High-rise Kuala Lumpur is Malaysia's commercial powerhouse. Most people jet in for the sandy beaches of Langkawi and remote east-coast islands. Look beyond to discover historic cities, untamed jungle, fertile highlands and the tastiest Asian cuisines.
* Cityscape
* Landscape
* Take Home
* Eat & Drink
* New Perspective
Cityscape
Whiz the soaring Petronas Twin Towers and KL Tower in Kuala Lumpur. Travel north for the jumble of dazzlingly white British colonial remnants and Chinese temples of Georgetown and explore Thai-influenced Alor Setar. Go south to Melaka for its unique blend of Straits Chinese, Dutch and Portuguese buildings, and head east to Sarawak for Kuching's Victorian villas and river warehouses.
Landscape
Follow the walking trails of the cool Cameron Highlands, visiting tea plantations along the way. Explore steamy jungle in the vast Taman Negara. Snorkel over colourful coral reefs off Pulau Perhentian or take a boat trip around forest-fringed Lake Kenyir. Visit the tribal longhouses of Sarawak and see Sabah from the summit of remote wildlife haven of Mount Kinabalu.
Take Home
Shop for bargain electronics in Kuala Lumpur, pewter in Penang, tea in the Cameron Highlands and antiques in Melaka. Buy batik and songket (a rich fabric woven with gold thread) at factory outlets in Kuala Terengganu. Stock up on silver jewellery in Kota Bharu, duty-free alcohol in Langkawi, and tribal handcrafts in Kuching and Tanah Rata.
Eat & Drink
Try Straits Chinese dishes curry Kapitan (chicken in spiced coconut-milk) in Melaka and laksa penang (sour fish soup) in Penang. Twirl tastebuds with nasi kerabu (blue rice) in Kelantan or kerepok (fish-paste crackers) in Terengganu. Enjoy Indian murtabak (stuffed pancakes) all over Malaysia. Round up with a glass of cendol (coconut milk with rice jelly).
New Perspective
Swim with the sharks at Aquaria KLCC, help out with turtle conservation at the Ma' Daerah Turtle Sanctuary in Terengganu. Trek through Malaysia's newest, and smallest, national park in Penang.
Saturday, June 2, 2007
Friday, June 1, 2007
Malaysia Langkawi Report
Malaysia Travel Guide: A short
Prelude
We first traveled to Malaysia in November 2000 but back then we only had a short stop in Kuala Lumpur. This time we also wanted to try out a couple of beach destinations. We decided to go to Langkawi as it was a well established beach destination and we figured that it would be what we needed after being "adventurous" by going to Perhentian Island.
Planning the trip
Langkawi is a pretty well established beach destination and we know several people who have been there. The island is located on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia towards the border to Thailand. It is pretty easy to get there as both AirAsia and Malaysia Airlines has a service from KL. We bought tickets from Malaysia Airlines online as that gave us the best connection when we came from Perhentian Island. We paid 484 RM for a round trip for both of us.
Our main problem was getting a hotel. We searched around quite a bit and I found it a bit hard to grasp where the best place is to be on the island. We would of course had stayed at The Datai or the Four seasons but due to the price that was out of the question :-(
In the end we decided that we wanted to stay at Pantai Chenang (Cenang beach) and that did at least narrow the search for a hotel a little. We considered Casa del Mar but it was full. In the end we went for Pelangi Beach Resort based on location and reviews . The room didn’t come very cheap, and even after researching prices with online travel agents, we ended up paying 530 RM (145 US dollars) per night for the room.
Trip from KL to Langkawi
The Lobby at Pelangi beach resortWe went to Langkawi straight from our stay at Perhentian Island. When we got back to KL we just waited at KLIA for a couple of hours before our flight took off. The flight from KL to Langkawi is only about 1 hour and we arrived at the small airport in the afternoon. But even if it is small it is busy :-) When we had landed we had to walk from the plane over to the terminal and another plane came in at the same time and parked next to us - very noisy indeed. Getting out of the airport was pretty fast and we just got a taxi and I think we paid 16 RM for it. The ride to Pelangi beach resort is not very long…I would guess less then 10 minutes.
Pelangi Beach resort
Our bed at Pelangi beach resortThe Pelangi beach hotel complex is huge. When we got there the check in was fast and efficient and we were driven to our room in a little golf car as the hotel is spread out on a fairly big area. We got room 3601 which has a lake view. Our room was located in house 36 and it contained 4 rooms on 2 levels. When we got in we saw that we had taken a step up in quality of accommodation compared to Perhentian Island resort.Wardrobe/entrance to bath room First of all the room was huge, the floor was made out of dark teak wood and the walls were a combination of dark wood and light wall paper. At the center of the room was a huge bed. I don’t think that we have had such a huge bed in any room that we have ever stayed in :-) As usual there was a desk with a chair, we had a small sofa with a little table where you could watch a small TV. The TV had channels like BBC, ESPN, Discovery etc. A door we thought led into the bathroom, actually led into the walk-in wardrobe. It contained lots of drawers, places to hang clothes, more than enough space to store our suitcases, a minibar and a kettle, a small safe, robes etc. The room had a remote controlled air conditioner :-)
From this room there was a door leading into the bathroom which was fairly small. But it was nice with tiles on the floors and walls and it contained a bath tub where you also had the option of taking a shower. As usual there were amenities like shower gel, shampoo, lotion, sewing kit etc. But I think it is the first time I have seen a shaving kit :-)
Lake view at Pelangi beach resortThere was also a door leading out from the room to a porch. Here we had a nice view of the pond and a couple of fountains and there was a table and a couple of chairs. With a pond like this you would think that there would be a mosquito problem. Well, it seemed like they solved this with "chemical warfare"…a little golf car drove around one evening and sprayed out a thick smoke…I can not imagine that it is very healthy for humans either. But it seemed to help as we didn't really experience a problem with mosquitoes.
One of the pools at Pelangi beach resortAs I mentioned to start off with the hotel covers a huge area. There are maps on the paths around the hotel area so you don’t have to worry about getting lost :-). There are two pools to choose from and we tried the cascade pool a couple of times. You get a complimentary towel near the pool and then you can just jump in. The cascade pool had a couple of water falls, a slide for kids etc. Both of the pool areas were very nice as you can see from the pictures.
There are several restaurants on the hotel grounds but I can only comment on the Horizon pool bar where we had a pizza on the first night. The pizza was OK and cost 16 RM and the half a bottle of red wine was 40 RM. We also had breakfast in the room one day. The breakfast itself was not great but the selection of fresh fruits that we ordered on the side was amazing.
Cascade pool at Pelangi beach resortGo to the hotel lobby to get more information about hotel activities. We rented a car through the hotel for a day for 160 RM. The receptionists in the hotel lobby can also arrange snorkel trips, mangrove trips, recommend restaurants etc. When it comes to activities it is probably cheaper to book elsewhere. We booked a snorkel trip from a local shop down the road and saved a bit of money. There is a fitness club at the hotel where you can play squash, rent a bike to get around etc. The only thing I was not very impressed with at the hotel was the minigolf course. It was in bad need of a facelift.
The location of the hotel is quite good. Located on the north end of the beach Pantai Cenang it is easy to get to all the restaurants that are located on the beach strip, access to places like Underwater world and tax-free shopping. There is a taxi stand right outside the hotel so if you don’t feel like walking it is easy to get a taxi.
The beach at Pelangi beach resortI think that there is only one problem with Pelangi Beach Resort…the beach itself is not very good. Yes, it looks pretty nice but very few people were swimming when we first came there. In the end I decided that I had to try the water to check out what the problem was. First of all it was low tide so you can walk very far before the water gets to knee height. The second problem is that the sea bed is made up of lots of tiny broken shells in addition to sand so it can be a bit uncomfortable to walk on it. So most of the people at the hotel seemed to prefer to relax at the poolside instead.
The Pelangi beach resort is a nice enough hotel to relax in for a few days. The hotel has lots to offer when it comes to activities and it is located close to the rest of the shops and restaurants at the Pantai Cenang beach. The price level seems to be higher here - if you look at accommodation and alcohol and the beaches were unfortunately not that great.
Checking out Langkawi
We started our first morning by just checking out our local neighborhood: Cenang beach. There are lots of hotels along the beach and you can also find shops, restaurants, minimarts, internet cafes etc. I’m not sure how long the beach is but we didn’t have any problem walking back to the hotel at night after we had been to a restaurant on the far side of the beach.
Underwater World
Underwater worldOn the first morning we walked towards the middle of the beach and we stumbled upon Underwater World which is one of the attractions on the beach. Since the weather was not all the great - a bit cloudy and rainy but still warm and humid - we decided to check it out. So we paid about 36RM per person for the entrance and went in.I'm not really sure what kind of animal this is As the name indicates this is an aquarium but it also contains other animals, birds, snakes, tortoises, seals etc. There is also a separate penguin section that was pretty fun. There is also a 3D cinema in the place and it is included in the entrance fee. But the 3D show was not very impressive I’m afraid. We have seen far better 3D shows in South Africa and different amusement parks in the States. Posing in the Artic section of the aquariumBe careful not to use the flash on some of the aquariums by the way. I found it a bit funny to find a note on the sea horse aquarium saying that you should avoid using flash or else the poor sea horse can die of shock! With 5000 types of aquatic life, 100 different tanks and with a 15 meter tunnel when you can watch sting rays, sharks etc this is a place that is fun to check out for a couple of hours. Try to time it so that you can check out when they are feeding the seals and penguins. I think it takes place between 10-11 and 3-4 pm.
Australian VB beerThere is also a taxfree shop in the Underwater world complex. From what I understand Langkawi has been made into a duty free zone. So it is possible to buy alcohol, cigarettes, perfume etc at relatively reasonable prices on the island. The shop had a pretty good selection of SE Asian and Pacific beer so it was possible to get everything from Australian VB to Japanese Asahi.I have a colleague who enjoyes VB so that it the reason for this shot of me from the store :-)
Getting around the island
Our rental car from the hotelThe island of Langkawi is not very big so you can easily get around it on a scooter or in a car. There are lots of places on Cenang beach where you can rent either. We decided to just rent at the hotel to make sure that every insurance was in place and day price of 160RM (about 45 $) was not really that bad.
