Chapter 19 Malaysia
The Fokker "Friendship" called at Malacca, Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh on its way to Penang, and our obliging hostess offered sweets for each take-off and landing - a total of eight-mints as well as sundry sandwiches and cups of tea. This was my third breakfast, since, after a light meal before leaving the flat at six that morning, I had spent the waiting time at Singapore Airport in the snack-bar, mainly to enjoy its upholstered seats instead of the wooden benches in the departure area.
The "Friendship" flew at about 15,000 feet altitude and though suffering more turbulence than the high-flying jets, it did provide a spectacular view of Malaya’s wooded mountains and of the pale green and brown scars of the tin mines. I had assumed that a tin mine, like a coal mine, would be a shaft drilled vertically down into the ground, but here, tin mining is a dredging and washing process, leaving pools and sandy areas which stand out vividly against the prevailing carpet of dark, luxuriant green.
It was lunchtime when we landed at Penang and I was entertained to an Indian meal in which I identified curried goat and giant fresh-water prawns as thick as my wrist.
Penang is a popular holiday island with many fine beaches and with sea breezes to temper the tropical heat. In George Town, the capital, the two best known hotels provide a complete contrast in styles, since the Eastern and Oriental is in the old tradition, and is one of a number in the East said to have been mentioned in Somerset Maugham's stories, while the Ambassador has only recently opened and offers smartness and sophistication.