Hello from Thailand, we've crossed the border heading North so we'll see you on the Thai pages next.

As planned Simon set the clock and we get up early. We decided to let the kids chose what to do today and they want to go back to The Asiana Hotel where they spent yesterday afternoon. We have some yogurt and fruit for breakfast and make our way up the road. Although it is quite early it is so hot that my sunbed burns me and we have to keep diving in the pool to cool down. Before too much longer Barney appears but unfortunately hasn't left his sleeping parents and sister a note so Simon walked back to let them know Barney is with us.

Jon, Toby and Lois appear around midday much the worse for wear! Apparently they had a late night last night and their plans of going up the cable car in the afternoon seem to be rapidly evaporating! At lunchtime we walk back to our hotel, we have got a bit of food left in the fridge and we make sandwiches for lunch. I spend sometime explaining the legends of Langkawi to Ali and Maisie but they're not too interested and want to get back to their swimming!

Simon takes them back and I pack up all our stuff, again we have a parcel of things we have collected in Malaysia and want to post it home but as the postal service here is supposedly very unreliable we will wait until we arrive in Thailand tomorrow. We have planned to catch the ferry at 9.30am to Satun which takes around an hour and then get the bus to Krabi, a four hour journey.

Simon and Ali come back at 4.30 and we walk up to Lylia's Bar. Ali plays for an hour or so with the guitarists we met last night and we have some Tigers with an Australian mum and daughter who are holidaying here. Eventually everyone else returns and we light a fire on the beach. Jon and Toby have bought some burgers and the kids make us ice cream sundaes. We say our goodbyes and wish them good luck with the rest of their trip; they are heading off to the Cameron Highlands and Taman Negara before their flight to Australia. It has been great spending time with them and I will miss them but can't wait to get to Thailand tomorrow. We had a fantastic holiday there last year and we're hoping to explore so much more of the place all the guidebooks call The Land of Smiles.

The money situation has become quite desperate and the main aim of today is to get to Kuah and get some cash. The nearest ATM is at the airport but there will be more choice of banks in Kuah and Simon, Toby and Jon set off in a taxi and leave me with the kids. I'm so lucky and have definitely pulled the long straw as all I have to do is remind them occasionally to put on sun cream and have a drink - Yeh !

I lie under the coconut trees on the beach reading my book and day dreaming. I have really loved it in Langkawi and seem to have found the answers to some of the things I have been thinking about really easily here. I have met some really amazing people here too. The girl who runs The Submarine Shack is from Nottingham. She came to Langkawi on holiday, met her boyfriend, went home jacked in her job and has been here ever since!
I love hearing about stories like that, people who don't worry too much about the consequences of stuff and just get on with it. Eventually they return with cash, hurray and we plan what to do for the afternoon.

Simon and I found a lovely bar up the road for sale for £7000. We sat there planning what food we would serve if we owned it etc!! Don't worry mum we weren't serious! In the afternoon Jon and Toby offered to take Ali and Maisie to The Asseana Hotel, it has apparently got the largest swimming pool in Malaysia and we jumped at the opportunity to spend a bit of time on our own. When we arrived there a few hours later they had all had a fantastic afternoon. The pool comes complete with waterfalls, slides, a hot pool, (as if you need that!) wave machine and "relaxation river".

We head back to our hotel and stop on the way for the kids to ring their Dad and Nana Judy and Bob and quickly check a few emails. After a quick shower we walk along the beach. Jon found a bar yesterday where they have an acoustic jammin session at sunset and Ali wants to go and play. The two guitarists there are really great and tell me they have just met and are camping on the beach and busking around the bars for a bit of cash. What a great life! Unfortunately some drunken fella decides he wants to play and when he sits down in front of Ali and tells him "sit there and I will teach you something" I want to laugh. The bar owner soon sorts him out and Ali arranges to meet the buskers tomorrow afternoon.

We have our food and make our way back. Tomorrow we will be leaving Langkawi and we get to sleep fairly easily. I will be setting the alarm in the morning to get us up early to make the most of our last day.

Today I even surprised myself by jumping out of bed and making the decision to go for a run on the beach. It's early and I leave Simon and the kids asleep and set off along the wateredge. There aren't many people about, some of the locals are having an early morning swim (all fully dressed, laughing and splashing around) and I stop and watch the fishermen emptying their nets. I have my MP3 player with me and listen to Jack Johnson along the way. It’s a bit of a half hearted attempt at running though but I console myself with the thought that although it might not being doing my body much good it's certainly good for the soul.

When I get back they are all up and we sit having coffee and chatting with Jon and Toby for a couple of hours. I have decided to stay out of the sun today as my lips are still sore and burnt and Simon doesn't like to lie around too much anyway. Toby does some schoolwork with the kids, she gives them a topic each and Maisie and Lois share theirs. They are told to plan a presentation explaining why they feel cats are better than dogs. Ali has to present his thoughts on why the guitar is the best musical instrument and Barney tells us why skateboarding is the best form of exercise. They all seem to enjoy doing this and talking to her has given me some more ideas on how to structure literacy lessons.

We consider the financial situation, by now we are down to our last few hundred ringitt and decide the best option for lunch is to buy some supplies and make sandwiches for everyone. We have crisps and fruit also and enjoy having a simple homemade lunch.

I spend the afternoon reading and we start to consider where and when we might move on. We had originally planned to stay in Malaysia for 3 weeks and have been here 3 weeks today so need to plan how we are going to spend the next 2 ½ months in South East Asia. We want to travel around much of Thailand, but have heard conflicting reports about Cambodia. The consensus about Vietnam is unanimously good and everyone we have spoken to seems to love it there. We have also been considering going to Laos as we have heard such excellent reports but will have to see if we can fit it all in.

After a quick shower we head off up the road to phone home, get some dinner and watch the rugby. Mum has been looking on the internet at pictures of Langkawi and tells me she is really jealous as it looks so lovely! Simon has found a bar where the England / Italy game is showing and we order some food and settle down to watch. 15 minutes later there is a sad realisation that it was actually shown at 9am this morning not 9pm as we thought and we have missed it by 12 hours!

We head back and have an early night; it amazes me that doing nothing has the ability to tire you out completely. Tomorrow's job for the day is to get some money; else we will have to resort to sending the kids out fishing for our dinner.

Simon and I went for an early morning walk along the beach today. We left the kids asleep in bed and crept out. There are a handful of people out walking and it’s a tranquil and romantic stroll along. We stop to examine some of the beach kill along the way. There are 5 or 6 jellyfish washed up and they vary from the size of a dinner plate to about 4 times bigger. We also see a baby shark and some starfish. The shark and some of the jellyfish are still alive and I want Simon to put them back into the sea but he wouldn't touch the jellyfish and the shark was apparently some fisherman's catch and had disappeared by the time we came back.

I swap my book for a new one, Between a Rock and a Hard Place. This is Aron Ralston's true life account of how he became trapped by a falling boulder whilst hiking in Utah and subsequently amputated his own arm in order to free himself and save his life. I read really quickly and soon get into the story, it is a compelling read and I admire his strength of character that enabled him to do that.

Someone told me I was inspirational and amazing for following my dreams with this trip. I'm not sure whether I agree with that, to be honest in some ways I feel like it's almost a cop out, running away on a huge adventure for a year. One thing I think I have learnt from the trip already though is that most things are possible if you want them enough and are prepared to be brave and work at it.

In his book Aron Ralston talks about a fella whose book he read who dropped out of mainstream society to travel around the US. He wrote that "Many people live within unhappy circumstances but won't take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity and conservatism, all of which might appear to give you peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more damaging to the spirit than a secure future."

I'm hardly going to become that type of mountain climbing adventurer myself so perhaps shouldn't comment too much! But one thing I hope is that I have become a bit braver and have the balls to take a few risks. I think that’s important and a fantastic quality that not everyone has.

All that said I have done nothing braver or more adventurous today than brave the fierce sun. I asked the sunbed fella to pull my bed down by the waters edge and lay reading and listening to Duran Duran and The Scissor Sisters on my MP3. The sun is too hot to go out in for long and I stayed under my umbrella all day. Despite this I have still got burnt and my lips and cheeks are really sore. Simon said I look as though I have been skiing as I have got panda eyes where my sunglasses have been. I also have the perfect Angelina Jolie pout.

