About this holiday blog

This account of our August 2014 holiday to Melbourne, Singapore and Malaysia is written chronologically and appears in reverse order. To get the whole sequence, scroll to the end and read back. Or just scroll though and look at the photos, a small selection from the 1120 that I took during the past three weeks.

Wednesday 20 August - leaving Malaysia, Thursday 21 August, arriving home

A last look at the beach at Kuantan on the South China Sea

A very hot day in Kuantan on the east coast of Malaysia. At the Swiss Hotel I had muesli and fruit for breakfast, but when I asked for a hot plate for my fried eggs, they looked bemused. We struggled to finish off all the packing, and then checked out by 10 o'clock.

A last taste of Indian food - a veggie buffet

William wanted to take us to a local craft market but there were no stalls there. We did get a picture of the beach though. The road to Kuala Lumpur was quite busy, but we drove slowly. In the capital, William took us to another Indian restaurant with a buffet and we chose some vegetarian dishes. Quite tasty.

Our transport around Malaysia for the last 11 days

Then we drove to the airport, 45km. outside the city. We said goodbye to William, our driver for the past 11 days. We had a very long wait to check in our bags for the evening flight to Singapore and on to Zurich. A shipment of some of the remains of people killed on flight MH17 was expected at the airport that morning. Friday will be a day of mourning in Malaysia. I collected two newspapers.


The flight to Singapore was less than an hour, and we arrived there before midnight. The flight back to Zurich took 12 hours and was very uncomfortable. We arrived, 6 hours behind, at 8am on Thursday morning in temperatures of 9 degrees!

We got a taxi home, where all was well. Nice to be home.

Tuesday 19 August

The coast road to Kuantan

A bad night's sleep for me, Then we overslept. We had an average breakfast at Primula Beach, with rather poor service. We were just ready to leave when William arrived. We had a long drive ahead to Kuantan, down the coast road.



We passed fishing villages, crossed rivers and saw offshore islands. Highlight of the journey was a visit to a Turtle Sanctuary where we saw young Hawksbill, Ridley and Green turtles as well as newly hatched babies.

Baby turtles recently hatched at the turtle sanctuary

Then we had a Malay lunch of fish, squid, vegetables and white rice with water. We arrived at the Swiss Garden beach hotel soon afterwards. After resting, we went for a swim in the pool. As there were no restaurants nearby, we had dinner at the hotel bar - a tuna sandwich and chips with a glass of white wine - lovely! Asian food can get a bit sickly after a while.

The Swiss Garden Hotel had a lovely pool and beach

Monday 18 August

The Crystal Mosque - more a showcase than a place of worship

Nice breakfast at the hotel with friendly service. We enjoyed our short stay at the Renaissance Hotel, Kota Bharu. The fire evacuation routine didn't take place after all.

Set off with William in his bus southwards to Kuala Terengganu, another long drive. The scenery was varied and interesting, but he drove too fast for us to appreciate it. On arrival we stopped to visit the Crystal Mosque, built only recently in 2008. We took off shoes and donned chic brown robes to enter the mosque.

We had to wear long robes to enter the mosque

By then it was very sunny and hot again. We drove along the waterfront and through Chinatown, before visiting the National Museum featuring local crafts. Then we were dropped off at the Primula Beach Resort. We didn't feel like eating any lunch.


In the afternoon we rested, read our books, I wrote postcards and we decided to have dinner at the hotel bistro. We had two different versions of nasi goreng. The atmosphere was rather gloomy. Then we had coffee in the coffee lounge before going up to the lobby where a band was playing to an empty house.

Boatbuilding was also featured at the museum

Sunday 17 August

Misty heights on the way to the east coast

Today we are heading to Khota Baru on the east coast. There are no features on our itinerary. Breakfast was a bit disappointing - runny hard boiled eggs:-) And sweet cereal.

William showed us how rubber is tapped - traditionally

The car journey took about 4 hours. We went through high hills and lower areas of lush greenery. We stopped once to look at rubber trees and William demonstrated tapping for rubber with his knife.

Kota Bharu is a sprawling city on a river estuary, on the northeast coast. The water was very muddy. Instead of going straight to the hotel, our guide wanted to show us the Sultan's Palace or Istana Jahar, but we didn't go inside to the museum. We also looked at the market but it was closing. It was too hot for sightseeing at 1pm anyway.

