Malaysia – Travel Younger

Chapter 250: Asia: One Year Later (Part II of III)

Norm Bour — Thu, 13 Mar 2025 12:40:29 +0000

03.13.25

And here’s our past years’ itinerary:

(Nov 2023) Bali #1, Indonesia (4 mo total, two visits)
Philippines (1 mo)
Vietnam #1 (4+ mo total, two visits)
Malaysia #1 (5 mo total, two visits)
(summer, 2024) Vietnam #2
Thailand (2 mo)
Malaysia #2
Bali #2
(now) Cambodia (2 mo)

WOW. I had to review my calendar to properly remember, but that’s a lot in 17 months.

Stops #4 & #7: Malaysia

Our initial incentives to visit Malaysia were twofold: I’m a sucker for tall buildings, and they have some of the best medical facilities in southeast Asia. And we took advantage of both of them! On our first trip, Kat and I both got full body scans from head to toe, for about $500. Our experience was over the moon and we thought it money well spent, for peace of mind, as well as for the results, which were all good. Things to be watchful of, but nothing to worry about.

We visited the tallest twin towers on the planet, Petronas, and that was a great time. I have been in the Burj Kalifa in Dubai, currently #1, tallest on the planet, but Petronas is hugely impressive, especially since there is a walkway on the 41-42^nd floors, and that is a trip, standing above the street between the two towers. The KL (Kuala Lumpur) Tower (yet another tall structure) is all vertical, with no offices and such, but affords a nice view as well. We also went to Batu Caves, just 20 minutes from town, plus took a few train side trips to the northern towns of Ipoh and Penang. We left Malaysia wanting more, and since we can stay for 90 days with NO paperwork or visa, that is a huge incentive, as is the English usage, which is quite high, since it is a true second language there.

Towards the end of ’24 we did return for our second visit, stayed for (another) 90 days, and continued with exploration of their medical services. Some voluntary, some not. Kat primarily wanted to return for cataract surgery, which was great, and she got both eyes done at one time, which is not that common in many countries. I had a little blood pressure scare and had a complete heart exam, with 3D, full color, diagnosis, along with scans and blood tests. The results were good, nothing going on other than aging…So I stay on meds and that keeps everything in alignment. We spent most of our time in KL, plus had a trip up north to a primitive “jungle resort,” and also down south to a town called Malacca, which we both agreed to return to. I was also able to use my press access to gain access to the SECOND tallest structure in the world, the Merdeka 118 (118 floors), and that was amazing, especially since it won’t be open to the public for a year or more.

Our conclusion. The “goal” in Asia was to find places where we could stay long term. Malaysia passed the test, and we will be back.

from left to right: Merdeka 118/ KL Tower/ Petronas Towers

Stop #5: Vietnam (our second visit):

We landed in the central city of Da Nang the end of April with the intention of “checking it out” for three days to determine if we wanted to return the following month. We did. It was Love at First Sight for both of us, and since we stayed at the nearby city of Hoi An for 30 days, we got two for the price of one. It was clean, friendly, affordable, and had a great beach and generally good weather. Hoi An is an Ancient City with lots of history, and is situated on the Thu Bon River, which gives it a lot of character. It’s fairly small and the city itself is insane to scooter through! But everyone drives carefully, slowly, and still only ride with head face forward, but it all works.

After our 30 days in Hoi An we moved all of 30 minutes north to Da Nang. Our incredible room (about $400 USD/ mo) was large, new, and only four blocks from the beach. We could walk to dinner in a dozen different ways and not be disappointed in any of them. I did a three day motorcycle ride to the interior and was blown away at the green foliage and scenery. Brilliant.

Conclusion: So much more to share, which I can by referring you back to our Travel Younger blogs, which covers much more detail. Again, Vietnam also offers a 90 day visa, easily extendable, so between that feature and the costs and beauty, Vietnam also passed the test. We will return to Da Nang, but also have many more unvisited places to try.