Everyone including us is short of money, the visa system on the island has collapsed and no one has been able to access any cash for 5 days. We decide therefore to eat at The Delta Motels Restaurant, the food is pretty basic and cheap and chicken fried rice is probably the best they have to offer but it will do and goes down ok with a few Tigers. Usually a lack of money would completely freak me out but I am more relaxed about it than I would have thought possible. Maybe finally I am listening to the words of The Serenity Prayer that I know so well.

Its 11.15 and I'm sitting on the bed. There is so little to do here that I feel very lazy. I have decided Langkawi is a place for reading, listening to music and thinking and not much else. Today has been one of those perfect days that nothing could spoil and I can't wait for tomorrow.

Despite our relatively late night we all woke up early except Maisie (of course) and when I opened the door and looked out at the gorgeous beach I couldn't go back to bed even though I still felt tired. Ali and Simon went off to get some fruit for breakfast and a squid for the days fishing and I cleaned the place up which basically consisted of sweeping the sand out. Toby and I were chatting last night and both agreed we would be making some lifestyle changes when we get back. ie less housework, more fun at the weekends!

I have 2 jobs to do today, firstly I want to go and swap my book for a new one and I want to answer a few emails also. Internet access here is easy to find but it has been easier to sit on my arse for the last few days and not check them. There are some good attractions here such as Underwater World but I think we will just spend our time on the beach for the next few days anyway.

Its 6pm and we have had a great day. I spent an hour teaching science to 4 kids this morning who responded to my teaching methods with varying degrees of enthusiasm. (Not much from Maisie!) Still we seemed to get through it quickly which is good as I have hoped that each section won't take as long as the human body took.

I then went and checked all our emails and wrote some back, this took ages as I had quite a few to catch up with but it has been too hot to sit out today and even scorching in the shade so I didn't mind catching up a bit. We had some lunch at a beach shack, mixed satay, Greek salad and tiger prawns .. yum! It feels like being on holiday here and for the moment I am loving it!

There is a huge yacht moored just out to sea, I have been talking to the girl who runs The Submarine Shack who tells me it has been there for 2 weeks. I'm not surprised as it is so pretty here and really quiet. There are a few English couples here, older people and honeymooners but not many other tourists and we couldn't wish for a nicer resort to be in.
Along the main road it's busy with loads of shops and restaurants but we're in a good place at the end of the beach and nothing has disturbed us.

Ali and Simon went out on Jet Ski's this afternoon for half an hour, it is the first time Ali has been on one on his own and it felt scary watching him flying across the water on it. Still there is hardly any sea traffic around and I guess it is good to practice in open, calm and empty water. I curse him though when I see him standing up on the thing, but keep my mouth shut as he is so proud when the Jet Ski fella says he can tell he's been on them before and looks confident.

I sit sunning myself and talk to Toby and the kids, its nice talking to other people, although I really love Simon and the kids for company and we certainly haven't got bored of each other at all. It seems amazing that the days go so quickly but there are always things to do and plans to make about the trip and our future when we get home. Although we try not to talk about going home too much I have a few things in mind lined up for us!

The kids and I are all exhausted and we just nip across the road for dinner. We have pizza's and pasta and although it's relatively expensive its good food and worth the cost. By 9.30 we are in bed, all knackered which sounds like a bit of a joke as we have done jack shit all day and actually to my shame I have only managed to accomplish one of my 2 simple jobs. But hey it’s a tough life and someone has to do it.

We set our alarm today and got up around 9am. It was really amazing to lie in bed looking out of the door at the waves gently breaking at the edge of this beautiful beach. What a gorgeous place, it really is wow, and I can't believe we're actually staying here. Although we've only booked 3 nights I'm sure we will stay longer.

We walk up the road to The Red Tomato Garden Restaurant and have a lovely breakfast Maisie and I have fresh mixed fruits and homemade yogurt which makes a nice change.
We walk back to The Delta Motel where we are staying and get the schoolbooks out. Jon and Toby haven't been teaching Barney and Lois quite as much since they started their trip and this has caused a bit of dissent amongst the ranks with our kids as they think it is wholly unfair but I stick to my guns and we have a couple of hours science. We have completed the human body and today moved onto classification and variation of species, this is interesting and the time flies.

Simon goes to update our website; we have had a problem uploading pictures but it seems to be sorted out now with the help of Gary who set it all up for us. What a star! I get settled on a sunbed on the beach although lying in the sun without an umbrella for even a minute is completely out of the question. A fella at the beach shack bar tells me it is 39 degrees and when I check Ali's watch it says 38.5 in the shade. We bought factor 20 sun cream and plaster the kids in it although by now they are now really brown and I'm glad to see at the end of the day they haven't burnt at all.

The sea is perfect for swimming, very calm and shallow but there are some big jellyfish which are quite scary. I ask the fella at the bar if they are dangerous and he tells me they are quite dangerous but not to worry as they are fairly easy to see and avoid. This isn't particularly reassuring, as I have already walked into one in the water and we have seen a dead one at the waters edge, but there are a few people swimming and I decide to let the kids in but tell them to be vigilant. In the end they don't spend much time in the sea but this is actually due to tiny fish that nibble them and draw blood occasionally.

We bump into Jon, Toby, Barney and Lois later and the boys go out fishing again. They are more successful than yesterday and catch 3 small fish. Jon goes shopping and comes back with rice parcels wrapped in banana leaves and a bunch of bananas. We light a fire on the beach and cook the fish with limes, the rice parcels, and the bananas in their skins with slices of Toblerone. Simon gets the Tiger beers in and we all agree it makes a fantastic and cheap meal. The kids of course just love it and are all running around barefooted like 4 little wild creatures .They look so happy and healthy and we have a great night, Ali plays a few songs on his guitar and Toby and I sing along, not too tunefully!

We head for bed around midnight, before we go I ask Barney and Lois if they want to do a bit of schoolwork with us tomorrow and they say they will. Toby says she will do it with them the next day in that case - hurray that will be great! She is a classroom assistant as well as a nurse and it will be brilliant to have someone else teaching them a bit and I'm sure for Ali and Maisie a welcome change too.

Our taxi driver arrived on time at 7.30am and we caught the ferry to Langkawi as planned. The ferry ride took 2 and a half hours but it went quite quickly and Ali enjoyed watching the Jackie Chan film showing on the way.

My first impressions of Langkawi from the ferry are good and it looks beautiful. I'm sure we will have a good time here. We get in a taxi which costs 20 ringitt to Pantai Cenang, this is the main tourist area and we decide as it is early we will check out a few beach bungalows to make sure we get somewhere really nice.

Eventually we settle on a bungalow which is right at the end of the beach, it's a really good room with air con, 2 double beds, hot water, a TV, a fridge and a kettle. It will cost us 110 ringitts which is just over 15 pounds a night. As we are checking in an English family arrive and we get chatting to them. They are from Essex and have a 14 year old son and a 10 year old daughter, Barney and Lois and are also travelling for a year. It’s a great coincidence to meet them and they tell us we are also the first travelling family they have met since they started in September.

The kids all get on well after an initial bit of shyness and all go and play in the sea. Maisie and Lois play cards and Ali and Barney and buy a squid to use as bait and then go fishing. Its really great to swap stories, they also started in India but ended up staying for 4 months as Jon became very ill and needed 2 major operations. They then spent a few days in Singapore and have just spent a month in Thailand. We sit having a few beers and chatting all afternoon and I really enjoy it.

We have a toast to travelling with kids and all agree we're having a fantastic time. As Jon put it "Why wait until your kids have left home and go travelling, it's nice to look out of your window and admire the beautiful mountain but much better to get out there with the kids and climb it" I admire his sentiments and although I don't think mountain climbing is on my agenda quite yet it might be sometime and I never thought I would say that in a million years!

