We crossed over from Borneo to Tioman last month, a week of pretty good sailing. After chilling out and doing some jobs in Tioman we said goodbye to the friends of Hamamas and started going north on our way to Samui, stopping just "outside the door" at lovely Tulai island. White beaches all for ourselves, absolute peace and silence with not a soul around except fish, turtles and lizards. After getting thoroughly relaxed we set off for next destination which is the first island north of Tioman. In the early morning the islands appears from the mist looking like something out of Jurassic Park: vertical thick tropical jungle, but just around the corner the point unveils the handsomest little cove with 25 meters visibility (we could see our anchor in 25 meters!). In spite of the charts indicating the whole bay foul ground, it is clear all the way to the fringing reef, and two safe moorings are there for the taking. The bay is round, perfect little white beach, only a couple of small low key resorts. We anchor at first and here goes the windlass not working once again...but at least, just after dropping the anchor, a sea hawk flies almost at arm's reach, a sight to behold. Spending there at least a couple days is a must: quiet, sheltered, clear waters and a carpet of live coral teeming with fish. Lots of swimming and lazying about and off we go, a stop to Pulau Kapas (where we'll return and investigate better) and then on to Terengganu, since we must repair the autopilot chain and try a new battery for the windlass hoping that's where the problem is.
Terengganu is listed on brochures as "the capital of Malay culture" but we can't quite tell why. We visit a theme park with reproductions of the world's most amazing mosques and walk by a large museum that doesn't look promising. The town is pleasant though, and the large supermarket and good shops (for car parts and other equipment). As soon as the minor things are sorted we set off for Samui again, planning of course to stop in Redang, Perhentian. First we stop at Bidung, there are moorings on the west side, while crossing over to the secluded beach on the south side one has to walk across a large monument. The islands saw 38 drown when refugee boats from Viet Nam (people escaping communism) landed there on their rickety overloaded boats on a stormy night. The beach on the south side is quite stunning, while two temples (Cristian and Buddhist) commemorate the dead.
From Bidung to Redang, first on the south side where a pretty good reef packs several turtles, sharks, plentiful fishes and a lovely white sand bottom. On the north side we get to enjoy a huge beautiful bay and yet another with a very serious turtle nesting program (the whole beach is off limits).
Perhentian is also pretty, though heavily exploited equally by dive resorts and backpacker hangouts. No matter, it's a good resting spot with a bit of nightlife before our jump to Samui. With a heavy roll coming in Long Beach bay, we set off at three in the morning for Samui, packing the dinghy and stuff in the middle of the night. We get some annoying bad weather, but two nights later we are there, quite unimpressed actually.
Huge eyesore developments, murky water and a tension in the air since the riots in Bangkok have just ended.
After checking in we move by the village of Bo Phut, nice sheltered bay and much less chaotic than the horrific Chaweng. A few days settling down and getting a couple massages on the beach and we go to Phangan for the weekend and May's Full Moon Party!
Which deserves a post of its own.....
Terengganu is listed on brochures as "the capital of Malay culture" but we can't quite tell why. We visit a theme park with reproductions of the world's most amazing mosques and walk by a large museum that doesn't look promising. The town is pleasant though, and the large supermarket and good shops (for car parts and other equipment). As soon as the minor things are sorted we set off for Samui again, planning of course to stop in Redang, Perhentian. First we stop at Bidung, there are moorings on the west side, while crossing over to the secluded beach on the south side one has to walk across a large monument. The islands saw 38 drown when refugee boats from Viet Nam (people escaping communism) landed there on their rickety overloaded boats on a stormy night. The beach on the south side is quite stunning, while two temples (Cristian and Buddhist) commemorate the dead.
From Bidung to Redang, first on the south side where a pretty good reef packs several turtles, sharks, plentiful fishes and a lovely white sand bottom. On the north side we get to enjoy a huge beautiful bay and yet another with a very serious turtle nesting program (the whole beach is off limits).
Perhentian is also pretty, though heavily exploited equally by dive resorts and backpacker hangouts. No matter, it's a good resting spot with a bit of nightlife before our jump to Samui. With a heavy roll coming in Long Beach bay, we set off at three in the morning for Samui, packing the dinghy and stuff in the middle of the night. We get some annoying bad weather, but two nights later we are there, quite unimpressed actually.
Huge eyesore developments, murky water and a tension in the air since the riots in Bangkok have just ended.After checking in we move by the village of Bo Phut, nice sheltered bay and much less chaotic than the horrific Chaweng. A few days settling down and getting a couple massages on the beach and we go to Phangan for the weekend and May's Full Moon Party!
Which deserves a post of its own.....
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