Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

I'm in KL today, I had a 24 hour layover on my way to India. I'm so glad I've had a chance to check out the city - I'm definitely coming back! Malay people, so far, are the friendliest and politest people I've met! I hired a taxi, they call them 'limos' (ha) to take me around since my time is short. I've seen about everything there is to see in 3 hours. Raj dropped me off at the twin towers and I'm going to take the train from here to the airport.

I tell you, I have never been more ill prepared for a city! I had no idea where the hotel was in relation to the city center or what the exchange rate is. I asked my bus driver how much it would cost for a round trip to the city from the hotel and he said $200. Holy shit! Is that US dollars? I dont' even know what the Malaysian money is called...well now I do, but at the time I was a little taken aback. But I worked it out, got some cash & figured out I was 45 min away from the city, unless you drive like a true Malay, which is right up on people's bumpers, weaving in and out, cutting off scooters and flashing your lights, then it's only like 30 mins.

I met a girl in Auckland from Malaysia, she was going to the University of NZ. So I told her about my layover and she quickly made a list of places I had to go and where I had to eat. Most of the places I covered on my tour and for lunch I'm at the Twin Towers. Inside is like the San Francisco Shopping Center - layers of super upscale shopping and tons of people. But I made my way to Madame Kwan Restaurant and it's totally packed. Everyone that works in the towers eats in the food court or in the many restaurants, so I had to wait for a table of 1! Oh and did I tell you that I've been carrying around my pack, so I really look like a tourist not to mention I've taken out half of dozen people. Everyone walks really close together - the amount of personal space is a lot smaller than what I'm used to. Anyway, I order Nasi Lemak, b/c that's what's written on my list of things to eat in KL. I look at the picture - chicken, rice, I should be ok. The food comes and it's a PLATE of food. Chicken curry, just like mom makes, w/ a huge mound of coconut rice, some pickled onion things, two huge slices of cucumber, half a boiled egg, what tastes like powdered peanuts and a side dish of pickled/spiced cucumbers. OMG, I was in heaven! I licked my plate clean and it was less than $5 (US)! I had to watch the people on either side of me, b/c all I got was a fork and a spoon. They use the spoon instead of a knife, and eat w/ it rather than the fork, which is just used to push the food onto the spoon or hold it in place while you pull or cut w/ the spoon. There was a lot of clanking b/c the cucumber was so thick that you really had to put some pressure on the spoon to cut it - but everyone was doing it so I didn't feel eyes on me when my spoon hit the plate. What would have really sucked is if my cucumber had gone flying out from under my spoon. Which is definitely something that would have happened to me.

Christchurch

Yesterday I drove from Queenstown to Christchurch. I wish I had a couple more days there, b/c I would have loved to gone to Millford Sound, but that will have to wait until next time.

The drive was beautiful, this time green rolling hills & lots of sheep. It took about 6 hours, which passed fairly quickly, except for the last hour. The landscape turned flat and the wind was ridiculous, I wrestled with the car the entire time. Speaking of the car, I had to return it yesterday and I was kinda sad - that beast and I had been thru a lot together :)


I found my backpackers, New Excelsior, there's a sports bar on the first floor and then the rooms above. I was a little skeptical b/c yesterday was the final cricket match btwn the New Zealand Blacks and, I think, England. The whole country is way into cricket and rugby so I thought it might have been a little out of hand, but it was all very civilized.

I met a family from Israel who are vacationing together and all staying in a room here, mom, dad, brother, sister and cousin. They invited me to have dinner with them, but I had already eaten, considering it was 10pm when sat down. But the 'kids' invited me out, and we went to a place called Shooters. The drinking age here is 18, so everyone is super young. And the short skirts and daisy duke shorts were in full effect. Nonetheless it was fun, they played all the hip hop and house you could endure w/ videos. But I was tired from my drive and called it an early night at 1:30. I think that place stays open until 4 or 5 - of course I have to be in RARE form & with my girlfriends to stay out that late :)


I went to an outdoor market today and ran into Halee and Ray who design and make clothing. There stuff is super cool - and I told them that we would help get them started in the US :) so check them out at www.morphiccreations.com. It's a little spendy, but everything is unique.

