Rantau Abang : An orange on the beach

I thought it was pretty exciting to find an orange among the broken shells on the beach. I'd never seen that before and this was long before Chinese New Year

The two week long Chinese New Year celebration (Feb 14 - Feb 28) is now officially over, but I only remembered this picture today. Should have remembered earlier. Darn.

There's a tradition among the Chinese single women (not sure if it's a Malaysian thing or an all over the world thing) to throw oranges into the sea (or any body of water) during Chinese Valentines (15th day of the Chinese New Year) in order that their future husband might pick up their orange.

Oh, but before they throw their orange into the water, they write their phone number onto the fruit. Oh, and the men will be right there, waiting to catch the orange of the woman they fancy. Make that orangeS and women. Using nets too to catch as many oranges as they can!

I think it's such a cute tradition. I think we Asians have so many cute traditions. :)

Anyway, so I'm wondering if this was such an orange. Only, it wasn't the right time then. And there was no ink on the orange either. Hmm, it could be someone who couldn't wait two more weeks! Perhaps.

I think next (Chinese) Valentine's I might throw an orange into a lake. :)


More skywatch images here .
 
  

 

Kuala Abang : a little hut and the blue blue sky

Just sitting in a run down shed; I think a shelter and place to nap when it's too hot to look for clams on the beach, and looking up.

The shade of blue looked so pretty against the dark of the roof. And then a wisp of cloud floated in from one end.

I whipped my camera out (as fast as lightning) of course :) But the clouds were faster. They moved so quickly out of sight again! Before I could take more pictures. Dang! Well, I did, but they weren't as pretty as I wished.

Two guys joined us soon after; just come back from the beach from clam collecting, both hot and thoroughly burnt from the sun! One guy had a little bucket full of clams; for his tea later, or perhaps dinner, but it didn't look like it would be enough for dinner. Well certainly an extra small portion by my book! Maybe he doesn't eat much. Maybe it's just appetisers. Maybe.

Click here for more sky images!
 
 

Early morning on Melinsung Beach

Hope you like my Skywatch post! Check out more images on here.

 

I just love visiting my sister. She lives right next to the beach and it's great to wake up early and hear the surf outside.

I slide open the door and the sound is instantly magnified! 

This was last December. Can't wait to get back there again!

Kuala Abang - a fishing village

We were back again on the east coast of Peninsula Malaysia last week of January. It was much much hotter than it ever had been since we first started going mid last year. And of course I forgot my sunblock. And of course we spent too much time under the sun. And of course I was badly burnt. Ugh. Don't ask. Thank you.

But the clear skies and sunny sun meant everything looked technicolor brilliant and amazing! Each time we go to the east coast, we explore places we hadn't been before; take that little road there, follow the sign that promises some exotic obscure village or something. This time was no different. And we found a little fishing village called Kuala Abang, not far from Rantau Abang.

It's such a quaint little place; so much activity going on; bustling even! It was hot and fishermen were coming in with their catch, and there was a little station (more like a little hut) where they got their catch weighed in. And there were others who were playing cards. Some napping on makeshift counters. Some shooting the breeze, talking coffeeshop talk. Ohhhh, it was nice!  I wish I could have taken pictures of all of that but everyone kept staring at us wherever we went; quite unsettling! Sigh. I need a camera with those huge lenses so I can go far far away, and take pictures unobtrusively! I had to settle for empty sampans (little 2-men fishing boats) :) But it's okay, I still like this picture :)

Kijal - a sunny afternoon by the sea

 

This beach in Kijal is one the prettiest beaches on the east coast of Peninsula Malaysia.  I've been here four times already, maybe, in the space of a few months.

I always see something different each time I go. This time it's a mom and her three kids frolicking in the (extremely hot) sun.

One time we went, we went by motorbike. We parked the bike and went off to take photographs. When we returned an hour or so later, one of our helmets, that we'd left dangling on the bike, had been taken. All that was left was the strap. That was a nasty surprise.

Another time we went, there were mats and mats of fish being laid out under the sun to be dried. Dried salted fish! Yummm! Didn't smell too good at the time though.

