Kim and Bill's Excellent Adventure

Back in Canada - Andrea's Wedding

2008-10-27T23:16:00.005+08:00

We're home!

Ahhh... it is wonderful to be back in Bolton & talk person to person with all of our family.
Now we have to hurry & get ready for so many wonderful events this summer. Andrea's wedding, Adam's wedding, Danaca's wedding, Kathyrn's wedding, Heather's wedding reception, Aunt Berte's 90th birthday celebration. Whew ... we're glad we're home to share in all of these celebrations.

Andrea's wedding was spectacular. Andrea & David worked so hard at every detail. We had nothing to do but sit back and enjoy the celebration of their new life together. The Doctor's House and Chapel in Kleinberg, Ontario is a beautiful setting. The weather was perfect - a slight touch of rain in the morning, beautiful sunshine for the afternoon pictures and a bit of rain while we danced. The temperature was perfect. Andrea looked beautiful in her gorgeous gown and David was so dashing in his top hat. Despite David's newly broken leg he hobbled about quite well. The chapel ceremony was lovely with prayers, poetry and song by Curtis, Marijke and Mark-Jan. Father Larry was a very pleasant minister who made the short but personal ceremony very meaningful.

All of the bridesmaids & ushers looked and performed wonderfully. Andrea and David are so very fortunate to have such wonderful friends. The reception, dancing and mingling were perfect. We had a superb time. The food was spectacular. The Doctor's House did a magnificent job on the wedding meal.

Andrea & David started off their married life with a beautiful honey moon in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. They now live in a "small"apartment in Toronto and they are continuing with their extremely busy lives. Andrea is an ERW with the Dufferin Peel Catholic School Board and David is a media buyer. They are both very involved in theatre productions and are currently in the CATS performance at the Fairview Theatre in Toronto.
We are now pondering what roads our newly retired lives will take. Stay tuned & we'll let you know.

Good bye Malaysia

2008-10-26T20:34:00.011+08:00

We cannot believe that one year has passed since we started out on this most wonderful adventure in Malaysia.

We have been very busy finishing our lessons, meeting with staff and consoling students who did not make the final grade to come to Canada. There were a few students who worked so hard during the year but missed the cut off 80% that their sponsors needed to sent them on scholarships to a Canadian University. These students were heart broken. We are very happy to hear that most of them have been given wonderful educational opportunities in Malaysia that may lead them to Canada or the United States in a couple of years or others who are in wonderful University programs in Malaysian Universities. We wish each of them success.
The Taylor's University College graduation was a lovely affair. There was a great deal of pomp & ceremony that was planned for these very deserving students.

It was extremely difficult to say good bye to the ICPU staff. We had a magnificent time with all of them. They were warm, friendly and very helpful. We miss them dearly. We would have loved to stay for another year to continue to work with them.

On June 13th we were packed and ready to return to our family and home in Bolton, Ontario. They 24 hour flight was long but our excitement about seeing our family sustained us through the hours. Our reunion with our loved ones was beautiful. It was wonderful to hug & kiss each one and know that they were safe and prosperous.

Malaysia, the people, the staff, the students and our travels throughout Asia will forever remain in our memories as one of the best years of our lives. We are so thankful that we had the opportunity to experience this wonderful adventure. It was truly a magical year!

Mike Was Here

2008-05-31T12:44:00.008+08:00

This was the visit of our life in Malaysia. Mike arrived on May 13 in the evening and we had sooo! many plans. Unfortunately we had to teach during the day. Mike went to the pool each morning where he had a workout in our small gym and a swim in the pool and then he joined us after our teaching duties were over. He would sit around the pool reading (ask him about the book "Scarecrow") before meeting Kim for lunch around 1:00. Kim and Mike went off to explore KL in the afternoons. Bill had classes until 5:00 so we would all meet for supper and then more exploring in the evening.

Mike and Kim prepared for their assault on the city with a tour on the Hop-on-Hop-off bus. At each turning Mike would say that he wanted to return here or there. Together they managed to visit the usual exotic locales...Batu Caves, Bukit Bintang shopping area, the national museum and the national mosque, and together we all visited KLCC (the twin towers), the Central Market and Petaling Street night market. As with all of our guests we spent a sunset in the Traders Hotel Skybar where we watched the Petronas Towers light up like a couple of crystal jewels as darkness fell.

Friday, May 16 was the start of a long weekend (no...not the May 24 weekend) and we had a trip to Kuching, Sarawak, on the island of Borneo planned. We flew out Friday night and back on Monday night. The intervening three days were an exotic but quiet time. Kim and I reminisced about our school days when Borneo was the most remote place on the planet...it still seems to be althought the capital city, Kuching, is a modern developing place. On Saturday we booked a private tour of a traditional longhouse with a guide who is written up in the Roughs Guide. Desmond showed us the real side of traditional life in the old long house style as well as some mor modern accommodations in rural villages. We sat on the floor of a row house drinking home brewed rice wine. Each family makes it after the rice harvest for use in the June 1 harvest festival. Later, at the longhouse, we met the families who graciously allowed us to enter some of their homes. We had lunch with the chief while sitting on the floor of his "door" "Door" is what each of the living compartments in the longhouse are called. Each belongs to a different family and there are 73 "doors" in the one long house. All generations live in the long house. An elderly man climbed a tree to get a fresh coconut for Michael to drink.

On Sunday we wandered around Kuching and checked out the local markets and shopping areas. All towns and cities seem to have outdoor markets and ethnic quaters where anything can be haggled over until the right price is reached...we probably agreed too soon and spent too much. Mike managed to get a gift or two out of it.

On Monday we spent time at the oragutan sanctuary where these animals are brought from captivity and household pets to be reintroduced to the wild. It is a very successful program. Afterwards we went to the Cultural Village. This is their version of Pioneer Village in Toronto. We saw examples of all of the main tribal homes. There are 26 orang asli (indiginous people) in Sarawak; each tribe has a slightly different living style although we didn't see 26 samples.

Throughout the second week we continued the exploration of KL. Mike and Kim took an evening to travel to Melaka, one of our favourite places in Malaysia. On Friday night we took a first class bus to Singapore. After the guest house we occupied in Kuching we decided to stay in an upscale hotel in Singapore. It was expensive but worth it. On Saturday, we took the usual Hop-on-Hop-off tour. We followed up with shopping in Chinatown where we were able to get a pile more gifts. In the evening we had a Singapore Sling at the Raffles Hotel. This is wherethe drink was invented. Then we trundled around Clark Quay and had dinner. Sunday we went to Sentosa Island and saw many attractions. In the late afternoon we simply had to sit by the pool to read, relax and recover.

Monday we were back in KL and Mike and Kim returned to Petaling Street for more shopping. That evening Bill met them with Mike's luggage and we went for dinner before the final trip to the airport. We were so sad to see Mike leaving but we were also bouyed by the knowledge that in two and a half weeks we will be home to see you all first hand.

Mike, thanks for coming over. We saw our experience in a whole new way and we loved sharing it with you.

Noises Off

2008-05-31T12:31:00.003+08:00

We returned from Australia at the end of the midsemester break and followed up with a weekend in LAgkawi. In betrween we beegan work on the set of "Noises Off". Mark and Erin, a cople of our young colleagues had been working on cast and rehearsals since August. Steve designed an outstanding set, especially considering the very small space into whch we had to fit it. Throughout the onth of April we worked weekends and then daily on the set with the help of some very committed and enthusiastic students. April 26 saw us move into the theatre and deal with all the little things that pop up under such circumstances. By May 7 the staff was invited for the dress rehearsal and all tickets to all five performances had sold out.

The play was a hit. We could have run this show for another month with a full sell out. The cast was full of enegy and after the audience warmed up (they didn'y quite know what to make of a British farce) they became engaged and thoroughly enjoyed the show. It was a real pleasure working with our stage crew , above, who acted like a well oiled machine... a truly high performance team

After the finnal show we torn down and shipped off the set. We had a little time to relax before Mike arrived. That's why this entry is so late!! Really!

Langkawi

2008-04-06T21:13:00.026+08:00

We just got back from a weekend in Langkawi with Matthew and Serina, our two Malaysian friends. While there we also got a couple of language lessons. We learned the Hokkien, Chinese words "kiasu", "kiasi", and "kiapor" which mean respectively "fear of losing", "fear of dying", and "fear of wife". And that is just the beginning of the fun. We also learned that Langkawi translates as "brown eagle" and that bird is the symbol of the island.

Langkawi is an island resort/paradise in the Straits of Melacca in north Malaysia. In fact it is almost in Thailand which can be seen across the channel from the eastern side of the island. Furthermore, the island has been at various times claimed and attacked by the Thais. The island is known for its beaches, its weather and its geological history, all of which made for a relaxing and interesting visit. It is in the very Muslim state of Perak. The citizens of Langkawi are lovely, calm, relaxed Malays.

Matthew & Serina belong to a time share travel group & they were able to access a condo in Langkawi - bonus!! They flew up in the morning, rented a car, settled into the apartment & then picked us up at the airport later Friday evening. We were very lucky & got an Air Asia flight for RM9.99 which works out to about $3.00 Canadian (each way). Isn't that amazing?

Langkawi is a beautiful island. Having a car is a must. The small city (town) of Kuah is on the east coast and the main tourist attractions are scattered throughout the island. Matthew was quite happy to do all the driving and act as our tour guide. He and Serina have been to Langkawi before.

We climbed 1500 metres or 500 stairs to the Seven Wells - a lovely tropical forest with a slow waterfall area. We visited a beautiful museum where the past Prime Minister has donated gifts he received from countries around the world. We did not expect much at first but the beauty of the world's offerings to the Prime Minister of Malaysia were wonderful. We did not really have enough time to do justice to the museum. We then took a boat tour of the only Mangove swamp in the world growing on sandstone. It was quite beautiful. We watched as our guide threw chicken skins onto the water surface and dozens of brown eagles swooped to grab the delicious chicken bits. It really was a marvelous sight. We visited a fish farm & Bill petted a sting ray. Our cruise took us out into the bay area within sight of Thialand where we could look back to see the geological wonder of the GeoPark - one of the few in the world. We also took a tour of a "bat" cave. Again, the overwemlming guano smell got to us but it was quite interesting. The bats, thousands of them, were all sleeping - thank goodness.

We had a delicious Russian - yes Russian dinner. Matthew & Serina, being locals also took us to a "stall" Indian restaurant for breakfast & a regular"stall" for lunch. Great food.

When we got home on Sunday evening we all went to a typical Malaysian Chinese restaurant & Matthew ordered the most scrumptious meal for us - tofu, chicken, ribs, vegetables - but nothing like we've ever had in Canada - fabulous.

Our quick weekend get away to Langkawi was super. It was so nice to share it with Matthew & Serina who are so kind & generous and lots of fun.

Australia

2008-03-23T19:23:00.017+08:00

We wanted to check off another item on our "500 things to do before we die" list.
We DID! A scuba dive on the Great Barrier Reef. Lady Musgrave Island is on the southern end of the Great Barrier Reef and despite some logistical difficulties we made a dive there.

Kim: I realized last Sept that I could not find my NAUI card here or at home in Bolton. We did three dives in Redang, Malaysia in September and they never asked for our cards. They just accepted our word. We did do a refresher lesson in the pool which was very good for Bill and me. Now, one would think that I should have got to work on a replacement card back then - but no, I did not do that. Last week in Australia as we were making arrangements to dive I remembered my lost card!! Dumb but true!

We actually took a chance and drove to a small town called 1770 to do our dive on the GB Reef last Tuesday. They had not sent out the large boat that takes people to the island since the Saturday before because of hurricane weather offshore and very rough seas on the way out. It was very iffy about trips. Finally on Thursday they sent out the boat but it was a very cloudy day and the seas had really been stirred up over the past 2 weeks with the storms. We did some snorkeling, an island tour and a glass bottom boat tour in the morning. The island is a coral and sand island and is a sanctuary to millions of birds - Kim was not a happy traveller. And ... it smelled so badly of guano. But ... it was really interesting & our delightful tour guide kept us entertained and informed. We went for our dive in the afternoon. Our dive master was great. He did his intro lessons with a couple of people in the am and we dove with 3 other experienced divers (very much our level of experience) in the pm. He accepted my word that I was certified. Luck was on my side. The dive was terrific. We saw a small sting ray about 5 feet right below us, a mid sized shark who luckily was not interested in us and glanced with annoyance at us & lazily swam away, a number of turtles - one which also lazily swam away from us. The visibility was about 30 to 40 feet. It was a bit murky because of the storms and there was no sun so we did not get the brilliance the sun brings to the reef colours. The reef was still very interesting and there were many beautiful colours on many sections. But, our main goal in Australia was to dive on the Reef and we did. It was great!

All in all it was a wonderful trip. We only had a week so we took a flight to the Gold Coast and didn't try to do too much. Sydney was 1000 km to the south & Cairns was 2000 km to the north. We decided that we would not try to do city tours - we've seen so many wonderful world cities. We made this trip a nature adventure. So, we rented a car and started driving. A day in Surfer's Paradise was exciting and as the guide book says "brash, glib and in your face". The place is full of the young and the beautiful (and Bill). Almost everyone, young and old, is well tattooed and pierced. There is plenty of shopping and the main activity, obviously, is surfing. The beach and the surf are breathtaking The golden sands stretch on for miles and the surf is mesmerizing. We walked for many kilometers along the beach - beautiful!

We travelled up to Hervey Bay on the Sunshine Coast and made a side trip to Tambourine Mountain on the way. Tambourine Mountain is a highland plateau , the name mountain is hyperbolic. It is a string of three small towns scattered among several national parks and conservatories. The villages are home to crafts, art and wineries. There are also several enticing restaurants to be visited. We took a tropical forest walk to a very scenic waterfall at Curtis Falls. It was very serene.

Hervey Bay is a sleepy little town that has, as its reasons for existence, the local retirement community and the jumping off point for Fraser Island. In its former capacity it has a local nickname of "God's Waiting Room" - there are so many retired people there. Fraser Island is the world's largest sand island and a world heritage site. It is wonderful! The ride over to the island took about fifty minutes by barge and we landed on the beach, really...see the photos! We toured around on a four wheel drive bus. There are no paved roads on the island. All roads are sand tracks and you could never travel it without a 4 wheel drive. Peter, our driver, is an encyclopedia of knowledge about the local flora, fauna and history. We were treated to a walk in the rain forest, although we had to stick to the sand road. A buffet lunch broke up the trip. We drove at 80 kph on a beach that is a legal main state highway as well as a landing strip for small aircraft. We visited a beach wreck - a large luxury liner that was beached on its way to Japan just before WWII and just left there. We waded through a dazzling fresh water steam - Eli Creek - so refreshing. Everything that day was so new and exciting to us. It was a fabulous day.

The next stop was quite further north on the Discovery Coast in a small town/village/park at the end of the headland of 1770. It is so named because it was the first place that Captain Cook set foot on Australia. This and the town of Agnes Water are mere dots on the landscape that serve the fishermen and trips to the Great Barrier Reef. In Hervey Bay and in 1770 there is LITERALLY almost nothing else to do. In Agnes Water we stayed in a little motel with a very interesting proprietor, Lex. He took time out to show us around at dusk to see the local kangaroos. It is so hot there, the kangaroos sleep in the shade all day and they come out at dusk - 5:30ish - and start grazing. You can see them along many of the side roads, in people's gardens and in fields beside the roads. We spotted so many families of kangaroos. Most just look up and stare at you and seem unfazed by cars or people. The ones we saw are wallabies. They are very passive and are not very dangerous. The large red kangaroos that are quite powerful and will jump at you are much further inland. Lex intends to visit Canada in the next couple of years and we hope we can return his hospitality. The last day was a whirlwind drive back to the Gold Coast with side trips to Noosa, a wonderful upscale version of Surfer's Paradise, and a river cruise in Brisbane. Brisbane is a beautifully well organized and clean city. The downtown core is made up of beautiful architecture and a wonderful, people-oriented waterfront. (OK - so we did one city!)

Although we saw only a small part, we would sum up Australia as CLEAN, green and breathtaking! It is a beautiful, inviting place and we would love to return for more extensive explorations. The people we met were so friendly and helpful. We loved our nature adventure!

Cambodia

2008-02-09T21:07:00.016+08:00

This past week we ventured off to Cambodia. Wow - what an experience. We had one "OMG!" moment after another. I don't know if we can do this trip justice.

The whole country has been set back to the Stone Age because of the devastation of the Khmer Rouge reign of terror 1975 through 1979. They killed off all of the intelligentsia, the academicians, the prosperous and the rich. They left the poor, the destitute and orphans. The people left had no skills, knowledge or industry. However, they have picked themselves up and have started to rebuild their country. It is a country of very young people. Twenty to thirty year olds are directors, managers, and they basically run the country's business. They are dedicated and committed but there is so much to do in every aspect. Tourism is their big boom so they have lovely hotels and some great restaurants. But, there are also many scams going on - so you have to be wary at every turn. Many countries - especially France and Japan - are investing in Cambodia so there are some areas of advancement. The health care system is abysmal. There is no sense or system of sanitation and litter is everywhere. Basic health care is poor in the cities and non existent in some rural areas. Our friend worked in mental health in Ontario and she is trying to help the people of Cambodia but she was told that although mental health is a huge problem - because of post war traumas, that is the least of their worries at this moment. They need health care professionals, clean water, supplies, better clinics, and most of all their population needs to be educated on basic health care and hygiene. We saw the most "Oh My God" things there - naked children everywhere, children begging on every street, vans with 20-30 workers perched on top of the vans with that many people inside too.

We flew into Siem Reap on Monday morning and once ensconced at the hotel we booked a tuk-tuk and driver for the day. This is a favoured mode of transportation that has a motor bike pulling an open passenger compartment. Because we started late (10:30) he only asked US $15.00 for the day.

