Putrajaya has only been in existence for 20 years, built on nearly 50 km2 by the Govermnent of Malaysia to govern the country. It has all the Govermnent Departments and offices, houses for the workers, Mosque, leisure facilities, man made lake (650 hectares and designed as a cooling system and for recreation) and wetland area for recreation. The Prime Minister’s office (green domed building) and the Mosque were the first to be finished in 1999 and then the rest was started. They are still building today as the country has grown so much economically and is still growing. There are some amazing structures and everywhere is clean and well groomed. The roundabout close to the Prime Minister’s office is reputedly the largest in the world at 2.7 miles (you wouldn’t want to miss your turning!!)
All the workers have a house provided and enter a scheme during their working lives which provides for a house elsewhere when they retire - unless there is a member of their family working for the government, then they can stay where they are. No-one is left homeless after their service for the State.
The Mosque is beautiful and a unification of influences from all over the world, even the stained glass is from the UK. Where the marble has been cut out and inlaid, the original graining has grown back in the new inlay. Please take time to read the last sermon from the Prophet Muhammad, it might give you a different insight into the Muslim faith and its similarities with the Christian faith.
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Monday, 26 February 2018
Sunday, 25 February 2018
Wake up everyone !!
Took a cab this evening. It was driven by a Production Director at a manufacturing enterprise whose wife was an Auditor. He said their commitments, primarily their children’s education meant they were short of money. He drove for ‘Grab’ as a way to get extra money after the stress of his daily life.
He complained there were now so many further education facilities, many of them outreaches from British Universities, the city was full of graduates who couldn’t get a job. Immigrants were entering the country and taking jobs for lower pay. The Chinese are pouring money into Malaysia and Singapore, developing industry and residences but primarily for the benefit of the Chinese. Many of the apartments being built are not available to people living in those countries, rather they are only for the wealthy Chinese, sometimes as a buy one in China and get one free in Malaysia / Singapore
The problems the UK thinks are UK specific and due to the EU are not, the problems are world wide.
He complained there were now so many further education facilities, many of them outreaches from British Universities, the city was full of graduates who couldn’t get a job. Immigrants were entering the country and taking jobs for lower pay. The Chinese are pouring money into Malaysia and Singapore, developing industry and residences but primarily for the benefit of the Chinese. Many of the apartments being built are not available to people living in those countries, rather they are only for the wealthy Chinese, sometimes as a buy one in China and get one free in Malaysia / Singapore
The problems the UK thinks are UK specific and due to the EU are not, the problems are world wide.
Wednesday, 21 February 2018
Cambodia - Temple Tour
The main reason Siem Reap is as popular as it is, is the presence of lots and lots of Temples. The most famous being Angkor Wat, the oldest and largest religious complex in the world covering 162.6 hectares, regarded as one of the 7 wonders of the world. It is certainly impressive, the staircases up the temple as incredibly steep with only tiny tread. They must have had very small feet or gone up sideways :-)
Angkor Wat started off as a Hindu temple then later kings changed it to Buddhist (which is when the statues arrived). It later went back to Hindu and some statues removed. The windows were stone and filled with stone decorated circular pillars. Most of the statues of Buddha have lost their heads. They survived for 1000 years until the 1990s when they were removed by the Khmer Rouge during and following the war between Cambodia and Vietnam. The primary reason for the decapitation was not religious but fiscal - the heads were worth a lot of money !!!
The grounds are filled with so many smaller temples and libraries holding the teachings of the faith(s). Kings started new temples, then when they died, building stopped and the next ruler started a new one.
The holes in the stones are where sticks were inserted to facilitate moving them, some of them being several metres long. The stones were laid and the temples built before the stones were carved and decorated !!!
Angor Thom, I preferred as the carvings were depictions of life as opposed to religious belief at Angkor Wat. Everywhere on all temples were carvings of the Aspara, Hindu seductive, dancing girls - over 1800 at Angkor Wat alone. Angkor Thom’s All had (original) four Buddha heads in various states of happiness ie some were smiling.