Eagle square at the jetty in Kuah. LangkawiWe started by driving towards the town of Kuah located on the south east tip of the island. This is the only town on the island and we stopped to check it out for a few minutes since it was raining. There is more duty free shopping at the island’s largest mall “Langkawi Fair Shopping Mall”….according to a young local girl this was the only place in town for shopping. We also walked through the park Taman Lagenda to get to Eagle square. According to local folklore the name Langkawi means reddish brown eagle and as a symbol of this a huge eagle statue has been constructed near the jetty in Kuah. Taman Lagenda park also has a number of statues and monuments that tell local myths and legends.
Durian Perangin waterfall at LangkawiWe continued our drive north on the island and stopped by a waterfall called Durian Perangin on the way. It was starting to get really hot so we decided to buy an ice cold soda. At this place they served it the way it is done in some places in Asia….in a plastic bag with lots of ice cubes to cool it down and you drink it with a straw J We started walking on the path towards the waterfall and this your fellow started walking with us explaining about the area. The poor guy looked a bit disappointed when I explained that we wanted to walk on our own. It was not a long walk and the waterfall was not much of a sight as I guess March is not really part of the rainy season…so it was pretty much dried up.
Re-acting the Lonely Planet opening seen at Tanjung Rhu beachWe continued our drive and we drove out towards the Tanjung Rhu beach. The beach here was quite deserted and our only company was a few cows! We also regularly crossed paths with the same tourists making a similar island discovery. We made a short stop at the Craft and Culture center located not far away but we didn’t stay long as the place needs to be explored at a leisurely pace and we were getting worn out from driving all day.
Cable car to Mount Mat Cincang
The view from the cable car as we were going upBefore we went to Langkawi I had heard about the cable car located on the north west corner of the island. So when we were out driving we decided that we wanted to check it out and enjoy the view. We just followed the signs to get there and we paid about 15 RM per person for the tickets. The cable cars were quite tiny and the first stretch only has two towers so on the last leg you can see how the cable hangs down due to the weight and it felt a lot steeper than 42 degrees. View to the first cable car stationWe reached the first station at 650 meter above sea level and we went straight to the second leg which took us all the way to the top at 705 meters. At the top there are a couple of huge observation decks. When we were there one of the two decks was closed to the public thanks to a Bollywood production and the same goes for a bridge that is suspended over the jungle forest near the top. It was a bit cloudy the day we went there so some of the view was spoiled by that…I bet the view is amazing on clear days. Observation bridge at the top of the mountainThe trip down was as exciting as the trip up. I normally don’t have a problem with heights but I was a bit freaked out by these small cable cars, the high inclination and the wind that was swaying the cars. But as they say…you always make it down somehow….we made it down the safe way. But right after we came down the whole thing stopped for a minute. I bet the people were stuck in a cable car at the highest point were getting a bit nervous. At the bottom there is a tiny zoo of sorts. Well, I guess calling it a zoo is stretching it - it was more of a petting zoo with a deer and rabbits….lots of rabbits :-)
That was the end of our drive around the island. Before we handed back the car we had to find a gas station at night to fill up the tank. We found one about 10 minutes from the beach (there are some places on the beach as well but those were the old type…a barrel and a hand pump). When we came to the station I was a bit surprised to see that the station was operated by 4 Malay women and there was a bit of communication confusion as I didn’t understand if I was going to fill up the tank myself or if they were doing it for me :-)
Swimming with sharks – snorkeling at Payar
Boat taking us to Pulau PayarAlthough we had just come from Perhentian Island we still wanted to do some more snorkeling. So we kept an eye on the weather forecast and decided to go on a trip to Pulau Payar marine park. We also looked into going to a place called Butang Islands but that seemed more out of the way, required passports (which Nikki had forgotten in KL with our hosts) and was more expensive. We decided to go with the company East Marine and we paid 160 RM per person for the trip. We booked at a small booking agent place as it was slightly cheaper than booking at the hotel (the hotel was 180 RM)
The beach at Pulau PayarWe were picked up at about 8 am in a small mini bus and we drove to towards Kuah town. On the way we picked up a few other people that were going on the snorkeling trip as well. In situations with lots of strangers in a car there can be a bit of an awkward silence where everybody just whispers in their own languages. The silence in our car was punctured when we picked up a young local girl. View to the boat from the beach at Pulau PayarI think she was half Malaysian/half German and we had barely closed the door before she was like “OK, where are you guys from?” :-) She had quite a talent because she kept on talking all the way from Cenang to Kuah. When we arrived at the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club we got some tea and coffee before we went onboard the big boat Saga Ekspres. The trip out to Payar took about 45 minutes to an hour. On the boat snorkeling equipment was handed out but we had brought our own stuff.
When we first arrived I was a bit disappointed…it did of course look a lot more commercialized compared to what we had experienced in Perhentian Island. But as soon we got into the water and swam out a bit, the snorkeling was not bad at all. As usual there were lots of colorful fish, corals and some sort of sea urchins with long spikes. The kids had great fun just staying in the shallow water and they fed the small fish with bread. Gard in the water at Pulau PayarI doubt that it is good for the poor fish to eat that much bread. An ok lunch was included in the price: sandwich, some chicken pieces, spring rolls and some potato salad. After lunch they used the chicken leftovers as bait to attract black tip reef sharks. I guess they were only 1-2 meter but big enough to be just a bit scary. It was also amazing to see the speed of the barracuda when chicken was thrown into the water. Shark in the water at the beach at Pulau PayarIt came through the water like an arrow to catch the pieces! I eventually dared to get into the water while the sharks were there…and it is very exciting to swim and all of a sudden see several sharks swim a meter or two below you. They claim the reef sharks are quite harmless and we didn’t have any problems. The scariest moment came when we were snorkeling back to shore and all of a sudden we could see the barracuda looking straight at us in the water. It didn’t move at all and it just seemed to stop and stare - it was a bit freaky.
At bit before 3 pm we packed up and got on the boat again and we were transported back to Kuah and back to our hotel. The snorkeling trip was fun and it was exciting to snorkel with sharks and a barracuda.
A bug story
Nikki at the Matahari restaurant at LangkawiI have to tell a bug story from Langkawi. When you go to a tropical country you have to accept that there are more bugs than you’re used to - they also tend to be a lot larger - at least compared to where I come from :-). After a quiet Malay dinner accompanied by a few drinks, we decided to walk back to the Resort from Matahari Restaurant. At one point the narrow pavement forced us to walk one behind the other, instead of beside each other. Out of nowhere Nikki starts yelling, screaming, pointing and backing away from me. Out of concern I moved towards her and asked what was wrong. In a rather deranged state she kept backing away, pointing and insisting that I not come any closer. At this stage a local guy was watching us - must have been quite an alarming sight to start off with. After much wide eyed pointing, Nikki finally caught her breath, made eye contact with the local guy and got me to turn around. And there it was - a charcoal coloured beetle of sorts, about the size of a newborn’s clenched fist attached to the back of my white top. This is when it got amusing - for the helpful local guy and me, at least. He helped peel the beetle off - it was rather reluctant to leave its rest stop - and then I tried to keep up with Nikki as she hurried back to the Resort.
I guess you can understand Nikki’s reaction - big bug (gets bigger after each telling), white top, it’s late and she’s tired … hmmm.
Eating and drinking out
We don’t really like to eat at the hotels we stay at so we only had a pizza there the first night when we arrived as it was getting late and we were tired after a long day.
Excellent Malay food at MatahariOne of the best meals we had was at a restaurant called Matahari. This place serves Malay food and I think it was recommended in some brochures that we found at the hotel. We just went there without making a reservation andThe local wildlife at Matahari that was not a problem because it was very quiet. We got a table next to a little pond and we would see leaves move all the time and hear water splashes. It turned out that there were lots of colourful frogs that were crawling around. When we first saw the waitress she looked like quite a foxy lady. When she came over to take our order I got a bit of a shock as she had a voice like a man and Nikki pointed out the closely shaved beard under the pancake makeup… But the food was great and the bill was 100 RM after we had starters, the main meal, two beers, two cocktails and juice.
Nikki chose lobster at Orkid RiaWe also ate at the seafood restaurant called Orkid Ria located on Cenang not too far from the hotel. We decided that we wanted to check out to see if it was as good as in Thailand. I think the bill came to 200 RM for a lobster, 3 big tiger prawns and beer. The meal was pretty good but I still think that the Thai seafood is better J .We also ate at Palace of India near the hotel on Cenang which was pretty OK. It was surprisingly quiet along the Cenang beach. We did manage a night cap at Carey’s café - with live reggae music.
As you might get the impression of in this trip report most of our time was spent on Cenang beach. It is not that long so you can walk a lot to get around. But you can also get a taxi and we think we paid 5-8 RM to get from one end of the beach to the other.
If you need an internet café you should not have any problems finding one. The best one we tried was a place called TCY International Travel & Tours located across the street from Underwater world. We spent an hour using two PC’s and I think that we paid 8 RM. The guy than runs the place was really friendly. When we sat down he brought us a cup of water. We had to take of the shoes before we came into the café and it looked like he had half of the neighborhood over to watch TV J
Conclusion
On March 29th we just relaxed by the pool at the hotel before we checked out and went over to the airport to fly back to KL.
Nikki and Gard at Pulau PayarWe had a nice stay at Langkawi but I have to admit that I was a bit disappointed. Maybe my expetations were too high after Perhentian and maybe I was comparing it too much to Thailand.
I’m first of all disappointed over Cenang beach outside the Pelangi beach resort. The sea bed is filled with shells and coral so it is bit painful to walk on and the water didn’t look as aqua or clear as the east coast or neighbouring Thailand. Langkawi also seemed more on the quiet side. Maybe we were there outside the main season because all the restaurants and bars seemed pretty empty.
I have seen the question on different travel forums “Should I go to Thailand or Malaysia”. Nikki and I disagree when it comes to this question. I think that if you are just looking for a beach where you can go swimming, lots of activities, party at night then your best bet is Thailand. The hotels on Langkawi also seem to be more expensive compared to hotels on e.g. Phuket and Samui. We had to pay 145 US dollars per night for our hotel and we could have gotten cheaper deal at Hilton and Sheraton in Phuket.
Visiting Langkawi was nice and the highlight for me was snorkeling with sharks at Payar. But if we are going back to south east Asia for a beach vacation I don’t think that Langkawi would be my first option.
Prelude
We first traveled to Malaysia in November 2000 but back then we only had a short stop in Kuala Lumpur. This time we also wanted to try out a couple of beach destinations. We decided to go to Langkawi as it was a well established beach destination and we figured that it would be what we needed after being "adventurous" by going to Perhentian Island.