Yep, something different each time. Can't wait to come back here again!!!
    

Bungus Beach at the end of a wonderful day.

The best thing about little places is the big surprises they have in store for you.

I had no idea about Bungus Beach, except that it was quiet. And I'd seen pictures and read stuff on the internet.  No tv, no fancy stuff. Which was what I was looking for. Quiet beach; hopefully no other holiday makers: just mingle with the locals.

And that was exactly what I found on this little bay facing the Andaman Sea.

Each evening, the fishermen in the area work together to bring in the catch. That evening, there were some five other fishermen pulling the net in.  So synchronised, so rhythmic. Such a lucky break for me. Yaayy!

 

Nature on Love

I love the innocuous way that nature sometimes employs to surprise me. Cheeky, cheeky!

Found this leaf on the sands of a pretty little cove in the Teluk Bidara area. A stranger among pebbles, broken shells, and polished pieces of glass.  A lovely little imperfectly almost perfect leaf. Not caring that it might be out of place. Making a statement in its own right.

Perfection? Not. Perfect!

Peace and Quiet!

 

I love the beach. When there is no one else around. Well okay, not completely empty. Maybe just another soul per square 40000 meters. Yes.

And be the first one to make footprints on the sand.  Yes!

I've been to this coastline at least five times now. And love it even more everytime.  :)

This particular beach is Cherating. Quite famous. Not sure why. Because there are other more beautiful (imo) beaches along this coast! Okay, it's easy to fall in love with this beach. But wait till you see the other beaches. And I mean wowowowow. :)

        

 

Coconut!

I love coconut!

Except in the milk form. It allegedly does things in your arterial system and makes you susceptible to all sorts of nasty medical conditions.  Yekk.

So I was so shocked when a friend told me his niece drinks coconut milk as a beverage. What! Like omigod. Why?

Falling in love with...

 

... Frangis!!

Found and fell in love with the white frangipanis in Rantau Abang.

There's a place in Rantau Abang that we always stay at. The guy who keeps the place is such a workaholic, he leaves the place spotless! Sterile almost! But one evening he wasn't quick enough, so I went snap happy!!

Oh, did I mention? I have a new camera and it takes pictures like a dream! Am so loving it. Pardon my McDonalds.

Dreaming in Teluk Bidara

Was in Teluk Bidara over the weekend. Super weather! Super skies! Super water! Super scenery! Super travel companion! A super weekend altogether!

Bidara means angelic beautiful woman. Pretty apt for this beach, in my opinion. :)

Feb 4 2010

Rantau Abang ~ dancing on the beach!

A beach. Just the sea and the sand.

A late evening sun.  Just right to cast long shadows.

A light breeze. Just enough to tease the hair without being annoying.

A gentle surf. Just enough to create a hypnotic rhythm.

Who could not be persuaded that everything had been pre-arranged in perfect harmony and detail especially for two souls to converge on that beach on that evening to delight in each other?

Skywatching - Sunset on Petagas Beach

Petagas Beach, Sabah

a beautiful beach on Sumatra - Bungus and losmen tin tin

Bungus Beach on the west coast of Sumatra is a lovely place to spend a quiet quiet weekend. We were there labour day weekend (May 2009).

We stayed at Losmen Tin tin, a lesser known losmen about 500m down the road from the more popular Losmen Carlos. It turned out to be a good choice for us :)

The owner is a very friendly local, whose real name is Azrul, but he says it's easier to call him Raoul.


How about breakfast by the beach?

He made banana pancakes for breakfast for us :) So much much nicer than toast and coffee! I thought the pancake was really nice, but then again when you're on holiday, breakfast with a view of the sea, everything looks better, tastes better, sounds better... :)

In the evening, he got us to sing along with him on guitar, David on harmonica, Jalidah on (home-made) maracas and me with my point and click camera! He has quite a repertoire of music songs! Does requests too :) from the likes of Siti Nurhaliza to Pearl Jam!! Impressive!

Earlier in the evening, I had taken a walk down the beach and how! I wish there were beaches like this back home...

