We spent four days on the island of Penang, our first stop in Malaysia. The country was very different from Thailand, which was quite unexpected for us. Penang was a great place to be, with lots of things to do and see. It was easy to get around and the people were friendly. Very often just walking around looking at everything was quite enough for us. Our hotel was the nicest hotel I have ever stayed in, and I was sad to leave it! In Penang we also got, without a doubt, the best fresh fruit juice in the world, especially in the hotel restaurant....it was heaven!

Day 24 - July 20

After not having slept very well, we got up around 11.00. Our room was clean and very big, but unfortunately it was located right next to the reception area. This meant there was a bit of noise in the morning, so we decided to change to another room, preferably one floor up. This was no problem and we were allowed to check the room out before deciding whether to move. The new room was extremely big, even bigger than our current room, and I instantly liked it. It did, however, not have a TV or a refrigerator, but we took it anyway. On the whole, the Cathay hotel was very charming and certainly had a lot of atmosphere.

Since the guy in the reception had been so nice about the room change, it was not difficult for him to convince us to go on a sightseeing of Penang organized by the hotel in the afternoon. It was only 28 RM for a tour of the whole island, which we figured was cheaper than we could do on our own. We also paid for two more nights before going to the rather shabby hotel restaurant for breakfast.

The style of the restaurant was so different from the rest of the hotel, looking like they had just gotten some old tables and chairs from a fast food chain like Burger King. Despite this, the quality of the food and drinks was exceptional! The fresh apple juice was absolutely perfect and the toast was the best I got on the whole trip.

After breakfast, we decided to visit the Komtar shopping complex first. Being the tallest building in Penang, it was not difficult to find. The walk through Penang can only be described as very colourful. The city was very different from cities in Thailand, where a town usually seemed to be just one long street of small shops with people living inside. Malaysian cities are organised more like in Europe with shops and restaurants being spread out along different streets. There were lots of British colonial architecture with some really charming houses . Everywhere was something to see, and best of all was that the people left us alone. No "new friends" came up to us with "special deals".

The Komtar is not particularly nice to look at from the ouside, and inside it gives you more the impression of being a market on many floors than a Western mall. It is a mixture of some ultra modern shops and rather obscure shops along strange small allies. We spent some time inside, finding out that pirate copies of very new movies were a big thing. They sold new films, just released on cinema in the US, and which certainly were not coming to Norway for a long time. Prices were only about 7 RM a film and cheaper if you bought more. Apparently the films were sold on VCD (Video CD), a format which we hadn't heard of before. Was this just an Asian name for DVD, or was it something different? We decided to investigate this further before buying anything, because we didn't want to end up with something that couldn't be played at home. Pirate copies of computer software were also widely available at the same low prices.

The sightseeing of Penang started at 14.30, so we returned to the hotel to relax a little first. It turned out that we were the only people on the tour, giving us lots of space inside the car. The guide was, not surprisingly, a Chinese guy, probably a friend of the guys in the hotel reception. Anyway, off we went, and he was rather amusing to listen to, having a great deal of interesting stuff to tell us. We stopped at various places of interest, but also some places that were of no interest to us.

Our first stop, for instance, was at a pewter factory outlet. Having bad experiences with similar places in Thailand, we were not very excited, but followed him into the shop. I was very happy to discover other tourists inside the shop as well, so there was really no buying pressure at all. The Malaysians are very different from the Thais in that respect, it seems. We were given a demonstration of how they shaped pewter etc, and a free drink, so the whole thing was okay with us. I guess that the tour was probably sponsored by different factories on the island, which explains why it was so cheap in the first place.

Later we stopped at a batic factory and got a demonstration on how they make the fabrics, which was actually quite interesting. For 10 RM extra we were able to visit a butterfly farm, spending 40 minutes inside watching the beautiful butterflies flying everywhere around us. It was a real challenge to get a picture of them because they refused to sit still when I wanted them to. The butterfly farm also had different reptiles, like snakes and lizards, which I actually found more interesting than the butterflies.

