As nice as it was in the water, out of the water was another story. We had gone with the idea that maybe we needed to change scenery, but we just didn’t feel “the love” that we feel in Tioman. It was very touristy and that kind of “drink all night, sleep all day” attitude that makes well for an alcohol and drug drenched vacation, but not for a life on the road.

On the bus ride south we hung out with some Malay rockers. The guy on the left had a Sturgis Rally t-shirt on. He had no idea what it meant so we tried very unsuccessfully to explain what the rally is all about. It didn't matter though, he was just happy to be wearing a cool shirt. Also, the cycle rickshaws in Terranganu were straight out of Pimp My Ride.

On the way back down the coast to Tioman we decided to stop at Pulao Kapas, another little jewel of an island in the South China Sea. Unfortunately, the weather was not with us and it rained for 4 days. This gave us time to play a lot of cards, read, and get to know the people who ran out hotel pretty well. Kapas Beach Chalet’s (or KBC) is owned by a really cool Dutch guy named Hans who, along with the rest of his staff made us feel as if we’d been there for months. A really great experience at an inexpensive beach hotel.

Yes, we found the only dog in Malaysia.

One afternoon when the clouds broke for a few minutes we decided to take a stroll down the beach. This is when we found the Turtle Cove Resort. It had been opened only two weeks and it was owned and operated by Peter, Anita, and their son Storm, more refugees from Holland. A lovely couple if there ever was one. Peter designed and helped build each bungalow in a blend of Malay traditional with Dutch simplicity (and cleanliness). Anita is a gourmet chef who has made it her mission to provide guests with the highest and yummiest quality of food that she can. Most of you in the west can’t really appreciate this, but she imports real cheese for her fixin’s, not the uber processed slices of white oil stained matter which have a half-life that has been our only choice. It was so nice to have bread and olive oil to start our meal too. They also make it their business to always have good wine in their rack. Our last night she cooked a special Mexican veg meal that was by far the best cuisine I’ve had in months.

DISCLAIMER: This is not an ad page for hotels. I do not accept freebies in exchange for listings (although many have tried). Unfortunately, the weather was not in our favor so there is not much I can say about the island, however, had it been sunny there would be pictures galore of this scenic little tropical jewel. Simply put, our stay on Kapas would have been "crapas" had it not been for these two places.

Oh, and evidently if you look at the solar panels on Kapas they will shoot you.

Finally, we returned to Tioman. As the ferry rounded the rocks and the beach came into view we both knew we were home. Getting from the ferry to our bungalow was like walking through a receiving line of locals who were saddened at the possibility that we'd left forever without saying gooodbye. We had both thought about going somewhere else until our time in Malaysia is up, but really, why bother when it’s so damn nice here.