FRIDAY
Frankly speaking I have never been to pulau kapas before even though I grew up in terengganu. I was pretty excited and full of enthusiasm to experience a vacation in the island. Besides I had enough with overloading workload in office lately and a short vacation will be a good breakaway for me.
We planned to depart on Friday night and I already took MC on that day. Not because of early preparation or something but I was really sick that day, stricken by cold and sore throat. The doctor even gave me 2 days medical leave. After I met my sister in kajang, I headed to shida`s house. I was getting more excited about this whole trip.
Shida and I headed to vista to fetch anissa and then we moved thru kl to lrt gombak to meet with the others.
When we got there most of us are already there, just waiting for 2 more cars which actually took 1 hour waiting for them. Faiz(the organizer) informed that someone’s car breakdown. We decided to make a move first and just let them catch up later in temerloh. Before we move, hadi osman lead us by saying prayer with hopes that everything will safe all the way to our destination…amin. Here we go pulau kapas!!
Along the journey, we sang, ate and talked about almost everything try to create an energetic environment for a long drive ahead. It works though, after a couple of hours we reached temerloh…sometimes I feel like being in the 7 perhentian movies except for this time we have the whole bunch of mmu-rian. While they were having late night supper we(shida`s gang) take this slight chance to have a cat nap. We left 1 hour after that, heading to LPT. Seems like 1 hour sleep in the car made us fresher and soo ready to hit the road throughout the night..well it is morning actually..2 am in the morning. Along the journey we have all kinds of song from all music revolution.from bee gees,Mariah carey to avril lavigne and beyonce. The moment ace of base was put on speaker just heat up the mood, we sang altogether and don`t give a darn for our singing out of tunes because all we knows we were having good times.
Not so long after that I began to feel sleepy and no songs can make my eyes open wide. Plus my hearing become limited due to the pressure of height as we were in the middle of karak highway. I just kindda dozed off and everything around me becomes a blur bit by bit, their conversation sounds so far away. All of sudden I find myself in an island…what??? How can I get here?..i was dreaming for cying out loud.
It was almost 4 am in the morning when I was shocked by shida`s voice talking thru phones, overheard that she just lost control for 1 seconds and madi whose car at the back call her to assure that everything is under control. Three of us kept on struggling to stay awake and we tried pretty hard this time, as it is so darn sleepy and tiring in the car at that moment. But for shida she said that the only things would make her staying awake is by letting none of us awake for her. Pretty weird but true though for some people.
The journey continues. Then, we dropped by in dungun to fetch up azraf who is working and staying in dungun. Now the group is complete and we are almost there.
We reached Cam`s house around 6 am and we just couldn`t wait to jump on a bed and have a good sleep after a tiring 6 hours journey. Alhamdulillah all of us make it through.
SATURDAY
Nasi dagang with ikan aya is one of my favorites and I really miss the smell of the gravy with hot rice. That was what we have for breakfast that morning brought to us special from cam`s mother, thanks a lot from us.
Next move is heading to marang jetty. From there we took 3 speedboats to the island and the journey was soo rocky, through the waves we sped and sometimes we can feel it is flying and crushing on the surfaces of the water. I just love the feel of strong salty wind swept over my face, I spread one of my arms wide open and held my head up high with my eyes closed and take a deep breath. That moment really took my mind away to another dimension of life.
It just took 20 minutes from the jetty to the island, and once the speedboat landed on the seashore we got off the boat and gathered in front of mak cik gemuk chalet. The island was soo breathtaking with white smooth sandy beach and coconuts tree, not to mention sparkling water as the sun was shining in the sunny day. While waiting for the accommodation we grab this chance to take some pictures and some of us just have a moment of leisure by lying down on the bench. We got short briefing from mr naza about the whole agenda on the island and he explained on how is the exact way to candat sotong. We are also was informed that on this island the power supply shutdown time is from 7 am until 7 pm. That`s mean we will be off the power for the whole daylight which really brings the real vacation on island for me. But it was not so pleasure anymore when we get into the chalet, it was so darn hot and I was sweating as it is in the middle of the noon. I just have a nap though.
After we had our lunch, we just sat on the bench that faces the sea. As for the boys they had a volleyball match. Now mmu-rians boys had become beach boys playing beach volleyballs…so cute.
Before we get back to the chalet faiz informed that we have to gather at 1800 by the jetty for tonight-big agenda…candat sotong.
There were three fishing boat for all of us, delima, fatin and another boat which I don`t recall the name. I got into fatin with the others. All ten of us, faiz,hakim,shidan,syeb,madi, and all girls aida,anissa,shida and cam. Some of us already took pills just in case seasick strikes. But for me, I am on medication for cold and I don`t want any bad conflictions.
Our boat is the last boat off to the sea…here we come all the sotongs just wait for us to candat for barbeque…huah huah huah I sat in front of the boat and faced the ocean, never had this feeling before as the boat dashed further into the middle of the ocean.
But then, out of sudden the boat slowing down and the engine stop. What happened?
Pak cik told us there is some minor prob with the engine and he is trying to fix it up by using ropes. It takes for about half an hour he moves here and there trying all the things he have and think of any alternative way after shidan accidentally saw the loose screw and everything becomes fine again..alhamdulillah
I don’t have the slightest idea on how to candat sotong except for the short brief gave by mr naza. Pak cik came out from the cabin with a pile full with colourful candat each of it ties up to a role of tackle rope. The candat was release deep into the water until it reaches the ocean floor, and then pull the rope for about ½ metre and now we are ready to candat. He gave one to each of us and remind to keep our distance to avoid from candat got tangled up in the water. Seems like everything just be the way it should be and we just keep on trying to get sotong, all boys actually kindda in the sleepy mode except for faiz. Annisa got the first catch and then there goes to pak cik, his sotong is the biggest sotong I ever seen. Meantime, I already threw up few times and so do others. Pak cik said just let it all out and you will feel a lot better, I bet all sotong will swim away from our boat as we keep on throwing up into the sea.
The waves become rough and big sometimes until I feel that the boat might get capsized. And suddenly I feel my candat become heavier, I thought maybe it stuck to the boat or something and I pulled the ropes up to check it not knowing that actually one big sotong hit my candat and yeuwww I got one. The sotong just wont let go and I can see those tentacles hold tight at the edge of the boat. I just can`t pull anymore and screamed for help…what a lousy fisherman I am. Not too long after boat delima head back to jetty cam got her first catch and I just don`t remember when shida got hers as I am soo busy throwing up. That makes faiz the only one who is staying awake without any catch. Go faiz go. I noticed that faiz trying so hard even sing to the sea…sotong..sotong…makanlah umpan aku….
We planned to wait until faiz gets his catch but it seems like some of us really hardly bear seasick, we just pull over and headed back to jetty. In the chalet I just crawled on the bed and fall asleep.
The next morning we get up early to kick the day; our first activity was canoeing to the island nearby. My kayak-mate is hadi osman who is obviously can be seen so into canoeing, for other girls they got their own mate such as shida-amat, anissa-syeb, cam-azlan and aida-hakim. I don`t have much strength but for hadi he was so energetic and good navigator as well. Sometimes our canoe bump into others canoe, most of the time with hadi anuar and rosli. We canoeing far away until got to the small Island and take five there for about ½ hours. Luckily one of us dares to bring camera and we have a chance to snap some photo as a proved we have been on that island, private territory.
On the way back one of the canoes got capsized, it was shidan. Luckily he managed to get back into the canoe. Maybe because he is soo skinny plus he is in a single canoe even slow waves can be a threatening for him…huhuhu… to be cont..penat lah tulis
