Exotic Treasures of Malaysia

Selamat sejahtera my friends

So we have left beautiful Kuala Lumpur and have arrived at Penang. We decided to bus it to Penang to get a view of the road trip. It is amazing to go on bus trips in a different country since, it’s a different experience than travelling by air. Our bus ride was very comfortable and enjoyable, and It was air conditioned with all our meals provided all for RM50.

In Penang, we are staying at the Bayview Beach Resort. Its an amazing resort with our rooming giving us an ocean view.

Today we decided to visit the Tropical Spice Garden. It is South East Asia’s only dedicated spice sanctuary, the Tropical Spice Garden in Teluk Bahang is indeed paradise on earth. It’s nestled among lush green foliage, exotic ferns and flowering plants. The tropical Spice Garden has over 500 species of local and foreign flora from Malaysia and around the world. The Garden is also the home to wild animals, birds and insects.
PG and myself are from Asia and we know all about spices and their uses. so we wanted Adri to see what spices actually look like in their pure form.

The best time to there is in the morning. It's cool and quiet. All trails start at the Main Gate near the Water Garden. You see lilly's at the pond and sometimes the paths go up and sometimes down.

To explore the Spice Garden we started with the "spice trail". We followed the orange/ yellow marks on the floor. We wanted to see the tamarind, cinnamon, pepper, nutmeg, ginger, and clove. In front of each herb/spice is a little sign, which will tell you what it's used for: medicine, kitchen or as a magic potion. The trail ended where it began at the Water Garden.

We also saw cacao, the oil palm, rubber tree, wild bananas, lemon grass (I had one in my garden before my dog killed it ), nutmeg, and pepper. The nutmeg tree is evergreen, with oblong egg-shaped leaves and small, bell-like light yellow flowers that give off a distinct aroma when in bloom. The fruit is light yellow with red and green markings, resembling an apricot or a large plum. As the fruit matures, the outer fleshy covering bursts to reveal the seed. The seed is covered with red membranes called an aril, the mace portion of the nutmeg. The nut is then dried for up to two months until the inner nut rattles inside the shell. It is then shelled to reveal the valuable egg-shaped nutmeat which is the edible nutmeg. Second-rate nuts are pressed for the oil, which is used in perfumes and in the food industry.

If you watch foodnetwork.ca; Chef Michael Smith went to Grenada to see nutmeg in its actual ripe form and the different uses of it. Nutmeg is his favourite spice!

The Tropical Spice Garden gives us a good impression of the herbs, spices and plants of Malaysia. It's really worth a visit. Oh, and the souvenir shop is a one-of-a-kind boutique that carries some very interesting items made from the most popular local spices! I bought a nutmeg necklace