My Little Cleaner

Sweet Pea has discovered the need for things to be cleaned! :) Hooray!! I'm a bit unsure about her method. Check out my previous entry Bath Time.

Today I saw she was using her glasses to clean things. I asked her if the ponies needed a bath and she happily said yes. We got a paper towel wet and she went to town. She wiped down the living and dining rooms. I was very impressed when I saw her lift things off the table so she could clean underneath them! When I grabbed the camera, she said "No pictures momma, I'm cleaning right now!" When she was ready, she posed for me with her towel. She even cleaned the pieces from her My Little Ponies!

Clanhouses and More

We visited a couple of clan houses in Georgetown. The Khoo Kongsi is a clan (family) association of the Leong San Tong (Dragon Mountain Hall) clan, whose forefathers came from Sin Kang clan village in Hokkien province. They settled here and built this beautiful temple. The carvings, colors and design are amazing. The original temple mysteriously caught on fire and was rebuilt by 1906. Some say the gods started the fire because the temple was too ornate. 

During Chinese New Year and the Hungry Ghost Festival (July/August) the clanhouse is full of celebration and people. The Hungry Ghost festival is a time when they feed those who have died in order to protect the clanhouse members from incurring the anger of the spirits. They also have performers come to entertain the spirits. The opera house creates the perfect location for performers to sing, dance and entertain.

The Theater

The Cheah Kongsi temple was one of the locations Anna and the King was filmed. Apparently the Thai government did want the filming to take place in their country, so Penang was used. We drove all over the place where the movie was filmed.

Detail of the Clan House

Portions of "Anna and the King" were filmed here {school scenes I believe}

The Chew Jetty is another clanhouse. It's known as the floating house. This one is built on stilts along a portion of the coastline. Tradition typically has generations of people living in the clanhouse. Sons marry and stay with their family sometimes in the same home as parents and grandparents.

The Clock Tower

Fort Cornwallis was a star-shaped fort built by Captain Sir Francis Light.

It was quite impressive walking on top of the battlements, unfortunately the location of the fort didn't provide mush of a defense.

More Cannons

Kapitan Keling Mosque is a mosque built in the 19th century by Indian Muslim traders. The land was donated by Captain Light. The mosque was simple, but so beautiful. I loved the white decor and the beautiful arches.

The Beetle Nut Sculpture

After leaving the Khoo Kongsi, we hired a trishaw driver for a two hour tour of the area. Ms A was so excited to go for a ride. I was a bit nervous to ride the bike in traffic. Our driver had 32 years experience and took a few risks that made me a bit nervous (like driving into opposing drivers or easing into the perpendicular traffic to cross the street), but we were safe and Ms A had a great time.

Kek Lok Si

The Kek Lok Si project was inspired by the chief monk of the Goddess of Mercy Temple of Pitt Street. This temple built in tiers culminates the beautifully crafted ''Pagoda of Ten Thousand Buddhas'' or the Pagoda of Rama VI, named after the Thai king who laid the foundation stone. It towers just over a hundred feet and is reputed to be the largest pagoda in Malaysia. Construction commenced in 1915 and upon its completion in 1930, it was opened with a series of grand ceremonies every seven days over a period of forty-nine days. This pagoda combines a Chinese octagonal base with a middle tier of Thai design, and a Burmese crown, reflecting the temple's embrace of both Mahayana and Theravada Buddhism.

Normally the temple is not so decorated, but since we visited it during Chinese New Year the Chinese lanterns and the colored lights were up. One of Reed's co-workers mentioned they light up certain buildings each night, so by the end of Chinese New Year celebrations {two weeks} the entire temple complex is lit up. We had a marvelous time wandering around this immense temple built on the hillside of Air Hitam, which means black water. Reed walked up to the top of the Pagoda of Rama VI. It was a fun evening. We look forward to seeing it in the daylight. :)

Kek Lok Si lit up for Chinese New Year. To the left is where they were working on a HUGE Buddha.

Tons of Little Buddhas

In front of the pagoda

School and Prayer room

I love the rows and rows of Chinese Lanterns

We had fun taking pictures of the lanterns and the moon.

Reed climbed up the Pagoda and took a few pictures.

Ms A and Mommy below

Bath Time

Ms A has been having a difficult time taking baths here, usually she has a shower instead. The shower heads are detachable, so we can control the water a bit better. She hates to have her hair washed because the water gets in her eyes and ears.

