Malaysia & Indonesia

Landing in Kuala Lumpur from Hannover, Germany, was like hitting the 'defrost' button on our microwave. As we stepped off the plane into the balmy heat of the city, the lingering chill of northern Europe and even the air conditioning from the airplane dissipated instantly with the warmth of the climate as well as the people. We are here for an unprecedented three week Southeast Asian adventure, something we'd wanted to do for a very long time and the thought of another long winter in Germany was just the excuse we needed to book our vacation. 

Along with our mutual friend, Lars, we fly into Kuala Lumpur to meet up with with our now good friend, Zul, who had been in Malaysia for weeks already. Zul is a Malaysian transplant currently living in Hannover and until that day we actually didn't know very much about him or the country he came from. Here was our chance at a crash course. Over the next three weeks, our friends introduce us to all the things they love about this multicultural country and with that we familiarized ourselves with this wonderful land and the dynamic duo. What's not to love? From the generosity and diversity of its people, the night markets with amazing food, great shopping, the beauty of its nature combined with the fast paced lifestyle of its cities, Malaysia has something for everyone.

The plan was this: Start off in Kuala Lumpur and then fly to the island of Langkawi for a few days. Then it was on to Georgetown, Penang, for another few days before we headed to Jakarta for two nights. Yogyakarta for four days was next on the itinerary followed by Kuala Lumpur again with a side trip to the Cameron Highlands for two days. After that we spent the last few days bumming around Kuala Lumpur like locals and indulging in all the foods we missed or wouldn't be able to get in Hannover like fresh seafood, exotic fruits and crazy sushi rolls. The time flew by as did the rest of the winter that year, but it's nice to know that we made enough memories with our friends in the heat of warmer countries to be able to call on them again when needed during the colder winters to come.

Just landed in Kuala Lumpur and we meet up with Zul and Faizal who take us to our first night market for dinner. Think we've died and gone to heaven!

Photo courtesy of Zul and Lars

We order a whole fried fish with sweet and sour sauce and veggies along with a basket of cockles that you dip into a sweet spicy sauce. There is also a build-your-own congee station with all sorts of fried fish and other exotic ingredients you can top your congee with. I'm not normally a fan of congee, or rice porridge, but this version was too crazy looking to resist.

Photo courtesy of Zul and Lars

Second day and we are at Batu Caves near Kuala Lumpur.

Monkeys, monkeys everywhere!

Entrance to Batu Caves almost looks like a naturally formed version of the front of Gaudi's Sagrada Familia.

The heavenly light that poured through the cave openings up above.

Stairs leading to the center of the cave where a Hindu temple awaits guests.

A sign from above that we're in the right place?

The wildlife within the caves was pretty diverse as you can see.

Off to the side of Batu Caves was a manmade attraction that housed sacred tenets and sayings of the Hindu religion. Not sure feminists and most women in general would agree with this little gem of wisdom.

Putrajaya, the capital of Malaysia that was built in less than ten years from 1995-2005.

Putra Mosque in the background. Because everything in the city is so new, the capital had the feeling of a planned community or an enormous American shopping mall.

The Perdana Putra Federal Government Administrative Centre looks like a palace.

Durian fever had me ordering a durian coffee, durian mochi and durian ice cream. Only in Asia! People here LOVE their coffee and tea, by the way. Caffeine is the drug of choice in these parts since alcohol is forbidden and everywhere you go you will find multiple tea and coffee houses. We had coffee or tea with or after each meal almost every day while we were in Malaysia and Indonesia.

The entrance archway to the courtyard of the "Iron Mosque," or the Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin Mosque.

View from the Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin Mosque's courtyard
looking toward the Palace of Justice.

Great mix of old and new styles of architecture, although everything was built in the nineties here.

Strolling through the gardens of the Iron Mosque to kill time before the next opening hour of the Putra Mosque.

Back at the Putra Mosque at dusk.

Men must have their legs covered and women must cover up all over when entering a mosque. No shoes allowed.