Hoi An is a trippy place with a lot of character!

Stop #6 Thailand: Pattaya

Our first stay in Thailand in 2020 soured me on the country, and Asia in general, so we had to go back to see if first impressions were wrong. They were. Our two mo stay in Thailand was lovely, as we lodged in front of the water in Pattaya, a town with a bad rep, somewhat unjust. It has been known as the “party capital,” as well as the place where old western men hang out for their lenient prostitution laws, easy and convenient marriages with young Thai women, and legal cannabis. We saw all the above, but, like always, it depends on what you SEEK and what you look for.

We were able to stay 60 days no questions asked, no visa required, and the prices were similar to our other places. Overall, our lodgings while in Asia ran $400-$800 MAX per month. In Pattaya we rented a scooter for a month, about $45, and the traffic was very non-threatening, unlike treacherous Vietnam! We truly did not go anywhere special, but used the time to relax, read, write, and our 60 days between July and September were uneventful—which is just fine by us! As full time travelers we find it important to just BE, be there in the MOMENT, in the PLACE you/ we are. And that is what we did. The last few weeks we did visit some islands, including Koh Samui, but didn’t get down to the hot spots of Phuket and Krabi. Our train ride from Bangkok to the Malay border was a fun experience, and allowed us to enter a new country without flying in—or having to worry about packing or weight limits!

Conclusion: As much as we liked Pattaya, and we also liked Chiang Mai on our first visit there in 2020, I haven’t felt led to stay in any particular part of the country. There is a pull since Thailand is one of the most popular destinations for tourists and nomads in Southeast Asia, and I get it, but so far Kat and I agree the jury is still out.

we stumbled upon this hotel in Ko Samui and had a room with this view!

End of Part II

Part III will cover Bali for the second time, and Cambodia, our last stop, numbers 8-9, so that will be our next letter. Please subscribe and share if you can.

Chapter 234: Midweek Weekend Break from KL

Norm Bour — Sun, 08 Dec 2024 12:09:59 +0000

12.09.24

Within 2 hours of getting to Melaka (Malacca? That confusion I’ll get to in a moment!), Kathleen and I had the following conversation: “This place has an awesome vibe, don’t you think? I can definitely see this as being a 30-day stay location,” and that’s as fast as it took us to reach the same conclusion about this very cool, unofficial historic capital of Malaysia, less than 2 hours south of KL. It was formerly known as Famosa, and was one of the primary shipping ports in Malaysia.

The city and state are spelled both ways, which led me to some confusion when it came to getting tickets–just to be sure we weren’t going to the wrong place! But that 2 hours ride down (early morning Thursday) was better than the Saturday afternoon return, which was about 45 minutes longer due to traffic.

One of the first things we noticed were food options we were not familiar with, including:

> Chicken rice ball, which was really chicken and rice, probably the most common Malay dish, but the rice is more firm and packed into golf-ball sizes, which is unique, but the rice tasted the same to me.
> Nyonya food, a combination of Chinese and Malaysian, and this was the first time we had heard of it. Unfortunately, we did not get a chance to dive in, which was a shame since it’s been around for 500 plus years. The female matriarchal community members are addressed as, “Nyonya,” which I thought interesting.
> Pineapple tarts were offered on every block, vs the pretty common egg tarts we find elsewhere. That I tried, it didn’t rock my world, but definitely need to go back for more!
> We also found a few Vietnamese coffee options which we haven’t seen outside Vietnam, including, egg coffee, coconut coffee, and pandan, a type of coconut with green syrup.

Which brings us to the observation that there were SOOOO many coffee shops in town! Mind you, that is not THAT unique since we find it in almost every country and city we visit, but there were THREE in a row on a small street; all cute, all cozy, so it stuck out. Oh, and very few Starbucks… Jonker Street is their main gig through Chinatown, and on Friday-Sunday they close it off at 6:00 pm to vehicles and you have several blocks of food, drink, and assorted other goodies.