Planning the trip
Langkawi is a pretty well established beach destination and we know several people who have been there. The island is located on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia towards the border to Thailand. It is pretty easy to get there as both AirAsia and Malaysia Airlines has a service from KL. We bought tickets from Malaysia Airlines online as that gave us the best connection when we came from Perhentian Island. We paid 484 RM for a round trip for both of us.
Our main problem was getting a hotel. We searched around quite a bit and I found it a bit hard to grasp where the best place is to be on the island. We would of course had stayed at The Datai or the Four seasons but due to the price that was out of the question :-(
In the end we decided that we wanted to stay at Pantai Chenang (Cenang beach) and that did at least narrow the search for a hotel a little. We considered Casa del Mar but it was full. In the end we went for Pelangi Beach Resort based on location and reviews . The room didn’t come very cheap, and even after researching prices with online travel agents, we ended up paying 530 RM (145 US dollars) per night for the room.
Trip from KL to Langkawi
The Lobby at Pelangi beach resortWe went to Langkawi straight from our stay at Perhentian Island. When we got back to KL we just waited at KLIA for a couple of hours before our flight took off. The flight from KL to Langkawi is only about 1 hour and we arrived at the small airport in the afternoon. But even if it is small it is busy :-) When we had landed we had to walk from the plane over to the terminal and another plane came in at the same time and parked next to us - very noisy indeed. Getting out of the airport was pretty fast and we just got a taxi and I think we paid 16 RM for it. The ride to Pelangi beach resort is not very long…I would guess less then 10 minutes.
Pelangi Beach resort
Our bed at Pelangi beach resortThe Pelangi beach hotel complex is huge. When we got there the check in was fast and efficient and we were driven to our room in a little golf car as the hotel is spread out on a fairly big area. We got room 3601 which has a lake view. Our room was located in house 36 and it contained 4 rooms on 2 levels. When we got in we saw that we had taken a step up in quality of accommodation compared to Perhentian Island resort.Wardrobe/entrance to bath room First of all the room was huge, the floor was made out of dark teak wood and the walls were a combination of dark wood and light wall paper. At the center of the room was a huge bed. I don’t think that we have had such a huge bed in any room that we have ever stayed in :-) As usual there was a desk with a chair, we had a small sofa with a little table where you could watch a small TV. The TV had channels like BBC, ESPN, Discovery etc. A door we thought led into the bathroom, actually led into the walk-in wardrobe. It contained lots of drawers, places to hang clothes, more than enough space to store our suitcases, a minibar and a kettle, a small safe, robes etc. The room had a remote controlled air conditioner :-)
From this room there was a door leading into the bathroom which was fairly small. But it was nice with tiles on the floors and walls and it contained a bath tub where you also had the option of taking a shower. As usual there were amenities like shower gel, shampoo, lotion, sewing kit etc. But I think it is the first time I have seen a shaving kit :-)
Lake view at Pelangi beach resortThere was also a door leading out from the room to a porch. Here we had a nice view of the pond and a couple of fountains and there was a table and a couple of chairs. With a pond like this you would think that there would be a mosquito problem. Well, it seemed like they solved this with "chemical warfare"…a little golf car drove around one evening and sprayed out a thick smoke…I can not imagine that it is very healthy for humans either. But it seemed to help as we didn't really experience a problem with mosquitoes.
One of the pools at Pelangi beach resortAs I mentioned to start off with the hotel covers a huge area. There are maps on the paths around the hotel area so you don’t have to worry about getting lost :-). There are two pools to choose from and we tried the cascade pool a couple of times. You get a complimentary towel near the pool and then you can just jump in. The cascade pool had a couple of water falls, a slide for kids etc. Both of the pool areas were very nice as you can see from the pictures.
There are several restaurants on the hotel grounds but I can only comment on the Horizon pool bar where we had a pizza on the first night. The pizza was OK and cost 16 RM and the half a bottle of red wine was 40 RM. We also had breakfast in the room one day. The breakfast itself was not great but the selection of fresh fruits that we ordered on the side was amazing.
Cascade pool at Pelangi beach resortGo to the hotel lobby to get more information about hotel activities. We rented a car through the hotel for a day for 160 RM. The receptionists in the hotel lobby can also arrange snorkel trips, mangrove trips, recommend restaurants etc. When it comes to activities it is probably cheaper to book elsewhere. We booked a snorkel trip from a local shop down the road and saved a bit of money. There is a fitness club at the hotel where you can play squash, rent a bike to get around etc. The only thing I was not very impressed with at the hotel was the minigolf course. It was in bad need of a facelift.
The location of the hotel is quite good. Located on the north end of the beach Pantai Cenang it is easy to get to all the restaurants that are located on the beach strip, access to places like Underwater world and tax-free shopping. There is a taxi stand right outside the hotel so if you don’t feel like walking it is easy to get a taxi.
The beach at Pelangi beach resortI think that there is only one problem with Pelangi Beach Resort…the beach itself is not very good. Yes, it looks pretty nice but very few people were swimming when we first came there. In the end I decided that I had to try the water to check out what the problem was. First of all it was low tide so you can walk very far before the water gets to knee height. The second problem is that the sea bed is made up of lots of tiny broken shells in addition to sand so it can be a bit uncomfortable to walk on it. So most of the people at the hotel seemed to prefer to relax at the poolside instead.
The Pelangi beach resort is a nice enough hotel to relax in for a few days. The hotel has lots to offer when it comes to activities and it is located close to the rest of the shops and restaurants at the Pantai Cenang beach. The price level seems to be higher here - if you look at accommodation and alcohol and the beaches were unfortunately not that great.
Checking out Langkawi
We started our first morning by just checking out our local neighborhood: Cenang beach. There are lots of hotels along the beach and you can also find shops, restaurants, minimarts, internet cafes etc. I’m not sure how long the beach is but we didn’t have any problem walking back to the hotel at night after we had been to a restaurant on the far side of the beach.
Underwater World
Underwater worldOn the first morning we walked towards the middle of the beach and we stumbled upon Underwater World which is one of the attractions on the beach. Since the weather was not all the great - a bit cloudy and rainy but still warm and humid - we decided to check it out. So we paid about 36RM per person for the entrance and went in.I'm not really sure what kind of animal this is As the name indicates this is an aquarium but it also contains other animals, birds, snakes, tortoises, seals etc. There is also a separate penguin section that was pretty fun. There is also a 3D cinema in the place and it is included in the entrance fee. But the 3D show was not very impressive I’m afraid. We have seen far better 3D shows in South Africa and different amusement parks in the States. Posing in the Artic section of the aquariumBe careful not to use the flash on some of the aquariums by the way. I found it a bit funny to find a note on the sea horse aquarium saying that you should avoid using flash or else the poor sea horse can die of shock! With 5000 types of aquatic life, 100 different tanks and with a 15 meter tunnel when you can watch sting rays, sharks etc this is a place that is fun to check out for a couple of hours. Try to time it so that you can check out when they are feeding the seals and penguins. I think it takes place between 10-11 and 3-4 pm.
Australian VB beerThere is also a taxfree shop in the Underwater world complex. From what I understand Langkawi has been made into a duty free zone. So it is possible to buy alcohol, cigarettes, perfume etc at relatively reasonable prices on the island. The shop had a pretty good selection of SE Asian and Pacific beer so it was possible to get everything from Australian VB to Japanese Asahi.I have a colleague who enjoyes VB so that it the reason for this shot of me from the store :-)
Getting around the island
Our rental car from the hotelThe island of Langkawi is not very big so you can easily get around it on a scooter or in a car. There are lots of places on Cenang beach where you can rent either. We decided to just rent at the hotel to make sure that every insurance was in place and day price of 160RM (about 45 $) was not really that bad.
Eagle square at the jetty in Kuah. LangkawiWe started by driving towards the town of Kuah located on the south east tip of the island. This is the only town on the island and we stopped to check it out for a few minutes since it was raining. There is more duty free shopping at the island’s largest mall “Langkawi Fair Shopping Mall”….according to a young local girl this was the only place in town for shopping. We also walked through the park Taman Lagenda to get to Eagle square. According to local folklore the name Langkawi means reddish brown eagle and as a symbol of this a huge eagle statue has been constructed near the jetty in Kuah. Taman Lagenda park also has a number of statues and monuments that tell local myths and legends.
Durian Perangin waterfall at LangkawiWe continued our drive north on the island and stopped by a waterfall called Durian Perangin on the way. It was starting to get really hot so we decided to buy an ice cold soda. At this place they served it the way it is done in some places in Asia….in a plastic bag with lots of ice cubes to cool it down and you drink it with a straw J We started walking on the path towards the waterfall and this your fellow started walking with us explaining about the area. The poor guy looked a bit disappointed when I explained that we wanted to walk on our own. It was not a long walk and the waterfall was not much of a sight as I guess March is not really part of the rainy season…so it was pretty much dried up.
Re-acting the Lonely Planet opening seen at Tanjung Rhu beachWe continued our drive and we drove out towards the Tanjung Rhu beach. The beach here was quite deserted and our only company was a few cows! We also regularly crossed paths with the same tourists making a similar island discovery. We made a short stop at the Craft and Culture center located not far away but we didn’t stay long as the place needs to be explored at a leisurely pace and we were getting worn out from driving all day.