I thought this was the most beautiful mosque of the entire trip next to the original National Mosque of Malaysia. The glass for the windows of this mosque is from Germany, the guide was proud to point out.

Hot and happy. It's an average of 95 degrees F, or 35 degrees C here.

Putrajaya at dusk.

This minaret was designed to resemble an okra pod, a common vegetable in the Muslim diet.

The night market in Putrajaya. Who doesn't like a free sample?

It was fun to see how women accessorized their head scarves to their outfits.

No plastic wrapped food here.

Need your salty dried fish in bulk? This guy has you covered.

Picnic tables make up the food court area of the market where you could sit and enjoy the food from the surrounding vendors.

We head to the mall that night. Fountains behind the Suria KLCC mall at the base of the Petronas Towers.

BTW, there is free wifi everywhere in this country. At the mosques, the mall, the airport, you name it.

Drink trucks like these frequent KL like ice cream trucks in the U.S.

We head to the Central Market to shop for Malaysian wares like their signature batik cloths, hand made by artisans who stamp the cloth or make designs with wax and dye.

The extended shopping just outside of the Central Market building.

National Mosque of Malaysia, designed in the 60's. 

Hallelujah! Free wifi!

Photo courtesy of Zul and Lars

Gardens and tombs of the Makam Pahlawan.

Inside the Makam Pahlawan, a mausoleum for some of the heroes of Malaysia including a few of their prime ministers. Love the colors!

Can you imagine the blue roof of the mosque used to be pink!

I really like everything about the design of this mosque except when it comes to the main prayer hall--it just looks drab and dated. I prefer the earthier, updated but elegant look of the Putra Mosque with it's grander scale in this regard. 

Beautiful reliefs line the walls inside the National Mosque.

The serene tiled outer area of the mosque stays quiet, cool and shielded from the heat of day. 

The National Mosque from the front.

A haircut is called for! The boys brave an impromptu trip to the salon around the corner from the Hotel Istana. No ears were lost.

Our descent onto Langkawi, a chain of islands off the coast of Malaysia bordering Thailand.

A regular guest at the Box Chalet hotel is a salamander with a family living behind a hung picture on the outer wall of a building.

Our first meal on the island is a first in my culinary book--fish laksa, which is a soup and rice noodle dish, and rojak, a spicy fruit and vegetable salad made with a local fruit I can't identify and hoisin sauce with roasted ground peanuts on top. On the side are the coconut milk desserts with tapioca and fruits over ice. 

Eaten right on the beach with hardly a soul around, this meal was unforgettable!

After lunch stroll to the water.

Our first beach outing in a long time.

Photo courtesy of Lars and Zul.

Fun day watching people parasailing.

This is the start of one of what I considered the best meals of the whole trip, and of course it comprises food from the local night market. These are kabobs of grilled chicken and squid brushed with a spicy sweet sauce--um, yes please!

Then we bought one of these taco-like murtabaks which are really like thin pancakes griddled with a sweet peanut and palm sugar mixture inside. 

Another pancake type of treat filled with sweet bean pastes, coconut, and more.

More food on sticks.

This sweet woman ladled our favorite meal of the trip, nasi kerabu, into these little paper cones filled with rice.

The night markets were our favorite part of Malaysia and Indonesia. Teeming with life, they are open late and provide locals with a place of entertainment and social gathering.

Nasi kerabu. The blue tinted rice is made by cooking the rice with the petals of the blue pea flower. It is then paired with a salted egg, sprouts, chili paste and dried fish or chicken and fresh grated coconut.

That's right, we eat with our hands here!

The delicious chicken and squid kabobs.

Another common type of murtabak is a thin pancake surrounding a savory mixture of egg, onions and a mincemeat like mutton or beef.

On our way up to the highest peak on Langkawi we meet some common layabouts on the island, cows.

There is also a spa attached to the lookout point.

360 degree views of the island and its surrounding waters.

