This was the cool Fokker aircraft which we flew in with. Within a blink of an eye, we arrived Langkawi, under 30 minutes! No, this Fokker does not travel at the speed of a Concorde, but the distance between Penang and Langkawi is a mere 190km. Another way you can get there is by ferry from Penang, which takes about 2 hours and 45 minutes.
Langkawi is famous for its
Duty-Free island status.
Many locals and Thais (Thailand is just a 45-minute boat-ride away)
would often come to the island with their suitcases half empty so
that they can shop. Sometimes they'd even buy new suitcases to
accommodate MORE shopping! But apart from its duty-free shopping,
Langkawi’s also a great place for nature lovers and people who are into folklore, as Langkawi is known as the Land of Legends. Almost every town and feature on the island has an intriguing story behind it - from giants and heroic warriors, to doomed princesses. Not forgetting a little romance.
The two highest mountains on the island are named after two giants - Mat Raya and Mat Cincang. The story goes that their two children were to be married, but at the wedding feast, a fight broke out when the groom was caught flirting with another woman. Pots and pans were thrown. A pot of gravy broke, and the place where the gravy was spilled is a town called 'Kuah', which means 'Gravy' in Malay; And where the crockery was broken, is a village named 'Belanga Pecah'. Yep, it means 'Broken crockery'. This is just one of the many interesting folklore which the locals would be happy to share with you.
We first went to the Oriental Village
where we took a cable car up to the SkyBridge and went further up to
Mount Mat Cincang, the second tallest mountain in Langkawi, 709m
above sea level. That’s where, they say, you can see three
countries - the southern part of Thailand, Sumatera (Indonesia) and
the many islands of Langkawi (99 islands when the tide is high, 104
islands when the tide is low). Of course you can’t see all the
islands of Langkawi, and I personally think Sumatera, Indonesia is
too far to be seen… Sorry to disappoint! :)
This is the view from Mount Mat Cincang - the
second tallest mountain on Langkawi island. And right before your eyes -- is the
southern part of Thailand, just a 45-minute boat-ride away.
It's so close I could swim there!
It’s a pity the Skybridge was closed
for maintenance the time we were there. This bridge measuring 125m
in length, ranks among the world’s longest curve suspension bridge.
Judging from the picture, I only have one suggestion --- That is to
have a Glass pavement, so you can see the steep drop when you walk across! Wouldn’t that be more exciting?! I should
have a word with Dato’ Sri Dr. Ng Yen Yen - the Tourism Minister of
Malaysia.
I hereby Copyright my idea =p
From up the hill, we went down to Kilim
river for a tour. This Geo-forest park spreads over 100sqkm and
features well-protected mangrove forests, blue lagoons and white
sandy beaches.
Langkawi was given World Geopark status by UNESCO in 2007 due to its unique geological features and its plans for conservation, eco-tourism and sustainable development. Thanks to its well-preserved mangrove forests, the coastal communities here were saved from the devastating tsunami in 2004!
Mangroves may not look like much, but they play a crucial role in our ecosystem, especially in coastal areas, where they serve as a buffer between land and sea. By soaking up excess moisture in the air, they prevent major storms and flooding. The mangrove forest is also home to a variety of life forms.
This is where you can feed eagles and if you’re lucky, I mean -- very lucky, you may come across dolphins that swim into the Kilim river from the Andaman sea! We weren’t that lucky unfortunately, and it’s probably a good thing, because I know I’d jump into the water without hesitation.
The Eagle is the symbol of Langkawi. In fact, Langkawi's name is said to have originated from the abundance of eagles on the island. 'Lang' is short for 'Helang' which means Eagle, and 'kawi' means 'reddish-brown' in the old Malay language. For this reason, Langkawi means Reddish-brown eagle, something you can spot soaring in the skies of Langkawi pretty often.
The best time for eagle-feeding is in the morning or noon when they're hungry, or after a rain. However, I'm wondering how natural this eagle-feeding activity is - with the eagles relying on tourists daily for food.... Well, it does still look rather dramatic seeing them swoop in on their food from the cliffs!
The picture above was taken at one of the fish farms along the Kilim river, where we got to see a few fancy fishes and crustaceans. Being the city girl that I am, I got really excited when our guide introduced me to his pet stingray, and gave me the opportunity to touch it! Yes, you may roll your eyes... =)
This prehistoric-looking creature, known as the Horseshoe crab can be found in the fish farm too.
For those of you who’d like to be
closer to nature, you could opt to kayak, hike to a jungle stream
where you can then have a picnic and have a swim in the cool jungle
stream. Definitely sounds good on a hot day!
Here’s a cute photo taken by my
producer while I was writing my final stand-up to end the series.
From the foreground: Cameraman 李艺,
Director 续 and
Cameraman/Photographer 李辉 taking
a break in the shadow of the little pillars. Not the best place for
shade, but anything to avoid the scorching sun as we had been filming
outdoors since morning. It’s also surprising how blinding the
sunlight is at 5pm. The reflection off the sea water is likely another contributing factor.
And that's me delivering my oh-so-important presidential speech at the Eagle Square! Well, more like my final stand-up summarising our 10 days travelling along the western part of the Malaysian Peninsular.
Of course, being in Langkawi, a duty-free island where beer is cheaper than water, we definitely drank and celebrated till our hearts' content after 10 days of hard work!
What a journey it has been - from the historic Malacca where the interesting history of the Malays is said to have started, to the capital Kuala Lumpur, followed by three coastal towns and islands where we could take a chill pill: Pavarotti's favourite hideout - Pangkor, to Penang - voted by Yahoo Travel in 2011 as one of the '10 islands to explore before you die', and Langkawi marking our final stop.
You can watch what we filmed and what I wrote and presented for CCTV's Travelogue on Malaysia here. You then can learn a bit more about where I come from :)
Should you have any suggestions, feedback, please do let me know at the 'Comment' section below.
Till next time, folks! xx