We also did something we don’t normally do– we did a nighttime canal ride. It took about 45 minutes round trip, and all along the route were colorful neon lights and lots of cool buildings.

Some more random thoughts:
> They have more trash cans per block than anywhere we have been! Usually trash cans are hard to find outside, but the net result is that the town and streets are very clean which helps keep its significant title as a UNESCO World Heritage city, one of only two in the country. (George Town is the other)
> Crows: lots and lots of crows, and at sunset the cacophony noise along the JambatanTan Kim bridge is almost a ruckus!

> They had these unique three wheeled bikes all fixed up with dolls and lights and superhero characters, and they would cater visitors all over town playing Elvis music!

We were in Melaka for about 48 hours, but left with the same conclusion we got when we arrived: definitely a town to return to.

Meanwhile, things have been pretty quiet in KL as we come up to our final week. Kat had her cataract surgery– both eyes at the same time!– it all went exceptionally well, and no more glasses! She could not be more excited. We got to visit a few places outside of town, though not as many was we planned. Yup, we have to return to Malaysia as well!

Chapter 233: Our Visit to the Jungle (with Tarzan)

Norm Bour — Sun, 17 Nov 2024 11:41:51 +0000

11.17.24

We were invited by a Malaysian gentleman to come visit him at his “jungle resort,” which surely intrigued us! Steven, who lives mostly in Singapore, has been building his jungle cottage for the past two decades, and our visit to Sungai Petani (north of Penang) was a mini break to the Garden of Eden. A little primitive (like glamping), we still had a bed to sleep in, a nice shower, and access to a kitchen, but the best part was that it was built literally on top of a beautiful waterfall—which actually kept us up at night! Kat and I always wanted to frolic (!) under a waterfall, so we can cross that off of our bucket list.

Even with the nighttime noise (and surprisingly lack of bugs!), our two days there were lovely, and we met two of his long time friends, Rudy and Nishi, also from Singapore, plus a young lady, Sonya, visiting from Morocco, who found Steven’s property via Workaway. Kat and I have been saying for a while that we needed a break “back to nature,” and we surely got it! It was a nice 4 hour train ride, and even THAT was awesome, as we sat with two Malaysian ladies, Jenny and Melinda, and talked most of the time!

As much as we enjoy meeting other expats and sharing experiences, it is always a pleasure to meet locals and learn about their history and experiences, too

Chapter 231: Kat and Norm go Tourist

Norm Bour — Wed, 30 Oct 2024 07:58:32 +0000

11.02.24

Kat and I recently put on our “tourist hats” and checked out more of the attractions here in Kuala Lumpur. It’s not usually our thing, but the KL Butterfly Park was a breath of fresh air in a Zen environment, and was as much botanical garden as butterfly haven. But there were plenty of those too, including the biggest butterfly I have ever seen, called the Rajah Brooke birdwing, which is actually the national butterfly of the country! With a six inch or so wingspan, when we first saw them we thought they were bats or birds. And when we saw one up closer, the wings fluttered, like a hummingbird, probably because they HAD to move that quickly to keep it in the air! With 120 species of butterflies, and a minimum of 6,000 beauties, it was a nice place to visit.

For a very reasonable price of less than $7.00 (cheaper than many attractions), it was a pleasant break, and they also had framed displays of beetles, scorpions, moths, and other winged and armored insects.

Since the butterfly section was located within an even larger city park, called Lake Gardens Kuala Lumpur, and since there was a lot of beautiful places to walk, we found ourselves in front of the Planetarium Negara. After contemplating for a few seconds, and recognizing that I had not been to a planetarium show since the seventies (!), we decided to check it out. It was free to enter, and they had loads of fun space and astronaut exhibits, and with a price of less than $3.00 for the planetarium show, it was a no-brainer.

