Jul 26, 2018 - Sigiriya to Negombo to Kuala Lumpur

A few photos while I can upload them in Singapore on the way home. Blog to follow.... Enjoy 𿘀 And now the blog.. 23 July Sigiriya- Habarana - Negombo Packed and ready to be on the move again... This time one last train journey before leaving Sri Lanka. Arrived at train station (open this time) an hour before the train was due to leave. Unable to buy tickets until 9am and then find out the train is delayed by 1-2.5 hours.. Bit more info later reveals there is a strike on. Finally the train and off we set 2 hours late at 11:30. As we...

Mar 28, 2018 - Georgetown Malaysia

History: Georgetown the oldest city in Malaysia, the capital of the state of Penang. One of the first British settlements in Southeast Asia, it was founded as an entrepôt, a trading post where goods were imported, stored and exported again. Hindu priest have been performing daily pujas, or daily prayer for almost 200!years. Nice stop walked over 7 miles touring and shopping’s.

Mar 28, 2018 - Georgetown, Penang Malaysia – Taxi n KFC

We decided to take a break today from tours and buses. The pier is right in town, so the plan was to have breakfast in the sit down restaurant (first time in the whole cruise), wander the town and have lunch in a nice hotel. Didn’t get past the cruise terminal, when plans changed. We decided to hire a taxi for 2 hours and then go to lunch. I had to be back at the ship for a 3 PM hair appointment. Mr D our taxi driver explained what he thought he could fit into two hours and gave us a map to see if we wanted anything else. First stop was...

Mar 28, 2018 - Kula Lumpur, Malaysia

History: The capital of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur was built by Chinese tin prospectors in the mid 1800’s. They had come here in search of a fortune, and found it by clearing wide swaths of jungle for a new mining town. The magnificent PetronasTowers are the centerpiece of this fascinating city. Didn’t spend a lot of time but was able to take in the culture of KL.

Mar 27, 2018 - Kuala Lumpur – Batu Cave and Hard Knocks

Today we continue in Malaysia to the capital Kuala Lumpur. Another bustling Southeast Asia city, growing fast. Our tour is outside of KL at the Batu Hindu temple complex built inside a 330 ft high limestone cavern. There are 275 stairs to climb to the cavern as it is located halfway up a limestone cliff. Outside is a 142 ft statue of Murugan, Hindu deity, son of Shiva. Pretty impressive as we drive up. Mel gets stopped at the bottom of the steep stairs because her knees are showing. Today she wore one of her shorter shorts and gets stopped...

Mar 2, 2018 - Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia - Monkeys & Elephants

Back to the vibrancy of Borneo wildlife and cultures. Borneo is the world’s third largest island. It is split up amongst 3 different countries. Indonesia claims the largest piece, Brunei has a small slice and about 25% belongs to Malaysia. Kota Kinabalu is the capital of Sabah, one of the states forming Malaysia. Formerly named Jesselton, it was heavily damaged in WWII. Kota Kinabulu (aka KK) is where Brunei and others come to vacation. Its got it all: beaches, mountains, jungle, wildlife (in the wild and in the city) and many different...

Mar 2, 2018 - Kota Kinabalu Malaysia

History: Named for the stunning Mt. Kinabalu that rises to jagged heights, Kota Kinabalu is the capital of the Malaysia state of Sabah. It has been rebuilt after being destroyed during WWII. Orangutans are thru out the national parks and damn cute. Borneo great little country and beautiful jungles that was home to many tribes who believed that when you killed your enemy you gained their strength. Head hunting gave you the biggest strength and the skulls were hanging every where. Water gypsies have taken over shorelines with their water...

Jan 10, 2018 - Malaysia - Southeast Asia Cruise

We were then transported to the ship. Processing on to the ship was extremely fast and efficient compared to other cruises we’ve been on. From start to finish it took less than 30 minutes to get to our cabin. We just dropped our carry-on bags into the cabin and headed to the lunch buffet. Since it was pushing past 2PM and we were scheduled for dinner at 5:30PM we ate fairly light. Very soon after we returned to our cabin, the “Emergency Evacuation Drill” was performed, a mandatory drill for all passengers to learn where they are supposed to...

Jan 6, 2018 - Malaysia

Hi one and all, hopefully you behaved as you should to bring in 2018. Loads of parties happened around the various pools and in many of the bars here on board. Everyone seems to have had a good time and things were pretty quiet on board until about lunchtime New Year's Day. On 2 Jan we called in to Bali. We dropped anchor about 3 kms off shore and had to tender in. Given we'd done most of the usual touristy things during previous visits to Bali we decided to check out Denpasar and get to other less visited places. As usual Bali was hot and...

Dec 21, 2017 - At Sea

After a fine few days in Singapore we actually had a little bit of light rain after we boarded our ship and then during the sail away party. Never mind, we just sat in Crooners bar and, while looking out the windows, had a couple of beers in celebration of the beginning of our cruise. Our mini suite is excellent, although (warning, first world problem here) the TV in our lounge area wasn't working to begin with and has caused problems each day. Oh well, when that TV fails we just have to lay in bed and watch the other TV there ;-) After we...

Sep 1, 2017 - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Well, KL did not disappoint. We had a great, central Hotel which allowed us to get around the city easily by monorail. Check out the Melia KL, if you are looking for somewhere central and nice to stay. Following our 2am wake up in HaLong Bay, Vietnam, and a long wait to get through Customs at the KL Airport, we elected to take a taxi the 50+ kms into the city. Arrived at the Hotel, checked in then crossed the Street to the huge Shopping Centre and found some dinner!! We had tours booked daily and after an R & R day, which we spent riding...

Aug 20, 2017 - Malacca Malaysia

Our side trip to Malaysia was always going to include KL and another city, we 'ummed and ahhed' about where to go and chose Malacca, a UNESCO heritage listed city. With its rich history and great scenery, a side trip would be a good way to experience this culturally diverse city, the only decision to be made was when to go and how to get there. We decided to go on the weekend as we had heard that there was a great market that was held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. First things first, we needed to get there and a bus was the logical...