The Adventures of Little Leon and Noel: Little Leon goes to see Grandma!

Woohoo, Little Leon has just returned from seeing far away Grandma, Nothing too unusual in that you say, but when Grandma is 7000 miles away its a bit of an adventure!

Grandma. thrilled to see Little Leon!

Now, travelling with small children on holiday brings it's challenges, throw in a Life limiting / threatening condition as well and it becomes a combination of a major expedition and a medical research trip. People have questioned the wisdom of us going away on such a long trip, but for us the benefits far outweigh any risk, plus with a little research and some careful planning it can all go relatively smoothly. We had a head start in that we know the area well, knew the hospitals, plus had a small network of local people who could answer questions we couldn't find answers to from here. This was our third trip to Malaysia with Leon, and on each trip he grows more adventurous and becomes more aware of the different culture he is surrounded by.
We have a lovely hotel we stay in, great views, on the beach and in a great location for sightseeing.

View from the balcony at night

Leon spent every morning chasing Grandad, stealing his stick and throwing it in the pool for daddy to retrieve, then went nearly swimming for an hour or so (or until he turned into a smurf, despite the hot temperature). We then went out for lunch and did a bit of sightseeing before having a siesta and then going out for tea.

It;s the little things that bring the most fun, A bus trip is a whole big adventure, bringing new sights and making new friends.

Woohoo we're on a bus!

Malaysia is great for many things, Penang especially for its food. Some of the best food i have eaten has been here, its combination of Malay, Indian and chinese is irresistible and you are never more than 5 minutes away from great local hawker (street) food. Leon loves trying different ones,

although not all are to his (still developing) taste buds delight!

And what the hell was in that!

As well as the food, the wildlife is very diverse, we regularly had a Sea eagle fly past the hotel balcony

Eagle!!!

One of the trips we went on was to the butterfly farm, Leon has great fun pretending he was an adventurer in the jungle (daddy skipped the Bug bit)

Great fun was had by all.
It was great to spend uninterrupted time with family and friends, to eat, drink, laugh, such things are priceless, and with ageing grandparents, more precious every year..