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...two travellers in search of the world's wildlife

11 January 2011

Zero additional westerners

10th January 2011

Everyone goes to Langkawi. From Ko Yao Noi to Krabi to Satun, the assumption of every tuk-tuk driver, boat operator and helpful person was that we wanted to get to Langkawi. But we had decided to go straight to Penang and so defied expectation.

Our last meal in Thailand yesterday evening was a very good green curry with soft hand-made shrimp balls, along with a salad of shredded green mango sprinkled with bits of crispy fried catfish. Very nice to end on a high note.

At the Tammerlang pier we walked past a number of shiny white ferries with bold modern lettering on the side, all either absorbing or disgorging cheerful crowds of tourists and travellers. These are the Langkawi ferries. We were directed by surprised officials (“not Langkawi?”) to an empty section at the end of the pier, but when we got there and looked down we saw our ferry – an oversized old wooden longtail boat, tied up next to an identical one that had a foot of water in the bottom. Climbing aboard we discovered it was already loaded with packing crates full of fish, which we had to clamber over to reach the two bench seats by the engine. A couple of locals joined us. This is the ferry to Kuala Perlis, on the Malay mainland.

It has taken pretty much a whole day to get my hearing back from sitting a foot away from a longtail engine for an hour’s boat ride.

We were the only people getting our passports stamped at the little immigration desk on the Kuala Perlis dock, and the only people needing a lift in a battered white van to Kangar which is on the main highway. We were the only non-Malays waiting for a bus from Kangar to Butterworth, where everyone was friendly and we snacked on delicious deep-fried banana slices in crispy batter. At Butterworth we were also the only foreigners taking the ferry across to Penang island.

It’s a small thing, but it does make you feel more like a ‘proper traveller’ to see no other tourists for a whole day. Our guesthouse is comfy, we’ve had some tasty Indian-influenced food, and tomorrow we explore Georgetown, the main city of Penang.

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