So my job had required me to go on a very long road trip recently, from KL to Mersing via Kluang, then from Mersing to the island of Tioman by ferry. Most of the country was still on CMCO, so I had to get a cross-border permit from the police.
It would be my second road trip to Mersing, so I literally already knew what to expect, except that I had a companion last time, while this time I had to drive alone – something that I’m fortunately quite used to. I wish I could take off from KL earlier, instead I left from KL quite late in the afternoon so I arrived in Kluang when it was about to get dark, and had to do what I dreaded to do – crossing over to Mersing through vast palm oil plantations and reserve forests – in the dark and alone!
It was like driving through a series of eerie ghost towns with almost completely noone at sight. It was so dark, and I had to avoid looking in the mirror for the fear that something might came up from behind me. I couldn’t help but having things churning at the pit of my stomach and there were times when I suddenly (and inexplicably) had a round of goosebumps on me.
I mean, when you are driving through dark plantations and forests totally on your own, you have to constantly fight off all the thoughts and imaginary things that had been terrifying you since you were a kid. Every now and then I’d imagine a zombie in white shirt with blood all over the body suddenly turned up in the middle of the road and I barely had time to press the brake pedal before the face exploded right in front of the windshield. Urghhh, I shouldn’t have watched all those stupid zombie movies.
I couldn’t help but letting out a big sigh of relief when the town of Mersing finally loomed over and I was in the middle of the town before long. After what appeared to be an unending roller-coaster ride, I decided I deserved a little bit of celebration and ordered a big bottle of Tiger to come with Ayam Masak Halia for dinner.
Finding a hotel room was more difficult than I had expected. I mean, with all the movement restrictions, I really thought they’d be plenty of rooms so I did not book any room in advance. It baffled me abit when I walked from hotel to hotel only to be told that there was no available room. Luckily I found one – which I was told was the last unoccupied room for the night. My body and mind gave in instantly the moment I landed my sorry self on the mattress. It was like a power switch being switched off. Everything just went blank instantly.
Waking up early the next morning, I bought some food and drink from a 7-11 outlet before driving over to the jetty of Mersing. It was still so dark when I got there, and I must be one of the very first to arrive. The parking area was still closed and the gate was still locked, so I waited for a bit more before deciding I might miss the ferry if I waited longer.
There was a long line of cars queuing up behind me, and they too were beginning to get restless and uneasy when there was no sign of anybody coming to open the gate for them. Some later left, probably to go looking for somewhere else to park their vehicles. When it was getting too late, I decided to park the car outside of the parking area – something that I would later regret because the thought of it being broken into or worse being stolen would come to haunt and spoil my duty-come-vacation trip to Tioman.
After buying a ferry ticket for RM50 from the ticket counter (I didn’t know when exactly I was coming back so I only bought a one-way ticket after being told that I could buy the returning ticket at the ferry terminal in Tioman), I walked over to the waiting ferry. Since the movement restrictions came into effect last year, the number of ferry trips had been limited to one-trip per day so I had to catch it if I were to keep up with my schedule.
And it was quite a surprise to see that the ferry was at least at its half-capacity when I expected it to be empty. For a moment I thought life goes as usual in Tioman.
But that changed when I arrived at the island where the effects of the pandemic were obvious and unmistakable. When I came to this island a few years ago, it was bustling with tourists – be it local or international tourists. Tour agents were all over offering people with island-hopping tours and discounted accomodation rates. Luckily Tioman is a residential island where people do stay for real, doing real jobs and having real livelihood (I mean, not just an island catering for tourists). So in a way, life does go on as usual in Tioman, minus the tourists and all the additional economical perks that come with them.
So after having Nasi Lemak and Hot Nescafe for breakfast at the very first food stall that I came upon, I walked aroud to look for an accomodation. Then the idea of renting a motorbike came to mind, and that was exactly what I did. At RM50 per day (24 hours – meaning the rate starts ticking from the moment you get hold of the key until you return the bike 24 hours later), I knew I could strike a better deal, but somehow I felt like I wanted to be of a little help to the local community who has obviously been affected by the pandemic so I did not really negotiate. When I asked for a helmet, they laughed saying that people in Tioman do not wear helmets on their bikes. Oh wow, OK then. As the saying goes – When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
So after going back and forth looking for the best accomodation that suits my budget and vacation moods, I decided to stay at a so-called resort called Barbura Resort. Although it is described as a resort, I don’t think it is really up to a resort category, except for the room rate, which is not cheap. Again, I did not really negotiate. I picked a room whose balcony and window faces right to the sea. It was so close to the sea I could hear the sound of waves pounding continously over the beach. I really thought I’d enjoy it – the sound of nature as I’d call it – until I had difficulty bringing myself to a sleep at night because the sound kept triggering an alarm in my ears. Urghh.
So I didn’t do much on the first day. I took a little walk on the beach, starting from Barbura Resort until I came upon a big group of boulders beyond which I can no longer walk further. I took a seat at one of the boulders and continue looking out to the sea and enjoying the sunset view, except that the sunset did not really take form. The sun was obliterated by a heavy layer of clouds before it touched the horizon.
