30 km off the west coast of Malaysia and right at the border with Thailand, Langkawi was formerly an outpost for pirates and smugglers; today it is a full-fledged vacation destination. It's one of those places so disconnected from the real world that it's difficult to imagine that anyone is actually from there.
Beach bunnies
Langkawi is positively saturated with tourist amenities - five star resorts to hostels, upscale restaurants to messy food courts. And even though there is continuous development along the main beaches, it mercifully lacks those imposing concrete tower-block monstrosities that have ruined so many fine beaches around the world. The biggest eyesore is the fleets of jet skis that are dragged out in the morning and left to bake in the sun all day for tourists willing to pay $50 for 20 minutes of noisy fun.
Actually, the jet skis are the second biggest eyesore. The first is, without question, the hordes of Europeans (mostly Germans, French and Italians - in that order) who think Speedos look good and that there isn't an expiration date (or weight limit) on when one can wear a bikini.
On the upside, this did trigger a tiny spark of national pride. Americans are frequently classed as slobby, heathens - a stereotype I don't strictly deny - but I bet I saw more Speedos in those 4 days than are owned in the entire male population of the United States of America. America 1 - Europe 0.
Fortunately, most people don't find their way off the main beaches and there are a few wonderfully deserted beaches a short drive away where you can virtually have the place to yourself.
A jellyfish got me on my thigh and I had a lovely stinging welt for a few days, but it seemed a fair price to pay.
Vertigo
As Langkawi is one of those self-styled holiday destinations it has all sorts of bizarre one-off attractions (crocodile farm, rice museum) - the crown jewel of these establishments is the cable car and skybridge.
The cable car is the steepest in the world - it's not like the ones in the Alps that gently follow the incline of the mountain so you never feel quite as high up as you actually are - this thing is more or less vertical, fast and nearly a kilometer long. I don't have any photos that accurately reflect how terrifying it is - this is because my eyes were closed and I forbade Ian from making any sudden movements. This is the best we could do:
The only thing that got me on board was that the girl at ticket counter promised me it was only ten minutes to the top (which is true) and I discovered that the cable car was actually Austrian-made, that made me feel better until I realized it probably didn't come with several Austrian engineers to run and maintain it. Too late.
We made it, but I was so jittery I could hardly enjoy the spectacular views and I had to save my rapidly dwindling reserves of courage for the skybridge (and the trip back down). The skybridge is 700 meters above sea level, a bit rusty, the planks are made of wobbly concrete and it does gently sway and bounce.
Ian strode out like it was no big deal (show-off). I stayed on what I had illogically and arbitrarily deemed the 'safe bit' and distracted myself playing with the camera. In the end, this is as far as I made it, fake smile and gripping the rail for dear life (as if it would make a difference!)
The return ride was as traumatic as going up, safely back on land we sought out cocktails and headed home the next day. Our bumpy descent through the clouds as we were preparing to land in KL gave me flashbacks.
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