24 Hours of Eating in Pilau Pinang, Malaysia

I've recently done something I've never done before...Flown to a new city, spent less than 24 hours there and didn't see a damn thing.

I showed up at Penang airport without ever looking at a map. So imagine my surprise when I landed on an island! I had no hotel booking, no guide book, no inkling of where to go or what to do. A required visa run (see Making the visa run--the Thai expat way) and a cheap flight brought me to this corner of Malaysia and I was feeling a bit reckless. I was lazy, a little stupid and yet oddly liberated!

Some local advice took me to a fantastic hotel in a suburb I can't pronounce, much less spell. I only had a few hours of daylight to kill so I went for a wander and ate myself silly through a city block of Kopi-Tiams (local coffee shops) around the hotel perimeter.

Penang is famous (I know now!) for its colonial architectural heritage and beach side resorts that have a Hong Kong appeal to it without the flash of over-development or extravagant prices. I saw the beach only from my airplane window seat and by the time we landed it was already sunset. No matter, I was more than happy to spend my night jumping right back into Malaysian cuisine since it's been a little over a year since my last visit. Malaysian food is truly a mix of

cultures: Indonesia, India, Middle East and Chinese influences have blended nicely after centuries of trade and exchange.

What to Taste:

• Chai Tow Kway = dim sum dumplings with a powerful chili paste for flavor

Fun Fact! 'Dim Sum' is a Cantonese tradition which means 'point of heart' because it was always meant to be a snack, not a meal, and therefore only meant to touch the heart of guests and visitors. Traditionally served with tea.

• Nasi Lemak Halal = the 'national dish' also known as fatty rice. The rice is soaked in coconut cream and then steamed. This dish usually comes wrapped in a banana leaf, with cucumber, dried anchovies a boiled egg and is super, super spicy! Malaysia is officially a Muslim country so Halal prepared means it's permissible according to Islamic laws governing what to eat, how animals are slaughtered and how the meat is prepared.

• Asam Laksa (Pinang) = spicy and sour fish-based noodle soup. The soup is blended with tamarind (locally grown), poached mackerel, lemon grass, galangal (ginger) and chili.

• Roti Tissue = "helicopter bread" because it's framed in the unique shape and is as thin and delicate as tissue paper. Dip it in a sweet palm sugar mix for a fine dessert!

• Cendol = (also popular throughout most SE Asian countries) coconut milk, worm-shaped jelly framed from pounded rice flour with green food coloring from pandan leaf as a natural sweetener, shaved ice and palm sugar for sweet, sweet goodness.

• Kopi-O = Malaysian style black coffee. Prepared by roasting the beans with sugar, palm oil margarine and wheat, topped with condensed milk for thickness and sweetness.

• Teh Tarik = not a coffee fan? Try this 'pulled tea' instead: black tea and condensed milk poured back and forth between two strainers for extra froth. Chinese technique and delicious in its simplicity.

This is just a teaser of all that Malaysian cuisine has to offer, and if you're a foodie like me make your visit worthwhile and stuff yourselves daily!

I had no itinerary, no agenda, no 'must-see' or 'to-do' list to check off and I am perfectly content with my brief, but fulfilling travel experience. Sure, someday I will come back and check out the tourist sights. Penang seems to have a lot to offer, with every level of comfort for every kind of tourist. But for now, I'll savor this experience for what it was. I was the only foreigner in sight, temporarily residing in a local suburb, unable to read off any menus and/or have any real understanding of where I was going....I got lost in it. No 'lonely planet backpackers' in sight, no 'tourist friendly' establishments, no road signs, no taxis or touts to haggle with. Nothing to do but eat, walk, and eat again. Just me, the dirty concrete, newspapers strewn over cold steel tables, self-service food stalls, and one beautiful sunset over the mountain.

Travel Heaven.

This video I took from the roof of my hotel. Sunset is marked by the 'Azan', the Muslim call to prayer praising Allah the Almighty and the Holy Prophet. It's a soothing sound: chanting like a hymn and even a non-Muslim, like myself, would be moved to the faith.

Despite the development and the fast-pace of a growing city, Muslims unite throughout the day to stop, sit, pray and reflect on their faith...a public reminder that development of the soul is just as important to nurture as development of livelihood.

Home video, one day at the Elephant Nature Park.

Enjoy this home video: just another typical day spent at the Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai (Mae Taeng), Thailand.

Check out my past posts about this unique elephant sanctuary for more information about visiting, staying overnight and volunteering for a great cause!

Sleeping with Elephants: overnight trip to Elephant Nature Park.

Volunteer with Elephant Nature Park.

Quiet life: Nan Noi, Thailand

Well, another visit to Queen's hometown was long over due! I've had some time off recently and I decided it was time for me to take a proper rest and slow life down a bit...

OK, maybe the doctors had their say in the matter too. I was hospitalized a couple weeks ago because of food poisoning (of all things!) and I think my body was vulnerable to the attack in the first place since it was weak and overly exhausted.

Where better to heal and recover, than the MIDDLE OF NOWHERE...also known as the small village of Nan Noi in the northern province of Nan, bordering communist-friendly Laos.

