FROM THE SOUTH OF THAILAND to the Singapore Causeway, Malaysia’s mainland sports a multitude of travel possibilities: the quite, laid-back east coast villages, off-shore islands like Tioman or Perhentians, serious jungle with plenty of wildlife, futuristic KL colliding with old school KL, historic trading towns, hill country.
Let’s not ignore the food. Chinese, south Indian, Malay, nyonya, north Indian, Lebanese, and plenty more. (I wish I had more food pics- something to work on perhaps?)
No PDAs on the trains in KL, please.
Sultan Ahmad Shah mosque, in the northern state of Pahang. Malaysia's east coast, particularly its northern states are more traditionally Malay and conservative than other areas.
A row of shopfronts in need of a scrub, in Kuantan, 1992.
Kota Baru, one of the last stops before the Thai border is also a stepping stone to some fine islands, as well as an interesting places to stop, look and eat.
A typical Chinese hotel, with a couple of floors of rooms and cafe/restaurant downstairs, Kota Baru.
The KL skyline viewed from the steps of the State Mosque.
A heritage building, the KL railway station still houses a hotel inside.
A distinctly Asian road sign. Looks like durian in one basket.
The pace of life on the east coast is a world away from KL and the west.
The east coast has less of a Chinese or Indian influence, with many traditional Malay villages and towns.
An inlet on the east coast and the village fishing fleet.
Farming and fishing still provide plenty of empoyment and income to east coast communities.
Malacca is another trading town with a mixed Chinese and European history interwoven with its Malay culture.
Chinese families and ethnicities established societies for cultural, educational and econmic pursuits. This building has since been renovated, and the Send Cheong Society still functions in Malacca.
Malays and Chinese mixed in Malacca, with a dash of Portugese and Dutch, and the blend is known as "nyonya", with its own distinct cuisine.
Malay (and Indonesian) spelling is very straight forward: spell it hw you say it. One quite night in the Cameron Highlands, we applied the same rules to Scrabble. Try it.
Another fine old building in Malacca from European occupation. I have been unable to find what this was.
Old building line the canals in Malacca. Goods would have been shipped and loaded to the back door, and sold out through the street side.
The Boh Tea Estate in the Cameron Highlands, a popular destination for its cool climate, near KL.
Famous Thai silk merchant Jim Thompson disappeared hiking somewhere up here in the Cameron Highlands. His disappearance remains a mystery.
Hiking is still popular.