Moderate Cost Family Trip To Langkawi

- MODERATE COST FAMILY TRIP TO LANGKAWI
- THE JEWEL OF KEDAH

PREFACE


This a true travelling account to the beautiful island of Langkawi in Malaysia, experienced by (of course me, The Nature Beckoner) myself and also with my parents. The information provided may be useful to readers who really want to travel to Langkawi.
Readers can also try out some of my useful tips about how to cut down costs and how to enjoy the journey. If there are any comments and suggestions, please do post in your comments into the suggestion box below. Thank you.

INVENTORIES/ PLACES OF INTRESTS
(ARRANGED BY ORDER)
Day 1
• Awana Porto Malai
• Eagle Square
Day 2
• Underwater World Langkawi
• Galeria Perdana
• Durian Perangin Waterfall
• Ayer Hangat (Failed to visit)
• Tanjung Rhu
• Black Sand Beach
• MARDI Agrotechnology Park (Failed to visit)
Day 3
• Telaga Harbour Park
• Oriental Village
• Royal Langkawi Yacht Club (Drop By)

TRAVELLING ACCOUNT


*DAY 1 (27/11/2009)

8:30am
Our journey started shortly after we finished packing our things. We headed towards the jetty in Kuala Kedah from my house in Sungai Petani in Kedah. For your information, there are only two ways to go to Langkawi from the mainland of Malaysia, which is by sea and by air. My family and I went there by sea. There are many ferry services to Langkawi island. The express ferries provide regular services daily to Langkawi from the jetty in Kuala Perlis or Kuala Kedah. The whole journey from Kedah to Kuala Perlis and Kuala Kedah takes 1 hour 15 minutes and 50 minutes respectively. After a 10 kilometres drive, we reached Kuala Kedah from Sungai Petani. The toll fees for this journey from the Southern Toll to Northern Toll is RM7.20.

9:15am
We reached Kuala Kedah after an hour’s drive. We brought the ferry tickets and waited for the ferry. The cost for the ferry fare for an adult at Kuala Kedah Jetty is RM15.00 and the cost for a children ticket is RM9.00.


9:50am
The ferry that was scheduled at 9:35 was re-scheduled at this point of time. The ferry started to go and we reached Langkawi after 1 hour 30 minutes.

11:30am
Finally we arrived at Langkawi, the fascinating island of myths and legends. Langkawi, the name of this island was derived from the Sanskrit word Lang and Kawi . The meaning of Lang is eagle, while Kawi means reddish brown. This name is inspired from the former prime minister of Malaysia, Dr. Mahatir Mohammad, who managed to transform this rural island into an interesting tourist attraction by 1996. According to him, the name Langkawi was given because he has high hopes that this island will soar like an brownish red eagle in the future and will become a major tourist attraction well known by other countries worldwide in Malaysia. We took some photographs when we arrived at the jetty and went inside the jetty point. There are many shops and food outlets inside the jetty point, one can buy, eat and shop as well inside here. Rental cars are also provided with a reasonable fee. My family agreed to rent a Proton Wira which costs RM90 a day.

12:30pm
After filling the empty petrol tank of our Wira,we had lunch at one of the restaurants in Kuah Town. You can enjoy delicious and savoury food with low prices ranging from RM3.00 to RM9.00. Just make sure that you choose the right one that suits you.

1:00pm
We embarked on our quest, in search for liquor and chocolates. After shopping in the duty free shops in Langkawi, we had managed to decide the chocolates and liquor that we are going to purchase here. After half an hour ,we headed towards our hotel, Aseania situated at Kedawang.

2:00pm
We checked in into our hotel that we booked earlier. The cost for a night in this hotel definitely varies from room to room. The cost of a normal room in Aseania is RM185, while the cost of a suite room is RM285 for a night. The suite room that we stay in was comfortable and spacious. Inside there were two rooms, along with a small and cosy living room joining the two rooms. All the rooms have a toilet and fully equipped with furniture, which gives you the feeling like home. We booked a suite room for two nights. We rested at the hotel for two hours to reduce our tiredness due to the ferry ride.

4:30
We got ready quickly and continued our journey to visit the beautiful sceneries of Langkawi.

5:00
We arrived at the Awana Porto Malai Hotel at Langkawi to enjoy its beauty and take some photographs. As the location of the famous international maritime and air exhibition – LIMA, this hotel has its unique beauty. This hotel has a Mediterranean Architecture that will surely amaze you. Built close towards the crystal clear sea, right behind this peculiar hotel is a harbor with dozens of boats and ships. This is indeed a second heaven for sea-lovers!