The show was good, although pretty elementary, seemingly geared towards kids, which was proven by several classrooms of 10 year olds or somethings that showed up at the last minute and acted like—well, kids. THEY enjoyed the show, we enjoyed the comfortable seats and AC, so overall, our tourist day was a solid winner

Special Supplement: Home is Anywhere! (podcast)

Norm Bour — Sun, 27 Oct 2024 07:45:41 +0000

11.02.24

This was such a good interview we wanted to post this on Travel Younger. Kat and I had a lovely conversation with a podcaster, Heather Lockett, and we spoke about not just the logistics of travel, and our experiences, but also the spiritual and the emotional side of it. And how relationships are affected. And where, exactly, is “home”? We hope you enjoy it!

Chapter 230: Emergency Medical Treatment in Kuala Lumpur

Norm Bour — Thu, 24 Oct 2024 07:34:26 +0000

11.02.24

People constantly ask us about medical services overseas, and truly, no one WANTS to go to the hospital or doctor- but sometimes, we have to. Malaysia is known for their medical services and there is a whole industry around body scanning, cataracts, and a host of other “voluntary” services. But shit happens, and after almost a week of coughing, (which I may have given her…) Kat finally visited the emergency room at Gleneagles Hospital. We didn’t think a hospital was necessary and first went to a clinic, where they gave an exam, did the routine testing, and even did an EKG for her heart. They thought she had pneumonia and suggested more tests and a chest x-ray. The bill: a staggering $21 and change. Wow. Unfortunately, we were there just before (Saturday) closing hours and the lab was closed, so that took us to Gleneagles Hospital.

The check in was effortless and after a few quick questions and a temp check, they escorted us in to a bed post haste, probably because they wanted to be very aware of her condition and age. For a “minor” emergency we would have had to take a number and wait.

Overall we were in the hospital about three hours, and they did all the customary treatment, put her on an IV, gave her two nebulizer treatments to help her breathe, and did the chest x-ray. They initially wanted to admit her and keep her overnight, but we insisted that we wait until the test results, which were good. The tests showed nothing life threatening, and their diagnosis was bronchitis and usually runs its course until done. We left with four different meds and paid the bill, which was $407 USD. Amazing.

We continually are dumbfounded and happy about medical services in the countries we have visited. This hospital had a 20 bed ER and the nurses showed unbelievable compassion, as did the doctor, along with efficiency. As we left in a wheelchair, we wheeled ourselves out, no one was there to “see us off,” we had no insurance papers to complete, and we were home before you know it.

Of course no one—including us—WANTS to go to the hospital, but its reassuring that if we need it, its there.

The final chapter is that she has recovered, I still have a bit of a cough, more irritating than anything, but thank you all for your kind thoughts

Chapter 229: KL (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) is working for me

Norm Bour — Sat, 19 Oct 2024 04:36:13 +0000

10.19.24

We were here in Kuala Lumpur last March for about 6 weeks, then took the train north to spend two weeks in Ipoh and Penang. But KL really drew Kat back, and I have to admit that she is right: this is a damn fine town! For a “large” city, ie, one with a lot of people, we find it very livable, and unusually GREEN! It is such a pleasure to see trees, parks, and mini forests throughout town, instead of solid fields of concrete. Here’s my other reasons I like it here:

• Many countries we have lived in offer limited public transportation out of the city, except for buses. Having a train that goes north to the Thai border is an asset, and we found it pretty east to cross the border from Thailand, when we arrived, so that gives us easy access. We have stayed in Penang, Butterworth, and Ipoh so far, but have not trained south yet, but we will. There is still so much of Malaysia to see.

• We have a nice one bedroom apartment with a balcony and amazing view, and even though it can get noisy with construction nearby, it is very livable. Our room lacks a sink, but otherwise we have a burner plate, hot water kettle, microwave, and they even brought us an air fryer. We cook basics and don’t get too elaborate, but with so many food options we don’t find a compelling need to cook.