Cable car to Mount Mat Cincang
The view from the cable car as we were going upBefore we went to Langkawi I had heard about the cable car located on the north west corner of the island. So when we were out driving we decided that we wanted to check it out and enjoy the view. We just followed the signs to get there and we paid about 15 RM per person for the tickets. The cable cars were quite tiny and the first stretch only has two towers so on the last leg you can see how the cable hangs down due to the weight and it felt a lot steeper than 42 degrees. View to the first cable car stationWe reached the first station at 650 meter above sea level and we went straight to the second leg which took us all the way to the top at 705 meters. At the top there are a couple of huge observation decks. When we were there one of the two decks was closed to the public thanks to a Bollywood production and the same goes for a bridge that is suspended over the jungle forest near the top. It was a bit cloudy the day we went there so some of the view was spoiled by that…I bet the view is amazing on clear days. Observation bridge at the top of the mountainThe trip down was as exciting as the trip up. I normally don’t have a problem with heights but I was a bit freaked out by these small cable cars, the high inclination and the wind that was swaying the cars. But as they say…you always make it down somehow….we made it down the safe way. But right after we came down the whole thing stopped for a minute. I bet the people were stuck in a cable car at the highest point were getting a bit nervous. At the bottom there is a tiny zoo of sorts. Well, I guess calling it a zoo is stretching it - it was more of a petting zoo with a deer and rabbits….lots of rabbits :-)
That was the end of our drive around the island. Before we handed back the car we had to find a gas station at night to fill up the tank. We found one about 10 minutes from the beach (there are some places on the beach as well but those were the old type…a barrel and a hand pump). When we came to the station I was a bit surprised to see that the station was operated by 4 Malay women and there was a bit of communication confusion as I didn’t understand if I was going to fill up the tank myself or if they were doing it for me :-)
Swimming with sharks – snorkeling at Payar
Boat taking us to Pulau PayarAlthough we had just come from Perhentian Island we still wanted to do some more snorkeling. So we kept an eye on the weather forecast and decided to go on a trip to Pulau Payar marine park. We also looked into going to a place called Butang Islands but that seemed more out of the way, required passports (which Nikki had forgotten in KL with our hosts) and was more expensive. We decided to go with the company East Marine and we paid 160 RM per person for the trip. We booked at a small booking agent place as it was slightly cheaper than booking at the hotel (the hotel was 180 RM)
The beach at Pulau PayarWe were picked up at about 8 am in a small mini bus and we drove to towards Kuah town. On the way we picked up a few other people that were going on the snorkeling trip as well. In situations with lots of strangers in a car there can be a bit of an awkward silence where everybody just whispers in their own languages. The silence in our car was punctured when we picked up a young local girl. View to the boat from the beach at Pulau PayarI think she was half Malaysian/half German and we had barely closed the door before she was like “OK, where are you guys from?” :-) She had quite a talent because she kept on talking all the way from Cenang to Kuah. When we arrived at the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club we got some tea and coffee before we went onboard the big boat Saga Ekspres. The trip out to Payar took about 45 minutes to an hour. On the boat snorkeling equipment was handed out but we had brought our own stuff.
When we first arrived I was a bit disappointed…it did of course look a lot more commercialized compared to what we had experienced in Perhentian Island. But as soon we got into the water and swam out a bit, the snorkeling was not bad at all. As usual there were lots of colorful fish, corals and some sort of sea urchins with long spikes. The kids had great fun just staying in the shallow water and they fed the small fish with bread. Gard in the water at Pulau PayarI doubt that it is good for the poor fish to eat that much bread. An ok lunch was included in the price: sandwich, some chicken pieces, spring rolls and some potato salad. After lunch they used the chicken leftovers as bait to attract black tip reef sharks. I guess they were only 1-2 meter but big enough to be just a bit scary. It was also amazing to see the speed of the barracuda when chicken was thrown into the water. Shark in the water at the beach at Pulau PayarIt came through the water like an arrow to catch the pieces! I eventually dared to get into the water while the sharks were there…and it is very exciting to swim and all of a sudden see several sharks swim a meter or two below you. They claim the reef sharks are quite harmless and we didn’t have any problems. The scariest moment came when we were snorkeling back to shore and all of a sudden we could see the barracuda looking straight at us in the water. It didn’t move at all and it just seemed to stop and stare - it was a bit freaky.
At bit before 3 pm we packed up and got on the boat again and we were transported back to Kuah and back to our hotel. The snorkeling trip was fun and it was exciting to snorkel with sharks and a barracuda.
A bug story
Nikki at the Matahari restaurant at LangkawiI have to tell a bug story from Langkawi. When you go to a tropical country you have to accept that there are more bugs than you’re used to - they also tend to be a lot larger - at least compared to where I come from :-). After a quiet Malay dinner accompanied by a few drinks, we decided to walk back to the Resort from Matahari Restaurant. At one point the narrow pavement forced us to walk one behind the other, instead of beside each other. Out of nowhere Nikki starts yelling, screaming, pointing and backing away from me. Out of concern I moved towards her and asked what was wrong. In a rather deranged state she kept backing away, pointing and insisting that I not come any closer. At this stage a local guy was watching us - must have been quite an alarming sight to start off with. After much wide eyed pointing, Nikki finally caught her breath, made eye contact with the local guy and got me to turn around. And there it was - a charcoal coloured beetle of sorts, about the size of a newborn’s clenched fist attached to the back of my white top. This is when it got amusing - for the helpful local guy and me, at least. He helped peel the beetle off - it was rather reluctant to leave its rest stop - and then I tried to keep up with Nikki as she hurried back to the Resort.
I guess you can understand Nikki’s reaction - big bug (gets bigger after each telling), white top, it’s late and she’s tired … hmmm.
Eating and drinking out
We don’t really like to eat at the hotels we stay at so we only had a pizza there the first night when we arrived as it was getting late and we were tired after a long day.
Excellent Malay food at MatahariOne of the best meals we had was at a restaurant called Matahari. This place serves Malay food and I think it was recommended in some brochures that we found at the hotel. We just went there without making a reservation andThe local wildlife at Matahari that was not a problem because it was very quiet. We got a table next to a little pond and we would see leaves move all the time and hear water splashes. It turned out that there were lots of colourful frogs that were crawling around. When we first saw the waitress she looked like quite a foxy lady. When she came over to take our order I got a bit of a shock as she had a voice like a man and Nikki pointed out the closely shaved beard under the pancake makeup… But the food was great and the bill was 100 RM after we had starters, the main meal, two beers, two cocktails and juice.
Nikki chose lobster at Orkid RiaWe also ate at the seafood restaurant called Orkid Ria located on Cenang not too far from the hotel. We decided that we wanted to check out to see if it was as good as in Thailand. I think the bill came to 200 RM for a lobster, 3 big tiger prawns and beer. The meal was pretty good but I still think that the Thai seafood is better J .We also ate at Palace of India near the hotel on Cenang which was pretty OK. It was surprisingly quiet along the Cenang beach. We did manage a night cap at Carey’s café - with live reggae music.
As you might get the impression of in this trip report most of our time was spent on Cenang beach. It is not that long so you can walk a lot to get around. But you can also get a taxi and we think we paid 5-8 RM to get from one end of the beach to the other.
If you need an internet café you should not have any problems finding one. The best one we tried was a place called TCY International Travel & Tours located across the street from Underwater world. We spent an hour using two PC’s and I think that we paid 8 RM. The guy than runs the place was really friendly. When we sat down he brought us a cup of water. We had to take of the shoes before we came into the café and it looked like he had half of the neighborhood over to watch TV J
Conclusion
On March 29th we just relaxed by the pool at the hotel before we checked out and went over to the airport to fly back to KL.
Nikki and Gard at Pulau PayarWe had a nice stay at Langkawi but I have to admit that I was a bit disappointed. Maybe my expetations were too high after Perhentian and maybe I was comparing it too much to Thailand.
I’m first of all disappointed over Cenang beach outside the Pelangi beach resort. The sea bed is filled with shells and coral so it is bit painful to walk on and the water didn’t look as aqua or clear as the east coast or neighbouring Thailand. Langkawi also seemed more on the quiet side. Maybe we were there outside the main season because all the restaurants and bars seemed pretty empty.
I have seen the question on different travel forums “Should I go to Thailand or Malaysia”. Nikki and I disagree when it comes to this question. I think that if you are just looking for a beach where you can go swimming, lots of activities, party at night then your best bet is Thailand. The hotels on Langkawi also seem to be more expensive compared to hotels on e.g. Phuket and Samui. We had to pay 145 US dollars per night for our hotel and we could have gotten cheaper deal at Hilton and Sheraton in Phuket.
Visiting Langkawi was nice and the highlight for me was snorkeling with sharks at Payar. But if we are going back to south east Asia for a beach vacation I don’t think that Langkawi would be my first option.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Malaysia Mount Kinabalu
Mountain Kinabalu
Trails to the Top I The Challenge of the Peak I Getting There I Mountain Kinabalu Map
Imagine , being surrounded by the wonders of nature's lush garden dating from the dawn of time. Stand at the highest summit of Borneo as dawn peeks over the horizon to reveal Sabah's splendours far and wide. Reflect the quiet, sacred moment when you experience the most magnificent sunrise of your lifetime. Stroll amidst the treetops at the rainforest canopy walk and gaze up close at centuries-old wonders. Soak in the healing balm of a magic spring as colourful butterflies flutter around you. Admire the world's largest flower at your feet. Or lunch next to plants that lunch on insects.
You'll find it all in the KInabalu Park - Malaysia's first World Heritage designated by UNESCO in December 2000 for its 'outstanding universal values' and role as one of the world's most important biological sites.
The focal point of the park, of course, is the majestic Mt. Kinabalu. Such is the importance of this mountain to Sabah, that the capital was renamed Kota Kinabalu (Kinabalu Fort) in 1964. The highest mountain between the Himalayas and the Snow Mountains of Papua Barat (New Guinea Island), this magnificent granite massif stands at 4,095.2 m. (13,435 ft.) tall.
Trails to the Top I The Challenge of the Peak I Getting There I Mountain Kinabalu Map
Imagine , being surrounded by the wonders of nature's lush garden dating from the dawn of time. Stand at the highest summit of Borneo as dawn peeks over the horizon to reveal Sabah's splendours far and wide. Reflect the quiet, sacred moment when you experience the most magnificent sunrise of your lifetime. Stroll amidst the treetops at the rainforest canopy walk and gaze up close at centuries-old wonders. Soak in the healing balm of a magic spring as colourful butterflies flutter around you. Admire the world's largest flower at your feet. Or lunch next to plants that lunch on insects.
You'll find it all in the KInabalu Park - Malaysia's first World Heritage designated by UNESCO in December 2000 for its 'outstanding universal values' and role as one of the world's most important biological sites.
The focal point of the park, of course, is the majestic Mt. Kinabalu. Such is the importance of this mountain to Sabah, that the capital was renamed Kota Kinabalu (Kinabalu Fort) in 1964. The highest mountain between the Himalayas and the Snow Mountains of Papua Barat (New Guinea Island), this magnificent granite massif stands at 4,095.2 m. (13,435 ft.) tall.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Malaysia Travel
Malaysia is the home of satay, the tallest two buildings in the world and thriving flora and fauna populations. It is also the home of a distinctive multicultural society: mostly Malay, a third Chinese and a tenth Indian, with English being the language on the street. For this reason and the effect of a high-tech computer industry operating from within it, it isn't easy to get to the heart of traditional Malaysian life. But before you erupt into fits of tears, it must be said that few visitors really seem to care, especially once they've stretched out on some of Malaysia's fine beaches, or explored perfect, unspoilt jungle around the Cameron Highlands, or enjoyed a tantalizing meal in Kuala Lumpur's energetic Chinatown. Historical relics of Portugese, Dutch and British colonial occupation only add to Malaysia's charm. And a well-developed tourist industry means you will be able to enjoy all of Malaysia's highlights in comfort.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Malaysia Vacation Guide
For those looking for a different cultural experience, or even just a great holiday destination, then adding Malaysia to your travel list will not disappoint. A Malaysian holiday can be a relaxed resort style getaway on one of the islands such as Sabah or Langkawi, bargain shopping and sight-seeing in the capital Kuala Lumpur, or perhaps a combination of both to let you experience the diversity of this amazing country.