It was so nice and cool up at the top that we stayed for about an hour or so just enjoying the breeze and the view. The lookout tower was also stocked with tea so you could just pour yourself a cup and read some magazines on top of the world.

Back at sea level we stop at a typical roadside restaurant offering small vats of cooked meats, veggies, as well as freshly fried items of the day. You just take a plate and some utensils and ladle on the plate what you want and pay the cashier, or in this case the lady walking around, at the end of the meal. They just charge you by the plate and sometimes by how full your plate looks. Everything is of course super affordable, I think we paid about €2 or less for this meal and that's normal. The fried items are separate and get charged by the bag.

Fresh fried plantains to-go.

Back near the island's main port of call we walk around and look at the surrounding tourist attractions.

Langkawi, which means island of the reddish brown eagle, is so named since the birds are abundant on the islands.

Then it's back to the beach for another afternoon of fun. We ended up going to the beaches late in the day when the heat died down. At around 95 degrees F or higher you really didn't want to be on the baking hot sand any earlier with no shade .

Hours of fun in the wave machine!

After the beach we showered at the hotel and went out for dinner. On the main strip of the downtown near the port of call we find a restaurant that let you choose the seafood which got grilled right away. Stingray was underwhelming and a little too gelatinous for my taste, but the other stir fried seafood items were spot on.

Outside the Box Chalet and on our way to do some exploring.

The rice museum had a mini-plantation to show visitors the different stages of how rice is planted and harvested.

The luckiest ducks on the mini-plantation.

This water buffalo was angry!

More roadside treats on Langkawi.

Tea in bags is a 'thing' here.

Taking our treats to the beach! Clockwise from top left: Fried sesame balls with sweet mung bean paste inside, fried fish paste, fried sweet potatoes, bananas and other fruits, sweet black tea with lemon in a bag, more fish paste fritters with green onion and lemongrass, and donuts.

Prettiest beach with the whitest sand.

Back at the beach parking lot there's a restaurant with a massive bougainvillea plant hanging over it.

Don't let their cute faces fool you! These guys come to you for one thing only and that is food!

Scoping out our dinner options.

We head over to the official harbor of Langkawi where the rich park their boats.

Pretty buildings near the harbor at sunset.

We found a little cafe where they had great coffees and mango lassis so we just sat and watched the sun set.

Going for some Thai food this time, we order satays.

A traditional chicken with rice dish and a carrot juice with condensed milk. Fruit juices with condensed milk and ice are common on the menus in Malaysia and very refreshing!

Grilled squid with dipping sauces was phenomenal!

We're in Georgetown and staying at an hold Chinese shop house turned boutique hotel.

This is one of my must sees of Malaysia. The entire street was lined with houses like this. In Georgetown as well as Singapore you will find that the Chinese were the businessmen back in the day and built up many of these almost veranda style houses to sell their services and wares.

In the mood for Indian food today.

The most amazing tandoori and naan I've ever had cooked and presented in the traditional way with different sauces and onions on an aluminum platter.

Walking off our meal on our way to the ferry.

We are on the ferry to see our good friend Zul off to his mother's in Butterworth--it's not just a syrup guys!--on the other side of the Malacca Strait.

Free wifi here as well.

The UNESCO heritage site of the clan jetties of Penang. 

Fishing off the pier at dusk.

Queen Victoria memorial clock tower. Each foot represents a year of her reign.

Sculpture in the middle of a roundabout in front of the clock tower.

One of the entrances to Fort Cornwallis.

St. George's church, could be the oldest Anglican church in Southeast Asia.

The Eastern and Oriental Hotel, Lars' and now one of our favorite hotels on the island.

The colonial style architecture merges elements of eastern architecture making for a very pretty hotel, perfect for afternoon tea along the waterfront.

Thai whole fried fish with a sweet and spicy sauce.

Mario orders his standard tom yum. You'd never know it but that is a VERY jazzy police station behind him that has dangling icicle lights along the perimeter trees.

I decide to do a different breakfast today and try the local Hokkien noodle hawker.

