Hello everyone! I'm officially back in my room at PGP in Singapore safe and sound after a very exciting trip to neighboring Malaysia (and more specifically, Melacca). It's possible to reach Malaysia from Singapore by driving over a big bridge -- some people who live in Malaysia actually commute to Singapore each day for work. Before we reached Melacca, we visited Tanjung Piai Johor National Park -- basically, a preservation of Mangrove trees/environment on approximately 956 hectares of land. Coincidentally, this park also contains the "southern most tip of mainland Asia," a perfect photo-op moment for all!
After the trip to the Mangrove Park (where we saw wild monkeys and snails!) we finally arrived in Melacca. Friday night we had free to roam around the night market and surrounding restaurants/food vendors near our hotel. On Saturday we started off our walking tour of the city at the Port de Sandiego (I think this is what it was called?) -- the ruins of a once very prosperous military fort used by the Portuguese, and later, the Dutch.
Right up the hill from the fort is this old church. It was built originally by the Portuguese on a hill, but when the Dutch took over the area they decided to use the church as a sort of garrison -- they took off the roof and removed most (if not all) traces of Portuguese Catholicism. The building was really very beautiful. I'm not sure if the picture can do it justice -- nor can I possibly recount all the history associated with it. I know that it's dedicated to the man whose statue sits just outside the doorway in the above picture (his name is maybe Saint Peter, or something?) -- his statue is missing a hand, which is apparently linked to some legend about his body not decaying after death (and this being empirical proof of his saintly status).
Sorry for not being clear on my details. We visited many churches/mosques/temples while we were in the area, and I don't want to put down TOO many misleading facts.
... On Saturday night I did something VERY frightening! I apologize now for the gross description that is about to follow.
Apparently it is acceptable in this region to have your feet cleaned by little fish that eat dead skin. At the price of 22 ringet for 45 minutes (a little less than 10 US dollars), how could I resist partaking in such a unique cultural phenomenon?
In my defense, my friends Peter and Stephany wanted a third person to go with them, and I ran into them just as they were about to walk into the foot-fish-spa. In short: the experience was rather strange at first (because the fish TICKLED!) but I relaxed after about five minutes. There were also some bigger fish, but after the initial readjustment, the feeling was really pretty relaxing (and the whole experience a lot of fun).
I hope I haven't grossed anyone out TOO much. So on a lighter note...
After getting my feet all nice and clean, I woke up on Sunday morning to go bike riding through a rubber plantation! The bike ride was about 2-3 hours (maybe 10 or 11 kilometers?) and a bit intense considering it had rained earlier in the morning and the off-road portions of the trail were a bit muddy and sandy. Still, the group suffered only minor injuries, and we persevered!
I know I've been a bit slack about posting -- things have just been busy and exciting, and it's impossible for me to write about everything that's been going on. I'm sure I'll have lots of stories to tell once I come home!
Take care everyone. I promise I'm well!
Love,
Allie
this is awesome allison! It looks like you are having so much fun and are learning so much! I want my feet to be cleaned by fish.
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