Images of Tioman Island: Part Two

It was the best of times,
It was the worst of times…

After a month onboard the Odyssey we decided to treat ourselves to a couple of nights on Tioman Island. After discovering the charming village (kampong) of Air Batang we booked ourselves into the ABC Chalets.

The 5’ long monitor lizard foraging in the garbage heap behind our cabin should have been our first (and final) clue. However, our romantic expectations of the ABC Chalets prevailed until we opened the door. A bare bulb hung from the ceiling, and an ancient fan wheezed in the corner. The bathroom was the most basic.

Darkness dissipated the heat somewhat, but we couldn’t open the windows because there were no screens, and we’d been warned about Dengue Fever.

We spent an uncomfortable night sticky from the heat, prickly from the sand, salty from the sea, and grumpy. To paraphrase our son Brian, we weren’t really sleeping, just waiting for the morning and a quick escape.

A 15-minute boat ride and a world away from the ABC Chalets we discovered Berjaya Resort.

For our second night on Tioman we enjoyed crisp white sheets, AC set to ‘“sub-arctic”, fluffy bathrobes, and a delicious hot shower.

Lesson learned: our low budget back-packing days are over.