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We flew from Bangkok into Kuala Lumpur. We met our friend Sue Gee (an exchange student whom I befriended at WMU) and her family was kind enough to let us stay at their home. They drove us to the infamous Hindu Batu Caves, a limestone hill in the north of Kuala Lumpur which has a series of beautiful caves.

The next day we headed to Taman Negara, a 140 million year old rainforest in Peninsular Malaysia (older than any rainforest in the world, even South America and Africa. The forest has been always been a protected nature reserve. The jungle contains over 10,000 species of plants and 350 species of birds. Local mammals include mouse deer, barking deer, tapirs, wild boars, elephants, rhinos, leopards, tigers, and monkeys. We were able to stay with the Orang Asili tribe in the jungle, natives whom live off the land. They have no electricity and hunt with poison blow darts and live in man-made huts made of straw and wood. We were able to stay with them by presenting the chief with a gift. In return, he gave us a hut to sleep in and even took us hunting in the jungle during the dark of the night. Our guides pointed out many different plant and animal species to us, including deer, deer mouse, bird-eating tarantulas, inch-long ants, many different birds, and a really interesting glow in the dark mushroom. The rain forest is not a quiet place. In some respects it is as noisy as any big city with a cacophony of insect noises, bird calls, and animal cries that goes on night and day. We heard strange sounds during the night, and the chief told us the noises we heard were native tigers (only 200 remain in the entire 4,343 sq. km Jungle). We also went white-water rafting, which was very exciting.






After a few days in Taman Negara, we returned to KL, where we visited little India, Chinatown, and the infamous Petronas Towers. Of course, we stopped at the Hard Rock Cafe on Valentines Day.

I won't get into much detail, because Amara really wants to do this entry but has busy. She will do a detailed summary of these events in a latter entry. So, to sum it up:

Jan 20 - took a trip to Vietnam's magnificent Ha Long Bay

Jan 21st - flew into Bangkok to meet with friends Ryan and Meeyan
Jan 22nd - took an all day bus to Chumpton, where we hitched a ride on a cargo boat to beautiful Ko Tao Island
Jan 23rd - started our PADI scuba diving course, and relaxed on the beach between dives.
Jan 27th - finished our course, obtained our diving certificates

Some of the exotic marine life seen: blue-spotted manta rays, moray eel, harleyquinn fish, white-tip reef shark, just to name a few.

Today we woke up bright and early and headed to the Military History museum. It was fascinating. There were many weapons and vehicles on display from the conflicts with the Americans, Japanese, and the French. The museum was very biased, however - for example, the US-backed government is referred to as the "puppet government" in all the exhibits, and there are only exhibits showing the terrible things their enemies have done to them, and not vice versa.
Anyway, there was lots to see - including the infamous tank that crashed through the gates of the Presidential palace in April 30, 1975. Also on display were wreckages of downed US and French aircraft, as well as captured helicopters, tanks, and howitzers.

We also went to the Ethnology museum, which gave us a better understanding of the different types of groups that make up Vietnam. We got a chance to see ancient tools, musical instruments, and more. Amara liked this museum better than the military history museum.

Yesterday, we arrived in Vietnam by bus at around 3pm. We took a taxi to the Old Quarter, where we found a hotel. The architecture and layout of the streets resembles France, with narrow streets and narrow buildings. The first night we explored the city and got accustomed to the City.

Today, we woke up bright and early. First, we headed to Ho Chi Minh's Presidential Palace. The area around the palace is made up of bright yellow buildings, all of which have the Vietnamese flag flying in front of them. Around the palace was a huge garden. After the palace, we went to a famous pagoda on a lake in which a number of American B-52's crashed after being shot down. The highlight of the day was visiting the prison museum. The prison has a lot of history - originally opened by the French to house Vietamese rebels, then used by the Japanese to house Vietnamese rebels, then used by the Vietnamese to house Americans. One of the Americans was John McCain, whose flight outfit that he was captured in is on display.

We also saw a presentation of Vietnam's infamous "water puppets." They are marrionettes that (seem to be) controlled under the water. It was incredible.

We also did some shopping. I can't believe how cheap everything is here!!!!!! And we're coming from China!

Tomorrow we will visit the Military history museum, Ho Chi Minh's Masouleum, and more.

Sue, the hotel we are staying at is called "Camella Hotel"
The number is (84.4) 926 0119

On the small pictures below, you can click on them and read the descriptions of what they are.

Amara and I woke up at 4am today and headed to Hongqiao airport. We had never been to this airport before because it is only for domestic flights to select cities. We arrived in Nanning at around 10:30, and took a bus into the city. We found a cheap hotel (9 US a night). It is by far the dirtiest hotel i've ever been to - but you can't beat that price!!! After we checked in, we went to a travel agent to drop off our Passports so we can get our Visas to enter Vietnam. Unfortunately, the earliest they could have our Visas ready was 8pm tomorrow night, and there are no buses or trains to Hanoi until Thursday morning, so we have to spend an extra day in Nanning. I wouldn't mind except that we were only planning to stay in Vietnam for 4 days, and now we will only have 3.

I was a little nervous about this trip - we've never done anything like this before. But it is sure to be a great experience. On the next entry, I will add pictures from Vietnam.

Overall, things are off to a good start.

In case of emergency, this is our Hotel #:
We can be contacted at: (0771) 209 9000, room 20210