Good morning....
And we're off, seat number 3A on the bus from Singapore has departed.
I didn't sleep very well last night as I knew I had to be up at 5:15am. I got up pretty well, got a taxi very easily down to the bus depot before finding my breakfast in the petrol station. A bag of cereal, a bottle of milk and a plastic spoon. Open the bag, pour in the milk and hey presto you have your very own portable breakfast!
It went down very well with the few other passengers waiting for the bus and a German even called me very creative! Next stop is TG Gemok where I will get on a ferry across to Tioman Island! I'm off to sleep for a bit, tra for now. Tom x
Hello... So the luxurious ferry I dreamt of getting across to the island of Tioman hasn't materialised... I am currently sat on a relatively modern, yet battered, boat whilst island supplies and locals are crammed on to what is already a pretty full boat! It all seems pretty safe and well organised but it's not quite the open topped ferry I thought I would be able to arrive on, this could be a long journey! In fact... I have just been told it's going to be 2 hours!!! Nightmare!!
I don't quite know what to say... Nothing is happening, it's getting hot and I'm hungry... 2 hours!!!
Good evening from my own little piece of desert island in the middle of the South China Sea, 2 hours from Malaysia! It's 6:59pm and as I sit on my sea view balcony the sun is setting, the sea is lapping up against rocks 5m below me and I feel extremely fortunate to be able to spend time here!
The boat ride wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be and went pretty quickly once I had fallen asleep. On arrival at Tioman the sea was bright blue and luscious green mountain sides towered over golden sand beaches. There are little huts and resorts littered along the coastline, each one of them spilling out into the sea on stilts. It really is wonderful!
The reason I wanted to visit an island like this is all because of a book called Kensuke's Kingsom, which I have shared with children in England and Dubai. In the book a little boy gets stranded on an island and in my head is it exactly like this one. Part of me wishes I could just go into the jungle and see if I could survive... But I better not!
Since I arrived I haven't really stopped as this afternoon I have started my PADI Advanced Scuba Diving Course. A lad called Grant, who is originally from Scotland and has been on Tioman since February, is my instructor. He is a really nice lad, knows his stuff and I have had a great afternoon diving and learning things from him.
The first five we have did was a Fish Identification Dive. As you may know I have a thing for fish and have kept them since I thought it was a good idea to return to Uni with one after Christmas in first year. The Fish ID course is all about learning the different families of fish and when under the water noting down on a slate some key information. When you surface you then use this information along with any sketches to identify what you have seen. We saw a number of different fish and it was the best dive I have ever been on in terms of underwater life! There were literally thousands of brightly coloured fish swimming all around us. I saw a Nemo fish, Angel fish and even a Stingray to name a few you might know.
The light is fading fast and the Panuba Inn lights have just come on. In 15 mins time I will undertake my first ever night dive! Yes, Scuba Diving at night! To be honest I'm a little nervous but I know Grant will have my back! The night dive is one of the options on the Advanced Course and it has allowed me to complete the whole course in just two days. Tomorrow I will be doing a deep dive in the morning, navigation dive around midday and a photography dive in the afternoon before having an early night and moving onto Kuala Lumpur the morning after!
All that of course is if I survive the next hour and a half. Wish me luck... I'll be back soon! X
Hello! What an evening! The night dive was superb, it was much calmer and the feeling looking into complete darkness was surreal! It felt amazing to be floating around in such a vast space using a torch to search inside many different types and colours of coral. I again saw lots of fish however this time we had to hunt them out. Grant spotted a squid at one point and it appeared to sit happily on the end of his torch! It was a really good dive and really boosted my confidence because I was nervous beforehand! One of the most magical parts was when we switched our torches off! Complete darkness surrounded me until we started to move. For some reason the particles in the water generate light when they move... It was was incredible!
After the dive I enjoyed a nice shower in my basic bathroom and then joined Grant and his family, who are visiting him this week, for dinner. Our meal was lovely and was prepared by Grant, his girlfriend and two other instructors from the south end of the island. I even ate the fresh king prawns out of politeness and actually enjoyed them! I really did feel part of the family and we had a great night chatting and sharing stories, plus it was a free meal!
One thing that Richard, Grant's Dad, did tell me about was how you can fly off Tioman Island to Kuala Lumpur! So guess what... I've booked it!
This is one of the first times ever I have changed my plans but I am so glad I have! Tomorrow I do 3 more dives but then I was due to leave early the day after to get the dreaded 2 hour ferry and then a 6 hour bus to Kuala Lumpur. Not only did I not fancy this but it also meant spending all day travelling and arriving really late at night... A wasted day!
My plan now is to complete my course tomorrow and then have an extra day to explore the rest of the island and rest on the beach. The day after I will then catch the midday jungle plane from Tioman direct to Kuala Lumpur in 1hr 20 mins! At £80 it was a bargain and I'm sure will be a fantastic experience too!!
So as I sit here with the sea lapping up on the beach the sky is pitch black. I'm looking forward to having my own room and a double bed too instead of a bunk!
I've just seen a picture Tara has sent me of her evening view... It's identical to mine and I look forward to sharing these experiences with her in the future!
Night all, I'm off to bed!
Tom x