Coromandel Quest

The scenery here was very dramatic, with steep cliffs plunging into the sea, undercut by the waves.  Oddly, though, the waters around were quite shallow, so that we were anchored in just over 5 metres.  Except where the rocks were vertical the island was covered with dense forest, with lianas and vines clothing the trunks and branches - all very primeval and Jurassic Park!

After a quiet night we motored over to Rebak Island where we had reserved space in the marina so that I could use my sewing machine - the cover for the Hydrovane had split and a new one was needed.  The marina is extremely sheltered and is attached to a resort hotel, so some of the amenities are quite good, like the swimming pool.  There is also a ferry to the mainland which runs several times a day.

One day we hired a car and took a tour around the island, visiting the large Craft Complex, housed in a wonderful Islamic Art-inspired building, where we saw examples of the best in Malaysian crafts - until we found a small label on the back of one of the batiks which read "Made in Taiwan"!  So my suspicions were instantly alerted, and I decided to buy nothing that I hadn't actually seen being made, despite some of the paintings on silk and cotton being totally gorgeous.  We also visited a crocodile farm where these prehistoric creatures are studied and bred for very expensive handbags and shoes etc, but the sad thing about crocodiles is that they're not exactly interactive!  Late on one of the several beaches we visited, Andy came across the tracks of some creature (on the Main page) which he instantly said were crocodile footprints and we later heard that crocodiles had been seen in the waters around Langkawi.  So what with those and the huge jellyfish we've seen, I've decided that I really don't fancy going for a swim here.

We ended our day with ended with a visit to the top of Machingang via a cable car; very exciting, given the steepness of the final pull up to the top of the first incline.  Luckily it was a fine day, so the views from the top were stupendous, east towards the mainland and northwards to the southern islands of Thailand.

Anchorage at Tg Datang Buntig

Rebak Marina

Somnolent Crocodile

One of the most fascinating sights of Georgetown in the mansion of Cheong Fatt Tze, a Chinese of the Hakka ethnic group, who came to Malaysia as a penniless youth and ended up a multi-millionaire entrepreneur, businessman and banker.  His house was built on feng shui principles, which were explained to us by our guide, a young Chinese man with an excellent command of English.  Mr Cheong had spared no expense in building his home, and many of the touches were exquisite, such as the stained glass windows and the Staffordshire tiled floors.

Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion, Penang

Ipoh, like many places in Malaysia, is renowned for its eclectic architecture, and we were fascinated to see the railway station, reminiscent of the one in Newcastle, though painted white.  We found a small guest house in Chinatown, and then took a tour round four of the temples for which the city is famed.  Three of these were built into caves in the limestone, the builders making good use of the stalagmites and stalactites.  In one was a 15-metre high statue of Buddha.  In another, a lady very kindly explained to us some of the tenets of Buddhism, and told us the stories which were depicted around the temple walls.  At another we climbed the 450 steps to the top of the cave system, from where we had splendid views of the city and the Cameron Highlands beyond.

Temple in Ipoh

Pangkor is regarded as a good holiday destination, but we found it rather sad to see so many chalets semi-derelict, and few occupied; it was obvious that there were few tourists around, although this could have been because it was not holiday season.

Even sadder was the sight of an abandoned marina on the west coast.  The buildings were in excellent condition, but we were told that the pontoons had been broken up in the swell from a storm.  It struck us that the people who built the marinas seemed to have little knowledge of the ways of the sea, so they're not built in the best, most protected locations.  This one had two sea walls, and I suppose that the best solutions would have been either a storm gate, like the one in Ardrossan, or to put an angle into the outer wall to deflect swells.  We'd heard that the pontoons in the marina at Melaka had been in danger of breaking up while we were anchored in the Water Islands, so this is not a new problem.

Still, we shopped, ate, took a trip around the island, seeing the old Dutch fort (1713), a carved rock commemorating the death of the young daughter of the Dutch governor who was taken by a tiger, a Chinese Temple with a miniature Great Wall of China, a Hindu Temple, several beaches and the new rubbish incinerator.  We found that fishing boats are built in the traditional way here, of solid hardwoods imported from Burma.  They seem to have been built to the same pattern for many years, though we found that some of them seemed to have fairground gondolas on the top as lookout positions, making them look extremely top-heavy.

