Getaway: Koh Lipe

First and foremost, I would like to thank a good friend for inviting me to this Koh Lipe trip; a place that I doubt I will discover if it has not been for her. So, thank you a lot for this.

It was paradise, it was beautiful. To top it off, we went during New Year. It's nice to be able to see how the celebration was like in Koh Lipe.

Lot's and lot's of fireworks. And lots and lots of foreigners. It's like we were not even in Asia although the stamp said 'Satun, Thailand'.

The journey started in Langkawi where we stayed for a night. We took a fast boat from Langkawi to Koh Lipe for RM 128 per way and spent an hour being lost in the international waters (while being burnt in the process). There is a boat that departs from Langkawi around 10.30 am (actually longer than that. The processing of the passports took some time). English will not survive you much from this point onward because tourists mostly come from non-English speaking countries.

And that reminds me I have to start learning French again butttt..... yes we know what happens after that line.

The time difference between Koh Lipe and Langkawi is one hour so we almost never lose that hour. Or we lost double when we returned to Malaysia haha. Anyways, Koh Lipe is a small island where you can see a lot of people just walking here and there. But we were petrified at the sight of dogs (most fear gone after one day because the dogs don't care about us actually. Sad) so we mostly go on the motor taxi.

Koh Lipe is mostly popular for diving and there are a lot of diving schools there. The fee is actually quite oke compared to what we might find around here (haha habislah aku kalau divers baca ni mmg kene pukul). And snorkelling too. RM 50-60 for nearly seven hours journey around a few places, including lunch. And you get on the boat like the one on the picture that usually accommodate about seven to eight people. An extremely good news compared to having to go on a boat somewhere here. And bloody cheap too!

Of course, I should have mentioned food first before anything else.

There are a few shops that offer halal food and they do speak Malay. One clearly speak in loghat utagha while the others in loghat Kelantan. Of course, there are the Thai food, seafood and Indian food. As what happens on other islands, expect the food prices to be a bit steep. But it's a holiday who caressssss (actually changing money on the island is better. Should have done that earlier).

The price can be quite ridiculous for food like THB 100 for most of the dishes (valid as of January 2014) but the coffees are quite affordable. Walk around the island to find places that offer good coffee at good prices, you can find plenty!

We stayed in Sunrise Beach at one of the resorts. High price because of New Year celebration but we get to experience bamboo hut without hot water! It's like balik kampung except that other families are mat salehs. It was very near to the sea and I particularly loved it because of the wind. We went to Sunrise Beach one day, not so much fun because it was not that windy as much as I want it to be.

The place was very lively, I have to say. We stayed quite far from the center of activities (about five minutes walk. Bring along a torchlight, just in case) so we get to meet the locals and those who stay there for vacation.

We woke up early in the morning, not missing the sound of waves (oke now my heart is aching) and had breakfast in front of our door. The mat salehs already took a dip in the sea while we will just be sitting outside the room, eating. Good days. Then, we went walking or snorkelling before heading to open air cinema. It was actually a bar and to watch the movie, purchase popcorn and soft drink for THB 90 (valid as of January 2014) for movie of the day. The screening started at 6pm until 9pm. We watched Percy Jackson and Django, skipped Pacific Rim and missed Lone Ranger.

The center of activities should be Pattaya Beach where we disembarked. There were a lot of bars with live music on. Prices don't differ much.

And yes, the one that caught my attention; MASSAGES. THB 300 for back, neck and shoulder massages, even Thai massages. Just imagine that. You can see them almost anywhere. It depends on you if you want to have one at their specific outlet or beside the sea. Ouh man I really recommend having one while listening to the waves. My one hour well spent.

I realised that there weren't many pictures here but I am already very hungry. We stayed there for five nights, if you are curious. Would definitely go again one day because someone is begging me for a diving trip.

Ouh bring your diving license, not driving license. Refresher course in Koh Lipe is much cheaper compared to the one here (again, akan kene baling botol dgn divers).

So, enjoy the pictures that I put up. Just four I know but look at the water.

Memory: 22

In the dark room, Tasnim threw herself onto the floor before crouching into a ball.

What went wrong? What was wrong with her? Why did she had to keep seeing other people meeting their significant other but not her? No, she didn’t think it was unfair but it has been so long. And when she was about to grasp it, it was gone. She got tested and the person who returned was no longer the person that she once knew.

Was there something totally unloveable about her? Was there something that made her fit only for unloading problems? Or was it something she ate that caused her to attract just people with too many baggages in the past?

‘ What is it? What is wrong with me?’ Tasnim sent a text to Hanna. She was not sure about the time difference anymore. It was the realisation that it has been nearly two months but Adam did not make any effort anymore. And with that, the tears came down streaming like Niagara.

Her phone beeped. Tasnim must have fallen asleep because it was dark and raining outside. God knows how long she had slept.

Khalid’s message. And about three missed calls.

‘ I’m sorry I asked that question.’

‘ Tasnim, are you ok?’

Tasnim tried to sit and while doing so, she saw her reflection on the mirror. She must have fallen asleep while crying because her makeup has already smudged her face.

‘ Good night.’

For once, Tasnim felt totally drained. She didn’t even have the energy to lie. 

Memory: 21

‘ You want to tell me something?’ Khalid sat while staring at Tasnim, finally opening his mouth after a two-minute silence.

Tasnim hesitated. This was Khalid, not Hanna. At least, Hanna will be able to listen to her. They gossipped a lot, furthermore they were girls. But she can…

‘ It’s Adam?’ Khalid guessed while taking the glass of coffee off the table.

Still, that question did not help. Instead, it got Tasnim more confused because she was very close to spilling everything but she was actually afraid of the answer. She was scared that she could not do what she had to do.

‘ Tasnim?’ Khalid called her name again. And Tasnim nodded her head.

Khalid looked at Tasnim, hard.

‘ Aneem, this is not hard. Contrary to popular belief, men are not complex.’

There was something welling up in Tasnim. At least with Hanna, she wouldn’t be too blunt.

‘ If we like you, we will show some effort,’ Khalid said matter-of-factly. ‘ How long has it been?’

The question. THE QUESTION that Tasnim actually did not want to answer as she will be forced to calculate how long she had been throwing herself at Adam.