Penang, Malaysia

It was difficult leaving Villa Santai behind but there was no time for remorse as I had a 6:30am flight. After a brief stop in Jakarta we continued on to Penang.I had forgotten what a charming city the section of Georgetown was. All the colonial structures are now 100 years old. Arabs, Indians Malays and the odd sprinkling of other nationalities made this a most exciting, cosmopolitan city. I initally stayed at the Oriental Hotel ($20/night) but found it was a much better deal just down the road at the Continental which included breakfast and had a lovely swimming pool. The old E&O hotel is finally open and as decadent as the Raffels in Singapore, though maybe not quite so grand. It's about $100/night. I went to a mall called "Looking Good" and found the pirated software I was looking for, despite most of those businesses driven out by the government for copywrite infringement. Knowing Penang pretty well after doing a dozen or so "visa runs" here when I lived in Thailand, I knew where to catch the local bus as opposed to taking the much more expensive taxi. Plus it was more exciting. Having attained what I came here for, I booked a ticket to Phuket for the next day. I felt that I was leaving for home as I had recently resided there for four years. Plus, I wanted to see the results of the tsunami firsthand.

Villa Santai, Bali (part 2)

http://www.villasantai-bali.com/

Ketut drove from the guesthouse through a portion of the capital Denpasar. The traffic was wall-to-wall, unlike anything seen in the States. I couldn’t wait to get out of it. Then we finally made the ascent to Ubud. Normally this is about a 45-minute trip. This time it took well over an hour.

Kevin McPherrin was waiting at his villa and what a villa it was! The staff, adorned in their matching brown batik uniforms, was all there to greet me as well, offering a cool pineapple drink upon arrival.
It was great to see Kevin again and we had a talk about our days together at Cornell. We were best buddies from ‘66-‘69.

The estate is palatial. One enters the villa through a stone entry way flanked by dense vegetation and a pond on either side (complete with frogs) of the walkway that leads to the main pavilion which doubles as a living and dining area. There are no walls but the roof is Indonesian thatch.

The centerpiece of the villa is the pool, which overlooks a river valley far below. The house radiates subtle elegance and sits on a promontory with no modern civilization in sight...just jungle. The four bedrooms are really master suits and located on the lower level. Even the tiled bathrooms are elegant and open to the breathtaking views.

As a side note, when I was walking into my bedroom I spotted a huge black scorpion…a minimum of 6 inches long. I teased him with a stick but he was in no mood for playing. He tried to pinch the stick and shot his venomous tail at it as well. We soon collected him and the staff disposed of him properly. They said they had never seen such a huge scorpion on the property before.

There are 11 staff to attend to one’s every need. Kev even assigned me my own driver as, during the day, he is busy either in Ubud or Denpasar with his fine art business. We are the only two residents.

I’ve been to Ubud town several times this visit and have located a few items I’d like for my business but the thought of lugging them around S.E. Asia for the next month puts me off buying anything. Shipping the goods home is an option but a very costly one.

My first night here we attended a party with a live band. Of course I had to sit in and do a few rockabilly numbers which the crowd loved. Of course, I enjoyed chatting up the lovely ladies in attendance of which there were several.

The next day my driver took me to Penelokan (meaning beautiful view) and Batur in the Bangli district, one of the higher places on the island. For those who complain bout the heat (like me), this place is a welcome relief.
Above the villages, the volcano Genung Batur juts high above everything. It last erupted in 1963 and, viewed from the town, the lava field is quite extensive. Just below sits Lake Batur, one of the largest volcanic lakes in the world and is actually a water-filled caldera. It is 54 sq miles and up to 330 ft. deep. Nearby are some popular hot springs.

The next day we went to Pura Tanah Lot which is a Hindu temple built in the 16th century. It is a temple built on an island and at low tide one can walk out to it. It’s beautiful to behold but far too many tourists for my liking.

I had only planned to stay a few days at the villa but Kev insisted I stay longer, so a quick trip to Garuda Airlines in Denpasar gives me an extra week in this paradise.

He didn’t have to twist my arm…

Bali (Part 1)

Bali (Part 1)
I really had scheduled my trip to Singapore to visit my friend Buz. We had a fabulous reunion, as our history goes way back. What I remember most of my visit to Singapore this time was lunch at the Raffels that was a real gourmet affair. But when Buz had to teach classes, I was on my own trying to negotiate my way around.

After a number of days in Singapore, I was ready to escape the noisy, busy city for a little more rural adventure.
I chose a most inopportune time to be doing this, however, as it was Chinese New Year and there was thousands of Chinese trying to get from place to place. Stores and restaurants were closed. I was lucky to have secured a flight to Bali at all, and I got no deal on the plane fare whatsoever.

I had emailed my friend Kevin McPherrin, who has a villa near Ubud, of my arrival in Bali on Feb 9th but do to the Chinese New Year, his own flight to Bali was diverted to Saigon and he didn’t get there until the 10th. As a result, I arrived at Ngurah Rai airport with no one to meet me. Normally, that’s a freak-out situation for many, but, over the years, I’ve arrived at so many international airports with no one to greet me that it was no problem.

I knew of yet another friend who has a guesthouse in Seminyak (just up the road from Kuta and Legian). Although it was past 11pm I hopped a taxi for the short ride to his place. All were asleep by the time I arrived, but an employee there showed me to my room.

In the morning there was my friend John Walker with bacon, eggs and coffee to greet me. We had a good yarn and decided to do a jam session that evening. Even after 25 years on Bali, he hadn’t lost a bit of his Oz accent.

I walked around Seminyak to the hundreds of shops there searching out nautical items for my business. But the heat of the day drove me back to the guesthouse where a refreshing dip in the pool, surrounded by dense tropical foliage, and a cold beer brought me back to my senses.

Later in the afternoon, walking down the street, I passed several Balinese with guitars and I couldn’t help but stop and do a song or two with them. Crowds gathered and I was a hit for sure. I had a request for “Green Green Grass of Home”. I remembered the chords but forgot most of the words but my newly found Balinese cohorts took over and sang all the words perfectly like it was their national anthem.

Then I returned to John’s at night and did a 2-hour jam session with him. His favorite being Roy Orbison material. The night ended all too quickly and before I knew it, it was morning and Ketut, Kevin’s driver was there to pick me up and take me to Villa Santai.

Singapore

A few weeks have passed since the last entry. I am now in Singapore visiting my friend Buz Walker Teach, originally from ST. Charles, IL but now living here. I've known Buz since 1966 when we were camp counselors together at Camp Edwards in East Troy, WI

After leaving Seattle, I returned to the Heartlands for a week then headed to Maui to see my buddy Jeff Reiss at our old home. Nice to get out of the cold weather, I must admit.

Maui has grown considerably since I left (1997) and the traffic has increased many-fold. Prices are sky-rocket high as well.

I spent the majority of my time there sorting through my things. We even had a garage sale there and I sold heaps of stuff.

It was good to be back to the island where I had lived and worked from '86 through 97'. Our house was a little dilapidated but it was sure good to get back there. We had a party after the garage sale. Members from my band showed up and we slayed the audience. Still a lot of life in our music, I must admit.

I left Maui on Feb 2nd and headed to Singapore via Taiwan where I did the overnighter in transit. Real long flight.

I just arrived in Singapore last evening. Buz took me to an art gallery opening and it was loaded with beauties which I proceded to chat up. I'm still a bit jet-lagged but looking forward to a few good days with my buddy before I head out.