• Our apartment has a gym and a pool, but both are limited. The pool is mostly covered since its on the first floor, and not the roof, so not very practical for laying out. For lap swimmers it’s ideal, but we found a nice Plan B.

• Across the street is a commercial building with a hotel and business offices. They also have a pool on the 27th floor, and for less than $12 USD a month, we paid the fee (see pix). The gym in the building is better than our apartment, but still lacking, so I bit the bullet and sprung for a nice gym membership at Celebrity Gym. It’s a reasonable 17 minute walk and the gym has as complete a selection of bar and dumbbells as I have ever found, plus good, well taken care of equipment, and a nice shower. Last time we were here (for two mo.) I did not find it practical to commit to a four month membership—which many chains require—but they offered me a convenient “opt out” package for our 90 days here, so that was cool.

• In Thailand and Vietnam, a scooter was part of our life, but here, not so necessary. It IS a city, and GRAB is convenient and cheap, and we’re using it for food deliveries, too, especially since it tends to rain every afternoon right around dinner time! It IS rainy season, and we’re getting it, but it’s not continuous or oppressive, and it keeps things cooler with a nice breeze, which means less AC, more fresh air.

• No problem finding food at a great selection of groceries and malls, all within a short walk. Living in a big city IS quite practical for many things, and even though we’ve not been to the movies, the options are here.

Malaysia overall is a pretty easy stay for 90 days (for Americans), since no visa is required. They do require a Locator Form upon entry, but it’s an easy process. We do have the option of visa runs, but we’ll look into that if/ when we need to.

When Kat and I left the US in 2019 our very loose “plan” was to find four countries to bounce in and out of and not worry about residency. Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia (Bali) all fit that need, and it’s nice to have a Southeast Asia option, as well as a Balkan option

Chapter 210: Leaving Malaysia–but We’ll Be Back!

Norm Bour — Sat, 04 May 2024 12:22:17 +0000

05.04.24

We left Malaysia on a good note, departing from the town of Penang, but our flight out was one of the most surreal experiences ever! Our plane was due to leave at 06:50, so we get to the airport, look at the flight board, and there is no mention of our flight at all! Totally missing. We checked out the rest of the boards; same thing. I found someone there who pointed me to the direction of the desk for Batik airline, and there was not a soul over there in line, but thankfully there were two gate agents. I told them that nowhere in the airport did it say anything about that flight we were due to take in an hour, and she nonchalantly said, “Oh, I guess they didn’t update the board!”

We went to the gate they assigned us to, and still no indication of our flight there either! It was as though no one knew about this mystery plane that was leaving in less than 60 minutes. They finally got their act together, but for someone like me who likes to be in control of information like this, it was pretty unsettling.

Meanwhile, we enjoyed the city of Penang, although we really didn’t explore very much at all. Everyone raved about street food and the restaurants there, and we do agree, we found lots of selection, all good. Would we return to Penang? Probably, but not for a long term stay, since there are other places we like better, and not when it is so blistering hot. We had plans to rent a bike there, but the temps were just too outrageous.

Now we are back in Vietnam for the second time in about 2 months. Our room in Da Nang had a terrific location, just two blocks from the beach, which is BTW, quite gorgeous! We were there for only 2 days, but liked it enough to decide we wanted to return for a month, which we will do June 1. If you are curious about our outrageous rent, send me a note…

So now we are in Hoi An for the month, about 30 minutes south, and we have a really different homestay. We’re about 15 minutes outside town (boo), but it’s quiet, peaceful, and we are right on the river with nature just steps away. It will be a good place to catch our breath and chill

Chapter 209: Ipoh in our Mirror

Norm Bour — Thu, 25 Apr 2024 04:13:54 +0000

04.25.24

Ipoh in our Mirror

We were told to visit one of the towns near Ipoh, Cameron Highlands, but at 90 km, it was quite a distance. The beauty of it is that the road out there was one of the most well-engineered motorcycle roads we have been on in a long time! Amazing views, and since we left at 0700 it was so quiet that I had to stop several times just to enjoy the sound of the birds chirping along the way. Because rain here can be very random and arbitrary, we decided to not stay out very long to reduce the chances of getting wet, and along with that, it was about 20° colder so I actually had to bundle up in long sleeves!