We went to Siem Reap to see the ancient temples of Angkor Wat (and there about 300 other temples in the area). The temples are amazing, immense, ancient, awe inspiring. Our guide was fabulous and told us all about the Angkor empire and the advanced civilization that existed from 800 to 1400 AD. Most of the time we were slack jawed at the scale and beauty of the temples. Angkor Wat (which literally translates as "Holy Place" or Holy Temple") is the largest religious worship site in the world. The moat defining its boundaries is 180 metres wide and surrounds it on all four sides. The site itself has a perimeter of about 6.5 kilometres. The entire temple with its many buildings and towers is made completely of dry laid sandstone. The statues, carvings and bas relief are very impressive...because I can't find another word that suffices.

We also visited a former (1300s) capital city called Angkor Thom (which translates a "Holy City") with its Bayon temple. The temple is made up of 54 towers with four faces on each tower. They are supposedly of the many-faced god but the guide and guidebooks say they bear a striking resemblance to the king himself. We got a great tour of some of the bas relief sculptures here and we are impressed (again) by the unexpected depiction of the everyday life and the sense of humour of the artists. In this one you can see a tortoise, held by a woman, biting the rear end of the man in front.

The temple most familiar to North American movie goers is Ta Prohm...Angelina Jolie filmed part of Tomb Raider movie there. The trees in many of the temples grow right out of the rock and as a result the jungle has dismantled many parts of these monuments. It is such a shame. But Japan and Korea are heavily involved in the restoration of many of the sites. Some of the overall destruction is also man made. The country has vacillated between Buddhism and Hinduism depending on the preference of the king of the day. Many tolerated other religions but the people generally tended to follow the king. In times of change carvings and statues were sometimes destroyed or buried to be replaced by the new faith and its icons.

One of our side trips was to the floating village on Lake Tonle Sap. The lake is a source of almost half of the country's protein because of its abundance of fish. The floating village is the living quarters of many of the fishermen. The poverty is staggering. We travelled down a dusty gritty dirt highway that is undergoing widening. Along the verge were houses made of sticks. Many are just platforms on fragile stilts and having a thatched roof. The more splendid ones have grass or stick walls. Children run about naked and often adults sleep away the day on the platforms…evening is for fishing. We climbed over three other boats tied end to end to get to the one we were to ‘cruise’ on. The ten minute ride down river to the lake was punctuated by small canoe like crafts pulling alongside and children of four to seven years old jumping aboard to sell everything from bananas to coke for ‘one dollah’. The local schools were also floating, built on large barges and including a gym on the second floor for basketball and football (soccer). Once on the lake we were again approached by beggars and sellers but this time most were Vietnamese. The fishermen and their families live aboard permanently anchored boats and barges. They paddle out onto the lake in small canoes, fish and sell their catch to some of the shore people who arrange transport to the cities. But the destitution is visible in almost everything. We wonder at our luxury and the morality of gawking at their lives. But we know that without the tourism they might have no life.

By the end of the second day we were templed out and had arranged a bus ride to the capital, Phnom Penh. This was a high grade coach; we're not sure what made it high grade except that it was more money (US$12.00). It was cramped and hot because the further you are back on the bus the less the air conditioning is effective. Six hours is a long ride but we got a lot more of the flavour of the country. Kim commented that it's the "Three Little Pigs" over and over again. We'd pass a brick house followed by a stick and then a grass one; but most of the houses were of stick or grass with a number of wooden structures thrown in.

Phnom Penh initially gives the impression of a modern city. Then we learned about the almost total lack of sanitation. In a few pockets the odour of urine was very strong. That aside, the people are wonderful. We found them polite and helpful when our language differences allowed for communication. Everyone, though, made a stab at English which is good because we had no idea about Khmer.

We did a preprogrammed walking tour of the downtown as laid out in the 'Roughs Guide'. At Wat Phnom Penh we ran into a scam of people standing on the stairs trying to collect 'one dollah'. When Kim pointed out that a couple of locals had entered without paying, the response was something like "They're free you one dollah!" We walked on to another stairway and got the photos we were seeking. The area was very crowded and the predominant population was of beggars on the stairs. The central market is a rabbit warren of narrow walks between overpacked stalls mainly selling clothing. The floral part of the market was magnificent and we noticed subsequently that many people here loved their flowers. The local shopping mall was next and we had heard and we confirmed that they have escalator trainers standing by to instruct visitors in the art of the moving stairway. The National Museum was our last stop of the afternoon. It contains a large number of Khmer sculptures from scattered temples.

We made a considered decision to avoid the Killing Fields and S21. Most will know of the former. The latter is a high school that the Khmer Rouge turned into a prison and torture centre. People taken there rarely ever came out except to be transported to the mass graves at the Killing Fields. Maybe we were squeamish or just cowardly but we felt no compulsion to see the remnants of that regime when other evidence was all around us.

We met friends Steve and Pam for dinner at the FCC (Foreign Correspondents Club). This is where the journalists came to file their stories and take a rest during the Vietnam war. The food was great and the company better.

On our last day we took a tour of the Royal Palace and the Silver Pagoda. The pagoda is named for the fact that the entire floor is tiled in silver. They are, of course, protected by carpet over most of the area. All of the architecture is wonderfully Cambodian except one building. There is a French colonial building in the middle of it all. It was donated by Napoleon III after his empress Eugenia had used it during the dedication of the Suez Canal. It is ugly and out of place in this setting but has been deemed a national heritage building. I guess they won't be getting rid of it any time soon. We finished up our trip with a little shopping and a drink at a sidewalk cafe on Sisawath Quay for some people watching.

This has been a revolutionizing experience and we feel the need to do something to contribute to the rebuilding of this ancient and destitute society...but what?

Happy New Year

2008-01-31T22:51:00.001+08:00

Happy New Year everyone!

We haven't been too faithful to the blog this month but don't worry, you haven't missed much. The "happy new year" greeting is twice apporopriate though. On Saturday, February 2 we start a full week holiday for Chinese new year. This is a big deal here in Malaysia. A large majority of businesses are owned by Chinese Malaysians and this is the only time that they close up shop, some for up to two weeks. Of course the other facet is our regular January 1 greeting.

We have started back into our teaching routine. Bill and I still teach Business Leadership & English Literature respectively but our timetables are a little different from last term. We're settling into a new schedules. We have a whole new cast of students in each of our classes and once again they are the most respectful and motivated students we could ever meet. Kim's sudents are mostly government scholars so they have to achieve 85% overall to keep their scholarships to go to a Canadian University - they are sooo keen! We have had a couple of voice-over sessions and we expect to do quite a few in the next two months. They are fun and something very different for us. We are also coaching a couple of children who are doing the little girl and boy parts. They are as different as night and day and each is delightful in their own way.

We have gone back to exploring more of the KL area again. A trip to the National Islamic Arts Mueseum was wonderful. The art, the history and the mosque models were fascinating. We had another great 18 holes of golf with Matthew and Serina in Port Dickson. We were not quite as hot as our first round last October - the humidity has been a lot lower for the month of January. The temperature is always 32 daytime and 23 night time. It has been quite pleasant actually. We have also explore a couple of "bars" yes ... but not for the drinking but for the view of KL. There are a number of beautiful hotels that have spectacular views of the city & the Petronas towers but the Sky Bar where we visited with Carolynn, Joe & Randy is still the best. We have wandered around the Bangsar area which is filled with ex-pats from around the world and has some very upscale malls & boutiques. This is where Randy & I found my dress for Andrea's wedding. (Note from Bill:We had to go back for a fitting and the dress is really KIM! It is not simply elegant it is Kim's dress.)

Our holidays are still a great part of this adventure. We started back to teach on January 8th and we had a day off on January 10th!! It was Dawala Meharasam which is the Muslim New Year. So everyone had a holiday.

Two weeks later we had a holiday for Thaipusam. This is an Indian/Hindu holiday that is more celebrated in Malaysia than in India. Pilgrims come to the Batu caves temples and other temples in the area of KL from all over the world. Batu caves had a small crowd this year. They usually get 1.5 million but only a meagre million showed up. Three Hindu colleagues travelled to a temple in Klang for the celebration. There are some pretty scary practices that involve carrying heavy objects or dragging heavy things on hooks piercing the skin. Have a aloolk at this link for a few ictures from this year
http://www.malaysiasite.nl/batucaveseng.htm
We didn't attend because of the crowds but a few colleagues did. Instead we went back to the golf course.

Chinese New Year is Feb 7th & 8th but we have the whole week off - from Sat Feb 2nd to Sun Feb 10th. Amazing eh? We are off to Cambodia for the week. We are looking forward to that adventure. The very sad history of that country is so interesting. Well, we'll let you know about it after we return.

A final note for January, we have given notice and we are returning home. In June our Malaysian adventure will be over. But don't hold your breath; this may just be the beginning of the next stage.

Christmas in Malaysia

2008-01-02T10:45:00.000+08:00

We cannot believe we have been in Malaysia for 6 months. The time has flown by. It seems like only yesterday that we had this crazy idea. On the other hand it seems like we have lived here for a long time. When we return from a trip here we are happy to be "home". It is still very strange to call this condo "home". Although we have not put a lot of money into decorating the condo, it is cozy enough for us to be very comfortable and happy. We are looking forward to our second term of teaching. We have a few more travel plans for the spring. The end of our year here will be fast upon us.

We tried very hard to get into the Christmas “spirit”. Although the malls have splendid displays and the Masses during Advent at Assumption Church were very much like home we missed being with our friends and family very much. Our new friends in Malaysia are wonderful and we had many visits and meals with them. We really did enjoy ourselves. It does not replace family though. It is so difficult to get into the Christmas spirit when the temperature is 25 to 30 degrees everyday. But, the malls have the most amazing decorations that we have ever seen. People go to the malls just to view & photograph the Christmas displays. A little while ago Bill & I were at the Mid Valley Megamall (yes they call it a megamall - because it is so huge) & the Centre Court Christmas display was breathtakingly beautiful. The theme was carried throughout the mall to the smaller North South East & West courts & each was more beautiful than the next. They have been piping Christmas carols throughout the malls since mid November. Each department store has a small Christmas section with a few tree decorations. However, I am finding it very difficult to find Christmas decorations for the home, kitchen or table. I found some Christmas cake, pudding & napkins at Marks & Spencer. That's it!! But I was able to find a couple of small decorated table top Christmas trees & a few tacky decorations to make our condo a little more festive. It will do!!

Our New Year celebration was also a lot of fun. We organized a BBQ at our Condo complex and 17 of the Canadian staff came. We had a great BBQ dinner and then everyone came up to our condo for drinks & chatter. At 11:50 we all made our way down to the pool and we watched as the hotels nearby heralded in the New Year with amazing fireworks displays.

We wish all of you a wonderful New Year filled with happiness and prosperity.

Hanoi

2007-12-20T12:22:00.000+08:00

Randy's blur (and ours will continue).

Needless to say we were feeling pretty tired. We got to Hanoi at 8:30 a.m. their time (a three hour flight) and cabbed it for forty-five minutes to the Old Quarter. The cab driver and some cronies tried to scam us. We were taken to another cheap hotel and told that the Win Hotel was all booked and we would stay at their's. No way. We insisted on being taken to the Win and eventually the cabbie complied. He then had the gall to ask about a tip!!!! Reception at the Win Hotel seemed unsurprised as we told him the story. Apparently it is not unusual. We learned that you should always book the taxi through the hotel and they add it to your hotel bill so that the driver does not try to clean out your wallet.

The Win is a "boutique" hotel right in the Old Quarter. It has five floors and ten rooms and no elevator. The ceilings are all 12 feet and the rooms are small. The place is very clean and comfortable but hardly a 2 star hotel. The location however was excellent. Again we were in the heart of the action. Although tired we stepped out to find a bite of lunch. There are local cafes lining the street and around the corner we found an Italian restaurant where the pizza was excellent. We also found a French restaurant that we decided to return to later.

The hotel is a block from one of the lakes...the Lake of the Divine Turtle. We walked the 1.7 km around the lake and visited many of the local shops and side streets. We also booked tickets to an afternoon performance of the water puppets. This is a northern Vietnam art form and entertainment. We attended the four o'clock performance and I think we each missed a portion due to sagging eyelids. More walking, more shops and more shopping and we were all ready for a dinner at an excellent French restaurant- see the photo (but not the aforementioned). We wandered by circuitous routes back to our hotel and were in bed by 10:00.

On Friday the culture shock hit. We have never felt culture shock until now. The parts of Asia we have visited have been different but this was overwhelming. Looking back I guess it started on the taxi ride when Randy tried to smack an insect and hit the seat. The fleas flew up all around her and Kim. Kim wants to believe that they were mosquitoes. This is little better given the diseases that mosquitoes carry in Vietnam. The scam from the taxi driver rolled off of us because we were so tired but I believe it had its impact. The number of motor bikes (small scooters) is also overwhelming. The roads & intersections are chaotic. There a bicycles, motor bikes, some cars, vans & trucks. Along with this there are people walking everywhere and so many ladies carrying 6 foot long poles with huge baskets hanging from each end. Crossing the street is so scary. We were told to close our eyes & just keep walking - the motor bikes would go around us!! Well, needless to say we kept our eyes opened and the vehicles did go around us! The streets of Hanoi are amazing. They are crowded with vendors of every kind. All of the store merchants sit on little 6 inch stools on the side walk. They sell everything from their store front or from woven baskets - clothes, shoes, meat, vegetables. Families sit on the little stools to eat breakfast, lunch & dinner. Barbers set up shop by hanging a mirror on a wall & men get their hair cut & faces shaved right on the sidewalk. We could not convince Bill to have a "street" hair cut! We witnessed many women having the lice picked out of their hair - on the sidewalk!!

We walked to the open fresh market. It was sooo crowded but amazing. You can buy anything there. We were not afraid but we did feel very vulnerable. At one point Bill & Kim got stuck on one side of a bridge & Randy was on the other side out of sight. We thought we'd never see her again. She is an attraction because of her blond hair. People would stop her & ask to have their pictures taken with her. But, we did catch up with her. The streets are also very polluted & dirty - not with litter, but with the grit & grim of a dusty, dry, very crowded & very hot city. We did not do a lot of shopping.

On Friday afternoon we decided to hire a taxi & take one of the tours of the country side to visit ceramics, painters & carpenter villages. Again, the culture shock overwhelmed us. The rural areas are still using water buffalo to pull small ploughs, and the horse/pony & cart are a common mode of transport. The roads are narrow and barely passable. There are very few cars but thousands of bicycles & motor bikes. We do not know how our driver did not hit someone or how someone did not hit us! It was truly incredible but very scary. We got to the ceramics village where the local people work in huge factories to produce all of the ceramic vases, dishes, bowls etc etc that we buy in North America. I bartered long & hard to buy 3 small blue & white ceramic lidded containers. I was thrilled with my purchased at $1.00 per dish. Unfortunately, I left them on the floor of the taxi we hired!!!! Our driver got terribly lost & we ended up driving through some amazingly 3rd world villages - kids in bare feet everywhere, sellers by the side of dirt roads, pony & cart hauling, ladies walking cows through town, and no electricity, no street lights. We finally arrived at the painter's village & the driver motioned for us to go in. It was pitch dark & he was staying in the car. All of our alarm bells went off & we said no - take us back to Hanoi. We really believe that he was not trying to lead us into any trouble but we did not want to take any chances in the dark.

On Saturday morning we took a tour of Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum, his home and the Temple of literature dating back to 1067. All of these sights were fabulous & our guide was great. People in Vietnam love Ho Chi Minh. Although it is a Communist country, this is the only place where we felt the Communist presence. We kept looking for the downtown, city area. We discovered that there really was not a central city area. They seem to have rebuilt the city in the past 20-25 years in a bit of a scattered manner. When we asked a concierge at the Hanoi Hotel for a city tour - she replied that the wasn't one because there was nothing to see!! The devastating history of the US carpet bombing of Hanoi is horrible. But, everything is referred to in US terms and dollars. It is truly an acceptance attitude that escaped our comprehension. We learned so much in Hanoi. It is truly one of the experiences we will never forget.

Hong Kong

2007-12-19T15:54:00.001+08:00

Randy's last week is a blur. We visited Hong Kong for four days and Hanoi for three. School wrapped up with graduation on Thursday and Kim and I committed to work the recruiting fair on Saturday. We had booked flights and hotels in both Hong Kong and Hanoi. On Saturday morning we heard that the Hong Kong hotel had notified us that a room was no longer available (a better offer, I guess). We immediately began a search online and talked to colleagues. Our director, Frank, recommended the Stanford in Mong Kok (in the Kowloon section of HK). A phone call confirmed a reservation and we crossed our fingers.
Hong Kong

On Sunday we flew into Macao and ferried over to Kowloon, Hong Kong. We taxied into an apparently older part of town. Our trepidation was relieved when we got to a small but modern hotel just blocks from the Market ( Ladies Market, electronic market, Jade market, Temple market, fish market, flower market, bird market, sports market - truly amazing). The activity in the area is energizing. People are everywhere from early morning until late evening (midnight). The market itself opens at noon and closes at midnight. Each evening it is torn down and cleared away to allow for cleaning and local deliveries. Each day it is set up and the surrounding streets are blocked off to create a pedestrian mall. The market then becomes shoulder to shoulder browsers and bargainers. We took great advantage of the opportunities to get some Christmas shopping done.

On Monday we found a tour company and booked two tours. The first was a half day tour of Hong Kong island on Monday afternoon. We were picked up at a local hotel at 1:30 and toured until after 7:00 that night. It included the shopping district from British colonial times (Hollywood Avenue) the temples and Stanley market. The tour gave us a wonderful overview and we determined that we would return on Tuesday to further explore the Hollywood Avenue(shopping) and Soho (eating and partying) areas. One of the experiences was a ride on the inclined railway to the top of Victoria peak. This is the highest point in Hong Kong and provides quite a view of the harbour. The railway is serviced by a pair of old style tram cars and is said to be the steepest in Asia. We moved on to Aberdeen typhoon shelter. A safe harbour that houses the fishermen. We took a ride on a sampan with a crust old woman with a very direct approach to everything. At the end of the tour she said "55 dollars each person - you pay now!" This part of the tour showed us around the floating village that houses the fisherman's families. We drove through the outer areas of the island past Repulse Bay and on to Stanley market. Having spent time in the Ladies market we found Stanley market a little tame.

