Penang & Langkawi, Malaysia

The Budhist culture was more present in the northern part of Malaysia than in the rest of the country.

We first went straight to Georgetown to make our VISA for Thailand. While waiting there we decided to visit some temples, full of energy! We also visited another orchid's garden with loads of Monkeys and flowers we've never seen before.
Next day, we went to Kek Lok Si Temple which was absolutely amazing. Very big and full of details, everywhere you're looking at, there was something interesting to see. Then we went back to Georgetown and walked around at night in this very lightened city where the electricity consomation is not their first priority... pretty ironic according to the signs we can see all over the city to save the planet...

After Georgetown we went on the west of the Penang's Island, to the national park reserve where we did some trekking and met again with Pascal and Annina. We met 1st these two funny and very sympathic guys in Cameron Highlands, lost on a trek. We played games together, "DOG" (which was absolutely not funny at all!!!!!!!!!!!... when you lose... :) had some nice dinners and Pascal and Me enjoyed a bad hangover because of the cheap beers!
We really had some good times with you guys and hope to see you again somewhere, in Sweden or Switzerland... who knows?! :)

Then, on our way up to Thailand we stopped for few days in Langkawi, which was a very nice Island, with beautiful beaches, nice sliding pools in the jungle and good Indian food. We traveled around the Island with a scooter and left after on our way to Koh Lanta (yes like on TV!) to rest few days and do some nice diving before my parents arrive in Phuket.

Cameron Highlands, Malaysia

When you arrive in this little hill station the first thing that hits you is the cool, fresh air. It's quiet and calm compared to intense KL and the town basically consists of a main road, a couple of restaurants and hiking trails that takes you all around the mountains, fields and jungles surrounding the village. The days are spent walking, sometimes easy strolls and sometimes you feel more like Indiana Jones climbing up and down muddy hills and over fallen trees hanging on to lians. (Make sure it's not a snake hanging about that you're about to grab!) At the end you'll find Buddhist temples, strawberry or fruit farms, waterfalls and even tea plantations! It's fantastic to finally sit on the top of a hill you've been working your way up on, eating an orange in the sun and just enjoying the amazing view of tea bushes as far as your eye reaches. BOH teaplantation produces tea equivalent to 5,5 million cups of tea every day, so imagine the size of this plantation!

For eating the village offers some nice Indian restaurants (amongst others), where you can enjoy different curries and vegetables served on a banana leaf! Or how about Chicken Tandoori with Naan bread, or Roti filled with egg and dipped into a spicy lentil curry? You eat with your hands and mix it as you want and it's both fun a delicious! The nights get a bit cold but you can warm yourself up with a cup of locally grown green tea or have a beer close to the nightly bonfire in the bar next door. Cameron Highlands is an old English Colony and this really shows by some of the architecture and the big supply of scones with strawberry jam in about every little tea house. In the streets you can watch the old cars like Beetles in tip top shape that seem to be pretty common here. All in all it's a very calm, relaxing and refreshing atmosphere where you could easily spend a great week keeping yourself busy enough without doing that much.
At least that's the way we did it.