For first time travelers to Malaysia there are several tips that will make your holiday less stressful and infinitely more enjoyable, such as:
Check Health Warnings Before leaving for Malaysia visit your family doctor to check health warnings for the area you intend to visit. If you intend to do any hiking or rainforest walks then you will need to start taking malaria tablets around a week before your departure. Your family doctor will be able to advise of any other precautions or medications that you need.
Airport Transfers By far the easiest and cheapest way to get from the airport into the capital is via the KLIA Express (airport express train). The train is very modern with video screens showing points of interest and things to do in Malaysia while you enjoy a comfortable ride into Kuala Lumpur in around 35 minutes. Using a bus or taxi transfer will normally take around one hour by comparison and cost a little more. An added convenience when using the KLIA Express to connect with a departing flight is the facility to book your luggage onto your flight from the central train station in Kuala Lumpur (providing you do this at least 2.5 hours before your flight).
Taxi Fares Always ask how much the fare will be to get to your destination before getting into the taxi. Taxi fares in Malaysia are for the most part quite reasonable however at times a naive traveler can be easy pickings, especially on a return trip from an outlying area so be sure to ask for the cost of the fare beforehand and if it seems too high then you can usually find another taxi to get a better deal. The exception to this however is during peak hours in Kuala Lumpur when you will pay more because of traffic delays. Your hotel concierge can advise you on what the busiest traffic times are likely to be. Planning your movements around the capital outside of these times will save you money if you're on a tight budget.
Don't drink the tap water To reduce your chances of having your holiday ruined by tummy upsets it is wise not to consume the local tap water. During your stay keep these points in mind: 1) Clean your teeth and toothbrush with bottled water. 2) Remember to specify "No Ice" when ordering cocktails or mixer drinks. (Many of the more up-market resorts and hotels have ice that has been made using filtered or bottled water which is perfectly safe, however if you wish to be extra cautious then it is safer to forgo the ice).
Buy personal items from a supermarket Make purchases of personal care items such as sunscreen, toothpaste or bottled water from a local supermarket instead of the resort or hotel where you are staying. Although the pric es of these items may not seem too expensive you will normally find a supermarket or small convenience store somewhere close to the resort where these items are up to a third of the price that you will pay at the resort. Any money you save on these purchases can be used for souvenir shopping instead.
Restaurants When you're staying in regional areas and choosing somewhere to eat keep in mind that you are no longer in a western country. Malaysia is a relatively poor country which is more evident in outlying areas than it is in the capital. While in your home country a restaurant in a run down looking building could indicate a possible health risk this is not the case in regional areas of Malaysia as many of the buildings are old because of the general poverty of the population. The best guide for choosing a restaurant is if the local people are happy eating there it is a good indication that the food is safe.
Keep valuables concealed Always keep wallets, purses, mobile phones etc in your pockets or backpack to avoid the attention of pickpockets, especially in larger cities. Although not a major problem any large population has its share of thieving so it is best to keep your valuables secure. It is also wise to carry your backpack on the front of your body in certain areas such as the china town markets in Kuala Lumpur where it can be quite crowded giving pickpockets a chance to access valuables within the outer compartments of a backpack.
Malaysia is a great holiday destination with excellent shopping, friendly people, wonderful scenery, and delicious food and by following these simple tips you'll have such a memorable time you'll want to return again and again
For first time travelers to Malaysia there are several tips that will make your holiday less stressful and infinitely more enjoyable, such as:
Check Health Warnings Before leaving for Malaysia visit your family doctor to check health warnings for the area you intend to visit. If you intend to do any hiking or rainforest walks then you will need to start taking malaria tablets around a week before your departure. Your family doctor will be able to advise of any other precautions or medications that you need.
Airport Transfers By far the easiest and cheapest way to get from the airport into the capital is via the KLIA Express (airport express train). The train is very modern with video screens showing points of interest and things to do in Malaysia while you enjoy a comfortable ride into Kuala Lumpur in around 35 minutes. Using a bus or taxi transfer will normally take around one hour by comparison and cost a little more. An added convenience when using the KLIA Express to connect with a departing flight is the facility to book your luggage onto your flight from the central train station in Kuala Lumpur (providing you do this at least 2.5 hours before your flight).
Taxi Fares Always ask how much the fare will be to get to your destination before getting into the taxi. Taxi fares in Malaysia are for the most part quite reasonable however at times a naive traveler can be easy pickings, especially on a return trip from an outlying area so be sure to ask for the cost of the fare beforehand and if it seems too high then you can usually find another taxi to get a better deal. The exception to this however is during peak hours in Kuala Lumpur when you will pay more because of traffic delays. Your hotel concierge can advise you on what the busiest traffic times are likely to be. Planning your movements around the capital outside of these times will save you money if you're on a tight budget.
Don't drink the tap water To reduce your chances of having your holiday ruined by tummy upsets it is wise not to consume the local tap water. During your stay keep these points in mind: 1) Clean your teeth and toothbrush with bottled water. 2) Remember to specify "No Ice" when ordering cocktails or mixer drinks. (Many of the more up-market resorts and hotels have ice that has been made using filtered or bottled water which is perfectly safe, however if you wish to be extra cautious then it is safer to forgo the ice).
Buy personal items from a supermarket Make purchases of personal care items such as sunscreen, toothpaste or bottled water from a local supermarket instead of the resort or hotel where you are staying. Although the pric es of these items may not seem too expensive you will normally find a supermarket or small convenience store somewhere close to the resort where these items are up to a third of the price that you will pay at the resort. Any money you save on these purchases can be used for souvenir shopping instead.
Restaurants When you're staying in regional areas and choosing somewhere to eat keep in mind that you are no longer in a western country. Malaysia is a relatively poor country which is more evident in outlying areas than it is in the capital. While in your home country a restaurant in a run down looking building could indicate a possible health risk this is not the case in regional areas of Malaysia as many of the buildings are old because of the general poverty of the population. The best guide for choosing a restaurant is if the local people are happy eating there it is a good indication that the food is safe.
Keep valuables concealed Always keep wallets, purses, mobile phones etc in your pockets or backpack to avoid the attention of pickpockets, especially in larger cities. Although not a major problem any large population has its share of thieving so it is best to keep your valuables secure. It is also wise to carry your backpack on the front of your body in certain areas such as the china town markets in Kuala Lumpur where it can be quite crowded giving pickpockets a chance to access valuables within the outer compartments of a backpack.
Malaysia is a great holiday destination with excellent shopping, friendly people, wonderful scenery, and delicious food and by following these simple tips you'll have such a memorable time you'll want to return again and again
Malaysia Vacation
Immediately after they walked into the fitness/pharmacy shop, they were accosted by the cherub-shaped Chinese salesman with the single-hair protruding cheek mole.
"Massage for you" was all the warning he had before the man began buzzing his shoulders with the hot pink and green vibrating dildo. Standing next to him, Li Hsien began cracking up while he stood there stunned.
By the time the salesman had moved the rod up for a scalp massage all three were laughing hysterically, (along with the nearby cashier) though he realized that the salesman did not realize exactly what was so funny.
Apparently, the vibrating dildo was legitimate massage paraphernalia and the salesman had no idea of the original product market, though the massager was almost assuredly a big hit with the old Chinese aunties.
After gaining composure, they thanked the zealous salesman for his demo and went on to the insect repellent section, their original goal.
They were on their way to Malaysia and reports of occasional cases of malaria and dengue fever were enough to stir him to grab some "off" with its 100% DET contents. Mosquitoes would flee in terror at the lethal combination of chemical weapons and the electronic mosquito-exploder swatter he’d bought in Taiwan which looked like a badminton racket but with electrified netting to suck in the flying pests and shock them with enough volts to cause them to explode with a satisfying "pop".
Langkawi Beach
[Beach in Langkawi]
With repellent in hand, they weaved their way around the evil waddling massage troll and made their way out of the Great World Shopping Center and went Back to the Straits Times Building (where Hsien worked) to get the car.
He returned home to do laundry and then pack for the weeklong expedition from Singapore up the West Coast of Malaysia to the island of Langkawi on the border between Thailand and Malaysia.
Malaysian Church
[Malaysian Church]
Fortunately his flatmates Nick and Ray were not home so that he could use the dryer without freaking them out. You see, dryers are considered really weird in Southeast Asia. Most people prefer to hang-dry clothes.
So every time he used the dryer he felt as if they were thinking he was quite the weirdo. For him, dryers seemed very natural and convenient especially compared to hanging clothes for three days in the humid Singaporean weather.
Anyway, the next day, they started out at the reasonable hour of 9:30 AM. Hsien’s father had agreed to drive the four of them (Hsien, Richard, him and Allison) to Johor Bahru (JB) which was just across the causeway bridge that connected the island of Singapore to the Malaysian mainland.
Eric on Deck
[Eric on Deck]
Hsien’s father had intended to get one of the family cars fixed in JB where services like auto maintenance were much cheaper. So he had offered to drop them off at the Budget car rental office on the way.
It took them about 15 minutes to traverse the entire island of Singapore from North to South on the BTE (Bukit Timah Expressway) but about 40 minutes to get through Malaysian customs. He had recently sent his passport through the washing machine and had sadly gotten a new one, so this was his first stamp in the new book.
Johor Bahru
JB is a border town proper, much like Tijuana; skanky, and dirty with heavy traffic, hordes of moneychangers,
Trishaws in Melaka
[Trishaws in Melaka]
black market street stands, and a constantly changing stream of faces.
But JB is also a town on the rise. Attracted by the stable political climate and a low wage margin, investors have been pouring in for the last decade. Also, Singaporeans flock across the causeway on weekends for cheap products, food, and a thriving underground nightlife...er...um...