I had booked a room in advance via email to Raoul. I was surprised at how fast he replied my queries! When we got there, he showed us two rooms. One was bigger but we picked the one facing the bay (no brainer there right?)

Precious Raoul bought that yellow towel just before we arrived! It still had the supermarket price tag on it!

I had my eye on that blue sampan (kayak) and next day, Raoul said we could go for a quick paddle if we liked. We plead with David and reluctant he was at first, he finally relented!! Poor him. Jalidah and I were quite useless with the paddles and the poor thing had to struggle so hard paddling against the strong current so that we didn't get carried out to the open sea! It was bloody hot too!! What with the 3 0'clock sun beating down on our backs!!

I thought even the dead leaves look pretty on this charming beach fronting the Indian Ocean! Sigh. I would definitely go back again :)

Cherating again. What makes a place special?

The five senses are a powerful thing.

We were in Cherating again last month. Not that I'm crazy about Cherating. So why Cherating again? Memories maybe? From something you saw? felt? heard? smelt? tasted? :) And then it stays with you. Hopefully forever :)

The day before, I had looked up at the evening sky. It was changing colours and I wanted to capture the colours in my mind and archive them there. I laid on the sand, and looked and looked and looked. And I thought of M&M's and lipsticks and rainbows. We ended up with wet clothes and hair! I didn't really care :) Sigh. The joy of abandonment...



The morning was bright as a day usually is when I'm out by the beach (maybe it's all in my head :) ) and we laid for a bit, got bored of lying down, and decided to walk down the beach. And found a river mouth! Seems like the beaches here have a tendency to do that! No miles and miles of sand, but always meeting a river mouth somewhere 200-300m further up or down!

Interesting stuff we saw along the beach.

A piece of wood that didn't want to be ordinary...

A flower that probably birthed a future gigantonomous tree destined to delight visually...

A jellyfish that decided to take a short break on our beaches en route to a more exotic beach beyond alpha centauri!!

We stayed at this cute little place, an arrangement of wooden houses. Ranting Inn. It must have been there for awhile. The bougainvilleas are huge trees! Well maybe I exagerate a little. Haha. But the ones growing here are no petite bushes.

There's a pond a little way back inside the compound, and it looks georgeous but probably not a good idea to stay in the houses in the immediate vicinity!! Mosquitoes you know...

something about cherating

OK, so I lied. It's not Cherating.

It's an even lovelier beach some 20 mins away from Cherating.

It feels almost sacriligeous to say its name for fear of invasion by the masses.

(Because then it will lose its charm! The thing that made us visit this beach 3 times in as many months!)

I cried the first time I discovered this beach. Its quiet beauty was nothing I had expected. I thought ho hum, regular beach ahead... then we made the turn into the beach and lo and behold... what a view!

Imagine this :

A little meandering road through a cute little uncrowded kampung.

Houses, some dilapidated, some colourful, scattered about in no recognisable order (which is charming in itself :) ).

Already you get glimpses of a beach that promises to look a little different from what you're used to...

A turn around a biggish open sided building, most likely a bustling fish market in the early mornings, and you see a sight that takes your breath away. You want to hold on to that moment a little longer. Because it's so so pretty!!

A walk further down this beach.. ok ok.. it's Kijal... is a river mouth. Not too sure which river; I've never looked it up. OK I will now.. I think it's Sungai Penunjok.

Depending on the time of day, whether it's high or low tide, the view is different. The first time we were there, it was high tide and high noon! Hot! But deliciously so :) there were boys swimming in the river in the shade among the boulders. I had pictures of those, but will put them up another time.

The second time we were there, it was low tide. And the treasures the beach offered up on show was something else entirely different but equally precious :)

We walked among water buffaloes :), mud skippers, little crabs with huge orange clippers, and dozens and dozens of hermit crabs :)

Dont know who was more scared.. the water buffaloes of us... or us of them!!! haha

This is Cherating :) where we stayed. Unfortunately (or fortunately :) ) there was no sleeping place in Kijal :)

I have this collection of cemented shells sitting on my bathroom sink now. I look at them every morning and think what a lovely visit that was. And the thought of going there again makes me smile :)