I’m going to be candid here - there are parts of Malaysia that are not so wow factor. In fact, to take out the PC altogether (beaches, mountains and jungles aside) some of it is downright dull.
That’s why it’s such a pleasant surprise when you get to the Penang city of Georgetown, a heady mix of reconstructed UNESCO listed heritage buildings, sandwiched between Indian, Malaysian and Chinese food & customs.
Pulau Perhentian Kecil - just found nirvana. Sadly, the drinks aren’t free here, but it’s alright otherwise. We’re getting by. Cue Moby…
Beer for 25c? Check. Who doesn’t think this is a good idea?
Sitting on the street shunning worries away by blowing the top off some frothies – a ‘nam specialty. For us, this price means it’s ‘BIA HOI’ time at all times of the day.
We took a road trip from the coast of Hoi An to The DMZ & this is what we saw…
Would you live in this for six years? I came out after 5 minutes. The shame…
To be honest, Hoi An town is not that much chop. Who wants to hang out in a town full of tourists? I sure don’t want to feel like an extra in a holiday film set. The town redeemed itself by giving us the chance to hoon around on bicycles and to the beach in the never changing brilliant sunshine.
Oh, and a stay with another Vietnamese family at the Loc Phat Homestay. Linh & Quoc were beyond good hosts, not to mention constant entertainment by their two sons Bill & Tony (not after Sydney’s famed dining institution), AKA Loc & Phat.
Their street…
29 years young on 19th July. First ever b’day in Asia. Card from Sim…and dinner at CUCH GAC QUON restaurant, in an old Saigon house. We got lose en route, and actually went to their second restaurant before making it to the one we had the booking at, but it was worth it to see both sets of interiors.
Perfect end to the evening:
Vietnamese food, can we say again how much we love you? From shanty beach restaurants to hidden restaurants in back alleys, the food here is off the hook.
Words cannot describe the flavours, so the pictures will have to do:
Ngon Restaurant, Saigon
Kim Long restaurant, Saigon
Cuc Gach Quan, Saigon
Stupid, crummy, crap, pointless war. Why do we do it time and time again?
Posters from the War Remnants Museum, Saigon.
Staying at Four Rivers on the Tatai River at the foot of the Cardamon Mountains in Southern Cambodia made us very happy campers indeed. Days were spent diving off our veranda into the river & listening to the jungle’s song.
A visit to the local fishing village
Now I don’t want to go getting all Cambodian version of ‘The Selby’ here, but let it be said that we am loving the neighbourhood and people’s digs. I don’t even think a Bowerbird’s nest has this much blue in it.
