the perhentian islands, malaysia [photos]

kuala lumpur, malaysia

I spent the past week on vacation in Kuala Lumpur and the Perhentian Islands, both in Malaysia. I stayed with a friend from my program at school, which is always the easiest way to see a new place. The day I got there turned out to be the first time that Malaysia Day, which celebrates the joining of the different parts of Malaysia, was celebrated as a federal public holiday. So after drinks at the Colisseum Cafe in Little India (pictured above), my friend, her friend and I went to the Central Market Annexe, a very cool and active art gallery. For Malaysia Day, the Annexe was hosting a photo exhibition and traditional instrument (called a "sape") performance by a group of indigenous people from Sarawak. As elsewhere, these indigenous people were screwed over by the government, primarily their Chief Minister, who offered voluntary resettlement and compensation in exchange for their land so that the government could build dams. Though it has been more than a decade, the government has not taken care of the indigenous people whose land they have used to become extremely rich. We spoke to a woman afterwards whose father grew up in Sarawak, and she said that there are many allegations of corruption and manipulation surrouding the dams as well as logging in the area. Below is a picture of a Malay Muslim girl in the crowd taking a photo of the indigenous performers and a video of the performance. Other ethnic groups in Malaysia include Indians and Chinese, all of whom dress differently, making subway rides visually interesting. The video below reminds me of American Native American dancing. (Apologies for the breaks in sound when I zoomed in; I'm not used to the video function.)

I'd heard about "Doctor Fish" before, small toothless fish who nibble the dead skin off your feet. The most famous fish spa is located in Turkey, and has been operating since the early 1900s. Since then, its spread to several Asian countries and the US. I went to an aquarium at the mall, where they had a small spa to stick your feet in for a half hour. I'm unsure whether its actually effective, or if the reports of smoother feet or improved foot health afterward are due merely to soaking your feet in water, but it was an interesting (one-time) experience. The video below shows how much more dead skin there apparently was on my left foot than my right! Check those little suckers (pun intended) out. Yes, it tickled, and yes, it itched, but only at first. Here's an article in the Irish press about the process.

The Lake Gardens, a large public garden in the middle of the city, was a highlight of the trip. Below are some photos of the city skyline from the park and the National Monument.

the beach + three meals

This past weekend, the organization I work for organized an all-staff meeting in a beach town about 4 hours away from Phnom Penh, Sihanoukville. Though most of my time was spent trying to take the minutes of the meeting (it was held in Khmer...), I did manage to use breakfast time to soak up some early morning sun. The woman in the foreground was one of several selling snacks.
That night, there was a big dinner, where everyone played musical chairs (the girl in the leopard print won the women's round by pulling out the chair from under the girl in the red shirt!), ate lots of seafood (including delicious whole shrimp that you peeled yourself and dipped in spicy sweet and sour sauce), and sang karaoke. Below is one of a series of a photos that these girls and I took while waiting for the food to be ready. From left: Randi, Chakriya, me, and Viceka. Their English is excellent, as two of them have university degrees, and they're a lot of fun, if you can't tell from the big smiles on their faces!
The next morning, I stumbled upon a little seaside restaurant (literally, seaside - no problem getting a table with a view here!) and enjoyed one of the most relaxing breakfasts I've ever had. The beach was nothing fancy, no dramatic rock cliffs or picturesque harbor, just sand that gave way to waves and wide open sky, but there was something peaceful about that. Soundtrack: Colbie Caillat and Santogold.

And on the way back to Phnom Penh, the group stopped for more whole boiled shrimp and crab in these little seaside shacks with hammocks inside.

That night for dinner, I heated up a frozen pepperoni pizza and ate it on the porch of my lovely new apartment (more pictures to come later!). Not a bad set of meals for a Monday!