They had brunch in a hole in the wall hawker shop while the paperwork was being completed at Budget. He had chicken rice and was careful not to dowse it with too much chili-garlic sauce since it would be 4 hours to the next toilet. The woman in that course, gruff, grunting hawker stall-Chinese way said,
Karaoke Stars
[Karaoke]
"Chicken rice, ah. Packet?"
"No eat here".
"ah (referring to him)...uh? (referring to the next person)".
And she was off to grab one of the chickens dripping off a meat hook in the shop window and one of those awesome thick chopping blades.
The food came in a minute or two, so much for fast food being a western specialty.
Red Square
in Melaka
[Red Square]
The road to Melaka (this first day’s destination) would offer only "stooper poopers" with a bucket of water or faucet and hose for cleaning. Yes, that is right. No toilet paper allowed. Malaysia is a right hand only eating country if you catch the drift. It is considered very unclean to wipe with paper. Water, to many Malaysians is the only sanitary way to clean. As a result, there weren’t even TP roll dispensers in the bathrooms, just the evil looking hose.
Malaysian Sunset
[Malaysian Sunset]
Once again, he was happy to have the opportunity to drive in a wrong-side drive country. So long as there was a steady stream of traffic, of course, driving was no problem. It was only on the deserted roads that he ended up drifting into the lanes for oncoming traffic or making right hand turns into the right hand lane. Whatever the case, driving in Malaysia was far less stressful than driving in Bangkok.
KL Tower
[KL Tower]
Navigation on the other hand, was seriously tough. He learned early on that the Malaysian government was so thrifty as to provide only one street sign per turn off perhaps 50 meters before the exit. Of course, most of those signs were 50-75% covered up by foliage or had already fallen to the ground, so the one warning was fairly laughable.
As the highway from JB to Melaka was a maze of minor turn-offs onto criss-crossing highways, U-turns were the rule.
But with four of them on navigation duty, they eventually found their way out of the JB suburbs and onto the four-lane North/South highway which slices its way up the west coast of Malaysia hitting or grazing all the major cities and towns including JB, Melaka, KL, Ipoh, and Penang where they would be stopping.
Thatching
[Thatching]
From JB to Melaka, the road was an endless stream of palm oil plantations with their low, thick lines of palm trees stretching off into the rolling Malaysian countryside.
Melaka
Melaka is quite different from JB. One of the oldest cities in Malaysia, with recorded history as far back as the 14th century, Melaka does have a permanence and calm to it unlike JB which is all flux. However, it is not a city tied to its past either. In fact Melaka, as much of Malaysia seems to be caught in that awkward stage between modernity and traditionalism with an uneasy foot in both.
Francis Xavier
[Francis Xavier]
Truthfully, he didn’t much like Melaka. It seemed dirty, drab and trafficked. However, it was a nice stopping point for a day and a night.
In Melaka they visited the primary tourist trap, the Red Square and in particular the one-armed statue of St Francis Xavier which they had laughed heartily about while reading aloud about Melaka in the car.
The statue paid homage to a saint who was said to have miraculous powers. The tale went that the pope requested an arm be sent to Rome from Xavier’s dead body and that the wound flowed blood even though Xavier had been dead of 62 years. At any rate, somewhere along the line, someone had chopped off the arm of St Francis’ statue and it became a tourist attraction.
Wall in KL
[Wall in KL]
The cities only other place of interest was the "House of the Babas and Nonyas." There are two unique ethnic groups in the Straits. One group, the Eurasians, is a group of mixed blood descendants of the Portuguese colonial period.
The other group is the Peranakans who are composed of Straits-born Chinese that have adopted a quasi Chinese/Indian/Indonesian/Malay habit. This group of inhabitants are descendants of male Chinese traders and Malay local women and their cultural heritage extends back to the 15th century. The Peranakans are known for their unique food, architecture/interior design, and their wedding ceremony.
The House of the Babas and Nonyas (mother and father) are a tribute to Peranakan culture, architecture, and life. The house can be seen by private walking tour with English-speaking guides.
Petronas Towers
[Petronas Towers]
Next morning, they had breakfast of Teochew porridge, which is essentially chicken rice soup with hardly any broth, and then split, having seen as much of Melaka as desired.
They had a long drive up to the island of Penang next.
The drive through Penang cuts through the tin town of Ipoh set within a picturesque limestone valley. They stopped in Ipoh for lunch.
Monkey
[Monkey]
Like Thailand, the food courts in Ipoh had a central, and he thought, inconvenient, pay point instead of the Singapore-style where one pays at the stand he eat at.
Penang
Though there were sites to see in Ipoh, the group decided to keep on driving after lunch in order to arrive in Penang at an earlier hour. In fact, because of a traffic jam in Penang's capitol, Georgetown, they arrived in the late evening, checked into the Garden Inn, and headed out for dinner at the next door "Winston Coffee Center" which was a haven for old Chinese guys who wanted to smoke, talk and eat really greasy local food while watching karaoke lounge babes belting that special kind've obnoxious Cantonese vibrato.
It was quite the sleaze joint. But it was also full of energy and the food was great. Of course it followed the general rule that when you see a bunch of "C" health ratings posted, the food is excellent. "A" restaurants are typically sterile tasting.
Open Durian
[Open Durian]
The next morning they had to wake up quite early in order to catch the ferry from Penang to the island of Langkawi. So they had decided to stay near the port; hence the sleaziness of the hotel and the food center.
However, both the hotel, with its paper thin walls, pay by the hour theme, transvestite "masseuses", and smoky lobby and the sleazoid and grimy Winston Coffee Center definitely had their charm.
The ferry terminal in Penang was empty at 7AM. They'd arrived early since they'd not purchased tickets in advance and wanted to be first in line at the ticket counter. Only two or three early bird dock workers shuffled around the dusty jetty and buying tickets was no problem.
No Durian Sign
[No Durian Sign]
Like all docks, the seawater was somewhat murky and a thin layer of oil refracted the morning sun into iridescent rainbows across the surface. However, given the unhealthy conditions, nature had still maintained its dominance. Jellyfish and dozens of medium-sized fish could be seen below waking up and catching breakfast. The jellyfish splayed themselves across the top of the water as if sunbathing.
Eventually the crew and several passengers began to appear and they boarded the double-decker hydrofoil that would make the three-hour journey from Penang to Langkawi Island. They settled in and waited until the boat filled up and pulled out of the dock heading for the open sea.
Malaysian Market
[Malaysian Market]
For him, the trip was pleasant. He was not one to get seasick, so the storm waves did not do much to his stomach. 'Storm waves'? A yes, right. Well, soon after the boat disembarked, they were overtaken by one of those fantastic tropical storms with rain so hard it can knock one down, and so thick that it can virtually blind you. What made things worse was the fact that the crew had asked everyone to go indoors which meant that the seasickness-prone members of the group could not sit on deck where they could focus on the horizon and be cooled by the sea breeze.
Rambutan
[Rambutan]
However, in the end, none of the party used the supplied plastic bags. Instead, they bounced their way up to the dock in Langkawi and ran off the boat onto the covered dock through the waterfall that poured between.
They quickly grabbed a cab driver from the anxious and loud wall of local touts and made the twenty minute drive to the other end of the island.
Langkawi
Open Rambutan
[Open Rambutan]
Langkawi is in the Andaman Sea, off the northern border of Malaysia and the Southern border of Thailand. Thus, the style, people, food, and lifestyle were much like places he'd seen in Thailand. The island is fairly self-sufficient with vast tracks of rice paddies covering the flatlands. Water buffalo roamed happily through the paddies in herds and chicks ran wild everywhere.
The locals are mainly farmers but do support the tourism machine as well. The dress is typically Malay. Men wear simply and grungy pants and shirts and women wear brightly colored baju karong or kabaya with full hair-covering headgear in that particular blend of tropical Asia and Islam. Most people walk or ride aging bicycles or mopeds.
Langsat Fruit
[Langsat]
The island is oblong with a great deal of flatland for farming and a mountainous area in the interior. Most of the resorts lay on the North of the island opposite the port and a cement factory.
They checked into the Holiday Villa Langkawi and were greeted by a "No Durian" sign that had he and Richard in stitches because Allison and Hsien had been threatening to eat durian everyday during the trip and durian in any enclosed space is an evil situation.
Durian is a local favorite fruit that looks like a solid green morning star with spikes jutting out of the head- shaped body. Inside is a fleshy fruit that tastes and smells like dog crap. Well, at least to most uncultured "ang mo's". Anyway, the smell is so powerful and durable, that it reeks up a car or hotel room for days.
Allison and
Richard
[Allison and Richard]
At any rate, after some chiding, they checked in and stowed the luggage. It was mid-afternoon by the time they hit the pool and it was still pouring rain. But tropical rain is always an exquisite pleasure to swim in.
After swimming, and a game of water frisbee, they all checked in to the hotel spa and had 45 minute traditional Malay massages. Unlike Thai massages, there is no cracking of joints. The Malay version relies heavily on deep muscle rubs (like the Swedish style) with an abundance of oil and powder. He thought is was somewhat relaxing but preferred a more forceful style for his computer-programming damaged joints and muscles.
After the spa was dinner which was primarily composed of Malay traditional dishes such as Laksa (a rice noodle dish in a Tamarind base soup with a fishy flavor), Nasi Lemack (coconut rice with chili paste and boiled egg, fried nuts, and chicken or fish), Fried Kway Teow (thick flat noodles with beef, chili, and Chinese broccoli), Inchi Kabin (spicy fried chicken and sweet sauce), Soto Ayam (Malay Chicken soup) and curried meats and BBQ chicken wings.
Tower in KL
[Tower in KL]
The next day began fairly late as the weather tended to imbue laziness and since they'd been going full steam ahead since Singapore. They phoned the tout from the day before and he agreed to shuttle them around all day for $15 a head.
Initially, they hit the regular tourist spots such as the tomb of the unfairly accused maiden and the traditional stilted Malay house with singing dudes. The whole thing was okay but pretty deeply unimpressive. So quickly they realized that they had to take a bit more control over the itinerary and just instructed the driver to hit a beach and let them wander around some deserted coastline for awhile.
The rains had cleared up and they had a leisurely walk down a crescent shaped lagoon. Of course, the rain had muddied the water, but it was still warm and calm to swim in.
At the point of the lagoon a wide channel opened up which separated the beach from a small island ripe for exploration. He and Hsien crossed the channel to explore while Allison and Richard 9who were not as good swimmers) stayed on the beach to swim and relax.
