Sun and Moon

 

Sights I've Seen in Southeast Asia

 

I visited Southeast Asia in September of 1989, flying Singapore Airlines from Los Angeles to Singapore, and back.  This flight of 9000 miles took 18 hours and required a stop in Japan for refueling.  Basically, I visited three cities in Southeast Asia:  Singapore, Singapore; Bangkok, Thailand; and Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia.  For Bangkok, I went with a Chinese party on a prearranged tour.  I don't recall what airline we used.  For Bali, I flew Garuda Indonesia, the premier Indonesian line, from Singapore.  In addition, I took a very short bus ride up to Melaka, Malaysia.

When I was living in Honolulu, in 1986 and 1987, I noticed that, in the summer, Singapore and Honolulu always have the same temperatures, but, in winter, when Honolulu cools off perceptibly, Singapore, which is less than 100 miles from the Equator, remains warm, so as soon as I got a chance, I went to Singapore, with an eye to a possible move.  Singapore is too expensive for me though.  Honolulu would also have been too expensive for me ordinarily, but I camped out in Hawaii.  One daren't camp out in Singapore however, with its draconian legal system, which includes stiff fines, hard labor, and corporal and capital punishment.  Despite this, I enjoyed Singapore, which is a bustling modern city.

 

 

View of Downtown Singapore

 

Singapore is a country, a city and an island, and is often referred to as Singapore, Singapore.  Its area is about that of the city of Chicago, and its population slightly less.  It was once a part of Malaysia, but since 1959, has been independent.  It is separated by the Straits of Johor from Johor Baru, the city on the tip of the Malaysian peninsula.  A causeway connects the two, enabling you to go by bus, but you have to pass through customs on both sides when you go and again when you return.

Singapore has many, many bookstores, and I found the Chinese books so intriguing that as soon as I got back to Los Angeles, where I was then living, I began to study Chinese.  This would enable me to make an extended, unescorted tour of China several years later.  So my visit was not a wated effort, although I abandoned any idea of moving to Singapore.

 

 

Chinese Books

 

I proceeded to Bangkok, Thailand after an informative visit to Singapore.  Reaching temples. markets and other spots in Bangkok often requires motorboating down the Chaopraya River.

 

 

The Chaopraya River in Bangkok, Thailand

 

One unforgettable sight in Bangkok is the Temple of the Reclining Buddha.  A statue of Buddha 150 feet long occupies almost the entire temple, leaving a corridor that surrounds it, along which worshippers and visitors may walk.

 

 

The Temple of the Reclining Buddha,

 in Bangkok, Thailand

 

Another memorable sight near Bangkok is the crocodile farm in Samutprakan.  Dozens of crocodiles are kept in deep pits, where mere boys with poles run back and forth poking them to make them move.  Crocodiles cannot turn their necks and cannot bite a standing leg.

 

 

 

Crocodile Farm in Samutprakan, Thailand

 

Bali is an island and a province of Indonesia, immediately east of Java.  The capital is Denpasar, where the local population practises Hinduism, though most of Indonesia practises Islam.  The Hindus conquered first, and then the Muslims conquered centuries later, but they didn't reach Bali, which never switched to Islam therefore.  But whatever their religion, Balinese are just as friendly as can be.  If you walk down the road in Bali, absolutely everyone will greet you.  Imagine expecting anyone to greet you in Pittsburgh or St. Louis!  At Padang Tegal, near Denpasar, there's a monkey sanctuary.  You are allowed to visit and feed the monkeys, but not to pet or touch them.  However, monkeys kept by private people are pets, and they respond very affectionately to being patted and fondled.

 

 

Mother and Baby Monkey on Bali. Indonesia

 

A fascinating sight on the island of Bali, is Pura Taman Ayun, a Hindu temple, in the town of Mengwi.  The temple is actually an enclosure of many acres that contains many buildings, like some of the ones depicted in the photo below.  Charming Balinese women come with offerings of fruit to place before images of Hindu gods.  The encircling wall has gargoyle-like masks that serve as spouts to discharge water into a moat.

 

 

 

Pura Taman Ayun Temple, in Mengwi, Bali, Indonesia

 

Bali is one of those blessed spots that has paradisical weather, better than Hawaii, as can be seen in the Table from Yahoo Weather below, which shows average highs and lows in Denpasar.  So when the temperature is 60º on Waikiki on a winter evening, with the tradewinds blowing 25 mph, one thinks kindly of Bali.

 

Month	High	Low
January	86	78
February	86	78
March	87	78
April	87	78
May	86	78
June	85	77
July	83	76
August	83	76
September	85	76
October	86	77
November	87	78
December	86	78

 

Photo Credits:

View of Downtown Singapore:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Marina_bay_new_IR.jpg

Chinese Books:

http://flickr.com/photos/38556899@N00/344060340/

The Chaopraya River in Bangkok, Thailand:

http://flickr.com/photos/hschmid/158582696/

The Temple of the Reclining Buddha, in Bangkok, Thaisland:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Reclining_Buddha_head.jpg

Crocodile Farm in Samutprakan, Thailand:

http://flickr.com/photos/gideonstone/406756959/

Mother and Baby Monkey on Bali, Indonesia:

http://flickr.com/photos/casers/118203510/

Pura Taman Ayun Temple, in Mengwi, Bali, Indonesia:

http://flickr.com/photo_zoom.gne?id=256310939&size=m