Awesome Life: Redang - A Place Like Heaven

One of my favourite photos. Redang beach view.

Pulau Redang. Located in the state of Terengganu. It is one of the largest islands off the east coast of Malaysia. If you ever watched Hong Kong films, the film Summer Holiday, aka Xia Ri Mo Mo Cha was actually taken in Pulau Redang. The film has shown the beauty of nature in Pulau Redang. Thanks to Career Fair 2014 committees who had organized this trip to Pulau Redang, the committees that had contributed were given the opportunity to visit this heaven-like place.

As one of the Career Fair 2014 committees, I am so glad to join this trip! Pulau Redang has been one of my must-visit-places list since I knew this place. Last Thursday night, the thirty-one of us departed to Terengganu from USM. It was a three days two nights trip. The package includes snorkeling was provided by Redang Pelangi Resort. In fact, there are many other choices of resorts that provide more or less similar packages.

After eleven hours of bus journey, we finally arrived at Tanjung Merang. We had to take speed boat from Tanjung Merang jetty to Pulau Redang. One thing that I realised was the jetties are different based on the resorts. In other words, each resort has their own jetty. It took the bus driver some time to find the jetty as there is nothing obvious if you see from the main road. Just a sign board telling you which jetty is for which resort.

The journey from the jetty to Pulau Redang was around 20 minutes. It was quite enjoyable when you can feel the wind blowing at your face along the journey. Fortunately, the waves was not huge in the middle of the sea that you would not really feel the boat hitting the waves on that morning. It was around ten in the morning when we boarded the boat. The sun was shining bright that time. The clear blue sea, the cold wind and the sun shining, it was one of the best moments when nature was so close.

Upon reaching Pulau Redang, we were all amazed by the view of nature there. The sea was so clear, so blue, that we can see the fishes beneath. The beach has white, soft and clean sands. It was really a heaven-like place. The scenery is almost perfect, especially for people who tend to escape from busy and hectic lifestyle. We were greeted by the staff from the resort after we got down from the boat. The staffs were quite friendly. We were asked to gather at a place and were given a short briefing before assigned to our rooms.

Redang Pelangi Resort at night.

After checking in our room, we had our first meal at Redang Pelangi Resort. Lunch was served in buffet style. There is a canteen where all the guests in Redang Pelangi Resort will have their meals together. The canteen is spacious enough and can accommodate all the guests there. Besides that, the food served was good. They have about two to three different dishes, fruits and soup for every meal. They also provide unlimited free flow of drinks (tea, coffee, plain water or cordial juice).

That afternoon, after having our lunch, we started our first snorkeling session. Before we depart to a nearby island where the first snorkel session was, we had to rent some equipment, such as life jacket, mask and snorkel. These equipment were not included in the package. For those people with eyesight problem, they also provide mask with corrective lens. Therefore, worry not that you cannot see the underwater world. We were also given some briefing on the correct ways to wear the equipment before we set off to the destination.

Here, I would brief about the three sessions of the snorkel trips as the trips were about the same. However, they still have minor differences. One session was held on the first day and the other two sessions were held on the second day of the trip. The first snorkel trip was at an island nearby the place we stayed. There were many beautiful corals to be seen. The second session was at the Marine Park. The Marine Park has many types of fishes. Some of the fishes was not seen in the first snorkel trip. One of my favourites is the blue small fish (which I do not know what is the name) that looks like neon light. They always swim together in a big group. Lastly, for the third snorkel trip, we were brought to the other side of the island. We were told that there are small sharks there. Unfortunately, I did not get to see one.

Snorkeling trips usually end before 5pm. Therefore, we were free to explore Redang and carry out some activities in the evening. The resort provides different kind of board games, such as chess, carom, etc.. There are also different kind of books for those who love reading. Beach volley, Frisbee and soccer are available too. As for me, I like to explore the island and enjoy the view of nature. It was very relaxing to walk by the beach and feel the wind blowing. Some might like to collect seashells and dead corals that were washed up to the shore. Sometimes, I prefer to spend the free time sitting on the beach chair sunbathing and listen to the nature's music. The sound of the waves hitting the sea shore gives calmness and peaceful feeling.

Beach volley in the evening.

There was also not much activities to do at night. Some guests prefer to gather at the bench there watching tv, some prefer to chit chat and have some drinks at the bar. During the first night, the sky is full of stars. However, the air was quite still. My friends and I went to the other side of the island to look for the Blue Sand. We were very lucky to find a few Blue Sands after a long while of rubbing the sand on the shore. As for the second night, one of my friends who had been to Redang before brought me to try a kind of seafood known as "Balitung". It was my first time eating this "Balitung". It requires me the skill to suck out the flesh from the shell. Honestly, most of the "Balitung" was wasted. LOL. Since it was the last night in Redang, I spent some time sat at the opened-air bar to enjoy the sky view. It was very windy and cloudy that night but I could still see some stars.

The benches for guests to watch tv.

Blue Sand.

Balitung

I was also lucky to witness sunrise on the second day in Redang. It was very beautiful. Although we had to wake up very early and wait for quite some time, it is still very worth it! Overall, Redang Island is a very relaxing place. It is very suitable for people who are stress and want to take a break from hectic city life. The sea water is very clear, blue and salty. Fishes and corals can be seen from top view. The wind, the sound of waves and the stars at night were the most unforgettable ones. Nature lovers will definitely love Redang Island lots!