On Tuesday we went back the HK island and walked around the areas mentioned. On Hollywood we met Ken and Susan, a young couple from the college ... among 7 million people. We arranged a lunch for Wednesday. We also visited Soho for a delightful lunch at a little bistro. We returned to the hotel and prepared for the second tour...a Christmas holiday lights tour of Hong Kong and Kowloon areas. The first stop was on the Kowloon side of the harbour where watched a sound and light show put on by the major buildings and businesses on both sides of the harbour. Back on the bus we drove around for an hour on the top of an open top double Decker bus and marvelled at the neon and Christmas lights. They really get into Christmas here but we hear that the BIG celebration is Chinese New Year in February. We finished up with a visit to Temple market. Is is much like Ladies market - you can buy just about anything and most are "GENUINE COPIES". They really said that!

Wednesday was a hectic day. We went to the Jade market but didn't buy because Kim (the negotiator) didn't get the prices she wanted. Then we met Ken and Susan for a dim sum lunch. The restaurant was recommended by Ken's uncle who lives in Hong Kong. It was great to have Ken along as he grew up in HK and speaks the language. He also knows dim sum and what to order. We had a wonderful time sharing food and experiences.

We absolutely loved Hong Kong. It is the most vibrant, crowded, interesting city with fabulous sights, areas, and people.

Back at our hotel we picked up the luggage and caught a cab to the ferry terminal. The trip to Macao and the airport went well and we were in plenty of time for our 7:50 flight. Unfortunately, the plane did not arrive and we were delayed for 3 hours until 10:50. We arrived back in KL at 3:00 AM and waited in the airport until 5:30 to check in for a 6:30 flight to Hanoi.

Another Great Weekend

2007-12-06T06:38:00.000+08:00

Last week was exam week for the college so Kim and I were busy there. Randy also kept herself busy. She has become quite comfortable with the KL transportation system and strikes out to explore the city on her own.

On Friday afternoon Kim had completed her exam marking and I had just started mine so Randy and Kim set out to shop, mostly for a dress for Kim to wear to Andrea's wedding. They tried on "THOUSANDS". When they got back to Subang Jaya we went to our favourite Japanese restaurant, Tomoe for a fabulous dinner.

On Saturday we hopped a bus and went to Melaka. This is one of our favourite cities. It is steeped in history going back to th 14th and 15th centuries. We caught a cab and rode into the old section of town where we began a tour that Carolyn and Joe would recognize. In Chinatown we picked up several gifts and souvenirs. The lunch at Geographer was wonderful. Afterwards we toured St. Paul Hill and the church ruin. It is coming up to the feast of St, Francis Xavier and the church was decorated with an altar and flowers in preparation for the celebration. This is the church that the saint regularly attended until his death. He was buried first in Melaka. After nine months the church had him exhumed and reburied in Goa, India. The official reason for the move was that the Holy See decided Francis wanted to be in Goa. In recompense they left a relic of the saint in Melaka, his right arm.

After a visit to Santiago Gate Randy and Kim took a trishaw ride. The had an excellent tour. Bill waited near the signature Christ Church and had an interesting political conversation with a local tour operator. We decided to take a bus back to KL and hopped aboard a local bus. This bus was very local, and very old. We spent 40 minutes experiencing the neighbourhoods...old, new, elegant and kampung. Finally arrived at Melaka Sentral (the bus depot) for the ride back to KL.

In KL we walked a few blocks from the bus station to Petaling Street. This is the Chinese night market. It is apparently becoming more multicultural and aggressive. Randy did some shopping and managed to get a few bargains. More than anything we all enjoyed the SPORT of haggling.

On Sunday, Randy and Kim went dress shopping again and spent the entire day walking, trying, and enjoying each other's company. I had a pile of exams to finish marking so I stayed home. I owe Randy big time for allowing me to work and for saving me from the endless round of bridal and designer shops.

On Monday we left the college and hooked up with Rand for a return trip to Bangsar. Kim and Randy had found THE dress. Kim bought it once I had approved :-) In celebration we walked over to a very upscale section of Bangsar for dinner. We had appetizers and wine at an Italian restaurant and then moved over to a French restaurant for entrees and more wine. I stuck to the usual fruit juice and sparkling water; after all someone had to get the women home.

All in all it was a very successful weekend...wouldn't you agree?

Some Political Unrest

2007-11-26T18:42:00.000+08:00

We passed Batu Caves on the way back from Genting into KL and saw a huge crowd there. Later we heard that there had been a demonstration in KL. The Indian population from all over Malaysia held a rally at which they wished to petition the Queen (Elizabeth that is). An advocacy group here is suing England for 40 trillion ringgit (that's 12 or so trillion Canadian). They claim that the British brought Indians to Malaysia in the 1800s as indentured labour. They further claim that Britain failed to protect Indian interests when they granted independence in 1957. They want the queen to provide them legal representation for the law suit.

This is all very political and is based on a form of "affirmative action" that gives preferential treatment to the Malay race. It was originally meant to help raise the Malay out of poverty that came from their historical position as rural subsistence farmers. The Indians claim that they too are marginalized and should be granted equal treatment under the National Economic Policy (NEP) as it is called officially. Unofficially, it is called the "bumiputra" policy. 'bumi' means 'sons' or 'princes' and 'putra' means soil or earth. Literally translated it means 'princes of the soil'. The term is not exclusive to Malaysia. It is also used in Indonesia where a similar language is spoken. However, in Indonesia it is not a label for an official government policy of "affirmative action".

We had heard mention of the rally earlier in the week and we had run into police roadblocks. The rally was opposed by the police who set up road blocks around KL as early as Thursday in order to prevent the Indians from 'outstation' from getting to the protest in KL. They also shut down the LRT station near the British embassy. Then on Sunday they told the crowd to disperse and forced the issue with tear gas and chemical laced water cannon. We don't get much about this in the news media in Malaysia because it is not nice to talk about things that reflect badly on the country. In addition, the news outlets are licenced annually by the government and may not be renewed. To top it off much of the new media are wholly owned by one of the parties that make up the BN which is a coalition of parties that has governed since 1957. The BN is predominantly Malay/Muslim and it is not possible to be PM if you are not both. The minority and opposition parties also have their media outlets. Thus we were pleasantly surprised to see local reports of the incidents. The most reasonable and balanced view of things is available to us here via Al Jazeera on the Internet. (check the link for more)

Constitutionally, the people here have the right to peaceful assembly. This is subject to certain controls as a result of some emergency measures instituted in the 1960s as a result of some inter-racial rioting. At that time it is estimated by the most conservative figures that over 200 Chinese citizens were killed by Malays over the outcome of the general election. Some of the Chinese had gathered to celebrate a minor election victory and some of the Malay were insulted...and the fight was on. The emergency measures were never repealed and now all assemblies must apply for and receive police permission. These permits are almost never granted despite a local Human Rights Commission recommendation that they should be routinely granted. In the case of this recent incident the police are said to have claimed they feared that gangs were involved in the gathering and that violence would erupt.

You may also have heard about a rally on November 11 at Merdeka (Independence) Square. The opposition parties called the rally to demand election reform. In that case no permit was granted. The official reason was that it would interrupt traffic and cause local merchants to lose trade. The police then shut down streets for 10 blocks around the square. The rally was due to start at 10:30 AM and the police had the water cannon and tear gas in place by 10:00. The outcome was much the same as the most recent one. We were in Bali at the time and we saw the Al Jazeera report and video on television news there. When we returned to Malaysia we found there was and had been no local coverage.

We are safe and have never felt nor been in danger. The rallies are usually in a very limited area and we don't travel in those areas especially when difficulties are possible. Fortunately we have a colleague at the school who keeps us well informed.

This may all be a lead up to an expected general election in the next month. It is estimated that the election campaign will last less than three weeks so everyone gets started early.

Another Busy Week

2007-11-26T13:06:00.000+08:00

Randy can't be kept down. Each day she does the dishes, laundry and tidies. We have decided to keep her here and Canada will have to do without. She often gets to the pool for a swim and follows us to the gym where she ties herself into a pretzel in the yoga class. On Wednesday she and our friend, Pam, went to the Malaysian Craft complex in KL and they walked all over the place for about seven hours. On Friday she and Kim went to Mid Valley Mall and walked the entire thing. It is the largest mall in Malaysia with some 5 km of corridor. They were looking for a dress or ideas for a dress for Kim to wear to Andrea's wedding. They came home with Christmas cards.
On Saturday we rented a taxi for the afternoon and travelled to Putrajaya, the administrative centre for Malaysia. Randy dressed for the pink mosque, as did we. We travelled on to the Batu Caves and climbed all 272 stairs. We have photographic proof that Kim and Randy made it and I took the photo (kind of like Ten Sing and Edmund Hillary). The cab driver was a very nice man but not such a great navigator. We saw numerous sections of KL that we had not intended...some of them twice. At the end he was to drop us off at Bukit Bintang but some missed communication (I know that's hard to believe) caused us to have him drop us at the LRT whence we took the LRT and Monorail to Bukit Bintang. We met friends Pam and Steve who took us to their favourite Indian restaurant (Chazal) for a wonderful meal. Afterwards we left them and we wandered off to explore a very crowded and fascinating shopping section. In short order we realized how long the day had been because the malls were closing. We weren't sure that ever happened.

We took a taxi back to the condo. We'll have to return to BB for a proper tour at another time.

On Sunday we thought to get an early start and head up to the Genting Highl;ands. We didn't. We got to KL Sentral about 12:00 and could only book the bus to Genting for 2:00. We took off for Bangsar (sort of the Yorkville area but larger). We had lunch and while I read the paper Randy and Kim toured around. They found a number of bridal shops so a return to Bangsar is also on the cards. Speaking of cards, we found a kiosk representing two companies that print wedding invitations. We have their business cards and we'll be in touch with them as well.

We caught the bus and rode forty-five minutes into the hills north of KL. The elevation change is significant (ear pop and everything). The vision that became Genting Highlands Resort must have seemed almost impossible in 1965. Today there are three large hotels (6000+rooms) two large theme parks and a gigantic casino perched on a mountaintop. The temperature is moderated from the lowlands and we almost recognized the feel of early autumn. From the lower bus depot we took a 3.4 km cable car ride the top. Bill was disappointed that it didn't end in snow. The views, though, were well worth the ride. After a couple of hours looking around we'd had enough smoke. Everywhere is a smoking zone and many people take advantage of it. By 6:00 we all had burning eyes and throats. We hopped the cable car back down and headed for home.

Randy in Singapore

2007-11-19T09:44:00.000+08:00

This woman really gets around. Starting in Canada she has now visited five countries in two weeks (Canada, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia/Bali, Singapore). If we count four hours in the Shanghai airport we could make it six.

Friday evening we left KL Sentral, the main railway station, at 10:00 PM. We each had an upper berth which was humorous to say the least. Getting in and out was real adventure. The rocking of the train was soothing but the air conditioning was cranked up and the car felt like a meat locker. our muscles were cramping up it was so cold. In the middle of the night Randy got up to look for the club car and a little warmth. She said that the other sleeping cars were quite comfortable. We were just unlucky, I guess. At 6:30 AM the porter woke everyone to pass out immigration cards for Singapore. We all got up and filled them out because it was warmer than the available alternatives. We were checked on the train by Malaysian officials and we disembarked on entry into Singapore territory for their immigration check. Afterwards we decided to sit in the club car and drink hot coffee rather than return to our berths.

On arrival we cabbed it to the hotel and left our luggage with the concierge. We had breakfast and by then our rooms were ready so we checked in and went for a walk in Chinatown. Randy and Kim drove some hard bargains and came away with a pile of gifts and souvenirs. Randy was worried about us repeating tours we had already taken but we had not been to Chinatown.

We returned to the hotel for a rest and refresher. At 5:00 we took the hotel shuttle to Raffles Hotel. This is where they invented the Singapore Sling and Bill temporarily suspended his non-drinking policy to enjoy the flavour. The hotel is a later 19th century establishment that retains the glory of colonial Britain. It still maintains many of the policies of the day including no shorts for gentlemen. We could never afford to stay there.

We travelled to Clark Quay, which is one of our favourite places. We took a 45 minute river tour on a bum boat and followed up with a dinner at a patio restaurant cantilevered over the river. We then took a walk to the far side of the river and discovered to our surprise that our hotel was adjacent to the river. We walked up to the Fullerton, another old and expensive hotel that is housed in the former main post office building. This again was a throwback to British colonial days but less so than Raffles.

We had a cab drop us at Orchard Road. We were in luck because this was the first night of the Christmas lights. This is a big celebration here and Orchard Road is the shopping capital of Singapore. The street was ablaze and the crowds were immense. We walked for an hour and had our heads on swivels. Apparently the same thing happens in Hong Kong and they leave the lights up until Chinese New Year during the first week of February.

We were up early and had breakfast before checking out. We left our luggage with the hotel again and took Randy on a short tour of the Singapore subway system. This is a sleek modern system that can certainly teach Toronto a thing or two. We caught the Hop On Hop Off bus and toured the whole circuit (about an hour and a half). Then by over to Sentosa Island. This is a Singaporean holiday resort. In terms of distance it is like Torontonians going to Centre Island but it has been developed into a major resort area; and the growth continues with several major projects. Kim and I were thrilled to be able to get back to the Images of Singapore display. This is a wonderful review of the history and culture of the city-state. Afterwards we took the cable car back to the mainland to get a bird's eye view of the city.

We caught a lunch in the plaza across from the hotel and then took a cab to the bus depot. Five hours later we were back in KL and the difference in cleanliness was apparent to our noses...we were home!

Bali - A Weekend in Paradise

2007-11-12T12:39:00.001+08:00

Maybe not! Bali has the veneer of a tropical paradise and, if one sticks to the tourist beach areas, the illusion can be maintained. Kim wanted her illusions left untouched.

We landed in the late evening unsure if we had a room. A phone call from the local booking agent confirmed our reservation and we taxied over. The ride took us through some rather dismal areas of town. The roads were very narrow and most establishments (hotels and homes) are surrounded by greying concrete walls. The Lokha hotel is nice enough but is located on a very busy and very narrow street that accesses the beach. The grounds are carved out of a very small lot for a hotel, but the achievement is impressive. The three story walk up and the room were acceptable but the location left much to be desired.

After dinner we walked to the beach (about 200 metres). The shops along the street reminded us of Wasaga Beach on a poor day, although the street was clean. We found a beach side hotel with the tropical paradise grounds that we all recall from an Elvis film. We decided to stay the evening at Lokha but we booked Saturday evening at the Mandira.

Before we left for our walk on Friday evening we had the concierge at the Lokha book an all day tour for us. On Saturday morning we had breakfast, checked out, and moved to the Mandira. We had the concierge there contact the tour company and we were picked up at 8:15 at our new place. The tour lasted 12 hours and would have been longer but we were all too tired to go to the dinner that was laid on. The tour was another gem. We had a van with a driver and a personal tour guide. The guide was very entertaining and informative. I don't think he realized his malapropism when he was telling us about the "handicraps".

The tour covered a large portion of the island along with several craft houses for batik, silver, wood, and painting. We were treated to two cultural dance performance, a look at the terraced rice fields and a more or less close up of the two volcanoes. We also visited several temples and a monkey forest. While Indonesia is predominantly Muslim Bali is in fact 90% Hindu. The Hindu belief structure was explained to us in detail by our Hindu guide.

We were also warned about the hawkers who are among the most aggressive we have seen. We were told not to touch anything. Once you touch the hawkers will consider it sold and the price will escalate. They will come right into the vehicle to collect (hands head and shoulders, anyway). The best policy is to ignore them. They try to play on one's sense of politeness by continually calling, "Excuse me!" but don't make eye contact or you are through.

A big part of the tourist trade is kickbacks. We were treated to several tradesmen's homes and shops (as mentioned) where the instruction was informative and sales pitches were only slightly less intense than the hawkers. Despite this and with the counsel of our guide we were able to negotiate what we considered very good deals. The sellers probably thought that they too got the better deal, so everyone is happy.

Sunday was spent watching the surfers on the beach and lying around the pool and the tropical paradise grounds of the Mandira. The day included a spa treatment a lunch near the beach in a cool sea breeze.

Kim's illusions are intact!

Bangkok

2007-11-09T10:21:00.000+08:00

Bangkok is known as "Venice of the East."

After class on Tuesday we grabbed a cab and picked up Randy. We had a flight to Bangkok. Kim and I had a couple of days off because of the Indian new year called Deepavali. We took a bus to the airport and flew out at 6:45. on landing in Bangkok we were shown to an information booth that happened to double as a local tour provider. We got directions and a river tour for 1200 Baht (about $12.00 each Canadian) We walked away from the booth wondering if we had just been taken.

A 30 minute taxi ride across the city of 10 million plus got to our hotel that was still on the edge of the city. At 7:30 the next morning our tour guide met us at the lobby with a van and a driver. We challenged rush hour traffic and got to the pier at the river in an hour or so. The river tour took us into the canal system where we viewed the homes and temples. Temples are everywhere. Over 90% of Thailand is Buddhist. After the boat tour we were taken to several commercial establishments. Apparently both the cab drivers and the tour providers subsidize by taking kick backs from these establishments. We had asked for a tailor. Shou (our guide) took us to James Fashion which was named number one in National Geographic. We didn't actually see the article :-) Kim and I each purchased three pair of pants. Originally they were asking 20000 Baht but Kim talked them down to 15000 plus two ties for Bill.

Afterwards we visited a lapidary company. Thailand is renowned for its gemstones. Then on to an oriental rug company where we got an education in the science and art of hand knotted area rugs. These are actually made in Kashmir, India and I have no idea why they are in business in Bangkok. We returned to the hotel to rest up. But first we booked another tour with Shou to go to a buffet dinner and a Thai cultural show. This was also complete with a driver who picked us up at the hotel. The dinner was good but the preamble and the show where amazing.

When we returned to the hotel we were met by a young tailor from James who gave us a fitting of the first draft of the pants. The service is fantastic!

In the morning we took the sky train to James Thompson House Museum. Jim Thompson is a legend in Thailand. He's an American who was here during the war (WWII) and fell in love with the place. He returned to live here during the 50s. The Thai silk trade was a cottage industry and it was dying. He took samples to New York to show to the editor of Vogue magazine. The local designers fell in love with it and the passion transferred to Paris, London and Milan. Thompson returned to Bangkok and set up business, becoming a silk mogul. He also love the Thai traditional architecture and bought up several houses to be transplanted to his property in Bangkok. This is the museum now.

