On the Loose - My South East Asia Adventure

Sipadan

la_gitana_pequena — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 21:32:00 GMT

DIVING ON SIPADAN - nothing short of awesome!!!

On the 1 July 2007 I flew from Ho Chi Minh (yes, I know, my Vietnam travel reports are still outstanding...) to Tawau in Malaysian Borneo, Sabah's main town of the Southeast, where I got picked up by Borneo Divers and dropped me off at the Marco Polo Hotel in the middle of the city. I only stayed there for the night.

The next day I got a transfer to Semporna, a small settlement where Bajau fishermen, Chinese traders, Suluk tribespeople and divers who could not find accommodation on Mabul or Kapalai mingle alike. It's about a 2 hours drive from Tawau and the gateway for world-famous Sipadan.

A 45 minute speed boat ride brought us from Semporna on the mainland to Mabul which is a low-lying island only a 30 mins boatride away from Sipadan.

After the Malaysian government closed all resorts on Sipadan in 2004 in an effort to avoid further environmental damage to Malaysia's only oceanic island, divers are now forced to either stay on Mabul or Kapalai, the latter being a single resort perched on stilts. Both places are famous for the superb muckdiving (muck refers to the muddy sediment that lies beneath each muck dive - it's the perfect habitat for unusual, exotic and juvinielle organisms that make their homes in the muddy sediment).

I had booked a room on twin-share basis at the Borneo Divers Resort on Mabul for 6 days / 7 nights, and I am happy to say that I was very impressed with it. The accommodation was clean and cosy, the buffet varied and delicious, staff extremely helpful and friendly, and the beer at the beach bar plenty and cold:-) The resort also has a pool with pool bar - what a treat:-)

I had booked a dive package through a dive tour operator based in Thailand. In hindsight I think it would have been smarter to book with the resort directly (i.e. cheaper). Whether you book with the resort or through an operator, the price usually includes your accommodation, all meals and 3 boat dives a day (2 of them on Sipadan, the other one off the reefs of Mabul or nearby Kapalai). National Park Fee / Permit (for Sipadan) and dive gear (if you don't bring your own) have to be paid extra.

Sipadan itself, for those of you who don't know, is a pinnacle of coral and limestone rising up 600m from the bottom of the Celebes Sea forming a 12 hectare island. It was formed by living corals growing on top of an extinct volcanic cone that took thousands of years to develop. The island lies in the center of one of the richest marine habitats in the world with more than 3,000 species of fish and hundreds of coral species that have been classified in this ecosystem.

With it's stunning visibility and the incredible range of marine life it greatly impressed the late marine ecologist and diver celebrity Jacques Cousteau. Ever since he raved about it, Sipadan is on the top of the wishlist of any diver with a serious interst of visiting the world's best dive sites.

Even though I personally can't compare the diving on Sipadan to more than the Barrier and Ningaloo Reefs in Australia, I am absolutely convinced, after my one week on Sipadan, that the island absolutely deserves its ranking amongst the top 5.

I did 24 dives spread over 7 days (3 - 4 dives a day, including night dives), and here's a list of only some of the amazing underwater creatures my eyes got to see (we actually weren't able to identify all every living thing we saw, not even with the help of marine/fish books...):

Dozens of greenback and hawksbill turtles nesting, sleeping and mating
big schools of barracuda and big-eye travelly (also called jacks) in tornado-like formations (swim in the middle of it and you forget there's another world around you...)
blue spotted manta rays
sharks (black & white tip, grey, hammerhead - no whalesharks unfortunately, wrong season...)
heaps of differently coloured nudibranches
ghost pipefish
bennies
garden & morray eels
spanish dancer
shrimps, gobies
hermid crabs
sea snakes
cuttlefish
lionfish
pygmy seahorses
juvenile sweetlips
boxfish
pufferfish
frogfish
leaffish
crocodile fish
flying gurnards
etc. etc. etc. (the list goes on and on and on, I'd have to consult my dive log to give an exclusive list of what I've seen...).

A long story cut short: IT WAS JUST AMAZING!!!

Also, I was pretty lucky that I ended up spending the whole week with a group of very experienced divers. 7 of them were from a dive club in England. In addition to the 2 dive instructors from Borneo Divers we had 4 dive masters and 1 instructor amongst the guests, and everyone else head well over a few hunderd dives too (except me of course). No dive was taken without video camera equippment and digi cams:-)

It was an absolutely great bunch of people and we had a ball the entire 7 days! I actually extended my package by 1 day, I just did not want to leave!

Oh yes, and before I forget, those of you who have seen adds of Sipadan probably know that there is a mysterious turtle tomb which lies underneath the column of the island. It's an underwater limestone cave with a labyrinth of tunnels and chambers that contain many skeletal remains of turtles. The reason for that being that turtles who are thought of swimming into the cave to rest/sleep, get disoriented when they awake and don't find their ways out and consequently drown. Sad story ... if you think about it. Nevertheless, I found diving the cave ws really exciting! It was my first cave dive, and I guess I would have never made it in there if it hadn't been for my dear English friends...

Lucky me.

If you haven't figured it out already, I really think this was the HIGHLIGHT of my trip in SEA!

If you get a chance, go there! Stay there! As long as you can! There's not a single dive that is not interesting, and that includes those off Mabul and Kapalai.

Xxx.

Nadine

Ko Samui

la_gitana_pequena — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 17:37:00 GMT

Initially wanting to go to Chiang Mai for 1 week, then visit some of the southern islands in the Andaman Sea (i.e. Phuket, Pi Pi, Ko Lanta) - we changed our mind after talking to some travel folks and reading up in the travel book, and headed off to Ko Samui after being fed up with noisy, congested and polluted Bangkok (well, I was...I think Andy would have had no problems spending 2 weeks in Pantib Plaza:-)).

