Villa Borghese: Enjoy the Outdoors in Rome

Taking a row in the lake surrounding the Temple of Aesculapius

Most tourists head to Rome for the ancient sites, churches, and charming but narrow streets. When you've had enough and just need a breath of fresh air and open space, head to Villa Borghese. This 148 acre park near the Spanish Steps and the Piazza del Popolo is the perfect place to run free and enjoy the outdoors in Rome, especially for kids. For centuries, it has been an oasis of greenery in a bustling metropolis.

Ipoh Road Trip: Lost World of Tambun Water Park

Cliff Racer slides at Lost World of Tambun

One of the great things about Malaysia is that you can comfortably go to water parks all year round. There's Carnivall at the Cinta Sayang Resort in Kedah and Bukit Merah Laketown Resort near Tai Ping, but my favorite one of them all is The Lost World of Tambun in Ipoh. Located about 2 hours from Penang, it's close enough for a day trip, or you can stay overnight and pair it up with a visit to Gua Tempurang Caves or white water rafting the next day before you head back. Lost World is more than just a water park, though. With a petting zoo, tiger valley, swan boats, tin valley and carnival rides, we spent the entire day there and didn't get around to doing every single activity.

Lost World impressed me with being much more organized than other Malaysian water parks and the attention they put into really setting the scene so that you feel like you're in some rediscovered lost civilization in the middle of the jungle. The natural beauty of the lush, limestone cliffs rising up around you are an added bonus. RFID (radio frequency ID) wristbands loaded with credit kept us from having to worry about carrying soggy cash around with us all day. Just scan it in at the restaurants or game booths. The locker room near the entrance was open air yet provided privacy for changing. Make sure you don't accidentally go into the prayer room. (Hey, it was labeled "Ladies", so the mistake is understandable.) The bathrooms were plentiful — one even had tadpoles living in the fountain. After my previous experience at Bukit Merah where I felt scantily clad wearing a conservative, one-piece swimsuit, I opted for a quick-dry T-shirt, swim shorts, and sports sandals for my water park attire this time. Since we were there with so many friends, my tween took off with some kids his age, and we didn't see him for the rest of the day except during their periodic check-ins.

Lots of hot tubs and soaking pools if you just want to relax

The water park seemed to have something for everyone. The steep Cliff Racer slides were the most thrilling. Consider yourself forewarned that these use different tubes (free) than the ones you rent for the rest of the park. If you leave your rental tubes at the bottom, there's a chance they won't be there when you exit. I'm a big ole scaredy cat, so I skipped the Cliff Racer but enjoyed the long Tube Raiders slides. A pirate ship watery playground proved great fun for the younger kids. Adventure River was so slow it should have been called the Catatonic River, although I'm sure my daughter didn't mind the relaxing pace. The wave pool was quite popular but large enough that we didn't feel too crowded.  Numerous hot springs soaking pools (37C to 43C), a steam cave, and the too-hot-for-me reflexology foot spa were options for those who really want a slower pace.

You'll feel like you're floating through an ancient civilization's jungle on Adventure River.

If you're tired of splashing around, you can try the animal encounters. At Tiger Valley, Siberian Tigers are feed publicly twice a day. Watch the pair wander around their enclosure in the mean time. We didn't make it to the Petting Zoo, but our friends who did seemed to enjoy it. They came face-to-face with rabbits, turtles, snakes, birds and marmosets. The star of the zoo is Ruby the Raccoon. Coming from Texas where raccoons are considered a nuisance, getting the chance to pet one seemed funny to the adult expats.



All I could think of was Richard Parker's encounter with the goat in Life of Pi by Yann Martel.



Swan Lake is next to Tiger Valley. Here, you and a partner can lazily paddle the darling swan boats around the tiny lake. I thought I spotted a faux historical village on the other shore with men in flattened conical, straw hats hard at work. When I reached that side, I realized they were just regular workmen putting together a dragon or some other decoration. Hah!

Both real swans and swan boats float on Swan Lake.

For me, one of the more fascinating parts of Lost World is Tin Valley. You can learn a little about the tin mining that was a major industry in Malaysia, once one of the world's top sources for this metal. Try your hand at panning for tin with a shallow, wooden pan downstream from the sluice boxes. If that's not enough to occupy your kids, there's always the faux elephants nearby for them to climb on. Long ago, these animals were the only way to move the heavy tin ore from the mines to the depots. We didn't have time for the Team Building activities such as the ropes course, para jump and ziplining just beyond Tin Valley. Perhaps next time.

The kids try their hand at dulang washing (panning for tin).

