As we had recently, Malaysia was not anywhere near our favorite country . Not bad, but wefeel it lacks personality and over, Malaysian food not overly impressed. That said, we clarify that we really enjoyed its islands (and sites). Interestingly, in Malaysia we had some of the things we liked on the trip, but as a general experience, not kill us.
In any case, I reached that point where we decided we wanted sun and beach the first choice seemed clear and very appetizing: Perhentian.
We had met a Belgian (something hispanicized, hello Thibault) in our step by Myanmar had recommended we go through there to dive. And of course, the idea of
divers refresh my skills for a reasonable price sounded good. So there we were.
Perhentian Islands Islands: they have to offer and where and how you can dive
Perhentian are a group of islands northeast of Malaysia (for those who know not guide you , "top right"), fairly close to Thailand (in fact, its name means "stop", we understand that because the Thais stop out there, or vice versa). In addition, so we were told, it is not uncommon to be used to fuel some traffic between the two countries, but ... I could be one of those insubstantial talks bar.
There are two main islands, Kecil and Besar . Meaning, small and large respectively.Guess which is which in the photo:
Whoever wants to delve deeper into the mysteries of the Perhentian can take a look at Wikitravel , where is all very well explained.
Here we will stick more to our experience: We stayed almost a week in Long Beach, Kecil (small island), housed in Matahari, which also did the diving course.
Entendiento Perhentian Kecil and Long Beach
There are many beaches and resorts to stay in Kecil (and Besar, not that we know). We decided on Long Beach (on the recommendation of mented and Thibault).
The beach is spectacular, as all the area, but has a but : it is full of boats and boats , so it is not as comfortable if you just want to lie on the beach. Being something massed must say that if you want to dive quieter find other options in the area. The guys Asiangaude (who would know in Indonesia, almost a month later) spoke very well of D'Lagoon , very close to where we were and quieter (and its own diving school).
As we said , Long Beach is perfect for snorkeling , there are half a dozen or more diving centers with very decent prices, some variety of places to eat / drink a few beers (what beers requires moving a little more, many sites do not provide for religious) motifs and a more than decent snorkeling near the pier point. We were also told that there was a place where classic films projected at sunset, but it was after the fact and did not see ... Too bad. See Casablanca at sunset had to be one of those things that are good in any conversation.
Typically , the sites offer diving course packs + free accommodation . In my case I opted for the PADI Advanced + 2 nights accommodation, including all the equipment and materials for the course, they had at Matahari Chalet and Divers . Tamara did the course, but the room was "free" alike. And as we were, we booked a few more nights .
Do you need to stay in the same place you do the course? Not really. And though it may be confused, sites are independent and do not even have the same owner. Normally, so we could see, the house owner is one and the other dive center with diving centers managed by foreign and local lodging and restaurants (with exceptions, of course).
Matahari in particular : the course was very good. All teachers were attentive and professional and gave confidence. Something that helps if you wear without diving time (3 years in my case). The accommodation was no wonder, but served and had air conditioning.
Trip Advisor referred to a landfill that was at the entrance : luckily when we were just left traces of it. Yes, there was a giant lizard walking there many days.
About the food, there were several local options, such as K gaya, with Roty Canai, rice and noodles at a great price and ... A brutal pizza at Oh La La! , Site run by an Argentine.
What can you expect from diving in Perhentian / Matahari
Here we must note that the opinion has not yet reached the 20 dives, so you probably do not have a complete picture. In my limited experience, the site was spectacular: high visibility, wide variety of marine life and coral tremendous.
As part of the Advance pack I could enjoy a couple of dives on wrecks (boats, come on), one of them at night. Internet is so wonderful that even some have made videos of the dives:
The famous "Police Wreck":
And the Sugar Wreck:
In any case, for me the highlight of the experience was the professionalism of the guys Matahari, always attentive to the "packages" as I (had three years without diving). They made me feel "part of the team" and left there with my divers skills refreshed and more advanced.
The best
Many options for diving, course packs prices + accommodation with good price (less than 250 euros if memory serves me correctly) - Good vibes and atmosphere. - Transparent water and white sand
Worst
- Musicote and party. That is no longer one for according to things. - Too many boats on the beach.
Pulau Kapas, "remote" island hipster
In one of the last days in Argentina Perhentian one couple we met strongly recommended go to Kapas: a nearby island, but much quieter. As we recommended our beloved Mary Bovary decided we had to go. So we changed the route and ... there we went.
Pulau Kapas siginifica "cotton island" , a very sweet name like something out of some level of Kirby. As we mentioned before, if you want details, pass wet by Wikitravel .
Getting to the Kapas deserves a chapter is not very difficult, but not easy. In our case, we went from Kuala Lumpur by bus to Marang (childbirth hours, about 9 or 10 hours) and there you can take a direct boat to Kapas (about 30-45 minutes). The tricky part of this is to find the bus to KL Marang, but for a while in the bus station asking solves everything.
In Kapas you can also snorkel, but with the large number of points to snorkel on the island, we decided it was time we we saved the diving .
Although it was not as remote as we expected (far less than our favorite beach trip, Lonely Beach in Koh Rong ) was very good.
Kapas was almost a "little Spain" in fact speak more Spanish than in English. Uruguayan waiter, at least 4 and 2 other Spanish Argentine staying in our hostel, a Spanish cook ...
The accommodation Kapas
Many of the sites were closed for Ramadan, on the one hand as calm was welcome, on the other limited options.
The accommodation best known is perhaps the KCB , which are actually two (at some point inthe past there was a fight and separated partners, these things happen even in the paradisiacal beaches).
Where we stayed the night came to about 10-12 euros. No frills (rather pulling cutrillo), but acceptable. Dinner was also very affordable and every day with a different menu (which could range from a curry, some fajitas or a meat pie).
The best of this island was the tranquility that is breathed and the quantity and quality of spots to snorkel .
As a complementary activity to turn the island with Kayak is very entertaining and can be done in an hour (it took us almost 4, but good).
The best
- Awesome to snorkel almost anywhere on the island Points. - Tranquillity and good vibes. - Adjusted prices (by 15 to 20 euros a day you can live and eat).
Worst
- From the beach you could see KCB Marang. It may seem silly, but at least I like most see an infinite ocean. & Nsbp - Tourism and many employees are foreigners.