Not that any of the initial ideas would have been bad, but lots of people said Chiang Mai would get hotter than Bangkok in the summer months, and the LP mentioned trekking, which was one of the things I wanted to do, may turn into a torture on some of the really hot days...I didn't want to spend all day in the air-conditioning not neing able to leave my room until after dark. Oh well, and weather and visibility apparently is better in the Gulf of Siam than the Andaman Sea from April onwards...

So Ko Samui here we come...

Booked a flight with Bangkok Airways (currently the only carrier flying to Bangkok - and with them having the monopol over easy and quick tourist transport to and from the island plans apparently now exist of building a new airport in order to allow other airlines to fly into Ko Samui...how ridiculous is that?).

Our flights cost us roughly THB 4000 each one way (approx. AUD/CHF 140.-), and I have to say I'm very impressed with Bangkok Airways...especially the airport lounge where you get fruit juice and nibblings such as sweet rice pudding wrapped in banana leaves, springrolls etc. for free, and not to forget internet access, and popcorn, all at no cost to the waiting traveller:-)

We messed up the airway's lunch planning process by pre-ordering a muslim and a hindu meal...(note these were options to select when we booked the flights online):-) and nearly ended up not getting anything to eat because they couldn't provide us with the special dietary requirements. The fact that we booked our flighs for the wrong day (mind you it was 1am in the morning and after a few beers...Andy and I both not realising that the date on the computer was not 'tomorrow' but 'today'...), and hence had to change the flights at the airport and go stand-by for the next one available, probably didn't help the situation either...but we were lucky and didn't end up starving.

So applaus and hats off for Bangkok Airways, yay!

We pre-booked the hotel for the first night at the airport in Bangkok. It was located at the southern end of Chaweng Beach, a bit away from the overcrowded stretch near the centre. Well, I'm not sure how crowded the beach was there as we didn't end up walking up to have a look, but if the number of tourists you meet on the street that lies behind all the resort hotels that line the beach are any indication, than I don't think we missed anything.

Ko Samui is about 250sq km of coconut farms, forrested hills and beaches and is full of luxury hotels, fancy restaurans and tailor shops (viva ARMANI - Andy has developed a specific liking for them:-)). Apparently there's over 3 million tourists that flock to the island every year. It was low season when we were there. I don't want to know how crowded it gets in the peak...you probably wouldn't see the hills anymore if there's thousands and thousands of sun-burnt faces running up and down the streets...a bit like Rimini? Use your imagination...

We spent 2 days/nights in Chaweng just layzing about...sleeping, jet skiing, swimming...seafood platter for two in a restaurant right on the beach (THB 600, absolutely delicious - it's at the southern end of Chaweng Beach - and the tables and chairs are on the sand...you can't get any closer to the water:-)), a chit chat with an English expat over a beer (or was it two?) while sitting around the bonfire in the eve (note they used the restaurant chairs to fire up:-))...

Then felt the urge to discover a little bit more of the island so hired a 4wd for initially 2 days which we ended up keeping for for 4:-). The roads on Samui around the island are sealed, but if you want to go bush beashing you definitely need a 4wd otherwise you're getting nowhere. Also, I wouldn't recommend anyone who is not used to drive a 4wd to do so, the condition of some of the dirt roads is really bad and I had a few scary moments...thanks god I had a WA-boy with me who knew how to manoveure the vehicle over the dirt and get me safe back down the other end...

It's actually the 4wd that I liked the most out of everything we did on Samui (apart from the 1 day at the beach doing nothing:-)). 5 mins after leaving the beaten track we bumpt into a couple of elephants in the bush. I first thought they were someone's elephant pets but later on, looking at the map, I figured out the cuties probably belonged to one of the elephant trekking company's that you find abound on the island:-)).

We drove randomly through the island's interior and got some stunning views, discovered the most beautifully set up open-air restaurant on the entire island (can't remember the location nor the name but if you really want to know Andy can give you the GPS coordinates:-)), and also were lucky enough to drive through some of the small residential areas in the forrested hills which most likely belonged to local fruit farmers and were very impressive...

Driving back to the main road at dusk got me worried a little bit, but we made it there safely. And on the way down we discovered this local market maybe a 10 minutes drive from the main road where we stopped and had a wander around. We were in fact the only white people at the market and people were looking at us as if we just landed in a UFO from the moon wearing green skin with little sensors on our heads... We tried some of the local food, nearly got talked into watching a Thai-Boxing fight, got repeated applaus and comments through the speakers from a guy that was running some sort of bingo-contest both times we walked past the stand(only that I didn't understand what he was saying in Thai...but he was smiling so I made myself believe whatever he said was nice), and Andy ended up buying 2 pairs of jeans (Levis and ?) at a really cheap price.

We then had a 'proper' dinner at Mr. Poo's (yes, that's how the name was spelt) Hot Pot restaurant...which reminded me of Japanese Sukiyaki, or some of the Korean dishes I have had in Australia (obviously not because of its name). A hot cooking pot which is heated up with charcoal is placed in the middle of the table and you get whatever food you like from the buffet (noodles, seafood, meat, vegetables - really everything you can think of) and cook it at the table yourself. You can grill the meat and seafood in the middle of the pot where there is a pointy mountain- like-surface (sorry my English is deteriorating after 8 days of Swiss German company:-) always blame it on the others:-)), and the vegis and noodles can be cooked/simmered in the soup that is in the bottom of the pot.

