Monsoon Roadtrip

Prologue:

[Tangan tu dok gatei sangat pi godek tekan butang dynamic view sapa suruh? Tu dia habih template hilang. Padan muka aku]

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"Hang hilang akai ka mau pi east coast musim tengkujuh ginni?!"

"Hopefully no road closure due to floods kan?"

Those were the phrases that I get and lingers in my mind as we prepare for the roadtrip. Actually it was meant for a wedding trip at Kuala Terengganu only, but our excitement to extend the miles to circle from north east to north west overcast the main wedding objective. Hahaha. Yang kahwin tetap kena kahwin, be it rain or shine. We crossed Gombak Toll Plaza that Thursday morning with our fingers tightly crossed.

Cherating

Our first night in. First time for the kids, second time for me. Last time I was here with company's trip to Club Med. Secluded place. I've been known about how the monsoon atmosphere will be like up here in the coastal - simply put as wet and windy. Our arrival at Jabor Toll Plaza was already welcomed with gloomy dark clouds and torrential rain. 

Legend Resort. Quite a few good hotels & resorts so I heard in Cherating such as Impiana & Holiday Villa among the few. And Legend was one of it. A descend place for family getaway just a 2 hour drive from KL to enjoy the sea breeze. I rushed to the beach greeted with strong wind and thundering waves. I was mesmerised. Kids were enjoying the moment.

The Tribe...part of it actually

Third objective after wedding and roadtrip will be no other than FOOD. Thanks to Tuan Tanah bro Shuk Lazim, we managed to secure a table to fit three families at Che Wan's otak-otak & sata outlet at Kuala Kemaman. The sata was nothing close to what I tasted years before from Greenwood, Gombak. These were excuisites food for gigantic appetites. Asal sampai je atas meja, terus hilang macam kena serang ikan piranha. Tasted Mee Chalong as well. Not too bad but nothing much different from a typical mee sup with added black pepper. Betul ke Shuk?

My guilt was justified with a 10 minute run on the dreadmill at the resort's gym, but I was tempted to be at the beach where the excitement and serene climate are more calming. By the time dusk arrives, the tide moved in ferociously with bigger waves. Again I was astonished by the powerful creation by the great Creator.

Kampung Tok Jiring
I am always in love with this particular stretch from Cherating to Kuala Terengganu. Truely awesome views and at a relaxing driving pace. You would always prefer the windscreen to be down, especially at this point of the year but not when it rains of course. I avoided the convoy of three cars and followed our own cruising travelling. We stopped whenever we wanted at any desired spots along the way.

Friday prayer at Masjid Batu 7, Dungun and lunch at Restoran Tanjung Jara where reviews from Foursquare say the chicken rice was good. True. Nasi ayam terbaek di sini.

Pulau Kapas ke tu ayah?

Did a quick drop near Marang to get the view of Kapas-Marang ambitious-God-knows when. Lol.

Our next stop was Masjid Terapung Kuala Ibai or the official name is Masjid Tengku Tengah Zaharah. Such  an awesome architecture. As usual Amir & Umar were excited with the marine life under the wooden entrance bridge. Calmness engulfed the surrounding air as the muazin started azan for Asar.

We checked in at a homestay in Tok Jiring. Managed to meet up with an old campus friend. A local teacher. Asari treated us with Ikan Celup Tepung (ICT) at Batu Rakit beach. Such an ideal place for a tea time retreat.

Breakfast at Warung Aina, Batu Rakit was another food heaven. Local specialty nasi dagang with ikan tongkol was all I need to shutdown the food craving. We took a stroll at the beach next to the airport & again I just couldn't let go of the calm feeling. And probably it's a good stretch for a run as well!

Jalan Bayam, Kota Bharu
We headed on to Kota Bharu after lunch. Weather was still in the monsoon mood when rain hit us once in awhile. About 160km that would take us about 2 hours drive and sadly we had to leave beautiful beaches of Terengganu when the road lead us deeper away into Peninsular away from the coastal line.

In search of teh tarik for tea time and in fighting the sleepy head, we took a detour to Tok Bali. Enjoying a glass of teh tarik at a roadside stall with strong sea breeze gushing through was just another splendorous moment. Moments later we were entertained when a lorry drove in fully loaded with coconuts and 6 monkeys. Such beautiful creatures.

Monsoon Adventure Roadtrip :]

Entering Kota Bharu town was not easy as we had to wade through the heavy traffic and that didn't help with the search for our homestay at Jalan Bayam. Dinner was later secured after hunting around Jalan Abdul Kadir Adabi at Zakini Nasi Kukus.

Colourful veggies

We headed out to Rantau Panjang the next day in search of Queens Park Rangers jersey. Muahahaha. No lah. Amir was chasing me for his pair of Harimau Malaya's jersey and Liverpool (pengaruh rakan surau). While Umar was disillusioned with the crazy Angry Birds affair all over the place. Those were the bonus after having to stuck in a massive traffic jam for an hour to reach there. Phew! Pasar Siti Khadijah was later visited in fulfilling the venue's must visit list.

Kati Agro Farm, Kuala Kangsar

Almost like fairytales

I've been longing to drive the East-West Highway. This time it was reality. Driving up the winding stretch towards the look out point was awesome. Having to inhale the cold air there doubled the bonus. We drove all the way down to Pulau Banding for a burger treat before checking in at Lawin for dinner with my second cousin. Then crashed in for the night at Shamille Agro Farm with magnificent facilities and agricultural food feast.

Wrapped up the roadtrip all the way back down to KL via PLUS from Kuala Kangsar covering about 1200km in 6 days. After 6 days, eventually we get to feel the warmth of sunlight. And during those 6 days, we were treated with the true Malay custom of laid back life, away from the reality of chaotic metro. I'm considering another roadtrip for next year. InsyaAllah :]