Perhentian Islands, Malaysia, SE Asia

From one paradise island to another, this time on the East coast of Malaysia, I took the boat over to Pulau Kecil the smaller island of the two which mainly is occupied by the backpacking traveller.

Long Beach was the main stretch in Pulau Kecil with basic accommodation and a scattering of restaurants plus a grand total of 4 bars! Definitely more quiet than Thailand, with alcohol not widely available due to the strong Muslim culture. The beautiful white sandy and crystal clear waters more than made up for the small amount of facilities on the island, which for me enabled me to switch off from everything except for the week ahead which once again entailed scuba diving and chilling out in the sunshine.

Within an hour of arriving I had signed myself up with Sea Dragons and was diving a ship wrecked the very next morning. The weather on the East coast seems to have been affected with the monsoon weather from the West Coast slightly making its way over, and so with a little rainfall the visibility was affected. Unfortunately for me, the week of diving had visibility of 5-10 metres with it reaching 15 metres on my final day. It was unlucky for me as the Perhentians can boast up to 25 metres visibility with everything than anything swimming in your path.

Still, I managed to see lots of exciting marine life than I didn't spot in Koh Tao, Jenkins Whip Rays, Blue Spotted Sting Rays, an eerie ship wreck (a cargo ship which sank 6 years ago), plus lots of other things..

6 nights in the Perhentians was basically a routine of 2 dives a day, laying in the sun, eating and sleeping. As it wasn't a real party scene I took advantage of the early nights and detox from alcohol in preparation for coming home.

Kuala Lumpur was my next stop after the Perhentians, my final city of my entire travels. For me, KL lacked character and tourist attractions, however, the shopping would have made up for this if I had the money to blow. A day running around the city looking at the Petronas Twin Towns (once the highest in the world), Merdeka Square and Central Market and then it was a short flight back to Bangkok to catch my flight home.