The Perhentians

After some lovely days at the Tioman Island, I stayed in Mersing, the harbor city to Tioman, since the Chinese New Years Eve made it impossible to get a buss ticket the two first days. But it was a great relaxing experience, and I meet some very wonderful persons.

Here I am trying to sell waffle balls, but with no luck.

And I meet up with the cool girls working in one of the mobile phone stores that I first meet the day I went to Tioman and bought my cell card. Take care girls!!

Finally it was time for me to leave and 22 o’clock in the evening it was time to enter the freezer. Yepp, for you that haven’t taken the bus in Malaysia, they are 3 times better than any bus you have seen in the western world, but they are also 30 times colder. You have to have trousers, a thick jacket, scarf and something to cover you ears and head. The reason is that the bus guys love AC, and will for nothing in the world turn it down. Have experienced costumers asking to turn it down a little bit, but with no result. So be prepared to have a super cold breeze blowing strait down in you face will tiring to get some sleep. But the comfort is superb, you have huge seats and you can more or less lay flat in these airplane seats.

After a cold night in the bus, I arrived to Kota Baru, a city on the boarder to Thailand and the place to be if you want to take a trip to the famous Perhentian islands! I arrived 6 in the morning, not knowing what the plan was. And the, out of the blue, comes these to backpackers and a driver and asks if I want to get to the ferry right now. So I went. And after something that have to be the dirties driving on this side of the planet (we drew in 110 km/h on a round that was made for 50 km/h); we finally arrived to the ferry. The boat trip is another story, if the car was fast, the boat was extreme, we where literally bouncing up and down making the trip everything else then pleasant. But there it was, the Perhentian Kecil, the place that so many of you have recommended. It was paradise!

If you are looking for a place with clear blue water, white beaches, and bonfire with lot of young people sitting and singing songs all night long, this is the spot. Perhentian Kecil is a small island where you can walk from on side of it to the other side in about 10 minutes.

The rooms are super cheap in the off season, that last until the mid of February, then the prices goes up each week. I got a nice 2 bed bungalow for 15 Ringet (30 nok/ 5$) every night, but the people that came the week after had to pay 20.

The first night was very relaxed; I didn’t know anybody so was just walking around, breathing deep, smiling and just enjoying the view of paradise. The next day I meet one of the two backpackers that had asked me to join them in the car to the ferry. She invited me to join the group for some party at the other side of the island, a gorgeous beach much smaller then the one I lived on. Here I meet up with the Swedish trio (see picture), among many others. My fist bonfire at the Perhentian. A night to remember.

The Swedish girls, a German boy, Jenny and me. Jenny (nearest me) was one of the two
backpackers that I was driving with on the way to the ferry.

Our view from the restaurant, not bad!

The Swedish girls

Bonfire evening with locals and backpackers

But not everything was as in paradise on this island. One day when some of us were walking in the jungle that you have to cross to get from one beach to the other, one of the Swedish girls starts to scream. It turned out that an ant was about to screw its head into here foot. This was not the normal ant, but a really big, ugly one that had some teethes that it used to drag itself into the skin. Luckily we managed to get it out, but after that, the walk to the jungle was everything else than jungle-exotic.

But life went on with snorkeling, laying on the beach, dinner by the shore and bonfire every night. What a life! Meet new people every night, from all over the world, people that have only one thing in common, the love for travel. And basically, that is the only thing you need to get in touch with fellow travelers.

So after much party, beaching, eating, bonfirering and boosting my mail-contact list with some 20 new emails addresses, it was time to leave paradise and head one to Thailand.

And that was Malaysia guys, recommend it strongly, cheap, wonderful and the people there are superb. Go there, and if you need some tips or anything, send me a mail. And now, over to Thailand, and the Phi Phi Island, the place where they filmed the Beach with Leo, and The man with the golden gun and James Bond. Jump back to here and take a look on the Phi Phi Island

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