I also liked Bo Phut very much which is a small little fishing village that lies at the northern end of Ko Samui. It's touristy but not as bad as Chaweng, has much more atmosphere, is more relaxed...and we got a beautiful bungalow with lots of charm for only THB 800/night.

Actually we found all of the northern Beaches on Samui to be very pretty, especially Maenam (west from Bo Phut), and feel kind of sorry that we didn't have enough time to go and discover that area a little more. It's not just the beach but also the whole village set-up with it's green surroundings and pretty local residential homes and wooden bungalows that give this place the 'special something' other places on Samui lack.

From Bo Phut we booked a day trip on a boat, thinking it was a combined fishing, snorkelling, island hoping and swimming excursion...which ended up being a whole-day fishing trip off the north-eastern tip of Ko Samui (Ko Lum Mu). I've only fished once in my life before, in Airlie Beach in QLD in Australia...thank's god I love the sea so badly that I didn't get bored all too much:-) and I actually still enjoyed the day). The moral of the story is: always make very specific inquiries about the itinerary etc. before you book and pay!

Big Buddha located to the west of Bo Phut is something you don't have to worry about missing...I guess they put the big Buddha statue there because the village has nothing else to show off...apart from ferries that go over to Ko Phagnan for the famous fullmoon parties...

However, if you do have a bit of time to spare, I recommend you drive past Big Buddha towards Choeng Mon to the very north-eastern tip of the island, and pay 'Sila Evason Hideaway Villas' a visit. First of all, the drive up there is really interesting as it takes you through some of the more expensive residential homes and villas which are really pretty to look at, and secondly the resort itself is probably the best I've ever seen. We pretended that we were interested in booking a villa for a night or two and asked whether we could have a look, not knowing how much it cost...of course - otherwise I don't think I would have dared.

The cheapest villa is around USD 450/night...still has it's own pool of course:-) The villas are very very pretty, the service is fantastic (we got a little private tour for about 45mins where the guy showed us the entire resort - except for the spa) and we then booked dinner for the following night at their sea-view restaurant which supposedly belongs to the 5 best in Thailand. Food was really good, and the service too, plus we got to use the hotel pool (located on a cliff overlooking the ocean) at sunset before we being privately escorted to the restaurant.

VERY impressed! Check out this website http://www.sixsenses.com/hideaway-samui/index.php - the pics speak for themselves!

Bangkok

la_gitana_pequena — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 15:44:00 GMT

Hi guys,

Long time no sign of life from me, time for an update, before you think I died somewhere in SEA.

I flew from Georgetown in Penang to Bangkok in Thailand on the 17 May 2007. The flight only took 1 hour, and cost me no more than RM 150, roughly AUD/CHF 50.-. It is soooo cheap! I flew with Air Asia, which seems to be a well reknowned low-cost carrier flying to almost all destinations here in SEA. The only thing that might get you into trouble is that the airlines 'only' allows 15kg of checked-in baggage, and one piece of handluggage weighing no more than 7kg (latter does not get weighed when you check-in...or at least hasn't in my case, and I already flew with them twice at the time of writing this article).

And honestly, whoever travels with more than 14kg in a backpack is tortureing themsleves unnecessarily anyway...if you do, it may be time to go to a post office and send these unnecessary items such as hairdryer, umbrella etc. home (don't laugh I've seen people travelling with it...).

I stayed at the Vietai Hotel in Bangkok near Ko San Road the first 3 nights. Third night was cheaper of course as I was able to negotiate the price for the nights I hadn't booked ahead of my arrival. I guess it always pays out to go to a hotel directly and negotiate the price rather than booking through the internet. Rooms were ok and not that expensive.

However have to say that Ko San Road is probably not everyone's bag. It really is BACKPACKER alley. The street is lined with tourist shops and market stalls selling everything from clothes, jewellery and food to CDs, DVDs and souvenirs - for double the price, and none of the restaurants you find there serves authentic Thai food...it's all 'westernised'...i.e. you can order burgers and fries, and potato salad and all that crap.

As if I wanted to eat what I get at home while I'm travelling in South East Asia...pffff....oh well, I guess some (or maybe a lot) of other tourists do...

Tuk tuk and taxi drivers are also abundant and can be a total rip off:

Taxis

If you arrive at Bangkok airport, ignore all the folks approaching you as soon as you walk through the arrival hall, trying to get a taxi ride for a pre-set price. What they offer you is surely far above what the journey is worth...

Thanks god I knew, so went straight to level 1 where there is an 'official' taxi stand outside. You tell the woman/guy at the counter where you want to go, and they will write the destination down in Thai for the taxi driver and order you to follow one of their drivers (note, all streets have a name in English and one in Thai, and many taxi drivers speak hardly any English at all, so it pays off to grab a card from the hotel you are staying at, just to make sure you get home quickly if you want to).

But even at the official taxi stand you have to be careful, as most taxi drivers will try to drive off without turning the meter on. You have to be VERY persistent, and threaten them to get out again if they won't turn it on.

The trip from the airport into town (Chinatown, Ko San Road etc. - it's all pretty close) costs between THB 220 and 300, depending on the traffic and what time of the day you are travelling. Also, if you take the express highway, be prepared to have change ready for the toll which you are expected to pay, twice that is, totalling arround THB 65. On the way from the airport into town, the driver will add THB 50 to whatever is on the meter, and that seems to be the norm and legitimate, however you don't need to pay it if you go the other way round.