Queen's hometown is a windy 6 hour drive from Chiang Mai (home

base), and definitely a drive you want to sit in the front seat for. One, because you're less likely to get carsick; two, because the scenery is awesome. Mountains and farmlands all the way through, and as a visiting 'farang' foreigner... well it's miles beyond the beaten tourist path that's for sure.

Nan Noi consists of a main road, a post office, a school, a temple

and a few convenience stores. Everything else is just open space. Beautiful teak wooden houses built in traditional Thai-style, farm land and rice plantations scattered in and between the small clusters of 'mini-communities', and everyone seems to be related somehow. Everyone is a cousin or a sister-in-law or an adopted uncle...

I spent a week here, living with Queen and her family: Mom, Dad, two brothers and their wives, and 3 babies...See Nam (whose name translates to 'watercolors') and See Mai ('wooden colored pencils') are niece and nephew respectively, and have adopted me as family as well. 'Ahr Step' is what they call me, and the title is complicated enough but a perfect example of the detail and careful consideration of Thai language.

If a child has an uncle or auntie, their proper title depends on the side of the family they were born from. For example, let's take my nephew Cooper. Cooper was born of my brother, so his relation to me follows the father's line. If he were Thai, he would call me 'Arh Stef'. His other aunt, Carlie, is the sister of his mother. Carlie comes from the mother's line, so her correct Thai title would be 'Na Carlie.' Two aunts with different titles to exactly determine how we're related, paying respect to our elder ancestors accordingly.

This was something new for me to learn about Thai culture. The specificity of it, the careful articulation and the care for family name and identification seems complex, but it's just another formal display of politeness and ancestor respect the Thai people are famous for.

OK, I'm babbling a little now. My days were well rested, and life slowed down alright...to a sleepy crawl. Wake up, eat rice and omelet for breakfast. Read book. Take a nap. Eat lunch with Queen at her family's business shop. Read book. Go for a drive around town. Eat dinner (whatever Dad cooks!). Watch movie. Sleep. It was brilliant!

Queen's dad's local specialties were sometimes challenging (yes, even for me!) but always delicious as long as I didn't think too hard about which body part of what animal I was eating at the time. Some delicacies I am not a fan of, in particular the 'red ant egg soup', boiled tongue and any brain dish combinations. A huge hit was a pork dish stir fried in lime juice and chilies which I devoured and learned how to cook for future attempts in my own home (where ever that will be and whenever I decide to live in one again!)

Today my face is a little rounder, my jeans a little tighter, but my smile and energy levels are definitely restored!

Oh and the books I read this past week I have to suggest to all you travel reading fans out there looking for any kind of inspiration:

"Little Daughter: a Memoir of Survival in Burma and the West" by Zoya Phan

The story of life in Burma as a Karen minority villager before the government raids, and the struggle for one little girl as she fled to Thailand as a refugee and her life journey to become one of the highest profiled, exiled political activists today.

"7 Years in Tibet" by Heinrich Herrer

I saw the movie when I was just a young girl, but never imagined the story and true historical account to be so rich in detail. The book transports you to Tibet at a fragile time in history, during the world war and at a time when Tibet was still the childhood home of the current Dalai Lama and the guarded, mythical landscape where few foreigners were allowed the privilege of visiting. The author tells his story of escape from prison detention (he was a former Nazi SS Austrian officer), to stories of dangerous mountaineering and eventually his close role to the Dalai Lama as a personal tutor before the Chinese invasion.

Read and enjoy!

Chinese New Year in a Lisu Hill Tribe Village

Chinese New Year celebrates the beginning of a new year based on the lunar calendar, and is one of the most important holidays for Chinese families and people with Chinese ancestry. The lunar calendar is based on the phases of the moon, so Chinese New Year is never on the same day each year. This year it officially started on February 3rd, and it marks the Year of the Rabbit. Parties and festivities will be celebrated worldwide, and usually for 15 days straight.

The Lisu hill tribe people are an ethnic minority group that live in Burma, Southwest China and Thailand. Nearly 60,000 of them live here in Northern Thailand which makes them one of the largest of the hill tribe communities. Like other hill tribe communities, not a whole lot is known about their origins. Their culture can easily date back 2,000 years, but since they're nomadic peoples who only recently created a form of written language their history has been passed down the generations through song. This song is so long, that Lisu people say it can take an entire night just to sing it.

The Lisu (as well as the other hill tribes) have their own unique identity. They have their own distinct language, distinct dress, traditions and animist (spirit-belief) practices. The tribe is also broken down into clans and sub-clans, and the language dialects change from clan to clan, depending on the regions they reside in. Today, most tribes have absorbed themselves into modern (Thai) society, but some villages retain their traditions fiercely as a means of self-preservation...much like the one I work with in the Mae Taeng area (1 hour drive into the valleys outside of Chiang Mai).

The Chinese New Year in Lisu villages is the most important festival, and it is celebrated with music, dancing, singing, feasting, LOTS of corn whiskey, and the people wear ornate dress with large amounts of silver dressings to show their success and prosperity in the previous year.

