Langkawi- motorbikes and beaches

Before going to Taman Negara, I spent just over a week on the island of Langkawi, in Northern Malaysia. I've been to Langkawi about a year and a half ago but because of time constraints and exhaustion, didn't make it much further than the beach down the road from the guesthouse I stayed at. This time around, I had much more time and wasn't exhausted from a busy school term and even busier vacation. This time around, I explored other beaches, a few of the island temples, caught up on my life from the back of a motorbike, explored a few waterfalls, and in general wandered much further down the big beach. It is crazy how much Langkawi has developed in the past year and a half. When we were there in March of 2013, Cenang Beach was little more than a few ramshackle hotels and hostels with a resort or two at the very end and restaurants with terrible food. The days of full moon parties at the Reggae Hostel and Bar are long gone and the beach is now packed with resorts and large hotels. The backpacker lane is still there but it's probably only a matter of time until the resorts and hotel chains chase that away as well.

Kristina's cousin, Danielle, met us here for a couple of days as she was making her way back to the States. Her first full day in Langkawi, we hopped on some motorbikes and went around the island to visit temples, mountain tops, and waterfalls. As we were driving around, we kept passing groups of people stopping and directing traffic as there was some sort of mountain bike marathon race going on. The trails did criss cross the roads and all traffic would be stopped to allow the bikers to continue with their race without the risk of getting injured.

View from the top of the mountain. 

After spending time at a temple and the local craft complex, we ended up at the top of a mountain for a view of the island. There is an option to climb up some 4,000 stairs to the top of said mountain, but we didn't actually see it until we stopped at the lookout point that also doubled as the endpoint of the stairs. I'm always game for a good hike but 4,000 stairs sounds like a fairly daunting number and not at all enjoyable!

Kristina taking Danielle to the airport in a coming rainstorm!

My chauffeur 

We did find our way to a couple of waterfalls in Langkawi and my favorite was the Seven Wells one. At the very top are seven small pools, hence the name, seven wells. You can swim in these pools and even go down a natural waterslide from one pool to another. These seven wells lead to one giant waterfall midway down the mountain.

I will say that I enjoyed my time in Langkawi but have realized what a beach snob I have become. The beaches were nice but not the white sand, clear blue waters I've become accustomed too and spoiled by!