We ended our day riding the carnival rides and playing games. The carousel and train are perfect for little kids while those who want a little more excitement can take a spin on the Dragon Flyer or the giant swinging pirate ship of Storm Rider. My kids and their friends enjoyed winning prizes at the game booths. Just before closing time, we made our way back to the locker rooms to change into dry clothes and head into Ipoh for dinner and our hotel. All in all, it was a great weekend escape.

Dragon Flyer at Lost World of Tambun

Trying his luck

IF YOU GO:
Tiekets available online for slighly cheaper than at ticket office.
RM 38.25 for Adults
RM 32.30 for Children (12 years old and below)and Senior Citizens (55 years old and above)
Free for Children under 90cm tall.
Team Building Activities and game booths are an additional cost.
Check website for additional packages.

Operating Hours:
11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Friday
10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Sunday, Public Holidays and Malaysia School Holidays
6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Hots Springs and Spa by Night with separate admission price
Closed on Tuesdays except for Public Holidays and Malaysia School Holidays

Location:
No. 1, Persiaran Lagun Sunway 1
Sunway City Ipoh
31150 Ipoh
Perak Malaysia


Related Posts:
Bukit Merah Laketown Resort and Tai Ping Night Zoo
White Water Rafting in Perak


This post is part of Travel Photo Thursday on Budget Travelers Sandbox and Friday Daydreamin' at R We There Yet Mom? Check them out for more around-the-world travel inspiration.

Singapore Sights: Part 1

I first visited Singapore in 1997 when my dad was working there as an expat. It was my first trip to Asia, and everything seemed so exotic and different. When the kids' school had a mid-semester break last month, I couldn't wait to take them there and show them around. After living in Malaysia for a few months, my first thought upon arriving in Singapore was how much it reminded me of America. I guess it's all relative.

The Republic of Singapore is an itty-bitty city-state at the tip of the Malay peninsula. Like Penang, it was controlled by the British as part of the Straits Settlements for over a century. After gaining independence from the British, it was briefly part of Malaysia before breaking off in 1965. What a difference a few decades has made! Singapore is like the over-achieving sibling to Malaysia. They share the same heritage, but Singapore has clearly pushed itself to succeed.

Whereas Penang has a laid-back island charm, it's also a bit on the rustic side. Singapore is a glittering, big, modern city. All the signs are in English, and it's a model of efficiency. If Disney were to design a country, they would have ended up with Singapore. The mass transit system, both the subways and the buses, were easy to use and clean. After all, this is a country where chewing gum is illegal and a person can be fined for not flushing a public toilet. (I'm totally in support for that second one.)

At the airport - Good to know

Our first stop in Singapore was the amazing Science Centre Singapore where we met up with some school friends from Austin who moved here last summer. Brad and his buddy spent their last few months in America plotting to get together in Asia. I honestly think that having a friend who was also moving overseas immensely helped Brad make the transition.

This hands-on museum is huge and world-class. I really liked the Fire Tornado.

3pm performance right next to the Snack Bar,
perfect for luring in hungry patrons

Afterwards, we went back to our friends' house for dinner. Once again, it struck me how different the expat experience is between the two countries. When I asked the now stay-at-home mom what she was doing with her spare time, she replied that she's working her way through the Joy of Cooking. I was flabbergasted since it seems that I have a really hard time in Penang finding "normal" ingredients I need. She said that in Singapore, you can get almost anything as long as you don't care how much you pay. Also, they were Trick-or-Treating in a BIG way (about 1000 visitors expected to pass by their house), whereas I was still trying to figure out how to put together a little something for our Halloween in Penang.

We hit the Night Safari after dinner. This is the one thing that I loved the most from my last visit, and I highly recommend it to anyone visiting Singapore. Unlike the zoo visit in Taiping, I did not fall asleep on this tram ride. Seeing the nocturnal animals striding around was interesting, and the guide's informative and hilarious commentary kept the kids enthralled.

The next morning, we made our way to the Jurong Bird Park. The kids were immediately drawn to the penguin house, primarily because it was air-conditioned. After wrestling them out into the heat and humidity, we walked over to the 9-story-high Lorikeet Aviary. For a few dollars, you could buy a cup of liquid food and feed the birds yourself. Maria figures that the family fed almost 40 birds while we were strolling up and down the stairs and elevated walkways.

Polly does NOT want a cracker. She's on a liquid diet.

Next up was Sentosa Island where we rode the luge and chairlift. This is another must-do when visiting Singapore. When he first saw it, Brad exclaimed, "It's like Mario Kart!" Maria must have agreed because she was quite displeased that I wouldn't let her guide the luge up on the side walls of the track.

