Lizzie's Next Adventure

Relaxing day… manicure and some work… oh and of course eating!  Went to the Solo traveler mixer last night… almost all women… interesting mix. I sat next to the social director Christina and this lovely little woman named Diane… she was a hoot.   Christina and some of the crew went to a Cold Play concert in Singapore ! Here is a trick to get your name in the post if it doesn’t come up automatically… I have to do this when I respond.. Yes I do need a better IT department Tomorrow Brunei…. Had to fill out an electronic arrival card… thought you would all get a kick out of it… they aren’t kidding around.  I’m not even bringing Advil on shore😐

Day 2 in Singapore…. I know you are wondering where is the picture of the Crazy Rich Asian movie hotel… well from the bus they weren’t very good … but there will be photos today.  Took an organized tour today - one of the small ones. One of my new friends June was on this tour - she is from Florida - her husband was pooped from the tours the day before, so we hung out together.. Before we got to our first stop, our guide, who was fabulous, gave us a brief history of Singapore - very interesting.  They broke off from Malaysia - when the Malaysian prime minister, stated “Malaysia for Malaysians”….  they are now known as the Switzerland of Asia.   First stop was the National Orchid Garden… stunning Here is a fun fact… for $10,000 you can have an orchid hybrid made for you and named after you!!!!  The garden is in what is called District 10, where the old money in Singapore lives!  This is also where the Crazy Rich Asian house is located The willow trees so beautiful Our next stop was the

One of my old friends makes fun of me… because I always say… I could live there:). Well Singapore… I could live there!!!  It is amazingly clean and green and beautiful… with great architecture and shopping. The first day I got on the hop-on hop-off bus for a tour all the way around the city.  here a few pics from the bus Greenery along the streets Cool new architecture Cool old architecture with a new twist The Art and Science Museum  Then I hopped off the bus and walked around, shopped, ate and sweated… it is hot… and this is there cool season - we are one degree north of the equator.  I took a cab back to ship… and had a pizza for dinner :). Here are pics of the rest of the day The Ion Mall Orchard Road !! Lunch at Que Pasa Josef and Conny recommendation If you look closely at the signs… 2 of my favorites Gin and Laurent-Perrier Champagne Cheese plate and 2 beers :) Beautiful Emerald Hill Road Historic Shop houses built between 1901 and 1925 The view from my deck  This is Sentosa Isl

Port Klang…. About an hour away from Kuala Lumpur.  So the first day did the highlights of KL (as the locals say).  The tour included the following highlights: Royal Selangor - pewter factory Petronas Twin Towers Tun Abdul Razak Memorial and National Mosque Independence Square and Old Railway Station Central Market We had a monsoon in the middle of the tour… which made a few of the stops just ‘bus stops’.. but the last place was the Central Market.  The market was a fun happening, I hung out with Barbara another solo traveler… I actually did some bartering and bought a really cute purse and some silk ‘wrap pants’… pictures below with a bit of commentary I did buy a money tree and Zodiac Figurine for 1957 Great tour - saw them pour the pewter into molds, polishing etc… and for some reason I didn’t take any photos And no… i did not buy and Star Wars characters !!!  Petronas Twin Towers and me Why we didn’t get out of the bus Of course no pics… but Central Market was an Art Deco Building

So far my favorite place in Malaysia has been Penang.  Our first stop was Chew Jetty.  The Clan Jetties of Penang are historic Chinese villages built out over the water on long jetties . Typically, each Jetty belongs to a single family clan, with dozens of wooden houses on each. Located in George Town, Malaysia, they are UNESCO sites . Home on the Chew Jetty A view of the Lim Jetty I think the Lee Jetty The next stop on the tour was the Khoo Konsgi - this is a Chinese clan association it is a collection of buildings and the really cool clan house Leong San Tong. Here is an outline of the clan buildings.  I wish we would have spent more time here and a discussion of the architecture. Here is a photo of the clan house and a close up of some of the stone cravings.  The link provides a lot of information With Chinese New Years coming up… and the streets are being decorated.  These areas were particularly lovely Then it was on to a  Chaiya Mangalaram Thai Buddhist Temple for the reclining