This must be the loveliest beach place I've stayed in; the beach is fine powder white sand and stretches for about a mile. There are beach shacks, A frame huts and bungalows along the back but it isn't crowded and although there are very small clusters of sunbeds it is quiet and peaceful. There are small uninhabited islands in the bay and the water is clear and blue. What a perfect place! It was my choice to come to Langkawi as I had heard good reports from friends Nicky and Amanda and I'm so glad we didn't head straight up to Thailand as I think we would have missed out on somewhere really great.

We have a quick shower and head off out for some food, unsurprisingly its expensive to eat here as Langkawi is deservedly one of Malaysia's finest tourist destinations and we wander along for a while before settling on a Pakistani restaurant where we have a cheap enough curry, rice mixed vegetables and naan bread meal. We visit the 7- 11 on the way back and get a few supplies and then have a drink at a The Submarine Beach Bar. We make our way back and are all asleep by 10.30 have a busy day on the beach ahead tomorrow.

Similarly to Singapore, Penang Island has a long and interesting history .In1786 Captain Francis Light (Thomas Raffles's brother in law) first set foot on Penang. It was almost completely uninhabited and the story goes that he loaded his ships cannons with silver dollars and fired them into the jungle to encourage the workers to clear it faster.
A trading port was established here and Light hoped to lure trade from the British East India Trading Companies rivals the Dutch.

By the mid 1800's Penang was home to a large Chinese population. Its main economies included opium growing, gambling and prostitution and it had become a dangerous and violent place. In 1867 10 days of rioting by rival Chinese societies left 100's of people dead. When British administrators finally took control they fined the societies heavily and used the proceeds to build police stations which subsequently kept the peace.

We are going to Penang Museum today. Although the kids have learnt the history of Penang we have found that visiting museums helps them to retain the knowledge and often use visual aids to reinforce information.

We have learnt the majority of facts about present day Malay politics, issues and culture by talking to taxi drivers. Although many of them seem quite surly and unfriendly when you first get in they will often start chattering away. The biggest bone of contention is the preferential treatment afforded to the Malay people. The Chinese and Indian people although they may be 3rd or 4th generation Malaysian born still have to pay many extra taxes including when buying a house, getting a business licence etc. ( around 10%)

Until the early 1980's there weren't any high rise hotels on Penang Island, now there are hundreds. I'm glad that we have visited now, as it continues to be promoted as one of Malaysia's top tourist destinations. I can see that it was probably once very pretty but for me it seems a shame that the trees have all been chopped down to make way for concrete.

It is really hot today probably I would guess around 35 degrees and the temperature seems to have shot up since yesterday. We catch a trishaw which is a type of bike powered rickshaw to the museum. Unfortunately the air con has been switched off on the top floor so we spend about 5 minutes flat there. The ground floor level is very interesting though and as well as explaining Penang's history there is a gallery with Chinese wedding outfits and beautiful antique Chinese furniture including mahogany opium beds.
Opium smoking was legal until just before WW11 when the British outlawed it on moral grounds. There were also pictures showing men lying on the beds, with the opium pipes in hand getting off their faces.

From the museum we walked to The Eastern and Oriental Hotel, this fantastic old hotel was built by the Sarkie brothers who also built Raffles in Singapore and we have read that a visit to Penang isn't complete until you have had tiffin on the lawn. As we hadn't long eaten we had a ginger beer instead but it was a pleasant enough break from the burning sun sat under the umbrellas.

Next we got a taxi to The Snake Temple; apparently home too many poisonous snakes who laze around doped by the constant burning of incense and only venture down later in the day when it is cooler. We did see a few snakes coiled around candlesticks and Ali had his photo taken with one round his neck and one on his head but for me I thought it was a bit of a crap attraction lacking in both snakes and spirituality.

After a quick shower we decide to go out in search of some hawker food for dinner and don't have to walk far before we find a really good place. We have chicken satay, crispy duck, fried rice and dim sum. I can't remember when the kids last ate with a knife and fork and are expert chopstick users now.

Tomorrow we are moving on to Langkawi, originally we planned to skip it but we are very close and have heard lots of good reports so plan to go get a bit of beach for a few days. We booked our ferry tickets this morning which cost 170 ringitt (around 27 quid) and have arranged some beachside accommodation so I am looking forward to moving on and catching a few rays.

We set our alarm today and woke up feeling quite bright and breezy. There were a few drunken characters around last night when we came back from dinner asking if they could jam with Ali but we insisted he was too tired and all headed off to bed.

Georgetown is described as a real Chinatown and everywhere we go you can hear the clattering of tools, smell a mixture of spices and drains and see old people either playing cards or Maarjong. It is a lively, smelly, rat infested place with crumbled down buildings that look as if they are about to collapse.

We wander up the road for breakfast and when we get back sit down to do some schoolwork. Wherever we have been our attempts at educating the kids have been noted and taken very seriously. It seems education is more valued here in South East Asia than in the UK. We do over an hour of literacy where they rewrite the endings to the books they have been reading. I realise Maisie needs to concentrate on spellings when she writes" igsotick" (Exotic)

Despite the hotels run down appearance I really like it here, everyone knows our names and are so kind and can't do enough for us. They all seem to laugh and joke around a lot and it is endearing and funny watching Uncle Lake cuddling a chicken like it's his best friend. I feel like everyone around us is slightly mad but really lovely with it!

We catch the bus to The Toy Museum, really it should have been called The Action Figure Museum and although it was hardly educational the kids loved it and we spent an hour or so wandering around reminiscing over Barbie, Batman, Snoopy, Garfield, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Pokemon, The Fantastic Four and Biker Mice from Mars to name a few!

We catch another bus to Batu Ferringhi, this is the main tourist area of Penang Island and where most of the large hotels are based. We make our way to the beach and crash out at a beach shack. Although the beach isn't very wide it's quite pretty with white sand and a few palm trees and will certainly be a decent enough place to spend the afternoon topping up my tan. We all hungry by now and order some food. Like an idiot I ask for Tom Yam soup. Simon ate loads of it when we holidayed in Thailand but it is an extremely hot and spicy concoction of chilli, lemongrass, green leafy vegetables and seafood and although I do eat it my mouth is on fire afterwards and takes about an hour to recover.

We have a bit of a swim which is very relaxing and I read my book, a novel by James Patterson, it is a bit of a trashy read but I have been swapping books along the way and so far have only had to buy one book. We also swapped our old Lonely Planet Thailand for a 2005 edition which is more up to date following the tsunami.

Its 11.30 now and I've given up and come to bed. We went out for Chinese food and found an excellent restaurant. We were fairly conservative with our order and had some tasty beef and prawn dishes but should have left it at that instead of ordering some local puddings. The hot peanut soup was ok but the Chinese pancake was a horrible crispy, greasy thing that we felt obliged to eat despite being stuffed.

When we came back Ali played his guitar, with Uncle Lake and one of his mad friends. The bar was really busy and I was really proud as he played confidently and jammed along to some Malay songs. Two Dutch guys came along and shook his hand which made his night and although I'm used to people praising his guitar playing and singing it was really cool to see him doing his thing so well.

Following a restless night's sleep, which was probably down to the copious amounts of Tiger beer we drank yesterday, I woke up and couldn't work out whether it was morning or not due to the complete lack of natural light in the room. Slowly I realised that what I thought was torrential rain all night was actually the noise generated by the antiquated air con system and the final straw for me was lying there watching a steady stream of ants marching up the wall.

We get up and go next door for breakfast; we're all starving and have porridge, a fry up croissants and coffee.( Hangover fodder) It hits the spot and we plan what to do for the day. First on the list is move hotel and we pack up our stuff and walk the 10 minutes to The Hong Ping Hotel, which is behind The Blue Diamond bar. It's also a bit of a dive but has loads of character and its like stepping back 50 years here. Everything is so old fashioned and I'm sure nothing has ever been updated or renovated since the place opened.

Our rooms are massive, the kids are delighted to see they have a double bed each and despite the bricks on the floor blocking up the rat holes, the lizards running up the wall, the world's thinnest towels and cold water only, I am glad we have moved. Alister's guitarist friend, who is called Uncle Lake, is pleased to see us and chats to Ali about music. The people who hang out here are friendly and there are some "interesting" characters here to say the least! Simon says Uncle Lake looks like one of the characters in the Tarantino movie Dusk till Dawn.