The other day she decided her doll needed a bath, so she spit on her. I talked to her about how spitting is not nice. Today she came in to ask if we could give dolly a bath. We took her in and I had Ms A bathe her with a washcloth. It was so sweet watching her tenderly wash her doll. Afterwards, she told her dolly how brave she was and then told me that dolly was cold and to dry her off. Again she was so soft. When we were all done, she told the dolly that her 'itchies' were all gone.

Rock -n- Roll

Around 4:10 pm our time, I was sitting at my computer preparing for a talk on Sunday. All of the sudden, I felt like my chair was swaying back and forth. I thought it was me, so I asked Reed if he felt it as well, he did. I looked at the chandelier and saw it swaying as well. I remembered a earthquake we felt in Idaho when I was younger. My mom, who is from California, tried to convince us that is was an earthquake and pointed out the swinging chandelier. Reed and I thought it was the wind, but we had seen stronger winds and not felt them. I decided to check out the USGS site http://earthquake.usgs.gov.

Sure enough there was a earthquake in SIMEULUE, INDONESIA. Very exciting! We are safe and far enough away to feel the swaying motions, but not get hurt.

Our landlord was here at the time and he assured us that Penang doesn't have earthquakes or Tsunamis. :) It's usually Indonesia that has those experiences.

Echo, Echo

We came home from a busy night of shopping and discovered we had a visitor waiting to come inside. Sweet Pea kept on shouting "Echo, Echo!" She usually does that anyways because of the echoing areas in our complex.  This time she seemed a bit more concerned than playing. Suddenly she said "There's an echo in our house!" Reed and I realized that she was talking about a little three inch GECKO that had rushed inside.

Sweet Pea was so excited, but very concerned that it was in our home. She wanted to touch it, but was scared when it came towards her. Reed finally helped the gecko leave after it had crawled down the hall and into the living room. She calmed down considerably. The gecko was pretty quick, so I couldn't take a picture. :)

We have seen the geckos throughout the area, but none have made it in our home. At least none that we know about :). They are good to have around because they eat mosquitoes and other pests.

Botanical Gardens

We met this wonderful family, Alan and Sonja, a couple days after we arrived. They are members of our church and are amazing. We even have some mutual friends, but we have never met. What a small world. They have taken us all over the place showing us different sites, introduced us to all sorts of new adventures and have answered questions about our new home. Overall they have been FABULOUS! :)

These pictures are from one of the first places we visited. It is called the Botanical, Waterfall or Monkey Gardens. It is a huge garden with several smaller themed gardens. As we parked the car, we were greeted by a group of monkeys climbing the fence.

We saw an ice cream stand close to the entrance, so we purchased a little treat for us, but we were warned to eat it before we entered. We quickly complied. After we finished we started walking. There was another group that came in shortly after us. One of them had an ice cream cone in hand and was walking into the gardens when out of the blue this monkey who was 3-4 feet away, leaped in perfect Michael Jordan form grabbing the ice cream cone and landed with everything in one piece! We quickly learned why you eat the ice cream before entering. :)

This last picture is of us in front of a Cannon Ball tree. Notice how the fruit is shaped like cannon balls. We were told the fruit wasn't too appetizing, but the flowers are fragrant and the exterior of the fruit is unique.

What do YOU DO when it's naptime?

I went to check on Ms A while she was taking her nap to discover that she had crawled on top of the headboard of her bed.

When I asked what she was doing, she grinned and said "Yellow Duck and Blue Bear were cold. They need to talk." She had dressed her toys and was carrying on a conversation with them.

Her other favorite thing to do with the headboard is to stand on it and jump down on the bed. We are usually there to make sure she doesn't hurt herself. She loves to jump on the bed as well. I have to remind her that jumping on the bed is not safe. When it's time to say prayers, she inevitably will bounce a couple times on the bed before she folds her arms. I guess she wants to get the last bit of wiggles out before she goes to sleep.

Shoes!!!

Sweet Pea has an unique fascination with shoes and feet. Whenever we take her to the store and she sees shoes, she has to try them on. She also likes to have us hug her feet and her feet "talk" to her and sometimes to us.
So today after I vacuumed, Sweet Pea grabbed her sandals to clean them (put them in front of the fan). Then she put them on my bed for safe-keeping. I had to explain to her that shoes belong with the other shoes not on the bed. She said that makes the shoes sad (we have discovered emotions). After a couple of minutes of explaining and rationalizing with her (a challenge in itself), she left. When I came to find her, she took me to the shoes. With a smile on her face Sweet Pea showed me how the baby shoes were being hugged by the mom and dad shoes!

