Malaysia

Entry into Malaysia from Singapore couldn't really have been any easier. Zero security checks other than a cursory passport glance, and no baggage search of any kind, something we've begun to accept as part of the world's more security concious stance. Clearly, this isn't something the Malaysian's deem to be an issue, and so within the hour of leaving the bus station in central Singapore, we were through immigration and wandering aimlessly around the streets of the southern town of Johor Bahru. We'd thought long and hard about making a stop in Malaka, some two hundred kilometres further up the west coast, but instead decided to skip straight through to Kuala Lumpur and spend the obligatory few days there.

As a country that has ninety percent of it's land mass immersed in tropical jungle, it's no surprise that Kuala Lumpur (or KL as it is known by the locals) boasts as many trees and open green spaces as it does skyscrapers. Previously a tin-mining frontier, it has now matured into an affluent capital where the resident Chinese, Indians and Malays mix in the workplace but maintain their separate beliefs and cultures.

With limited time, our aim was to take in some of the main sights, and so we headed out on our first night into the bustling markets of Chinatown and it's huge array of streetside cafe's where we sat to eat and take in the sights and sounds of this swarming area. The following morning, we were up early to head to the opposite side of town and the looming presence of the Petronas Towers, which up until 2004 was the tallest skyscraper in the world. These are the elegant headquarters of the national petroleum company, but the lower levels have been transformed into a huge six-level shopping centre to further entice the visitors. Instead of taking the lift up to the limited views from the bridge which spans the two towers, we headed across town to check out the city from the telecommunications tower.

With one day left to kill, we took a taxi fifteen kilometres out of the city to Batu Caves. After climbing the arduous two-hundred-and-seventy-two steps behind a giant golden statue to reach the jaws of the caves, we were a little disappointed to find a large and unimpressive rocky hole, complete with scaffolding, industrial lighting and a selection of the usual tacky stalls. Of the three caves which were meant to be on offer, two were out of action and the trip turned into a little bit of a waste of time. The saving grace came in the most unlikely form of the taxi driver who took us back to the city. This chap seemed a little unhappy with the country's policy of citizenship, and was only too pleased to tell us all forcefully about it. As a sixth generation Indian born and raised in Malaysia but still without the right to hold a Malay passport, this grieved him no end, and he ranted and raved about the way that many of the Chinese and Indians are given no respect in a country they've contributed to their whole lives. In fairness, we could see his point, but the way in which it was ranted to us only served to give us more reason to play along and not antagonise him further.

Leaving the city behind, we jumped a bus inland to the oldest official protected area in the country, Taman Negara National Park, covering an impressive 4,343 square kilometres. We began our journey with what seemed like a slightly excessive three hour boat ride down the Tembeling River to reach the base for our park exploration at the village of Kuala Tahan. Many exploratory trips run out of this small but steadily developing riverside village, and after our long days travel the only option left open to us on our first night was the evening Safari tour. Clambering aboard the back of our jeep, we were driven out into the darkness of the palm-oil plantations in the search of some nocturnal wildlife. We had the feeling that the sound of an approaching vehicle would only serve to scare away any resident animals, and our theories were duly backed up when we returned with nothing more than the memories of a large, motionless tree snake, a very fleeting look at a Tapir (small wild cat) and the humour of seeing a sleeping bird looking distinclty puzzled at having a bright torchlight shone in it's face while it tried to get some shut-eye.

The next morning we were up early to take a walk into the heart of the 130 million year old rainforest. Again, a short riverboat ride dropped us at our start point and the three of us, accompanied by a bunch of six other mildly strange tourists, made the ascent to the awaiting canopy walk. It's strange the things you tend to do without a moments thought when you're travelling, and walking along a few makeshift ladders, held together with rope and suspended one-hundred-feet above the ground is no exception. Althought the views weren't entirely unpleasant, you couldn't help but wonder whether the engineering was quite as sound as it should have been. Safely back on the ground, there was more trekking to be done into the hills, and the stifling ninety percent humidity was by now starting to take it's toll. A steady hour-long climb took us to the summit of Bukit Teresek and a couple of mediocre photo opportunities before it was time to turn around and complete the whole thing in reverse.

After a restful lunch on one of the floating barge restaurants which line the river, we headed off to an Aboriginal village to meet the Orangi people who reside there. The makeshift looking shacks built from raw materials such as straw, vines and collected timber create a startling realisation of how some people in this part of the world choose to live. The government have left these people to their own devices for a long time now, knowing that to remove them when they wish to stay would simply not serve any purpose, and the kids who run around with grins on their faces are testament to the fact that they are happy where they are. Admittedly, one young lad inparticular didn't take enough care to hide the mobile phone which proudly hung around his neck and managed to ruin the illusion slightly. We met a small family briefly, and were then told all about the history of the settlements in the area, their traditions and lifestyles. The tribes have finally begun to accept aid from the government in the form of healthcare and the small amounts that tourism brings, but other than this, generally live day-to-day by their own means. While here, we also tried our hand at using their primitive form of hunting weapon: the Blowpipe. Usually, the darts are laced with a poison and they aim the five-foot-long shooter at live animals, but we had to be content with normal darts and a small green stuffed duck. Myself and Jan came close, but it was Sarah who actually managed to spear the little fella and we haven't heard the last of it since.

After our couple of days in the wilderness, it was time for another almost full days travel to reach the highly recommended Perhentian Islands which lie twenty kilometres off the north-east coast. Composed of Pulau Besar (Big Island) and Kecil (Small), these are supposedly Malaysia's showpiece islands, and we were keen to check them out for ourselves and grab a slice of paradise. In truth, the rumours weren't far wrong, the sand at Long Beach on Kecil glistened white and the beautifully clear turquoise water lapped calmly at the shore. Without really planning to, we spent a relaxing six days here, grabbing some very standard beach-hut accommodation (dark, smelly bathroom, grotty bedsheets and an unlimited supply of Mosquito's thrown in for free!) and met a few equally chilled out travellers. Although it was mostly a case of bumming around and drinking the local amber nectar over sunset, we did abandon our laziness for a full days snorkelling around the bays, an experience which was slightly marred by the presence of several hundred small jellyfish which, according to our guide, had come to the area much sooner than was usual for the time of year. It was difficult to take much of what he said in earnest however, as after just ten minutes of leaving the first beach he'd managed to get himself and the boats 'captain' completely stoned and mostly incomprehensible.

Sooner or later though, we thought it was time to get going and the imminent arrival of our friend from home meant that we needed to get ourselves over into Thailand for what would hopefully be a merry reunion of island hopping...

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