On the rest of the trip we saw the beautiful scenery on the island, small beaches with hardly any people on, but also modern luxury hotels. We made a short stop at a fruit dealer where we tasted and bought several exciting fruits we had never seen before.

Our last stop before returning to the hotel was at The Snake Temple, which was built around 1850 in memory of Buddhist priest and healer, Chor Soo Kong. According to the legend, lots of snakes appeared when the temple was built and they have been there ever since. They are poisonous pit vipers, and apparently not restricted in their movement, so I decided to watch my steps very carefully.

However I was relieved to discover that the snakes were not crawling all over the temple, but were actually hanging in small bushes near the altar. It was still kind of exciting.... Some people there had non-venomous snakes that you could hold and take your picture with for money. However, these snakes were too small for me, as I won`t hold anything that is smaller than the Python in Bangkok :-)

Around 18.30 we were back at the hotel. Being quite hungry, and since the hotel restaurant only served breakfast, we decided to return to the Indian restaurant from last night. Tonight we had our most expencive meal so far, about 50 RM for both of us. It was certainly worth the money, though!

Before retiring to our room, we checked our e-mail at an Internet cafe just up the street from us. We had one PC each, used them for 1 hour and only paid the amazingly low price of 8 RM! I really love Malaysia!

Day 25 - July 21

We got up around 10.00 after having slept well for most of the night. Unfortunately, it appeared that my diarrhoea had returned, which I attributed to the Indian food from last night. Since I did not want to stay inside the room all day, I just took an Imodium tablet, hoping it would do the trick. For breakfast, I only drank some fruit juice.

Today we had planned on going up to Penang hill and see the apparently wonderful view of the island. Not knowing exactly how to get there, we headed over to the Komtar complex to ask at the Tourist information. It took us quite a while to find the information desk, though, as the complex is not easy to get an overview of. However, the woman there was very helpful, and answered our questions on getting to Penang hill and where to buy bus tickets to the Perhentian Islands, our next stop after Penang.

To buy tickets to the Perhentians, we had to go the bus station on the ground floor of the building, but first I had to rush to find a toilet, which I managed just in time...so much for Imodium!

On the ground floor there were several small ticket booths selling bus tickets to just about anywhere. Eventually we found the right one, and learned that there were two buses each day to the Perhentians. However, we decided to wait and see how my diarrhoea problems developed before making any reservations.

To get to Penang hill, we had the option of several different buses to a place called Air Itam, where we had to change to a bus going to the cable car. The bus trip went smoothly and we had no problems switching buses and getting off at the right place. Another nice thing about Malaysia is that they use the latin alphabet, making it easy to see where buses are headed. In Thailand this was not equally simple :-)

At the cable car station there was a long line of people. We had to wait a long time to get on the cable car, but I was feeling fine although slightly bored. The car was packed with people and went very slowly towards the top. Halfway up we had to change over to another cable car, but finding somewhere to sit was impossible. Unfortunately, my stomach was now starting to feel pretty bad, so I was relieved when we finally reached the top, enabling me to find a bench and sit down.

The pains in my stomach just got worse. In fact, I don't think I have ever had stomach pains (or any other pain for that matter) like this before. I couldn`t even speak for a little while and I really just wanted to cry (but I didn`t). I could tell my brother was rather worried, but the only thing I could was to take some painkillers. Fortunately, after about ten minutes the pain started to subside, and after a visit to the toilet and some more rest, I felt much better.

Although I was not in top form, we decided to go on a short walk around on top. It was certainly beautiful, but due to some mist, the view of the city was very unclear, which was a little disappointing.

I didn`t feel like staying up there much longer, and since we knew it would take a while to get down, we went to the cable car and waited in line. The cable car took a long time to arrive, but eventually it came and we just managed to squeeze in with the others. I was so happy to be going back to Cathay!

If I hadn't been feeling so bad, we would have taken the bus home again, but now we decided to take a taxi instead. Jan Arild went to get a taxi and negotiate a price, while I ran to find...yes, that`s right -- a toilet. The taxi ride cost us 12 RM, which was overpriced, but at the moment I didn't really care. We were back at the hotel around 18.00 and went straight to the room to relax.

