<![CDATA[ - Tioman (one of the world's most beautiful islands)]]>Sat, 28 Aug 2010 03:48:58 -0800Weebly<![CDATA[Tioman]]>Sat, 10 Oct 2009 18:03:55 -0800http://www.kennykhaw.com/4/post/2009/10/first-post.html
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'Welcome - passenger boat jetty'
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Tioman island is one of the most beautiful islands in the world.  It is off the east coast of Malaysia and the most common mode of transport to get there is by ferry (fast boat) which takes about 1.5 hours.  There is air service from Kuala Lumpur & Singapore to the island which is faster but expensive.

Although I've heard about this island but I've never been to it until now - when I'm old.  Some facts & fancy about it.  The island's dragon-like appearance can be seen as one approaches from the sea by ferry.  According to legend a dragon princess from China stopped for rest and was enchanted by the calm & crystal clear water and the charm of this part of the South China Sea, decided to become a permanent feature of Malaysia's tourism (my own version).
Now the facts.  The island still retains its rustic charm - villages by the sea, sandy beaches, wide area of lush vegetation, beautiful coral & fishes.  The paradise island of "Bali Hai" in the film "South Pacific" was Tioman island (a long time ago).


There are many rest-houses, chalets and hotels providing accommodation to visitors.  We stayed at the Berjaya Suite up the hill for a few days and then moved down to Berjaya Beach Resort to be near the beach.

Here in Tioman you walk, swim & sleep (under the sun, of course).  Tioman is also the place for diving and snorkelling. 

We went to the marine park early in the morning to enjoy watching the fishes before the crowd of tourists arrived.  The water is very clear and we can see the fishes around us.  Too bad we do not have underwater camera and our attempt to photograph the fishes just from above the water was unsuccessful.  Anyway, something is better than nothing to show others what we see.
The water in the marine park, without 
the crowd, is calm and clear
Turtle sanctuary.  From our apartment up the hill we walked down to a secluded beach where the turtles come up to lay their eggs.  Visitors are prohibited from entering between late evening and early morning.  We saw a number of baby turtles in an enclosure.
Tioman island is still very green and there are many areas not developed yet.  A few days here will not be sufficient to take in nature's gift to this island.  Another reason to stay longer is the duty free status - beer & stout are cheap and so are other imported items.
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