We found an Indian restaurant and had rice with fish or chicken and pickles.Then we checked into the Renaissance Hotel - quite posh.

Chinese-style scallops with vegetables

We both had headaches. Richard went in search of a pharmacy. Later we both explored the hotel coffee bar, the pool and the nearby supermarket with its range of fresh fruit, veg and fish. Back at the hotel we went for a swim.

We decided to eat at the hotel and had Chinese-style fish and fried rice. No alcohol. We had a warning of an expected fire drill - worrying.

Saturday 16 August

View from the car ferry from Penang to the mainland

We made a lot of progress in our journey today. Had fresh scrambled eggs for breakfast and set off with William at 9am promptly. He surprised us by taking us onto a car ferry from Penang back to the mainland at Butterworth. We enjoyed the views from the boat.

Then we drove through lush greenery and sandy soil towards the east of the peninsula of Malaysia. The road took us quite close to the Thai border. Richard saw a group of monkeys by the roadside but we were going too fast to stop. We didn't stop until the small town of Gerit where we had a Chinese lunch of noodles and tofu, plus egg. William bought us four cans of beer for the next few days in the Malaysian rainforest.

On the ferry

We arrived at Belum Rainforest Resort on the island of Pulau Banding, which is in a man-made lake approached by bridge. Our room was up several sets of stairs but was very pleasant. At 3, we went along to the jetty to take an hour-long boat trip on the lake. Eerily, there were no birds or any other animal sounds. We had a guided tour from a young Muslim girl and a local Orang Asli boy drove the small boat.

Our boat pilot on the lake cruise

Dinner was a buffet in the Hornbill restaurant, which wasn't as nice as promised. In our room we could hear birds and insects screeching. It went on all night but we managed to sleep.

Friday 15 August

The pagoda of Rama VI

Roswitha's birthday. I'm missing her lunch.

There was torrential rain at breakfast today to add to the condensation here at the Holiday Inn in Penang. Breakfast wasn't great. There were many Muslim families here, holidaying after the end of Ramadan. William picked us up at 9.30, and I started coughing in his bus. We drove to Georgetown but he decided to skip Fort Cornwallis.

We first went to the Kek Lok Si temple with the pagoda of Rama VI. We climbed up some steps, through the lush gardens, then took the 'first inclined lift' in Malaysia to see the statue of Kuan Yin, goddess of mercy. All quite impressive.

The Thai temple - we didn't step inside

Then we drove to a Thai temple, the Wat Chayamangkalaram. We decided against removing our shoes to go inside but took a few photos outside in the rain. My camera card is nearly full up.

Thirdly we visited the Chinese temple and clan house of Khoo Kongsi in the centre of Georgetown.  We stepped inside the temple, and also went into the museum to read about the family history.

The Chinese temple was also a museum

Then we headed to another Indian restaurant, this time for mutton biryani. Quite tasty. We drove past Fort Cornwallis just to get a photo. Bit disappointing not to go inside as it was fine by now. We went back to the hotel, where they were still mopping up the water.

In the tropical spice gardens we saw many exotic plants

Later we took a taxi from the hotel to the nearby Tropical Spice Gardens. There we saw palms, bromeliads, heliconia, spice plants and coffee and cocoa plants. They also had a nice cafe and gift shop. A lovely place.




In the evening we found a very romantic place for dinner- Ferringhi Garden. They even had wine - Rosemount Chardonnay.

Thursday 14 August

Kellie's Castle has been used as a film set

I slept better with all the medication I took, and ignored the lift mechanisms going on all the time. We had a strange breakfast at the Copthorne hotel - it tries to cater to all tastes but failed somehow. I had sweet cereal and an omelette with onions. Coffee was OK though. We checked out ready for a busy day ahead.

Gua Kek Lok Tong, a Buddhist temple built in a cave

We set off towards Ipoh, William's birthplace, and noted the lush vegetation. We stopped at a roadside stall to try fruit, and drove through the poor village. Our first visit was to Kellie's Castle, a folly built by a wealthy Scots rubber plantation owner who died before its completion. Kellie was his mother-in-law's maiden name. We also visited the workers' Hindu temple nearby and had a red dot placed on our foreheads.

Near the town of Ipoh, we went to see the Ket Lok Tong Buddhist temple inside a large cave. We had lunch at the Nasi Kandar Habib- chicken roti and mee rebus - another messy dish. No beer today.

The Ubudiah mosque was very lavish

Our next stop was in the beautiful town of Kuala Kangsar. We saw the sultan's palaces (he has two) and the Ubudiah mosque. We also stopped to admire the world's oldest rubber tree. Then we drove without stopping to Penang, over the causeway. We arrived at the Holiday Inn in Batu Ferringhi in the north of the island. We're in the beach wing but no sea view, sadly.



After dinner at a Lebanese restaurant near the hotel we paddled in the warm waters of the Straits of Malacca.

Wednesday 13 August

At last, a clear view of Petronas Towers

We were up at 7 to finish packing and leave Kuala Lumpur. My throat was no better. Breakfast wasn't very well organised today. I had cereal and yogurt plus boiled egg and toast. Coffee was hard to find. I didn't have time for my blog before we checked out and set off.

The Hindu temple at Batu caves is a pilgrimage site

We had a long drive to Cameron Highlands. After setting off, we first stopped for a photo of Petronas Towers, and then William suggested an extra visit to Batu caves to see a Hindu temple. The place was a bit shabby and we didn't relish the 270 steps to see the god Ganesh, but we took some photos of the huge gold god outside.

The local villagers sell fruit by the roadside

After about 2 hours, we left the toll road to take a winding road up to the highlands.We made a stop at Iskander Falls and tasted some fruit from a stall. Further on, we stopped again for two local native men to demonstrate a blowpipe firing poisoned darts. In one of the towns we had lunch at the Golf Club - chicken curry.

Then we visited the Boe tea plantation to see the tea bushes growing on the hillside, before learning about the tea making process. We saw a film and some old machines, then bought some green tea and tasted some other tea in the cafe. It soothed my throat. I was intrigued to see how the women in full burka would drink their tea.

William showing us the tips of the tea leaves

We are spending a night at Copthorne Hotel which has unlimited WiFi and a nice bed. Dinner in the cafe was fish and chips, then a beer in the Cricket bar. Some men were smoking a hookah.

Tuesday 12 August

At the National Monument to those lost in the World Wars

Had a very bad night with my cough. Breakfast was interesting - no bacon, but we were served with coffee. The muesli was nice, but some unusual fruits. I had fried egg and slow toast. The hotel has to cater to many nationalities and religions. We were picked up later by William.

We did a tour by car of the main sights of Kuala Lumpur. First stop, after the pharmacy for cough medicine, was the King's Palace or Istana Negara. Malaysia chooses its kings from its nine sultans, and the current king has had the job before. We couldn't go inside the grounds but we saw the guards outside.

The butterfly garden was a pleasant haven

Then on to the National Monument which honours the troops lost in the World Wars. There was an obelisk and a sculpture in the Russian style. After that we had an extra stop at a butterfly garden which was very pleasant.

Merdeka Square is surrounded by fine old buildings

Then we parked at Merdeka Square, built around a former cricket pitch or Padang and surrounded by colonial buildings. We visited the National Heritage Museum which showed all the country's important moments, such as independence from the British in 1957.

Outside, William pointed out the Sultan Abdul Samad building, the Royal Selanor Club and the 100 metre-high flagpole, and we went into St. Mary's Church. We also passed the old railway station, built by the British. After that, we drove to  a batik workshop where we saw the designs being drawn in wax before colour was added. I bought a silk scarf. We had a Chinese lunch before returning to the hotel.

In the evening we walked to Delaney's Irish pub for Kilkenny beer and so-called Irish sausages and mash. They weren't pork.

Monday 11 August

Putrajaya's government buildings are lavish

Breakfast at the Equatorial Hotel was interesting - an eclectic mix of foods. No muesli but nice omelette. We checked out and met William at 9.00 am. Off to Putrajaya, the new administrative centre of Malaysia. It was built in 1992-98 but is still a work in progress. We could buy a house there quite cheaply!

The mosques are very decorative

We arrived after a 2 hour drive through palm trees as far as the eye could see. We admired all the government buildings from the road, including the lake with three bridges, and then went on a cruise on the man-made lake to see all the houses, offices and mosques from another angle.

After that, we drove up to a vantage point at the Conference Centre to get an overview of the city.

Another meal on a banana leaf

Then we drove on to Kuala Lumpur the capital and stopped for lunch at a very friendly place. Now resting at Hotel Melia. We stay for 2 nights. We have single beds but 3 WiFi connections.


After a terrific storm we went out to explore. We ate at a Chinese place in the food market: satays and pak choi. Back at the hotel we had a cocktail and listened to the pianist. He could play but not sing. In our room, we can see the Petronas Towers lit up.

Sunday 10 August

A Dutch colonial house in Melaka

Up very early to finish packing and check out of our Singapore hotel before breakfast. I enjoyed muesli with fruit, orange juice and eggs and bacon. While waiting for our driver we realised we didn't have our passports handy. After turning the cases upside down, we found them in the travel folder.

Our RMG driver was late again and didn't have the train tickets, so he had to stop off for them. We drove to Woodland Station which turned out to be on the border with Malaysia. After passing through two sets of immigration checks and having our fingerprints taken, we found our seats on the train to Tampin.

The journey through South Malaysia led through greenery and palm trees and took 5 hours. Many people got on at intervening stations. We alighted at Tampin and found William, our driver and guide, waiting.

There was a celebration at the Chinese temple

We drove for about 40 minutes to Melaka where we stopped for some photos and then for an Indian lunch, served on a banana leaf. No beer sadly. Then as it was too hot to stroll, we drove around the Dutch and Chinese quarters before arriving at the Equitorial Hotel.

Nasi goreng on our first night in Malaysia

After a rest we went downstairs and tried to walk around Melaka, but there were no pavements or street signs. So we went back to the hotel bar for beer and a try at darts. There was football on TV. We then adjourned to the bistro for nasi goreng and hokkien mie with lime juice. Malaysia is predominantly a Muslim country. They don't seem to have any wine.

I had trouble sleeping due to a very annoying cough.

Saturday 9 August, Singapore National Day

The beach on Sentosa Island

We were in time for the breakfast buffet at the Grand Park City Hall Hotel in Singapore. We hoped to meet up with Cathy Y but it didn't work out. We took the MRT and monorail to Sentosa Island, now a theme park. It was very hot there.

We got a bus to Siloso Beach and had a cold beer. Then we visited the Aquarium which had many interesting fish, including sharks, rays, tropical fish, sea dragons and jellyfish. We saw a dolphin and seal show, and went through a tunnel where we saw sharks being fed.

Dusk on Singapore National Day

We returned by the same route and rested at the hotel.

We went to enjoy the National Day and fireworks at the Fremantle restaurant by the river. Back at the hotel we had cocktails and listened to the singer.

Friday 8 August

Prehistoric animal models at Melbourne Museum

Today we checked out of the Travelodge. It's been nice apart from the silly WiFi restrictions. We had our last porridge, banana and honey and flat white coffees at the Gainsville Cafe.

Some amethyst geodes in the crystal display

We tried to get to the Melbourne Museum by tram, but some routes weren't running so we were a bit late. There was an Aztec exhibition on, but we just visited the permanent exhibits including the Forest Walk and the Science World hall where they had dinosaur skeletons, fossils and rocks from Australia and elsewhere. We saw a 3D show of volcanoes erupting and the earth being created.

We had an Aztec lunch in the cafe there, then went back to collect our bags. We all took a taxi to the airport for our 18.00 Emirates flight. We said goodbye to Matthew and Sarah, and wished them well for the future. Our flight was almost on time and we landed in Singapore at midnight.

Thursday 7 August

Today it rained continuously. We had our usual nice breakfast at Gainsville. In 'The Age' free newspaper, there was a feature about the Master of Teaching course. We planned to meet at the NGV, the Melbourne art gallery. They had an exhibition of Italian art from the Prado in Spain. Matthew was late.

In the NGV foyer

First we looked at a William Blake exhibition, and then one of Japanese samurai swords. We had lunch in the Tea Room - a favourite place from our last visit.

A Japanese bento box - very tasty

When Matthew arrived we looked at the Italian classical art from 15th to 18th centuries. We went back to the hotel for a rest. In the evening we all ate at the Chocolate Buddha in Federation Square. I had a bento box. The miso soup was good.

We stepped out into a downpour. We found a dry bar, Amarok, in the Southbank centre for a welcome drink.

Wednesday 6 August

We were up early to meet Matthew and Sarah and collect our hire car to drive to the Great Ocean Road. Our taxi driver didn't have a clue where the garage was. We got the car from the friendly man at Thrifty Cars in Montague Road.