As it turned out, we did not make it fully into town, but got very close. We saw scores and scores of tents growing strawberries, and tea plantings all over the place since it was so hilly.

We were super lucky using the bike. The 3 days that we had it the weather was hot but clear, and the day after we turned it in it rained most of the day! We visited three major attractions, and each one outshined the last. We both agreed that Ipoh would make a wonderful base to use to explore more of the country. Thank you great rail lines!

I didn’t think that there would be much to say about this small town called Ipoh, but OMG, there is a lot to share!

The upside, the good news, is that the people here are so lovely, as they also were in KL, so overall we are enjoying the energy of the Malaysian people. Our room was located in Old Town, and usually that is where the action is, but by 6:00 pm the streets are virtually empty. But we are able to walk to lots of restaurants, the Riverwalk, and for me, a gym, for the first time in almost a year! That’s a whole nother subject I’ll not get into…

They have a few unique businesses here, too, including a coffee shop that is designed to represent the train station from the Harry Potter books called Platform 9.5 plus a very hip bookstore that used to be a bank, and downstairs they have displays inside the bank vaults.

Another beauty of the town is its accessibility, especially by rail since the train from KL stops here and goes all the way up to the Thailand border. That is a very attractive feature! We talked about the possibility renting a room here for 90 days and just using it as a base and going elsewhere by train. Overall we are getting pretty sold on Malaysia being a place to stay for 3 months.

But Ipoh is not an early rising town! Trying to find a cup of coffee or a pastry before 10:00 a.m. has been extraordinarily challenging, and many places don’t open until 12:00 noon! But they are known for their white coffee and right across the street from us was a business called Old Town white coffee, and yes they do it right.

For a small town, there is lots to do, and it should be on your itinerary.

Chapter 208: Ipoh (E-poh) Attractions are AMAZING!

Norm Bour — Tue, 23 Apr 2024 03:42:43 +0000

04.23.24

Parks & Ride

We finally rented a motorbike for 3 days and got a chance to explore some of the beauty outside Ipoh, including the Kek Look Tong park, which blew our flipping minds. It’s a cave, but it’s so much more, as you enter into this gorgeous cavern which is so meticulously clean it almost seems fake. The floors are polished, but the stalactites and the stalagmites are gorgeous and you can still hear the drip, drip, drip as they still continue to build.

Inside are many different statues of various religious leaders from over the centuries, and as you continue towards the rear of the cavern it opens up to a scene from the movie Bali Hai! It’s lush, green, and expansive, and magnificent is not an overstatement. They had small paddleboats which ran around the perimeter of the huge limestone rock faces, so for a few dollars enjoyed that, as well as just wandering through the park itself. This is a MUST SEE attraction.

Fifteen minutes later we found Hindu temple city; a road with several of them all side by side, including Sam Pho Temple which is built inside the mouth of a cave, which we have seen a few times already. But what was different about this one is that the cave (also) had a back door which led to the outside and there was yet another temple out there! Limestone walls all around kept it all blocked in but open to the sky. Probably the most memorable feature of this temple, however, was the water treatment out front, a little lake with miniature Islands built out of stacked stones and lava rock.

On our last full day we hit another trippy place called Ganung Lang Regional Park. It’s all of ten minutes from our room, but a world away! We were met by a beautiful cascading waterfall, and took a quick ferry ride to their small island, where we strolled through the walkways, taking pictures of monitor lizards, monkeys, and the largest centipede/ millipede (I never asked), about 8-10″ long. And all these places we visited were free, too.

We have one more trip to share, to Cameron Highlands, so stay tuned for that one