Langkawi is an island situated on the west coast of Malaysia, north of Penang Island. It is one of Malaysia's top tourist destinations. Langkawi is famous for its historical legends, beautiful beaches and geological formations. Here I shall give an account of how my family spent 3 days and 2 nights in Langkawi with the theme "Escape to Burau".

We took the 8:15am ferry from Penang to Langkawi on 27-Apr-08. Check out Langkawi Ferry Services http://www.langkawi-ferry.com/schedule.html#penang for the schedule and fares. It took us almost 3 freezing hours - the air conditioning was . Upon arrival, we met up with Sam (contact him at 012-5293663) who operates a tour and car rental business. We had pre-booked 2 Toyota Innova MPVs at RM160 each (we had 13 adults and 2 children). Sam was very accommodating and cordial, and quickly joined in our Hakka conversations.

We had a simple lunch at Kuah town and after some quick shopping, we were off to our first tourist spot - Beras Terbakar (Field of Burnt Rice). History tells of Datuk Karma Jaya ordering the people of Langkawi to set the rice granary on fire to deny the Siamese invaders food back in 1821. What was left was merely a miserable plate of burnt rice.

Next stop was the Ancient Tomb of Ulu Melaka, it was not on the GPS map, and neither did we find road signs to lead us, most probably raided.

Next on the itinerary was Makam Mahsuri (Mahsuri Mausoleum). It is a complex with museum, auditorium, well-preserved traditional Malay houses, Mahsuri's Well, and an aviary. It was the children's first encounter with a peacock with tail fanned.

The last stop before heading to the resort was Langkawi Underwater World. It had undergone lots of changes since my last visit about 5 years ago. Among the new additions were a giant anaconda, seals and penguins. We were sort of short changed as the Underwater World lost some 600 fish including stingrays, barracudas and sharks due to poisoning in September 2007. Nonetheless, we had a good time to see many creatures of the underwater world up close.

We reached Berjaya Resort at about 5:00pm. The hotel staff managed to find us 6 rooms and also helped us save by downgrading a room from triple to double. The double-bed chalets have a double bed and a sofa bed which sleeps one adult comfortably.

The shuttle van transported us to our rooms. The chalets were smack in the middle of the forest. However, due to some shortsightedness, our rooms were quite dispersed. Walking from room to room was quite tiring as the roads were quite winding and hilly.

We drove to Orkid Ria Seafood Restaurant at Pantai Cenang for dinner. The waiter brought us the fish to show us the size made sure we agreed to the weight. The food was good and reasonably priced too. After dinner we took a stroll and did some window shopping.

We had breakfast at the resort. There was a good spread of food. They also cook to order omelette and puree. We had booked a boat that could take all of us for Island Hopping through Sam. Departure was set at 9:45am from Awana Porto Malai jetty.

First stop was Dayang Bunting Lake. The boat ride was fast and exhilarating! Several boats were headed the same direction and we were like racing. From the drop off point, we had to hike to the lake. Near the jetty, you can spot mudskippers in their natural habitat. It was quite a tiring hike. The swim in the lake was refreshing after the hot and sweaty hike. There used to be many catfish that tickle people's feet near the banks. Now some other type of fish dominate the waters. I did not dare to try. Some had a swim, and some went boating. By 11:00am, it was scorching hot. Time to get back to the boat, but before that, another hike...

From Dayang Bunting Lake we hopped on to Pulau Singa Besar. No we did not really set foot in the island, but our boat stopped in the middle of the sea. The boat man threw chicken meat into the water for the eagles. Many eagles can be seen hovering above, and occasionally diving for the catch.

We were all too tired to hop further. So we headed back to Awana Porto Malai jetty. Just before docking, we saw something in the sea popping up and down. They were dolphins! The boatman brought us back out to the sea to get closer. We saw many more, coming up in pairs. They were grey with pinkish coloration on the nose. We were all tired but the dolphins revived our drooping spirits. It was a great finale to Island Hopping.

We went to Kuah town for lunch. After an afternoon siesta, It was time for some beach fun. Some lazed around the poolside. Some played beach volley. The children played sand. You can also take a walk along the floating jetty.

It was back to Pantai Cenang for dinner. We decided to try out Fat Mum Seafood Restaurant. Fat Mum is the chef there. Fat Papa took our order. Fat Mum's recipes were special and tasty. We ordered 2 fish dishes (using 2 different types of fish) among others. Fat Papa came back to us and said the grouper was a whopper and can be used for 2 different dishes. The whopper turned out to be just a fry. Fat Papa's poor estimation left a few corners in our stomachs unfilled. Fat Papa should open a vegetarian restaurant instead.

After breakfast, the children went for a swim in the pool - naked. It was like a nudist camp. They had a splish-splash-sploshing fun time. Then we all adjourned to the bar to claim our complimentary welcome drink. A farewell drink should be more appropriate. After packing up, we hopped on the shuttle for our last roller coaster ride back to the resort lobby. Berjaya Resort Langkawi should be commended for the excellent shuttle service. After lunch, we hurried to board the ferry. There was a delay due to an air-conditioning malfunction. It was hot and stuffy in the ferry, as good as a sauna, unlike the Penang-Langkawi leg. Many left their seats and went to the deck.

On the whole, "Escape to Burau" lived up to expectations, putting aside hiccups which were beyond our control. We covered most of the attractions around Burau Bay, hence the theme "Escape to Burau". We had 4 elderly folks with us, so we had to go for moderation as we planned our itinerary. We had to drop the cable car ride up to Gunung Mat Cincang - many of us were afraid of heights. Anyhow, it was the gathering that counts. Until the next escapade......"rolling, rolling!"