I did the trip from and to the airport 3 times (when I flew in, another time to pick up Andy, and a third time when we went to the domestic terminal to go the Southern Islands in the Gulf of Siam)...And I'm not joking if I tell you that there was a taxi driver offering to take us to the airport for as much as THB 1000...

Most taxi rides in town are between THB 50 - 70 (standard fee is THB 35 when you get in).

Tuk Tuk Drivers

Tuk Tuk drivers are another breed of it's own...Never ever pay more than THB 50-60 to go anywhere in town. Many of them try to charge you over THB 100, even for short trips, so negotiate beforehand.

Also be ware of tuk tuk drivers offering trips for as cheap as THB 10 or 20, as this will definitely include at least one or two 'stops' at either a tourist office (you won't get information for free, only if you intend to or pretend that you want to book a tour with them), tailor shop (which of course has a special promotion on the day you arrive, and it's only on that day...but everyday 'only today'...:-)) etc.. The driver will get a gasoline voucher from the place...and you lose time and maybe money.

Having said all that, I still think you should get a tuk tuk at least once while you're in Bangkok. The driving style is hillarious and will almost certainly get your heart pumping within seconds... It really is an experience! And if you do have time to spare on a lazy day and don't mind the heat and fumes, hiring a tuk tuk to take you around town for a morning or afternoon is actually a nice way of observing the street life and viewing the city.

What pissed me off was that most drivers don't tell you about the stops. I have no issues with the ones that are honest, at least then I can decide whether or not I have the time and patience to have a look at a few places (you only need to spend 5 mins at the place where the driver takes you, and are not obliged to buy or book anything)...and get a cheap and exciting journey in return.

I used tuk tuks a few times, especially at the beginning of the trip, but later on preferred 'METERED' taxis (again, you have to tell the taxi driver that you want him to use his meter before you get in, otherwise you will end up having an argument for sure).

I think taxis are generally quicker, safer, cheaper and more comfortable, especially in this heat...i.e. no fumes and the luxury of air-conditioning...

Eating and Drinking

As already mentioned, I wasn't particulary fond of the eateries on and around Ko San Road, but there's one place I can recommend, a bar called 'Gazebo's' which has a good atmosphere and life bands that play every night (they are good). Don't miss out on trying the 'waterpipe' if you go there...apple is really nice.

Other than that, we preferred eating at hawkerstalls which, just like in Malaysia, do the best food for the cheapest price. Chinatown has absolutely delicious seafood - don't be turned off by the dirty looking hawker places, the food and price make up for it big time!

Also, you have to go to the food court on the ground level of SIAM center if you get the chance. Meals are venomenal and there is so much to choose from. You get a 'food card' when you enter some of the corners in that food court which always consist of several food stalls, and you can order small meals from all these different stalls, get it charged to your 'food card' and then pay at the end at the 'check-out' counter.

Also, there is an absolutely venomenal gourmet supermarket on the groundfloor. There's nothing you can't get here, from fruit over vegis to meat and pastries to the most strangely coloured rice (blue, purple, green...). Many of the little food stalls within that supermarket offer samples of what they are selling. Andy and I spent a couple of hours in the place wandering around and trying stuff, and had absolutely no room left in our tummies for more afterwards.

Shopping

There's quite a few really good shopping centers near SIAM square. We went to MBK which I really liked, and if you need electronic items go to Pantib Plaza. Even if you think you don't need anything, you can be sure not to walk out empty-handed.

I bought a wireless mouse, a laptop cooler stand, a wireless travel headset and a new mobile phone (the new Ericsson K810i - thanks to Andy - and I'm really proud of it - if only I could get MMS to work here in Vietnam, then I could make you really jealous!).

Oh yes, and before I forget, the price for almost everything you buy can be bargained, even in some of the shopping malls. For the goods sold in market stalls it's a must, and don't be shy to drop the price to under 50% of what the seller wants when you start negotiating - this way you may get the article for half the price in the end...

Sightseeing

We went and had a look at the grand place and some of the big budda statues which are spread all over town on one day (hired a tuk tuk driver for THB 40 and he drove us from place to place, and patiently waited outside everytime until we had enough and were ready to move on to the next place - needless to say the journey included 2 stops:-)).

Another day we decided to wander around in some of the more local areas of Bangkok, and had a look at resedential houses and local markets, a chit-chat here and there with a hawker, then caught a ferry ride down the river for a different view of the city.

We also went up to level 81/2 (can't remember) of the highest tower in Bangkok which is also a hotel, I can't remember the name. Admission includes one cocktail and the views are breath taking.

There's quite a lot to see, but with time limited we just couldn't fit more in...

Pulau Langkawi

la_gitana_pequena — Tue, 15 May 2007 20:45:00 GMT

Having been sick of the sleezyness of the late-night crowd in Georgetown's China-town I decided after 2 days to move on to Langkawi about which I saw a documentary once on the travel channel back in Sydney, for a bit of relaxation time and beach life, and cheap alcohol:-) (so much for my detox:-)).

Just about 3 hours off the coast of Pulau Pinang (i.e. Penang) heading north lies a beautiful limestone cliff and forest archipelago consisting of 99 islands, some of which are mere rocks that vanish at high tide. They islands are part of Malaysia's Keda state in the Andaman Sea, but are adjacent to the Thai border.

The biggest and best known of these islands is Pulau Langkawi which means "Eagle Island" in Malay. It's a duty free island where even locals from Georgetown or Butterworth go every now and then on a weekend-escape from the busy city life, and to buy cheap goods such as alcohol and tabacco. The island comprises a landmass of around 480km2, about 65% of which is covered by rainforest.

Legend has it that the once sleepy island was under a spell cast by a princess, Mahsuri, who lived in the 14th century and was unfairly executed for adultery (white blood was seen gushing out of her wound during execution). With her dying breath, she laid a curse on Langkawi that it would remain barren for seven generations.

Locals believe that Mahsuri's curse did take effect, for Langkawi was soon invaded by the Siamese. To starve the invading soldiers, all rice on the island was collected and burned. However, it was a foolish move, for it backfired on the islanders who were themselves starved to death.

Maybe an interwinging of fact and fiction, Langkawi appearantly stayed desolate for seven generations, and has only recently become one of Malaysia's premier tourist destinations.

But enough of mythology...

I arrived on Langkawi at around 11:30am after one of the worst ferry trips some people might have ever experienced. Half of the passengers if not more were vomitting because the sea was so choppy, and another few spewed up because they couldn't stand the smell. I was lucky, as I had taken a sea sickness tablet an hour before the ferry set off, and was so tired because I didn't catch much sleep the night before, that I fell asleep after only 15 minutes from take off, and hence got told about the action on the boat by the English couple (Fran & Richard) sitting in the row of seats next to me when we arrived.

Fran, Richard and I shared a cab to Pantai Cenang (Cenang Beach) which supposedly is one of the prettiest beaches on the island (it's nice)including a street lined with expensive resort hotels, restaurants, clothing stores and all the rest of it. In case you plan to go there, make sure you have got enough cash on you since there's no ATMs, and there's only one money changer that will change your traveller cheques for a rate that is, of course, much less than on the mainland or in Penang.

We booked ourselves into Gecko's, the only budget accommodation we've heard of, and not listed in any of the travel guides I have nor the accommodation brochure we were handed out at the ferry terminal on arrival. Staff there is a little 'different' (find out for yourselves:-)), but nice, and the place is clean and has a pretty beer garden where the TV junks can even watch England play soccer if they really can't do without it for a few days...

I got myself a little A-frame wooden chalet with ensuite bathroom (note this is VERY simple...but ok) for 35RM a night. The price included putting up with pet-monkey Anny who not only stole my cigarettes, my inscent sticks and candles, but also seized my hammock and knocked over my drink on MY verandah...:-) She probably made my stay...:-)

Day 2 we went to the beach and of course all got sunburnt even though applied 30+ and it was cloudy...so no beach on day 3:-)

There's an Irish bar called Debby's Place which holds a loud welcoming ceremony everytime a new guest enters the premises, and does yummi pizzas for a reasonable price. Also, just opposite Gecko's on the other side of the road (by the beach) is a Chinese seadfood place I can warmly recommend. I had the biggest tiger prawns I've ever seen in my life (realised when they served the meals why it said on the menu you have to order at least '3'...as was wondering which idiot would only order 3 prawns anyway?).

I did a half-day island hopping tour on a speed boat where we visited Pulau Dayang Buntin, Pulau Singa Besar and Pulau Bras Basah in about 4 hours.

Pulau Dayang Buntin is the second largest island of the group, has a unique deep fresh- and salt-water lake, whose appearent 'ice-cold' waters are believed to aid conception if a woman drinks from it. The name translates into "Island of the Pregnant Maiden" and is based on a story of a princess that fell in love with a male genie after he tricked her into it by putting the tears of a mermaid from the sea on his face so she would feel empathy and repricocate his feelings. They married and spent a lot of time in the beautiful spots in and around the lake, and at some stage the princess fell pregant. But unfortunately the child died after only 7 days which is when she found out her marriage was through tickery. She burried her child in the lake and blessed it with magical fertility powers to allow any woman with the genuine with of falling pregant to be able to do so by drinking the lake's water.

My discussions with some island-folk confirms the story is true and the magic spell works, but I can tell you for SURE that the water is NOT ice-cold...maybe need to send the travel book writers to Switzerland for a holiday in the mountains for some time:-)

Whether true or not, the island actually has the physical form of a pregnant woman lying down and you can make out her head, breast, pregnant belly etc. from the boat when you approach. And the lake is nice to swim in! Watch the cheeky monkeys they will take anything off you they can get hold of!!!

We then moved on to Pulau Singa Besar which is a bird and animal sanctuary to see dozens of brown sea eagles feeding (they obviously got allured by the boatsman who threw some small fish into the water for bait - but I got some pretty good shots out of it, so no complaints - not sure the wildlife department is happy about it though...).

Last stop was Pulau Bras Basah, an extremly pretty island with fine white sandy beaches where we stopped for an hour of swimming and sun baking. Really peaceful...

On my second last day I hired a car and did a bit of driving around the island to see what else it has to offer.

I went to pay a visit to the island's Art & Cultural Center to see how hand drawn Batik is made. Note that Batik is not only used for clothing but nowadays also for colourfully decorating curtains, pillow covers, paintings, bags etc.

Hand drawn batik uses a small copper cup and fountain pen like 'janting' with melted wax to draw across the length and breadth of the cloth (usuallyh silk or cotton). Next step is to dye the fabric with batik colours that were originally made of flowers, roots etc. The waxed areas resist the dye, giving the cloth it's unique pattern. The material is then boiled in hot water in order to remove the wax after it has been soaked in a chemical fluid that makes the colour stay permanent.

I've been told that original i.e. hand-drawn batik can be identified by making sure that the patterns and colours are of the same intensity on both sides. Machine batik is coloured on one side only.

I ended up buying a fairly big wall painting of sun flowers drawn on cotton which caught my eye as soon as I entered the gallery. It's just gorgeous! You have to come and see it once I figured out where to live!