I'm leaving for India tomorrow, well actually I have an overnight in Kuala Lumpur and then I'll be in India on Tuesday. Zahra is meeting me & I'm super excited to see her. So I probably wont have a chance to post for a few days.

Hope you guys are well! I miss you!

Queenstown

I just climbed a mountain.

I'm in Queenstown, land of extreme sports, and I climbed a mountain. I just couldn't hurl myself, willingly out of a plane or off a bridge.

My backpackers is walking distance from town. I'm on the second story flat, so it's me in my single room and then a 6-bed room. Last night 4 boys (and I purposely use that word b/c they're all 20!) from Sweden were my flatmates. We chatted after I got back from dinner for hours - they are just too sweet. For those of you who hae been to Europe, don't you find that people are so much more emotional and passionate? These 4 guys went to school together, grew up together and now have been living together for the last several months. They're always looking out for one another, it's just very sweet and endearing.
But getting on. So we talked about Sweden, California, music, surfing, I mean you name it, they were very engaging. At about midnight, they're putting their shoes on to go out, while I'm yawning and getting ready to go to bed. But they invite me along and I find myself accepting. So we head downtown and I'm so glad that I went b/c I had wanted to go to the World Bar, voted best bar in NZ by someone, b/c they serve their drinks in teapots! There's probably the equivalent of a drink or drink & a half, but they give you these teeny tiny shot glasses to drink out of. So the 5 of us split a teapot - it was so fun! The music was loud and they played a variety of stuff. The boys knew all the words to the songs (so did I :) so we sang and laughed til 2:30 (!)

I'm definitely becoming more comfortable in the backpackers accomodations, which is great b/c they're so cheap!

Oh, and I figured out how to get pictures up, I just need to find a place to plug in my camera, so hopefully by next post, I'll have visual aids :)

Franz Josef

OMG, I have done a ridiculous amount since my last post. I left Hokitika on Wednesday morning and drove to Franz Josef glacier (Say: gla-see-ier). As soon I got into town I went on a scenic flight over the glaciers and Mt. Cook. The plane looked like a sea plane w/ 8 seats including the pilot. So, lucky me, I got to sit in the cockpit w/ the pilot - It was so cool, I had like 5 seatbelts and got to wear the ridiculously large headseat. It was amazing, I must have snapped off 50 pictures of the glaciers and mountains....As if that wasnt enough, I did a quick hike to the glacier, it puts you 150m from the end of it. The path takes you through the dried river bed that was once the glacier, so there was a lot of traversing over rocks and boulders, it was so cool.

Back in town, yet again a 1 street town, I had a beer with views of the glaciers and mountains. It was stunning. Especially b/c at the lower elevation, and we were pretty much at sea level in town, the scenery is dense green forest and then as you look up, there are less trees and more snow, it's all very dramatic.

Today, I drove to Queenstown, and this was probably the best driving day I've had. I went through some of the BIGGEST & tallest mountain ranges. I think they look so big b/c you're driving right at the base of them, they're not in the distance, they're right outside the window! And then just as you think this can't get anymore amazing, a sapphire lake appears around the corner. I must have stopped 12 times in 4 hours - it's complete sensory overload. On my way, I stopped in Waneka, a little town right on the lake, and spent a few hours reading on the beach.

I've finally made it to Queenstown, I'm staying in a Backpackers called Alpine (or Aspen) Lodge and the first thing the reception guy asks is what am I going to do here? Well, get a beer for starters, but then after that I'm not sure. Well he gets into every extreme sport there is, b/c apparently that's what you do in Queenstown. I mean he gave me brochures for skydiving, river boarding (that's going down a river on a boogie board), bungee jumping, you name it, they have it here and really crazy stuff that they've invented just for Queenstown. Like the ZORB - you get into a giant plastic bubble and they roll you down a hill, right after they throw a bucket of water in the bubble just to make it even more thrilling. Oh, and YOU pay THEM.

Anyway, I'll let you know how crazy I get.

