30 Jul - 01 Aug 2011 Petaling Jaya

Selangor Darul Ehsan
Christina & Liau’s Home
Comfortable guestroom.


Click below for an interactive road map of our friends' lovely home in Petaling Jaya:











Accepting Christina & Liau’s wonderful hospitality in their very distinctive home, exploring both (i) Christina’s exotic kitchen and (ii) Liau’s awesome zeitgeist collections, catching up on admin and maintenance work (e.g. emails, travel blog, photos, financials, equipment) and preparing our upcoming travels to Sabah/Malaysia and Sulawesi/Indonesia.
“Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things which give value to survival.” 


Taking one of the yellow regular Aerobus shuttles ("Cheap, Convenient, Comfortable.") +60361892711 from KL Sentral, the main railway station, to Kuala Lumpur’s International Airport (KLIA-LCCT) near Sepang (c. 70 km, 1 hour, MYR 8.- per person), thereafter taking off with budget carrier Air Asia (“Now Everyone Can Fly”) in a red Airbus A 320-200 via the South China Sea and Borneo to Tawau/Sabah for all inclusive MYR 81.- or US$ 26.20 per person (repressing in mid-air any silly guilt trip about our hefty carbon footprint, because all the cattle herds on this planet do more damage to the environment than airplanes and cars combined, and, later on, having a taste of Air Asia’s excellent vegetarian in-flight meals), and taking eventually an expensive taxi (MYR 45.- or c. US$ 15.- for the ride) from Tawau Airport to our comfortable hotel in downtown Tawau (… and, on this first day of the fasting month of Ramadan, watching a politically-correct awful commercial on 8TV which shows an ordinary non-Malay, non-Muslim, fun-loving Malaysian Chinese girl in modern 21th-century clothing who enjoys her food in public, and which ends with official messages urging viewers to avoid doing such things in respect of the Muslim holy month, thus confirming our perception of an increasing Islamisation and polarisation of 1Malaysia’s multi-cultural but segregated society).




Click below for a summary of this year's travels
2011 Map Konni & Matt

Visit our Konni & Matt Online Albums and order high-res travel photos
Konni & Matt Travel Photos


Facing Malaysia
© Konni & Matt


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29 Jul - 30 Jul 2011 Temerloh





Southeast Asia
Flawed-Democratic Federation of Malaysia
Pahang Darul Makmur
Temerloh
Hotel Isis +6092961537
Comfortable and clean double room with an attached but definitely not private, rather conservatory-like, bathroom and with reliable wifi for MYR 50.- or US$ 16.85 per night.

Click below for an interactive road map of the Hotel Isis in Temerloh, which we would recommend, and for directions:









Exploring delightful Temerloh, situated at the junction of Pahang River and Semantan River and famed as Bandar Ikan Patin aka the Town of Silver Catfish, feasting on a great meal of ikan patin masak tempoyak (silver catfish cooked to perfection in a spicy durian gravy) at one of the town’s many food stalls and, later on, pitstopping at Restoran Yik Kee +6092311240 in Karak, enroute to Kuala Lumpur, and trying a few of their famous durian tarts (something like an egg tart, except that it is filled with durian paste and not egg paste, lah).
"...durian, of all tropical fruits are the most captivating. The unopened fruit was about the size and shape of a rugby ball; a ball covered with pyramidal spikes which presented a formidable obstacle to entry. Inspection revealed that the outer casing was segmented, and a parang inserted between two segments could prise the fruit open to reveal within each segment large seeds, coated thickly with an amber creamy flesh, tasting of almonds, bad drains and methylated spirits. The initial reaction was one of revulsion but those who went on to taste were lost forever, hooked for life. And durian was more than a delicacy: it was a meal in itself, rich in everything the body needed..."



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25 Jul - 29 Jul 2011 Chukai





Southeast Asia
Flawed-Democratic Federation of Malaysia
Terengganu Darul Iman
Chukai aka Kemaman Town
Hotel Vista +6098585888
Comfortable twin room, including air-con, homeopathic wifi and ear-shattering noise pollution from the nearby mosque Masjid Jamek Chukai, which cranked up like the whining diff of a car, several times a day, for a stiff MYR 65.- or US$ 21.90 per night.

Click below for an interactive road map of the Vista Hotel in Chukai, which we would recommend, and for directions:









Cutting across country, visiting the predominantly Hakka tin-mining town Sungai Lembing which once was the largest, longest and deepest subterranean tin mine in the world (overall length of underground tunnels aka pengkangs c. 320 km), learning about different tin-mining techniques (panning, dredging, gravel pump, underground and opencast mining), meeting up with our friend Y.C. Liau, a retired tin miner (driller and explosives foreman), and listening to his interesting stories about the heyday of British owned Pahang Consolidated Company Ltd, which was liquidated in 1986 CE due to the fact that tin had lost its lustre and other minerals and synthetic materials replaced its uses.
“Some people read palms to tell your future, but I read hands to tell your past. Each scar makes a story worth telling. Each callused palm, each cracked knuckle is a missed punch or years in a factory.”
(Sarah Kay) 


Stopping at laid-back Cherating, one of the most popular stops along West Malaysia's east coast, a travellers’ kampung complete with budget shacks by the sea and a decent beach, crossing the border between the bilingual state Pahang (Bahasa Malaysia and English) and the bilingual state Terengganu (Bahasa Malaysia and Jawi, an adapted Arabic alphabet for writing the Malay language, which Arab people could read but not understand and which Malay people can not read but would understand) and, later on, feasting on versions of the east coast’s signature delicacy at the famous Warung Otak-Otak Che Wan in Pantai Teluk Mak Nik, Kemaman, +60139873557 - fresh fish and/or seafood wrapped in banana and/or palm leaves and grilled over a flaming charcoal fire: (i) pais ikan (small fish with sambal, grilled in a banana leaf), (ii) otak-otak (rectangles of fish fillet, spiced with chillies, garlic, shallots, turmeric, lemon grass and coconut milk, grilled in a banana/palm leaf) and (iii) pulut panggang (chunks of glutinous rice with spices, coconut and dried shrimp or with a small piece of fish inside the rice, grilled in a banana and/or palm leaf).



