ma-LAZY-a

Last week Tuesday we headed to the North East of Malaysia for a break from the city and some tropical splendor. We decided on the Perhentian Islands located just off the coast of Kota Bharu. I had been there maybe 8 years ago with Jennell. At that time the main backpacker's beach, Long Beach was dotted with a few rustic accommodations that served food, a hut that served as a convenience store, one internet place that used a cell phone as a land line, and lots of construction. All the generators turned off during the day so there was no electricity in the middle of the day. We both agreed that it would be interesting to come back and see the development.

Yami and I found a dirt cheap flight, flew to Kota Bharu, took a cab and boat, and landed ourselves on the west side of Palau Kecil, the more backpacker friendly island. Our side of the island is Coral Bay which is only a 10 minute walk through the lush interior to Long Beach on the other side of the island.

The beaches are postcard perfect. The jungle-like rugged interior is separated from the still turquoise waters by the wide, white fine sand beaches. In the open waters colorful fishing boats are anchored and various long boats zoom into the beach depositing goods from the mainland, arriving tourists, and divers.

Our side of the island, Coral Bay, is exactly that; a bay about a kilometer long with coral that stretches into the open sea about 500 meters. There are about 10 accommodations on this side varying from Robinson Curusoe-like digs to "chalets" with TV, fan and attached bath. We opted for something similar to our place on Gilli Air; a porch with a view of the sea, a fan, a cold water shower, and bed with a mosquito net. A pic of our A-frame hut as well as the view from the porch is on this blog page.

The second day we walked over to the Long Beach side. It's amazing how much it's changed since Jennell and I were there. Not necessarily in a bad way. The major visual change is the colorful umbrellas for tourist rent and the number of cafés that spill out onto the beach. There are about a half dozen internet places and they have broadband now. Yami and I found the umbrellas a godsend since there is little shade on the beach so I can't really complain. The beach on that side is truly our favorite. The bath-warm water is shallow for about 500 meter out and there is no coral or rocks to impede walking or swimming.

Our daily routine reverted back to a whole lot of nothing. Playing cards, reading books, laying in the shade, basking in the sun, a dip in the sea, etc. Oh… and while in KL we bought a Mah-Jong set so Yami has been teaching me. We went from an old Jewish lady's night out game (canasta) to an old Chinese lady's night out game.

After a week of island living we are back in KL tanned, rested, and still picking out the sand between our toes.