Then I headed to the north-west of the island to take the cable car up Gunung Mat Cincang which is the highest peak in Langkawi with 708 meters above sea level. There are two platforms that allow for a 360 degree view of the Andaman Sea and appreantly offer spectacular sunsets but I had nothing but fog and clouds when I got up there:-( and being from Switzerland the cable-car experience didn't really make up for it either...

Next day I went to the northern parts of the island to do some beach hopping. The first beach I got to was Teluk Temurong and it was pretty, picturesque and quiet, i.e. I had it all to myself...awesome! Then moved on to Black Sandy Beach which got it's name yet from another myth of a goddess having turned the sand black after getting upset about a fisherman that lived on the bach and who didn't keep a promise. Final stop was Tanjung Rhu which is a secluded northern beach nestled among mangrove forests and is very scenic and fameous for being the perfect spot for sunset photography.

There's lots of other things to do on the island but I just simply ran out of time...or once again was missing that one person to share the experience with me...and the cost:-) If you can afford it, hire out a sailing boat for an afternoon and sail between the islands, or go diving at Pulau Payar, a marine park only 1 hour by boat from the main island (I couldn't as am still on stereoids due to the eye infection I had back in March...and I really don't want to tempt faith here in South East Asia).

Long story cut short: Langkawi is a beautiful place!

The Hill Stations

la_gitana_pequena — Wed, 9 May 2007 02:08:00 GMT

Just arrived in Penang yesterday arvo after a long (5hours or so) busride from the Cameron Highlands, and am close to dying because it's so hot here! Bus left 45 minutes late and broke down after only 2 hours...Welcome to South East Asia:-)

I went to Tanah Rata, one of the two major villages in the area, initially only intending to stay for a day. I ended up being there 4 nights, and could have well extendrd that for another few days, wouldn't I have felt a little pressed for time.

The Cameron Highlands is "Tea Drinking Paradise", and a great place for the exhausted traveller to relax and unwind, and to recover from the heat ever present in the city of Kuala Lumpur and in the rainforest, at least at this time of the year! The Highlands are some 1800m above sea level.

The highlands are a collection of rolling hills where the tea industry and vegetable farmers established themselves as far back as in 1929. The British used South Indian labour to work on the plantations, nowadays they are mainly Bangladeshi workers. Many of the South Indians are now in their second generation and run the factory tours or work in shops or behind hotel receptions. Needless to say that most of the restaurants and hawker stalls serve South Indian food which can get as hot & spicy as you can stand it:-)

"Green" is the predominant colour of the landscape here as there are farms, plantations and tree ferns as far as the eye can see. And for your information: the slender figure with the bright scarf over the head and a basket on the back which you will see moving up and down between the tea plants is usually a MALE tea picker...:-)

The lush scenery with its winding roads between the hills almost reminded me a little bit of home. I wish I could ride a motorbike!

I stayed at 'David's Lodge' which is a hostel a short stroll from the main bus station in Tanah Rata, set back a 2 minutes walk from the village's main street "Il Besar". It's a lovely place! There's a beergarden at the back where travellers start to mingle after a day of jungle trekking and/or visiting the tea plantations and fruit farms, where travel stories and advice are exchanged in a relaxed atmosphere while sitting around the bonfire that gets lit every night. And if you're lucky there will be someone playing the guitar and you can sing along! I could have stayed forever!

I booked a day-tour together with 6 German guys whom I had met on the way to the Hill Stations (had totally forgotten how nice it is to have a conversation in my native language...thanks boys for making me feel 'home':-)).

The first stop was at the butterfly farm which was more interesting for the insects it hosts (e.g. scorpions, giant beetles, different types of mantises, snakes, geckos, lizards etc.) than for the butterflies I'd say.

We then got a ride up to Gunung Brinchang, which at 1,800 meters is the Highland's highest peak, for a stunning view over the surrounding land. Next stop was the local giant "Boh Tea" where we could have a quick look at the tea factory and got a taste of the tea produced by this tea estate (most tea bags for sale that I've seen in the supermarkets and 7-Eleven shops are Boh-branded...).

After lunch which was soup, rice and some vegetable and/or fishcurry (I think? :-)) we visisted an Orang Asli settlement and got a quick introduction to the way these indigenous people hunt (small animals such as monkeys) using a blowpipe. This is a simple weapon consisting of a small tube for firing darts which are usually tipped with a poison. The wielder blows into one end, forcing the dart out the other.

Then the real adventure started, i.e. a 2 - 2.5 hour jungle trek that led us to the world's largest flower, namely the "Rafflesia". It can reach a diameter of over 1m and may weigh up to 10kg when it's in full bloom. It flowers for about 7 days, and stinks like rotten meat when it dies. This is how it got its name, as it translates to "corpse flower" or "meat flower". The vile smell that the flower gives off attracts insects such as carrion flies, which transport pollen from male to female flowers.

Even though the climate in the Highlands is much cooler than in Taman Negara, trekking in the jungle was a very wet and sweaty experience once again. I was deeply grateful for the little waterfall and -pool whose path we crossed on the way up! However it's impossible to stay dry for not even a minute...hence no towels are needed:-) The way back was much quicker as it was all downhill.

Our guide then took us to the night markets in a nearby village, but I think he was the only one who was enthusiastic about it. Everyone else was exhausted and just wanted to go back to the hostel and crash!

