Cherating Day Two

I woke up my first morning in Cherating and went outside to sit on my little porch and watch the sea. Watch it. Smell it. Listen to it. Feel the breeze from it. It was invigorating and calming at the same time. I took me about 30 seconds to decide to stay in the same place another night.

After my swim (see South China Sea Swim post), I returned to my chalet and relaxed. Then I walked over to Muda's Cafe for a banana and honey sandwich and a fresh pineapple juice. My original intention was to go to the bar next to Muda's for lime & pineapple pancakes that I had seen on the chalkboard menu the day before. However, the bar was empty except for a couple of guys sleeping in hammocks. I also felt somewhat obligated to Muda since he had made me a palm-tree leaf grasshopper the day before. So I sat at Muda's and ate my delicious warm banana sandwich and read my book. Then Muda came over and sat with me. He did not speak very much English but enough to teach me some Malay. Saya suka anjing-anjing. That means "I like dogs". I told him where I had swam that morning. He pointed to the big house on the point that I swam around and said it was the King's. Apparently, my private cove was actually the private cove of the King of Malaysia. According to Muda, he never goes there. Thank God. International scandal averted. I could just see the headlines: "Crazy American Girl Storms Private Beach of Malaysian King".

I headed back to the chalet to get my video camera. When I got back, I noticed a couple of dogs laying under a picnic table at the "resort". Of course, I went over to visit them. One of them was so excited to get attention it kept crying. He was a big puppy with enormous paws. He looked a little bit like Lizzie but with a wider face and thicker build. I named him Fred. The other dog was a female who had had a litter. She was dark brown with light brown markings like Athena. I named her Penelope. I sat there for a while petting my new friends. They followed me to my chalet where I sat on the steps and pet them for a while longer. A third dog showed up. I named him Cal. He was very shy and would not come close enough for me to pet him, but he lurked. The three were a pack. They were so sweet. Even though they were strays, they were pretty healthy looking. I could tell that people fed them.

I grabbed my camera and walked down the main street. I stopped into the Travelpost and signed up for turtle watching that night. I then walked down the road videotaping and stopping at shops. Again, I was unabashedly the quintessential tourist. I was so busy looking through the camcorder that I would trip over sidewalks. Or I would start talking to someone and forget I was filming. I watched the video and half of it is pointed at the ground while I'm talking to someone or staring at something and talking to myself.

I went into a great art shop with an incredible collection of hand-carved items. Sorry, but I wasn't allowed to take photos. They had two baby monkeys wearing diapers in a cage. They were so cute. One of them kept sucking his big toe. As I was walking down the road, I looked down a narrow side street/path and saw a big, creepy lizard just out for a stroll. It was probably between 4 and 5 feet long. It had huge webbed feet which forced it to have a strange waddle/walk. It was fascinating to watch. It had a smooth head and a long snakelike tongue. It totally freaked me out, but I couldn't stop following it. Again though, the video I took of it is 50% just the ground because I was so fascinated by the creature that I would stop filming it and just watch it. When it went into the tall grass towards the river, I decided it may have friends and decided to hightail it out of there.

Then I walked down to the beach and filmed the beach, sea, Muda's, and other interesting sights along the coast. By this time, the tide had come in and the waves were looking pretty fun. Small but fun. It was time for me to hit the beach and relax on the seashore. After all, I hadn't had any relaxation time in the last hour. I was long overdue. It was tough finding a spot on the beach because there were about 7 other people there. I loved it! It was nothing like the crowded beaches of Ocean City. The breeze was soft and refreshing after the walk through the village. The water was also refreshing but not cold. Actually, it was warmer to be in the water than out of it because of the cool breeze. I swam out to a sandbar. It was wild. The water was ankle deep at the sandbar, and the sandbar was probably 75-100 yard out from shore so it looked like I was standing in the middle of the South China Sea. Moses had nothing on me! I lay on the sandbar for a while. The water was only a couple of inches high. My body was held firmly in place by the sand, but I could feel the water flowing around my head and the current tug at my body as the waves washed back out to sea. It felt like a dream. Reluctantly, I headed back for shore knowing my skin could not take much more of the sun. Even still, it was probably another hour before I tore myself away from the beach.

I went to a Batik Art Gallery and was overwhelmed by the selection and beauty of the craft. I succumbed to my shop-a-holic tendencies and purchased a couple of batiks for my house. One is a big purple fish on a bright orange background. I know you are all jealous! As I was walking back, the sky became rather dark and the wind started whipping. A strong storm was definitely on the way. I walked past a run-down place on the beach called the Care For Cafe and saw a guy sitting there drinking a beer. This made me want to sit by the beach and watch the storm roll in too. I sat at a table and had a Tiger beer. Then I saw the best thing ever...puppies! There were two puppies and an adult female dog. The puppies were about 3 months old and so hyper and cute. They were the first animals I had seen who actually belonged to someone. They belonged to the two guys (I think they were brothers) who worked at the bar. I asked them if I could pet their puppy, but he wouldn't come to me. He just kept barking at me, the little monster. One of the guys picked up the puppy and handed him to me. I was so happy. The puppy's name was "Baik" which is pronounced "buy" and means "good" in Malay. It was the perfect end to a great afternoon: sitting in a deserted bar on a Malaysian beach, the wind on the edge of being fierce, dark clouds rolling in, puppies playing at my feet, and a nice cold beer. If only every afternoon could end that way...