We are staying in Georgetown which is the capital of Penang, just off a road called Love Lane in the heart of backpacker land. The area has a chequered history and was first called Love Lane by British soldiers. It reminds me of Union Street in Plymouth and similarly has a reputation for bars, drinking and prostitution. Although most of the hotels are reasonably respectable these days some are still brothels and there are a number of Lady Boys touting for business across the road once it gets dark.

Eventually we decide to get out and catch a taxi to Penang Hill. It would take around 3-4 hours to climb and there's no way we are doing that and opt for the funicular railway instead. In the heat it's a very uncomfortable journey and we are glad to get out half an hour later at the top. The views are good although it’s a little hazy and we have a drink before catching the train back down again.

We head back to our hotel and make some plans for the next few days. There are a few interesting sights but for tomorrow we have chosen to head for the beach. Despite the fact that we generally do very little, most days we're all knackered and feel in need of a bit of rest and recuperation. Oh this is the life!

We caught the train to Penang last night at 7.45 as planned. We didn't book our tickets until yesterday and couldn't get all our seats together but we're not far from each other and it isn't a problem.

The fellas that shared our compartment have been working as security at the Thaipusam festival and we had a good chat with them before eventually settling off to sleep. I slept quite well and woke up around 7am. The train was, by this point an hour late but this is good as we have to catch the ferry across to Penang Island and it doesn't run overnight.

We catch the ferry which takes about 15 minutes to reach Penang. We have read that the Penang taxi drivers flatly refuse to use their meters and don't argue when we are told it will cost 10 ringitt to get to our hostel.

Eventually we arrive at 75 Travellers Lodge. What a dump! I just asked Simon what it was called and he said Shithole Central. When the kids lay on the bed they told me one pillow smells of cheese and the other smells of pet shop. The rooms are tiny, the ceiling is bare hardboard and the walls are filthy. Added to this the communal toilets are next door and the whole place stinks of urine. Usually after an overnight train we crash out but I can't face staying in here for any length of time and we decide to go out for a walk instead.

We don't get very far before we reach a fairly lively looking bar and decide to stop for a drink. It's only early but the beer looks good and our one drink stretches into 8 or so. There is live music later and Ali and the guitarist get chatting. Ali plays a few songs and the fella asks him to play with him tonight. The afternoon has flown by and we go back to shithole central for a kip. We set the alarm for 8pm and head back to The Blue Diamond for some Mexican food.

Ali plays a few songs and goes down really well. Everyone wants to talk to him and tell him he's going to be a rich rockstar one day and one fella asks Simon if his son was born with shades on as he's so cool! But he's really tired as its now nearly midnight and we head off back to the hostel. We have decided we are going to move tomorrow as neither of us can face any longer than a night here. The final straw for Simon is when we get back and a group of lads are watching the football. He asks them about the rugby (England are playing Scotland in a 6 nations game) and gets blank looks in return. Definitely got to move on!

Checkout the video clip of Ali added to the India photo section. Will post a link to it later, but you can find it if you scroll to the bottom of the main photo page. It is the last file loaded.

The clip is Ali playing guitar and singing a song he wrote about his early impressions on India.

Here's the link, hope it works now.

We slept in today until 8.30 and are very slow in getting motivated. We are all tired and the kids both seem grouchy and incapable of doing anything other than lazing around. We have discovered when this is the case that the best thing to do is to take things at their pace otherwise we all end up with an argument!

There is a small kitchen here and toast, tea and coffee is included in the price so we have breakfast and then sit in the lounge area. The kids watch a film and Simon and I read magazines. Eventually we decide to head off out and get in a taxi. We ask the driver to take us to the bird park which claims to be the world's largest free flight aviary and it certainly takes some walking to get around. On the way we are overtaken by a black car with a 3 car police escort and the driver tells us it is the queen of Malaysia. He also tells us she is very very young (aged 35) I love him!

The park is divided into different areas and we are pleased to see a large monitor lizard at the entrance trying to get in under the net. These lizards are supposedly everywhere in Malaysia but this is the first one we have seen. I wasn't so keen on it though when Simon said they eat small birds and that is why it was trying to get in. It did manage to squeeze through a small gap in the end and slunk off presumably looking for its dinner.

Some of the birds are fantastic and we see hornbills, peacocks, parrots ducks and different birds of prey. It is very hot wandering around and when we stop at the café for a drink we get some good photos of Maisie with some great hornbills in the background.

We checked out of the hostel at 11am this morning but have left our gear there in the storage locker. We decide to get some food early as we have to catch the train tonight at 7.45pm. The culmination of Thaipusam festival is the returning of a silver carriage to KL and as this may cause some of the roads to be closed we plan to leave early for the station. We end up at TGI Fridays - don't seem to be doing too well eating the local food at the moment but hey I guess we have lots of time still for that.

When the alarm went off at 5am it felt like a sick joke and took me ages to peel my eyes open .After a shower, coffee and a few digestive biscuits we're ready to leave and get in a taxi and ask him to take us to the bus station. The taxi drivers last night quoted us 200 ringett to take us to the festival but as the bus is only 2 ringitt each there's no contest.

The Thaipusam festival is one of the largest and most dramatic Hindu festivals. It is held at Batu Caves which are a well known tourist attraction near KL. The caves are huge and reached by a straight flight of 272 steps. Inside are elaborate sculptures of Hindu gods and Lord Subramaniam, the son of Shiva is the main attraction. It is estimated that 1.5 million pilgrims attend the festival which is always held in late January, early February. They come to honour Lord Subramaniam, sometimes with acts of amazing physical resilience, ask for a favour or repent their sins.

Thaipusam is described as a wild orgy of seemingly hideous body piercings. As we near the caves the numbers of people increase dramatically and it is only around 7am. The entrance to the cave is clear to see and there is a tall Hindu god standing at the foot of the steps as if guarding the entrance to the caves. The noise is overwhelming with massive speakers blasting Hindu music, thousands of voices crying out "vel, vel" and beating drums.

The greatest spectacle here are the kavadi carriers; some devotees subject themselves to masochistic acts as fulfilment for answered prayers .Many people carry offerings of milk to the gods, which is carried in pots attached to the skin by hooks. We make our way nearer to the steps; there is a slow and steady procession of people winding their way from the left up the steps. I thought that we wouldn't see any of the devotees close up but we seem to be right in the thick of it all and they would be impossible to miss.

Some carry on their heads, great cages of spikes that pierce their skin. They stand around 3 metres tall and are decorated with peacock feathers, flowers, pictures of deities and plastic dolls amongst other things. They must weigh a ton, but the carriers seem to be in a trance and many of them dance around. Each carrier has a group of people with them who appear to be offering encouragement, rubbing their legs, lighting their cigars and giving them drink. We see coconuts been thrown onto the ground before them and bowls of fire and incense are carried.

As we stand open mouthed in amazement at what are witnessing, the kavadi carriers start to make their way past us. This must be the most unbelievable sight I have ever seen. The carriers are young men often with blood streaming down their faces. Their mouths are full of red dye also and mixed with the blood they look terrifying. They are in a religious trance and shriek, pant and scream as they pull themselves forward. Attached to them by numerous hooks embedded in their skin are other men who attempt to pull them back.
They are decorated with fruit, (mainly limes but also apples, oranges and bananas) green leaves and small silver milk pots. These are all attached to their skin by hooks. Many of the devotees have spikes, skewers and hooks through their cheeks and tongues.

The kavadi carriers are flanked by pilgrims with shaven heads, many of them are wearing yellow but I haven't been able to find out the significance of this. Babies are carried in cradles made from sugarcane stalks.

We decide to brave the thousands and join the procession. I am very nervous about this due to the sheer number of people streaming up the steps towards the cave but everyone is moving quite slowly as the cage wearers can only take a few steps at a time before they have to sit and rest. I clutch tightly onto the kids hands and we inch our way along.