However, soon after they reached the island, and spent some time browsing the sand for shells, another flurry whipped up out of nowhere and they were pelted with stinging rain again. They sought shelter in a small protected bay near a wall of boulders and waited out the storm. Meanwhile the channel got more and more violent and wavy.
When the storm eased, they made their way back to the channel. As they emerged from the rocks, they saw Allison and Richard who were quite relieved to see them, who had taken shelter under some trees, and who were just about ready to go call for help.
Waterfall Jump
[Waterfall Jump]
However, the two on the beach waved them back yelling across the channel that the current was too string and the waves too choppy to make a crossing. However, it seemed safe enough to him. At worst they would be carried off into the center of the lagoon and could swim in. Both felt as if they could make the swim, so they started the crossing.
Fortunately, the current's bark was worse than its bite and they easily navigated the channel. Unfortunately there were quite a few now submerged rocks and both got several cuts on their legs. But all was well, and they made it back in one piece.
Eventually, they got back to the van completely drenched and guiltily had to wake up their peacefully sleeping driver.
From there, they went for lunch, stopping long enough to raid a road-side fruit stand where they picked up durian, mangosteen, and rambutan. The Malay durian was much less fragrant then the Singaporean stock so it was more palatable 9though he still had to hold his nose to get it down). The rambutans with their bright red spiky whiskers were nice (basically huge grapes) and the mangosteens (sweet nectarine like taste) were great!
Waterfall
[Waterfall]
After lunch, they headed back inland for the waterfalls that by now were swollen with runoff. We had a few hours left before we had to return to the resort so we went to the falls with the shorter hike. However, he thought that it was also the less touristed one which was good. He was pleased to see a deep pool at the base of the falls which was great for jumping. The climb up the side of the waterfall was challenging but possible and after several attempts, he found a path. There were several good jump spots but since the deepest point in the pool was only 6 or 7 feet and not overly wide, it demanded exacting aim.
And the best news of all was that none of them got any leeches while hiking in and out of the falls area. It was not unheard of for leeches to sometimes fall out of the trees onto hikers or to wait on leaves for passing animals.
The next day was spent in the bounds of the resort. They had to catch the taxi back to the port by 5, so they decided to stay close by. That was fine though because it gave him time to rent a jet ski and thrash around for awhile.
It was actually very fun. If one went out beyond the sheltered bay at the resort, one could find nice sized swells to jump.
Rice Fields
[Rice Fields]
The weather had cleared up again and he got fairly red on his nose and shoulders, but fortunately did not get burned. Another benefit of the kind weather was that the ride back to Penang was calm and relaxing. They sunbathed, sprawled out on the deck and watched the sun set over the horizon.
That night they returned to the Garden Inn in Penang. However, this time they had more time to play in the city and were hot to find an ultra sleazy karaoke lounge so that Richard could have his first Asian karaoke experience. With little trouble, they found a joint fairly near the hotel and went in.
The patrons and employees double tacked furiously as they entered. Surely they can't mean to be here! The place was filled with old Chinese uncles drinking bad beer served by Karaoke wenches on their laps. They were shuffled upstairs to the private rooms and commenced to blare out all the worst from the Bee Gees to the Beatles and from Spice Girls to the Cardigans. They even found a swing danceable song and performed for the hostesses who gigglingly crammed at the small window to peer in at us.
Haggard and hoarse throated, they returned to the Garden Inn in the wee hours and crashed.
The next day they drove all the way back to Kuala Lumpur (KL) and spent the afternoon shopping. In the evening they had Thai food in a trendy neighborhood like old Town Pasadena or Boat Quay in Singapore. They had intended to go to a KL club that night, but everyone was so tired after eating that they totally wussed out and went back to the hotel (which was a five star palace in central KL). The next day, they saw all the sites of tourist-oriented KL and then made their way back to JB to drop off the car and catch a ride back into Singapore.
"Massage for you" was all the warning he had before the man began buzzing his shoulders with the hot pink and green vibrating dildo. Standing next to him, Li Hsien began cracking up while he stood there stunned.
By the time the salesman had moved the rod up for a scalp massage all three were laughing hysterically, (along with the nearby cashier) though he realized that the salesman did not realize exactly what was so funny.
Apparently, the vibrating dildo was legitimate massage paraphernalia and the salesman had no idea of the original product market, though the massager was almost assuredly a big hit with the old Chinese aunties.
After gaining composure, they thanked the zealous salesman for his demo and went on to the insect repellent section, their original goal.
They were on their way to Malaysia and reports of occasional cases of malaria and dengue fever were enough to stir him to grab some "off" with its 100% DET contents. Mosquitoes would flee in terror at the lethal combination of chemical weapons and the electronic mosquito-exploder swatter he’d bought in Taiwan which looked like a badminton racket but with electrified netting to suck in the flying pests and shock them with enough volts to cause them to explode with a satisfying "pop".
Langkawi Beach
[Beach in Langkawi]
With repellent in hand, they weaved their way around the evil waddling massage troll and made their way out of the Great World Shopping Center and went Back to the Straits Times Building (where Hsien worked) to get the car.
He returned home to do laundry and then pack for the weeklong expedition from Singapore up the West Coast of Malaysia to the island of Langkawi on the border between Thailand and Malaysia.
Malaysian Church
[Malaysian Church]
Fortunately his flatmates Nick and Ray were not home so that he could use the dryer without freaking them out. You see, dryers are considered really weird in Southeast Asia. Most people prefer to hang-dry clothes.
So every time he used the dryer he felt as if they were thinking he was quite the weirdo. For him, dryers seemed very natural and convenient especially compared to hanging clothes for three days in the humid Singaporean weather.
Anyway, the next day, they started out at the reasonable hour of 9:30 AM. Hsien’s father had agreed to drive the four of them (Hsien, Richard, him and Allison) to Johor Bahru (JB) which was just across the causeway bridge that connected the island of Singapore to the Malaysian mainland.
Eric on Deck
[Eric on Deck]
Hsien’s father had intended to get one of the family cars fixed in JB where services like auto maintenance were much cheaper. So he had offered to drop them off at the Budget car rental office on the way.
It took them about 15 minutes to traverse the entire island of Singapore from North to South on the BTE (Bukit Timah Expressway) but about 40 minutes to get through Malaysian customs. He had recently sent his passport through the washing machine and had sadly gotten a new one, so this was his first stamp in the new book.
Johor Bahru
JB is a border town proper, much like Tijuana; skanky, and dirty with heavy traffic, hordes of moneychangers,
Trishaws in Melaka
[Trishaws in Melaka]
black market street stands, and a constantly changing stream of faces.
But JB is also a town on the rise. Attracted by the stable political climate and a low wage margin, investors have been pouring in for the last decade. Also, Singaporeans flock across the causeway on weekends for cheap products, food, and a thriving underground nightlife...er...um...
They had brunch in a hole in the wall hawker shop while the paperwork was being completed at Budget. He had chicken rice and was careful not to dowse it with too much chili-garlic sauce since it would be 4 hours to the next toilet. The woman in that course, gruff, grunting hawker stall-Chinese way said,
Karaoke Stars
[Karaoke]
"Chicken rice, ah. Packet?"
"No eat here".
"ah (referring to him)...uh? (referring to the next person)".
And she was off to grab one of the chickens dripping off a meat hook in the shop window and one of those awesome thick chopping blades.
The food came in a minute or two, so much for fast food being a western specialty.
Red Square
in Melaka
[Red Square]
The road to Melaka (this first day’s destination) would offer only "stooper poopers" with a bucket of water or faucet and hose for cleaning. Yes, that is right. No toilet paper allowed. Malaysia is a right hand only eating country if you catch the drift. It is considered very unclean to wipe with paper. Water, to many Malaysians is the only sanitary way to clean. As a result, there weren’t even TP roll dispensers in the bathrooms, just the evil looking hose.
Malaysian Sunset
[Malaysian Sunset]
Once again, he was happy to have the opportunity to drive in a wrong-side drive country. So long as there was a steady stream of traffic, of course, driving was no problem. It was only on the deserted roads that he ended up drifting into the lanes for oncoming traffic or making right hand turns into the right hand lane. Whatever the case, driving in Malaysia was far less stressful than driving in Bangkok.
KL Tower
[KL Tower]
Navigation on the other hand, was seriously tough. He learned early on that the Malaysian government was so thrifty as to provide only one street sign per turn off perhaps 50 meters before the exit. Of course, most of those signs were 50-75% covered up by foliage or had already fallen to the ground, so the one warning was fairly laughable.
As the highway from JB to Melaka was a maze of minor turn-offs onto criss-crossing highways, U-turns were the rule.
But with four of them on navigation duty, they eventually found their way out of the JB suburbs and onto the four-lane North/South highway which slices its way up the west coast of Malaysia hitting or grazing all the major cities and towns including JB, Melaka, KL, Ipoh, and Penang where they would be stopping.
Thatching
[Thatching]
From JB to Melaka, the road was an endless stream of palm oil plantations with their low, thick lines of palm trees stretching off into the rolling Malaysian countryside.
Melaka
Melaka is quite different from JB. One of the oldest cities in Malaysia, with recorded history as far back as the 14th century, Melaka does have a permanence and calm to it unlike JB which is all flux. However, it is not a city tied to its past either. In fact Melaka, as much of Malaysia seems to be caught in that awkward stage between modernity and traditionalism with an uneasy foot in both.
Francis Xavier
[Francis Xavier]
Truthfully, he didn’t much like Melaka. It seemed dirty, drab and trafficked. However, it was a nice stopping point for a day and a night.
In Melaka they visited the primary tourist trap, the Red Square and in particular the one-armed statue of St Francis Xavier which they had laughed heartily about while reading aloud about Melaka in the car.
The statue paid homage to a saint who was said to have miraculous powers. The tale went that the pope requested an arm be sent to Rome from Xavier’s dead body and that the wound flowed blood even though Xavier had been dead of 62 years. At any rate, somewhere along the line, someone had chopped off the arm of St Francis’ statue and it became a tourist attraction.
Wall in KL
[Wall in KL]
The cities only other place of interest was the "House of the Babas and Nonyas." There are two unique ethnic groups in the Straits. One group, the Eurasians, is a group of mixed blood descendants of the Portuguese colonial period.
The other group is the Peranakans who are composed of Straits-born Chinese that have adopted a quasi Chinese/Indian/Indonesian/Malay habit. This group of inhabitants are descendants of male Chinese traders and Malay local women and their cultural heritage extends back to the 15th century. The Peranakans are known for their unique food, architecture/interior design, and their wedding ceremony.