The last Temple we visited was Ta Prohm a Buddhist temple built in the late 12th, early 13th Century. Like all the temples in the area, they stopped being used a long time ago and became overgrown and lost to sight. Angkor Wat survived relatively intact due to it’s incredibly strong foundations. This temple is famous for the Banyan and Kapok trees which have taken root and grown in the very structure of the building. It was famously used in the film ‘Lara Croft - Tomb Raider’ as were the other Temples visited. The most photographed bit being the Lara Croft scene where the tree roots cover the entrance door.
Please click here for PHOTOS
Angkor Wat started off as a Hindu temple then later kings changed it to Buddhist (which is when the statues arrived). It later went back to Hindu and some statues removed. The windows were stone and filled with stone decorated circular pillars. Most of the statues of Buddha have lost their heads. They survived for 1000 years until the 1990s when they were removed by the Khmer Rouge during and following the war between Cambodia and Vietnam. The primary reason for the decapitation was not religious but fiscal - the heads were worth a lot of money !!!
The grounds are filled with so many smaller temples and libraries holding the teachings of the faith(s). Kings started new temples, then when they died, building stopped and the next ruler started a new one.
The holes in the stones are where sticks were inserted to facilitate moving them, some of them being several metres long. The stones were laid and the temples built before the stones were carved and decorated !!!
Angor Thom, I preferred as the carvings were depictions of life as opposed to religious belief at Angkor Wat. Everywhere on all temples were carvings of the Aspara, Hindu seductive, dancing girls - over 1800 at Angkor Wat alone. Angkor Thom’s All had (original) four Buddha heads in various states of happiness ie some were smiling.
The last Temple we visited was Ta Prohm a Buddhist temple built in the late 12th, early 13th Century. Like all the temples in the area, they stopped being used a long time ago and became overgrown and lost to sight. Angkor Wat survived relatively intact due to it’s incredibly strong foundations. This temple is famous for the Banyan and Kapok trees which have taken root and grown in the very structure of the building. It was famously used in the film ‘Lara Croft - Tomb Raider’ as were the other Temples visited. The most photographed bit being the Lara Croft scene where the tree roots cover the entrance door.
Please click here for PHOTOS
Tuesday, 20 February 2018
Cambodia - Floating Village
First stop was to a Lotus (the flower) farm. Here ladies sat all day cutting lotus stems into about 10cm lengths and pulling out fibre from the centre of the stems. These fibres were then amalgamated, spun and turned into a very fine fabric for making clothing. End result was something akin to silk and so high end. The wooden structures on the shores of the lotus lake were weekend holiday cottages.
Onto Tonil Sap lake and aboard a boat from the jetty along a tributary to the main lake. At this time of year approaching the driest month of April, the lake is around 2500 km2. During the wet season is grows to around 16000 km2. Even now you couldn’t see the far side. The tall post with the arrows on top in the photo shows the height at full capacity. At this time of year rice and other crops are grown on land that will later be totally submerged, so all the houses at the edge are on stilts in readiness.
Around 170 villages sit around the lake with anything from 2000 to 6000 inhabitants. So a huge proportion of the population depend on the lake for their livelihood. There are schools, churches, Police stations, mosques, everything all floating. From time to time the village will up anchor and move to another part of the lake. The large mass of tied sticks are tethering points. You see lines and lines of what appears to be a few floating sticks; these are shrimp traps which are harvested bu women with big nets. They scoop out the twigs, shake off the shrimps and put the twigs back for next time. The crocodiles are all alive and are farmed by the villagers to produce fresh meat, jerky and produce leatherware for sale.
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Onto Tonil Sap lake and aboard a boat from the jetty along a tributary to the main lake. At this time of year approaching the driest month of April, the lake is around 2500 km2. During the wet season is grows to around 16000 km2. Even now you couldn’t see the far side. The tall post with the arrows on top in the photo shows the height at full capacity. At this time of year rice and other crops are grown on land that will later be totally submerged, so all the houses at the edge are on stilts in readiness.