Hokitiki

I heard this on the radio this morning:
A mom and her kids are driving to school and from the car in front of them flies a huge dildo - it hits the windshield with a 'thonk' and then bounces off. Mom, not wanting to have to explain says, 'don't worry, that was just an insect'. And the little boy from the back responds 'Wow, can't believe that it could fly with a dick that big!"


I drove today from Motueke to Hikitiki which is on the west coast. It took pretty much all day, but the drive was amazing. It was definitely Lord of the Rings scenery. Huge, beautiful mountain ranges that plummeted down to valleys with wide, dark rivers running through them. Absoulutely amazing. It makes you feel pretty insignificant driving among such giants. I can't remember if I told you but the New Zealand PM during the depression, commissioned the planting of a zillion trees to generate work. There were about 170 varieties including the California Redwood, Austrailian Eucalyptus and some sort of Pine (these are just the ones I remember and can identify) anyway the result are these incredible hills with rows of trees! Logging is big here - I didnt know, but most of the wood goes to China. So you'll have these lush forests along side of a bare patch where they've cut down all the trees. They do, however, wait until the trees are 25 - 30 years old...so at least they're thinking. Almost 90% of NZ used to be covered in this amazing Rainforest type environment and it's really diminished over the last 100 years - to like 30% or something. I saw a topo map in the Te Papa museum in Wellington, it was pretty significant :(

I haven't really talked to you about the food here b/c its' kinda unremarkable. But what is remarkable is the variety. Even in a small, one street town, there will definitely be Thai & Indian, sometimes 2 of one kind! In the bigger towns/cities there is even more variety w/ Moroccan/Algerian, Ethiopian, Chinese, Japanese, you name it! So whatever I'm craving, I can usually find something. It's more expensive than I thought - they call appetizers, entrees and then 'dinners' are bigger plates. Everyone here eats w/ a fork and knife, no matter what is ont he plate - sandwiches, dinner roll, you name it. So here I go to pick up a sandwich, when everyone around me is clanking their silverware...it's all very civilized :)

So, I'm off to the glacier -Franz Josef. I'm thinking about splurging and taking a fixed wing flight over the glaciers and Mt. Cook. Everyone says thats the best way to see the glaciers - other than climbing over them which I'm not sure if I'm up to, but I'll let you know.

I'm still trying to figure out how to put pictures up on this blog, well I haven't tried that hard, but someone's working on a 1pg summary on how to do it -

Abel Tasman, NZ

I'd planned to stay in Nelson for 2 days while I explored Abel Tasman National Park, but I ended up in a little town called Motueka - another one street town. I'm so glad that things worked out like this b/c I'm closer to the park. Im staying in a backpackers called Happy Apples or something like that. I'm finding that if I tell the people at the I-Site (Visitor center) the type of backpacker place I'm looking for, they have just the thing, instead of me searching through my books. This place is great, only 20 rooms, a variety of ages and nationalities, and everyone is easy to talk to - definitley not my experience in the past.

I spent the day kayaking and walking in the Abel Tasman Park - absolutely unbeliveable. The landscapte is so beautiful that it brings tears to your eyes. The sea is the color of that crayon - I think its called aqua marine...it reminds me of the tropics, crystal clear and blue-green and the beaches have the perfect sand with perfect seashells to search for. Right behind, the mountains start and Abel Tasman Park practically shoots right out of the ocean. Its breathtaking. There are numerous multi-day hikes to take and when I come back I'm definitely doing one. Backpacking here is different than what I think of in that there are little huts to stay in overnight, instead of tent camping. Sounds doable!

I'm cutting this a little short b/c the computer is showing my letters 10seconds after I type and it's super annoying. More tomorrow!

Picton

So, I've spent 2 nights in this super cute town called Picton - I know it's a little premature, but of all the places in NZ I've vistited so far, i could totally live here :)
So yesterday I had a full day wine tasting tour. In the morning it was just 3 of us and then a bigger group joined us in the afternoon. Our bus driver/tour guide was George and I really think our paths were meant to cross. He's one of those people you meet and you feel like you've known them forever. George is barrel chested guy, around 60 or so. Apparently he just grew a fantastic beard in like 3 weeks b/c everywhere we went people would put their hands to their own faces and say "georgie, what happened?" Poor guy. But let's get back to the facial hair - so not only does he have this beard that amost reaches his eyes, but also tufts of white hair coming out of his ears, and a uni-brow that comes partly down the nose and has one or two really long squiggly ones. But it all added to his character...He had borderline inappropriate humor, which you know me, I just latched on to. So we had a good day of bantering back and forth. We tasted at about 6-7 wineries w/ a lunch in the middle. It was a great day :)
I was all about the Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir, but they do a fair amount of Reisling and Chardonnay. Like a trooper, I sampled everything.

