A Vista Melati Hotel Johor Bahru

Monday, 3rd August<br>Travel day<br><br>The coach journey to KL was uneventful, on a comfy NiCE bus, other than being advised to get off at the wrong station, which then necessitated an extra journey on an MRT train. Eventually arriving at the ticket office at KL Sentral, we were grateful to find that there were places on that night's sleeper train to Johor Bahru. The waiting time was filled sharing a coke, or coffee in Starbucks, MacDonalds etc. in ...

... in on the secret of where the airport shuttle bus was for our hotel and having just missed the most recent one we waited in the airport a little longer before heading out in the pouring rain for a trip to Changi Village Hotel.<br><br>The cheeseburger and chips were great hangover food from the long day and most importantly, the shower was hot and the bed was comfy. Luke even rated the pillow one of the ...

... all his sons and daughters are doctors and consultants. He likes Shelley because she's a nurse. Because she's a nurse I must therefore be a doctor. Sorry Andrew im not! His father was a famous photographer. He owns and develops property. He owns a hospital which he built! He has a house in China, hes wrote two books and a poem which, we listened too via Dictaphone because a girl who was a music producer stopped at the hostel and recorded it for him ...

... it would be rude not to give it a go! The bar was pretty cool, there are bowls of monkey nuts all along the bar and when you eat the nuts you throw the shells on the floor, it was absolutely covered in monkey nut shells! Feeling rather light-headed after our cocktails we headed to Singapore's night market "Bugis Street"... one word, "WOW!" This place had clothes that were 10 times better than topshop, and they were 10 times cheaper! Most things ...

... we enter Laos from Vietnam, we would need to make another VISA to re-enter Vietnam to catch the flight from Vietnam. Well, we'll see about this when it is time for it. We also managed to go to Sentosa Island, which is a park half the size of Malta (one fourth of Singapore, can u believe, that even though they have such a high population 4.6m, there is still this entertainment park, full of green areas, with a number of ...

... night, there large pizzas are small in Scottish terms but I think it cured Matts craving. The next day was my Birthday, now closer to 30 than 20!! We set off for the Kite Festival in Pasir Gudang about 40 minutes on a bus from our hostel. It took place on a very windy hill - ideal really!! There were lots of really massive animal shaped kites and Spongebob Square Pants!! We watched them trying to launch a massive lizzard for about an hour ...

... The Cocaine Trade But I Used To Be Fun. Once. As it happened, I suppose it's actual title, Bit of A Blur, was a little bit more snappy. Nevertheless, its pretty interesting stuff. Got out of bed at half 7 in time for breakfast and a 9am start. On our way to the hospital we saw a bus drive past with a number of children in that simply had the word "SPASTIK" written on the front and in big letters across the side ...

... bus out to the airport and its happy chatty street cafes again - Singapore is so up its jacksy wanting to be western. We stayed at the airport hotel for our early flight to Kota Kinabalu - never saw it in the daylight but got bags down to 30k to meet Air Asia's free weight limits. All is well. By the way, old sign of the day from India - "keep Kochi tidy - bury your dead animals"

... guide book at the price of buses to KL. They should of cost 20 Ringits so we were charged double! We tried to convince ourselves that it would be a very plush bus as we were paying so much extra and our tickets said Super VIP on them. When the time neared for our departure the heavens opened with an almighty down pour. Pretty much at the same time a young Malaysian man started shouting in Malaysian and people with tickets like ours started to hurry ...

... this: as you get on the train there is a customs agent (from Malaysia?) who gives you an arrival card, similar to those given before we landed in HK and Singapore. Once the train leaves the station, and just before it passes over the causeway between the two countries, you stop at Singapore passport control where they take the stub from your arrival card and stamp your passport for departure. I assumed that when we got to KL that someone would want to see ...