5:30
We headed towards Kuah town to fill our tummies after finished enjoying the “scrumptious scenery” of the sea. The name of this island’s main town, Kuah is actually a Malay word, meaning “Gravy”. Legends said that this town was once a battle field of two giants who mistakenly overturned a pot of curry at the spot where this town now stands. Upon reaching Kuah town, my father suggested that we visit the Eagle Square which is the landmark of visitors who seek the sanctuary of this remarkable island.

5:50
We arrived at Eagle Square which is located between two parks, that is CHOGM Park and Taman Lagenda. Eagle Square, or Dataran Lang in Malay is one of the must-go attractions in Langkawi Island. Situated near the Kuah Jetty, this square’s centre of attraction is the gigantic reddish brown eagle statue preparing to take flight and soar up high above the skies. Apart from this majestically enchanting statue, the square itself is also beautifully landscaped and spectacular features such as scenic ponds, covered terraces, restaurants, bridges, and brick made barrel vaults can also be spotted around the square.




6:30
We went to visit our relatives at their Chinese Restaurant at Kuah Town. We killed two birds with one stone, where we stood a chance to meet our relatives while having our dinner at there.

7:30
We finished the delicious Bakuteh and continued shopping in search for chocolates and liquor.

7:45
Arrived shortly at Teoh Soon Huat Langkawi Parade to shop for chocolates and liquor. But unfortunately, we could not even decide what to buy because some of the chocolates were too expensive than those we saw previously during the afternoon at Coco Valley and Zon Duty Free Shop. After choosing for some time, we only bought some of the chocolates our relatives wanted us to buy.

9:00
We decided to call it a day and returned to our hotel.



*DAY 2 (28/11/09)

9:30am
We started our journey to complete our visit to the Langkawi Island.

10:00am
We reached the Underwater World Langkawi, another must go attraction in Langkawi after heading Northwest to the road of Pantai Cenang. Honed as the largest freshwater aquaria in Southeast Asia, this beautifully designed aquarium is the home of more than 5,000 types of aquatic life exhibited in tanks of different shapes and sizes. A new building which displays the Tropical Rainforest Section, the Sub-Antarctic Section and the Temperate Section has the Rainforest Anaconda, Rock hopper Penguins, Harbour Seals and the Black footed African Penguins as its centre of attraction. Inside the aquarium, apart from the latest attractions added lately in year 2005, there are tunnel tanks at the Marine Life Section and the Temperate Section. The tunnel tank at the Marine Life Section houses large distinctive species such as sharks, stingrays, eels and green turtles which is the main highlight of this aquarium. This 15 metre long tank lets visitors experience witnessing these magnificent underwater creatures as if they were deep below the sea. We stayed at this remarkable place for about two hours long and watched a film about the conservations of marine life showed in the Aquarium Emporium. After that, we returned back to our hotel at 12 noon to make ourselves ready for lunch.




1:00pm
We headed towards Kuah Town for lunch.

2:00pm
We took the eastern main road of the island and headed towards Galeria Perdana in Kilim. This gallery is about 11 kilometres (that is 22 minutes drive) from the main town of Kuah and houses an impressive collection of over 7,000 collections of state gifts, souvenirs and awards presented to the former prime minister of Malaysia, Tun Dr. Mahatir Mohammad and his wife Tun Dr. Siti Hasmah bt. Mohammad Ali from world leaders and statesman as well as Malaysians during his tenure as the Prime Minister of Malaysia. The gallery consists of 3 interconnected two storey oriental architectural design buildings. The exhibits in the gallery includes crystalware, porcelain, gifts and souvenirs fashioned out from wood, leather, silver, pewter, copper, glass and ceramics, sculptures, exquisite paintings, jewellery, textiles, musical instruments, weapons, miniature model of vehicles, photographs and portraits of Tun Dr Mahatir himself. The various collections in this gallery will surely amaze you from head to toe!




3:35pm
We finished the visit and went to the majestically amazing Durian Perangin Waterfall located about a few minutes drive from the Galeria Perdana. The Durian Perangin Waterfall is a suitable place for recreation and picnics. This 14 tier waterfall is located north from Kuah, where one could be close to nature. It is accessible after a short trek through the rainforest. It is an amazing sight to behold.


3:45pm
Our plans were ruined when we arrived at the Ayer Hangat Village after a brief distance from the waterfall. This modern complex that is constructed around a 3 tier hot spring fountain was undergoing a renovation lately. Only the souvenir shops are accessible. We leaved the place sadly and continued our journey to discover the island.