We were to meet our tailor back at the hotel but there was slowness in the manufacture. We checked out and wanted to visit the Grand Palace and the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. the doorman recommended that we hire a taxi for the day. we were introduced to a delightful young Thia driver who spoke English, albeit limited. He drove us and our luggage around Bangkok and accompanied us on a walk through of the temple and the palace. Pictures don't do it justice. Afterwards we went through the regular round of haggling with local traders before returning with our driver to James fashion for a final fitting. Some small alterations to Kim's pants were necessary and we sipped tea while waiting. Afterwards our driver dropped us at the airport. We were back in our condo by 11:00 pm.

We highly recommend Bangkok and we will return!

We will post pictures later because we now have to prepare for a weekend in Bali. We're only home for 14 hours....November 26 and the pictures are up. Take a look at the right..........

Randy's Here!

2007-11-09T09:40:00.000+08:00

Randy arrived safely on Friday, November 2. The family reunion was great and we spent a long evening talking (into the night) until everyone needed some sleep.

On Saturday we got a slow start, but that seems to be par for the course. We got up for a late breakfast and a swim. We went to KL and showed Randy around. We drove into KL because we had to return our rental car but we decided not to repeat our mistakes of Carolyn and Joe's visit. Randy thanks you for being the guinea pigs. We rode the Hop-on-Hop-off bus throughout the city and finished up at Central market with a list of places to go back and visit.

Later we took the LRT (subway to the Toronto people) to KLCC to view the Petronas Towers. We went to Kim's favourite, the Skybar at Traders Hotel. It overlooks the park at KLCC. We watched as night fell and we enjoyed appetizers and wine while capturing many photos. Afterwards we walked over to the shopping mall intending to have dinner. We rediscovered a little gelato shop and indulged so that dinner was no longer required. After some shopping we caught the LRT back to the main rail station and took a cab back to the condo. We intended to stay up to talk but everyone fell asleep over the latest glass of wine.

On Sunday we were up early to attend church with our friends Matthew and Serena. Afterwards Matthew dropped us at Sunway Pyramid so we could show Randy the local mall life (and the ice rink). We then taught Randy about cabs and trains so she would be able to make her way around KL. Randy is a very fast learner.

We visited the National Museum. Kim and I should have made this stop long ago. It is a very informative place covering all of the history of Malaysia. Afterwards we walked through the Lake Gardens park to the National Mosque. Kim and Randy had to dress "modestly" in order to enter. We then moved on to Merdeka Square. We took a cab to the KL Tower, which is their version of the CN Tower. Our intent of dinner there was stymied because you apparently have to book three days in advance for the revolving restaurant (who knew?). We went to the Mandarin Oriental for a wonderful dinner beside the KLCC park. An LRT, train and taxi ride got us back to the condo, but weariness overtook us and we were asleep early.

On Monday Kim and I went back to work while Randy ventured out on her own to KL. She visited the Aquaria and shopped around KLCC. We met that evening at a local mall and had dinner, did a little shopping and returned home to another evening of talking. It has been great!

Boogie Nite

2007-10-30T21:40:00.000+08:00

Last Friday we attended the Taylor's College Annual Dinner. The theme was "The '70s" and there were prizes for everything from a dance contest to best dressed to door prizes to just plain old gifts for every person in the room. This was a really impressive event.

There were over 1000 people, staff and family at the event. from 6:00 to 7:00 there were games and an open bar n the lobby of the banquet room. As people gathered we got to look at the costumes of those who were dressed in the theme; the 70s disco look was everywhere, and the cameras were popping. We're in a hurry right now with Randy coming so we'll throw up the pictures later.

At about 7:30 the owner and the president arrived dressed in glitter and "afro" wigs. They led the whole group into the room to "Stayin' Alive". The Bee Gees were big this evening.

The room was a massive affair and set up as a multimedia circus. The meal was a typical Chinese banquet that you might get at a wedding. There were about 10 courses, mostly fish based (including shark fin soup).

The entertainment was hosted by a professional MC but provided by staff members in the form of a dance contest. These groups had practiced long and hard and it showed. Over the course of the dinner there were also team building games and contests with some pretty large prizes. The door prizes were awarded on the basis of draws of 50 at a time from the names of those in attendance. Some of the prizes were large flat screen televisions, laptop computers, high tech cell phones and trips for two to seven days. Everything was paid for by the college. Awesome!

Carolyn and Joe Were Here

2007-10-27T11:57:00.000+08:00

This past weekend Kim's cousin, Carolyn, and her husband, Joe MacKenzie, tacked a few days onto the end of their three week oriental cruise and flew in for three days. We managed to get Friday off at the school and we met them at the airport on Thursday evening. All went well and we sat up until 2:30 in the morning chatting.

On Friday we took the rental car out, albeit a little later than expected, and headed for Melaka. It was great to see the city through another set of eyes. Joe is a real history buff and his take on the various cultural successions was fun. We walked all the usual places, Chinatown, St. Paul Hill and the old town. We stopped for lunch a the Geographer Cafe and headed back to Subang Jaya about 5:00.

We arrived back just in time for our reservation at a new, and our personal favourite, Tomoe, a Japanese restaurant. After dinner we returned to the condo and Joe and Bill couldn't handle it so we went to bed. Carolyn and Kim stayed up to 2:30 again.

Saturday we started late again. We woke up to a swim in our pool and a leisurely breakfast. We traveled on to Putra Jaya where we tried to duplicate the tour that colleague Moaz took us on in August. Unfortunately, we got lost repeatedly and ended up just going where the whim led us. We saw many of the usual places. When we got to Petaling Street in Chinatown it turns out Joe is an excellent haggler; he ended up getting three fake Rolex watched for about a third of the price they were originally asking for just one. I'm glad he was on our side. We hopped the LRT and rode to KLCC; we watched the sunset as it highlighted the twin towers in the night time lights. We went over to the shopping mall under the towers for dinner in a Vietnamese restaurant. back home and this time everyone went to bed fairly early (midnight).

Sunday started much as did Saturday. We headed out with a stop at one of local mega malls. Joe couldn't believe that we actually have a hockey rink in the mall; he several pictures of the Zamboni cleaning and flooding. Then we went to Bukit Bintang (a tourist upscale shopping area) for a lunch and tour. Afterwards we drove out to the airport to see them off. It was a whirlwind tour but sooooo great to see them!

Pinang

2007-10-17T21:54:00.000+08:00

If you look it up on a map it is probably spelled "Penang." That's the English version; the Malay spelling is "Pinang." More and more the country is trying to recover its heritage and shifting spelling to Bhasa Malaysia (the traditional language.)

This was Hari Raya and we had a four day holiday so we rented a car and set out to the north. The trip took us about six or seven hours; one and a half was spent trying to find the right highway out of KL and another hour was spent getting turned around and finding the hotel in Pinang. We were warned about the traffic but the driving was OK...certainly better than a Friday run to cottage country.

In George Town the roads are very confusing. Many streets are one way (Jalan Sehala). In addition the direction of the one way can change without warning in the middle of the length and you find yourself on a side road that has no name that you can see. No road is straight so you might start off travelling east and find you are going north west and then south west. It doesn't matter because you can't get your bearings and besides the name of the street has changes four times.

Pinang is an old settlement and is showing its age. George Town is the main city on the island and was the seat of British rule. There are many colonial buildings in the city and many more abandoned buildings. The city is a little grungy. But, many of the older colonial buildings are still in use and being refurbished. We walked around the old town on Friday night and toured one of the now famous Malaysian malls. We caught a cab back and the driver was quite delightful regaling us with warnings not to trust taxi drivers. We took a trishaw ride (that's a rickshaw powered by a man on a bicycle). The driver was a great tour guide and we saw a lot of the old city. One of the most fascinating was the Chinese Jetty. It is one of about eight. They are organized according to clan and the city of origin in China. They are built out over the water and are owned in perpetuity. It is truly fascinating to tour one (and only one is open to tourists).

On Saturday we took a chance and the car and drove the entire perimeter of the island. In the highland spine of the island the roads are very narrow and winding. This causes some trepidation as the local drivers view the lanes and white lines as merely suggestions. The vistas however were truly breathtaking. We ended up in Air Hitam, a small market town attached to the Kek Lok Si temple. It makes you think of what medieval Europe might have been like with the towns that cluster around the local abbey or cathedral. The temple is a major Bhuddist shrine as well as a major tourist attraction so the people and the traffic are overwhelming. The tourist trade is alive and well inside the shrine, so you have to walk through all the hawkers to get to the religious area. A note of interest: for a fee the monks will paint your name and or message on a roof tile which is then used in the construction of another part of the temple. Quite enterprising!

On Sunday we took another tour around old town. Because this was Hari Raya weekend most tourist attractions were closed so we did not get into the fort. Afterwards we headed for Subang Jaya. On the way we noticed that the Cameron Highlands were not too far away. Only a minor detour. We left the main road and headed up. We were a little low on gas so we decided to stop at the first gas station. Unfortunately there are none. We travelled about 60 km on fumes.

The Highlands is quite an agricultural area. It is known for the tea plantations built into the mountain sides. There are also fruit and vegetable stands and pluck yourself (pick your own...not the rude version you were thinking). Because of the holiday the roads were extremely crowded. The scenery is beautiful and every turn on the mountain roads provides another great view. The roads are twisting and winding with switchbacks and hairpin turns every hundred yards. Along the way we saw a number of kampungs (camps or hick towns). These seemed to be inhabited mainly by the aboriginal population.

Once back on the main highway we felt like we were well on the way home. Due to rain, darkness and poor signage we ended up being forced off the highway and had to guess our way through KL to finally arrive home late Sunday evening.

All in all it was a great experience.

Malaysia

2007-10-08T06:22:00.000+08:00

We would like to tell you a bit about Malaysia. It is a fabulously interesting, intricate and complex nation. It is modern and 3rd world at the same time. It is technologically advanced and frustratingly backwards. It is global and insular at the same time. The national leaders have dreams and visions of being a 1st world country by 2020 and they are working hard to achieve that goal but often they are clinging to old 3rd world ways.

Politics/Religion
The first prime minister (shown above announcing independence) who won Independence from the British in 1957 set the modern wheels in motion. He was evidently a visionary for his country and is remembered here as something akin to royalty. He negotiated independence from Britain in much the way as Canadian fathers of confederation did. We had to deal with the rights and issues of French Catholics and English Protestants in order to guarantee each their rights. In Malaysia they had to deal with similar issues for Malay Muslims, Chinese citizens and Indian citizens; it has been an interesting road for the country. In 1970 they set about raising the living, educational and cultural status of the Malays and the indigenous people through a policy known in the region as “bumiputra”. Today, some of the policies are no longer benefiting the Chinese and Indian population and though now educated and advanced many Malays are very reliant on a government hand out to improve themselves. The previous prime minister was very strong internally and advanced the policy by trying to reduce the handouts. He had good internal relations but often offended the external world, particularly the U.S. and Australia. The present prime minister (the fifth) has a little of both qualities – he knows what’s good for the country and is also a world player.

Politics here is very much race and therefore religion based. Malaysia is a Muslim country. The King and the royal entourage are Muslims and the UMNO, United Muslim National Organization, is the Muslim governing political party. However there are very large Chinese and Indian populations in Malaysia. Locals state that very generally speaking the Chinese own and run the big companies, the Indians are the labourers and the Malays are trying very hard and are given government support to find equal or greater status in the work force. While the British ruled Malaysia children learned all of their subjects in English, but after Independence the Prime Minister wanted everyone to be very Malaysian so as of 1983 all children learned everything in Bahasa Malaysia (Malaysian language). Today the students we teach are struggling with English while their grandparents generally have better English skills. The present Prime Minister has just brought English back into the schools and starting this year all maths and sciences are to be taught in English. His goal of creating a proud Malaysian country was admirable but it actually has set the past 2 generations back on the global front.

The Muslim community is celebrating Ramadan from mid September until October 12. For one month they fast from before sun up to after sun down. They may eat all the breakfast & dinner they like but only before 7:00 am and after 7:10 pm. The restaurants are packed at about 7:00 p.m. and Muslims will order their meals and then sit and wait until the exact minute when a very subtle nod from waiters or a change in the music will signal the time to break their fast – Berbuka Puasa. They very quietly and slowly begin to eat. It really is quite a discipline to witness. Unfortunately our students are extremely tired especially by the last class of the day. They will celebrate Hari Raya for four days – October 12 to October 15th. It sort of reminds of us Advent and the lead up to Christmas or Lent and Easter. The stores are teaming with Hari Raya cards, lights, decorations and foods. People are buying new outfits to wear for Hari Raya – just like Christmas (or Easter). We have the Friday & Monday off!!

Dishwashers/Clothes Dryers
Kim has done an informal survey of students and staff and to date she has not found one person or family who owns a dishwasher or clothes dryer. We are not talking the Kampungs – the hick towns – we’re talking middle & upper class families. We think we have an industry we could sell here …. Well maybe not!

Interesting things about Malaysia:
o Advanced technology in cell phones and computers
o Awkward banking systems – most places do not accept debit cards and the paper work to do anything in a bank is mind boggling
o There are mega malls everywhere. It is estimated there are more malls per capita here than in the US. They are modern theme park complexes.
o They definitely need a Staples & a Canadian Tire though!
o Their sewer and drainage systems are interesting. Cement drainage ditches run the perimeter of all building, houses and along all streets. Some are covered but most are open. When it rains for 30 minutes each day these drain ditches run with a fury. I sincerely asked early in our stay if any one ever fell into them & I was given a shocked response of “NO” and a look as if I was crazy to even think it!
o WHIMS and Occupational Health and Safety have not found their way to Malaysia. We once saw a construction worker using a huge hand held cement saw while wearing flip flops!
o The Petronas Towers in KL really are a spectacular sight.
o The people here are the quietest, most polite, generous and calm society we have ever had the pleasure to meet. We have never seen an angry student or driver or shopper or bus passenger or …
o The driving here is crazy. Motor bikes weave in & out of traffic everywhere. Motor bikes often drive the wrong way, use side walks and they park any where and every where. We have seen families of 4 on little motor bikes. We are not talking big BMW or Harley bikes – these are small motor bikes (just bigger than a scooter)
o The hawker stalls are everywhere. These are little “rustic” stands with an umbrella over head and a table & pot or pan or deep fryer and a huge variety of fried or stewed food. People line up at the grungiest of them for lunch/ diner/ snacks/ breakfast. They are always busy. And the food is very, very cheap. We have bought a few things from stands but we have not eaten too much hawker food. We are not sure our systems are ready for it yet.
o Most restaurants do not serve alcohol because most are owned or run by Muslims. If there is liquor available it is minimal and very expensive.
o Durian fruit is very popular but it really, really stinks. You can smell it from a great distance. When you walk into a grocery store that sells it (some do not) you can smell it as soon as you step in the door. We will probably NOT try it! I know this is short sighted and not adventurous – but we’ve made up our minds!!
o The fruits and vegetables at the markets are wonderful - not so great at the supermarkets. There are some markets around but they’re not as plentiful or convenient as European markets.

A Weekend in Melaka

2007-10-02T05:58:00.000+08:00

The weekend of September 22/23 we decided to rent a car & drive to Melaka. What a great experience. Melaka is a major city about 2 hours away from KL. What a fabulous city. It is the historical centre of Malaysia with Dutch, Portuguese and British influences as well as Chinese & Malaysian. It used to be the centre of politics and finance but KL has now taken over that role. It is a small city but filled with so much to see & do.

In the 1500’s Melaka (formerly Malacca) was the biggest trading, commercial and cultural spot in South East Asia with one of the busiest ports. It adopted Islam in the late 1400’s which began the Melaka Malay culture with a new Malay language, a superior court system and a royal lineage. It was taken over by the Portuguese in 1511. The Dutch rose to power and captured the city in 1641. There are still small Portuguese and Dutch influences left in the city. The Chinese flocked to Melaka and often became more successful in business than the Europeans. Many Chinese married Malay women & created a new racial mix – the Peranakan – or the Baba- Nonya. This is still a very prominent group in Malaysia today. The British took over in 1795 and remained there until 1957. The British influence is also still very evident especially when speaking to people of our age who have British accents and of course they still drive on the left side of the road. In 1957 the Malaysians were able to gain independence & take back control of their own country. They put on a great push to develop the Malaysian culture again. Melaka went through years of mismanagement under European rule and the once bustling international port of Melaka started to decline. In 1957 the prime minister made the announcement of Independence for Malaysia from British rule from the government building in the heart of the city. The building is now the Museum of Independence – great tour! Today it is a lovely city to visit.

We had a great time touring & visiting the historic sights. It was soooo hot and half way through the day we started to use our umbrellas to block the sun – much better. China town has some of the most interesting shops (a lot of souvenir shops too) where people are still manually working at a trade. See the pictures of the man making hand made sheet metal items, the lady packaging tea by hand and the clogs that are still being made & worn by many workers in Melaka. There are 4 – 5 small temples and mosques with in a small area each with the amazing details and histories. We even saw a Tamil Methodist Church in the district.

Redang

2007-09-21T21:13:00.000+08:00

The water is turquoise and warm, the sand is white and fine, the beach is clean and idyllic...in short "perfect."

Sunday September 16 we were up at 5:30 and left for the Subang Jaya airport at 6:30. We arrived at 6:40 and found a deserted small airport. We wandered through and located the Berjaya Air check in. We had to wait until about 7:30 for the check in to open and we had our baggage scanned and walked through to the departure lounge. This was like walking through the island airport but with a whole lot less formality. We boarded the Dash 7 at 8:15 and were on our way at 8:30 (right on time). The flight was a little over an hour and we landed in Redang. A hotel bus picked us up and took us to the hotel where we checked in but the room wasn't ready. We sat around in a wood lined British colonial style open air lobby. The wonderful atmosphere was starting to relax us.

