It was a beautiful wedding, not because of the setting sun's golden ray gracing the top of the emerald waves crashing against foamy shores or the rose and satin-covered gazebo, but because of the beautiful vows spoken between two people.
Chuo Ren and Tak Yein's wedding at Pangkor Laut Resort saw a total of 48 close family and friends coming together to share in this happy moment. There were 8 friends of the bride and groom and the rest were family. The groom's family was reserved but friendly and the bride's side were a very happy and boisterous group. It was an interesting experience to say the least.
I felt honoured that Ren invited me to come for this special wedding (and my accomodation was paid for) and he even helped me get a ride to Lumut. I had already resigned myself to sharing breathing space with the denizens of Puduraya when he called me after he landed in KL and arranged for me to catch a ride with his friend Jason.
When Jason and I reached Lumut, we met Dr. Leong and Dr. Tan at a mamak near the jetty. Or rather both of them spotted us having lunch at the mamak. They had chartered an entire ferry to take us to Pangkor Laut and ferry ride took longer that I'd expected.
When we reached the resort's jetty, the happy couple was there to greet us as they had gone ahead to prepare for our arrival. How nice is that? One would think that the wedding couple wouldn't have to do any work for their wedding. It was good to see Ren again, even though I saw him a couple of months back when he came down from New York to arrange for this wedding.
We were greeted by the hotel staff with a cold towel and some juice to relieve us of the grimy feeling from the ferry ride. I don't like enclosed and slow boat rides. Give me a speedboat and spraying seawater anytime. After milling around for a while, we were given keys to our rooms. I was to share my villa with Tak Yee, the bride's sister. Tak Yein introduced her sister to me. She said to her sister, "Dig out secrets from her if you can, ok?" To which I replied with a laugh, "What secrets? You should know more than me!" And then she realized what she had said, "Oh yeah... it's too late now anyway." Haha, funny girl.
My villa was a Hill Villa overlooking the beach. I had to walk up several steep slopes to get to it though as there weren't transport available at that moment. At least they sent my luggage to me later. My flats heels thunked discreetly on the wooden floorboards as I made my way around the villa to the balcony to get into my room. I was gratified indeed to see that I would be lulled to sleep and woken up by the comforting sound of the waves. I lingered by the railing and checked out the jungle around me and other Hill Villas below me. Not bad at all indeed.
I unlocked the glass doors, stepped into my room and was soothed by the coolness of the room. The staff had prepared my room for my arrival. I had to stop a moment to appreciate the comfort and grandness of it all. It is not grand as in gold and gilded, but grand as in Balinese Spa-like kind of room.
There was a queen-size bed and hidden under the night table was the CD player with built-in speakers. I wasted no time and put on the provided CD and soon the soothing sounds of the bonang filled the villa as I continued my inspection of the villa. There were two small writing desks at each corner with a window seat / day bed in the centre, which faces the bed. Further in, I walked into my closet / bathroom. There were 2 vanities / sink at both sides of the room. And displayed in a huge clamshell on one of the vanities were the usual amenities. The other vanity boasted of large bottles of shampoo, conditional, bath gel and moisturizing lotion. Next to the colourful array of bottles was a jar of bath salt. Walking further in, the shower and toilet is secreted on each side of the room, behind the vanities.
The focal point of the closet / bathroom is the outdoor tub which is made of granite attached to granite seats on both ends on the sides and in the tub. To call it a tub is inadequate; the word to best describe this outdoor feature would be the Bath. On each corner of the elevated bath are huge urns which add to the décor as well as act as light fixtures at night.
I got my first call in my room for the night when reception called to say the meeting hour was pushed back to 5pm to give us more time to get ready, as we were only shown to our room at 3pm. I unpacked leisurely and tried out the outdoor bath. However, since it was outdoor, it was dirty with leaves and seeds stuck to the bottom, and I decided to forgo the pleasure of a warm tingling soak. I didn't have time anyway.
I took a shuttle to Emerald Bay, which is on the other side of the island, for the wedding reception and realized that Malaysians will still be Malaysians when it comes to punctuality. Tea and finger food was served while we waited for everyone to arrive. I took time to check out Emerald Bay. The name is apt as the sea is truly emerald in the bay; even the curling waves retain their emerald colouring before crashing loudly onto the shore.