The House of the Babas and Nonyas (mother and father) are a tribute to Peranakan culture, architecture, and life. The house can be seen by private walking tour with English-speaking guides.
Petronas Towers
[Petronas Towers]
Next morning, they had breakfast of Teochew porridge, which is essentially chicken rice soup with hardly any broth, and then split, having seen as much of Melaka as desired.
They had a long drive up to the island of Penang next.
The drive through Penang cuts through the tin town of Ipoh set within a picturesque limestone valley. They stopped in Ipoh for lunch.
Monkey
[Monkey]
Like Thailand, the food courts in Ipoh had a central, and he thought, inconvenient, pay point instead of the Singapore-style where one pays at the stand he eat at.
Penang
Though there were sites to see in Ipoh, the group decided to keep on driving after lunch in order to arrive in Penang at an earlier hour. In fact, because of a traffic jam in Penang's capitol, Georgetown, they arrived in the late evening, checked into the Garden Inn, and headed out for dinner at the next door "Winston Coffee Center" which was a haven for old Chinese guys who wanted to smoke, talk and eat really greasy local food while watching karaoke lounge babes belting that special kind've obnoxious Cantonese vibrato.
It was quite the sleaze joint. But it was also full of energy and the food was great. Of course it followed the general rule that when you see a bunch of "C" health ratings posted, the food is excellent. "A" restaurants are typically sterile tasting.
Open Durian
[Open Durian]
The next morning they had to wake up quite early in order to catch the ferry from Penang to the island of Langkawi. So they had decided to stay near the port; hence the sleaziness of the hotel and the food center.
However, both the hotel, with its paper thin walls, pay by the hour theme, transvestite "masseuses", and smoky lobby and the sleazoid and grimy Winston Coffee Center definitely had their charm.
The ferry terminal in Penang was empty at 7AM. They'd arrived early since they'd not purchased tickets in advance and wanted to be first in line at the ticket counter. Only two or three early bird dock workers shuffled around the dusty jetty and buying tickets was no problem.
No Durian Sign
[No Durian Sign]
Like all docks, the seawater was somewhat murky and a thin layer of oil refracted the morning sun into iridescent rainbows across the surface. However, given the unhealthy conditions, nature had still maintained its dominance. Jellyfish and dozens of medium-sized fish could be seen below waking up and catching breakfast. The jellyfish splayed themselves across the top of the water as if sunbathing.
Eventually the crew and several passengers began to appear and they boarded the double-decker hydrofoil that would make the three-hour journey from Penang to Langkawi Island. They settled in and waited until the boat filled up and pulled out of the dock heading for the open sea.
Malaysian Market
[Malaysian Market]
For him, the trip was pleasant. He was not one to get seasick, so the storm waves did not do much to his stomach. 'Storm waves'? A yes, right. Well, soon after the boat disembarked, they were overtaken by one of those fantastic tropical storms with rain so hard it can knock one down, and so thick that it can virtually blind you. What made things worse was the fact that the crew had asked everyone to go indoors which meant that the seasickness-prone members of the group could not sit on deck where they could focus on the horizon and be cooled by the sea breeze.
Rambutan
[Rambutan]
However, in the end, none of the party used the supplied plastic bags. Instead, they bounced their way up to the dock in Langkawi and ran off the boat onto the covered dock through the waterfall that poured between.
They quickly grabbed a cab driver from the anxious and loud wall of local touts and made the twenty minute drive to the other end of the island.
Langkawi
Open Rambutan
[Open Rambutan]
Langkawi is in the Andaman Sea, off the northern border of Malaysia and the Southern border of Thailand. Thus, the style, people, food, and lifestyle were much like places he'd seen in Thailand. The island is fairly self-sufficient with vast tracks of rice paddies covering the flatlands. Water buffalo roamed happily through the paddies in herds and chicks ran wild everywhere.
The locals are mainly farmers but do support the tourism machine as well. The dress is typically Malay. Men wear simply and grungy pants and shirts and women wear brightly colored baju karong or kabaya with full hair-covering headgear in that particular blend of tropical Asia and Islam. Most people walk or ride aging bicycles or mopeds.
Langsat Fruit
[Langsat]
The island is oblong with a great deal of flatland for farming and a mountainous area in the interior. Most of the resorts lay on the North of the island opposite the port and a cement factory.
They checked into the Holiday Villa Langkawi and were greeted by a "No Durian" sign that had he and Richard in stitches because Allison and Hsien had been threatening to eat durian everyday during the trip and durian in any enclosed space is an evil situation.
Durian is a local favorite fruit that looks like a solid green morning star with spikes jutting out of the head- shaped body. Inside is a fleshy fruit that tastes and smells like dog crap. Well, at least to most uncultured "ang mo's". Anyway, the smell is so powerful and durable, that it reeks up a car or hotel room for days.
Allison and
Richard
[Allison and Richard]
At any rate, after some chiding, they checked in and stowed the luggage. It was mid-afternoon by the time they hit the pool and it was still pouring rain. But tropical rain is always an exquisite pleasure to swim in.
After swimming, and a game of water frisbee, they all checked in to the hotel spa and had 45 minute traditional Malay massages. Unlike Thai massages, there is no cracking of joints. The Malay version relies heavily on deep muscle rubs (like the Swedish style) with an abundance of oil and powder. He thought is was somewhat relaxing but preferred a more forceful style for his computer-programming damaged joints and muscles.
After the spa was dinner which was primarily composed of Malay traditional dishes such as Laksa (a rice noodle dish in a Tamarind base soup with a fishy flavor), Nasi Lemack (coconut rice with chili paste and boiled egg, fried nuts, and chicken or fish), Fried Kway Teow (thick flat noodles with beef, chili, and Chinese broccoli), Inchi Kabin (spicy fried chicken and sweet sauce), Soto Ayam (Malay Chicken soup) and curried meats and BBQ chicken wings.
Tower in KL
[Tower in KL]
The next day began fairly late as the weather tended to imbue laziness and since they'd been going full steam ahead since Singapore. They phoned the tout from the day before and he agreed to shuttle them around all day for $15 a head.
Initially, they hit the regular tourist spots such as the tomb of the unfairly accused maiden and the traditional stilted Malay house with singing dudes. The whole thing was okay but pretty deeply unimpressive. So quickly they realized that they had to take a bit more control over the itinerary and just instructed the driver to hit a beach and let them wander around some deserted coastline for awhile.
The rains had cleared up and they had a leisurely walk down a crescent shaped lagoon. Of course, the rain had muddied the water, but it was still warm and calm to swim in.
At the point of the lagoon a wide channel opened up which separated the beach from a small island ripe for exploration. He and Hsien crossed the channel to explore while Allison and Richard 9who were not as good swimmers) stayed on the beach to swim and relax.
However, soon after they reached the island, and spent some time browsing the sand for shells, another flurry whipped up out of nowhere and they were pelted with stinging rain again. They sought shelter in a small protected bay near a wall of boulders and waited out the storm. Meanwhile the channel got more and more violent and wavy.
When the storm eased, they made their way back to the channel. As they emerged from the rocks, they saw Allison and Richard who were quite relieved to see them, who had taken shelter under some trees, and who were just about ready to go call for help.
Waterfall Jump
[Waterfall Jump]
However, the two on the beach waved them back yelling across the channel that the current was too string and the waves too choppy to make a crossing. However, it seemed safe enough to him. At worst they would be carried off into the center of the lagoon and could swim in. Both felt as if they could make the swim, so they started the crossing.
Fortunately, the current's bark was worse than its bite and they easily navigated the channel. Unfortunately there were quite a few now submerged rocks and both got several cuts on their legs. But all was well, and they made it back in one piece.
Eventually, they got back to the van completely drenched and guiltily had to wake up their peacefully sleeping driver.
From there, they went for lunch, stopping long enough to raid a road-side fruit stand where they picked up durian, mangosteen, and rambutan. The Malay durian was much less fragrant then the Singaporean stock so it was more palatable 9though he still had to hold his nose to get it down). The rambutans with their bright red spiky whiskers were nice (basically huge grapes) and the mangosteens (sweet nectarine like taste) were great!
Waterfall
[Waterfall]
After lunch, they headed back inland for the waterfalls that by now were swollen with runoff. We had a few hours left before we had to return to the resort so we went to the falls with the shorter hike. However, he thought that it was also the less touristed one which was good. He was pleased to see a deep pool at the base of the falls which was great for jumping. The climb up the side of the waterfall was challenging but possible and after several attempts, he found a path. There were several good jump spots but since the deepest point in the pool was only 6 or 7 feet and not overly wide, it demanded exacting aim.
And the best news of all was that none of them got any leeches while hiking in and out of the falls area. It was not unheard of for leeches to sometimes fall out of the trees onto hikers or to wait on leaves for passing animals.
The next day was spent in the bounds of the resort. They had to catch the taxi back to the port by 5, so they decided to stay close by. That was fine though because it gave him time to rent a jet ski and thrash around for awhile.
It was actually very fun. If one went out beyond the sheltered bay at the resort, one could find nice sized swells to jump.
Rice Fields
[Rice Fields]
The weather had cleared up again and he got fairly red on his nose and shoulders, but fortunately did not get burned. Another benefit of the kind weather was that the ride back to Penang was calm and relaxing. They sunbathed, sprawled out on the deck and watched the sun set over the horizon.
That night they returned to the Garden Inn in Penang. However, this time they had more time to play in the city and were hot to find an ultra sleazy karaoke lounge so that Richard could have his first Asian karaoke experience. With little trouble, they found a joint fairly near the hotel and went in.
The patrons and employees double tacked furiously as they entered. Surely they can't mean to be here! The place was filled with old Chinese uncles drinking bad beer served by Karaoke wenches on their laps. They were shuffled upstairs to the private rooms and commenced to blare out all the worst from the Bee Gees to the Beatles and from Spice Girls to the Cardigans. They even found a swing danceable song and performed for the hostesses who gigglingly crammed at the small window to peer in at us.
Haggard and hoarse throated, they returned to the Garden Inn in the wee hours and crashed.
The next day they drove all the way back to Kuala Lumpur (KL) and spent the afternoon shopping. In the evening they had Thai food in a trendy neighborhood like old Town Pasadena or Boat Quay in Singapore. They had intended to go to a KL club that night, but everyone was so tired after eating that they totally wussed out and went back to the hotel (which was a five star palace in central KL). The next day, they saw all the sites of tourist-oriented KL and then made their way back to JB to drop off the car and catch a ride back into Singapore.
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