Langkawi Weekend Sampler

Langkawi Weekender

It’s 7am and the Grabcar has arrived to take me to KLIA2. It’s always fun to ride with Grabcar or Uber because I can usually squeeze some decent conversation which makes the trip pleasant and interesting.

At KLIA2 which is where all the budget airlines are, I pay RM65 for my Grabcar from Ampang. This is actually cheaper than if I had taken a Grabcar from Ampang to KL Sentral (RM15) then from KL Sentral to KLIA2 on the KLIA express train (RM55) which is RM70 in total, not including all the walking involved!

Hoardes of travellers fill up the departure hall steadily although it’s only 7.30AM

At KLIA2 I look at the huge board for my departure gate and am told I have to reprint my ticket at the kiosk. I get that done and accidentally assume the card slot is for my IC! It’s meant for the BIG Loyalty card which is the frequent flyer programme by AirAsia.
My IC gets stuck in the machine and I have to get help from the AirAsia ground staff to get my IC out of the slot.
Apparently this happens quite a lot I am told, which makes me feel a little less embarrassed by the whole situation.
It’s 7.30AM and I haven’t had any breakfast so I’m pretty hungry, my stomach starts grumbling so I make my way quickly to the security check. They barely glance at the screen of the baggage check machine and my bags and belongings go unnoticed. Maybe the officer is so well trained and experienced that his eyes have peripheral vision so he doesn’t need to turn his head to face the screen.

Coming down the escalator from the baggage check and security screening area

Past the baggage check are the duty free shops and I see Victoria Secrets and Elianto, Giordano and a handy MyNews.com.
My stomach is calling out to me so I look around for a cafe or restaurant. I see an Uncle Lim’s Kopitiam and roll my bag over.
I order a chicken porridge and iced lemon tea. It’s a self-service kopitiam which means you need to pick-up the food yourself from the counter. For the price they charge, the food really should have been served by the two waitresses who are loitering around, making a point to avoid all eye contact with customers. I get up and ask one of them if she has a wet cloth to clean my table with. The table is greasy and has food stains on the white marble. It’s not like the kopitiam is super packed and full of people, so you can expect them to at least keep the place clean!
The porridge is so-so and kind of watery. Despite it being not very nice, I am hungry so nothing goes to waste.

It’s 8.00AM and I am still an hour and a half away from departure. I finish breakfast and walk my way to Gate J7 which is where flight AK6306 is supposed to be. It’s still so early so I sit down and start writing until they call for boarding.
Luckily I find a power outlet which is at every pillar along the wall. There is a nice chair for me to sit in while I plug my phone charger in, sit back and continuing taking notes.

I had booked my flights on the airasia app which was relatively easy to do. My return flights had cost me rm479.00 without the extra add-ons which I felt were unnecessary.

The flight is delayed by 20 minutes and the entire flight takes about an hour. The seats are 3 in a row and I have an aisle seat which makes getting in and out extremely easy. If you are travelling in pairs you should pick aisle seats like seat C & D so that it’s easy for both travellers to move around. There are some interesting things to eat on AirAsia domestic flights but you obviously don’t get duty free shopping or onboard WiFi and Ëntertainment via Rokki which sounds pretty cool.

Zone 3 line for seats in row 6-19.

Quite a squeeze, we are packed in tighter than a can of sardines

45 minutes later, I land in Langkawi International Airport.
It looks tiny compared to KLIA! There is only one plane on the entire airstrip. I don’t suppose they get many flights a day.

Lone aircraft on a deserted airstrip

The International arrivals entrance is right next to the domestic arrivals entrance

Walking to the “arrivals hall” takes me 5 minutes tops. I don’t have check-in luggage so I call for the car rental guy my friend in langkawi had recommended.

Getting Around

It’s supposed to be relatively easy to get around Langkawi. It’s an island after all!
Taxi’s seem to be the preferred mode of transport for tourists, that or rental cars.

I rent a car from a guy recommended by a friend of mine. The whole process is bit dodgy. They charge me RM 220 for two days plus RM50 deposit. The car is a dirty Nissan Almeera with no fuel in the tank!

When I stop at a shell station to refuel I end up stuck at the station because to unlock the gear shift you apparently need to push a third button with a stick while pressing the top two side buttons. This I find out after I call the guy for help and he tells me “itu you masalah, u Tak tau pandu auto ke?” (translated from malay he said ‘that’s your problem! You don’t know how to drive automatic car isit ?’) What a rude cheeky bastard. Okay I sit in the car till he gets there and demonstrates the weird stick thing.

The “stick” shift !

Have to simultaneously press that small button above “P” and the side release button as well to get the thing to shift gears

He throws me a “you must be dumb as a stick look” and goes off to his van. I am pissed off at this point because he added a few other little words that will tick anybody else off too.
It’s okay though because I look up at the nice bright blue sky and look forwards to the checking into my room.

Follow my next post, Frangipani Dreaming

For my other works check out @nikisteem