We had been told that we were upgraded to a deluxe room and we were shown by an attendant to a second floor room in a chalet accommodation by the beautiful beach side garden. It was quaint and the only thing we had concern about was the twin bed arrangement. With a shrug we got changed and went down to lie on the beach. We met Steve and Pam who raved about their room (superior which is a step down from ours). Kim decided to take a look and led Pam to our room followed by a trip to Pam and Steve's. A few minutes later Kim was back saying "Get up, Bill, we're moving!" We stopped by reception and they very kindly and quickly assigned us the room next to Pam and Steve. It was larger, newer, and had a king size bed. The only drawback was the many many stairs we had to climb to get to it. It became our exercise program given all the great food we enjoyed.

We spent Sunday afternoon settling in and hanging around the beach. At dinner that evening we were entertained by d'island Quartet. They became our personal band. They have a large and eclectic repertoire so we played a lot of name that tune among our group of friends.

Monday was another day of beach resting and reading. We tried out our new masks and snorkels by paddling around in the bay. It occurred to us that all those tropical paradise post cards that we've seen were probably shot right here. It was perfect for a mid semester rest. We made arrangements for a scuba tour and a snorkeling trip that we had built into the package: snorkeling on Tuesday and the three dives split over Wednesday (2) and Thursday (1). More beach time and reading (or napping). It's a good thing that they built the cabanas because the sun was high and intense.

We went out Tuesday morning for the 3 island snorkel adventure and at each stop the scenery got better. We saw huge varieties of fish and a lot of exquisite coral. The trip took about four hours and we enjoyed four stops. We also got to see the entire perimeter of the island from the boat. It is an environmental paradise. There are few resorts on the island and the shoreline could have been used to film any tropical island movie. We only hope there is the political will to keep it this pristine.

Wednesday we were up early to report to the dive centre for a check dive in the pool. That went well and we were ready for the real thing. After a briefing from the dive master, Toh, we boarded a converted fishing vessel and were off to the first site. Because it had been a long time since our last open water dive we struggled a little with the skills. Buoyancy was difficult for both of us and Kim's mask kept fogging up, but the reef and its life were spectacular. We were both surfaced early because we over used our air. We were joined by a couple of new divers who burned their air quickly as well.

After everyone was aboard we set up new tanks and the boat moved to the second site. Again the reef was wonderful and we felt like we were in a scene from "Finding Nemo". Kim had difficulty with her buoyancy and about thirty minutes into the dive she popped to the surface (slowly) and could not get back down. Bill joined her and we both got picked up by the boat. The rest of the divers were up a few minutes later and we had a little extra time aboard so on the way back to the resort we got to do some turtle watching. "Nemo" again!! The turtles cooperated by breaching in several places and we got a good look at many others on the bottom. The water is so clear that we could see the bottom clearly in 15 to 20 meters depth. Basically the visibility was unlimited. The afternoon was spent on the beach.

Thursday was somewhat more relaxed. We got up late, read on the beach, and in the afternoon went to the dive centre for another dive. This time were were further away from the island and there was a bit of a swell to deal with at the surface. At depth we had a current to fight. Michael, an engineer and a dive instructor from Scotland, took us under his wing and held tight to Kim who latched onto Bill so we all stayed close together with another rookie diver. Michael was great. He managed to drag us through the current by finding the soft spots and we had an excellent view of the reef. Visibility was down from the other dives because of the current and some offshore storming that stirred up the sediment but the coral reef colours, shapes and varieties were outstanding. We saw amazing, exotic fish life but no sharks or eels (thank goodness). This dive was shorter because of the current as well. We surfaced and were picked up by the boat both tired and exhilarated.

Good news!! We had purchased an underwater camera and we will post the dive and snorkel pictures. Its a 35mm so we have to have the films developed. We'll get them burned to disc so we can post them to the right side of the blog. We have also prepared and posted the land based pictures for you to have a look at.

Friday was check out. We slept in some and then went to the beach. Kim took a dip in the ocean and Bill took a swim in the pool (so did his wallet). Kim enjoyed a fabulous aromatherapy "spa" treatment. Late check out, a short ride to airport brought us back home to Subang Jaya by about 5:00 PM. This was a most wonderful restful vacation and we will try to get back in the spring.

Mid Semester Break is Here

2007-09-15T21:43:00.001+08:00

Since we returned from Singapore it has been really hectic. First of all we had to get our mid term marks in to our department heads. Although we use Markbook to track student marks the college has not yet taken advantage of the export function whereby we can export an ASCII file to the college database. Instead we manually transfer student marks to a hard copy and submit these to our department head who then manually enters them into the database. Too many opportunities for mistakes. We have approached the IT department about mapping the necessary fields and it looks like this will be ready for finals.

Second, we have conducted parent teacher conferences on Saturday, September 8. I wonder how that would fly in Ontario. The parents were generally very nice and supportive. When a student is not doing well they tend to place the onus on the student to improve. It is much less confrontational than we often see back home. There is, however, pressure to maintain a positive approach and help the college retain and recruit students. Some students here are on government scholarships and must maintain an 85% average in order to keep the scholarship. If they do then they get four years support at a Canadian university. There is very real stress for these students.

We joined a gym. There is a very modern gym at Subang Parade (a local mall) that is within walking distance of the college. We also booked eleven sessions each with a personal trainer. The negotiations were exciting. We dropped in to have a look and were immediately accosted by a promoter. He was very nice and he was into hard sell. There were joining fees, processing fees, training fees and a monthly membership fee. We negotiated some reductions in the fees and Aarron, our promoter, went to find a trainer to discuss that service with us. We had seen a colleague working out and decided to consult with him. Carl asked what the charges were and when we told him he said that they were ridiculous. He immediately joined us in the negotiations. But Carl doesn't negotiate, he bulldozes. He's not rude, just very forceful. He 'instructed' the promoter and one of the managers to delete the joining and processing fees; they did so. He gave them the option of having two new members or having us go across the street to another gym. In the end we paid the monthly fee and the trainer fees. The gym is not cheap even by Canadian standards. It is a high end gym, very clean with many options for exercise including extensive classes, machines, cardio area, and free weights. The cost is about the same as what we might pay at Bally or Good Life. That's pretty expensive in a country that has a minimum wage of about $2.00 per hour and many employers ignore that.

We've had several sessions with the trainers and our muscles are telling us that they are working. We are almost through the assessment part and looking forward to getting a program to work on our own. After that we'll meet the trainers intermittently to upgrade the program and check our progress. We walk to the gym a couple of times a week and follow up with dinner and a little shopping. We also try to get there on the weekend.

The past week (on Thursday) was the start of Ramadan. It is the Muslim month of fasting. That means that adults cannot eat between sunrise and sunset, not even to sip water. There are some exceptions but most of our Muslim students are pretty rigorous about the fast. On Thursday evening we went to the gym and then out for dinner. While at the restaurant at about 7:00 PM a young Malay Muslim couple sat down next to us and ordered dinner. The dinner was delivered to the table at 7:10 and they just sat there chatting; they didn't touch the meal nor did they taste the water placed on the table. The man had his cell phone out and checked it regularly. At about 7:20 they both started to eat and we looked around to notice that the rest of the people had also started to eat. Again on Friday evening we were out to shop before our holiday and we sat among an entire restaurant of people doing the same thing as the young couple the night before. This time at about 7:20 waiters and waitresses went table to table informing the guests that the sun had indeed set; the meal began.

The fast does take a toll. We saw an elderly gentleman on Thursday who was clearly in some distress. He was holding on to a lamp pole and seemed to be feeling faint. Bill's trainer at the gym asked to reschedule their appointment because he was not feeling well. He explained that this always happens on the first day of the fast, but his body adjusts in a day or so. We rescheduled. Ramadan here is a lot like Christmas back in Ontario. It ends with the celebration of Hari Raya (October 12 to 15 this year), much as Advent ends with Christmas. In the store right now there are coloured lights and Happy Hari Raya cards. In Bhasa Malayu it is written as Selamat Aidilfitri. Specialty foods are also all over the stores. Dates and Hari Raya cookies are for sale in large displays in the stores and malls. Hari Raya is like American Thanksgiving and Canadian Christmas too in that everyone travels home for the holiday. It's a great family get together. We're looking forward to it. The catch is that there are no flights available anywhere because we left it too late to book; we only started six weeks in advance and everything was taken.

This next week is mid-semester break and we have a week off. We are travelling with colleagues to Redang Island on the north east coast. It is a SCUBA diving and snorkeling destination. We are really looking forward to a restful five days. We'll re-certify our diving and take several outings to view the local underwater flora and fauna. The rest of the time is beach and rest.
Watch for pictures.

Feeling a Little Shakey

2007-09-13T23:01:00.000+08:00

It was a really interesting morning. You may have heard about the earthquake in Indonesia. It happened about 6:00 PM local time and was 8.2 on the Richter Scale. The aftershocks were running about 6.6 and a tsunami warning was issued for the entire Indian Ocean basin. We're protected from the tsunami threat because we are sheltered by Sumatra and the quake was on the south side of that island.

As we sat in our office at 7:45 this morning everyone got the feeling that their office chairs were moving. It turned out we were feeling an aftershock. The veterans tell us that these sometimes occur and last a few seconds at most. This morning's tremor lasted well over a minute and the entire building was swaying. Not a great deal of movement but we did feel a continual pulsing effect. Nobody got too excited so we tried to stay calm as well. In the end it stopped and nothing more happened.

So all of you calm down ! We're fine!

Our Condo

2007-09-12T19:31:00.000+08:00

We keep saying that we love our condo and the other day Mike said he'd like to see pictures. We realized that we hadn't posted anything. So take a look at the photo links on the right.

The Condo is in an older neighbourhood called Wangsa Baiduri. It has a gated entrance staffed at all times by several security guards. The neighbourhood was established in about 1985 as a development of what we would call town houses. There are a couple of streets of very large single family homes and one that even has its own guard house. The houses are all walled and gated and the properties are generally quite small by Bolton standards. The construction is brick with a coat of stucco. The rooves are terra cotta tiles (maybe some kind of synthetic.

Our condo (Boulevard Condominium) is a new building, less than two years old. It is still largely unoccupied for a number of reasons. Many of the units are owned as investments and rented out to people like us who need a longer term place to stay. The buildings (two towers) have their own security with several guards on duty at all times. The guards patrol the grounds at regular intervals. The development also has a gardening crew that takes care of the flora. The lawns and gardens are impeccably groomed. Kim probably wants to get out and tinker with the gardens but here would be nothing for her to do.

Our unit is a two bedroom that was partly furnished and had never been lived in. We have added some homey touches and are very comfortable. If any of you choose to visit (please!) you have your own bedroom. We have a small kitchen but we use it for breakfast and the odd dinner. it is so inexpensive here we often eat out in one of the many ethnic restaurants. As you can see there is a set of gates on the vestibule. This is common practice in condo and apartment buildings here. It is an extra level of security and allows for more space inside...not thgat we need a whole lot more because it really is a rather large two bedroom place.

If you saw all of the photos that have been taken you would probably think that we are obsessed with the pool. In fact it is lovely. Kim loves to get her swim in every chance she gets and as a result Bill is getting some of that exercise form as well. The pool is situated at the front of the condo right above the guard house and over the parking structure; so it is three floors above the ground. It's made up of a beautiful lawn and garden area with a nice deck and a small gym attached. The pool is about four feet deep and the water is always crystal clear and warm. At one end is a shallower wading pool that is separated from the main pool. In the main pool there is an underwater deck at one end and the return jets can be used for a whirlpool effect; it feels wonderful. It gets a little chilly if we have rain; this means it drops to about 80 degrees. That's cool when the evening temperature is around 80 plus as well. The pool has an infinity edge so we have the sensation of it going on forever.

We welcome any who can get to Malaysia to rest with us. We look forward to seeing each of you.

Photos

2007-09-10T06:43:00.000+08:00

On the right you will find links to more of our photos. We've set up a 'FILCKR' account that allows us to upload our photos to the web. We've added the Singapore photos now and will add others as we have the time. They are pretty raw since we haven't taken the time to touch up most of them but we though you might enjoy seeing more of the visual record of our adventures. Once you click on the link of the set you want to see then check the "Details" button above the main picture to see what each is.

Let us know how you like the feature. We're always happy to hear from home.

Kim and Bill

(in a trishaw...this driver really earned his pay)

Singapore

2007-09-08T23:47:00.000+08:00

As you'll know if you've been following our adventures and keeping up with your reading, Friday, August 31 was the 50th anniversary of independence (Merdeka). Since it was a holiday we booked a trip to Singapore for the long weekend. The Merlion is the symbol of Singapore and this statue is a fountain that stands over the river from which the city derives its name.

We had to get up at 5:30 on Friday morning. Because of the Merdeka celebrations we knew that the trip into KL was going to be slow. The people were bent on celebrating and the parades began forming at 8:00 AM because they wanted to get underway before the full heat of the day. To compound matters the taxi drivers in KL went on strike on Thursday. It seems that it has been years since the government allowed a change in rates. This also explains the protracted price negotiations when one wants to use a taxi. Our bus was schedule for 10:30 AM from a terminal in the heart of KL. It's kind of like the Bay Street terminal but bigger, more crowded, dirtier,noisier and full of hawker stalls selling just about anything. Okay, it's nothing like Bay Street except the dirty part. We took the local commuter, a version of the GO train, from Subang Jaya to KL and the LRT (the elevated rapid transit) to a nearby stop. From there we waded through the crowds for about five blocks to the bus depot. We arrived at 8:45 so it went more smoothly than expected.

The trip was scheduled for five hours but traffic out of KL was horrendous and it was a good hour before we cleared the city limits. Stop and go traffic lasted about another hour. The bus was large and comfortable so we both caught a little sleep and a little reading. On reaching the Malaysia/Singapore border we disembarked to go through Malaysian exit customs. We boarded the bus and crossed the straights (about two minutes) where we disembarked again to go through Singapore entry customs. This time we had to take bags and all. The customs declaration includes a large red notice that "The penalty for drug trafficing in Singapore is death." Scary!! The rest of the trip took another hour and all included we were in transit for seven hours.

The bus terminal was simply a large parking lot in a park with a few transit company ticket booths along one side. We asked about getting a cab to the hotel and were told to go to the roadside and stick out our hand and a cab would stop for us. We did; he did. Once on our way in a very clean cab the driver asked us if we had been to Singapore before. Our negative reply prompted a string of "well, here's what you need to know..." verbiage. We learned about the buildings along our route, the way fares for cab are calculated, sights we MUST see and a seemingly endless patter that kept us informed and smiling. This man was a wonderful ambassador for the city; he was so obviously proud of his country. We were warned about the very strict laws and advised that low crime doesn't mean no crime.

We stayed at the Bencoolen Hotel. Its on Bencoolen Street (surprise) and is an older hotel. The room was small and given the climate (hot and humid) the carpet caused the room to have a musty odour. It was OK for a short stay but we probably will not return to it. The hotel is located on the edge of downtown and is an easy walk to Orchard street, the shopping district. We could also walk to downtown locations but tended to take cabs because they are so clean efficient and relatively inexpensive.

The city is extremely clean. The transit system does everything that Toronto has talked about for years. It is safe, clean efficient and responsive. For example, there was a concert at the arts centre downtown and they actually ran the trains later and put on extra trains to accommodate the people. They have some interesting ways of controlling traffic too. Every car carries a transponder and certain areas of the city are classified as restricted zones. In these areas there is a surcharge (a toll) during peak periods. If you want to drive during rush hour it costs you. Furthtermore you need a special permit to own a car and these are sold at auction. A permit might go as high as 50 or 60 thousand Singapore dollars and that translates to $40000 to $48000 Canadian. Afterwards you need to buy a car and these prices are also inflated by taxes. The drivers here are very polite and cooperative and as a people Singaporeans seem most compliant and always helpful.

Orchard Road is the shopping capital of Singapore. We shopped and then headed over to Clarke Quay. It is a redeveloped section of the river front. There are several such areas along the Singapore River. This one is an entertainment centre that thrives on clubs, bars, restaurants and outdoor cafes. The latter have tables hanging right over the river edge. We walked the entire length of the quay and back looking for a restaurant (there were plenty and we were overwhelmed by the choice). We wanted a seat right over the river but this was Friday night - party night and just about everything was full. Eventually we found a place a little away from the river and had a terrific, small meal. We took a bumboat ride to view the city from the water. We cruised past the Merlion , the symbol of Singapore and back to the quay. It was a beautiful ride and a fabulous way to see the city.

When we got up Saturday morning we had breakfast on the sidewalk at the front of the hotel. It was much like a sidewalk cafe or patio in Toronto and we had the opportunity to people watch. The breakfast was an interesting mixture of western and eastern fare.

It has always been our habit to take a bus tour to the various sights and then decide what we want to come back to later. So, we took the Hop On-Hop Off bus. This was similar to the one we took in KL when we first arrived. It hits all the tourist high spots with a small commentary. The driver again, was an ambassador for his city. There are 22 stops and the tour takes about 90 minutes. The ticket is good for the entire day. We disembarked at the beautiful Botanical Gardens and fascinating little India. It has been preserved with the colonial facades and the bright colours preferred by the Indian people.

Sentosa Island is a resort Island just off shore in the straits of Singapore. It is connected to the mainland by a bridge/causeway. Sentosa is a destination for the people of Singapore to vacation or just rest up. We rode the sky tower (another wonderful aerial view of the city) and then visited "Images of Singapore". This highlighted the aspects of Singapore's history and culture in holographic. visual, audio, panoramas and live action. We only had about 30 minutes but we will return to this extremely interesting exhibit in the future. At one point we met a coolie. The young man playing the part stayed completely in character and he was quite a character. He explained where and why the coolies originated and their role in the development of Singapore. He explained that coolies were transplanted Chinese criminals. He claimed he was a reformed pick pocket...telling us that today was his last in that trade. Bill checked his wallet :-) We hurried out and caught a cable car back to the mainland. This had a spectacular view of the area. We then caught a cab back to the hotel to freshen up for an appointment we had set up.