3:55pm
We reached Tanjung Rhu Beach after turning into a roundabout that forked into 3 ways. Tanjung Rhu Beach lies on the northern cape of Langkawi not further away from the Tanjung Rhu Resort. Aptly named for its abundance of casuarinas, this enchanting beach with magnificent sceneries can be reached at low tide on foot and will surely enthral you. We leaved this wonderful beach after taking some unforgettable photographs.




4:15pm
We arrived at the idyllic Black Sand Beach situated not long away from the central path of the roundabout. Named for its coal black sands, rumours said that this strange phenomenon is resulted by the remaining bones and dead bodies of sharks that beached on the shores in large numbers during the past. This idle work of nature itself will surely fascinate you. This is the very first time for me and my family to witness this thrilling sight.



4:30pm
We stopped halfway at the MARDI Agrotechnology Park. At first we had an urge to visit the farm, but bad luck and despair again shrouded us once more. The park was scheduled to close on 5:00pm and when we entered the park, they told us that the park was actually located at the panoramic Gunung Raya hillside tropical rainforest adjacent to the Lubuk Semillang Recreation Centre which is 12 kilometres from Kuah town. The whole trip takes 45 minutes and you can only reach the park after a lorry ride up towards the hill. They also informed us that this time is not the fruit season for most of the fruits such as durians, langsat and mangosteens. Again, we leaved that park sadly.

5:20pm
We returned to our hotel, Aseania for some rest after a day’s tired journey. When the sun sets and the night falls, we headed towards Kuah town again for dinner at 7 o’clock.

7:30pm
We waited for our dinner at an oriental seafood restaurant and after nearly half an hour, we managed to devour the scrumptious meal at there.

8:45pm
The crazy shopping in search for chocolates and liquor had started and we aimed to purchase all the things we wanted at this night. After two hours of selecting them, we returned to our hotel with satisfaction.


10:50pm
We returned to our hotel, packed our things and called it a day.


*DAY 3 (29/11/09)

9:00am
We got up from bed early at 8:00am. After having a breakfast and readied ourselves, we continued the trip to explore Langkawi for the last time in this trip.

9:45am
After a series of twist and turns, we finally arrived at Telaga Harbour Park which is located at the northwest direction of this island. Telaga Harbour Park is a beautifully designed square with medieval European designed buildings that functioned as the customs house and the harbour office. Apart from these unique structures, there are also an array of facilities provided such as the Petronas and Perdana quay, a headland watchtower, banks, petrol stations and a business centre. We even spotted an ancient cannon leaning towards the sea near the customs house!



10:00am
We headed towards the Oriental Village after admiring these beautiful sceneries. The road to Oriental Village is the same as the road heading towards this harbour park, so those who are planning to go to Oriental Village can also enjoy this scenery in the same spot.

10:15am
We arrived at the Oriental Village that is part of the Langkawi Geopark. The Oriental Village is a complex where one can dine, shop, and see all in one spot. Overlooking the beautiful Mutiara Burau Bay, this complex houses various selections of shops ranging from fine themed restaurants, duty free shops, and traditional cultural art shops. The scenery inside is also great for photography. Other than these, the Langkawi Cable Car is also situated inside this village. Visitors can enjoy panoramic views above the Mount Machinchang which is one of Langkawi’s Geoparks, and have a closer look of the whole Langkawi Island as well as the marvellous views of Andaman Sea. We bought some souvenirs and went back to our hotel and prepared to check out.



11:45am
We checked out from our hotel at Aseania after resting at our hotel for half and hour. On our way to the Jetty Point, we dropped by our relative’s shop and bid farewell to them at Kuah Town, after that we continued driving until we reached the Jetty Point.

12:35pm
We accidentally stopped by the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club located not far away from the Jetty Point. The Royal Langkawi Yacht Club is a fully equipped marina comprising 51 berths that can accommodate a variety of vessels. From above, you can see for yourself the breathtaking sight of the Langkawi Island and the berths below. We took only a few photographs because we had ran off time.


12:40pm
Arrived at Jetty Point of Langkawi and returned our rental car. After that, we had lunch inside the Jetty Point.

2:00pm
After buying our ferry tickets, we went through the customs checking. We boarded the ferry and waited for it to go. We waited forty minutes for the ferry to start and reached the Jetty Point after 3:50pm.

4:45pm
Safely return home. Our three days two nights trip ended at this point.