Later in the evening I was feeling better, so we walked up to the KFC at Komtar because Jan Arild needed something to eat. I tried eating some mashed potatos, but this was a mistake. I immediately felt much worse, so we had to walk back to the hotel very quickly.

When Jan Arild was convinced that I could manage on my own, he went to the Internet cafe to get some information on the Perhentians. I just read and relaxed until he came back with lots of good news, some drinks and a Snickers for me.

On the Internet we had earlier read about the experiences of other people with the Perhentian Islands. There was one guy who had written very positively about the Perhentians, describing them as a tropical paradise. (In fact, to "preserve paradise", he was actually hesitant in revealing the location of the islands! We found this quite amusing since "everybody" knows about the Perhentians, one of Malaysia's most famous attractions, and thoroughly described in every travel guide book on Southeast Asia.) However, despite his generally positive attitude, I was left with the impression that there had been snakes and rats all over the place. I have a sort of "love-hate" relationship with snakes. They are fascinating creatures, but I didn`t really feel like going to the Perhentians if we were guaranteed of stumbling across several snakes daily!

Tonight Jan Arild had checked out the travel diary of some other Norwegians who also had visited the Perhentians. They hadn't written anything about seeing snakes or rats, and since we had more faith in these guys, we decided to travel to the Perhentians tomorrow night, unless I was still feeling bad.

We talked and made further plans until it was quite late, and didn`t go to bed until 23.40. I had to run to the toilet alot during the night, but at least I slept well in between.

Day 26 - July 22

We woke up at 10.00, but decided to just stay in our room, pack our bags and relax until checkout time at 12.00. I felt okay as long as I didn`t eat, and thought I should be able to sit on the bus all night. We had one last fresh fruit juice in the hotel restaurant before checking out and leaving our backpacks in the lobby.

First we went to the Komtar Complex to buy bus tickets to the Perhentians. However, there turned out to be no available seats for tonight. After a short discussion, we decided to buy tickets for tomorrow night instead. The cost was only 48 RM for two persons, plus 20 RM each for ferry transport to the islands! Having to postpone departure, was not really a problem, on the contrary I was a little relieved because it meant one more day to get better and one more night at the lovely Cathay!

Having organized this we were not sure what to do next. We had initially planned to visit the Kek Lok Si temple, but now we suddenly had an extra day, and since it was particularly hot outside today, we decided to postpone the temple until tomorrow. Instead, seeing a movie at the Komtar cinema seemed like a good idea. We were a little late, but Jan Arild got tickets to "The Perfect Storm" while I bought Coke and "sweet" popcorn. The film was okay, and the popcorn very good.

After the movie we walked around in the mall for a while. We spent some time in an arcade where Jan Arild played several video games. A new video game cost 0.50 RM to play, which is 5-10% of the Norwegian price! I watched and gave him moral support when he played multiplayer car games against the local Malaysian youth. He did very well and wanted me to join him, but I didn't want to since I suck at such games and take it very personally if I fail :-)

For simplicity we had dinner at KFC. My condition had improved a lot and I was now able to eat some mashed potatoes without suffering from any further problems. Since we were not leaving today after all, we needed a room for one more night. Fortunately, they had a vacant room at the Cathay. The new room was on the reception floor and was much smaller than the previous room. On the bright side, this room had a TV, though. We relaxed for a while before heading out again.

We decided to take a sightseeing of the area and walk some of the streets we hadn`t walked yet. It turned out to be quite a long walk, and we didn`t get back before late. There are no tuk-tuks in Penang, but instead there are "trishaws". These are bicycles with a passenger seat in front, and most of them seem to be driven by very old Chinese men. Some of these guys approached us and wanted to cycle us around Penang. However, we reclined their offers as it didn't really feel right to have a 90 year old, skinny, Chinese guy, looking as he could collapse and die at any moment, cycle around with two young and healthy individuals like us. I hope they understood that we avoided them for their own good :-)

First we walked around Chinatown before heading west. We went past lots of shops that sold fabrics, so of course we had to go in and have a look. It was just as cheap as in Thailand! I didn`t buy anything, though, because I was sure another opportunity would come later.

