Nine wonderful years I have had the honor of being married to Heidi. I constantly thank my lucky stars that we met. Lucky indeed I was to find such a lovely, beautiful, intelligent, adventuresome, talented, caring woman. Lucky indeed!!!!

We celebrated anniversary number nine in Georgetown on the Malaysian Island of Penang.
Georgetown was named a Unesco World Heritage Site in 2008 for the unique cultural and architectual diversity unequal anywhere else in Asia. We found it similar to Malacca but more diverse, larger and friendlier, and with more things to see and do.

We stayed at this amazing little hotel, Seven Terraces. Only two years old, the owners refurbished seven terrace homes into eighteen exquisite rooms. Each one is filled with antique chinese furniture and true character. Bathrooms are massive with a rain shower about ten feet overhead. Besides the bathroom, the main floor also houses a generous living room with a gold inlaid day bed, comfy couch chairs and several other antique pieces. The bedroom was upstairs in a loft complete with an antique Chinese canopy bed.

All the rooms were on the second floor of the hotel. The ground floor was home to the reception area, a restaurant (simply amazing), the breakfast dining room, a bar, antique shop, and pool area. Ewan, the manager from South Africa, went out of his way to make our stay memorable, so attentive and helpful. Seven Terraces turned out to be one of the nicest places we have ever stayed.

Web Site for Seven Terraces

Art Walk

Georgetown is known for its interactive art and mural art. You wander around the old section of town and find these amazing works of art sometimes hidden down alleys or on little side streets. The ones we loved the most were the 3-D art….the motorcycle, the bicycle, the swings and basketball hoops. At some of the works crowds had formed and we had to wait our turn to photograph the spot. The trishaw drivers actually have an “art route” they take people on. We had a fun time exploring and discovering. The constant rain never dampened our enthusiasm.

Georgetown used to be a British trading post and settlement. It is named after Britain’s King George III. Throughout the town you can still see the remnants of the glory days of the British Empire….the stately manors, the floor and wall tiles, the street names. Over the years Georgetown became a melting pot for many, many different cultures and you again see the influences throughout the town. We walked all over the old section of town…through little India where Heidi found a great looking Deepavali dress and over toward Armenia Street. We found quaint little shops, temples and mosques, shrines, and wonderful little cafes and restaurants. Stopped for lunch at this corner Indian restaurant and had the best dal and garlic naan in the world. Ate at China House for dinner and again for coffee, dessert and live entertainment. Took a taxi out to the Hard Rock Hotel to use their spa. Heidi and I had an Anniversary Massage in this little thatched room right off the water. Throughout the treatment you heard the waves lapping on the shore, the wind in the trees and raindrops falling on the roof…..hard to beat that.

We LOVED Penang and Seven Terraces…a memorable time. We shall long remember Anniversary Number Nine.

PARTING SHOT

Sign outside a clothing shop….
I’ve heard of Mens Wear. I’ve heard of Ladies Wear. But Pets Wear?

Animal Notes:

Recently I heard a what sounded like a large animal in the crawlspace above the dropped ceiling in my office. My assistant principal yelled at me to get out of my office. Civet Cat she said…nasty little critters. Seems a few years ago a civet cat crashed though a dropped ceiling in one of the classrooms and landed right on the teacher’s head…the kids certainly had a story tell that night. Just last week one was crawling above the ceiling in a family home…of course it crashed through the ceiling, landed right on their middle school aged son’s bed. Son looked at Civet, Civet looked at boy, boy screamed, civet hissed, both ran opposite directions. These critters are cat like but look more like a mongoose. They live in the jungle but seem to like little crawl spaces. And boy do they stink!!!! Took us days and days to rid the office of the stench. You may have heard of Civet Cat Coffee (Kope Luwak), the most expensive coffee in the world. The cats eat the coffee beans, they pass through its digestive system and are pooped out. Locals collect the poop and sell it to coffee brokers. Seems the civets’ digestive systems give kopi luwak a uniquely rich aroma and smooth, rounded flavor that is demanded around the world. Unfortunately, to make the collection easier, the cats are now kept in appalling conditions in cages and fed coffee beans. So, say NO to Civet Cat Coffee !!!

To date at my school we have had a civet cat, an 8 foot python, monkeys, a 4 foot iguana, a rat (big), a monitor lizard and a black snake of unknown variety (slithered away before we could catch it)

Who said recess duty was boring!!!