Setting Sail for Indonesia

I have spent the last week in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur. That's a long time to spend in a city, even a tourist oriented city, which KL isn't. Of all the big cities I've been in, I've only spent more time in Seoul, South Korea at 10 days (but I was adjusting to some mild culture shock and homesickness), and then Beijing for 10 days (but there are a seemingly limitless number of worthy palaces, parks, markets and museums to warrant such a long stay). But KL's great attraction for most people? Shopping malls. (For me, it was the wealth of cheap Indian cuisine). So numerous in quantity are the malls and each so enormous in size I refuse to agonize on an exact number that I, the non-shopper, walked through. At least 10 painfully expansive malls. Kuala Lumpur is so overgrown with malls I'm going to start promoting the nickname "Malla Lumpur".

If you know me even remotely, you know I am not a shopper. I'm also on a travelers budget, so I can't really afford much even at black market prices unless my haggling skills are honed, not to mention in a mall where the prices are fixed. (I should note that after nine months of traveling in Asia, buying things for a fixed price seemed other-worldy). On top of that, the tourist attractions in KL are generally unimpressive compared to a lot of other things I've seen in Asia, and an ambitious traveler can check those boxes in two days time.

Petronas Towers at night. At the foot of the towers, surprise!, an enormous mall. 

So I had a miserable time in KL, right? The complete opposite. I'd like to say that some of the recognition should go to the fantastic people at Sunshine Bedz (of which Maggie made me promise I'd stay at when I arrived in KL -- thanks Maggie). But in all honesty, every once in while a traveler is fortunate to cross paths with a person or people that completely and positively alter their experience of a place. So when the time came to depart the unexciting city of Kuala Lumpur, I looked out the window of the train feeling out of sorts to be by myself again, while dwelling on an oft repeated travel saying that I feel is no more appropriate than for my experience in KL: Its not the places you go, but the people you are with. 


Yet, my traveler's mindset and momentum is gradually coming back, if only because its what I want to do with my life right now.  I am excited for the unknowns and challenges I expect to find while sailing to Indonesia and then exploring the islands in Sumatra. There is a crew of four, and the captain, Alex, all sailing on his 13 meter boat that has an odd name of Bubbles. The captain tells me that there are a few things to prepare before we can leave, but it is possible we leave as soon as tomorrow evening. I look forward to telling you all about it when I finally get internet access again.

Bubbles in the Langkawi Harbor.

UPDATE and CORRECTION: Just spent the evening with part of the crew and Alex, and a previous crew member of Bubbles during the previous two months. First, a correction, there are three crew (Chris, Kris, and me, all male) and the captain. The previous crew member is now putting the final touches on a multimillion dollar yacht bound for Cuba, which the owner has been restoring for the last three years after it wrecked off the coast of Burma. He invited us all back to this monstrous 43 meter yacht, and it put Bubbles to shame, sorry to say it -- I felt spoiled a little. But I feel more confident knowing a previous crew member and that the captain keeps good company and talks shop well with the other captains. 

Carpe Iter Itineris

In an attempt to leave South East Asia without backtracking and without flying, I visited a few marinas in Langkawi, Malaysia a few weeks ago. No one has contacted me yet from that, but I don't have great any, credentials as a sailor or crew, so I'm not surprised.

Other than marinas, I've been keeping an eye on the few free sailing websites that have crew wanted advertisements. Despite a desire to continue an overland or oversea journey (ideally to South America), my search has become half-hearted for a few reasons. I've often found the options available uninteresting (i.e. plenty of boats going to places I've been too in South East Asia), or expensive (i.e. many boats want crew to "share" costs but 50USD/day isn't reasonable for a boat powered by wind), or inconvenient (plenty of people are going to Central and South America, but they are trans-Atlantic journeys).

But just two days ago, on a website called floatplan.com, I read an advertisement that, although not going in the direction I wanted, gave me hope of finding an adventurous oversea exit from this part of the Asia:

MALAYSIA to MADAGASCAR 39 foot monohull sailboat. Looking for fit crew (preferably Male, Age 22-35) to leave from Langkawi, Malaysia no later than May 26th 2011. Duration Min - 3 weeks Max 3 months. Must be willing to share costs and assist with daily chores. Captain/Owner Amercian, male, age 26. Proposed route - Langkawi to west coast of Sumatra to explore Mentatwaii Islands the across the Indian to Rodregues, Mauritius then Madagascar. On board for use by crew snorkel gear, dive gear, spear gun, surf boards.