I kept continuing taking in the view, and my eyes was caught by the sight of a lone figure, standing and paddling on a canoe or something. Then I noticed he was not alone. They kept paddling away, against the winds, before disappearing amongst the waves. It was such a sight to remember for long. It was getting too dark to stay around so I walked back to the resort to have a good night rest.
I only explored the island on the next day. Riding on the motorbike without a helmet as the guys at the rental house had told me to do, I started off from the resort towards the famed Tioman Marine Park. I noticed how some of the diving and snorkeling acitivities were still on-going, which was quite a relief to me because I did not want the tourism economy to die down in Tioman either. At least they still had some income to keep things going.
The plan was to ride all the way to Kampung ABC beach, where I stayed last time and where I fell in love with Tioman for the first time. I had come to find out that motorbikes were not allowed to go any further than Tioman Marine Park so I had to park my bike and continued my journey on foot – which I found out was not such a bad idea after all. I took a little hike against the hill, something that I don’t remember doing last time, and took the breath-taking view of the South China Sea from atop a boulder. The sea was so blue, and I could see a couple of boats bobbing up and down in unison with the sea waves. The sight was just so mesmerizing.
Going down to the other side of the hill, I continued walking. By then it was already too hot. But good thing about walking along a coastal area is the cooling off brought about by the coastal winds. The heat was intense, but it would just slide through you. It doesn’t stay in you for too long.
The quiteness of the whole place was unmistakable. I’d see people here and there along the way, but it was a far cry from my last visit where I’d have to give way to incoming passersby every now and then. This time I literally had the whole stretch of beach all to myself. I saw things that were still not there last time – like this swing post. I wish they did not put it up on a pair, at least I wouldn’t look too lonely on a picture. Still I took a few rounds of swings, and it really felt so liberating. It liberated the mind that was so heavy from all the hectic life back in the city. Heh.
I walked on, until I came upon the chalet that I stayed in last time. It broke my heart a little, looking at the state it was in. It looked rundown and abandoned. I remember how I enjoyed my stay there very much last time. The bar that I came to drink at every night was still there, but it was largely abandoned too. I remember arguing with some tourist from Australia about some life principle or something, before his wife barged in and asked him to go back to their hotel room immediately. Then the Malay guy who married a local girl from the very village itself, and left his job in the construction industry (his last job was building the MRT) back in KL to join her to settle down in Tioman for good. I remember enjoying my converstation with him very very much.
I walked till to end of the stretch where I had to turn back because the walkway ended there. By then it was past lunch time so I took a seat at one of the very few restaurants that were still in operation. The waiter and his mother were so excited when I told them that I was from Sabah. I’m sure I was not the first Sabahan to have reached them there, but perhaps they don’t get as many visitors from outside as they used to so knowing that they’ve got a visitor from somewhere far away makes them feel excited.
Then I walked back towards where I parked the motorbike and stopped every now and then to take in the beautiful views along the way. It was hard to believe that the whole stretch of beach was so empty and silent that the only sounds I heard were coming from the chirping birds and the pounding sound of the waves. Even the villages that I walked across along the way seemed so empty and silent.
It was late in the afternoon when I reached Barbura Resort again. I spent most of the rest of the evening taking a relaxing break at the resort, either taking a little walk on the beach or just curling myself up on one of the hammocks while getting a hold of a book. When the sweltering sun gave way to a cooler air, I went down to the beach and took a little swim. It felt so good to be swimming again, allowing myself to float freely with my face up while watching the blue sky in its entirety (literally). I felt so free. Heh.
So all in all, I spent two nights in Tioman, and I wish I could stay longer, but the worry that something might have happened to my car kept nagging at the back of my head. To catch up with the ferry, I had to leave very early in the morning and returned the motorbike on the way to the jetty. On the advice by the ticketing woman at the ticket counter back in Mersing, I didn’t buy a return ticket because I was not sure when I was going to return. She told me that I could always buy a ticket at the ferry terminal in Tioman.
So when the young girl at the counter of ferry terminal in Tioman told me otherwise (that I could not buy on the spot), I went a little bit beserk. I asked her to make whatever necessary phone calls to re-confirm, to which she kindly adhere, and although I was quiet sure she was gonna come back with a positive answer, I was still relieved when she told me that it was possible to buy a ticket on board of the ferry. Phew!
The ferry turned out to be at its half-capacity again. And true enough, the conductor let my buy a ticket, and most suprisingly, for RM30 which is RM20 cheaper the ticket that I bought at the jetty terminal in Mersing! The ferry would do a couple of stops on the island before dashing its way off to the mainland. As the island of Tioman loomed further and further away until it finally went out of sight, I told myself that I would come back again, for the third time, most probably when things had all returned to normalcy.
When the ferry finally docked at the jetty terminal of Mersing, my heart began to pound faster. As I was nearing the parking area, all I wanted to know first and foremost was whether the car was still there. Broken into or not was probably second or third. The insurance would do the trick.
And there it was – begginning with the atena, then the chrome bar at the back, and then the rear cabin and of course finally the number plate to make the assurance complete. So knowing that the car was still there already accomodated for half of the relief, now I had to see if it was broken into. So walking slowly around the car, the relief went complete when I found out that all the windows were left unschatched. The car was still there in the exact form it was last seen so I started the engine and whistled my way off – first to a breakfast in Mersing town before returning the long long ride back to KL.