Melaka was my favourite stop in Malaysia, such a pretty town. It is a bit schizophrenic in style - it has at various points in history been under the control of the Portuguese, Dutch and British and it blends these influences with those of the Malay, Chinese and Indian population. The town centre is a collection of red buildings (the red paint being a Dutch contribution) with a pretty fountain dedicated to Queen Victoria, a miniature windmill and some Portuguese-...

There is so much to see and do in Kuala Lumpur and I only had a day and a half so I barely scratched the surface. We had a luxury bus ride from Cameron Highlands - the fanciest bus I've ever been on, more like business class on an airplane but without the flight attendants. When we arrived Nigel took us for a quick walk around and we saw many different aspects of the city - a Hindu temple, a Chinese temple, a church, a mosque, modern skyscrapers, a park with foun...

After a very rocky bus ride through the mountains we arrived in Cameron Highlands, the 'bread basket of Malaysia'. On the way we passed lots of farms on the hillsides - vegetables, flowers and tea are the three main industries here and they export vegetables throughout Malaysia and flowers all over Asia and the Middle East. The strawberry trade in particular seems to have become a local obsession - there are images of strawberries and strawberry souvenirs all ove...

Penang is an eclectic mix of cultures - it was colonised by the British in the 1700s though the bulk of population is made up of ethnic Malaysian, Chinese and Indian people. Many of the buildings that are crammed into the narrow streets have been around since colonial times and are small, pretty and European in style, mostly occupied by Chinese and Indian shops/restaurants (though most things are also written in English and everyone speaks English). It's refreshi...