The most common theme this week has been travel challenges. First, we had trouble in Genting Highlands, where we couldn’t find a driver to get us down the hill, so we took the gondola, then walked 4.5 km in the rain beside a busy highway. Then we couldn’t get from the rafting tour in Kuala Kubu Bharu to Kuala Selangor. The rafting company’s caterer gave us a ride in his comfortable pick up truck (“We call them lorries.”). Then we couldn’t get a Grab car or taxi to get us from the firefly tour jetty to our hotel. A kind employee took us.
Well the next morning started as poorly. The taxi driver that the hotel suggested we use was in Kuala Lumpur, 1.5 hours away. He didn’t want to drive there and to the Kuala Selangor bus depot for a reasonable amount. He didn’t want to make the drive for an unreasonable amount. Our panic didn’t last long — a Grab car showed up on the app. Phew.
We got to the bus depot in plenty of time for the 8:08 bus. However, the bus driver was determined to be the 9:08 bus. We tried Grab a few more times, and got a ride right to KLIA2! It meant we were far earlier than anticipated. We were relieved to be there. The scenery along the toll expressway was palm plantations. We saw little else, so I looked up how palm oil is made. The fruits are squeezed, or the kernels in the fleshy fruit are crushed.
After a couple of hours at the airport, we were ready to take our one-hour Air Asia flight to Langkawi. It’s an island near the Thai border on the west coast of peninsular Malaysia. It’s a popular holiday destination for Malaysians. Our hotel has safari-type bungalows. They are raised — four steps above ground, with plenty of air flow underneath. We’re extremely comfortable most of the time. The beds are plywood hard (next level of hardness would be rock hard), and there’s a mosque nearby that includes us in its call to worship first thing in the morning and last thing at night. At the same time, there’s a lovely swimming pool.
Outside of Anita’s window, there’s a frangipani with its waxy flowers. Beyond that is a field with cows.
Juliette Knits 