When Adventure Calls You Have to Answer!
Some times you find IT; some times it finds YOU!
We were recently invited by one of our Malaysian fans to his “Jungle Home,” as he described it, which is in the north of the country near Penang. When we get such offers we never know how to take it, or if its real or bogus. This kind invitation from Steven was very real, and he sent us his link to the property from Workaway, one of the platforms we like, and told us that he has been splitting time between his jungle retreat and Singapore for two decades. He built it alongside a beautiful waterfall which tends to get clogged with runoff trash, so he invites people in to stay—for free—in exchange for helping to keep the river free of debris.
Fair trade.
It’s a nice four hour train ride north from KL to Penang, then a 20 minute drive to the jungle, which is reasonable, so we bought our train ticket and were lucky enough to sit with two awesome local ladies, Jenny and Melinda, from KL. We talked most of the time, and shared experiences, and we looked at that as being a good sign! Steven picked us up at the train station (Sungai Petani), where we also met Sofia, another guest from Morocco, who was also there on a Workaway exchange. The lodge was a little primitive (like glamping), but we had a bed to sleep in, a nice shower, and access to a kitchen, but the best part was that it was built literally on top of a beautiful waterfall—which actually kept us up at night! Kat and I always wanted to frolic (!) under a waterfall, so we can cross that off of our bucket list.
Even with the nighttime noise (and surprisingly lack of bugs!), our two days there were lovely, and we met two of his longtime friends, Rudy and Nishi, also from Singapore, and we all bonded like a new international family! Kat and I have been saying for a while that we needed a break “back to nature,” and as much as we enjoy meeting other expats and sharing experiences, it is always a pleasure to meet locals and learn about their history and experiences, too.
That invitation got me thinking about other adventures that fell on our laps—or ones where we invited others to a fun time, and recalled Kat and my surprise trip to the Amalfi coast in 2019. This was only our second lodging after leaving America in February of that year, and we loved Tivoli, Italy, a small medieval town about 20 minutes east of Rome. The town dates back to 1200 BCE and really brought home (to me) how old the WORLD is compared to the one I had lived in for 6.5 decades. Tivoli is small, about 50,000 people, and not a huge tourism spot, and we were there in April, at the tail end of winter, just as spring was warming things up. Kat and I always keep our ears open to English speakers in the street, and many times we start conversations, and some of them become friendships.
That is how we met Chad and Eileen, from Rhode Island, who were finishing up their Italy tour in Tivoli. We shared a pizza one night, and compared notes on travel, which was still very new to us. They were due to leave a few days later, so we made plans to meet them for coffee on their way out. They had a rental car and said they were heading south to the Amalfi Coast, and my ears picked up. Non-bashful me jokingly said, “You have a four-seater, right?” to which Eileen replied, “YES, we do—come join us!” It took less than a minute for Kat and me to say YES, and since they were due to leave in an hour or so, we scurried home, packed an overnight bag, and met them back at the car.
It was about a three hour drive, and it was magnificent! Green was erupting everywhere, while snow still covered the many mountains we drove past. This was my first time in Amalfi, Kat’s second, and, like any other newbie, I was breathless from the views and the homes built on the cliffs. We had dinner, got a hotel room, and the next day we visited Positano and moved on to nearby Sorrento, where we spent night two, and the next day they parted ways. Kat and I ventured out on our own, took a ferry over to Naples, and later, a train home.
Adventure called us, and we were brave enough to answer it, and venture into the unknown. This was one of the few times we traveled with someone, and that took me awhile to get used to.
We’ve had other adventures like this, maybe not quite as grand, and one in 2022 involved our trip to Egypt. Kat and I were living in Albania, and we met lots of Americans there, made several friends, including Steve and Kathy, who were just dabbling in the nomadic pool. During one of our conversations about future travels, we told them we were heading to Egypt in a few weeks, and planned to visit Cairo, Luxor, and (Abu Simbel) Aswan Dam. They were intrigued and asked if they could join us, and Kat and I willingly said YES. We all got along, and this was only the second time that we traveled with another couple, but it was a good move. We got to Cairo first and they met us at the airport as we left for Luxor a few days later. We did the customary tours, which were mind blowing, and all experienced a hot air balloon for the first time over the Valley of the Kings, and it was nice sharing our enthusiasm with theirs.
A few days later we moved on to Aswan to the south, took the bus tour, and later in the day, we all parted, as Kat and I took the overnight train back to Cairo, and they started heading home to the US. In this case we initiated the adventure, and that’s OK, sometimes it just happens!
BREAKING NEWS: Some friends we met in Vietnam surprised us by sharing that they bought a hotel in Siem Reap (Angkor Wat), Cambodia, and insisted we come to visit. How could we refuse?? That will fill the void we had between leaving Asia and heading to Europe in April, and it will be fun spending a month or so exploring Cambodia, which is still mostly unknown to us.
Adventures are out there! Sometimes you have to look, but mostly you must be ready to receive what the Universe may offer you.
(What a great gift for your folks, or kids!!)
PS: I mentioned this special perk for our Travel Younger Founding members— an advance tour of the Merdeka 118 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia—the second tallest building in the world! Two magazines, International Living and Matador Network have commissioned me to write articles on our visit, and I’m inviting paid Founding members to watch the video when it is released.
It won’t be open until next year (at the earliest), and Kat and I were able to get in, and you all get a tour, too. If you’re not a subscriber, just hit the “subscribe” button and you’re in. You can pay monthly or one annual fee. And thanks!
The view from the top
Enjoy Siem Reap! It's a fabulous place.