Around 170 villages sit around the lake with anything from 2000 to 6000 inhabitants. So a huge proportion of the population depend on the lake for their livelihood. There are schools, churches, Police stations, mosques, everything all floating. From time to time the village will up anchor and move to another part of the lake. The large mass of tied sticks are tethering points. You see lines and lines of what appears to be a few floating sticks; these are shrimp traps which are harvested bu women with big nets. They scoop out the twigs, shake off the shrimps and put the twigs back for next time. The crocodiles are all alive and are farmed by the villagers to produce fresh meat, jerky and produce leatherware for sale.
Please click here for PHOTOS
Monday, 19 February 2018
Cambodia Day 1
First thoughts touching down a bit like Wales :-) - how green was my valley. Flat and lots of paddy fields. The airport at Siem Reap is new and low rise looking like traditional long wooden houses. You need a Visa to enter Cambodia, we had applied on-line whilst in Penang and had two copied printed. One inside the passport for arrival and one for departure. What we didn’t know was there was a setup inside the airport or processing applications for those without. At this time of year the queue didn’t appear too long, but still glad we had ours.
Everywhere we have been people have driven on the left due to the British influence, Cambodia however drove on the left due to being a one-time French Colony. The main road into Siem Reap was dual dual carriageway. There was a separate lane in both directions for bikes and Tuc Tucs - that save a lot of traffic problems.
The river running through the town/city appeared to be non flowing. I asked and was told it was because it had been dammed to develop into a beauty spot for the tourists. Didn’t do a lot for health, though with stagnant water in a hot climate. Amazed to see tree branches used as Acro props - not too amazed at the electrics (seen something similar in France albeit not so tangled, perhaps its a throwback ;-))
First night we went to the Phare Circus. Originating in France but using Cambodians, this is a sort of Cirque du Soleil performance of acrobatics and humour. Only lasting a hour but was one of the highlights of the trip
Please click here for PHOTOS
Everywhere we have been people have driven on the left due to the British influence, Cambodia however drove on the left due to being a one-time French Colony. The main road into Siem Reap was dual dual carriageway. There was a separate lane in both directions for bikes and Tuc Tucs - that save a lot of traffic problems.
The river running through the town/city appeared to be non flowing. I asked and was told it was because it had been dammed to develop into a beauty spot for the tourists. Didn’t do a lot for health, though with stagnant water in a hot climate. Amazed to see tree branches used as Acro props - not too amazed at the electrics (seen something similar in France albeit not so tangled, perhaps its a throwback ;-))
First night we went to the Phare Circus. Originating in France but using Cambodians, this is a sort of Cirque du Soleil performance of acrobatics and humour. Only lasting a hour but was one of the highlights of the trip
Please click here for PHOTOS
Saturday, 17 February 2018
Singapore Day 3
Day started meeting Jamie Dunn who I had not seen in 7 years since leaving work, it was as though it were last week. We arranged to meet in the lobby of Tower 3 on the Marina Bay Sands hotel. The mega hotel featured on UK TV - 3x 55-story towers with shopping malls on the ground (1 photo of the inside) so many hotel rooms and a huge boat like roof terrace across the top with a surface area of 1 hectare!!! Having a bar area and infinity pool (guests only). Jamie took us to the top where we spent a couple of hours chatting and admiring the view - spectacular. (Photos of the ‘Gardens by the Bay’ and the Pit Lane for the Singapore Grand Prix).
We had pre-bought tickets for the gardens, so after lunch in the food hall in the hotel, we walked to find them. I keep using the word spectacular but this area was so - mind blowing in fact. The two domed structures were the ‘Cloud Dome’ (the larger structure) and the ‘Flower Dome’. Photos are of the former (note the real pitcher plants alongside Lego creations :-) ). The flower dome was nowhere as dramatic as it was filled with so many plants we are familiar with.
On to ‘Supertree Grove’ These structures are between 25 and 50 metres tall with several of them linked with an aerial walkway. Due to numbers of visitors, you are only allowed 15 mins up there - but what a view. The central tree is the largest and has a bar and restaurant on top; once again a must do, so we did and watched the lights come on as it went dark - magical!!
Please click here for PHOTOS
We had pre-bought tickets for the gardens, so after lunch in the food hall in the hotel, we walked to find them. I keep using the word spectacular but this area was so - mind blowing in fact. The two domed structures were the ‘Cloud Dome’ (the larger structure) and the ‘Flower Dome’. Photos are of the former (note the real pitcher plants alongside Lego creations :-) ). The flower dome was nowhere as dramatic as it was filled with so many plants we are familiar with.
