Sunday 25th March 2012 - perhentian islands

Today has been a super relaxed day.

I set my alarm to wake up at 8 because i wanted to move from the Rock Garden accommodation to somewhere less strenuous and wanted to find somewhere before check out so that i didnt need to carry my backpack with me. Instead i would find somewhere and then get my rucksack. I walked along the beach to check out Symphony, accommodation that Burung had recommended. They were fully booked so they I went to his second recommendation - panorama, where we had eaten the night before. To my delight they had one room left and so I made my way back to the Rock Gardens.

I was absolutely delighted when I bumped into Burung who offered to help me carry my bags. He came up and waited at reception for me to pack everything up. When I was done I looked like I had just come out of the shower because the fan in my room did not work and it was a very hot day. I walked to the reception as tried to hand Burung the small day pack as I didn't want to take advantage. He wouldn't have it though, he told me to give him the big one. His nickname is now superman because he carried it so effortlessly all the way to the reception of Panorama. I was so grateful.

He said that he hoped to catch me later but we had no way of contacting eachother and so I didn't see him for dinner. Instead I went to the bar at Panorama where the bar man, who looked about 16, spoke to me while I waited for my drink.

I went to the beachfront with my drink to update my blog and then out of nowhere the bar man came and asked me if I was eating dinner and if so did I want to eat at Panorama with him. Again I agreed.

The bar man was actually 24 but had a baby face. He was in fact not a bar man but played bass for the bar's band and was just helping out behind the bar before the band's performance at 10.30. He was from Kuala Besut but moved to the island to work - so he could support his mum. He sent money back to her regularly as she was twice widowed and because, and I quote, "I love my mum a lot".

I told Amin that I ordered King fish the night before but didn't like the sauce as it was not spicy enough so he said he would order for me. He ordered me barracuda fish with a spicy chilli sauce which was delightful.

After dinner I sat on a chair on the beach sipping a cocktail as the sun went down, hoping that my pal Burung would come along, and along he came looking for me with one of his friends that I did not recognise.

We went to have shisha again and then I told him I wanted to watch the band perform so we went back to the bar. The performance space was a little wooden shack type thing with cushions on the floor for seating. There were two Malaysian men in the band with dreads that wore Jamaican Bob Marley hats. The band played a mix of reggae and indie music.

After the band had finished we went back to the beach where Burung and I spoke for hours. He asked me about my breakup and informed me that he had been married before and had a child aged two. He was 29 now and had met his wife while she was in the perhentian islands on a scuba diving holiday from the Kuala Besut - he was her instructor. She was a city girl but apparently once they realised they liked eachother they had agreed that she would move to the islands to live. They got married and had their little boy and then she decided after 3 months that she no longer wanted island life and wanted to move back to Kuala Besut. He told me that he knew that the relationship would not work in the early stages when he first met her parents before the wedding. They questioned him about his job, his earnings, assets etc and seemingly disapproved because "he was from a poor background". However, because of their culture it was not acceptable for them not to get married and so they did.

He told me that he also had a broken heart and no longer believed in love. I agreed and told him that I was still deeply in love with my ex and could not see myself loving anyone else.

It was a really nice talk and took place while lying on mats on the beach watching the star filled sky hoping to find a shooting one.

Burung and I got on great and laughed a lot. He asked me if I knew why stars shot across the sky and continued to tell me that when he was younger his grandad had told me because they were pooing. We now call shooting stars peepoo stars! Don't ask me why!!

Anyway, a great conversation ended with Burung saying that he thinks that if I stayed longer we would be a good couple. I could only laugh it off and hope he didn't mention it again!!!

I got back to my room at 4am, turned on the light to see a HUGE cockroach scurry across my floor and under the skirting boards. Obviously in England this would be a massive issue but I was staying in a wood hut that had holes everywhere - didn't mean I wasn't shit scared though! That night I slept with the light on hoping it would keep the insects away - I was extremely thankful for the mosquito net that surrounded me though because I think without it there is no way I would have stayed another night!!