Phuket Trip - Island Snorkelling, Sea Canoeing etc.

This is soOOOoo overdue but here goes anyway. Was at Phuket for 6 days during Christmas hols. Went out for excursions and island hopping almost EVERY day, it was sooOOo much fun!!!

My favourite gotta be the Similan Island outing! I'm SOOO glad i went for it and i gotta thank one of the locals for highly recommending the island. Almost gave it a miss because of the long journey to get there. The jetty itself is 1.5 hours drive from Phuket and then another 1.5 hours speedboat ride to reach Similan Island which consists of 9 small islands scattered nearby.


Let's checkout the pics!

Similan Island excursion

My absolute favourite outing in this trip - an island-hopping day which includes Similan Island, Miang Island, Payu Island and Bangu Island.


Taken from longtail boat.. omg, the gorgeous clear water! I feel like packing up and running off to the island again! lol



I climbed up to Similan Island Viewpoint. This is the awesome view you can get from there.



And you get this view of another beach when you turn to the other side



Random shot taken while climbing up to the viewpoint.



.. and another



.. and yet another!



Crystal clear water at Similan Island *dreamy sigh*



Checkout that SPARKLING water



The white sandy beach of Similan Island. Notice the little people beside that one single rock on top? That's the viewpoint which will take about 10-15 mins climb :)



yay! I swam with the turtle! It was spotted near our boat when we stopped at a snorkelling site in Similan.

Snapped this photo before jumping in! It was awesome! Apparently not everyone get to see turtle at that spot so we were really lucky that day to have one swimming on the water surface with us!! On the surface ok!! how cool is that! Fed bananas to the turtle and it must be hungry to wrestle and tug the fruit out of our fingers. Eventhough it's not as HUGE as the giant turtle i saw in Perhentian's sea bed, this one was swimming on the surface with us!!


This is Haad Lek or Honeymoon Beach in Miang Island. There's a private bungalow belongs to a Thai Princess there and when she visits, the Island will have to be closed to tourists.

Love the islands and I'm SO going back here!!

Okay, the next batch of photos are from my James Bond Island + Sea Canoe Outing.

Sea Canoeing at Panak Island & Hong Island

yeah, I went sea-canoeing!! Paddled from the sea, passing through dark bat caves to gorgeous mangrove lagoon inside. We canoed out twice actually, at Panak Island and Hong Island but I can't remember which is which island from the pictures now - having posted this 6 months after the trip :P


You gotta lie down allllll the way to enter the cave!


Took this quick shot before I went horizontal like them


Without our torchlights and occasional camera flashes, it would be pitch black inside. Well, at least we can sit up here :)


Sleeping bats...watch out for bats dropping.. close yer mouth when looking up!!


Emerged from the cave to this gorgeous lagoon!


aaah, so calm and peaceful


Can see monkeys jumping around sometimes


Paddle paddle...


Mangroove tree at the lagoon





Canoeing back and out from the cave... i see the light!!



Out at the sea again. Canoeing to our boats to go off to James Bond Island.

James Bond Island

Our boat for the James Bond Island and Sea-Canoeing excursion


Longtail boat at James Bond Island



This is where James Bond movie was shot... wayyy back when Roger Moore was Bond

Phi Phi Island

Went to the famous Phi Phi Island too but i have very very few pics to show. Read the sidenote at the end of this post *sigh*


Loh Dalum at Phi Phi Island. Snorkelled here too and saw 3 HUGEEE giant squids swimming together here. Too bad i did not have waterproof camera at that time.



Maya Bay, where the film 'The Beach' was shot.


I love this Phuket trip to BITS!!


Sidenote: Just discovered that except the online pics i uploaded on Picasa, all my Phuket pics are GONE!! *burst into tears* I accidentally deleted them on my laptop when i needed hdd space a few weeks ago, thinking that i have another copy on my home desktop but apparently i did NOT copy them over!!! gahhh... Even use DiskInternals' Flash Recovery to recover my deleted pics but it has been overwritten.. sobs

Chiangmai Trip

So I've been chastized for not updating the Lair for AGES!! Been busy at work and when i'm not working, i go for vacations!! Went to Chiangmai and Phuket since my last post update.

And YES! I went to "Love At First Bite" which is known for their fabulous cheesecake and highly recommended by Ling, Matt and Egg. Managed to find the hidden place thanks for Ling's direction on his blog. All was fine until one part where he said, "go NORTH", huh?! i was halfway walking and i see that... ahh?? where is north?!?! I don't have a compass with me!! lol... it was a crossroad and my first instinct was to head up straight.. apparently that's not north! Finally found north on my third try..hahaha.. I tried their white chocolate cheesecake and chicken pie. I guess my expectation was way too high after hearing all the good stuff from friends. The cheesecake was good and decent. About the same standard as Secret Recipe cheesecake. Didn't bring my big cam out that day and all the photos are in my Dopod, which I lost on my way back from Phuket few weeks ago!