Sarah and Matthew at the Great Memorial Arch

The journey was quite straightforward via West Gate Bridge onto Princes Freeway. We stopped at Werribee for a big breakfast. I had Eggs Benedict. We passed Geelong and joined the Great Ocean Road at Torquay.

We passed Ainsley's Inlet and stopped at the Great Memorial Arch where we saw a monument to the soldiers who didn't return after the Great War, and a sculpture of the 'Diggers' who built the road. In Lorne we had lunch at the hotel there. The wine was nice.

This is Torquay, and that's the sea, just there between the sky and the land

After lunch we went on to Mount Defiance, stopping to admire the views, but it started to rain. We headed back then, calling at Torquay for coffee. Most places there were closed. We found our way back to Thrifty without too much trouble, and handed back the keys at 6pm.






Then we had shared platters and Belgian beer in the Belgian Beer Cafe.

At the hotel we found we had used our WiFi quota for the day. I watched Lewis on TV.

Tuesday 5 August, Graduation Day

Today Matthew's graduation takes place in the late afternoon. We enjoyed another breakfast in the Gainsville, where I updated my blog. We are meeting at Fed Square for lunch at Jimmy Watson's. The weather is overcast.

Posh fish and chips at Jimmy Watson's, a favourite place

We met Matthew and Sarah after spending two hours doing laundry and topping up our Myki travel cards. We took a tram to Lygon Street and enjoyed lunch in Jimmy Watson's. I had barramundi and the others had chicken pie. Jimmy was there and chatted to us.

Then we went along to Melbourne University for Matthew to collect his gown, cap and malachite green hood. We waited in the courtyard with other families taking pictures. We also looked in the System Garden and went into the library where an exhibition called Radicals, Slayers and Villains was on.

Waiting for the Graduation Ceremony to start

The graduation ceremony at 17.30 was quite traditional and Matthew received his diploma from the Deputy Chancellor. The speeches were quite short and focussed on the importance of teaching. Afterwards we had champagne and sandwiches in the Union Hall, and took more photos. A very nice occasion.

Monday 4 August

Flinders Street station looks splendid in the sun

We tried a new place for breakfast - Gainsville Cafe, next door to the hotel. We both had very nice porridge with honey, banana and strawberries, and flat white coffees. The WiFi worked well too. At the hotel, we booked a hire car for Wednesday.

Captain Cook's Cottage has survived a graffiti attack

We walked via Federation Square to the Treasury Gardens, and then to Fitzroy Gardens to look at Captain Cook's Cottage. Then we crossed the road to the Shrine of Remembrance and Botanic Gardens where we met Matthew and Sarah. We explored all round the gardens. Even in winter they were beautiful. But the William Tell House had burnt down.



We went back to the hotel to rest before enjoying a Beijing Duck dinner at Quanju De. The roast duck was served with pancakes and hoisin sauce, and we also had pork and noodles. It was a very tasty meal.


We had a drink in a Southbank bar before saying goodnight.

Saturday/Sunday 2 and 3 August

On Saturday morning we arrived in Melbourne. Our flight was a bit late but it took ages getting off the plane, and then we queued even longer at immigration. We took a taxi to Travelodge Southbank. It looks nice but service is not so good - nothing is free.

Luna Park at St Kilda with Matthew

We met Matthew and Sarah in Federation Square and had lunch in Optic. Back at our hotel we gave them small presents and mail. Later we met again for dinner at Ludlow Grill; I had fish and chips. We discussed plans for the graduation.

We had an early night at the hotel. Slept well.


Sunday. We tried the hotel breakfast - disappointing. We took a tram to St Kilda beach and met Matthew. There was a nice arts and craft market on, and we also visited Luna Park, a revived amusement park. Lunch at Beachcomber was quite nice. Then we explored the pier.

The pier at St Kilda beach

We returned to the city centre and rested at the hotel. WiFi is limited to 15 minutes per day. Later we met Matthew and Sarah for an early dinner on the Colonial Tramway. It was fun, and the food and drink were very nice. The host Joe made everyone feel welcome. Matthew told us his progress with his job search and permit application.

After dinner we all went for a drink in the Crown Casino atrium. It was a very enjoyable evening.

Dinner on board the Colonial Tramway