Sunday, January 4, 2009
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Couchsurfing in Melaka and Singapore
So it's Christmas time here in Thailand. So naturally I decide to take a seven day hiatus and go to Malaysia and Singapore. I had an amazing time. You should check out the videos. Wink Wink nudge nudge. Anyway the two highlights were in Melaka.
Highlight number one: Melaka fish spa. Basically, the idea is that fish are utilized in a unique massage process in which your feet and legs are bitten, rubbed, by, and sucked by tiny fish allowing smoother, more relaxed looking skin. You walk in, sit on a comfy pillow, stick your feet in a cool pool, and wait. Within 2.5 seconds, fish are literally swarming at your feet. The whole experience was absolutely bizarre. The first five minutes, I'm giggling histerically and can barely keep my feet in the water. However, after awhile, you don't notice the tickling sensation anymore and begin to relax. I felt so relaxed after walking all around Melaka and getting reenergized thanks to the wonders of fish.
Highlight number two: Couchsurfing. So prior to leaving for my trip, I discover this website called couchsurfing.com. The premise is basically that you meet new people on a "facebook" type utility and then crash on their couch for a night for free. I did this three times, once in Melaka and twice in Singapore. I enjoyed all three experiences immensly. In Melaka, I stayed with a university student named Jimmy. He truly was super cool. He took me all over Melaka, out with one of his friends to this cool Indian restaurant near the college at 1 am and helped me discover the best parts of Melaka. Even though I was initially apprehensive about couchsurfing, by the time it was over, I realized this is my favorite way to travel, but not really for the free couch. Sure that is nice, but what I really enjoyed was meeting and hanging out with local people. I think one of the toughest parts about traveling alone is the lack of human interaction you find. Couchsurfing allowed me to simultaneously mingle with local people and broaden my scope of friends around the world. It was "G"-reat!
Ok in Singapore, I also had two highlights- The Borders Bookstore, and the Orchid garden.
What can I say, I love Singapore. It was bar-none the most efficiently run city I have ever seen. This time I couchsurfed with two different people. On night one, I slept on a cool, marble floor in a guy named Jeff's apartment. We didn't hang out too much because I didn't get to Singapore until midnight, and I was tired. But, sleeping on the marble floor was actually pretty comfortable. The only funny experience was that he lived with his parents who he failed to mention to that I was visiting. So at like 5 am these two people come into the livingroom and stare at me for awhile. I pretend to sleep while waiting for them to pull out a baseball bat or something. I mean, there's a complete stranger sleeping on their floor. To make it worse, they only speak Chinese. However, they soon realize that I am harmless and the mom even invites me to brush my teeth in the sink..a very nice gesture indeed. That day I have the most amazing time in a Borders bookstore. I know it souns silly but finding English books in Nakhon srithammarat is not the easiest task. I think I stayed there for like three hours. Then I went to the Orchid Garden, another fun part of my trip. I've never seen so many beautiful orchids in my life. That night, I stayed with a guy named Matt Tay. We went to a park, watched a french video, and had a great time. His house was awesome because I actually got to sleep in a bed. His family was great and made sure I was comfortable the whole time I was there..a whopping two days.
Highlight number one: Melaka fish spa. Basically, the idea is that fish are utilized in a unique massage process in which your feet and legs are bitten, rubbed, by, and sucked by tiny fish allowing smoother, more relaxed looking skin. You walk in, sit on a comfy pillow, stick your feet in a cool pool, and wait. Within 2.5 seconds, fish are literally swarming at your feet. The whole experience was absolutely bizarre. The first five minutes, I'm giggling histerically and can barely keep my feet in the water. However, after awhile, you don't notice the tickling sensation anymore and begin to relax. I felt so relaxed after walking all around Melaka and getting reenergized thanks to the wonders of fish.
Highlight number two: Couchsurfing. So prior to leaving for my trip, I discover this website called couchsurfing.com. The premise is basically that you meet new people on a "facebook" type utility and then crash on their couch for a night for free. I did this three times, once in Melaka and twice in Singapore. I enjoyed all three experiences immensly. In Melaka, I stayed with a university student named Jimmy. He truly was super cool. He took me all over Melaka, out with one of his friends to this cool Indian restaurant near the college at 1 am and helped me discover the best parts of Melaka. Even though I was initially apprehensive about couchsurfing, by the time it was over, I realized this is my favorite way to travel, but not really for the free couch. Sure that is nice, but what I really enjoyed was meeting and hanging out with local people. I think one of the toughest parts about traveling alone is the lack of human interaction you find. Couchsurfing allowed me to simultaneously mingle with local people and broaden my scope of friends around the world. It was "G"-reat!
Ok in Singapore, I also had two highlights- The Borders Bookstore, and the Orchid garden.
What can I say, I love Singapore. It was bar-none the most efficiently run city I have ever seen. This time I couchsurfed with two different people. On night one, I slept on a cool, marble floor in a guy named Jeff's apartment. We didn't hang out too much because I didn't get to Singapore until midnight, and I was tired. But, sleeping on the marble floor was actually pretty comfortable. The only funny experience was that he lived with his parents who he failed to mention to that I was visiting. So at like 5 am these two people come into the livingroom and stare at me for awhile. I pretend to sleep while waiting for them to pull out a baseball bat or something. I mean, there's a complete stranger sleeping on their floor. To make it worse, they only speak Chinese. However, they soon realize that I am harmless and the mom even invites me to brush my teeth in the sink..a very nice gesture indeed. That day I have the most amazing time in a Borders bookstore. I know it souns silly but finding English books in Nakhon srithammarat is not the easiest task. I think I stayed there for like three hours. Then I went to the Orchid Garden, another fun part of my trip. I've never seen so many beautiful orchids in my life. That night, I stayed with a guy named Matt Tay. We went to a park, watched a french video, and had a great time. His house was awesome because I actually got to sleep in a bed. His family was great and made sure I was comfortable the whole time I was there..a whopping two days.
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