The Historical City of Melaka

29 April 2013

Oh Best Beloved,

I'm missing a certain girl friend who found herself in this part of Southeast Asia last August. Well, I'll see her again this May and I guess we'll be bonding then.

When she came over with her cousin and younger sister, I achieved my first long driving milestone - we drove up a whole two-and-a-half-hours all the way to Melaka! Without a GPS! Haha! I already knew the way after going back and forth between Kuala Lumpur back in 2010 so I just followed the road signs. Then we found a parking lot and went around the historical city on foot.

Melaka is so... Red. Earthly red. I love the colours. It's different from Penang which mostly exudes the colour white. Oh but Melaka is really pretty in it's own way.

First church in Malaysia.

The back view of that beloved friend.

Steps.

Claiming the land.

The church-turned-fort-turned-gravesite-turned-tourist-spot.

Best beloved, we'll drive up here again next time. I want to eat the cendol and all the delicious Nyonya cuisine. :)

Soon,

Mari

Bali and Babi Guling

It's been 20 days since my last post. Whew. Sorry about that, folks. Been busy programming. Been busy exploring. Been busy eating Babi Guling.

I was in Bali for the first two weeks of April, finishing up something for work. It was a crazy experience. In all honesty, the trip was a lot like eating Babi Guling - tasty, mouthwatering, but extremely fattening - not really good for your health. Babi Guling is roast pig served with Bali spices and sambal. It's the Indonesian version of Lechon Baboy, complete with pork skin, pork rinds, and other unidentifiable pork parts. You'll enjoy it for the most part, but there are portions you can set aside and choose not to swallow.

Like the traffic. Ohmaygulay, the traffic. Now I know why my Indonesian officemate's driving is so frantic.

Oops, wasn't able to get a shot of the contents.

But let's just dwell on the good parts, shall we? Even though we were working, we still got to go around a bit. I'll let the following pictures (and their captions) speak for themselves:

Rice paddies at Bebek Tepi Sawah. Good view, good food!

Seaside dinner at New Matahari Cafe.

Tourist photo with the Batur Volcano in the background.

Bali Rice Terraces. A UNESCO World Heritage Site,
also shown in Eat Pray Love.

Man going around the fields.

Bali Sunset at Ayana Resort.

A temple at Tanah Lot.

Pilgrims. Plus my officemate's elbow.

Setting sun at Tanah Lot.

Dusk.

Some people have asked me if I would go back to Bali, even going as far as asking if I would choose to live there instead. To these I answered, "I'd go back, but just for vacation." Perhaps to do a bit more exploring or to do a bit more relaxing.

But though the predominantly Hindu island is a pretty place... Hmm. With the super high restaurant taxes and the crazy roads and traffic? I'm good staying in Malaysia for now, thank you very much.

Bali's good like Babi Guling is. But you can't really eat Babi Guling everyday. ;)

At least I can't. 

Well, here's to more exploring!

My Cup of Tea

Stealing some quiet moments alone. ;)

Mmmmmm.