On to ‘Supertree Grove’ These structures are between 25 and 50 metres tall with several of them linked with an aerial walkway. Due to numbers of visitors, you are only allowed 15 mins up there - but what a view. The central tree is the largest and has a bar and restaurant on top; once again a must do, so we did and watched the lights come on as it went dark - magical!!
Please click here for PHOTOS
Friday, 16 February 2018
Singapore Day 2
New Year’s Day, the year of the dog - so we walk to Little India, obviously. To me this was a more defined Indian community than that at Penang. We avoided obvious eateries where lots so weterners were eating and ate at a place with a long queue on Indians and a recommendation from several of them. It was yummy and plentiful, even though they were constantly piling more rice on other diners’ banana leaves, we couln’t manage more!. I took the photo of ‘Bavaria’ because it was a German place with Chinese writing in Little India in Singapore :-D
We walked to take a look at Raffles knowing it was shut for renovations for 6 months but you just have to do these things.
Followed that with a City Tour bus ride round the Waterfront t section of the city - some amazing architecture.
We had booked into ‘Smoke and Mirrors for the evening as it is now the place to go for a Singapore Sling (once again, you have too do these things). The view was phenomenal. I thought KL was great but this blew us away. Fireworks at 9pm and light show at 9 and 10pm. Felt blessed to be there.
Please click here for PHOTOS
We walked to take a look at Raffles knowing it was shut for renovations for 6 months but you just have to do these things.
Followed that with a City Tour bus ride round the Waterfront t section of the city - some amazing architecture.
We had booked into ‘Smoke and Mirrors for the evening as it is now the place to go for a Singapore Sling (once again, you have too do these things). The view was phenomenal. I thought KL was great but this blew us away. Fireworks at 9pm and light show at 9 and 10pm. Felt blessed to be there.
Please click here for PHOTOS
Singapore - Day 1
Arrived gone 8pm on 15th Feb, Chinese New Year’s Eve, dumped our bags at the hotel and found our way to Chinatown on the MRT. Once again friendlies helped, guided and waited for us to buy tickets. Chinatown was crammed, totally. Found our way, very slowly to the street that counted down to midnight and let off some fireworks. Fireworks are banned for the public in Singapore, only allowed for Government and official events. This year is the Year of the Dog, hence the effigies.
Please click here for PHOTOS
Please click here for PHOTOS
Wednesday, 14 February 2018
Langkawi
Everyone we talked to when we said we were going to Langkawi said how beautiful it was. We were quite sad to leave Penang after four weeks there, it felt like home. Quite sad that was until we got to the place we had booked in Langkawi. A haven by the water’s edge. No beach but it wasn’t necessary as it had a glorious infinity pool metres from the water’s edge which was drastically reduced at high tide!!
We were there for 4 nights then moved to a small place in the hills for a further 4 nights, so we hired a car as there was no transport to get in and out of the place. Whilst there we went to two night markets with as much food as there were commercial stalls. The roads other than the main roads were very narrow and driving at night made trickier by the odd cow standing in the road. Back to the Ocean Residence for a further two nights, where we got the same room and the staff were so happy to see us back they put fruit in the room and a bag of crisps I had left behind was still in the cupboard. Could believe they were cutting fresh coconuts beside to pool so of course we had to partake. The water is allegedly better for you in the warm climate that fresh water.
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We were there for 4 nights then moved to a small place in the hills for a further 4 nights, so we hired a car as there was no transport to get in and out of the place. Whilst there we went to two night markets with as much food as there were commercial stalls. The roads other than the main roads were very narrow and driving at night made trickier by the odd cow standing in the road. Back to the Ocean Residence for a further two nights, where we got the same room and the staff were so happy to see us back they put fruit in the room and a bag of crisps I had left behind was still in the cupboard. Could believe they were cutting fresh coconuts beside to pool so of course we had to partake. The water is allegedly better for you in the warm climate that fresh water.
