Buddha and Temple. Haven’t figured out why, but there is never just one Buddha or one Temple; there are always lots of Buddha’s and Temples in varying sizes and all loaded with gold. This one is also beautiful but no comparison to the Sleeping Guy.
Off to the Batik Factory where we saw the different techniques for hand and machine manufacturing of dyed cloth. We were escorted into the store for fitting of 2 shirts, 1 skirt and 1 blouse. After this exhausting activity, we head to the Coffee Factory where you can taste up to 42 different blends. Out we come with our bag of Penang White Coffee, all ground and ready to go. A tour of a Malaysian chocolate factory has us purchasing more chocolate than we thought we needed. Malaysian supplies most of the world’s chocolate. We told Zul, no more stores!
Next was a walk through the Botanical Gardens. Zul joined us on our walk. There were a number of wild monkeys roaming around and Zul would always be as far away from them as possible. He kept saying “they are crazy”. I finally asked if he’d had a confrontation with them as a kid and he said yes. When he was 10, he was bitten and had to have rabies shots. After that, we all stay as far away as possible. Many areas of the gardens were under construction; however, no less beautiful than any of the others we’d seen. The tropical temperatures allow for some of the most beautiful flowers; none of which are found in the US.
Now we’re driving through Chinatown and feeling hunger pangs. We ask Zul to pick out a local restaurant that he likes and we’ll treat him to lunch (I know, when’s the last time you treated your taxi driver to lunch?). He picked a place called Jawi that was perfect. Rice and chicken/lamb, curry, cracker bread, some kind of string vegetable with yogurt and iced coffees.
With full belly’s we head to the Eastern and Oriental Hotel which is like 6 stars. It’s very posh and because Zul knows everyone, we got to see the pool, the bar, cannons that were forged in 1797 and used in the war. The old elevator requires that you go through two scissor gates for entry and a bellman works a lever to get you to the requested floor. We even had a picture taken with the hotels security guard. We loved it.
Zul asked if we’d like to see his Mosque. We’ve seen many but never got beyond the gate, so we said YES. He led us up the steps and I put on a robe with hood and my other half put on a wrap skirt as respect for where we were. We were given a 15 minute tour which included the washing pool, and prayer rooms. It was enlightening and we were grateful to have had the opportunity to get an inside peek.
Last stop was Little India. Not much to see after Little India in Singapore.
Time to say goodbye to our new friend as he returns us to our floating home. We exchange contact information and promise to keep in touch. We will miss this guy who loves to sing, hike, camp, and play soccer on Tuesday nights. He and his wife, Susannah, just celebrated their 10th Anniversary and hope to start a family this year. He will make a terrific father.
