Fresh Air Get-Away

This past weekend I spent a few nights in Sentual City, which is south of Jakarta. There is an SPH school there and I know some of the teachers. I was able to spend some time with my friends Leanne, Brittany, and Brenna.

It was my first time visiting Sentual and I was amazed at how beautiful it was. Tons of green tress, hills, and ravines appeared as were drove nearer to the mountains that I normally (on a clear day) will see out of my 37th floor window. The cleaner and fresher air was also delightful to breathe in.

On Saturday we enjoyed even more of nature by visiting Taman Safari. It is a zoo/ amusement-type park that allows you to get up close and personal with the animals. We could feed zebras, elephants, hippos, and deer as we drove through the park. In addition, baby lions and tigers were available to take photos with. One of my favourite parts of Taman Safari is the Cowboy Show which is a typical western show (although in Bahasa) including animals, stunts (that wouldn’t be legal in NA) and lots of laughs. Needless to say, it was an enjoyable weekend away.

Mayhem in Malaysia

Penang, Malaysia is a mixing bowl of cultures. Throughout Georgetown, the big city on the island, you will find influences of India, China, and Britain in addition to the native Malaysian culture. This means you will see the evidence of a variety of religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam and Catholicism/Christianity. My favourite aspect of Penang’s cultural mix was the cuisine!

Some of my favourite experiences in Penang these past 5 days were the food experiences. We ate some very yummy food. The most surprising food that I enjoyed was a Penang-style burger that we got at a food shack on the side of the road. It was delicious. The meat had egg and hot sauce cooked around it. I also loved the Indian roti’s (breads), curries, and meat dishes.

In addition to the food, we spent our time exploring historical sites, perusing the market, relaxing on the beach, motor biking around the island, and doing a little nature walk. Although it was splendid to explore a new place and become more confident in my motor biking skills, it was also very nice to come home to my own apartment this afternoon. I had a cold the entire trip, got some road rash, and stayed up way to late every night. Thankfully, I have the rest of today to unwind and accomplish a few things before the craziness of work restarts tomorrow. Gotta love vacation!