Photo courtesy of Lars and Zul.

My bowl of Hokkien noodles is spicy and fragrant with fried shallots on top, hard boiled egg and pork.

The boys prefer sweet for breakfast and go for the roti with banana and condensed milk.

Roti is traditionally an Indian flat bread that is eaten sweet or savory, and sometimes alone as an accompanying starch to a meal. The fact that this bread is a beloved Malaysian staple is another indication of the country's diverse cultural mixture.

The local hawkers in Georgetown. The yellow umbrella with the blue table is where we were just sitting.

The old town of Georgetown is another artifact of the huge impact Chinese merchants had in shaping the local architecture of this city.

You could rent a fancy tuk tuk for a ride around the old town like one would rent a gondola in Venice.

Back at the Clan Jetties you can see the plastic buckets and barrels filled with cement that were used as stilts to hold up the buildings along the water.

Looks like a scene right out of an old Chinese painting.

Another view of the jetty.

The day is not complete without our usual afternoon coffee break to escape from the heat. 

This cute little cafe was very asian and had all the cutesy charm of a cafe in Hong Kong. I tried their green tea latte and it did not disappoint.

Dinner that night at Zul and Lars' friend's Thai restaurant yielded the best Thai food of the trip, in our opinion!

Satays, curry, tom yum, fried calamari, and icy soursop smoothies.

Lunch at the food court in a mall in Georgetown the next day was way too much good food!

One of several abandoned buildings in Georgetown. Looks haunted!

Their Chinatown

Little India

We tried vegetarian Indian food for the first time. I did not miss the meat!

For dessert we got some of their sweets that tasted like caramels flavored with spices like turmeric.

First meal in Jakarta was chicken soup with rice, a local staple. I didn't get a picture since I would probably have to pay for it afterward, but we were serenaded by too many very talented musicians who would walk by and panhandle. There were also a ton of feral cats hunting for scraps under the table.

The famous Indonesian martabak!

 Martabak, or murtabak, comes in many shapes and forms and the Indonesian variety of the sweet one is thick and fluffy! Clockwise from top: Savory martaback with egg, onion and mincemeat, sweet martabak with condensed milk and cheese--my favorite--and another sweet martabak with chopped peanuts and chocolate sprinkles that melted to make a chocolatey center.

The next day we head to Kota, what is considered old Jakarta before the city expanded to what is now known as modern day Jakarta.

At the Cafe Batavia in Kota.

I couldn't resist the first dim sum I've seen on a menu in a while and ordered myself some with our afternoon coffee break in the Cafe Batavia. Shrimp noodle rolls and the traditional Chinese steamed chicken and rice in a banana leaf.

Efforts to keep Old Jakarta intact have not been very strong and many parts of the city are crumbling at the outskirts where the old colonial Dutch houses lie.

Off-duty hawker carts with a naked child running through the streets.

Toko Merah, once the home of the governor-general and one of the oldest buildings in Jakarta.

First time I've seen a "no harassment" sign on public transportation as well as a separate area just for women to prevent uncomfortable scenarios such as groping. As a woman you have a choice of sitting in this women's section or the coed section at your own risk.

Istiqlal Mosque in Jakarta, largest mosque in Southeast Asia but not the prettiest.

They almost got marble from Italy but settled for a local Javanese quarry instead to cut costs.

Designed in the 70's, this mosque was built to accommodate over 120,000 people. Each red tile outside is a designated prayer spot.

With metalwork from Germany, the inner dome is just gorgeous in its pragmatic simplicity.

Shiny!

After exiting the main prayer hall, however, you just get overwhelmed by the monotonous massive slabs of marble and 90 degree angles.

Girls in their weekly religious class.

More food from a typical hawker/restaurant with metal vats of steaming vegetables and meats in stews. Our favorite is rendang, an Indonesian dish of meat cooked in coconut milk and spices to the point where it's sweet, spicy, and can keep for weeks without spoiling!

