We have booked a snorking tour so had an earlier breakfast and were waiting for pick-up at 9am. A bus took us to Kuah Jetty, and from there we were herded like sheep to get wrist bands for identification, and then made our way to the ferry. It was all a little chaotic. The ferry to Pulau Payer Marine Park looked lovely on the brochure, but was actually quite dirty. To make matters worse, I had envisaged we would be up on deck watching the view but instead we were down in the hull and the windows were so dirty you couldn’t really see much.
Pulau Payar Marine Park is set up with diving platforms for snorkling and beginner dive sessions. It was fairly overcast, but didn’t look as if it would rain. We were close to an island that we could catch a small boat to visit if we wished. Sections of water were roped off to contain the snorklers and divers in one spot. We were provided with the equipment, but again the session was badly organised and it was hard to hear and understand the guides and their directions. To make matters worse a big group of tourists (I won’t say from which country they were from) were there at the same time and they were really loud and painful.
Anyway, I was thinking I would struggle with the snorkel a little due to the cough and my brain’s reluctance to comprehend that I can breathe underwater. This didn’t happen though as the water was fairly clear and quickly you could see hundreds of fish swimming around, many with gorgeous colours. I had an absolute ball in the water, after I replaced the first mask that was really uncomfortable. The range of fish was fantastic, and I just got caught up in it all and tried to find quieter places in the water to float on the surface and watch. There is a lot of coral in the area as well, so watching the fish dart around it, and the sea anemones was so cool. Unfortunately there was rubbish floating in the water, which was sad, and bloody idiot tourists who either screamed so loud with what they saw and stood up on the coral (they were told not to do it), which detracted a bit from the bliss of the experience.
Lunch was provided, not brilliant but filled the gaps as Nic and I were both really hungry with all the swimming. After lunch there were boat trips so people could go and feed the fish in another area, or visit the island. Lucky for Nic and I a lot of people did this so we had the water pretty much to ourselves for over an hour. I would get up on the pontoon to have a rest, but then saw an even bigger fish in the water so drop back in and follow it. One couple we met were lovely. They are from Singapore. Unfortunately the woman was sea sick so not in the water much but her husband was in and told us later of the shark he saw – I honestly questioned if it was or just a bigger fish but he had a photo to prove it!!
The boat trip back was again disappointing as we couldn’t watch the view, but by this stage Nic and I were quite tired from all our swimming. Once back at the jetty we were taken via bus back to the hotel. We both had showers and quickly realised that despite all the times we put on sunscreen, we were both burnt on our backs and legs.
Tonight Pies were to play Cats in the football so Nic and I headed to another part of Langkawi – Pentai Cenang, to see if we could watch it and have dinner and a couple of drinks. Cenang is the more touristy section of Langkawi, but even then we could not find a bar and a tv. We headed onto the beach and had a walk around – lots of people out doing water sports eg riding the banana boat, parasailing from the back of the speed boat and Jet skis. It is a pity with all the noise that you don’t get to hear the sound of the waves, but then again it was funny to see people out and enjoying the activities.
We found a restaurant that had been recommended in Lonely Planet for a particular deep fried fish curry dish (known as Nonya style). The meal was really lovely, and so was the outdoor courtyard at Putumayo – reminded me of Bali. We ended up having a fairly early night, catching the taxi back to the Westin (about a 40 min drive). It had been a big fun day.
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