Here are photos of our much welcome seaside breaks ...  Please click on the photos to access the albums.

Pangkor Laut is a privately owned island, located 3 miles off the West Coast of Malaysia. It encompasses 300 acres of lush and unspoiled 2 million year old rainforest. The island is accessible only to guests of the Resort and is listed in the directory of the Small Luxury Hotels.

Jungle treks through the forest are led by the resident botanist. 20 minutes walk across the island brings you to the golden beaches of Emerald Bay and Chapmans Bar, named after a British Colonel, Spencer Chapman, who spent 36 hours on the island in 1943.

His book, The Jungle is Neutral, is an account of his 3 years and 5 months fighting the Japanese in the then occupied Malaya. The book describes his incredible escape on the 13th of May 1943 by submarine from the very beach at Emerald Bay. (September 2002)

We stayed at Mutiara Hotel which is  located at the secluded crescent bay of Teluk Bahang. It is 15 minutes away from the popular and more crowded beaches of Batu Ferringghi. The hotel nestles in 18 acres of landscaped tropical greenery and is listed in the directory of The Leading Hotels of the World.

5 minutes walk from the hotel took us to a fishing village where we negotiated a boat ride to the even more secluded beaches of Teluk Duyung. Teluk Duyung is protected by Muka Head which houses a lighthouse at its peak. Guests of Mutiara Hotel may also arrange for boats to ferry them to the bay and have lunch (seafood barbeque) served on the beach. We took along with us packed Nasi Kandar instead and had to fiercely fend off the ever determined monkeys!!

We walked back to the hotel following an established walking trail through the Pantai Acheh Forest Reserve. The leisurely walk took us 1.5 hours during which we caught a glimpse of 2 otters swimming in the bay. Pantai Acheh Forest Reserve was declared a National Park on 4th April 2003 covering an area of about 2562 ha and is said to be the most remote part of Penang Isle. (October 2003)