Please click here for PHOTOS
Saturday, 10 February 2018
Langkawi Sky Walk
Continuing our tour of high walkways we had wanted to visit this walk from the offset. The cable car up to the walk is the steepest in the world at 42% steepocity :-)
Stunning views from up there that can’t really be reproduced by a camera. There was a funicular from the very top to the start of the walk but we reneged on that and took the steep walkway to it. A walkway that consisted of a twisty turny set of stairs with uneven treads.
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Stunning views from up there that can’t really be reproduced by a camera. There was a funicular from the very top to the start of the walk but we reneged on that and took the steep walkway to it. A walkway that consisted of a twisty turny set of stairs with uneven treads.
Please click here for PHOTOS
Wednesday, 7 February 2018
Langkawi - Mangrove tour
We saw this tour advertised in the place we were staying , they said they would organise it so we said we’d go.
Car turned up at 08:30 to take us to the area at the north east of the island - beautiful long empty beach, a silver leaf monkey (the young of these are orange in colour) and a lot of tour organisers. It got near to the time to leave and the phone rings - ‘where are you? You’ve gone in the wrong car and are now at the wrong place!!’ Panic set in until we learned the place we were supposed to be was about 500m away. Somehow a rival tour company arrived at the Hotel and we (and they) put two and two together and hey presto....... Anyway at the new location were all the tour boats and everything was sorted and got aboard. About 15 people and 7 nationalities and an English speaking guide.
First stop was a little cove where the guide threw a few bits of something over the side and the water started boiling with hundreds of beautiful coloured fish. On to the next area to be met with upwards of 15 eagles flying around. Apparently this are was a breeding area for the fish and the eagles new this, so it was a meal time.
Next we encountered a family of macaques near and IN the water. These we learned were a newly designated sub-species as they had a penchant for crabs. Normally monkeys don’t go in the water but these had learned that crabs were a source of fresh water when broken open. So they has taken to swimming and diving for crabs - amazing.
On to a floating fish farm where we chose a fish to be prepared for our lunch later. Last stop was a bat cave with no evidence of the man himself ;-). Back to the farm for lunch, a ride back and 30 mins on the glorious beach before the car ride (in the right car) back to the Hotel. A full and interesting day out was had by one and all.
Our guide reckoned the mangroves helped protect Langkawi from the full effects of the 2004 tsunami. Not sure that was so, more the fact there are 100 or more small islands surrounding it that took the sting out of it. Apparently only 1 person on Langkawi died at that time and that was from a heart attack !!
Please click here for PHOTOS
Car turned up at 08:30 to take us to the area at the north east of the island - beautiful long empty beach, a silver leaf monkey (the young of these are orange in colour) and a lot of tour organisers. It got near to the time to leave and the phone rings - ‘where are you? You’ve gone in the wrong car and are now at the wrong place!!’ Panic set in until we learned the place we were supposed to be was about 500m away. Somehow a rival tour company arrived at the Hotel and we (and they) put two and two together and hey presto....... Anyway at the new location were all the tour boats and everything was sorted and got aboard. About 15 people and 7 nationalities and an English speaking guide.
First stop was a little cove where the guide threw a few bits of something over the side and the water started boiling with hundreds of beautiful coloured fish. On to the next area to be met with upwards of 15 eagles flying around. Apparently this are was a breeding area for the fish and the eagles new this, so it was a meal time.
Next we encountered a family of macaques near and IN the water. These we learned were a newly designated sub-species as they had a penchant for crabs. Normally monkeys don’t go in the water but these had learned that crabs were a source of fresh water when broken open. So they has taken to swimming and diving for crabs - amazing.
On to a floating fish farm where we chose a fish to be prepared for our lunch later. Last stop was a bat cave with no evidence of the man himself ;-). Back to the farm for lunch, a ride back and 30 mins on the glorious beach before the car ride (in the right car) back to the Hotel. A full and interesting day out was had by one and all.
Our guide reckoned the mangroves helped protect Langkawi from the full effects of the 2004 tsunami. Not sure that was so, more the fact there are 100 or more small islands surrounding it that took the sting out of it. Apparently only 1 person on Langkawi died at that time and that was from a heart attack !!
Please click here for PHOTOS
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