I heard back via email from the captain late that night with answers to some basic questions, for example:

1. Are you an axe-murderer? Not an axe-murder. 
2. Do you realize there are Somali pirates north of Madagascar? Yes. He has talked to many sailors that have done the route and knows where to sail and where to avoid. 
3. Who are you? Alex from Seymour, Indiana. 
4. What is your previous experience as a captain?
   Circumnavigated the Caribbean on a smaller boat. 2 years ago purchased the current boat and during that time, sailed from the Caribbean to Malaysia. 
5. What proteinaceous sub-groups in monoclonal antibodies are contraindicated for immunodeficient human beings? (He didn't answer that one). 

(For the sake of my Mom, I should clarify that these answers are paraphrased responses).

Anyway, Alex seems like to know a few things about sailing. I have a phone conversation with him tonight and if I feel like I want to take this opportunity seriously, I'll head back up to Langkawi to meet him and check out the boat. Then, if I still have a good feeling about the captain and the boat, I'll sail with him for 3 weeks to the Mentawai Islands. Along the way I hope to figure out if I like sailing, and see if that means I'll be up for crossing the Indian Ocean on his boat. 

So although Madagascar isn't anywhere nearer to South America than South East Asia is, carpe iter itineris, seize the journey. We shall see.

The Perhentian Islands, Taman Negara, and Kuala Lumpur

Have you ever played mini-golf on a course that had a faux "river", with water dyed an iridescent blue for the obvious reason that it covered up the heinousness lurking below? That very color is what I found in the water surrounding the Perhentian Islands, but the water is so crystal clear that it is stunning. One of the days on the island, visibility underwater was 20 to 30 meters, which explains the reason why the Perhentian Islands are a hot spot for scuba diving and snorkeling. And if that doesn't win you over, the soft, white sand beaches and slowed down island atmosphere probably will.

Long Beach on Perhentian Kecil.

While I opted out of scuba diving due to an illness, I did get a bunch of hours of snorkeling in. My travelmate was also recovering from a cold, so one of the days I borrowed his underwater camera. I saw hard and soft corals, green sea turtles, baby and adult black-tip reef sharks, 1.5 meter long bump-head parrot fish, string rays, "nemo" fish, and a lot of other sea life. Consequently, I tried to take a picture of all these creatures, but often only captured the stunning blueness of the water. I assure you that was not my intention, and the human eye saw more than the camera. With a little trial and error, I picked up that macro distances captured the corals and fish best, but it was little too late to take full advantage of that knowledge. Check out the pictures I've posted from Malaysia and see what I'm talking about.

"Nemos" as they are now referred to throughout the world. 

When I wasn't snorkeling, I spent my time drawing, reading, and occasionally picking up trash from the beach. Yes, trash. People visiting the island, and the locals, were terrible with picking up after themselves. The most annoying part were the cigarettes, and I didn't see a single ashtray my entire time on the island. I feel like everyone has forgotten that cigarette butts are trash too. If, say, 40 people smoke a pack of 20 cigarettes a day for the entire tourist season (6 months), that adds up to around 146 liters or 38 gallons of perfectly sized plastic morsels that fish might confuse as food. And that's just one beach. In one group of islands. Of Malaysia.

After Perhentian Islands, I headed south to the "oldest rain forest in the world" at Taman Negara National Park. (Do you know the major difference between a rain forest and a jungle? A rain forest has less dense undergrowth because the tree canopy blocks out enough light to prevent many bushes from growing).  The first night there I did a walk through the rain forest with a guide. As we headed out, it looked like a storm in the distance and I asked the guide if he thought it would rain. His blunt response, "Rain forest." Touché.  On a night walk with a tour guide, I got to see a bunch of creepy crawling animals, which totally freaked me out for the hike I had planned for the next day.

The Timber Ant. The largest of the species in the world. This one was about 2cm long. 

The next day I didn't see many creepy insects, save for a host of pesky leeches and one enormous millipede. I  didn't have any major problems with leeches, but another American I hiked with didn't have close-toed shoes and started off the hike without socks. His feet looked like Medusa's head after a few kilometers of walking. And to give you an idea of how humid it was: my finger tips turned prune-ish from all the sweat running down my hands as we hiked.

Right now, I've arrived in Kuala Lumpur. Its been nearly 2.5 months since I've been in a major city. I'm adjusting to the pace of it all, primarily in the fact that one has to plan in order to accomplish anything -- whereas small towns I would just walk down the street and see where it took me. Regardless, the street food here is amazing with tons of Indian and Chinese options if you're willing to take the plunge and your stomach is strong. With a plenty of months training my gut, I feel confident that mine is up for the challenge.