Malaysia and Singapore

I just returned on Sunday evening from about 10 days of traveling in Malaysia and Singapore. Claire and I flew from Krabi to Kuala Lumpur, where we spent our first 3 days. It was a little strange to be back in a huge city after being only in small towns and islands, but it was nice to be surrounded by all the Western amenities. We hit most of the main KL tourist sites. On our first night, we walked around the Berjaya Times Square mall, where there is a huge indoor theme park. We also spent a lot of time wandering around Chinatown, where you can find any kind of fake designer purse, shoes, sunglasses, etc. We did some shopping in the KLCC mall, which has more high-end shops, and saw the Petronas Twin Towers, once the tallest buildings in the world. Although we did not go up to the sky bridge of the Twin Towers, we did go to the top of the KL Tower, a telecommunications tower that provides an even better view of the whole city. We also visited the Batu Caves, which is one of the most popular Hindu shrines outside India. We climbed the 272 steps to get to the top, where there are beautiful limestone caves and temples. It was really neat.

After KL, we took a 5 hour bus ride to Singapore. I really enjoyed Singapore. It is a very beautiful city, very clean, and not run down at all like many of the other major Asian cities. On our first night there, we did the Night Safari, which is one of Singapore's most popular attractions. It is the world's first night zoo, and you have the opportunity to see hundreds of nocturnal animals, which was really neat. We also visited the Singapore Zoo (a regular daytime zoo) a few days later, and it was probably the most beautiful and natural zoo I have been to. I took at least a hundred animal pictures. And of course we couldn't skip Universal Studios Singapore, which actually just opened a few months ago. It was really fun, and we almost felt like we were back in the States. We also spent some time just exploring the city and even did a scooter tour of the city led by a local guide. On our last night there, we went to the 70th floor of a well-known hotel, where there is a very swanky bar at the top with wonderful views of the whole city (see picture below), and we ended the night with the infamous Singapore Sling cocktail!

Claire's travels ended in Singapore, and she is now back in the States. After she left, I took a night bus from Singapore to Penang, a Malaysian island just south of Thailand. I stayed on the main tourist beach, Batu Ferringhi, and spent most of my time laying out at the pool at this beautiful resort hotel near my guesthouse. The sunset on the beach was also amazing.

I am back in Krabi now and have only 16 days left here! It's amazing how the time flies!