So today, I'm driving from picton to Nelson along the Queen Charlotte Track - which is actually a 3-5 day backpacking trail. And tomorrow I'mhoping to get on a kayak/walk adventure in Able Tasman Park.

I dont know why this just popped into my head, but I've been meaning to tell you guys about it. So the first time I went to the bathroom at the Airport in NZ, I'm done w/ my business and I'm looking high and low for the flush and I'm thinking why is this so hard to find! Its not on the side or on top or on the floor. Damn. But I look up and on the wall behind the toilet is a panel that of course says 'push' and sure enough everything goes down. Ok, something new to get used to - but easy enough. Well that's not the end of it. In residences and hotels, the flush is on the top of the toilet and there are usually 2 buttons. Get this - a Half flush and a Full flush. GENIOUS! I haven't figured out which is which, b/c it doesn't look like there's more or less water, but what do i know, i just guess and cross my fingers all goes down :)

Feb 15, 2008 South Island, New Zealand

So I arrived by GIANT ferry today from Wellington in the North Island to Picton in the South Island.
(Wellington, if you didnt know, is the capital of New Zealand). I dove my car onto the ferry - oh did I tell you I was driving? :) very well I might add! After my first day of horror, everything just came together. I still have to think about little lefts and big rights, but for the most part I'm doing great. I have tried to enter the car from the left side about 3 times now - which is pretty good considering I've been driving for 5 days! No one seemed to notice and I totally played it off like I was getting something from the passenger seat - wink wink. Oh, but I did want to tell you a story about my drive in Coromendel. So it's day 2 of driving on this narrow, windy crazy road, where I'm on the left and I'm driving a huge SUV, and generally still uncomfortable. So I'm going east from Coromendel to the next town over on the east coast and then heading south. So i take this little road b/c it's shorter than taking the main road and about 10 minutes in, the sign says gravel next 20 km - seriously? I didn't know how long 20km was going to take me but at 40km/hr - well you do the math - on a dirt/gravel road. So i drive, 10 min go by and I'm thinking, 'what the hell am i doing?' logging trucks are squeezing me into the side of a mountain and dirt and gravel is flying everywhere and god forbid I get a flat or get stuck or freak out. But I'm breathing thru it and I get into the swing of the road - literally. I'm doing well until I come to a bright orangy-red reflective sign w/ a big exclamation point (!) on it. WTF - ! is right. what does that mean? Like 'oh shit - run for cover', 'or what is your dumbass doing out here?', or 'can i get a woop woop?' More to come when you see the picture.

Anyway, it's absolutely stunning here. Picton is a picturesque little town right on the water. This is where the Marlborough Sounds are - it totally reminds me of the San Juan Islands in Washington state. The huge mountains are only accentuated by the blue/green sea. I can't even take enough pictures to capture the beauty. I'm staying a a little B&B in Waikawa Bay - it's so cute, the owner, Rosemary asked if I wanted a spot of tea when I arrived...of course I said yes, b/c I'm just trying to soak it in and do the right thing. So she brings this tray down w/ the pot of tea and a slice of cake served with the most amazing yogurt I've ever tasted. Plain yogurt and cake, I know it sounds weird, but it was perfectly delicious.

I drove around for a bit, (b/c now I can do that w/o breaking into a sweat) and I'm in downtown Picton, which is one street about 6 blocks long :) Tomorrow I booked myself on an all day winetasting tour - hell ya! Because that's what they do here - they grow grapes! there are about 50 wineries in the area, I'm hoping we'll hit half.
So now that my blog is official, I'll try to update more often. Check back for more news from down unda'