It's also a much awaited courting ritual that all the single ones look forward to each year. The girls dress in their best and dance intensely in the hopes of finding a prospective husband. The boys wait until the parents are too drunk to notice much before they make their move, asking for a pretty girl's hand in dance. If she accepts he knows he has a chance at a possible marriage in the new year. It's the one time per year where it's socially acceptable for boys and girls to hold each others' hands, and they make the most of it dancing all hours of the night until dawn! If prospective matches are found and the parents approve, the next important celebration in a Lisu village is a wedding ceremony. Best of luck to all the Lisu boys out there trying to make it happen!

A couple months ago, the Lisu shaman (witch doctor) of this particular Lisu village I work with invited me to join and celebrate their New Year. It was an honor, so of course I took them up on their offer! Some of our mutual work friends decided to join and I brought a friend visiting from out of town. Devin and I were the only foreigners in sight, so we pretty much had no chance of blending in discreetly. The kids thought we were pretty entertaining!

The dancing and singing was absolutely gorgeous. I joined in for a few rounds until the footwork got too complicated to keep up with. The highlight for me was when the shaman invited me into the women's home. The women from this village were singing to the elder men of visiting villages, wishing them welcome and merriment for the new year. It was more like chanting, with lots of complicated tone changes, and I was pulled into their skirts and colorful robes to join in for this important ceremony.

There was a lot of corn whiskey being poured that night...and shot after shot Devin and I took with the villagers for fear of being rude. In the end, we had a great night and quite the unique experience being invited to this private world away from worlds.

The dancing was filmed, but unfortunately it was too dark and the quality's not so great with my camera...however, click on this link to see traditional Lisu New Year dancing, it's exactly the same!

Kanchanaburi: Death Railway & Erawan Waterfalls, Thailand

Kanchanaburi town is just a short 2 hour drive west from Bangkok, and in the high season (October-February) it gets hit hard with Thai and foreigner tourists trying to get away from the hustle and bustle of concrete skyscrapers and traffic jams.

Kanchanaburi is home to one of the last known tiger reserves in South East Asia, and the province includes national parks, plantations, rural villages, mountains, valleys, and river systems that have woven themselves into 'floating village' culture.

Kanchanaburi town is also home to an important World War II monument, the Bridge over River Kwai (pictured above.) The Pacific War officially began in December 1941 with the Japanese Empire attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii and the invasion of British Malaya. By mid-1942 the Japanese campaign of conquest and occupation expanded through most of the Pacific and SE Asia, and they began fighting the British forces in Burma with their ultimate goal being an offensive against India.

Thailand was occupied by Japan in 1941, and from 1942-1943 the Japanese started construction on the Burma-Thailand Railway. To maintain armies in Burma the Japanese needed a more secure supply route because the sea-lanes between Singapore and Rangoon (see map) proved to be too vulnerable to Allied naval attacks. They decided a railway would supply their troops better, so they constructed one that was 415 km long through the jungle and mountains of Burma and Thailand.

The Japanese assembled a multi-national workforce of nearly 270,000 forced Asian labourers from occupied countries and over 60,000 Allied prisoners of war. The cost was great: the hard labor, the environment, abuse and brutality from guards, tropical diseases and malnutrition took a heavy toll. Nearly 13,000 Allied POWs died and well over 90,000 Asian labourers lost their lives in just one year's time. In 1945 the railway was heavily bombed by Allied troops and most of it was destroyed forever.

Today, some of the railway is still in use but used now for commercial and private transport only. The section pictured here, the Bridge over River Kwai, used to be a wooden bridge that was bombed repeatedly. After the war it was replaced with Indonesian steel in 1949 and resurrected as an important memorial service for all those who lost their lives during the war. The bridge is made famous by the film, which I have never seen and so can not really comment on. Heard it was good though!

The railway is now known as the 'Death Railway' because the heavy cost of human life that it took during its construction. If you're interested in a more sobering memorial experience head to HellFire Pass Memorial (about 40 minutes drive outside of Kanchanaburi town.) Funded and constructed by the Australian Government Veterans' Department, the memorial takes you to the site that was known to be the most horrific of all construction sites during the railway's construction. It's got a section of the handcarved railway bed (pictured left) you can walk through, and exhibitions including photos and video footage of the construction and hellish POW conditions.

Kanchanaburi isn't all about the doom and gloom though...be sure to get amongst it and have some fun with the incredible adventure activities available: kayaking, rafting, trekking, and cycling through pristine forests, paddy plantations and stunning landscapes. I went on a waterfall hike through Erawan National Park (just 1 hour outside of Kanchanaburi town) and hiked 7 tiers of a 1500 meter magnificent waterfall, each level more stunning than the previous. I also took a train ride through the countryside and had a great laugh with some UK tourists trying desperately to catch 'that perfect photo' to capture the day.

Kanchanaburi is the perfect weekend getaway trip from Bangkok...so take a few days off from the shopping, crowds and chaos, and soak up the countryside peace as you experience some of the best Thailand has to offer!