Georgetown and Kuala Lumpur

After we reluctantly came down from the coolth of the Cameron Highlands, we found ourselves on the ferry to Georgetown, the main city of Penang, an island off the west coast of peninsular Maylasia. Georgetown has a reputation as a culinary and cultural center of Malaysia, and held an important role as a trading center in the past. With Bart and Sabine and notherBelgian friend, Stijn, we made merry at an open air food court where we could sample all different kinds of snacks, and attempted an historical walking tour of the town. A small place, Georgetown seemed most special to me for it's architecture, a hodge-podge of chinese temples, mosques, colonial architecture, rich old merchant mansions, dusty concrete store fronts and apartments, etc.

We had just this short visit in Georgetown to get the flavor of the place before heading back to KL where we planned to have a quick visit around the city before catching our flight to India. Once back in the big city, we were amazed by the efficient public transportation, easily navigating the metro to criss-cross town, going first to the KL tower for it's panaramic views of the city, and then over to a museum and garden complex where we got a good overview of Malaysian history - particularly interesting in light of the great diversity within the country as well as its fast development. Finally, we raced back to the guesthouse to pick up our bags before taking the commuter train out to the suburbs where a family friend of my parents hosted us to a great dinner, interesting discussion, warm showers, and a ride to the airport the next morning.