Medan Merdeka Park

This park was of such epic proportions that it made me feel even tinier than usual.

The national monument symbolizing Indonesia's fight for independence is smack in the middle of Medan Merdeka Park which was built by Dutch Governor General Herman Willem Daendels and was once known as Königsplein. 

A normal day of traffic in Jakarta. The rule here is to ignore the painted lines! We learned to cross the street by jaywalking wherever we liked since that's how the locals do it. It was a little like playing Frogger and Zul and Lars were really good at it, oftentimes waiting for Mario and I to timidly scuttle our way to them on the other side.

Dinner at a favorite night market of Lars. Turnip cake with a spicy peanut sauce and satays.

Beef surimi balls in soup, or bakso, is a beloved dish found everywhere here in Indonesia but has its roots in China.

Here is the infamous soursop smoothie that made me sick for about two days.

We finally arrive in Yogyakarta! The Phoenix Hotel had these little fruits I've never seen before.

Called lizard fruit, they tasted a little like a crunchier and milder version of jackfruit.

Tuk tuk ride to dinner!

Dinner at House of Raminten, owned by a local drag queen, had us sitting on the floor barefoot and eating up local delicacies with new friends.

Zul's friend Afnida recommended this cool restaurant that was like eating in a treehouse. Their bathtub sized non-alcoholic cocktails were also out of this world.

You wouldn't know that I was still feeling sick to my stomach by the way I'm smiling! It was still a really fun time and I met a nice group of Malaysians I could practice my Cantonese with.

I was feeling loads better by the next day and managed Borobudur without so much as a hiccup.

The white boys were a huge hit with all the ladies and even some gents asking them for photos. Here's Mario really hating the attention he was getting!

"Hey Mister! Mister! Can I please have photo with you?" (Commence eye roll.)

Some stone Buddhas get all the luck! The ones that don't become headless anyway!

Borobudur was so massive and majestic that one camera shot just didn't do it justice.

Introducing my most favorite fruit in the entire world: mangosteen. Considered the Queen of Fruits, this little red orb has a special place in my heart ever since I had pounds of them for breakfast in Vietnam when I was fifteen. We got about two pounds of these for about €5 at the night market, actually expensive but I was really jonesing for them.

Afnida introduced us to gudeg, another Indonesian must-have when you're in Yogyakarta since it is the native dish to the region.

Gudeg is quite simply young jackfruit simmered in coconut milk and palm sugar and served with egg and a meat like chicken and rice. Delicious, but only if you don't have an aversion to the combination of sweet with meat. This dish in particular is rather on the sweet side.

We found out a very common drink around these parts is root beer! Called sassafras here as it was called in the old cowboy days, it is sold everywhere and as a result the A&W chain is doing quite well here.

Afnida also found this great coffee house for the boys to try some evening coffee.

Also a treehouse of sorts, this was an informal class given by an artisan coffee maker that few know about.

Already buzzing before they've even had a sip! The participants were asked to pick their favorite coffee character and the guy would choose the appropriate beans for that flavor profile.

This British device hand presses the perfect shot of espresso into a glass.

Everybody gets a go!

The pressure creates a nice little cap of foam at the top.

Lunch the next day. Masakan Padang is a beloved sit down meal in Indonesia consisting of dishes a restaurant sets before you. You pay for whatever you end up eating.

On our way to a Thai massage through a small neighborhood in Yogyakarta.

Breakfast at the Phoenix Hotel is quite the affair and an anticipated part of everyone's day!

I usually headed straight for the dim sum but I also tried their traditional Indonesian breakfasts that are very similar to the Malaysian ones of rice and a spicy stew of some sort.

Already in the vicinity of the Cameron Highlands to see the tea plantations.

One of the best beef soups I've ever had with some sweet fresh pressed watermelon juice.

The Nasi Goreng America plate is certainly American in its proportions! Fried rice with an egg on top and a side of stir fried beef and veggies.