We stopped at probably the nicest KFC building in the world to have an ice cream. On the city map it seemed that our hotel was close to the sea, so we decided to walk down to the seaside and follow it back to the Cathay. This turned out to be easier said than done because between us and the sea there was a wooden fence that seemed to go on forever. After what seemed like several kilometres, we just gave up and went back home.

In the evening, we took advantage of having a TV in our room, to watch the video recordings Jan Arild had done so far. The events in Bangkok suddenly seemed such a long time ago.

Not having eaten much lately, I felt a little bit hungry, so we went to 7-11 and bought some drinks and a Snickers. On the way back we dropped by the Internet cafe. After having showered, we tried to use my cell phone to call home. We had attempted this earlier without success, but now it worked when I just dialed 00 first instead of 007 as written in the Lonely Planet. Everything was fine at home. To end the day we had a "night drink" in the restaurant - fresh apple juice of course!

Day 27 - July 23

Got up around 10.00 as usual. Just as yesterday, we ate our last breakfast at Cathay for now, and checked out just before 12.00, leaving our baggage at the hotel.

Today our plan was to visit the Kek Lok Si Temple, which is one of the main attractions of Penang. From the Komtar bus station we took the bus to Air Itam, just like two days ago when we visited Penang Hill. Then it was a only a 5 minute walk to the temple entrance. Unfortunately, this walk was partially through a narrow alley with shops and agressive salesmen on both sides. Somehow this just seemed wrong at a place which is supposed to be for meditation and contemplation. In addition, the there were also a lot of beggars. (Interestingly, although there were quite a few beggars on the streets of Penang, none of them were Chinese.)

The temple itself was truly amazing, though! It was so big and there didn't seem to be that many people there either. We took our time and I think we saw every part of it. The very top of the tower had a great view of the surrounding area. Not many other people seemed interested going up there, which was fine with us because then we could enjoy the view all by ourselves.

On our way down we bought a CD with "The Mantra of Amitabha Buddha". They had been playing it in the souvenir shop and the music had been very nice and relaxing.

We weren't quite sure on how to get back to the city again because we couldn't find any bus stop signs anywhere. WNor were there any buses going in our direction for a long time, so we were glad when the bus finally arrived.

It was very hot outside and we knew that "The Patriot" was starting at 15.00, so we decided on the bus to see it at the Komtar cinema. Time was 15.15 when we arrived at Komtar, but we still managed to get tickets and lots to drink without missing more than a few minutes of the beginning. It is strange that when you are on time they always show lots of commercials, but when you are late they start the film on time.....

Unfortunately, behind us in the cinema were some Chinese idiots that couldn`t stop talking. During the whole film they talked loudly to each other, which was extremely annoying!! One of them even made a call on his cell phone! We tried to hush them, but it never lasted long before they started talking again. When the film was over and the lights came on we turned around, looked at them and said something in Norwegian about how sad it is that some people are born without brains. Suddenly they looked very embarrased and hurried out. The film was okay, but would have been better if they had cut down the one hour long ending.

We ate lunch/dinner at Pizza Hut and then Jan Arild went to the arcade while I did some shopping. On meeting again we withdrew some money from an ATM to use on the Perhentians, before going to fetch our backpacks at the Cathay. The nice Chinese guy in the reception asked if we wanted to take a shower before leaving. We didn`t really need to, but we took some last pictures and thanked them for the pleasant stay.

We arrived early at the bus station, which gave us time to buy something to drink and find out exactly from where the bus was leaving. We were told to wait outside the ticket booth and they would tell us when the bus arrived. The bus was there before time and even left a few minutes early! The bus was really luxurious and had seats that could recline to an almost horisontal position. I've never had this much leg room on a bus before! We felt good when we said goodbye to Penang and drove across the long Penang Bridge connecting the island to the mainland.