We made it. After 11 days, six delayed flights, and a few sold out buses later, Eric and I have made it to Malaysia and back. The past week and a half was filled with sun, cold drinks, sunburns, and monkeys, all of which will be explained in the posts to come. Here is a taste of the leg one of our island adventure.
The Journey
All of our friends in Korea who have visited Southeast Asia told us it is anything but easy getting there; usually what can go wrong, will go wrong. Maybe it was optimism or just plain excitement for the vacation that lay ahead, but Eric and I chalked all this who-ha to a few isolated bad experiences. After our four hour bus ride to Incheon International Airport, we quickly realized there might be some truth to our friends’ warnings. Our flight to Beijing was delayed by over an hour, bringing our layover down to less than one hour; this worried us since we had been told you need at least ninety minutes to clear security. Needless to say after sprinting the long, vacant stretches of the international terminal in Beijing, we made through security in time to board our connecting flight to Malaysia. What we didn’t know, was we would be sitting in our designated seats, on the tarmac for over three hours. We finally made it to Kuala Lumpur, where we slept on the tile floor of the airport until our plane departed for Langkawi the next morning, you guessed it that flight was delayed too. However, our grumpy moods and the sour taste in our mouths quickly dissolved once we saw what the tropical island had to offer.
Langkawi
Langkawi, technically an archipelago composed of 99 islands, is located of the Northwest coast of Malaysia, not far from the Thai border. Of all the islands, Langkawi is the largest and most inhabited. Here, we spent a total of eight days, four in the Oriental Village and four on Pentai Cenang.
• The Oriental Village. The Oriental Village is a small cluster of shops, restaurants, and a hotels set at the base of Langkawi’s second tallest peak. Here we were able to explore the offerings of the village as well as the rainforest surrounding us.
o Burau Bay. Located just 400 meters from our hotel, Burau Bay offered some of the calmest waters and longest sandbars around. Home to two of the nicer resorts on the island, Burau Bay’s beaches were home to soft, white sand and a multitude of palm trees. For at least a few hours a day, Eric and I took refuge in this small cove to take in the nearly equatorial sun and scenery. On our mornings spend at the bay we have encountered a variety of wildlife such as hornbills, monitor lizards, and snakes. Eeek!
o Cable Car. Just outside our hotel room is the base of the cable car. From here, the cable cars take locals and tourists alike to the summit of the neighboring peak. While the cars prove to be a little cloisterphobic, squeezing in no more than six people, the 360 views on your way up the mountainside will help eliminate any small room feelings. From the cars you can take in views of the rainforest and waterfalls, the sharp peaks above, or the aquamarine waters below. At the top, we indulged caught a local breakfast, nasi lemak (coconut rice, fish samal, and curried chicken), and wandered across the steel suspension bridge. From here we were able to see many of the islands that make up Langkawi’s archipelago.
o Seven Wells Waterfalls. Located a few miles into the rainforest, which surrounds the Oriental Village, are the Seven Wells Waterfalls. These falls gets its name from the seven pools of water which sit at the top of the falls. Before the water falls over the mountainside’s edge, it must flow from pool to pool. Over time, the running water has made the rocky channels between pools extremely smooth; so smooth in fact that one can slide from pool to pool without discomfort. Eric and I started at the first pool and quickly slid our way to the seventh. This was a truly unique swimming opportunity, one I know we both won’t forget. We spent hours sliding and swimming from pool to pool.
o Planet of the apes? Before arriving on Langkawi we read countless accounts of how monkeys are a part of island life. Monkeys can be seen nearly everywhere you go; from the hotels to the beaches. Needless to say, we found this to be one of the more charming aspects of the island. After all, who doesn’t love cute, long tailed monkeys? One afternoon, Eric and I were walking back from Burau Bay. On the journey back we stumbled, literally, upon a small monkey family. Thinking they were so cute, we whipped out our camera to take their pictures. As we kept clicking our camera away, more and more monkey’s revealed themselves from the dense forest just off the road. The monkeys carried on as usual, crossing the street and finding vines to play with on the other side. We couldn’t believe how cute they were. After a few minutes the monkeys must have decided they didn’t like us taking their picture because a group of three of them began hissing and running at us. Bewildered, shocked, and quite frankly scared poopless, I started running, leaving Eric behind. Eric mustered the loudest yell he could and stood on his tippy toes and confronted the monkeys head on. It seemed to have worked because the monkeys stopped in their tracks. Well we discovered they only stopped until more of their monkey friends joined the battle. Eric and I took off running, yelling and laughing at the same time while a pack of monkeys ran after us hissing and barking. Luckily, a kind soul from out hotel witnessed our struggle and offered to drive us back to the hotel. Needless to say, I think we showed those monkeys whose boss.
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