Food, sea, sun, sand and underwater vacation
Our 2 years of oversea life in Auckland, made us miss the warm sea and beach in Malaysia even more. There were many nice beaches in New Zealand too but the water was too cold for us. Even during summer months, there was only 1 month (between February and March) when the water was warm enough for us to swim in but it was still pretty chilly as compared to the warm sea temperature in the tropical region.
After settling down, the very first plan we made was to go for warm island beach vacation during the upcoming school holidays which Ming Ray had been longing. We teamed up with my ex-colleague Jenny and her family to the East Coast of Peninsula Malaysia on a road trip covering Cherating and Redang Island trip from 6th to 11th June .
A bunch of 4 adults and 3 kids had a blast. Not only the children got to enjoy the awesome snorkeling experience of seeing colourful underwater world, we also got the chance to taste the delectable Terengganu local delights, especially the seafood.
After 3 hours of driving from Kuala Lumpur, we put up at Cherating and checked in Holiday Villa for our first night. We had our first sumptuous seafood dinner at a renowned restaurant in a nearby town, Kemaman.
Early next morning we departed for Kuala Terengganu jetty to catch our boat to Redang Island. It took us just over 3 hours to reach there. We spent 4 days 3 nights at Laguna Redang Resort. The package offered by this resort was pricier than most other resorts but we found it quite a good value for money especially when we were travelling with children, comfortable lodging and well equipped facilities were our main priorities. In addition, the varieties of the buffet meals had made us come back with extra kilos J
After the return boat trip from Redang Island we took off around noon and we made an impromptu lunch stop over at Pantai Penarik when JS spotted a restaurant full of patrons.
We were surprised by another mouth watering meals at the restaurant specialty the batter-fried seafood and Terengganu local delicacies of keropok lekor (fish sausage) and Sata (grilled fish in banana leaves). Only when I got back home to search the Internet did I realize that this shop was one of the must tries seafood restaurant at Pantai Penarik.
The most tiring part of our journey was our return trip from East Coast to Penang Island via Gerik Highway. We traveled in 2 cars; it was a long hilly and dreadful 7 hours long distance drive. Gratitude should be extended to both drivers –our beloved husbands. Halfway thru the journey, the weather turned bad and visibility was down to less than 50 meters in foggy and rainy conditions in some parts. Along the way, we spotted more than 4 car accidents with the victims’ cars skidded into the side drain, really terrifying.
With the rainy weather we didn’t manage to get a good look at Tasik Temenggor which is another beauty along this highway. Due to the road condition with no lighting at night, our drivers decided to make best use of the daylight by driving non-stop till night fell so we skipped dinner and went straight to Penang. Finally at 9.30pm, we reached Penang and got to enjoy Penang hawker dinner delights albeit a tad late.
Food adventures
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| Kemaman specialty – Stuffed Crabs @ Tong Juan Restaurant |
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| Eat all you can buffet meals @ Laguna Redang Resort |
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| Lunch @ Pantai Penarik, Terengganu |
During our stay in Penang, we put up a night at Jenny's house and the following day, she brought us to her brother in law's Hakka Mee Restaurant for lunch. Thanked to her that we got the chance to enjoy famous Kampar Hakka Mee, homemade fish balls and Yong Tau Fu.
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| Kampar Hakka Mee, fish balls, deep fried fu chok (bean curb sheets) and steamed herbal chicken |
Beach
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| White sandy Pasir Panjang beach |
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| Laguna Redang Resort beach front |
Underwater world highlights
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| Yin the mermaid? |
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| Close encounter with X'mas worms |
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| Surrounded by a school of hungry fish |
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| Ray: Let me hold the bread, I want to feed the fish! |
The food especially the satay and stuffed crab shell look so delicious. Love the photos of the underwater world with so many colourful fish.
ReplyDeleteAll of that food looks so delicious! Looks like everyone had a wonderful time =)
ReplyDeleteVeronica and Peggy:
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comments.
Yup, we really enjoyed every meals we had there, not to mention how awesome to be around with the fishes!
I've yet to visit Rendang. It's one of the places I'd love to visit! Love the shots!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful clear blue sea and tons of food :)
ReplyDelete