WEATHER: 31 degrees, mostly cloudy
Woke this morning 8:30am, back from breakfast 9:50am (found the Danish treats this morning... Uh-oh).
Another bus adventure planned for today; back row seat at 10:45am, starting to get the hang of this. We jumped off the bus around half hour later in the middle of Little India. Without a map in our hand we felt a lot lost. We wandered up the street a bit before I decided to ask a local what way we should head.
We spotted a sign that read Fort Cornwallis, which was one of the things on the list Hubby wanted to see. Closeby was a playground, so Miss 8yo had a play and met a little Chinese girl that didn't speak English. Miss 8yo realised that a lot can be said with body language.
Our visit to Fort Cornwallis cost 2RM for adults & 1RM for kids. Lots of history, nice views, but not overly interesting for 8yo's. By this stage I realised that forgetting to put on sunscreen this morning was a very big mistake - I was so angry at myself for forgetting! We asked the young man at the desk if there was a Farmasi (chemist) nearby - he didn't think so, but gave us a map.
A short walk dodging traffic to the Penang State Museum, which cost 1RM each adult (kids free). It wasn't very big and the history wasn't very old, but another thing to tick off the list.
Miss 8yo started whining about now, so we thought we had better do something kid friendly. I figured we were close to the Interactive Museum, so asked a guard for directions and tried to follow the map. I knew we were on the right road, but we'd been walking so long we just about walked to the airport! We were all about to die, when I gave up and asked a local where we needed to go. She told me "long walk back" the way we come... WE HAD WALKED RIGHT PAST IT!
Hubby hailed a taxi, 10RM and a 2 min drive later, we were at the entrance to the Interactive Museum. Yes, we had walked right past, now recognising the painted mural down the alley, but didn't feel so bad as there was no clear signage. Unbelievably, we were still talking to each other too ;-)
We bought a can of drink (2RM) and paid 75RM entry fee (30RM adults/15RM kids), which included a souvenir badge and fancy tickets to use inside that can be kept as bookmarks. We had lots of fun inside, making silly poses to take awesome photos... Scrapbookers heaven!
When we walked out, we still didn't have our bearings, so ended up walking aimlessly around the block before spotting a money changer and getting 2.92RM for $1AUD - the best rate yet! Hubby asked for directions (can you believe it?) to the nearest bus stop, which ended up being the depot, across the road and up a bit from the Interactive Museum...URGHHHHHH!
Back on the 101 bus, the driver tried to be funny by telling me our passes weren't valid; lucky I was too tired to bite back. The bus was already full with only a few seats left - no way I'm standing! I spot a seat up back and end up sitting next to a lovely young lady who tells me she is from KL. We pass a local catholic cemetery and she shows sign of respect. I ask if she has family buried there and she tells me she lost her brother just over a year ago in an accident; she now stays here to help care for his 3 small children. We chat for a while before she gets off at her stop. I'm enjoying catching buses to get the chance to meet local people and learn their stories...it's good to chat or just watch.
We get off at our stop, just a short walk across the road to our hotel and freshen up before heading back out for dinner. We wander back down the road to eat at TA #2 recommended restaurant "The Living Room Cafe Bar & Gallery". Here we met one of the lovely owners Amy (her partner Ben did not move from the bar), who chatted to us frequently throughout our meal. She asked if our hotel was busy and thought there weren't many tourists around, as they weren't as popular as usual. Miss 8yo had the biggest Strawberry milkshake you've ever seen, so big she hardly touched her meal. We ordered 3 milkshakes, 6 chicken satay, 3 spring rolls (not those dodgy small ones either), Pork ribs/chips (one of the few places you can get pig), black pepper chicken/rice, Chicken snitzel/chips (like a large battered chicken nugget), 2 soft drinks and the total was 133.10RM ($45 AUD). Reasonable price for delicious food and very nice staff too!
Our 10 minute walk back to the hotel helped to tire Miss 8yo, who showered and went straight to sleep. Hubby and I had a few quiet ones before I went to sleep while he stayed up watching Sweeney Todd on the hotel TV.
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