I think me and the kids actually found some of it very scary to witness and it has left me feeling a bit strange. Not uncomfortable and quite privileged in many ways but definitely weird. Seeing the extent of this religious fervour is a thought provoking thing and I guess that we probably won't experience anything quite like it anywhere else. I also find it interesting that this festival is actually banned in India and yet celebrated with such enthusiasm here, in a mainly Muslim country.

Eventually we reach the top of the steps, the relatively small entrance to the cave opens out into a huge space and the procession of people continues far inside. Some of the devotees look at the point of collapse and are being urged on by their attendants. We decide that we have seen enough and after taking some more photos join the queue to make our way down again.

The festival is the culmination of a month of preparation including prayers, a strict vegetarian diet, sleeping on a hard floor, abstinence from sex and as a taxi driver told me "no dirty words!" Witnessing it has been an amazing opportunity for us and the kids and today has been very special.

We return to KL by bus and head to China town to get some lunch, none of us have much have an appetite and we spend a quiet afternoon back at the hostel. Simon does some maths with the kids and as we have a wireless connection I surf the net and check some emails.

We are planning to leave KL tomorrow for Penang and need to sort out our tickets and accommodation. I've been looking at the photographs from this morning, they are quite compelling, beautiful and horrible also and I feel quite stunned by it.

Just got in, we have been to book our tickets to Penang and then went to Nando's for dinner. It only cost us 12 quid and was a familiar and comforting treat after the strange excitement of today.

Just drifting off to sleep last night and Simon decided to get up to use the toilet. I was lying in bed and could hear him chatting to someone, obviously having a discussion about something and eventually my nosy nature got the better of me and I got up too. At the end of our hut sat on the floor was the most enormous bug I have ever seen. Its body was around 2 inches wide and 4 inches long. The noise from the thing was incredible as it flew around trying to get out. It was undoubtedly the creepiest insect I have ever seen alive or dead.

The alarm woke us this morning at 8.30. We quickly showered and started to pack up our stuff. We still seem to be unable to stay anywhere without unpacking almost everything but on the other hand are quicker at repacking now. We have had to ditch Ali's converse as they are so wet and muddy and are getting too small for him anyway.

After a quiet morning spent having a leisurely breakfast and doing some literacy with the kids, we make our way to the bus station at 1.30. The bus leaves on time and is very luxurious with huge bucket seats. We arrive back in KL at around 5.15pm as planned. We check out The Trekker Lodge and I'm relieved to see it's clean and the owner seems friendly and knowledgeable. We are staying in a dorm room which has 2 bunk beds in it and will share a toilet and shower with other people. The kids said they feel like real travellers now we are staying in hostels but actually there are lots of facilities here that we haven't had in some other places we stayed such as a TV lounge, tea and coffee making facilities and free internet.

We walk to the KLCC shopping mall and buy a few things including a new pair of trainers for Ali and some underwear from Marks and Spencer for Maisie. After dinner we return to the hostel and get ourselves into bed we have to get a very early start tomorrow if we are to see anything at the festival and plan to get up around 5am.

Simon wakes me up around 7am and I head for the shower before I can chicken out and decide to give it a miss as it's so cold. We have organised a trip this morning called The Mossy Forest and will be picked up at 8.45, so rush to get some breakfast.

The guides name is Kumar and there are another 5 people on the tour with us. We all pile into the back of a Land Rover and head off for our first stop which is at the tea plantation around 20 minutes away. The tea plantations are really amazing and we see tea pickers collecting the top leaves. The plantations are very sloped and pretty and Kumar is an interesting and informative guide who talks us through the history of the plantation and the tea producing process.

From the plantation we drive up to Gunung Brinchang, this is the highest point in the highlands and at around 2000 metres it is really quite cold. There is a viewing platform but the clouds are swirling around and there are only brief photo opportunities when the clouds break.

We head off for the mossy forest. Before we enter the forest Kumar tells us a little about his job as a NGO conservationist and goes on to show us many different types of plants and bushes along the way including citronella, wild ginger and bergamot. He explains the medicinal properties of many plants and shows us some amazing flowers called Monkey Pitchers. We then enter the forest and are taken on a muddy and difficult hour long trek. Despite getting filthy we all loved it and had a great time tramping along. I was a little worried when he explained that bird eating spiders live in this forest and their bodies can be 4 inches across with 3 -4 inch long legs.

Next we stop off at the tea factory, I am surprised that the despite the highlands being a huge producer of tea, some of which is exported internationally, the majority of the work is still done by hand. This includes the sorting and grading of the leaves.
By now it is 2pm and Kumar drops us of at an insect farm, this is very good and there are lots of butterflies, giant stick insects, grasshoppers and many other creepy crawlies to look at.

From here we walk to a nearby strawberry farm. As well as the tea plantations the highlands also produce strawberries and the town of Tanah Rata is really a strawberry town. Everywhere we go sells strawberry t shirts, handbags, fridge magnets, paper weights, balloons etc! As well as strawberry jam, tea, tarts, cheesecake, milkshakes and so on!

We catch the bus back and walk the short distance back "home". I insist that the kids have a shower and we then settle down to do some science. One of the girls on our trip this morning is a Canadian who has been working as a science teacher in London for the past 4 years and she gives me some tips on specific areas of work to concentrate on which is useful.
We join the other guests in the communal lounge and manage to bag a settee. There is a nightly film showing and the 7pm offering is The Queen. We enjoy laughing at the translation of the subtitles more than the film but have a lovely evening chatting to other travellers.

We will be leaving in the morning and I'm so sad, it is one of the nicest places we have stayed and I would recommend it to anyone who is considering a holiday to Malaysia. The people who run the place have been very friendly and try their utmost to create a homely atmosphere.

We are going back to KL on the 1.45pm VIP bus. The journey should take 3 and a half hours and we have arranged to stay in another hostel. Originally we had booked The Pudu Hostel but spent some time reading recent traveller reviews on Malaysia and Thailand and discovered 6 terrible reviews about the place including one couple who had all their money stolen at festival time. As we are only returning to KL for the Thaipusam festival I'm relieved we have had the opportunity to change where we are staying and hopefully will be ok.

We had an early start to the day and by 7.45 were on the bus on the way to the Cameron Highlands. This is slightly further north and we expect our journey there by bus to take around 5 hours. The Highlands is Malaysia's most extensive hill station and is inside the state of Pehang. Apparently the name is taken from the surveyor who mapped the area in 1885 and he was followed by tea planters and vegetable farmers. The weather is fairly damp and the temperature remains quite even, rarely getting any hotter than 21 degrees or colder than 10 degrees.

The first leg of the journey takes an hour to a place called Jerantut. After stopping for an hour for breakfast we get back on the bus and are joined by a couple from London and a lad from Ireland. We now have a 2 and a half hour ride and we all chat about our previous/future travel destinations. The time flies and its great to chat to another girl for more than 2 minutes. We have all planned to stay at the same place when we arrive in the highlands.

Eventually we have a quick lunch break; Maisie isn't feeling very well and looks very dark under her eyes. I'm not sure if this is mainly due to tiredness or she is coming down with something. I hope not.

We transfer to a mini bus for the last 2 hours and the landscape starts to change dramatically. We had heard from a girl in Taman Negara that it is very beautiful and we pass some of the most gorgeous scenery. Malaysia is definitely one of the most picturesque places I have ever been to and I listen to my MP3 player and watch the world go by.

It's so relaxing and I can't help thinking how great this is and how lucky we are to be travelling and seeing all these different places. At last we arrive at Fathers Guest House in the town of Tanah Rata. We have booked this by telephone yesterday and will be staying in a Nissen hut left over from the British Occupation. These look like bomb shelters and are made from corrugated iron but seem quite comfortable and are spotlessly clean. Despite having to share toilets and showers we decide to stay as everything else about this place is completely fab.

It is a bit like a huge campsite, up a hill and with lots of lovely flowers and trees. There is a reception area with facilities for making hot drinks and we're thrilled to see they have around 50 different types of teas, all kinds of coffee and homemade cakes. There is a large communal area with 3 computers, TV and DVD and a generally welcoming atmosphere. The fella who shows us round is really nice and it will cost us 50 ringitt for 2 rooms per night. (7 quid). I ring home to let mum know we survived the jungle and a 15 minute call costs about 2 quid.