Shopping in Malaysia

We just got back from grocery shopping at the local Tesco. It's like a combination Winco and Target. All the shopping centers that we have visited so far are multiple levels. Usually the food is on the ground floor or the top level. They have escalators that are designed for shopping carts (trolleys in Malaysia). When we took the cart to the car, we went down the escalator. I was holding on tightly since I didn't want to loose Ms A or the food. Reed started to shake the cart as if he wanted me to let go. I was a bit confused and I loosened my hold, the cart stayed put! Apparently, the escalator and cart wheel were designed to lock together! It was a fun discovery!

Speaking of shopping carts, I thought I'd give a little insight into the different terms used here.

Trolley - Shopping Cart
Lift - Elevator
Boot - Car Trunk
Air - Water (yes our water bill says Air which is Bahasa Malay for water, so we have to pay for our 'air'.)
Fly-over - Overpass
Batu - Rock
Ferringhi - Foreigner (It's pronounced like the Star Trek acquisition-centered race)
Pulau - Island
Awas - Beware

Some other interesting things to keep an eye out for:

• When driving, don't be surprised to see motor bikes whiz by on either side of the car.
• When trying to get somewhere, make sure you have a route going and coming back. There are so many one way roads and roads changing directions, it makes it difficult to go most places.
  
• As a pedestrian, watch out, drivers don't pay attention or give you any right of way.
• When using the public restrooms, make sure you have your own toilet paper and don't be surprised by the typical hole (no seat) with a wet floor. Malaysians use a hose to clean off instead of paper.
• Hawker stalls are a great place to try new foods, don't be scared off by the lack of cleanliness, the food is safe.
  
• Go the the night market hungry. It is a great way to try new foods. Plus seeing the live fish makes the hawker stand look tame. The fish can also entertain your little one as you look at a nearby stall. Reed and I joked about the health department in the states having a heyday with the health violations.

Daddy - Daughter Day

Reed and Ms A shared Saturday morning and afternoon together. They hiked Penang Hill, also known as Bukit Bendera. The hill is 830 meter high (2,750 foot) with the hike being about 6km (3 and a 3/4 miles). I had read how long and strenuous the hike was, so I decided to stay home. I had so much to catch up on and having Ms A around, it would have taken longer to complete. I also enjoyed the alone time. :)

Reed ended up carrying Ms A up 3/4 of the hike, which took three hours to complete. When they arrived at the top, Reed let Ms A run around. Apparently, his energy was drained and hers wasn't. The parking attendant at the bottom suggested using the tram to get down. When Reed first heard about it, he thought he'd be alright. Once he reached the top, he changed his mind.

The view was wonderful! I'm not sure if it was worth the hike, you'll have to ask Reed. :) They also saw a temple at the top of the hill.

On the top of Penang Hill

View of the buildings, strait and mainland

Hindu Temple

Detail on temple

View of the island

The bridge to the mainland is in the background.

Butterflies Everywhere! :)

Today's Itinerary: Butterfly Farm, Fruit Farm and Tiki Kerawang Waterfall!

We had an amazing time. You walk into the Butterfly Farm and you have this amazing view of butterflies everywhere! My mom would love this place! The whole time I was thinking of her. We had several butterflies tickle our necks, one landed on Reed's head! The whole time Ms A tried to have a butterfly land on her leg. She was pretty excited, but wasn't sure if she wanted to have them crawl on her hand. We had someone show us how to get a butterfly to land on a flower. When I tried to have it move to Ms A's shoulder, it flitted away.

They had a few insects and beetles

Face Beetles {look for the yellow or red squares}

Reed loves signs

Three- horned Rhino beetle

 

The Fruit Farm was interesting. We were able to try several fruits we were curious about. I enjoyed seeing the different types of trees. We saw a tree where they get cinnamon from. They peel off the bark and let it dry, that is why the sticks are curled.

Our last place was this little waterfall that Ms A had a wonderful time. She was a bit hesitant about the cold temperature, but she quickly got over that as you can see.

She had a great time playing in the water