Exploring the prosperous river town Chukai (and her nearby non-touristy beaches and fishing hamlets), where our friends Christina & Liau used to live for almost 20 years, a major commercial hub for the region, a bustling fishing port and an important supply base for the oil platforms off the Terengganu coast, thereafter frequenting the nostalgic Hai Peng Coffee Shop +60199150923, located near the town centre, a Chukai landmark which is famous for its hand-roasted coffees since 1940 CE, and, in the evening, walking around the motley collection of innumerous food and clothes stalls at Chukai’s vibrant night market, thus noticing a few peculiar products on offer which we probably would never buy: (i) raw and boiled sea-turtle eggs (four eggs for only MYR 10.-), (ii) white hajj/skull caps for advanced Muslims and (iii) any version of the much-loved/hated Malaysian/Hainanese chicken rice.



Discovering our most delicious ever, so far, (i) curry noodles aka mee kari, cooked in rich coconut cream and served with fishcakes, at Yap Jin Huat’s Kedai Kopi Ah Yap +60172692899 in Taman Chukai Utama (a small bowl for only MYR 3.- and a large bowl for only MYR 5.-), (ii) east-coast laksam, flat rice-flour noodles, rolled up and cut into half-inch segments, in a rich, full-bodied white gravy of boiled fish, coconut milk and spices, at Mok Nab’s Warung Kak Nab +60139986151 in Kampung Geliga (a medium bowl for only MYR 2.-) and (iii) Kemaman’s signature dish, the famous stuffed crabs with kangkong belacan (stir-fried water convolvulus in spicy shrimp paste), at Restoran Tong Juan +6098591346 in Chukai (one stuffed crab for MYR 8.-); yummy yummy!



Watching two well-trained, non-unionised southern pig-tailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina) and their shtum but dactylogically very skilled Malay controller Bisu from the fishing village Kijal cooperate in the monkey business and harvest coconuts from up to 15-m high palm trees: the stronger male monkey tears off the ripe coconuts whereas the niftier female monkey uses her hands and feet to twist off the nuts - no "monkey business" at all.
"'Wendy', Peter Pan continued in a voice that no woman has ever yet been able to resist, 'Wendy, one girl is more use than twenty boys.'"


Counting hundreds of ugly swiftlet bunkers for edible-bird's-nest farming along the coastal road (equipped with high-powered roof loudspeakers and a “monkey house” to attract wild birds, an insect barn which produces at least 5 kg of fruit flies a day and a wifi-controlled CCTV camera to monitor the incoming air traffic) and learning that those aphrodisiac bird's nests (“…hand-picked for feathers and foreign artefacts, lah.”) can fetch up to MYR 5,000.- per kg; Pippi Longstocking’s pigtails would have stood on end, ayiah!



Click below for more blog posts about coconuts 
22 Feb - 10 Mar 2013 Pulau Tioman
13 Aug - 16 Aug 2011 Tanjung Karang
01 Jan - 03 Feb 2011 Madiha
25 Oct - 09 Nov 2010 Unawatuna
15 Apr - 07 Jun 2008 Chagos

Click below for a summary of this year's travels
2011 Map Konni & Matt

Visit the Konni & Matt Online Albums and order high-res travel photos
Konni & Matt Travel Photos


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23 Jul - 25 Jul 2011 Kuantan





Southeast Asia
Pahang Darul Makmur
Kuantan
59 Jalan Haji Abdul Aziz
Hotel Kosma +6095162214 azzurri_77@yahoo.com
Clean double room, with air-con, wifi and prayer rug, for MYR 50.- or US$ 16.80 per night.

Click below for an interactive road map of the Hotel Kosma in Kuantan, which we would recommend, and for directions:









Exploring the city centre of Kuantan, the capital of Pahang, the largest state in Peninsular Malaysia, taking a stroll along the riverbank of the Kuantan River and thereafter watching a traditional silat demonstration (this Malay martial art originated in the 15th century CE in Malacca), which was accompanied by music from drums and gongs and reminded us of a mating dance performed gayly, right in-front of Kuantan’s star attraction, the State Mosque aka Masjid Sultan Ahmad Shah, one of the east coast’s most impressive mosques.



Dining together with our friends Christina & Liau at famous seafood grill Ana Ikan Bakar Petai +60199878155 in nearby Kampung Tanjung Lumpur and feasting on ikan bawal emas (golden pomfret, MYR 45.- per kg) and ikan pari (stingray, MYR 30.- per kg), both barbecued with delicious, chilli-based sambal and stink beans aka petai in a banana leaf.



Click below for a summary of this year's travels

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Konni & Matt Travel Photos
 

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