We have to sort our laundry out quickly as our clothes are still wet and muddy and we will probably need the extra stuff due to the cold. We think it is probably about 12 degrees here and it definitely feels quite chilly. We walk into town and drop off our washing which will be back tomorrow afternoon.

By this time it is around 6pm and as the restaurant at Fathers Guesthouse is closed on Sundays we stop for dinner at a Chinese place. There seems to be a wide variety of food here which is great and we go for the local speciality which is called a Steamboat.
This is basically a fondue with 2 different types of soup, kept boiling by a gas burner and we are given 2 plates of raw food to cook in the soup ourselves. There is beef, chicken, prawns, fishballs, tofu, cuttlefish, jellyfish, mussels and crab. This is accompanied by 2 different types of noodles, eggs, green vegetables and shitake mushrooms. Not only is a real feast but good fun to cook and cheap. (6 quid with a few beers).

Our first impressions of this place are excellent and I think we will have a great time here. We walk back to the guesthouse, stopping off to buy a few supplies on the way and are all in bed by 9.30. There are loads of travellers staying here and we're hardly up there with the hardcore ones but I don't care. So happy to be here in a dry place and we will have clean clothes tomorrow what more could a girl want.

I couldn't sleep last night and as I finally turned the light out at 3am it takes me a while to get my arse out of bed this morning. We try breakfast in one of the floating restaurants and after stuffing ourselves feel ready for the day. We have hired a guide called Suvala (Ali played guitar with him last night) and he is going to spend a few hours showing us some of the sights around the river.

We get into the boat and as he has to bail it out first I'm pleased to see life jackets and immediately consider putting mine on. We motor up the river, against the flow and after 10 minutes or so stop at the side. We are going to the canopy walkway and although I was feeling slightly anxious about this, my nerves are quickly forgotten as we realise that we have forgotten our park pass. There is a big sign explaining the penalty is 500 ringitt and up to 2 years in prison for such an infringement. (This scares me more) We tell Suvala but he assures us that the rangers are his friends and it will be ok.

The canopy walkway is reached by a long steep flight of steps and we have to register and pay 16 ringitt before we can start to make our way across. We listen carefully to the instructions. We must stay at least 5 metres apart, no more than 4 people on the walkway and go slowly. We are about 150 feet above the ground and there is no way I'll be ignoring any of their advice.

Ali goes first, Maisie next and then it's me. I step onto the walkway and start to plod along ignoring the fact that it is wobbling madly and focusing on the tree tops around me. The views are outstanding and despite my legs feeling a bit jellyish, I make it across without losing it and feel pleased that I have achieved this.

We get back to the boat and I use the toilet near the river. Suvala tells me afterwards that the last time he used that toilet he found a viper in there.

Next we stop off at The Orang Asli Village. This is a small village of 6 families and they live very simply on the riverside in huts. The Orang Asli people are indigenous aboriginal people. Suvala explains that several years ago the Malaysian government provided them with bungalows with televisions and other mod cons but they only stayed there for one night and then chose to return to the village where they have continued to live.

They make a living by harvesting sandalwood and sell it to the village where we are staying. The chief of the village spoke a very little English and with Suvala they showed us the blow pipes they use to kills birds and how they make fire from sticks. (Suvala explained in the rainy season they just use a lighter!)

We took the opportunity to take some photographs which was perfectly acceptable and all felt privileged to spend a bit of time there observing the families, particularly the children playing. Although we had read that visiting the village can feel quite intrusive we didn't experience that, maybe because there was only us 4 there and we just sat quietly watching what went on.

We get back to the boat and after bailing it out once more set off back down the river. Suvala tells us we must prepare to get wet as we have some small rapids to go through. Actually we get completely soaked but we all enjoyed the bit of excitement.

We arrive back at the jetty and arrange to leave Taman Negara tomorrow. We will be travelling by road which is actually a longer route than by the river but as we wish to move onto the Cameron Highlands it is the most direct way for us to travel.
This will cost us 55 ringitt each (around 8 pounds) and we need to arrange some cheap accommodation also.

We also pay Suvala for the day and he charges us approx 24 pounds which is much cheaper than an organised tour and we agree well worth it. He's an interesting character and I have learnt a little about Malay culture today. He tells us he left home aged 13 and that his brother has 2 wives. Like all the people we have met here he loves music and tells us the names of his favourite films.

We have found that the Malaysians, although not as outwardly chatty and friendly as the Indian people we met previously have a sly and cheeky sense of humour. We have watched today as they tease their kids and they laugh at each other a lot. I had heard reports that as Malaysia is such a conservative Muslim country, Westerners may encounter some minor hostility here but that certainly hasn't been the case for us so far and we haven't witnessed it for anyone else either.

Simon goes to update our website in the afternoon and I read my book. It is so humid here that lying around isn't really a pleasant experience and everywhere and everything smells damp. It has been an amazing few days that I wouldn't have missed for the world and Taman Negara is probably the most beautiful place I have ever been but I don't qualify as Jungle Jane quite yet and once again I am looking forward to moving on.

We have had a great day today. We did set our alarms but for a bit later as we all wanted to have a lie in today. We decide to go for the set breakfast which consists of toast, eggs, juice and coffee. We haven't really had any good coffee since arriving in Malaysia and despite asking for Nescafe the coffee that we get here is really vile!

It is starting to rain and we decide that rather than getting our trousers soaked we will wear as little as possible with our raincoats over the top. The main fault with this plan is that our legs will be exposed to leeches and we cover them with repellent cream and then spray our socks.

We catch the river taxi across to the entrance to the park. As we have discovered we can hire jungle boots for 4 ringitt a day, we then make our way to the reserve office and get kitted out. I am feeling the part now and looking forward to a few hours trekking. We are going to climb Bukit Teresik a small hill that is described as being a fairly steep climb and slippery in parts, with good views across the forest once you reach the top.

We reach the entrance of the rain forest. As it has been dry for the past 5 days the path was ok last night but it is much more slippery today and we make our way along carefully. It is extremely hot although very shady and raining lightly. Before long we are all sweating and I decide to take off my raincoat and brave the insects. Suddenly we hear a little shriek from Maisie who has been marching along a great pace. There stuck to the back of her leg is a leech waving its head around and trying to clamp on. It is quite funny but Simon brushes it off quickly and it doesn't leave any mark. From then on we all watch each others legs and all have to dislodge leeches from our boots at some point.

We have found out the canopy walkway is closed on Friday afternoons so decide to do that tomorrow morning and concentrate on climbing today. It turns out to be quite a difficult climb and we need to pull ourselves up on ropes for some parts of it. We were trying to compare it to when we climbed Savitri in Pushkar in India and decide that although that was much hotter in the burning sun, this is harder by far. I must be getting a lot fitter as although it's very tiring I'm not as completely knackered as I was then and we all quite enjoy the challenge of it.

We sing "We are the Champions" by Queen when we finally get to the top and wow what a beautiful view. This is one of the most picturesque places I have ever been and in the rain it looks absolutely lush. The huge green leaves are dripping with water and the tops of the trees are covered in mist. It makes quite an amazing sight and we get some good photos for the website.

This area of virgin rainforest is around 130 million years old and we have been told it has never been felled or artificially planted. There are hundreds of different trees, plants and bushes ranging from huge trees to small scrubby bushes. There are so many different shades of green and we recognise trees such as bamboo which are simple to identify.
We begin our descent down and this takes around an hour. At the bottom is an exclusive holiday resort which is good news, as we have begun to realise 5 star means beer will be available. As we are staying across the river in a strict Muslim village there isn't any alcohol available and after our strenuous efforts a cold Tiger beer goes down great. The kids have some chocolate cake and we head back to our motel for a shower and a rest.

We decide to have dinner at the same restaurant as last night. The kids have burgers and fries but Simon and I have some tasty sweet and sour beef and ginger prawns with rice. It is reasonably cheap and costs around 7 quid including drinks and puddings.