The following two days I spent sleeping in in the mornings, reading in my "Discovery Channel" travel book about Malaysia (which has prooven to be an excellent 'buy' - I can only recommend it!) during the day (lying on the sofa in the front garden area, or in the swinging bamboo chair), and drinking beer & wine chatting to other travellers around the bonfire in the evenings.

Awesome, awesome, awesome!

Taman Negara National Park

la_gitana_pequena — Sat, 5 May 2007 15:32:00 GMT

Taman Negara means "National Park" in Malay, and sprawls over 430,000 hectares (100,000 acres) of lush rainforest across three states, with the bulk being in the state of Pahang.

There are three aboriginal tribes living in the area, the Senoi and Semak Abri tribes who live just outside the park and which you can visit on one of the many tours that are on offer, and the Batek community which prefers a more nomadic lifestyle deep in the jungle. We discovered the temporary huts of the latter on one of our treks through the National Park. A group of kids was playing on the grass just nex to the trail when we passed. We got a loud 'hello hello' accompanied by lots of giggling and hand waving...but that's how far the interaction went:-( the kiddies were quick to run back to the huts and hide behind their parents...

I booked a shuttle bus in Kuala Lumpur which took us directly to the Kuala Tembeling jetty (busride approx. 2.5 hours, which is the main entance to the park. We had lunch here and then caught the riverboat (a wooden longboat seating approximately 14 people) to Kuala Tahan (3 hours) which is just outside the NP and has the biggest and cheapest range of accommodation. There's also buses that go to Kuala Tahan which are quicker but I would recommend you take the boat if you want to go there. The scenery is stunning and the experience definitely one to remember.

We arrived at Kuala Tahan at aroudn 5pm and booked ourselves into the hostels, then went to have dinner at one of the floating restaurants on the river bank and later on had drinks and played cards.

I wanted to go on a 3 day / 2 night jungle tour where you can sleep in a cave or anmial hide one night and at an Orang Asli (Orang Asli means something like 'native people' I think...) settlement the other. The hides are huts on stilts which have been established near salt-licks where animal come to drink. So it's the best place to spot wildlife. You have to be there from around 5pm onwards, as most of the animals are nocturnal. Also, don't expect to see panthers or tigers, youd have to be really really lucky to spot one. You may be able to identify their footprints if you go trekking with a guide, but that's probably as lucky as one can realisticly get.

Unfortunately, I could not find anyone else who wanted to stay for that long so had to give the 3day/2night tour a miss. Alone I would have had to pay the price for 3 people which I did not want to do. Most people that come here are backpackers that do a packaged tour for 1 day and sleep in the park for two nights, or then there's the real hikers with lots of time on hand who will go and trek to the highest peak on the peninsula, Gunung Tahan, which takes 7 days. But the latter would have been too long given that there's so many places that I would like to see, and poor Nadine only has 3 months for travelling this time round:-) Oh well, it'll give me the opportunity to come back at a later point in time (life?:-))..

I met two lovely guys from Danemark and California during lunch at the Tembeling Jetty on the day of arrival, so hooked up with them and we did a few things in the NP for which you don't need a guide:

We started with the 30 minute canopy walk over a rope-and-ladder bridge that spans among the tops of the trees some 27 meters from the ground. It's a 400m long walkway and I definitely got the adrenlin pumpig...one wonders how safe the whole things is...as the bridge swings quite a bit when you walk across:-)

We then walked on to Butik Teresik (Butik stands for hill) for a view of Gunung Tahan in the far distance. On the map it looked very close from where the canopy walk was but jeeez the trail is steep...I looked like a stoplight by the time I reached the top...and my eyes were burning from the sweat that was constantly running into them. Poor Rachel (from England) had soaking trekking trousers and wished she had gone for a good and hence a little more expensive pair:-( Seriously, it is soooo hot, it made me wonder whether I'd survive 7 days in the jungle walking several hours every day. Temparatures in the National Park are sweltering since humidity is extremely high. After only 5 minutes of walking the sweat starts coming out from all of your pores and after 30 minutes or so you are soaking wet down to the last piece of clothing including socks and underware...

We finished the day in the NP off with a refreshing swim in a water hole down at the river, then took the 1 minute ferry (1 Ringit) back to Kuala Tahan where I spent another night before heading further to the Cameron Highlands the next day.

At midnight, after another dinner and drinks (non-alcoholic - if you want some, you have to bring your own!) at a floating restaurant with my travel buddies, I sat outside my dorm-bed chalet (there was no one else but me on both nights) with a cup of tea in one hand and a cigarette in the other, and marvelled at the star constellations in the sky (no light pollution)...and listen to the music of the jungle. It was nothing short of awesome!

KL - First Impressions

la_gitana_pequena — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 16:09:00 GMT

After 5 days in New Zealand and another 1.5 days in Sydney I finally managed to catch the plane to Singapore on 24 April 2007! Short stop over in a city hotel as I arrived late at night and straight to KL the next day with the first flight!

So here I am now, in the middle of the hustle and bustle of busy Kuala Lumpur, trying to acclimatise and settle in.

First impressions

Traffic

Traffic lights mainly don't work and if they do, no one cares what the colour on the box is anyway...you just walk across when you see a small gap, and hope that the approaching driver sees you and will slow down:-)

Don't ever wait for a gap big enough to feel totally safe to cross as you'll be standing on the same bloody spot still 3 hours later...

The big junctions have traffic lights that are intact but there's normally two or three traffic contollers standing in the middle of the junction directing the cars...I have no idea what the lights are for as really no one seems to care...

Transport

Taxi drivers are annoying as they won't leave you alone and usually need 2 or 3 times a firm 'no' until they understand...Some of them are unliscensed and will charge you more than you'd really have to pay...modifying the meter when you don't watch etc.