The wedding took place against the setting sun on the beach with guests seated on satin-covered chairs. To be honest I wasn't very impressed with the way this wedding was handled. There weren't any coordination and everything was done sloppily. After working at events, I guess I have a higher standards and expectations of how a event should be. The preparations were apparently arranged by the hotel staff themselves. They should have hired someone to oversee all this. I had offered Ren my help but he declined. Not that I'm that good but I think anyone would have done better than the hotel staff. There were so many loose ends and sloppy work. Oh well, it was still a beautiful wedding.
However when the time came for the vows, none of us could hear the vows what with the crashing waves in the background. We made the bride and groom speak their vows again at dinner with the help of the sound system. That I must say was the best moment - the vows promised were beautiful and heartfelt and I laud both bride and groom for their hard work to come up with such beautiful vows.
The dinner was interesting as I met their other friends. They were nice and very friendly people. I'm a reserved person and I think they think I'm snobbish. Sigh. I hope not. I'm just shy and I felt a bit awkward being around such geniuses. Most of his friends are doctors. Well, who else would they be? =p Also, I'm still conscious about my weight. I was the biggest person there. Both Ren and Tak Tein are diminutive people, as are their family members. Their friends are all thin and smaller than me. Sigh... Anyway, I'm glad I was there to see him get hitched properly.
We youngsters were all put at one table and we got both Ren and Tak Yein drunk enough, that we threw both of them into the sea to sober up! Hee hee... Ren in his suit and Tak Yein in her gown! After dinner, when all of us were high, we went to the pool for a midnight dip. I got Jason to accompany me back to my villa to change into my swimsuit as he was the only one sober (he doesn't drink so good for him).
I set my alarm for 6.15am at I wanted to catch the sunrise. Imagine my disappointment when I woke up to total darkness with a tinge of orange on the horizon, behind the island which block my view of the sunrise. Well, I snoozed a little longer after that but jumped up when I realized I was wasting time on this beautiful island. I called reception at 7.30am to inquire about brekkie was told that the room doesn't come with breakfast! Geeze... how terrible since that was a RM900 room! Peeved, I decided to go to Emerald Bay to enjoy the beach. No sense is wasting this opportunity for a swim in the sea and a little tanning. Before setting off, I made myself a cup of coffee as I crunched my way through one of the two pears that came with the room.
Snatching the beach towel of the rack after changing into my suit, I set off in the early hours for Emerald Bay. I walked down the slopes and bypassed the pool and tennis courts with several resident peacocks strutting around. I turned up towards the hill and walked briskly. After the second hill, I was huffing. Thank god, I had just gone for a 2 hour hike last Saturday to Sg. Lepoh which helped build my stamina. But by the 3rd hill, I was thinking, "Good lord... it didn't look that far by shuttle last night!" and "Please God, let the bay be around the next bend". I was fated to be sorely disappointed. Bend after bend, and steep slopes after steep slopes, I trudged on. By the time I reached the top of the hill, I was ready to throw in the towel literally. I waited for a shuttle to come by, but there was none, not even a single mode of transportation. Great... just great. It was that deserted and there is no sense in wasting precious time, so I tied up my hair, wiped the sweat away and determinedly set off for the bay. Walking down was treacherous as the slopes were steep - 45 and 50 degrees at some point. I ended up taking off my slippers and gingerly making my way down. Wouldn't it be a sight for the lizards and the birds to see a huge mass of human flesh tumbling and rolling down the cemented slopes... Suddenly I heard the roar of an engine behind me, but perversely, I didn't stop the shuttle - might as well make it there on my own steam since I will get there in a short while (I could hear the waves). My stubbornness will the death of me one day. Little did I know that the sound of the waves were deceiving. Ten minutes after the shuttle passed me, I was still turning bends. Suddenly I heard the roar of the shuttle again, it was going back up the hill. I watched the shuttle coming towards me and noticed a couple waving to me inside the van. It was Dr. Leong and Dr. Tan - they musy have been to the bay. I waved back. Another 10 minutes, I turned the final bend and breathed a sigh of relief. I had reached my destination.
The beach was deserted except for one hotel staff raking the sands clean of leaves. Spying a hammock, I walked over to it and parked my things there. I sat in the hammock and swung my legs up once I got my balance right. As I swung lazily in the hammock, I noticed small crabs were gingerly emerging from their hidey-holes and was busily harvesting food from the sands. Along the entire shoreline, I could see crabs of all sizes dotting the wet sand searching for their breakfast. Which reminded me of my empty stomach. I snorted and startled a small crab back into his hole.
