On the Road Again

Seasons Greetings Scumbags!

Well, it's that time of year again. It's holiday time and I'm thankful for one thing—not spending it doing nothing. When you get three weeks of holiday—undoubtedly the best perk of my job—you've got plenty of time to head out for a serious trip. I didn't waste any time and took off on Friday, flew to Batam, took the ferry to Singapore, stayed one night there and then was off to Malaysia. I'm only three days in and it's fucking great!

I've got to say that, so far anyway, Malaysia is outstanding. I wasn't in Johor for 30 minutes and I'd already acquired a SIM card, had a wonderful Indian meal, tried 'bahulu or baulu' (a traditional Malaysian cake that is delicious) and met a semi-famous cook that agreed to show me around town that night. I found a hotel for a whopping 50 ringgit, cleaned up and it was on. I had some beers in the middle of town, wandered around in the night market, strolled along the harbor, ate the best 'pecel lele' I've ever had and watched Malaysia defeat Vietnam in the Suzuki Cup. A successful night? Yes, I think so.

The trip to Melaka was anything but painful. Unlike in Indonesia, getting a ticket was remarkably straightforward, they didn't try to rip me off with blatant disregard (aside from the food, probably the best thing I've observed), the bus was posh, the road was actually a road (a motorway to be more exact) and in a bit over two hours, I was over 200km away and in a mild state of shock. As a plus, the drive there was incredibly scenic. The road cuts through rather thick jungle and it's just gorgeous.

At first, Melaka didn't really do much for me. It was jammed with Chinese and Singaporean tourists, whatever Dutch and Portuguese influence there was is practically gone now and I saw most of the sights in just a few hours. I thought it would be a one and done city, but last night, I changed my mind. First, the food is fucking phenomenal. Chicken rice, laksa, Indian, cendol, satay, etc.: this place has got the goods. Best of all, it's cheap as chips and available everywhere. I scored a room for 15 ringgit, so with my unexpected savings, I went out and had numerous beers, hungout with some super cool people and I'm going to give it another go today since all the tourists have gone home. Tomorrow, I'm off to Kuala Lumpur.

So, Merry Christmas to those of you that celebrate. Enjoy it wherever you may be. For me, as long as I've got a place to lay my head, a belly full of good food and some cold beer, I'll be smiling. Until next time...