Gonna make this quick so let's go straight to the Chiangmai photos! :)



Ride this elephant for half an hour across the village. Won't say that it was a peaceful and relaxing ride since every step was like going over a huge speedbump! And of course, had to lookout for those tree branches since i was so high!



My sticker to Maetang Elephant Park for elephant riding and bamboo rafting.



Bamboo rafting down Maeteng River. After going for whitewater rafting, bamboo rafting felt like a sedated ride.



Lisu tribe village



Also went for ox-cart ride



Picture made of gemstones. Chiangmai is well-known for their umbrellas and gemstones :)



Handmade paper umbrella



Random shot at Orchid farm... yawn.. it's part of the tour or i wouldn't have bothered.



Nightmarket near Changklan Road



Tuk-tuk ride at night


Food in Chiangmai!!!


Saturday market outside this shopping mall.. err, forgot the name.. that's what i get for posting my November trip now!



Bug snack!! Silk worm, grasshopper, whirligs, bamboo worms, etc. I've eaten them ALL!! hahaha



The grasshoppers are crunchy! :P



I like the bamboo worm! Bought some back for colleagues to try!



Also ate this... looks like normal egg cooked in banana leave right? Well... this actually is...


Egg with Ants' Larvae!!! Pretty okay stuff once you got over the ick factor... i got this milk-like liquid squirting out when i bit on those ants larvae... kekeke


Okay, that's that for Chiangmai. It was a pleasant trip but between Chiangmai and Phuket, i definitely prefer Phuket!! Love all the island-hoppings!! Similan Island is absolutely GORGEOUS!! Will post the pics from Phuket soon! ;)

Pulau Perhentian Trip for PIC 2007

Fishing village in Perhentian Kecil



The wave-less Teluk Keke, Pulau Perhentian Besar - where our campsite was located... oops, right side seem to have been cut off here. Maximize your window and see the pic HERE


okay, here are the belated pics from Perhentian Island Challenge (PIC)! Had soOooo much fun snorkelling and running around taking pics! Didn't have an underwater case for my cam so no underwater pics!

Anyway, i saw a mid-size shark and a HUGEEEEEE turtle!! As big as ME!!! And that's HUGEEEEE!!! err.. the turtle that is.. not me.. hahahha

Okaydoks, let's start the photo journey here. Brace your fingers!! Lotsa scrolling ahead!! :)


Taken at 3am.. the convoy of 8 coaches started off from KL at 12am.. only to reach KT at 10am!! Too many stops in between and the drivers did not speed since there were many JPJ checks after the Bukit Gantang tragic incident.



Breakfast at Kuala Terengganu. The one after the fried beehun is the famous Terengganu's Nasi Dagang, wrapped in banana leaf!! yumyum!



I was so happily eating that i finished mine and forgot to take a snapshot until E asked, "eh, you don't wanna take picture ah??".. haha. So this is E's half-eaten Nasi Dagang.



Our gift bag with a T-shirt and a few other small stuff (pen, keychain, sticker, etc.) from the Terengganu State Tourism.



The convoy of 8 coaches got police escort (complete with sirens and all!) from KT alllllllll the way to Kuala Besut jetty!! My bus was leading the pack. The 1.5 hour journey became 2 hours cause the police drove so damn slow.. as if we were on a parade or something!! And they drove in the middle like they own the road!! haha



And they waved (told you it's like a parade!) and made cars stop for us... even when the cars were at the OTHER side of the road! Felt like royalty.. hahaha



And we could drive on even when the traffic light was RED! All the cars had to move during red light too, just to make way for us.



Got our racekit at Bubu Resort's office in Kuala Besut.



Dumped all our baggage while waiting. yeah, we reused most of the BUM doorgifts! The BUM sling bags and shoe bag can be seen here.. hehh



Our speedboat moving out from the jetty to Perhentian Island... woohoo!



One of 2 different beaches near the campsite. The other beach can be seen on top of this post - 2nd pic from top.



Or like this :) See our campsite banner on the right.... oops, pic got cut off on the right again. Maximize your window and see pic HERE



Main 'entrance' to our campsite at Teluk Keke, Perhentian Besar!!



Quick shot of the toilet facilities at our campsite.. not bad for a camping trip eh... hehe



104 - my camp :)



Messy camp pic taken on the last day. The blue mat, tent and sleeping bags were supplied by PIC organisers. We used the sleeping bag as pillows since it was not that cold at night.



Teluk Keke, view from the campsite






My Speedo mask and snorkel.. ready for cool sightings in the ocean!



Only to discover that the water was sooOOoo shallow!! huh?!! how to snorkel???!! Just walk around, look down and you can see them all!!



Corals in shallow water at our beachfront



Definitely nowhere near as nice as the snorkelling sites we went by boat but it was cool to be able to walk a few steps from our camp and see this! :)



Swaying soft coral



Squirting sea cucumber... what were you thinking?!?!? LOL



Tug of war in the evening?



