New Year, New Country

Our accommodation for the next couple of weeks is a simple spa retreat in the Langkawi jungle. It's the sort of place that our yoga teacher in Vietnam would describe as replenishing 'prana' (the life force that is sapped by living for too long in the city).

Langkawi jungle view from garden

The closest community  is a local housing development for victims of the 2004 tsunami. Like the village in Ko Lanta, this provides low-cost housing for people whose own homes were destroyed.

Our host left city life in Kuala Lumpur for island life on Langkawi. Originally settling on Cenang beach, he migrated from the partying crowds and carved out a serene space nestling in the surrounding hills. Here he practices massage and, when not being called out to the expensive resorts to ply his services, he completes the holistic package with reiki, tai chi, yoga, and vegetarian cooking.

Unsurprisingly for someone whose treatments are in such demand, our host exudes positive energy and calm. His enthusiasm for nature and outlook on life is infectious. His attitude embodies what we are discovering is the ethos of Langkawi - that of preserving nature. The island is full of "Keep Langkawi Clean" posters and, indeed, the island is less littered than anywhere we have visited thus far (except where naughty monkeys have emptied out the contents of the bins). However, our host is the first person we have seen who separates rubbish into five containers for recycling and disposal and actively shuns plastic bags (which are given out liberally).

With such a thoughtful attitude to the environment and focus on holistic wellness, I was a little afraid that breakfast might be grapefruit, wheatgrass and enemas. In fact, we were prepared a lentil dal made creamy with aubergine and crunchy with carrot. This and the roti naan it was served with reflect the Indian influences on the cuisine here, which also has heavy Chinese and Thai components.

Roti naan and lentil dal

Thankfully, our host also enjoys a drink as well as good food as much as the next man. Indeed, his drinks store is well stocked following New Year's Eve and we shared a beer and a glass of wine last night from the party leftovers.

Langkawi is an unusual island. It is closer to the Thai mainland than Malaysia - the border makes a detour to include the landmass, which is within sight of Ko Tarutao national park on the other side. The official religion is Islam and the island resounds with the call to prayer from the various mosques.

Our host, like many of the island's population, is of Chinese descent, so the streets are also lined with shops and houses bearing red lanterns and Buddhist shrines. In addition, since 1989 the island has been granted duty-free status, and so shops are replete with those items usually restricted to airport departures. The sale of alcohol, however, is restricted to Muslims.

We took a walk around the local area. Although several times the size of Ko Lanta, there are still few roads and walking is not popular. As we have moved from country to country, motorbikes have been gradually replaced by car. Vietnam abounds with two-wheeled vehicles, as does Cambodia, but Thailand (Ko Lanta) is a mix of utility truck and motorbike. However, on Langkawi only the tourists ride mopeds, while cars dominate the roads.

Stopping in at the nearest large hotel - The Sheraton - we admired the beautiful coastline over an expensive drink.

Boardwalk at the Sheraton

From here, we could see across the bay to Cenang beach - the most popular destination on the island. We also encountered a group of dusky leaf langur monkeys (also called spectacled monkeys). Aside from their arresting appearance, with their faces apparently adorned with make-up, these were poles apart in behaviour from the cheeky macaques we were used to. They timidly made their way past us and into the trees.

Dusky leaf langur monkeys

For dinner, our host took us to one of the simple restaurants in the area. Malay uses the Latin alphabet, so we were instantly able to recognise a few words. Nasi goreng (fried ice) is one dish already familiar to me. It comes in many styles and our host recommended kerabu (with herbs). It was flavoursome with kaffir lime leaves, spring onions and chilli. We ordered the dish sayor (vegetable) sahaja (only). At 4RM (75 pence), we couldn't ask for a tastier meal at about a tenth of the price at the hotel down the road.