back, and finally writing.

Yeah, I was kinda pooped out from my wonderful trip. Took a few days off sleeping, just to recover from the sunburns which I sustained during my trip. The burns were really bad, i tell you, so much so i look VERY dark right now.

Yada yada, enough of giving an intro, now, i will move on to the highlight of this post. Everything on my tioman trip will be written here, hopefully in one post. If it's too long, of well, then i will break it up into a few posts.

A few myths and facts about tioman, hehe. It is REALLY THAT NICE as how they show it in the pictures. Yes, the beaches are superb, and those pictures on the magazines do not lie. Water is crystal clear, salt water fishes are abundant and of course, corals are great. You can practically snorkel anywhere, and you are bound to meet fishes. The fishes are really colourful, even better than those you see in Finding Nemo. But it can be hell ticklish when you have food in your hand, and all the fishes surround you and rub against your body.

Snorkelling in water 20 metres deep is no joke. I was kinda freaked out when the boatman asked me to jump in the water, and when i took a peek down, whoa, you can actually see the ocean floor miles below because the water is just greatly clear. Of course, a lifejacket is always mandatory in circumstances like that, but there are still some daredevils who just swim without a lifejacket.

To ease the load that i will have to write, i will summarize everything into topics. Thru this way, reading and writing will be easier, and i will not be lost to what I am writing. Get ready for one of the longest post on this blog's history.

1. The journey there.

We had to catch the ferry at Mersing, in Johor. Pulau Tioman is actually situated near the borders of Pahang and Johor, but boarding takes place in Johor. Pulau Tioman is in the vincity of Pahang. The journey from KL took about 5 1/2 hours, and when we reached there early in the morning, we boarded the first speedboat to Tioman.

The speedboat is the fastest boat possible to Tioman, as taking the conventional ferry will take
2 1/2 hours. The speedboat cuts down the time to only 1 hour, but it costs abit more. Rm 45 per way to Tioman, compared to the ferry, RM 30.















The speedboat co. Auto Mersing. There is a better company by the name of Bluewater, so next time, if you can, take their boats. They are much better and they have MORE boats.















Inside the boat. Seats are made of hard plastic, so don't expect to get comfort when the boat bounces off the waves.















Just look at the amount of water it disperses every second to get the boat moving. Really powerful engines.

2. Scenery on the way there.

Since it takes a good hour to get to the island, (2 1/2 hours by a conventional ferry) the scenery on the way there is really stunning. As you pass huge islands, their beaches really boasts the best of mother nature. Take for example, Pulau Rawa, which is still virgin from human, it has a really nice white beach complemented with crystal clear water.















Spot that white beach on this island. Really nice. God bless you if anyone gets shipwrecked here.















A closer view.

3. Finally there, and a look at the resort(s).

Setting foot on Tioman, the beach will really capture you view. All those images of dirty, green old Port Dickson is uncomparable to this. Looking from the jetty, you can actually see colourful fishes racing around the jetty walls and of course, clear white sand under the waters.















My very first impression of Tioman.















See thru waters. Corals are abundant, but we were forbidden to take them home. After those poor fishes will lose their natural habitat.















There's actually 2 feet of water above the sand. Look closer again.

Next up, on to my resort where i stayed. For your information, i spent 5 days and 4 friggin nights at Tioman. 2 nights at Berjaya Tioman Beach Resort, (which really drained out my finances) and 2 night roughing it out at a not as good as the 5 star Berjaya Tioman, Salang Indah Resort. At least it had air conditioning and hot water.

To anyone who wants to book Berjaya Hotels anywhere around Malaysia, i get staff rates, very attractive rates, savings up to 70%. Contact me if you need any cheap and good rates. Anyway, it's time to reveal BOTH Berjaya Tioman Beach Resort and Salang Indah Resort.

Starting with Berjaya Tioman, this 5 star resort really takes care of your needs. Of course, with a hefty price. I was directed to deposit an undisclosed amount of cash (an alternative measure, surrender ur credit card) as deposit before i was showned to my room. JUST IN CASE, i used anything/ charged anything, or ran away after using their sevices.















Berjaya Tioman's frontage, facing the beach.















That the hotel lobby behind the plants.















At night, this area turns into a disco, with flashing strobe lights all over, and a live band playing.















Minangkabau styled reception area.

Now, on to the rooms. Most of the rooms are chalet type, to suit the beach. The chalets are really cosy and give you the feeling that you are staying in your own personal home.















Stand alone chalet. Small, nice and cosy.















Seafront chalets.















The chalet that i stayed in. There are 4 rooms on this block, 2 on the upper half and 2 on the bottom half.















Driveway around the chalets. The resort is so huge, there are minivans to ferry you around to your destination.

Now, a peek at the hotel rooms. Not really big, but just enough to keep you comfortable. I booked 2 superior chalets, and yeah, it came with a hairdryer, safe, television and practically the normal things you will find in a hotel.















The bed. Real comfy, for 2 persons. We had to take down the divan to make space for 3 people. Squishing up 3 guys on a bed like this is err...not so nice lah.















Coffee and tea making facilities.















Sofa set and the telly.

Ahahaha, okay, enough of Berjaya Tioman Beach Resort, now it's on to Salang Indah Resort. This resort is located on the northmost tip of Pulau Tioman, and of course, it's rooms can't be placed next to Berjaya Tioman. It looks quite nice from the outside tho.

The rooms were really dark and scary at night, trust me.















Seafront chalets at Salang Indah Resort. Breathtaking view, in the afternoon.















View of the rocks, during low tide.















Around the chalets. Quite a long walk, a scenic walk to the reception.















They were hell alot of crabs on these rocks. If u're not careful, god help you once they lock their pincers on ur toes.

Now on to a look inside the rooms. Nothing much to expect, c'mon, watcha expect from RM 100 a night? Be thankful that is has air con and hot water.















Try to bring more lightbulbs, the next time anyone visit this resort.















Rusty and cranky old fridge, no telly (aiks) and only a kettle to boil hot water.

You haven seen the toilet yet. The bathtub look gross, i did not dare take a bath inside it. Had to stand beside it.















Lazy chairs outside the chalet.

Okay, enough of touring the resorts. On to the next topic, which i think will be continued tomorrow. Sorry guys, this post was too long already. Among the highlights in my next post(s) will be
a) wine and dine
b) food and nightlife
c) activities, etc... snokelling, swimming,tanning
d) people and places

and much more,

*to be continued*