7-9 August: Trip to Pulau Besar

All the interns set out with the bus at midnight from KL towards Pulau Tioman, a supposedly very scenic and nice island on the south-eastern coast of Malaysia. Unfortunately, as we arrived at the pier where a ferry was supposed to ship us to our destination, we discovered that all boats to Tioman island were fully booked for the whole day. We made a quick decision and changed our plan to go to a smaller island nearby called Pulau Besar. After a bumpy 20 minute speedboat ride, we arrived at the island. The first thing that struck us, apart from the obvious natural beauty of the landscape, was that it was surprisingly serene and quiet even though it was a weekend - in the middle of summer holiday season.

We split up in three houses and enjoyed our airconditioning and beds. Most of us immediately changed into swim suits/swim shorts and plunged into the turqouise sea.

The remaining time on the island was mostly spent being lazy, either by the beach or in one of the restaurants. The only actual activity was a nice snorkling trip on the second day. All in all a very relaxing and calm trip. The staff in the restaurants seemed to live the laid-back islander lifestyle to the fullest, as a nasi goreng took approximately 2 hours to get after ordering it. The only disappointment I had was the lack of diving spots, which I had hoped for. Apparently, the usual groups of Pulau Besar's visitors (retired french people) lacked interest in exploring these amazing waters, so the diving business in the area was confined to Tioman island.

On the way back, we surprisingly met Emma, our house mate, in a bus station somewhere in the wilderness. She was returning from a Singapore trip.

Now it's back to the daily routine!

Red Agent Mattias