Nah, they were helping the organiser to set up the rope course which will be used by the Elite category racers.



Big crab hiding under the coconut, seen during our nightwalk to Abdul Chalet beach



Morning shot before boarding a boat which will bring us to the race's starting point in Perhentian Kecil



Perhentian Kecil



woahh... lotsa small fishes under the Perhentian Kecil jetty!!



And got a shot of this sword fish from there too. Swam with a lot of them during our snorkelling trips! No worries, they won't poke you with the sharp thingy in front :)



PIC banner at the stage where the VIPs gave speeches and cut the ribbons to mark the opening ceremony of PIC 2007.



And revealed the race course map!! This for Novice category. Round the small island!



Race course for Elite category. Gotta kayak across to Perhentian Besar and round BOTH islands!! *faint dead*



The Novice racers warming up



Readyyyy... set.... GO!! Flag off for Novice racers!



Elite racers.. all very fit lah.. They were flagged off half an hour after the Novice racers.

okay so how come i was still at the starting point half an hour later eh?? Coz when we left our campsite at Perhentian Besar to Perhentian Kecil, i decided to take pics and brought my camera along. There was nowhere to put the camera when the race started, with our campsite across the ocean, and it was too freaking huge and heavy to lug along the entire small island in which we had to go into the water at certain place too.. hmm... soooo...



... I roamed around with the cam and chilled out at the village with a glass of lime juice... hehehe



Local kids were tugging my shirt and asking me to photograph them. There were 3 kids and the fourth rushed in with his plastic fan when i clicked on the shutter.. oops... If only my kit lens can do f2.8. Btw, this was taken at the fisherman village (they have shops and school there too!). Just next to the main Perhentian Kecil jetty.



Swing tied to a tree beside the beach for locals to chill out with their babies



... like this!! haha.. Enjoy the sea breeze! :D



Beach next to the fishing village. Lotsa small boats around.



The sand in Perhentian Kecil beaches are finer as compared to Perhentian Besar but i didn't see any corals here.



Another half an hour later, a few Novice Male racers started to arrive at the finishing line. They took only ONE HOUR to round the entire island!! Holy smokes!! And my buddies took 4 hours!!! kekeke



The last 'Swim with Tube' water obstacle course for Novice before running along the beach to the finishing line.



The winners of Novice Male category post for my camera. No. 181 was the 1st place winner, allll the way from Ghana, finishing the course in 1 hour 6 mins!!!



21 Novice Male racers arrived and still no sign of the girls... until this lady from Pacemaker. She was the first to arrive the finishing line for Novice Woman category in 1 hour 41 mins!



The 1st Elite team arrived in 3 hours 1 minute (woah, you've seen their race course map and that's hardcore!) and still no sign of my buddies who were doing the Novice course.. hehehhee



Finally arrived! Woohoo, time to take a boat out for snorkelling!!



Took 30 mins boat ride to Pulau Rawa! RM40 per person. Covered 3 snorkelling sites. Two sites around Pulau Rawa and one near the Lighthouse. Nice corals and swam with the fishes on a hot sunny afternoon! Very nice!!!



All decked up in PIC T-shirt for closing ceremony at night. Look closely and see the snorkel mask print on our faces! keke



Cultural dance at night. More VIPs came for the prize giving and closing ceremony.



PIC 2007 ended with a 15 mins (i think!) firework display! Crappy handshot at a bad location. By the time i got to a better location, it was too smoky for pics. Anyway, i normally watch fireworks from far and this time it was right on top of our heads!! Felt like raining fireworks... haha.. a nice touch to the closing ceremony :)


No pics for the next morning excursion cause we took a boat out without my camera... felt so light!! haha... Went to Long Beach in Perhentian Kecil - a different side of the island where Bubu Island Resort is located. I bought a hammock there! Then went to a few more snorkelling sites:


@ Shark Point - Nice corals and rock formation here. Quite a few small rock cave underwater that you can peek into and be greeted with sea creatures inside. And this was where i saw shark and tried to follow it around!! But damn, the shark was fast!! Surfaced and hollered for KJ but he was nowhere in sight. Went down again and the shark was already so far!! Tried to catch up but lost it pretty soon. KJ was so stumped that he didn't see it!! haha

@ Can't-Remember-Name-Site - Went to this other site to hunt for more sharks but didn't see any there. Nice corals and colorful fish tho! :)

@ Turtle Point - This is where we saw the HUGEEE turtle!! Right after our boat stopped at that location, one of the local snorkeller shouted, "Ade penyu!! (Got turtle!)". So we quickly put on our fins and jumped in. Woohoo, the turtle was indeed crawling slowly at the sea bottom. If there's no turtle then there's really nothing much to see at Turtle Point as it's a sandy ocean bottom (no corals to see!) for the turtles to crawl around. So, lucky us! :)



Speeding off the island. Time to go home!


goshh, this is LONGGGGGGG!! Did it took you forever to load all those pics?!?! haha... Time to rest those scrolling fingers!! ;)