The upper portion of the track was much wider and without a lane divider.

As darkness fell, we left the island with the Merlion guiding the way. Half-fish, half-lion, the Merlion is one of the symbols of Singapore.

We ended the day at Food Republic. To bring up the Disney comparison once again, if Singapore had its own pavillion in EPCOT, Food Republic would be what the Imagineers would design. Based on the old-fashioned street food hawker centers that are all over Malaysia, this food court elevated it to new heights. I could still get a variety of Indian, Straits Chinese and Malay foods at the different stalls, but everything was so much cleaner and more sanitary than what I'm accustomed to in Penang. Plus, it was beautifully decorated.

Notice the handwash station in the bottom right corner.

Stay tuned for Part 2: Universal Studios and more good eats

The Place with Orangutans and a Scantily Clad Woman

One weekend, we decided to take our first road trip to Tai Ping on the mainland, about a 90 minute drive from Penang. "What are we going to do there?" asked the kids.

"You know. We'll all get out keyboards and typewriters and type," I replied. Hilarious, right? I bet you're laughing as much as the kids were. Which is to say, not much at all.

Our first stop was the Bukit Merah Laketown Resort. It was a long holiday weekend celebrating Malaysia Day which commemorates the formation of the Malaysia Federation in 1963. So, the local tourists were out in droves, and Andrew was pretty much the only white person I saw all weekend.

The kids can barely contain their excitement. Or not.

The 3-acre Eco Park was small and contained a few native Southeast Asian animals. This way, I can accurately tell the doctor what bit me if I encounter the animal in the wild.

Bearcat

Cobra

Next, we dragged the kids on the Skycycle much against their wills. "It will be fun!" I kept insisting. "We're hot," they kept repeating. Perhaps embarking on this journey after a morning of baseball games and birthday parties wasn't the best idea.

When I originally read about the Skycyle, I assumed it would be pedaled by foot. Silly me. It turns out that 200 meters feels like a long way to hand pedal, especially the uphill parts.

After that, we visited Orangutan Island which is actually the whole reason why I wanted to come here. I first heard about it from an Australian tourist, and it immediately landed on my Malaysian Bucket List. Did you know that "orangutan" is a Malaysian word? It's a portmanteau of "orang" (man) and "hutan" (forest) meaning "man of the forest." We boarded a small boat to make our way across the lake to the island. Once we arrived, we were ushered across a bridge into a caged tunnel. Unlike a typical zoo where the animals are in cages, and the humans wander around, the situation was reversed on this island.

The highlight of the island is the Orangutan Nursery. They care for babies who are suffering from maternal neglect or an illness. With the diapers and the cribs, it seemed very much like a human nursery. Imagine what it would be like if your baby could swing around and use their feet and tails for gripping things. What's the babyproofing in there like?

So very sweet! I think my kids were having fun at this point.

After leaving Bukit Merah, we headed towards Tai Ping for our hotel and a visit to the Night Zoo. Due to an overly long dinner and the 2 busloads of tourists that arrived just before us, we weren't able to board the Night Zoo tram until 10 p.m.

Kernel Corn is a BIG snack food in Malaysia. It's even an ice cream topping.

By this time, I think we were all rather tired. I actually fell asleep. This is what it must be like to be a toddler napping in her stroller. I'd momentarily wake up, look around and see an alligator or porcupine or whatever and then fall back asleep.

Okay, I know this picture isn't very good, but it represents my brain fog at the time.

The next day, we returned to Bukit Merah to enjoy their waterpark and chairlift. At first, I declared that chairlifts were useless if one didn't have skis strapped to their feet and snow on the ground, but the kids kept begging. After I caved and rode it, I'll admit that it's actually a pleasant way to see the sights. This was probably the best part of the trip for my younguns.

The waterpark was small but had enough activities to entertain us for a few hours. The kids seemed to enjoy the Giant Wet Bubble which was an inflated 20-foot-high bouncy dome with a water mushroom on top. The most memorable part for me is that I was the one and only woman in a bathing suit. The crowd was predominantly Muslim, so all those women had on headscarves, shirts that reached down to their wrists and pants that went down to their ankles. No, there were no burkas since I imagine that would be rather hard to manage in a waterpark. There were a few Chinese women wearing shorts and T-shirts. And then there was me as the most scantily clad woman around. Me in my Lands End one-piece that I selected because I thought a small child could hang off the front and still not reveal anything was the one showing the most skin. Fortunately, no one seemed to be gawking at me or else I would have been even more self conscious. Note that there is not an accompanying picture for this part of the story.

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