We then went to meet a colleague (from Brampton) Aunt and Uncle. Well, Aunt Terese and Uncle Joe had made all sorts of arrangements for us. We had a delightful afternoon tea with them and then they took us to Mass on Sunday morning then on to lunch with the family. Aunt Terese is a well know figure in Singapore and Uncle Joe made his engineering mark on bridges around Singapore & Malaysia and the Sydney Opera House in Australia. He was so interesting. One daughter works in the financial district in downtown Manhattan and another daughter and her husband have their own architecture business. They launched their business by winning a top Asian award for the design of a multi complex housing development that is now being built.

We had a wonderful time with the Haung's.

We had time to meet up with friends for Saturday dinner at a Indo-Chine restaurant which had the most delicious food. It wasa fusion of Asian and French cuisine.

All in all - we loved Singapore. It is a wonderful country. We can't wait to go back.

Merdeka

2007-08-29T23:01:00.000+08:00

Merdeka means Independence and Malaysians throughout the country have been gearing up for a wonderful August 31st celebration. Taylor's College got into the act on the morning of August 30 with a flag raising ceremony. There were patriotic songs, the national anthem, mini flags and a good deal of commaraderie as the pictures can attest.

Malaysia as we know it today is a thriving developing country, often considered a “role model” by its Southeast Asian neighbours for its economic and political stability, multicultural harmony and steady progress. August 31st, 2007 marks the 50th year of this country's independence from British colonialism and the day the joyful, triumphant shouts of “Merdeka, Merdeka, Merdeka!” resonated throughout the nation as Malaya's first Prime Minister, Allahyarham Tunku Abdul Rahman stood on a podium at Merdeka Square doing the same.

The name Malaya was then changed to Malaysia when the country was officially made a federation of 13 states including Sabah and Sarawak on the Island of Borneo. Article 1(1) of the Federal Constitution states that "The federation shall be known, in Malay and English, as Malaysia". Although Singapore broke away and became a nation of its own in 1965, the rest of the states have remained firmly together, combining to make Malaysia the harmonious melting pot of cultures it is today.

Here is a bit of the chronological history of Malaysia.

1511 – Melaka was invaded by the Portuguese and hence the start of the era of the European colonial powers.
1596 – The Dutch arrived and decided to take over Melaka from the Portuguese in order to control the sea route that connects the Eastern countries and the Western countries.
1641 – The Dutch officially gained control of Melaka and conquered the land for 200 years.
17 March 1824 – Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824, also known as the Treaty of London, was signed between the UK and UK of the Netherlands in London. Which included the term that the Netherlands would cede the city and fort of Melaka. Hence the begining of British colony in Malaya.

1 January 1942 – World War II broke out, the Japanese army invaded Labuan Island which syndicate the beginning of their campaign to capture Borneo. For the next three years following the invasion, the British power in East Asia was strongly affected by the Japanese occupation.
1946 – The British announced plans to turn the Federated and Unfederated Malay States, Penang and Melaka into a unitary state called Malayan.
1955-1956 – UMNO, the MCA and the British hammered out a constitutional settlement for an independent Malaya.
31 August 1957 – Malaya achieved independence and Tunku Abdul Rahman became the first Primte Minister.
1961 – Prime Minister Abdul Rahman mooted the idea of forming Malaysia that includes Malaya, Singapore, Sabah, Sarawak and Brunei.
16 September 1963 – Malaysia was formally formed merging Malaya, Singapore, Sabah, and Sarawak.
21 July 1964 – 36 people were killed and 556 injured in the 1964 Race Riots between Chinese and Malay groups in Singapore.
9 August 1965 – Singapore was expelled from Malaysia, Singapore gained independence.
May 1969 – During the federal elections, the UMNO-MCA-MIC Alliance polled only 48% of the vote that leads to a large lost of Chinese-majority seats of MCA to DAP candidates. A riot was raised.
22 September 1970 – Tunku Abdul Rahman was forced to retire and Tun Abdul Razak became the second Prime Minister of Malaysia.
14 January 1976 - Tunku Abdul Razak passed on due to leukaemia.
15 January 1976 – Datuk Hussein Onn ,the son of UMNO’s founder Onn Jaafar, succeeded the position as the third Prime Minister of Malaysia, who later was also referred to as the Father of Unity.
10 July 1981 – Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad, fondly called “Dr. M” by his supporters, became the fourth Prime Minister of Malaysia and remained in office for 22 years.
July 1997 – The beginning of the period of economic unrest, termed as the East Asian Financial Crisis, largely affected the economy growth in Malaysia.
31 October 2003 – Dato’ Seri Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi succeeded Mahathir and became the fourth and also current Prime Minister of Malaysia.
31 August 2007 – Malaysia celebrating 50 years anniversary!

So Many New Friends

2007-08-22T18:24:00.000+08:00

Since we have been in Malaysia we have met a multitude of new friends. The staff, the students, the neighbours, all have been warm and welcoming. In another post we told you about our part time job and how we met Rossy and Burnett, our neighbours across the colonnade.The people of Malaysia are among the friendliest we have ever had the pleasure to have known. An example of how things work: one day we were in USJ, the next section to Subang Jaya. We had arranged for our telephone land line and done some shopping. We decided to catch a bus to Summit Mall and we were walking to the bus stop. Apparently we must have looked like lost foreigners or something because as we approached a woman standing by the roadside she asked us where we were going. Fortunately, she asked in English. We said we were walking to the bus stop and she told us to just wait with her. It was not a bus stop we observed and she indicated that it didn't matter because "everyone waits here!" As we waited she determined that we were going to Summit and as one of the private company buses (Bas Mini) approached she said we could take this one or wait for one of the local municipality buses (Rapid KL). We thought the MB might be an adventure and so she flagged down the bus, got on and instructed the driver regarding our destination and made sure that we paid and were given appropriate change. She instructed us clearly and left with a smile and a goodbye. We never exchanged names nor more than a few minutes together but we felt we were welcomed to the country.

When we came over, there were ten instructors and one non teaching spouse who arrived at about the same time. Steve and Pam Wise (Pam is the non teacher) were here April 20th or so. They broke a lot of ground for the rest of us. Steve is a retired teacher from the London Ontario area and Pam has left her position in health care. They are both committed to their church and have in fact travelled to other places on mission trips. They have been to Germany and Bangladesh. Susan Tsin and Ken Cheung are a young married couple who are on a one year leave from the Toronto Board where they teach in a high school. They have about seven years experience each. Ken was born in Hong Kong and moved to Toronto at 15. Susan is originally Indonesian but has lived her whole life in Toronto with the exception of a short stint studying in China. Erin Donati and Mark Klimitz are a very young couple who are in their first year of teaching. It is kind of fun to watch the young ones (they are younger than our kids) as they settle into the new life and their first professional assignment. Mark Myers is an experienced international teacher. He spent five years teaching in Japan during which time he made the trek back to Canada to get his teaching certificate. For the past two years he has been in Tian Jin China teaching a high school program at the Pines. He is quite interesting and mixes easily with everyone both local and ex-pats. Les Hussack is also a first year teacher as is Easton Hanna. Les is from Dunnville Ontario and Easton from Toronto. Easton is via Ireland and is very proud of that heritage. And then there's the McNamara's, the senior citizens of the bunch.

On our first day here Pam and Steve met us and showed us around (See an earlier entry). As newbies arrived they conducted the tour repeatedly. They invited us all to their apartment and made the introductions. At that point Pam collected names and birth dates and she has become the designated social convenor of the group. So far we have celebrated four birthdays including Kim's. This also gives us a chance to get together and share stories and concerns. The Macs are sort of the liaison with management because we have known Frank, the program director, since the early 70's in North York.

At the college we have met several new friends as well. One of our department heads (Bill's boss) Rowena Valberg meets us every morning at the gate to our subdivision and drives us to the college. This saves us a RM6.00 ($1.80) taxi fare. In the evenings we walk home which takes about 20-25 minutes. Rowena is a born and raised Malaysian. She was trained in accounting and did spend several years with an accounting firm in Australia. She says that her family accuses her of having an Australian accent. Rowena has been at Taylors for many years and teaches accounting as well as heading the business department. Another Department head, Joy Augustine, rides with us each morning. Joy is from Toronto and he intends to end his three year stay to take his wife and two young teen children back to Canada.

Rowena and Joy are both Catholic and attend the same church. Early in our stay Rowena volunteered her friends Matthew Chong and Serena Wong to drive us to church. They have adopted us. Each Sunday that we are not otherwise engaged they pick us up at 7:30 or 7:45 and drive us to Petaling Jaya (another section) to attend 8:30 mass. The church is packed! There is a large and active Catholic community in Malaysia with a very diverse mix of race and culture. Many Indian, Malay and Chinese families sit side by side with the few old white people like us. The community feeling is wonderful. After mass Matthew and Serena insist on taking us around to show us the sights or to assist us to shop and return things to our apartment. This saves the aforementioned taxi charges. These side trips almost always include a meal of some sort and we get introduced to some excellent ethnic restaurants as well as some savings methods. We have had serious lessons on Japanese and Chinese meals so far (Matthew is a fanatic about sushi mi...raw fish). We have tried steamboat buffet. In this style one has a bubbling pot of two kinds of broth into which one dumps quantities of food selected from the buffet. Once the food is cooked...ENJOY! Its a lot like fondue.

Matthew and Serena discovered that we are golfers (loose use of terms) and invited us to play at their course in Port Dixon on the west coast. Port Dixon is a former harbour that is trying to be a resort destination. It is about 90 minutes from KL and Subang Jaya. These friends own a condo in PD and have in the past used it as a base from which to play golf a the local courses. The original intent when they bought in 1995 it was that they would retire there and play lots of golf. The shame is that the developer didn't have a contingency plan for the Asian economic collapse of 1997. Three of four buildings had been completed and Matthew and Serena bought in the forth. They were lucky that developer, who had their money, finished the block. Interests rates skyrocketed to between 16 and 20%. many people who put down a deposit could not afford to pay the balance and have walked away. The block now has 2% occupancy; this means that the maintenance fees are insufficient to do the necessary upkeep and the building is falling into disrepair. For example, the maintenance company cannot afford parts for the elevators and cannibalizes those in other areas for parts. As a result there is only one elevator working in this 18 story block and it sometimes doesn't work. The whole project is in the hands of the liquidators. On the other hand Matthew and Serena have done a wonderful job with their apartment and once inside their door it is magnificent. The views are awe inspiring wither from their balcony over the straits of Malacca or from their front colonnade over the town and the golf course.

When we left Canada we had put our golf shoes into the bags and then did the Hokey Pokey. When the music stopped the shoes were out. On Friday night Matthew and Serena picked us up and took us to their house where we were asked to select a set of golf clubs for the weekend. They each have at least two sets. They then drove us to a golf store nearby where we got new shoes at a very reasonable sale price of RM190.00 or about $60.00 Canadian. They then took us to the local steamboat buffet. Matthew is very quick with his wallet and it has been a challenge to beat him to the bill; we missed again this night. On Saturday morning Matthew picked us up at 6:30 and we headed for PD (Port Dixon). It seems that Serena had other commitments and could not join us. We got to PD and installed in the condo by 8:00 and went over to the golf course across the street. the place was almost deserted; we saw eight golfers tee off and the starter said we could go when we wanted. Matthew insisted on breakfast and we teed up at about 8:45. The day was hot and the course was damp and sandy. We played 9 holes and thought that was enough. Matthew again treated us to lunch before we showered and changed.

For the rest of the day we toured the area in which Matthew and Serena grew up. Matthew was pleased to be showing us around and Kim felt compelled to tell him how Bill travels down memory lane every time we are in the area of the Danforth in Toronto. We stopped at an exciting wet market at which everything one could imagine and a few things one could not were for sale. The fish were laid on tables on 'some' ice and at one stall a butcher used a very bloody tree stump as a chopping block for bones from the red meat they were selling. Afterwards we took Matthew to dinner at a beautiful resort hotel before returning to the condo and crashing.

The next morning Matthew had to make a presentation to a group of operating theater nurses. He is a pharmacist working for a skin care company; one of their lines is Nivea. He dropped us off at another resort hotel that had a nine hole walking only golf course. We had breakfast first of course and then teed off about 8:45. We were literally the only players on the course. The ground was damp (or wet) and the air was very humid. The course was beautifully manicured and landscaped. Both of us used sun block and Kim carried an umbrella to keep the blazing sun off. At the end of the round Bill had sweat so much that Kim took a picture because he was literally wet from the top of his hat to the back of his knees. It looked like he had been caught in a downpour. Matthew picked us up at 11:00 and dropped us back at our condo in the early afternoon.

What a great weekend. What a great adventure!

The Internet Has Arrived

2007-08-20T18:13:00.000+08:00

We finally have internet access at our condo. This means we will be able to catch up on our posting. It also means we will probably get some of them out of order. We also need to re-edit some of the existing entries to include photos. You will have to check back regularly over the next week or so to get caught up.

The internet thing is an epic in itself.

Back on July 21 we got up early and travelled to the next district (Taipan) which is like travelling from downtown to North York. There we visited the TM Points office (that's Telekom Malaysia). In order to get internet access one must have a telephone line because there is no cable version here. There is 3G which is a wireless connection but that doesn't work above the 4th or 5th floor and...well...we're on 13. No one really understands why but it was the salesman for the 3G who told us that it wouldn't work.

Anywaaaay!!! We filled out all of the paperwork and paid our fees and registered to get a telephone line. We asked about internet access (it's called Streamyx) and were told we would have to apply after we had a telephone line. When we asked to whom we would speak about that application the young woman informed us that it was her. We suggested that we fill out the paperwork for Streamyx and she asked if we had a phone line; no; well that's needed first. With a sigh we moved on to a young man who collects the money. The young woman only does the paperwork.

Several days later we were concerned that no service man had contacted us to set up an appointment to install the phone. It took several tries to raise TM because one cannot call the company from a cell phone. Cell phones are supported by a different company. We finally got through on a land line and heard that the technician was scheduled for 10:00 AM the next day. We had no notice and we were working (obviously). We were given the techs hand phone number and called him from our cell. We got the appointment changed to 4:30 the next . We raced home and met him and had the phone installed. It didn't work; apparently it takes several days to activate.

We prepared to wait while the system ground its way to activation. We however received several calls from companies wanting to register us for Streamyx. The sales section is farmed out to private companies on a commission basis. Once they were assured we had a telephone (apparently they can check) we were registered and we arranged to have the high speed modem couriered to us THE VERY NEXT DAY. We had them address it to the college. We spoke with the college receptionist and she agreed that she would accept delivery for us. No modem that day, Tuesday, nor Wednesday. We called; it will be delivered Thursday. No modem Thursday or Friday. On Friday afternoon we called and told them to cancel our order. They said that the problem was that the modem was out of stock; we said cancel anyway because we were not happy with the service. About twenty minutes later we got a call asking if they could deliver the modem immediately (it seems a shipment had just come in) We agreed on a time and the modem arrived within minutes of the agreed upon time.

We spent several hours trying to install the modem the software and to get it operational. In desperation we called the service desk help line. It seems that despite being registered four days before it takes up to seven business days to have a technician plug us into the system. We waited. On Tuesday evening we had a call from someone at Streamyx asking how the service was operating; when informed that it was not the gentleman said he would open a report and call us back the next evening to review. After eight days (it is now Saturday a week after receiving the modem) we find that the service is still not working. We called. The very pleasant and helpful person on the other end "opened a report" for us. This process results in someone checking that we are registered and that our cable has been plugged in. This process takes two business days. We waited. On Monday we called to check what would happen next. Well it takes two business days don't you know so we can't expect a progress report until Wednesday morning. We waited.

On Wednesday morning we called and were informed that the cable was plugged in and that our account was activated and that our internet was working; we begged to differ based on empirical evidence and personal experience. Once the discussion about the validity of our observations was concluded it was agreed that Vincent (a tech) would stop by and check it out. He'd be by around ten the next morning. But we're working. We were given Vincent's number.

We called Vincent and established an appointment for 4:30 to 5:00 the next afternoon. We hurried home from the college and waited. To our happy surprise Vincent arrived at 5:05 and was full of apologies for his late arrival. He spent about 30 minutes verifying that the internet did not work and that the problem was not at our end but at the point at which the cable had been plugged into the system. By 6:00 PM he had the service up and running and he verified this by checking his stock market performance.

Taylor's University College

2007-08-20T06:12:00.000+08:00

Teaching is a pleasure. Kim is teaching grade eleven English. Many students need this to qualify for grade twelve English which they need to graduate. Bill is teaching grade twelve Business Leadership. We each have three classes and only one preparation. Classes range in size from a low of 15 to a high of 25. As we said the students are wonderful. Kim has commented several times that we see no angry kids as we so often do in Canada. The students here are truly wonderful. In the main they are dedicated and intelligent. Each day we are thanked for the lesson. They do, however, have some difficulty adapting to the Canadian style of education. They come from a system that requires them to sit quietly while a teacher tells them everything. This information must then be memorized and fed back on the final exam. the final is 100% of the final mark.

Many of the students are government scholars. They have their tuition paid by the government as long as they maintain an average of 80%. If they do so the government will support them for 4 years at an offshore university. This is important to them because many graduates of the national university are not hired by Malaysian companies because the local degree has little respect. Offshore graduates do get preferential treatment. (More about this another time when we discuss the political climate)

Getting to the teaching is not such a pleasure. Our classes are on the fifth floor and there are no elevators. We walk, climb or crawl up and down a minimum of twice (round trip) each day and often more. For the benefit of our skiing friends, our legs will be staying in shape. The good news is that all of the indoor areas are air conditioned; in fact is is sometimes so chilly inside that we feel the ice cubes forming between the shoulder blades and/or in other unmentionable places.