On the way back up to the motel we stop off at a bar where 4 fellas are playing their guitars. Ali hasn't played too much recently but before long he is playing with them and Simon goes and fetches his own guitar. There are a couple of Greek lads there too and one of them also joins in. Its quite surreal, sat in the jungle listening to them all jammin along to a mixture of Malaysian songs, Greek tragedy and Greenday!

A bonus is that they also have internet access and this keeps Maisie quiet for an hour and a small library with books available for exchange and sale. We buy a 2005 edition copy of Lonely Planet's China for 4 quid.

Its 11pm now and I'm off to bed, need to conserve some energy for tomorrow.

6.30am and both alarms are simultaneously drilling into my brain. Simon is first out of bed and makes me a weak coffee which is, eventually enough to rouse me. We have a quick shower, get the kids up and all run downstairs for a few slices of toast, before we get on the bus to Taman Negara.

The bus is clean and comfortable and as there are only another 3 passengers on it we have lots of space to spread out. Taman Negara is located in central Malaysia and as we start to drive out of KL the landscape changes dramatically. It is very green, hilly and densely populated with trees. The road is excellent, like a dual carriageway in England and we zip along. The journey is estimated to take 3 hours after which we will stop for some lunch and we have a 15 minute break after an hour or so.

We talk to the other couple on the bus who tell us they are back packing for the first time. They are from the Netherlands and have visited their son in Singapore for a holiday. Like us they haven't made any firm plans and are also slightly anxious about what awaits us in the jungle.

We stop as planned and then transfer to a minibus for the next 8km. The road is very narrow and twisty and Simon tells me he read that "this is where old buses go to die". Happily though our driver is fairly careful and we arrive at the riverbank in one piece. We now have a 3 hour boat journey to the jungle and the boat doesn't appear as seaworthy as I would have liked. It is a type of flat bottomed long boat with a motor and actually races along at a speed far faster than I would have imagined it was capable of.

The River Tembeling is a wide and fast flowing river and the journey along it is a beautiful one. Although we don't see any animals more exciting than a few water buffalo, there are lots of brightly coloured birds to watch through our binoculars and the time flies by.

We're all glad to reach the reserve though as our bums are numb and we moor up at the jetty of a floating restaurant. There are about 5 of these along the waters edge and each one offer excursions around the park and river. We have pre booked our accommodation and note that if we had booked it through the tour company it would have cost 70 ringitts each per night. (20 quid a night) as it is we have paid 80 ringitts (11 quid) total per night for 2 rooms. This is good as we are trying to reduce our daily expenditure!

We make our way to The Teresek View Motel. This isn't easy as we have to walk along a steep and winding sandy pathway with our packs and although it isn't far it takes ages. Still we get there in the end and are glad to see our rooms although very tiny and cramped are clean with a fan and shower.

We quickly change into long trousers and trainers and apply insect repellent liberally. We haven't used it since leaving India and have only had a few bites each but I guess there will be plenty of biting insects here and don't want to take the risk. We also spray it over our socks and shoes as it supposed to deter leeches.

The floating restaurants all seem to offer similar food and we stop at one for dinner. This is a fairly quick and simple affair consisting of grilled prawns, rice and kaluba, a local vegetable dish. I also have a lemon and sugar pancake for pudding.

We have decided that we are going to do a night walk in the jungle tonight and pay for a guided tour which focuses on insect life in the rain forest. The jungle here is so dense that you could pass very close to an animal and not even realise. It is claimed that this is the world oldest rainforest and it is one of the most pristine primary rainforests on earth.
There are only us 4 and another couple on the tour and we set off at 9pm. The guides name is Long and he tells us he has been working in the Malaysian jungle as a guide for 20 years.

We had to purchase a park permit prior to entering the park and Long asks us" to leave nothing but our footprints and take nothing but photographs". We all have torches and as soon as we enter the rain forest we are in complete blackness. I think I expected that there would be a nice wide path but we have to inch along stepping over huge roots, up, down and around. Long is in front and starts to point out insects. We see Huntsman spiders (one nearly as big as my hand), poisonous caterpillars, bull ants (massive an inch and a half long), crickets, stick insects, leeches and a giant centipede.

I have my raincoat on pulled right up to my neck with all the drawcords as tight as they will go. As it is probably around 28 degrees I am really hot but I would rather boil than loosen any and risk getting any bugs in my clothes.

Suddenly Long stops abruptly and motions to us that we should all stand still to the side. He whispers that he has seen a scorpion and proceeds to shine a light and tap on the ground lightly. This apparently tricks the scorpion into think there is prey around and soon it scuttles out from under a log. It's about as big as my hand and we all thought it was great to see it close up.

We reach one of the hides that are dotted around the reserve. It is possible to stay overnight in a hide and we are considering doing this. The hides are all located near natural or artificial salt licks which encourage larger animals to the area. Although elephant and big cats do inhabit the park we have been told that it would be very unusual to see these animals and we're all pleased to see some small deer.

Our walk is nearly over and we start to make our way back to the rivers edge where we have to catch a boat to the other side. We thank Long and as we are making our way back to our motel I see a small frog. I'm pleased that I noticed it, I must have learnt something! The kids absolutely loved it and we are all looking forward to tomorrow when I have to face my fear of heights again as we go to walk in the canopies of the trees.

Last night I had a nightmare that our room was crawling with cockroaches and woke up about 1am with my heart racing. The revenge of the roaches. Although I went back to sleep quickly I felt tired this morning and we didn't get up until 9.

After breakfast we spend an hour doing science we're trying to complete the topic of the human body but it seems to be taking ages and we will be glad to move onto something different. We then discuss our plans for our jungle trip. Maisie is adamant that she doesn't want to go rafting and we work out that it will probably be cheaper if we arrange it all independently rather than joining an organised tour.

We have decided that we are spending too much money and are going to try more budget accommodation. Whether this is a good idea in the jungle I don't know but as it will only be for 2 or 3 nights I'm sure it will be ok. We have a minimum standard that we will go to and that basically means no sharing rooms/toilet with other people. The next request on the list is a window but we will go without that if necessary.

We have planned to visit the bird park later and we stop at a cafe and have lunch first.
Next we make for the biggest and busiest internet cafˆm I've seen. It is unbelievably noisy with 50 or so school boys playing a fighting game on the computers and after an hour of checking and replying to loads of emails from our friends and family I'm glad to get out of there.

We have a wander up the road through Petaling Street. This should be a good place to buy Ali a pair of trousers but due to a slight difference of opinion as to what constitutes appropriate jungle wear we come away empty handed. Apart from Ali we all have good trousers, but as he didn't want to come shopping prior to the trip either, his only pair are very thick and baggy. I have tried to talk him about leeches but style is of course, far more important and what do I know anyway?

We give the bird park a miss as it is looking very overcast and walk back to our hotel, we then spend a few hours lazing around and planning some stuff to do over the next few weeks. We decide to book the bus to take us to Taman Negara and ring ahead and arrange some accommodation. As we will be leaving in the morning at 8.30, I pack up our rucksacks so we don't have to get up too early.

Its 8pm and Ai has now decided that he would like to buy the trousers that we saw earlier. All it took was a bit of discussion amongst Simon and I about how wet and muddy we will get caving/ rafting/ walking etc and he announced perhaps he was being a bit awkward after all earlier!

We also buy insect repellent, knock down spray, a torch and tigerbalm (apparently makes leeches drop off). Can't make up my mind if I'm more or less nervous now!
If the website hasn't been updated in 5 days please call International Rescue.

Simon has gone off early this morning to get tickets for the Petronas Towers skybridge and I wake the kids around 8.30.
While I was in the bathroom this morning I noticed a large creepy cockroach lying on its back wriggling its feelers. There is no way I'm touching it so I get Ali and we trap it under a glass. After a few minutes it lies quite still and we wonder if it's ill. Eventually Ali decides to get it out and put it out of the window but once it's out we realise the windows don't open. We settle for shoving it down the neck of an empty beer bottle and when I check on it 10 minutes later it's crawling around and looking quite lively.

Our good deed for the day.