I reckon that discovering the city by foot is the best thing to do. Most of the attractions are pretty close together anyway. Otherwise there's a good train network which is really cheap, not to forget the buses which are a little crazy (drivers) but will get you from A to B.

I've done most of my sightseeing over the last 2 days by foot - actually I think I've spent about 6 hours walking each day. Long enough to have sore mussels last night...and a little reminder of the times when I was training for the Oxfam:-) By the time I'm finished with my trip I'm probably going to be ready to run the 100km:-)

Shopping

KL really is a shoppers paradise and I feel kind of sorry for myself that I'm here during the beginning of my trip rather than at the end:-) Oh well, there's always the opportunity to send something home I guess.

From the branded goods through to rustic handicrafts, foodstuffs to electronic equipement etc. KL has it all!

There's a few good shopping centers and then there are the markets in Little India and Chinatown which are great and a must-see! Only thing is not get annoyed with the stall owners. You can't take a foot step without someone yelling from somewhere "Mam, mam, new watch...", "Mam, handbag for you?", "Mam, hungry today"? etc. etc. etc. The best option is to just ignore it, don't even look. If you're interested you can go and have a look, and then just say 'no', firmly but nicely, and with a smile, and leave again...

Chinatown's market (where I have been staying the last two nights) opens up at around 11am in the mornings, and transforms into a night market at around 5pm. In the evenings the entire street which is then closed off to traffic is full of stalls on both sides. It is so crowded I had to take a detour a few times to get to my hotel because I couldn't cross the road where I wanted to...You have to see this for yourself - it's great:-)

Also, a short stroll to the supermarket early in the morning is a must. I went to UO this morning to buy an adapter...electronics are on floor 4 so I took the escalaters upstairs...and on every floor there was a group of 4 staff, ususally a mix between woman and man, who stand to both sides of the escalaters and greet you with a smile as they are saying 'good morning mam' when you get off:-)

Maybe our supermarkets in OZ and CH could learn something here:-)

Food & Drink

I did eat in a couple of restaurants in Chinatown and around the large shopping areas the first day, but the food is quite expensive (for Malaysian terms) compared to the hawker-type stuff you get on the street...so I now go where the locals go. A meal costs between $3-6RM, that's around AUD$1-2...i.e. 'nothing'.

In many places there seems to be a dual price system, as in most South East Asian countries I guess, i.e. the locals pay less than you do... But one can't really complain I think, at the end of the day it is all still very cheap for us...

Only problem is that the people in the hawker stalls often don't speak much English, so you're best to just have a look at the food and point at whatever you want:-)

In terms of drinking: It's so hot and humid that 3 liters of water easily go down your throat every day! Alcohol is something to spare for the weekend...it's very expensive (given this is a muslim country where most people don't drink...), sometimes hard to get (only in touristy areas), and won't make you feel all too great if you have it in the midst of the hot afternoon sun...

Scams

I read in my lonely planet guidebook when I was planning the trip to SEA that there are a number of scams in place...and yep, after only two days in KL I can definitely confirm that this applies to KL as well.

I got approached by about 4 different people yesterday...who first made a compliment about the bracelet I was wearing on my wrist, then asked where I bought it, and once you tell them where they say, oh, you live there... and if you confirm that, then they tell you about a cousin, sister, uncle, friend etc. who just happends to have planned a holiday or relocation to exactely that place you named... they then try to talk you into meeting them for a drink, or go for dinner, etc. and it all ends up in gambling where you lose a hell lot of money.

I didn't remember the gambling bit when I got approached but I smelled the rat when the first young lady wanted to meet me for a drink after we had only a quick chat on the street for a few minutes (her friend and/or boyfriend looked a little quirky too...), and was 100% sure something was wrong when I got approached the second time, by another woman with the same story i.e. some friend who was planning a trip to Melbourne...

I said to her that I thought it was funny as she'd be the second person today whom I met who has a friend that is going to Melbourne and gave her the 'I know exactely what you are doing-look'. She didn't take it that well, muttered something along the lines: It's not funny a lot of Malaysians want to go to Australia, see, but it's very espensive...

Whatever...!

(It seems the scammers are mainly from the Philippines though, rather than Malaysians...).

You really have to be careful and alert here...

Malaysia's King

Under Malaysia's rotational monarchy, the heads of each of the nine states occupy the throne for five years. The king's role is largely ceremonial, with power in the hands of parliament and the prime minister. Malaysia is the only country in the world to have a rotating monarchy.

Malaysia has enthroned its 13th king, Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin, at the national palace (Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samed) yesterday. The sultan is the former ruler of the oil-rich Terengganu state and os is one of the youngest heads of state Malaysia has ever had.

And I'm disappointed that I missed the ceremony because of the cold I just caught...:-( thanks to my new friend 'aircon'. Feeling pretty average at the moment and am on medication... (note: I've got a huge tupperware box with me with all sorts of medication, but nothing for a simple flu...it's all the way isn't it?!).

Further Plans

I will go to Melakka tomorrow to have a look around the first settlement on the peninsula in the 1400s... Melakka is basically the birthplace of Malaysia! Then another day in KL to do some more sightseeing and then I will make my way up to the hill stations of the Cameron Highlands to drink tea with the locals and do some more walking:-)

So long...Take care! I will too:-)

Photos to follow, once I have a few more on my memory card and it's worth burning them onto a CD...

Gallery: Toronga Zoo

la_gitana_pequena — Sun, 1 Apr 2007 20:12:00 GMT