Lizzie's Next Adventure

Every guide I had in Malaysia, was diligent in giving an overview of the country’s history.  First colonized by the Portuguese, then the Dutch, then finally the British.  The Japanese occupied Malaysia from 1942 to 1945  They gained independence in 1957 from the British, but are in the Commonwealth. We toured the Dutch square and visited a really nice museum.   Portuguese Duds Dutch Square We saw the remnants of Porta D’Santiago built by Alfonso De Albuquerque in 1511.  The Portuguese held it for 130 years before the Dutch took over. The other interesting thing I learned is that the property tax in the colonial days for a home was based on the width of the house, so in the old colonial area the houses are ‘thin’ and very long I ended the day with a massage… not a bad day :) 

Langkawi, a cluster of 99 islands separated from mainland Malaysia by the Strait of Malacca. It was the first stop in Malaysia. It was kind of a round about tour up and down the coast of Malaysia… first stop Langkawi, then all the way down to Malacca (also spelled Melaka), then back up to Penang, and finally back down to Kuala Lumpur.  Getting my frequent nautical miles!! So what can I say about Langkawi..they are kind of the Avis of stops in Malaysia… they try harder!  They have pretty much only tourism.. and were really devastated by the COVID…  The local govt has built a craft center… highlighting local work…I couldn’t find anything to buy… I know shocker Then we went to the tomb of Makam Mahsuri … a woman wrongfully accused of adultery and then put to death!! And then she cursed the island for 7 generations!  She was pissed:). Her tomb is a museum. It was interesting, all the museums we had visited - had English translations. Not the Malaysian. So it was a bit to...

So… Patong Beach was kind of a pit… it’s just bar after bar… after bar… makes Burbon Street look like Main Street at Disneyland… not really my thing. A little overwhelming! The next day I was on an organized tour … a lot tamer :). Highlights of Phuket here is my traveling togs: Saw the following sites: Laem Promthep Wat Chai Tharam Cashew Factory Yet another rubber plantation Talat Yai Some photos from a few of the places. But now I know why cashews are so expensive !! Elephant shrine at Promthep Cape.. make a wish if it comes true… you need to bring back an elephant… I wonder if the size of the elephant has to do with the size of the wish? Wat Chai Tharam… Chalong temple.  You place gold leaf squares on the statues for blessings I thought the flower arrangement was beautiful… and there sure were a lot of buddhas.! And my favorite part… the fire works …in an ‘urn’… didn’t see any extinguisher around?? The cashew factory…. The first photo is the ‘fruit of the cashew tree’. The nut i...

  Morning update… up early for a massage. Then breakfast… then a nap! I feel like a cat 🐯… Not a lot blog worthy… I did some reading… went for a walk and had an iced coffee at Barista’s a popular hot spot on the boat ( they also serve Aperole spritzes!) Went for an early evening walk and then ordered a pizza to be delivered to my suite and made a Negroni (as Jack Rico said… a perfect pairing) … and watched what might be the worst sequel I have ever seen… my big fat Greek wedding 3 :(. But the pizza and the booze was good!   Here is a preview for the 20th of January… we anchored off of Patong beach in Emerald Bay… and while I was having breakfast… I noticed this… Yes that is an elephant! I’m not in Kansas anymore 😉

 Good morning from the Laccadive Sea… and yes another time zone change last night!! And yes time zone impaired Liz screwed it up… thank goodness I woke in time for my hair color appointment… good news I’m not blond..  nor do I have the hip and trendy balayage. And this is for the Kleinsorg women…Nitesh drys my hair better than Kenny… shocker😆 Update from the bridge cam.  For those of you nautically inclined, our heading is 86.1 degrees with a blistering speed of 18.2 knots! Spent the day relaxing… doing the New York Times crossword, sudoku and connections :) Yes I am a geek. A lovely dinner at Jacques… all by myself (arranged by Sajeer).  Night to all!!!

  Still not feeling 100%… so decided to take it easy on the boat today..  do a little work and reading pleasure.  Here is what I was supposed to see Mulkirigala Buddhist Temple   I wouldn’t have made it… glad I didn’t go. Haven’t done my  morning constitutional yet… so maybe I’ll make it a sunset day… we leave tonight for 2 days at sea (yes I love the days at sea) before arriving in Phuket, Thailand…. So during the days at sea… I’m going to get my hair colored… fingers crossed… keep asking me if I want to ‘change’ my color… yikes Here is what the pool deck looks like while everyone is ashore. Lovely End of the day.. feel back to normal. Got dressed up and went out to dinner at the Grand Dinning Room.  Good night for now. 

  So today I was off to visit a tea plantation… and bonus… rubber plantation too. First pictures are of rubber trees and how the sap is gathered. This guy went around from tree to tree emptying the little cups into a big bucket. Here are the tea plant fields (or are they orchards?). The tall trees are ‘nitrogen producers’ and natural fertilizers… (that’s for you Jack Rico) Then the tea is handpicked and processed in the factory.  We were not supposed to take photos in the factory… so I took one of the process flow diagram (the engineers in the group will LOVE this:)) And of course… we had to exit through the ‘gift shop’.  In this case the ‘original supervisors cottage’ where we had tea and what looked and tasted like pound cake! Notice the use of corrugated metal… note to self another use for cortex steel:) That was the good news… later that afternoon (thank god after I got back the ship!!) I developed a little stomach bug… spent the evening in my room.  My butler (t...