TIPS ABOUT TRAVELLING TO LANGKAWI
BEFORE TRAVELLING
• Do “Homework”. Find the information about the places, the entrance fees for places of attractions, and costs to rent a car at Langkawi.
• Bring a map with you whenever where you are going. Also, consider planning your budget to reduce unwanted expenses.
• Choose to go by ferry from the ports at Kuala Kedah, Kuala Perlis or from south Thailand. Avoid plane flights because costs more.
• Please don’t go by tour agencies as it will cause you more. Travelling by tour is also tiring. Travelling by your own gives you the chance to plan how to spend your time on your own way without restrictions.
• Find out about restaurants or hawker centres that are cheaper, cleaner and make sure that the food are tasty too!

WHEN TRAVELLING
• Plan the destinations that you are going to go at first when you reached this island. Planning where to go enables you to travel all nearby destinations at once. For instance, if you plan to visit the Seven Wells Waterfall at the Northwest of the island, the Underwater World Langkawi at the Southwest of the island, you can either take the road from Kuah Town to Kedawang to visit the Underwater World and then up towards the Seven Wells Waterfall by the road of Pantai Cenang.
• Know all the petrol stations available at Langkawi and also locations of police stations and hospitals in case there is any emergency.
• Do not panic when you are lost in this island, there are a series of signboards and many of the roads of this island are interconnected against one and other.
• When you are about to buy a chocolate or liquor or a box of cigarettes, make sure you confirm the lowest price and where it is made from before purchasing that product to avoid wastage of money.
• Choose the hotel with affordable rates and low charges. Make sure you choose a hotel which is at least 3 stars that has clean and spacious rooms.
• Don’t rush to buy ferry tickets during peak seasons. There are ferry services once every thirty minutes.

HOPE YOU ENJOY !

Holiday Life

Well, last time I keep asking myself what to do in the boring holidays and, finally I came out with a plan after thinking for a day. I decided to spend my time wisely during the holidays and achieve a balance between works and play as well.
These days, I kept studying next year’s syllabus and managed to learn more about what Biology, Physics, Add Maths and Chemistry is like. After studying, I did some exercises about what I had learned. Bit by bit, I learned a little about the first few chapters of these new subjects and had some confidence in next year’s subjects.
Apart from pre-learning those subjects, I am seriously learning how to swim freestyle from an experienced swimming teacher in the KBLM Clubhouse. My progress went on pretty well and I am satisfied of myself. At least there was something that I am very good at it.
I planted a seed a few days ago and I am still waiting eagerly for the chrysanthemum seed to grow into a flower. Watering became my daily routine since that day and I hoped that my efforts would not end up in smoke.
Just a few weeks ago, I visited Langkawi with my parents. I am very surprised with this sudden plan and we enjoyed that trip very much.
Huh… I thought that these holidays will be as long and boring as it seems, but it turned out to be opposite. Anyway I hoped that readers will enjoy the fun of the holidays by yourselves and lastly, please don’t grunt!
So long and happy holidays!

Life and Death

Have you ever wondered why you were here in this world, alive? The answer is definitely no. Until now, even scientists could not even think about this simple answer of this question: “where did we come from?”
Maybe you will True it is all of us came from our mother’s womb. Our own parents are the ones responsible to bring us here, give us life, and take care of us until we were big enough to take care of ourselves. But, have you come across another question: “Who give our ancestors life?” and “Who created mankind?” Based on the questions above, I can conclude that life itself is a big mystery to us, mankind ever since the day of birth.
Life awakens the un-living and enables the death to move and to function on its own without relying on others. But, it is strange because this ‘life’ cannot be created or processed, and not for last, it cannot be given to anyone else. It is a unique gift from the universe, and from God, himself. It gives you the opportunity to live in this reality and enjoy this vast and ever-expanding universe, at the same time living with harmony and peacefully with other lives in a specific order or manner.
However, God is very fair to everything he creates. He wants balance and equilibrium in anything in this world. For instance, if there is ‘life’ than there is ‘death’.
‘Life’ and ‘death’ are two different matters. Both of them can be described as two babies that had been give birth by a same mother but none have the same characteristics as the other. Nevertheless, both are interrelated. There is ‘life’ if there is ‘death’ and there is ‘death’ if there is ‘life’.
‘Life’ and ‘death’ are both the end and the beginning. ‘Life’ is the end of our eternal slumber and the start of reality, whereas ‘death’ can be signified as the end of life, but the start of the eternal slumber. But both are similar in terms that they are both the beginning and the endpoint. Together they cope with each other to achieve balance in our lives.
Now that you had known what is ‘life’ and its constant companion, ‘death’ , please appreciate them nicely because one can only have 1 ‘life’ and experience only 1 ‘death’ throughout his lifetime. We must also appreciate the lives of other beings like how we appreciate ourselves. Only by this we can express gratitude to God, for giving this miracle for us.