The morning sun cast a slight sheen on the water and I decided to go for a dip. After acclimating myself to the cold water with my toe, I made my way carefully into the water. The shore is steep and I reached a depth up to my chin 8 meters from the shore. The water may be emerald green, but it is not crystal clear like in Perhentian or Redang. So I had to be careful where I tread. I could not see 2 feet into the water for the water was that cloudy. The sand is fine but brown and the water reflects the greenness of the jungle surrounding the bay. I guess that's what is giving the bay the green and emerald colour.
Since the beach was deserted, I dare not venture too deep. I went up to a point where I could not feel the sand beneath my toe and I decided to back off as I had no idea where the reef was and what I might accidentally tread upon. I retreated to shallower water and calmly observed my surroundings. I floated in the water, allowing my mind to drift and my body to relax. Suddenly, from the corner of my eyes, I noticed a small white shape moving fast. It was a kite swooping for it's first meal of the day. There was a pair of kites and after a couple of swoops, settled onto a branch overhanging the cliff. They were quite far away and I wished I had a binoculars then. I also saw 3 pairs of hornbills circling overhead and they too settled onto overhanging branches far above ground level. I was fascinated and gratified I was allowed to share such a moment, no matter how minuscule, with nature. I felt at peace.
Since the sun had yet to warm the water in the bay, I was quite chilled when I emerged. I looked at my watch and decided to try to catch as much sea-sun ray as I could. I spared another half an hour on the beach and then took a shuttle back to my villa to pack. As I was waiting for the shuttle, I saw a pair of hornbill flying above me and settled on a branch closer to me. I followed them to a deck further off to observe them and I almost missed my shuttle as they thought I had already gone.
When I got back to my villa, I saw that I had 5 missed calls, all from my news friends. I called back and found out that they were at breakfast! Sheesh. So I got ready in record time and walked to the café at the lobby. By the time I got there, almost everyone had finished eating! I joined Benji at his table as it was the only one that still had empty seats. Dr. Leong saw me, clapped me on my shoulders and remarked that he saw me walking to the bay in the wee hours of the morning. Pretty soon, everyone started asking me about it and remarking about my little excursion. Some were shocked that I had gone alone. I'm reserved and I like being alone sometimes. Gives me time to think. I don't need to be in a group all the time.
After breakfast, we were told that our check out time is actually at 1pm, not the 11am that we were initially told. With an extra 2 hours, the guys decided to go to Emerald Bay and asked me to join them.
This time the sun was out and it was hot. The water was slightly clearer with the sun's penetrating rays and we could see rocks and boulders at tips of the shorelines. I was the only girl in the water and I had yet to feel comfortable around them. I was pretty much on my own most of the time and I found a little friend who used me for shelter. A tiny fish, no bigger than the whites of my nail, started following me and hiding under my hand and forearm. It was so cute and I couldn't resist playing with it for a while - taking my hand away and it darting closer to my body. Small and close as it was to me, I could not catch it!
After a while, I realized that I was alone in the middle of the bay as the guys had moved to one end of it. They must have realized it too and one of the guys called me over. I decided to join them and took a leisure swim over to them (which took 10 minutes). It's a big bay. At the end of the bay, there are more boulders of all sizes and more fish. I sat quietly in the water and pretty soon, a small school of fish started swimming around me. I held out my fingers slowly and they took turns nipping my fingertips! Bold little sweetlings. I amused myself with them for a while and soon the rest of the girls finally joined us at the beach.
By noon, we left the beach to call for the shuttle at the shuttle stop. It took them 30 minutes to get the shuttle here and some of us were incensed as that left us little time to get back to our villas to prepare and pack. Nevertheless, we got to our ferry on time.
Short as it was, it was a good break for me – to be able to share in this special moment with Chuo Ren and Tak Yein and their family and friends, to be able to enjoy Mother Nature and her wonderful creatures. But the most all, I enjoyed the calmness and solitude experienced at Emerald Bay, Pangkor Laut, that early morning.
*Note: These pictures are taken from the net, some from the Pangkor Laut Resort website, some from a visitor buten.net and others from travel websites. I will post up the real pictures if Chuo Ren remembers to send some to me. Will bug him later for the photos. Sigh. I really have to buy a camera one of these days.