Fishing Boats in Pangkor

Abandoned Marina, West Pangkor

We arrived at Pulau Besar, south west of Melaka, just after dark, and so anchored quite a long way from the beach, although still with only one metre under the keel at low water.  We moved in closer the next morning, nearer to Independent Freedom.  However, it was no consolation to be told by Di and Steve that they'd had four very tranquil nights there.  We were rolling, so despite the beauty of the island, we left after two nights.  In addition, the island is "dry", ie no alcohol, as it is run by a Muslim community.  On a foray around the island Andy found a huge hotel complex, luxuriously appointed with marble etc, yet abandoned.  We never did get to the bottom of this failed investment, but if the "no alcohol" policy was adopted, I can't see it being very popular with western tourists.

Having finally found a decent sailing wind, albeit on the nose, we decided to give Port Dickson a miss and headed northwards towards Lumut.  During the night the wind increased to 20+ knots from the northwest, so we beat into the short steep waves, water sluicing over the deck and over me at one point.  At least it was warm!  Andy had the watch during which he had to dodge the ships going into Port Klang and the fishing boats, but although we certainly ran over one net, it didn't do us any harm.

Gas Platform off Port Klang

Tugs and Barges in Selat Pangkor

The front of the hotel is a glorious facade of white carved stone and "sash" windows, with a wrought iron porch and turbaned majordomo.  The air of graciousness is palpable, the whole hotel immaculate.  I made my way to the Courtyard in the middle of the building.  It seemed almost timeless to be sitting there under the gazebo drinking Darjeeling tea.  I decided against a Singapore Sling on the two-fold basis that S$25 (£12) was a lot to pay for one drink, and also that it would probably send me to sleep for the afternoon and we had lots else that we wanted to see.  Marian, however, had no such qualms, but was kind enough to offer me a sip.

From Raffles we made our way to the Singapore Flyer, a huge wheel like the London Eye which would give us a good view of Singapore and the Straits.  It was great fun (S$25) and the views were magnificent.  We were lucky that it was a fine day, so we could see all the way north to the skyscrapers of Johor Bahru and south to the Indonesian islands.  The Singapore Strait was awash (!) with ships of all shapes and sizes - there must have been at least a hundred within view, most of them at anchor, of course.  The Flyer gave us all round views of the city of Singapore, with its huge modern buildings, innovative designs and futuristic architecture.  We could see the utilitarian apartment blocks to the north east, the glass towers of the financial district, the ribbons of highways, the vast tracts of water and the trees and shrubs which are part of a concerted policy to keep the city looking green, fresh and cool.  It is also clean - no litter - and we heard that the fine for dropping even a cigarette butt was $200.  An audio-guide informed us that originally the wheel had gone the other way but had been re-programmed to go in the opposite direction, from east to west, as the Feng Shui would be more effective in bringing good fortune and avoiding bad chi.  It now follows the path of the Sun.  There is barely a sensation of movement as one rises slowly to the top, where the audio guide said it was an auspicious place to make a wish.

Having finished our circle of the Flyer, we strolled over to the double Helix Bridge, a complex structure of beautiful satin stainless steel in the shape of the DNA spiral, passing several more shopping malls on the way. There was an abundance of plants, shrubs and trees, making the city look cool, despite the heat. And ahead of us were the Skytowers, three huge structures topped by Skypark, in the shape of a ship.  I understand that it cost all of $4 billion and found myself trying to reconcile this with the poverty we had seen in other parts of the World: I couldn't.  Downtown Singapore is an altar where Money holds sway.  It seemed that the whole city was developed with minute attention to every detail except cost.  Stunning and awe-inspiring are words which spring to mind - an architect's dream and a window-cleaner's nightmare!

The Sky Towers are three buildings sheathed in glass, across the top of which is Skypark - shaped like a ship and the location of cafés, restaurants and a swimming pool the size of three Olympic pools.  Parts of the building have a curious silvery net over them which ripples in the breeze, giving an ethereal effect to the building.  The lift to the 56th floor to Skypark took 38 seconds and one's breath was taken away by the first glimpse of the surrounding landscape over the Singapore Strait and the dozens of ships at anchor there.  The views were stunning.  One of Skypark's features is a huge swimming pool which seems to spill over the edge of the building giving a vertiginous aspect.  To see swimmers sitting at the edge is a most curious feeling and one wonders why they don't fall over the edge.  It is difficult to find words to describe the grandeur of this - as if you've suddenly been transported to the end of the millennium.  We spent an age just looking at the different views and marvelling at what we could see.

Yet still the building goes on, and to the south we could see where another area had been reclaimed and preliminary work was being undertaken for other developments, each trying to outdo the other in the innovative use of materials and design.  

Singapore and the Flyer from Skypark

Marian and me in front of Raffles Hotel

Raffles Courtyard

The Singapore Flyer

In the Pod of the Singapore Flyer

The Double Helix Bridge and Skytowers

Where all the money is: the Central Business District