Following an hour of science work we catch the LRT train to the Thai embassy and collect our passports and visa's. Simon has arranged for us to visit the skybridge at 6pm so we head off to The National Museum. This is a great place to visit and has several galleries with life size waxwork figures which display Malaysia's history, arts and crafts. They also explain many aspects of Malay culture and at around 40 pence admission and kids free it is a really entertaining and worthwhile hour.

Suddenly I feel really ill and have to run to the toilet and be sick (my own fault, I took my malaria tablet 3 hours after breakfast). We decide to stop for some lunch but I can't face anything other than multi coloured cake and Simon and the kids don't look too enthusiastic about what's on offer either.

Next we visit the National Planetarium. The last time we went to one of these was in London and I seem to remember it cost loads but at 1 ringitt per person (just over 10 pence) this is a bargain attraction and we have a great time there. The exhibits are all good and it's both interesting for us and very educational for Ali and Maisie. We have to cover "Space" as one of their science topics and this whets their appetites for it.
The best thing about the planetarium was the space ball, which enabled us to experience weightlessness, a room with a black hole and a gravity simulator.

We walk from the planetarium to Taman Orkid and Taman Bunga Raya. These are beautiful orchid and hibiscus gardens and as I love flowers I really want to visit them. The kids aren't however quite as enthused and as it is now 35 degrees I quickly lose my motivation for them myself. Simon is also quite ambivalent and after 15 minutes wandering through the gardens we make our way back to KLCC to get a bit of air con.

At 6pm we make our way to the Petronas Towers skybridge experience. After watching a short film about the construction of the towers we get in the express elevator to the 41st floor. Ali says it goes so fast it makes his ears pop. The view from the skybridge is excellent and we all enjoy ourselves loads.
We return to the mall and after dinner at the food court decide to head back to our hotel. We are all tired again and I think we will get up a bit later tomorrow. Walking around in the heat and humidity is absolutely exhausting and we have done a lot today.

We are trying to decide whether to go and spend some time in the jungle over the next few days. It sounds good but is fairly remote and I actually seriously feel scared about going. I guess I'll sleep on it and decide tomorrow.

We set the alarm for 7am and get up fairly swiftly. The reason for this is twofold; firstly we have to visit the Thai Embassy today to get 60 day tourist visas. UK citizens can visit Thailand for 30 days without a visa but we feel that as we may want to stay longer and spend less time in Cambodia it is better to sort this out before we get to Thailand.
The second reason for getting up earlier is to try and improve our sleeping and subsequent eating patterns.

We arrive at the Embassy before 9am and are bit disappointed to see a long queue has already formed (especially as the doors don't open until 9.30). It is already very hot but we have come prepared with water and the kids' games to keep them quiet.

The visa application process is simple enough and by 11 o'clock we have handed over our passports, 4 photos and 100 ringitt. (The exchange rate is around 6 ringitt to the pound). We are informed that we have to return to the embassy tomorrow morning between 11.30 and 12.30 to collect our passports and visas.

We walk along the road past the various embassies; this is a smart area of town with lots of colonial style buildings. We stop for lunch at a hawker centre and then make our way to the Petronas Towers that dominate the skyline.

We all remember watching "The Race for the Worlds Tallest Building" on TV a few years ago. This documented the story of the building of the towers and it's great to see them for real. Completed in1998 to the cost of 1.9 billion US dollars the 88 storey twin towered building is an amazing sight and also very beautiful. The floor plan is based on the 8 pointed star seen in Islamic art and these influences are also evident in the 5 tiers of each tower that represent the 5 pillars of Islam.

We want to go up to the skybridge that connects the towers but as it is closed on Mondays will probably return tomorrow to do this. We take lots of photos but eventually the heat gets too much and we head back to the hotel. On the way the taxi driver tells us that the temperature in Malaysia is fairly constant all year round and "only goes up to 40" degrees in the summer. At 34 degrees today I think this is quite hot enough though.

We spend the next few hours learning about the Islamic faith. It is part of the curriculum for year 8 pupils and we wanted Ali and Maisie to study this whilst in Malaysia as the majority of Malay's are devout Muslims. We also learnt that there are large minorities of Chinese and Indians and that despite some racial tensions on the whole everyone gets along well. Our first impressions of Malaysia are very good the weather is perfect; the people seem friendly and helpful and getting around is easy using trains and taxis.

We decide to go out again around 8pm, the kids are hungry and we want to see the Petronas Towers at night.
This turns out to be a good idea. The towers look absolutely awesome all lit up in the dark and we take a few more shots.

We head back around 10pm we are really tired and need some sleep. Tomorrow we will try and find some internet access. This has been a bit more difficult than we expected and although we quickly checked a few emails today we need to update the website also.
Off to bed now, we have the easy listening channel on the radio which plays a never ending supply of Barry Manilow, The Carpenters, Abba and songs from Grease. I love it.

As planned we boarded the 1015 train to Malaysia last night. We weren't sure what the form would be at the border but before we were allowed on the platform we had to show our passports and were issued with immigration cards.

The train is very clean and we have 4 bunks which are already made up with sheets and pillows .Unlike the Indian trains though there is no room underneath for us to store our gear. This means we have to have it all on our beds with us but is not too much of a problem. We have eaten earlier and the kids are tired so by 11pm I ask them to turn out their lights and try to get some sleep.

Half an hour later the train stops and we all have to get off at immigration and have our cards checked. Still it doesn't take too long and we are soon back on the train
.
What a difference to the trains of India. I find myself missing the noise of other people though, constant ringing of mobiles, kids chattering, the smell of spices and curries amongst other things, the heat, men hanging out of the door for a smoke and the vendors monotonous "chai chai chai".

The train is far more comfortable, air conditioned and almost completely silent which I find weird considering its full .It is also very bright and unfortunately the lights stay on all night resulting in a sleepless night for everyone.

Still we arrive at 6.30am on time at Kuala Lumpur Sentral Station; my first impression of KL is that it is a clean and modern looking city. It is quite cool here and doesn't seem to be as humid as Singapore which is a relief. We get a taxi to our hotel; we are staying at The Mandarin Pacific Hotel in Chinatown and the kids are pleased when we arrive to see we are opposite a McDonalds. The hotel looks really nice and is costing us 138 ringitt per room a night. This is around 23 pounds a room and is quite expensive for our budget but we are hoping to pay less when we move on out of the city.

Our rooms are fantastic and it's definitely one of the best places we have stayed in. We have two large suites with a connecting door and a fridge. Most important we have a bath, although I generally prefer showers and despite the water being yellow it's great to have a long hot soak.

We sleep until 1230 and then go out in search of food, the first place we come across is a hawker centre and we sit down without much thought. The fellas must have seen us coming as they pile the food on, we end up with far too much and I guess I wouldn't have asked for deep fried baby octopus for breakfast. But it's all ok and does the job.

We decide to take a walking tour of KL to look at some of the architecture including early 20th century Chinese teahouses, a pretty mosque and an art deco building now used as a bank. It is very hot though and half way round we give up and head for the Chinese market.

This is really amazing and I think it is probably possible to buy almost anything here.
There are clothes, watches, shoes, handbags and DVD's alongside fruit and vegetables and numerous food vendors .Its very noisy, hot and smelly and we have a great time picking our way through and chatting to the market traders. We buy James Bond, Casino Royale for the second time, hopefully it will be a better copy than the last one and I get some earrings. Ali also buys a game for his PSP. We pass a pet shop and in the window are two Alsatian puppies, the kids are completely enthralled and we go inside to see 10 or 12 big cages all containing little puppies. It is a strange sight for us but I'm pleased to say the pups all looked well cared for.

Before long the sky clouds over and it starts to rain, these tropical storms are quite different to storms at home and although it absolutely pours down it doesn't last for long and the sun is soon out again. The temperature is fairly constant at around 30 degrees and the humidity about 80%.

We get back to the hotel and Simon does some maths with the kids for an hour. We're all tired and decide to give dinner a miss and watch Casino Royale on the laptop. By 10 o'clock we're all starving and give in to the temptation that is McDonalds. Shame on us!