Perhentian Kecil and Kota Bharu, Malaysia – 2012
From Kota Bharu Shawna and I took a bus to Kuala Besut, then a half-hour boat ride from Kuala Besut to Perhentian Kecil, a little baby island off the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia in the South China Sea. After actually doing research, I became paranoid about theft on the island, which severely influenced my decision to stay only one day. We also had trouble finding reasonable accommodation on the side of the island we chose. We did spend a few hours just playing in the water, which were some of the most relaxing of the trip.
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- Typical Shawna…composed, stylish, calm, staring out the window of a dirty public bus on the way to Kuala Besut where she will be patient and kind while I attempt to reign in my self-destructive antics.
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- Public bus from Kota Bharu to Kuala Besut. The guy in the white hat kept talking to us. We only understood about .01% of what he said.
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- I had a great shot of this tree trunk but couldn’t figure out how to get that dumbass ocean out of the background.
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- Looking over Coral Bay, the smaller beach on the island. You can see the end of it in this picture, draw an imaginary line up to the top of the photo from Shawna’s left hand and that’s where you can see the beach ends. It begins directly below the walkway we’re standing on.
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- As we walked across the island from Coral Bay to Long Beach I spotted my positive attitude burning to the ground.
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- Shawna strolls in after swimming back from that island in the distance because she thought she saw a dog that needed a hug.
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- This would be straight out of “Lord of the Flies” had there been no boats. That was a book I read a long time ago that had an impact on me.
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- Are these kids making sand castles or Coca Cola advertisements?! Notice the boat behind them called “Angry Bird”.
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- This would be would be the perfect place to drown.
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- I bet this guy’s got some good stories about foreigners getting totally wasted and making responsible decisions.
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- Some little nemos enjoying basic activities such as locomotion and feeding. I admire them, their beauty and simple lifestyle.
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- A bunch of fish auditioning for extras in non-animated version of The Little Mermaid, which will be shot in March of 2013, with me starring as an awkward, yet charming, Prince Eric.
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- Gotta get that trash off the island. They should just do the responsible thing and burn it. I’m really surprised they don’t.
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- Whoops…I’m sure this facial expression was a direct result of something I did…
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- Every so often I try to take a picture that could be interpreted as “poignant”, just to make sure people know I’m a sensitive guy. Also I liked the cute (and practical) aloe plant. Our guesthouse in Kota Bharu.
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- Shawna talking to Ariene and Nat before we head to the street to find some food and explore!
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- A lil neighborhood in front of our guesthouse in Kota Bharu. One of the many places we stayed in a room that had no windows, which is kind of surreal to me.
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- Nat having an intellectual converation with Shawna and Ariene. I just stand there when they do stuff like that.
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- There were times I wished I was an oppressed woman so I could take advantage of all the great scarf sales! Just kidding, I really do accept all cultures.
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- Two of my favorite stores in Kota Bharu, Lovely Mood and Mega Lace.
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- The existence of payphones fascinates me. I took a picture of every unique payphone I saw on the trip.
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- We picked up some snacks from a bakery near the bus station (red building in upper-left of photo), ready for the six-hour ride across the country! The colorful outfits these conservative babes wore really dazzled my fancy.
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- Cross-country bus ride with some friends after a last-minute change of plans. We saw some very scenic deforestation along the way. Mother Earth was crying for everyone’s loss. I took pictures and felt no emotion or disgust with humanity.
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- From Kota Bharu across the country west to Penang we had the top floor of a double-decker bus we had to ourselves. Chatting with our buddies sure did make the time fly.
