Msia Trip

Trip of Sunshine

WARNING! the subsequent post contains loads of photos. view at your own discretion...

okie, so lets begin on the trip review. Leaving on Tuesday Morning, our family embarked on a 600km journey up north to K.Trengganu to stay the night before completing the rest of our trip to the island Pulau Lang Tengah.

I was basically contented at the thought of having the chance to catch up with all the lost sleep i had suffered the previous weeks due to my wicked work schedule and numerous tuition assignments. slp craves drove me ard the bend.


After spending a great night at a hotel in K. Trengganu where i went for a 80 mins body scrub treatment. BAGUS!!! a wonderful treat for the body. never felt cleaner in years in fact... sea salt and a healthy dose of yoghurt slathered on the body sure does restore the suppleness of the flesh ( to my dismay, didn't knoe tt all these wldn't matter anymore at the end of the trip. haha). Dinner was great as well and sleep was precious. As soon as my heavy head hit the pillow, i drifted off into lala land almost immediately.
the next day, we took a 50mins boat ride on the high seas to our resort on Pulau Lang Tengah. Apparently, the island won't be open up to tourist until a month later. Hence, there were but a few people scattered about the tiny little island. fyi, the island measuring roughly 3 by 2 km wasn't exactly wat u wld call BIG. but it had everything we needed as you would find out later.
the resort as we approached the beach shores...


view of the hotel and its swimming pool deck
the family... except for I, the photographer

there on the island, we enjoyed accomadation (reasonably sized rooms, fully airconditioned with its own bathroom) as well as in-house meals all prepared for us. Surprisingly, the food was fantabulous. in fact, every single meal was a gourmet feast for us. Whether it was lamb stew, fish curry, pasta, beef stew, the variety never failed to satisfy our insatiable palates. Further more, we were constantly hungry as there was no lack of activity on the small yet amazingly vibrant island.
We took time to explore the island and were delighted to see white sands and calm blue waters tt surrounded. It was amazing to experience the beauty and splendor of such an awesome beach not so far from home. the coconut trees that lined the white sand beaches added to the tropical and exotic feel of the entire place. It was not long before we were all intoxicated by the hidden beauty of the island.
After a quick rest, we headed of to our first snorkelling trip. Sailing on the high seas on a speed boat indeed had its thrills. Sitted at the bow of the boat, i was tossed about with every fluctuations of the waves. Highly thrilling. only qualm was the tiny little jellyfish tt had gathered in the season causing a burning sensation as u waded thru the clear blue waters. other than tt, the corals and multitude of brilliantly coloured fishes were indeed a treat for the eye.

Weiquan however, lost his snorkle equipment on his first jump off the boat, leading on to a frantic search for the missing item. With the rolling waves and strong tidal action at work, it made the search and rescue mission almost impossible. in turn, weiquan turned from one happie boi in the picture above to an uber depressed boi. oh well... kor and I had only one expression ==>

the night ended with a round of 'sunset gospel' a sharing cum bible study session we carried out as a family twice a day throughout the entire trip. Kor lead the sharing sessions with material that he had prepared for us prior to the trip. Truthfully, I have benefited loads from them and I thank God for the wonderful opportunity he had provided us for on this trip. The environment, away from the temptations of the world and with the fermaments standing right in front of our eyes showing off his handywork. It made it much easier to understand his word. Consequently, peace and joy was instilled in my heart. I was happy. Time with family, with God was precious, a rare commodity and i lapped i up fervently. Lets pray tt, this will sustain.
watching the sunset
the next day, we got up bright and early to enjoy a sumptious breakfast before heading out to explore the island. RAWR!!! lazy bones. did so much lazing ard the day before it was hard to get moving.

but after we found our pace, endured several red ant bites and conquered the hills, we came to the west end of the island which featured a scenic outcrop of rock walls and wave battered cliffs. In contrast to the sandy beaches of the east end, this showcased a very different side of the island. and we were taken aback by the rugged beauty of the coastline. The clear blue waters were alluring yet, the fierce waves tt crashed against the rocks made jumping down a no-go. Still, it looked lyke a scene from the Leonardo Di Caprio film 'the island'.. spectacular scenary...

don't ask me what was i doing...

the rugged coastline

the fierce waves

Kor and I
three = trouble

following tt, we came round to the other side of the island. Pristine beaches with clear blue waters. Though the sun and its reflection off the fine sands were blinding, i was simply captivating by the color palate of my surroundings. The picture in comparison pales in comparison to the real experience there. Some things just cannot be replicated thru a shot or photo.
such as the piercing of the warm sunrays as it touches your skin, the chill of the sea breeze, the feel of the fine sand as it fills the spaces btw your toes, the tranquility and peace in the environment. I embraced the moment as we treaded down the long stretch of beach.

I was thankful the most for the absence of any crowds of throngs of people on the beach. The rarity of such a beautiful island away from an overdosage of commercialisation was certainly hard to come by.
and as usual, kor kor still does the stupidest things... and i served the purpose of being his photographer to his dare-devil stunts and photo-wrhoring nemesis.

but of course there were still photos of my mother and i! haha. wldn't happened if i didn't insisted of course. once a slave.. always a slave. *sighs* hehe. kidding...
in actuality, i'm always on top! haha. hmph...

and in my free time, i do stupid things as well...
a special msg to babe made with coral pieces... *smilez*

in the afternoon, we boarded the boat for the second snorkeling trip which was much more rewarding due the skools of fish tt swam round the clear waters of the island.

more stupid stunts...
it wasn't long before i joined in the fun. after about 20jumps, we came to the realisation tt mummy wld never master the art of taking jump shots on the camera. Argh.. drank several mouthful of seawater for nthing. *bleah*.. still it was adrenaline rush with every plunge into the sea.
mummy and i at the swimming pool
to end off this uber long post, i shall share my favourite pictures of the entire trip. Sunset!!! watching the amber glow of the sun as it sets swiftly casting a blanket of glitter on the highseas. it is easy to be enchanted by the glamor and beauty within the mundaneness of such a daily task. Ironic...

a lone fisherman sitting in the blanket of gold cast upon the lands by the setting sun.

as we trudged down the beach, fatigued from the entire day of hardcore activity, the ambience and the incredulous splendor of such an event definitely lifted our spirits... coupled with the amazing sea breeze. i honestly cldn't ask for more...

i lyke this photo a lot. to me it symbolises man's need to be close to God. His never ending search for answers to understand the Lord. like walking on a gold cast path. one tt never ends...

on the whole, the trip was a super rewarding experience. the rest ample, the scenary breathtaking and most importantly, the company of my family, priceless.

definitely looking forward to exploring new grounds with my family in future. so.. chinese new years in spore? neh.. i'll give it a miss anytime...

No comments: