Just Cruizin On Bluemoon

Log 59

Sitting here watching the traffic lined up for the ferry... is quite relaxing after a few days of running around...

Sadly we said goodbye to our wonderful friends who are heading South.... and spent a quiet day watching the weather roll in...

This lightening, as I know I have mentioned so many times is really unbelievable!! Thunderstorms are an everyday thing now so our timing on our outings had to change to the mornings and shift school to the afternoons ... The other night we had a mighty t-storm while I was sitting in the saloon and Jono and John were sitting in the cockpit when the lightening struck very close by... and Jono got such a fright he dived for the cockpit sending his juice with ice all over the place... I thought he got struck... need I really say more....

John and I spent a whole day walking this humongous town flat!! As John say's "surfing Panang on foot" . It has been incredibly hard finding a small plate of stainless steel!!  So we walked about 20 kilometers round and round finding the one and only place... eventually thanks to a very talkative, friendly and very helpful bakery lady...

We need to lazer profile (which is a word no-one understands let alone ever gets done in these parts) two small plates so we can weld on our swim platform handles....  we got the steel though and John will angle grind the pattern and, and, we will get the job done. This place is very busy! It kinda makes us think of Madagascar in some ways.... with so much potential.... anyways, we will manage to get our spares and parts and list sorted in as long a time is needed..... sometimes the frustrations of realizing how spoilt we were! LOL

The girls and I went the following day on our hop on free bus to Komtar and Gama shopping centre and had a great day buying new clothes though what a shock looking at the sizes of the pants!!! Yet we managed to squeeze on all the outfits the assistants thought we would not fit into LOL We had a ball! Then it was off to Mac Donalds where we splashed out with all our shopping and treated ourselves! We did not forget the guys, so got them take out burgers which are far bigger than in Langkawi! Then after a good few hours headed home and reached the marina yet again when the rain came down in full force!! But a great day was had by us all!

We took the opportunity to head for Panang Hill the following morning... so we caught the right bus and had over an hour to enjoy this very big island! Even though the Hill looks like a mass of granite, it is actually a series of hilltops. The highest peak being 833 meters above sea level. Panang Hill's Malay name, 'Bukit Bendera' is a direct translation of the English moniker, Flagstaff Hill which refers to the lone yet highly visible flagstaff from which the Union Jack fluttered when Penang was one of the crown jewels of the British Empire during the colonial era. The greenery is spectacular and so much cooler than the heat and humidity that bakes the lowlands of the island!! This place was actually the site of Penang's first strawberry farm and its opening in 1789 was the brainchild of Captain Francis Light, the first British Viceroy of Penang.  You ride up the unique funicular railway which allows a close view of the rich flora and fauna on the hill. The rail was built and completed in 1923 which consisted of two wooden cars which were replaced by the current ones in 1977. The wooden ones are beautiful! There are temples, farmsteads and an array of colourful birds with alot of monkeys! You stop at midpoint where you can take pics and read all the info on the history of the hill then switch cabin cars, which go very slowly uphill the rest of the distance to the top. There are souvenir shops and kiosks also we stopped to eat a local dish  'Nasi Ayam goreng'  We went to see the Mosque and the neighboring Hindu temple which is astounding to see! That artwork is incredible and ever so colourful!

The bird life is great! The views are breathtaking! You can see the Panang bridge which is spectacular in size! There are also many trails and pathways that snake through the hills which have many hidden delights! Then came the rain!! Then it stopped then it came and so it went... lol 

Eventually we headed down and had to wait in a queue to board the train... so John says we need to hoof it up when the gates open so we can sit on the way down as the tram is so full!!! We stood all the way coming up on both trams so when the doors open, I jump over the seats and head after the rest of the gang to a seat!! So here is all five of us sitting with a cabin jam packed with standing people!! (The guilt!!) Yet no-one was giving their seat up! Yet somehow there is always a price to pay right... well we jump off the tram at midway and find we are the last to get off the tram for the next leg down on a different tram... but there was no space for us!!! The first cabin which did have space was guarded by a man shaking his hands telling us 'NO", "NO" to which we were trying to say we cannot get in any other as all the others were full to capacity and this one could fit the five of us in, but that was not to be as he was adamant looking at his wife's swollen foot and wanted space around her, so the tram doors shut and here is the five of us alone at this station not quite knowing what to do... but no worries John say's as we will get to sit down on the next tram coming up as the people swapping trams have to walk all the way around and voila we are already there! heheh  So our trip down was great! Sitting was a real perk as it took more than half an hour to get to the top...  It is also a little scary with the steepness of the track!

We went back to the bus stop and got onto our faithful every half hour bus and headed back to the marina where when we stepped off the bus which is right next door to the marina, right by the ferry terminal, it started to rain! We ran to the marina where it really came down! Relaxed and chilled for the rest of the night as it was actually quite a full day!! Then this morning, we headed off to Sunshine square where Jono had told us a great skatepark was so catching another bus and driving for like an hour an a half we get to the square... but no skatepark! So the walk starts..all over the place looking for the skate park, then to the stadium where no one understood us or knew what skating was... then it was back to the square, and a little shopping, then the phone calls to all the tourist places looking for this park and so it went!!

Then off to the shops once again to buy a few baskets and lunch for a picnic! So rolls, butter cheese, mayo, and chicken meat with cooldrinks was in order for our lunch which we would have once arriving at this park, but of course we bought alot more goods, and on walking out the shop I spot a bakery!! So in I go and order some rolls which was a real treat and see they have coffee buns! So I buy one for us to test and it was so fantastic that Jono ran back to buy alot more while we were waiting for the bus, so back onto the bus we go eating our delish coffee buns, all the way to town where we hop onto another paying bus and head for the Botanical gardens where we have to walk a further close to an hour to get there where they have a stunning skatepark!!

It is called the youth centre and this skatepark is not for sissy's!! Man they did not mess around when they made those quarter pipes!! So we had a delish lunch! Jono skated his heart out while we took pics and mom jumping up when he hit the deck! Shame!!!!! Then we went to the fountain which is so pretty and here all the school kids were swimming in so in we climb with Jono swimming in his boxers!! It was lovely! When we had our energy back we headed back down the road to the bus stop to get a bus back to the marina.... Now Jess is cooking up a storm in that galley, Jono is limping around, John is busy on his project making a real big mess LOL while Justine is entertaining us while playing on the keyboard.... all the while the ferry terminal is buzzing with life and tired people.... the clouds and lightening are rolling in .... another storm on it's way in, so to a great day... till more news, keep that mail rolling and .... PLEASE SIGN THE GUESTBOOK SO WE KNOW YOU GUYS HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN US! LOL