The college is quite a conglomerate. It is spread over three different campuses and the plans have just been completed for a forth campus. Completion of the new location is scheduled for 2009. As a result there is little in the way of high end maintenance being completed. Because of the climate (hot and humid) there is a need for constant work to keep mold and mildew at bay. The main campus (ours) houses several programs. These include:

International Canadian Pre University Program (ICPU). This is basically Ontario grade 12 and we are supervised by the Ontario Ministry of Education. We use the Ontario curriculum guidelines in both content, methodology and evaluation. Students here are required to complete 6 grade 12 subjects including a level four English. They also have to complete 10 hours of community service.
South Australian Matriculation (SAM). This is the Australian pre university program and it is very popular because many students travel to Australia because of the proximity and therefore the economy of attending.
Cambridge A Levels (CAL) This is the English pre U. It is here because until 1957 this was a British colony and many people still see this as the education to have. The college also has an affiliation with a couple of British universities.
A law degree
An engineering degree
A medical sciences degree

The college itself tries to be socially responsible. In the past each program has operate one or more charity events. This year, to reduce disruption, we held a charity day that involved all of the programs on our campus. The Canadian program (that's us remember) held a barbecue. The staff did the cooking and serving and all was headed up by my colleague in the business leadership program, Carl Boodram. Carl has been here for eleven years and the barbecue is his specialty. I ended up cooking and Kim serving. The students and staff were surprised to see a cook wearing a tie. In the end we raised RM1500.00. The ringgit Malaysia is the local currency and trades at about 3 to 1 against the Canadian dollar so we raised about $500.00 Canadian.

So far we are having a wonderful time. The staff and students have been very welcoming and it is truly a joy to be back teaching. It is to be noted that kids are kids everywhere. They come with all of the ideals, joy, humour and angst that we see at home (all except the anger; we wish we knew why)

A Tour of KL

2007-08-19T16:44:00.000+08:00

That's what the locals call it (KL).

On August 3 one of the lecturer's at the college was conscripted to show us around the city. Moaz grew up in Mississauga and has been teaching here for almost three years. He is the resident expert on the local transit system as well as a very interesting person. He has wide ranging interests that include the history, geography and social standards of the country. Most of the newbies (those who came over at the same time as us) signed up for the day long tour. The college provided us with a van and a driver and at 8:30 Saturday morning we were off. We were picked up at our condo. While we were waiting I got a picture of the entrance complete with the security gate and Kim.

Our first stop was to the immediate south of KL in Putra Jaya. This is the newly minted administrative centre of Malaysia. Putra means prince and Jaya means success So it means 'Prince of prosperity' but loosely translated it means 'Malaysia the successful' or 'Malaysia will be successful'; don't ask why but translations here have many "loose" forms. The city, more like one of the old boroughs or five cities of Toronto, is built on an island in a largish lake donated by the local king of Selangor (our state). There are seven bridges to the island each in a different architectural style representing the seven continents. There is obviously some symbolism here. The bridge pictured here was apparently inspired by the European Romantic style. All of the buildings in Putra Jaya are new and magnificently designed to impress. The roads are broad avenues and are impeccably clean by any standards and impossibly clean by Subang Jaya standards.

Once on the island we stopped for a group photo (minus Moaz who was operating cameras). In the background is the main justice office built in the preferred Muslim style with the onion domes. Many other styles are represented. The group includes, from left to right, Ken, Susan, Bill, Kim, Les, Mark, Erin, Steve and Pam. Pam is Steve's wife and is not working here. As we moved on we stopped for about an hour in the plaza below the prime minister's house (palace is more like it). Next to the plaza is a large ornate and very beautiful mosque. In order to visit, all women and men who are wearing shorts must don a robe that is supplied for the visitors. Personally we think the colour suits Bill! We had some time to tour the exterior of the mosque itself but we were not allowed inside because we were not Muslim. Downstairs there is a small market area that sells a wide variety of local goods. Mostly crafts and textiles. Outside on this level we were right next to the lake across which we could see the palace of the king of Selangor. Part of the deal for the donation of the area to the national government was that they would build him this palace to be the official residence of the Selangor royal family. Also nearby is a quay where one could take a boat tour of the lake; we didn't have time but we will go back for that experience.

Once we finished in Putra Jaya we re boarded the van and moved on to central KL itself. The first stop was the palace of THE KING. There are fourteen states and each is ruled by a royal family called variously king, sultan or rajah. They take it in turns to elect a "high king" from among their number and that family moves into this palace. It is like the Governor General's place in Ottawa except that visitors are not allowed inside. The guards, however, perform exactly as the mounties at Rideau hall or the guards at Buckingham palace...they don't move or pay any noticeable attention to the plebes. It must be a tough gig though because they are dressed to the nines and sit still, albeit in some shade, in the extreme heat and humidity. We didn't see any of them keel over.

We went next to the National Monument. It is a war memorial for the first and second world wars as well as the war against the Communist insurrection from 1948 through 1960. The colonial government declared a state of emergency that lasts 12 plus years as teh government forces fought the insurrection by the Malayan National Liberation Army; this was apparently an arm of the Communist movement of that period.

Next stop was the Orchid Garden. Admission here is free on weekdays and RM1.00 (about 30 cents Canadian) on weekends. We paid and wandered in. Next time we'll call ahead because most of the orchids were not in bloom.

We moved on to little India because most of us had already visited Petaling Street and the Central Market. Petaling street is a major 24/7 outdoor market in Chinatown. You can buy just about anything there and we describe it more in another entry. The Central Market is a showplace for local goods and crafts and that too is a subject for another entry. We wandered around for a while and saw more textiles than we thought possible. Every shop save one or two sold brightly colours materials that could easily be made into magnificent saris by the seamstresses invariably working in the back or, rarely, in the stall next door.

We travelled next to KL Sentral; that is not a spelling error it is the name of the very new and very modern transportation terminal for the city. It includes railway, bus light rail and monorail hubs. A stop for lunch was about all we had time for.

The van next took us to the awesome Batu Caves, the sacred place of the Hindus in Malaysia, which are situated thirteen kilometers north of KL. They were discovered in 1891/2. They consist of three main caves and a number of smaller ones. The caves are made of limestone and stretch 400 meters deep into the rock. You have to climb 272 steps (which we all dutifully accomplished) to enter the Temple Cave or Cathedral Cave which is the best known and largest of the caves. The ceiling is 100 m above the ground and this huge chamber is lighted by daylight from several holes in the ceiling which is 100 m above the ground. All the way up the stairs, you are greeted by long tailed-macaque monkeys, which are very friendly, especially if they think that you have food to offer. If you have the misfortune of not attending to your bag of peanuts one of these little beasts will swoop down and grab the whole thing.

On arrival back in KL we stopped at 'Eye on Malaysia'. This is a park near a lake that has a giant ferris wheel (see the picture on the heading). It was put up to help celebrate the 50th anniversary of 'Merdeka' which is Malaysian for independence. It was 1957 when they negotiated independence from the British Empire and took their place as members of the Commonwealth.

From here we had the van drop us off at the Traders Hotel and we sent the driver home. We were across a park from KLCC (that's Kuala Lumpur City Centre). Its the place where the famous twin towers rise to dominate the skyline along with two other landmark buildings. Below the towers is the large multi-story mall and a convention centre that connects to the Aquaria (aquarium to you uninitiated) and eventually to the Traders hotel. On the thirty third floor of Traders we settled into a private booth like seating area next to the hotel's swimming pool. From here we had a wonderful view of the twin towers. We had a few snacks and some liquid refreshment while we waited for sunset. Viewed from this vantage point it was really impressive. Around 7:30 we left Traders and headed over to KLCC to see if we could locate a good restaurant for supper. Moaz thought Madam Qwan's was the best choice. The park and the mall were shoulder to shoulder packed. Apparently there was a PC convention and trade show on in the convention Centre. Malaysians love their toys and can get great deals at these shows so the place was packed. We got to Madam Qwan's only to find it lined up out the door and a longer wait than we had the stomach for. We looked around the level for another restaurant and the main criterion was that it have space to immediately seat eleven people. We found a place and were installed at a large table. Once seated and menued we found that it was Vietnamese. Well, well, another culinary adventure. We had excellent conversation and very tasty, unknown food.

About 9:45 we decided to try to negotiate a taxi ('teksi' in Malaysian) to return us to Subang Jaya. Outside KLCC Moaz tried to negotiate the fare. Because we were a large crowd and it was late the two drivers demanded RM45.00 for a ride that would cost about RM20.00 or less if they turned on the meter. It is the preferred practice of local cab drivers to haggle a set fare rather than use the meter. Moaz thought he could get them down to RM25.00 if he took the time but several of the party decided to try the public transit system so we joined them. It took another two hours to get home due to the rather elastic Malaysian sense of time and schedule.

It was a long day but well worth the effort. We kept the itinerary and any of you who decide to come out can count on a repeat of the trip.

Thanks Moaz!!!

We're Going to Be Stars

2007-08-19T16:18:00.000+08:00

Things have been hectic and we have been very busy. We have a part time job! A short while ago a neighbour of ours (Rossy, a real estate agent, the woman who acted for our landlord) called to ask if we would speak with her husband. We agreed. When Burnett, her husband, called he asked of we would be interested in helping him revise some educational software his company produces. We met at their apartment one evening and Burnett showed us a multimedia program that he and an ex-pat linguistic professor from UK had developed. It was designed originally to assist Malaysian kindergarten teachers to teach English to their students. It worked and sold well in Malaysia and other ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) countries where the British form of English is spoken. Now they want to expand the market to countries where a preference for North American English is preferred. For example they are targeting Japan, Taiwan, and the Philippines among others.

We liked the program and agreed to help out. We were then invited to a dinner the following weekend at which we met Gerry, the professor and a Henry Higgins type with a startling resemblance to Terry Thomas. We also met his Malaysian wife who is a doctor of linguistics herself. Once Gerry had checked us out we were off to the next step, attendance at a seminar they were conducting for some local kindergarten teachers. We were impressed with the presentation and particularly with how well Burnett captured the personality and practice of teachers everywhere.

Later that week (in fact just last week) Burnett invited us over and presented us with the script. Apparently our mid-Atlantic accent passed the test and we will be doing this. Our task is to proof read the script and translate British language and vocabulary to CNN style North American usage. Afterwards we will do the voice over of the adult characters for the NA version of the program. Finally, we will coach the children who do those parts of the program voices.

The program is divided into three levels (kindergarten ,one and two) of 26 lessons (one for each letter) and covers the Malaysian curriculum in English, Math Science and Morality. The need for the program arises from the fact that most primary educators here are not first language speakers of English and therefore have great difficulty with both pronunciation and fluency. This is a major selling feature as is the design; it is meant for ease of use by the teacher.

We weren't expecting to get additional work but the project is very interesting and - surprise, surprise!!! - they want to pay us. It's not a great deal of money but given the cost of living here it will pay for a couple of side trips.

Our Address

2007-08-07T07:41:00.000+08:00

Some have asked for our address and an explanation so here it is.

T2 L13 A Boulevard Condominium
Jalan SS12/1
Subang Jaya
Selangor
47500
Malaysia

Boulevard Condominiums This is our condo building
T2 L13A This is Tower 2, Level (floor)13, apt A, - so we are on the
13th floor apt A of tower 2
Jalan SS 12/1 This is our street & SS is the section of the town
Jalan means street so it really means the Main Street of
sub section 12 of Subang Jaya
Subang Jaya That is our city/town eg Caledon, Bolton, Toronto
47500 This is the postal code
Selangor This is the state
Malaysia The country - of course

It took us a while to sort all of this out. There seems to be so much in the address but when you break it down it is really just like ours.

Kim and Bill

We're Starting to Get Around

2007-08-06T09:27:00.000+08:00

We have only been here for 1 month now & we have done so much, met so many wonderful people & seen so many new & exciting things. It seems that we've been here for many months.

July 27 - July 29th TUC (Taylor's University College) took 140 staff members to Pangkor Island for a weekend get to know each other. This is a resort island off the west coast mid way north toward Thailand. It was terrific. They hired a team building company to lead us through the weekend. They did a marvelous job. The activities were not too intrusive but fun. There is not much to do on the island so it was nice to have a couple of organized activities - The Amazing Race was one activity that took groups of us around the island in vans to complete a number of tests, hunts & races- a lot of fun. The draw back to the weekend was that the lovely hotel was nice in the front, lobby & restaurant area but the rooms were run down & I was not impressed. But they were very clean & bug free. We (I) managed just fine. At first I was wondering if it was my North America snobby standard kicking in & then we heard many Malaysian TUC staff who were also not impressed with the rooms. But, we had a great time & it was free. It is very interesting to see Muslim women swimming with full scarf, long sleeved shirts & long pants on. We also went on a boat trip, did some snorkeling & saw the surrounding island & sites - we could have been on Bill's parents' lake in Muskoka. It really looked so similar to some of our Canadian cottage country. But then we returned to the huge palm trees!!
This past weekend we took a school van & driver & a Canadian lecturer who has been here for approx 3 years & toured the greater KL area - fabulous day - we saw & toured so many sights; the Kings residence, the parliamentary area, a fabulous Mosque, the Ba tu Caves (enormous cave where the Hindu celebrate their Thaipusam festival each year); the Eye on Malaysia centre, studied the bridge & building architecture; a walking tour of "Little India"; sunset drinks at the Sky Bar on the top floor of a fabulous hotel facing the Petronas Towers & skyline of KL; lunch & dinner at KL centre & Petronas Towers. The towers & its mall are enormous & interesting & so modern. Lunch was Malaysian food - dinner was Vietnamese - both fabulous. We had a superb day. Yesterday - Sunday we had a Dim Sum lunch with Malaysian friends who take us to church & out to lunch - they have sort of adopted us & want to show us everything. Great couple. For dinner we went with 2 other terrific Malaysian couples (one of the ladies lives on our floor at the condo & she is the agent who got us our condo) to an absolutely great restaurant with Penang food - Penang is a small island in the north of Malaysia near the Thailand border & it is known for its great food. Actually it was one of the most delicious meals we've had this month.
But, I'm at work now and I must organize a test that my students expect this morning. We are anxiously awaiting our home Internet. We are discovering that Malaysian time is very flexible or as the locals call it - rubber time. Once that is installed we can update our blog with news & pictures.

There is so much more that we've seen & done it is hard to capture in words. We're still having a great time & we're so glad we made the decision to come.

Kim

Its Been a Month

2007-07-30T09:56:00.000+08:00

If we get the internet this week (we should) we'll start posting pictures as well.

Subang Jaya is the city we live in. It is about 30 minutes from Kuala Lumpur . Sort of like Mississauga from Toronto . Subang Jaya is a mix of very modern 1st world shopping & commerce with some 3rd world life styles still lingering. Pollution is pretty bad. Vehicle exhaust is the worst pollutant. People put out their garbage every day & it often rips & scatters & people don’t really clean it up well. Some areas are spotless & clean & other areas are quite littered. Subang Jaya is a very working class neighbourhood. We are in a gated community/neighbourhood & it is very nice. We have met some wonderful Malaysians who cannot do enough to help us out.

It is hot but nothing we haven’t experienced in Bolton during our heat waves . But it is always very very humid. It is about 31 degrees during the day & about 29 at night. Every place, store, classroom, taxi is air conditioned to the max & we are often freezing, but we don’t complain because it feels sooo good. We are getting used to sweating!! Bill bought a couple of little towels to mop up and then we noticed that many Malaysians also carry little towels too. We are noticing the heat less & less each day. I guess we are acclimatizing!

The food is interesting. We’ve had lots of rice with a variety of veggies & chicken – actually really tasty. I haven’t ventured too far from my taste bud safety zone yet!! On Sunday we went to a beautiful Japanese restaurant with a couple who took us to church. The meal took about 2 hours & it was wonderful. We tried eel, oysters, sushi (just a little bit), & many other delightful items - all very tasty.

The people we have met are wonderful – the school staff members are terrific. The new Canadian group - 10 of us - have gotten together many times for short parties – lots of fun. 4 are brand new graduates, 2 are 5 year teachers & 4 of us are retired – a great group. Almost all of us know people in common. It is such a small world.

Pangkor Island - We had a staff team building weekend July 27-29th. We left Friday am about 9:30 for a 4 hour drive & 20 minute Ferry ride to Pangkor Island - a destination restort island. We stayed at Puteri Bayu Hotel. It was once a very lovely but there has not been the upkeep & maintenance to keep it a 4 star place. Parts - eg foyer, entrance were lovely but other areas were older & a liitle run down eg rooms. But it was neat & clean. However, Taylor's hired a team to lead us through the weekend & they were terrific. We had a lot of fun and we met so many other staff members from other Taylor's campuses. They had many activities including "An Amazing Race" that took us around the island. The island is very pretty and picturesque with some beautiful beaches. The island itself seems to be a very poor settlement of "Chinese/Malaysian" fishing families. The "downtown" area reminded us of Wasaga beach of old where there were lovely beaches, some resorts/cottages & tacky little souvenir shops!. But we had a terrific relaxing weekend - and it was free!!

The Canadian section of Taylor's College took all of the Canadian staff out to a lovely restaurant in the Sheraton Hotel last week. This is where we stayed for the first week. It is a beautiful hotel. Dinner was great.

That's the news so far. I could go on about so much that is the same but so much that is different. It really is amazing to "live" in another culture. But, is it basically so modern that there has not been any culture shock. We are having a great time. It is like we are on a very long holiday.

Take care & hopefully we'll be sending some picture soon.

Love Kim & Bill

The Feel of the Place

2007-07-12T15:48:00.000+08:00

We have now been here nine days & wow …. Things have happened sooo fast. It seems like we’ve been here for ages. But we don’t really know where anything is & we are trying to figure out the food. Our time has been spent:
· Finding a place to live. As Bill said – we have a lovely condo, brand new, simply furnished, fabulous pool. We have gone to the pool each evening about 8:00 and it is sooo warm, relaxing, beautiful….. Our condo is out of town so we have to take taxis everywhere – very cheap - $1.50-$2.00 Canadian.
· Shopping - Buying stuff for the apartment. We needed everything – iron & board, cutlery, towels etc etc. We have bought IKEA stuff to get us started. Bill hates to shop at the best of times & it is wearing him down a bit because it takes so long to buy anything because we do not know brands or we can’t read what the product is. Most local food is very inexpensive but we don’t know if it is what we want – North American stuff is about our prices. But I bought a box of cereal – Kellogg’s – that cost me $10 Canadian …. I didn’t realize that it was imported from Australia !!!!
· School – a number of staff meetings & division meetings. Classes started on Tues so we’ve taught 2 full days. The students are sooo polite, so courteous & very very motivated to do well. Many are on state scholarships and they must do well to maintain the $$ for tuition & housing. Most kids are from other Malaysian provinces but a few from places like China , Iran , Iraq …. Bill & I are having a blast in the classroom. It really is fun. We each have 3 classes a day – no problem. Bill actually has been doing 5 a day this week until a teacher returns next week. He is very tired. He hasn’t done the whole day teaching thing for a long time.
· I have about 6 fully robed Muslims girls in each of my classes. No not the black burka (sp??) but a long dress over long pants & head scarf. They do not look hot & I don’t know why!!!! Students really are quiet and very respectful.
· Night Market – We went to a night market in China town in KL on Sunday night – fabulous, scary, crowded, tiny stalls filled with a zillion watches, purses shoes etc etc I bought a purse for about $25 Canadian but I realized I could have gotten it for about 10-12 bucks!! Next time I’ll bargain more. I got the guy down form RM250 to RM 80 …. I though I couldn’t go any further – I definitely could have.

