The sun, sea, stars and 2 watermelons (Terengganu Trip Day 2)

Part 1: Sunshine and Snorkelling

Starting the day all smiles
We started the day in bright sunshine. Apparently there was a very beautiful sunrise earlier, so we told ourselves that we had to catch the sunrise before we left. Today, we looked forward to spending time in the sun and the sea, and at night, sotong fishing. This entire trip was pretty much a guided tour by TM's uncle, who is also a certified dive instructor. The good thing about being on tour is that everything is planned for you, so no need to think, just follow. For example, all the mums prepared all the food, so we didn't have to worry about getting hungry. The bad thing is of course you had to follow a schedule, and the waiting for everyone to get together and stuff. And eccentricities of certain people, for example, Watermelon family's decision to lug along 2 watermelons for the trip.

It took us an hour to get to the island where we would spend the day snorkelling and diving. The boat that we took wasn't really what I had expected.

Getting roasted!
I expected a yatch or something, but it turned out a large wooden boat. Oh well, we are paying peanuts for this trip after all. We snorkelled at a deserted part of the island. It was a hell of a lot like Tioman, but it was still fun swimming around and observing the wildlife in the shallow waters. TM's uncle managed to borrow a couple of diving tanks to let the newbies try. Amongst us, only TM and Dean were qualified divers, so only they got to go down into the deep sea. I got used to breathing with the tank very quickly, and TM's uncle said that I was a natural at diving. I must take the course next time.

A number of funny incidents happened in the afternoon, which I just have to relate:

Funny conversation 1:
TM's cousin: Are we taking the same boat out?
TM's uncle: No, we are going to take the fibre-glass boat.
TM's cousin: Oh? So is the boat transparent?

Funny conversation 2:
We were trying to scare TM's cousin with the sea cucumber...
TM' cousin: No, get away its damn gross!!
TM: Don't worry, its just a vegetable...
Me and Dean: MAI SEA CUCUMBER IS A VEGETABLE LAH!!

It's a floater!!

Funny conversation 3:
Me: Wow, there are a lot of sea urchins down there.
Dean: Yeah, and they all have this colorful opening...
Me: yeah, that's the sea urchin's ass.
Dean: Is it? looks like a mouth leh...
Me: Its the ass and the mouth lah!!
(yes, sea urchins shit and eat from the same hole)

So after a day snorkelling and getting roasted in the sea, it was a quick dinner and off to onto the boat to catch sotong.

Part 2: Fishing in the moonlight

I had never gone fishing before, so I was quite looking forward to this activity. The tools for sotong fishing were pretty much the same as normal fishing - a line and bait. Unlike normal fishing however, instead of keeping still and quiet, a spotlight from the boat was directed into the sea. Sotongs are attracted to the light. We were not alone out in the sea however. Apparently sotong fishing has become quite a popular tourist activity - there were at least 15 boats out there with us. That left me wondering if there would be enough sotong for us to catch.

As it turns out, I was right initially. All of us had our lines in the water, including the boatmen, and it was a while before the first one was caught. There were 20 of us on the boat, and only 5 sotong were caught. But with those sotong, the parents prepared sotong sashimi, with wasabi and soy sauce. Never tried it before, but it was good! The boatmen decided to change spots, and moved us further away from the crowd of boats. It was better this time. Everyone was starting to catch sotong, and I caught one myself! All squid react the same way when caught - they squirt out ink at you, and you had to do your best to avoid getting "psst err"!!! And they are red initially, but left on the boat, they turn white quickly. It isn't because they are dead though. Squid have the ability to change colour to communicate and to camouflage themselves. I didn't have any luck after that though, and I had to be happy with my one catch.

Part 3: Stargazing

It must have been about 11pm when we started going back. At first I was irritated by the slow speed of the boat, but now I'm grateful for it, as it gave me a chance to stare up into the stars. Dean and I laid back on the roof of the boat the entire journey back, and being up there, looking a the brilliantly lit moon and the stars, gave me a sense of peace and contentment. Being up there on the boat felt like being in Space, because we were moving in the blackness of the open sky. It was as if time had stopped, that nothing else in the world mattered. The only comparable feeling I know is that of being in love. I know that at the point when I first fall in love, time stops. And you wish to keep feeling that way forever. Being on that boat felt almost (of course nothing beats being in love) the same way.

Earlier in the day we were talking about a life like this, whether we would be happy with leading a simple life - living simply and enjoying nature. TM's answer was no, he needed progress and technology. My answer was no, I preferred the high life, that of fine dining and luxury. But come to think of it, I would like to experience everything. I want to experience living in expensive hotels and eating fine food, yet I also enjoy taking the time off to enjoy the simple things in life. However, wealth is the key to having the high life, and only with that then you can enjoy the best of both worlds.

So in the end, we went back tired but contented.

Part 4: Watermelon movement chart

It's time now to give a summary of what happened to the 2 watermelons brought out today. Only 1 watermelon was consumed during lunch, which means that 1 watermelon had the luxury of being on tour with us,in an insulator box no less, to breakfast, on the boat, to the beach, out sotong fishing, then finally back to the fridge.