Lunch the following day of the typical restaurant on the roadside had some of these crunchy green vegetables I've never eaten before. Chicken curry and stewed squid rounded off the meal.

The waters from the waterfall on our way to the tea plantations.

Best fish laksa on the whole trip! Even Mario ordered a bowl for himself when he tasted it.

The tea plantations at last! Everything we thought it would be and more. Day one was just checking out the area on a drive up to the peak of one of the mountains leading up to a plantation.

Rolling hills of green rivets surrounded by mist shrouded mountains, truly a magical place.

Spotted a monkey pitcher plant on our hike up to the highest peak of the Cameron Highlands.

At the summit we take a break to peruse the surroundings.

Day two of our stay took us to the Boh Plantation to check out their commercialized tea manufacturing process and products. The new tea house is situated at an ideal lookout point for viewing the expanse of the plantation and induced much tea drinking and purchasing!

Hike back down from the new plantation.

The third day found us hunting for the old Boh plantation which locals tell us is even better than the new location. The views were certainly grander! And the drive leading up to the tea house was worth the trek alone. The tea house itself was not as welcoming and nice as the new one though.

Back in Kuala Lumpur, we indulge in some more food experiences. Stir fried squid and a type of nasi rice dish wrapped in banana leaves that was quite spicy!

Of course Mario ordered tom yum one last time.

Traditional asian desserts of sweet and salty coconut milk with various fruits like durian and yucca root and tapioca pearls or sticky rice.

This variation is a 'sundae' make-your-own version with sweet coconut milk, water chestnuts with tapioca, and other various fruits.

Here's another instance of cats being a nuisance in Malaysia and Indonesia since they're all feral and steal food.

Well manicured park near the Petronas Towers.

Beautiful but kind of empty on a weekday.

Petronas Towers. The shape echoes the popular okra motif popularized in the minarets and lattice work of Malaysia.

Lunch at the Suria KLCC mall near the Petronas Towers. How did they do this??? That's a young coconut that was 'scalped,' for lack of a better term, to expose the flesh so you can poke the straw through to the juice inside.

Typical Malaysian noodle soups
that reminded me of a Thai version of ramen.

Sushi dinner at the food court of the mall across from our hotel. Sooooo good!

Don't remember the name of this roll but it was with salmon with a spicy mayo sauce, smelt roe and mango in the middle.

Toro, squid, spanish mackerel, scallops, eel and salmon roe.

Ahhhh, uni!

Okra nigiri was...slimy.

Soft-shelled crab nigiri.

The Chinatown open night market in KL. We're on the hunt for seafood again tonight!

We settle for this restaurant with a mountain of razor clams in the front.

Get in my belly!

A delicious whole steamed fish with Thai chilis and spices as well as stir fried mussels, razor clams, and Mario's favorite tom yum soup.

I'm going to miss this type of family-style eating.

Everything you can think of on a stick.

A mountain of mangos and mangosteen! We end up choosing to get a last helping of durian.

Last opportunity to gorge on durian, the king of fruits. The consistency and taste is like a really ripe, sweet avocado with a slightly oniony pungent flavor.

Crystals!!! This shop is the epitome of the asian craze with the seizure-inducing chips of glass.

Finally, a much needed good haircut on the second to the last day in KL.

Sushi again at the same restaurant at the mall. Hey, it's our last chance for a good selection of fish before we head back. Clockwise from top: fatty tuna, eel, tuna belly, tuna, spanish mackerel, scallop, uni, and salmon roe.

Another crazy delicious roll with fried shrimp, salmon and mango slices with smelt roe.

A soft shell crab papaya salad at Ben's, a great little restaurant that also served high tea.

Is it that time again? Yes it is. Coffee creations at the Espressament in KL.

Red velvet cupcakes at a tea-time themed birthday lunch for Lars.

Last breakfast of the national dish, nasi lemak or "fatty rice," at the breakfast buffet of the hotel Istana. Rice cooked in coconut milk served with a savory spicy sauce and small fried anchovies and peanuts.