Subang Jaya is the city we live in. It is about 30 minutes from Kuala Lumpur . Sort of like Mississauga from Toronto . Subaga Jaya is a mix of very modern 1st world shopping & commerce with some 3rd world life styles still lingering. Pollution is pretty bad. Vehicle exhaust is the worst pollutant. People put out their garbage every day & it often rips & scatters & people don’t really clean it up well. Some areas are spotless & clean & other areas are quite littered.

It is hot but nothing we haven’t experienced in Bolton . But it is always very humid. It is about 31 degrees during the day & about 29 at night. Every place, store, classroom, taxi is air conditioned to the max & we are often freezing, but we don’t complain because it feels sooo good.

The food is interesting. We’ve had lots of rice with a variety of veggies & chicken – actually really tasty. I haven’t venture too far from my taste bud safety zone yet!!

The people we have met are wonderful – the school staff members are terrific. The new Canadian group - 10 of us - have gotten together 3 times for short parties – lots of fun. 4 are brand new graduates, 2 are 5 year teachers & 4 of us are retired – a great group. Almost all of us know people in common. It is such a small world.

Internet – we don’t have internet at our condo yet which is why our Blog & e-mails have not started. I’m at school right now & thought I’d put this e-mail together to let you know how we’re doing.

So far it has been fun, tiring, exhilarating & very very interesting.

Kim

The First Week

2007-07-09T16:00:00.000+08:00

Its hard to believe we've only been here a week; it seems like we've packed a month worth of activity inbto the time..

Tuesday, July 3
Shortly after we arrived on Tuesday, Steve and Pam Wiser dropped by to see us and Susan and Ken. Steve and Pam are new hires (at least Steve is) who came over in mid April. Pam retired from her job in health care to travel with him and she is doing some volunteer work via the Internet with a group in Singapore. These two wondeful people took us on a tour of the area and then we all went to dinner in a local restauran called the Windmill. They shared with us their stories of settling in and gave us some valuable tips on sorting ourselves out.

We are rapidly becoming Asian as our first purchase was a pair of cell phones. They are very cheap to own and maintain here and everyone seems to have one. They are constantly in use.

Before the dinner we met with Rudi, a local real estate agent, who was assigned to assist us in finding accommodations. We set up an appointment for the next day to view several apartments with Rudi, Ken and Susan.

We were in bed by 8:30 and Kim says that Bill was snoring before his head hit the pillow.

Wednesday, July 4
We both awoke around 5:15 AM. We napped fitfully until 5:30 and then both picked up our books to read. Kim read until 8:30 at which time she informed her spouse that she was afraid that if she stopped reading she would have to start the rest of her life; clearly in denial. We went to breakfast in the hotel. It was included n the price of the room. The buffet is spectacular. A little of every culture that makes up and surrounds Malaysia. The fresh fruit is plentiful and the juice is literally fresh squeezed.

At 11:00 AM we met with the HR department at the college to go over the final version of our contracts. There was the ususal reams of paperwork to complete but they are all so helpful that it's hard to feel any animosity.

In the early afternoon we met Rudi along with Ken and Susan and visited five apartments in two condo buildings. The first was a new building and most of the units are owned by locals who have never lived in them. They are renting them out as an investment. The second was an older building. Those who know Kim will know her preference. We all asked to see a third building that we had heard about "E-Tiara" and a visit was arranged for Thursday.

Thursday, July 5
The orientation originally scheduled for today was moved to Friday. We did however meet with HR again for a short tour of the non-academic facilities. We also met Rudi and saw a couple more apartments. We then asked to make an offer on the ver yfirsdt one we saw. We agreed on a price and we set a meeting for Friday to check it out again and sign the papers. This evening we had a get together of the rookies at one of the places in our condo. Many of us have moved in to the Boulevard.

Friday, July 6
We met with the Director (Frank Meagher) for an orientation. Several of the departments presented and we had more paperwork to complete. We met with Rudi in the afternoon and we signed the papers. We got permission to make the move on Saturday morning and we would meet the local agent (Rossy...no really it is spelled correctly) at 10:00 AM. We grabbed the wordst pizza ever made for dinner and were back at the Sheraton for our last night.

Saturday, July 7
We went to the last of our complementary breakfasts. These have been a real highlight.

By 9:30 we had packed and we were able to negotiate the use of the hotel van and driver to take us to the condo. They sent the driver, the van, and another bell hop to help us and merely suggested a total tip of RM 20 for them (this is $6.50 CND).

Once moved in Kim set about cleaning an apartment that had never been lived in. She said she had to get rid of the construction dust...OK. Once cleaned to her satisfaction we made a list and went shopping. We found a taxi to Carefour; it is a WallMart type store. We loaded up on necessities and returned to the condo to set up living.

Not the seventh day but we rested anyway.

Sunday, July 8
This was a day of more shopping and setting up. Once we were done with the laundry (a wahser was included but here they don't believe in dryers) we went to KL. See Kim's next post.

Monday July 9
We had a staff meeting in the morning and again spent the afternoon shopping. We walked to Subang Parade (a very western mall). We had a large load of stuff and we discovered that taxi fares are based in part on the amount of cargo you are carrying. By the way, don't expect the cabs to turn on the meter. One negotiates a price with each driver and varies depending on many factors including the time of day and your level of desperation.

Tomorrow classes start and we reach the one week point.

Bill

The Trip Over

2007-07-03T07:03:00.000+08:00

We'll get some pictures in as soon as we have home access to the Internet. That takes a little time here.

Thursday, June 28
Kim finished at school today. She always said she would leave from school to airport and fly somewhere, but the KL plans changed all of that. She stayed at school (BIG SURPRISE!) to finish some paperwork. She arrived home about 8:45 and we went to dinner; on the way Kim calmly announced that she was now in KL mode and screamed.

Friday, June 29
We relaxed today. Laundry and sundry preparatory duties but mainly collecting the papers and getting the luggage from the storage room to the bedroom. Enough for one day.

Saturday, June 30
More of the same but we took time this evening to have dinner with our good friends Barb and Ed.

Sunday, July 1
Kim and Bill spent Sunday, July 1 getting ready, especially the packing. On Saturday we had checked all of the baggage requirements (size weight etc.) and decided that we needed more space. We went out and bought two more very large suitcases. Give the size (208 cm overall...l+w+h) and weight (32 kg or 70 lb) we had to pack carefully. By noon on Sunday we thought that we were well within the tolerances; we had the boys hold the cases one by one while standing on the bathroom scale and then we subtracted their weight.

Early afternoon Connie and Jim (Kim's mom and her husband) arrived and it was great to see them. Andrea arrived from time away at a friend's cottage in the Thousand Islands and around four thirty we decided to go to the airport. We thought we'd check in early and then go for dinner with the whole family. Since we had an 11:35 pm flight we felt a 6:00 check in would allow us lots of time to enjoy the company before embarking. The problem was that Cathay Pacific only has one flight per day at 11:35 PM and the staff doesn't open the check in until 8:00 PM or so. Fortunately the scales were working so Kim had us weigh all the bags. We were close but she re-arranged some items and got us within the acceptable limits on all bags.

We then took all the luggage with us and took the family to dinner at the Sheraton Gateway (right in the terminal). around 8:30 we returned to the terminal and checked our bags. That went smoothly thanks to Kim's efforts. We said our goodbyes and were on our own and through security by 9:15.

We sat and read or wandered until the flight. It was late taking off (12:15) because the plane was late getting in. Once airborne we ate and slept, ate and slept. We landed in Anchorage and disembarked for refueling and a change of crew. It was 3:30 Anchorage time when we re boarded; that's 7:30 Monday morning T.O. time.

The next leg of the journey to Hong Kong was more of the same and we arrived 6:15 AM their time. We were now in the the same time zone as KL so 12 hours ahead of T.O. We waited in the airport for two hours and boarded for the final leg to KL.

We arrived in KL at 12:15 PM Tuesday, July 3 (We'll stop telling you T. O. time; just know that we are 12 hours ahead until standard time resumes in the fall; then we're thirteen hours ahead. The director (principal) Frank met us at the airport with a van and one of the college's drivers. We trundled off and were registered at the Sheraton Subang Jaya Towers and Suites. This is a top end five star hotel!

We were exhausted, mainly in the rear end, from sitting for so long. We both observed that the flight was very quiet. We don't know if we should attribute this to the natural Asian reticence or the length of flight.

We're here; it's hot; we love it so far

The Farewell Party

2007-06-24T10:32:00.000+08:00

Saturday, June 22

First, we have some people to thank!

To our children, Andrea, Michael and David for the concept and the execution of a wonderful party...

thank you!

To Laura for her list making that kept everything on schedule and her baking...

thank you!

Kim and Laura

To Grant for photos...

thank you!

Laura and Grant

To Cathy for baking and quiet service ...

thank you!

Cathy and Laura

To Heather for showing up early and being put to work...

thank you!

Andrea and Heather

To Curtis and Maureen for golf in the morning...

thank you!

Curt and Mo

And to all of our friends, family and neighbours for joining into the festivities...thank you.

The day started with Kim and Bill meeting Curtis and Maureen at Glen Eagle golf course. David had set up a complimentary 7:52 tee time. This was seen to be acceptable by all except maybe Kim, but we showed up anyway. By the tenth hole Kim was getting a little agitated because she wanted to be home to supervise the preparations; we played on. We arrived back at 49 Wright around 1:15 and to every one's surprise Kim did not have to assign jobs.

Heather had arrived and was immediately put to work by the committee (Andrea, Mike, Dave and, of course, Laura). Guests started arriving by 2:30 or so and the party went on until late evening. Mike handled the bar. Dave handled the barbecue, Andrea handled the schmoozing, and Laura handled the food layout. Grant spent the afternoon and evening taking photos while many of us worried that he might be so involved in the project that a misstep might place both him and some very high tech equipment in the pool.

The delight we felt in seeing old friends and family (should I say veteran rather than old?) cannot be put into words. Bernie and Linda, Barb and Ed represented our long lasting friendships from our years in education. We have kept this group small but well loved. Denyse is also a teaching friend but more importantly she was Kim's swim partner each summer.

Geordie and Angela and their beautiful children are a new generation of friends whom we met through the church choir; Geordie has a wonderful baritone voice and when he sings everyone sounds good.

Barb and Steve, Tony and Ann and Tina were there as members of our gourmet group. We had a reunion of the gourmet group on Friday at Tony and Ann's and as usual at these times we asked ourselves why it has been so long since we got the group together.

Many of the young people whom it seems have grown up in and around our house and pool were there to wish us well. Thanks to Danaca and Pete, Carolyn, Brian, David and especially Paul.

Rose and her boys, Matthew, Justin, and Ryan and Joanne, Gary and Jonathan managed to get over the fence from the neighbourhood; and we were so pleased that they could share the day with us.

Kim's extended family gathered around the ju-jubes.

Bill's family gathered around the table and started the regular rounds of arguments (discussions) and jokes.

Everyone is invited to join us for a visit in Malaysia. Just let us know when you will be there.

Travelling Arrangements

2007-05-29T22:42:00.000+08:00

We have our tickets!!

Now we need to plan the trip, packing, airport transit, packing, arrival time, packing, in flight needs, packing...

Cathay Pacific is our carrier and they are apparently very strict about the baggage limits. We are each allowed two bags of 70 pounds each as well as a carry on and a purse/laptop or equivalent. If our bags are over the 70 pound limit the airline supplies us with a cardboard box into which we place the excess and then we are charged another $185.00.

We leave Pearson terminal three at 11:35 on Sunday, July 1 on Cathay Pacific flight 829. We fly to Hong Kong via Anchorage Alaska. We understand that we'll have to deplane at Anchorage for refueling. and then its on to Hong Kong arriving there at 6:50 AM on Tuesday, July 2. From Hong Kong we catch CP flight 723 at 8:50 AM and fly into KL at 12:30 PM.

A representative of the college will meet us at the airport and take us to a local five star hotel. The college will support that accommodation for a week while we make arrangement s for a rental unit. On the Wednesday we will be introduced to a local real estate agent who represents owners in a condo apartment type of building. The buildings we will see are those recommended by the college. The units are all furnished and a three bedroom goes for about 2400 ringgit . The ringed is the local currency and exchanges at 3 to 1 against the Canadian dollar. All of which means that the apartment will rent for about $800.00 Canadian.

We have an orientation session at the college on Thursday and a staff meeting on Monday. Classes start on Tuesday, July 9.

For those who are interested KL is exactly 12 hours ahead of our Eastern time.

Getting Ready

2007-05-28T10:54:00.000+08:00

There is a large pile of paperwork to getting ready for this type of gig. For example we need to get a visa from Malaysia that allows us to work in the country. The college takes care of the paperwork but we still have to provide them with the documentation including:

Curriculum vitae or resume
A clear copy of your passport (the page that has your photo, passport number and other personal details) – Please ensure that your passport has a validity of at least 16-18 months, otherwise the Malaysian Immigration Department will not be able to endorse your work permit and visa

Staff must be at least 25 years of age and documentation must be provided. (Passport)
Copies of all academic qualifications, including transcripts
A copy of your Ontario College of Teachers membership or Letter of Standing
A medical report or statement of health from your doctor
Penal/criminal clearance from a police report (can be easily obtained from your local police – allow 3 to 4 weeks if you live outside a city)
8 passport-sized photos
Documentary evidence of teaching experience (letters from the school boards or school principals indicating the number of years of teaching experience) Experience related to teaching would also apply.
Statement of marital status to allow for specific contract allowances and details

Once we got all of this together we delivered it to Bill Roach who arranged for the college to receive it.

Next we determined our departure date and we had to contact a travel agent in Georgetown. She made the reservations for our flight and sent us the electronic ticket. (More about the flight later.)

And then! we contacted several travel health clinics regarding an evaluation of the immunization requirements for travel in the area. We had already been to our family doctor for the medical certificate we needed for the visa and Kim started the Twinrix vaccine for hepatitis A and B. Bill had this one a couple of years ago because of his work on ski patrol. We set up an initial consultation with a clinic that is affiliated with Toronto General Hospital. The nurse who saw us made her recommendations along with a detailed explanation of the risks of both the vaccines and the diseases. We accepted her recommendations and a couple of thousand dollars and three visits later we were as protected as we could get.

In early April we received our initial tentative teaching assignments. Kim is teaching English Lit and ESL while Bill is assigned Business Management. We are contracting to be at the school for 30 hours in a five day week and to teach for 18.5 hours. Basically this is three 70 minute classes per day out of a possible five periods. The rest of the time is dedicated to planning, marking, and administration.

Bill went down to the Ontario Publications store and retrieved all of the relevant documents (and then some). We have the curricula, exemplars, expectations, and other support documents. From the web we downloaded specific profiles and then we contacted acquaintances in high school to arrange to get copies of "THE BINDERS!"

With email addresses in hand we contacted our respective department heads and obtained local outlines and the local selected text book information. Nothing left to do but read and plan.

Oh, yeah! packing...

Why and How?

2007-05-13T20:58:00.000+08:00

As we meet you you often ask why we are doing this and how we found and chose Malaysia.

Initially we knew we wanted to travel in our retirement. This led to a discussion of alternatives that included doing some teaching early in those years. We contacted a couple of acquaintances, Bill Roach and John Futa, who were involved in recruiting for overseas schools and we went to lunch in December with Bill Roach who represents Taylors University College in Kuala Lumpur (KL). After his presentation Kim said she would "go right now". We wanted to review other possibilities to be sure this was the right decision.

We had applied for and were accepted to attend the Teaching Overseas Recruitment Fair (TORF) operated by the Faculty of Education at Queens University. This weekend invites over 100 international schools, all of whom are looking to hire many teachers. The fair also qualifies a limited number of individual job seekers through a detailed documentation package and a nominal fee. This assures that only committed job seekers attend. We highly recommend the process for those interested in teaching overseas.

The fair took place the weekend of February 9, 10, 11, 2007 and since Bill was skiing in BC during the week and only returning on Saturday (Feb 10) Kim went down to the job fair on Friday. She registered and attended several information sessions on Friday and went to a number of interviews on Saturday. Very early in the process Kim was able to establish certain parameters for our search. For example, we preferred a Canadian curriculum. A large proportion of the international schools teach an American curriculum. We also sought a place that was relatively safe but culturally different from Bolton, Ontario, Canada. Via a telephone conversation we agreed that the KL opportunity best matched our wants and needs. Kim met with Bill Roach and with the current director (principal) of the program, Frank Meagher at which time she committed us to a verbal contract.

On Saturday Bill flew into Toronto from BC and almost immediately boarded a flight to Kingston to meet Kim. On Sunday we attended several presentations including Bonn, Germany, Kuwait, and one with an accounting firm that advises on the financial implications of these overseas contracts. We were still in agreement that the Taylors College was right for us and we met Bill and Frank to sign a letter of intent.

Okay; so what were the factors that made us choose Taylors:

It is a Canadian, Ontario, curriculum. What we are learning is that everywhere except Ontario it is considered to be a prestige education.
It is a high school program. We have both taught elementary and adult education. This was an opportunity to try something new.
Culturally it is different but not totally alien. KL is a modern city (look at the Petronas Towers for example). The functional language can be English since this was a British colony until 1957. The local language is Bahasa Malay.

It is in a part of the world that we might not choose to visit in our planned travels.
The cost of living is reasonably low This allows us to live comfortably while we work and travel.
And so much more.