My husband and I had a four-night, five-day stay at Tanjung Jara recently.

It was the longest holiday that we’ve had, locally, in a very long time. We usually do two nights. By the third day, we are ready to go home. And, the last holiday was only for one-night in Malacca, which we thought would be more than sufficient. In many ways, it was.

I’m not sure how to write this but the Tanjung Jara holiday was a test of sorts for us. A test to see if we could do … just being. Chilling without thinking or needing or having to do something to fill time. Or worse yet, feeling the dreaded ‘b’ word, boredom. Yes, bored in an idyllic, not almost idyllic but genuinely idyllic environment.

We stayed at a chalet that faced the South China Sea. The front door and windows opened out to the expansive sea. The first things we saw and heard in the morning were the undulating waves, and the sounds of bird songs/calls. How impossibly wonderful is that?

Especially for people like us who live in a condominium in the city centre. A tall building that is enveloped by other equally tall or taller brick and mortar buildings. Surrounded by shops, people, cars, and the busyness of city life.

At the resort, we sat on our veranda, and watched the waves rise and fall rhythmically as they crashed onto the beach. The proximity and repeated movement of the massive body of water was quite mesmerising. We listened to chirping birds, including the ‘pake sitte,’ my mum’s little sparrow that she sent to let me know that she is with me and watching over me. Nice.

This is true. I hear varied bird songs/calls from the 30^th floor of my condominium. From the balcony, I see starlings or swifts doing fighter jet style manoeuvrers in the mornings. From my kitchen window, I see birds of prey circling the city skyline, mostly over the KLCC park. Thankfully, there is still birdlife in KL.

We saw five humans, in total, spread over the time we were there, on our side of the beach, which was located furthest away from the rest of the resort. Yay. In abundance were crabs and hermit crabs. One clever grey/black egret (the Pacific Reef variety) who had his/her pick of seafood, and many sandpipers.

It was peaceful and quiet. No sirens. No honking vehicles. The only noise came from cicadas, who made a droning like sound, which I initially thought was a mobile phone alarm, at dusk. The noise went away when night fell. Interesting.

My husband and I walked on the beach, along the beach front, and on the entire resort. We also walked outside the resort to a nearby fishing village, explored the kampung and surrounding areas. We have done these walks in our previous visits.

For this longer holiday, we included a drive to the neighbouring beaches of Pantai Teluk Bidara and Pantai Teluk Lipat. The day of the drive was sunny and hot. The skies were blue. There were casuarina trees everywhere. They lined the seafront, and offered much needed shade along the many foot paths.

I didn’t know this. Casuarina trees on beaches are called ‘whistling pines.’ Apparently, a distinct sound is created as wind passes through the casuarina trees’ needle-like but not sharp branchlets. I didn’t pick up on any sounds. Also, the trees protect the coastline. They serve as windbreaks, stabilise sand dunes and prevent coastal erosion. For me, casuarina trees mean seaside and coastal shorelines, and visits with my family, when I was young, to Pantai Merdeka and Penang. 

On another evening, we made our first foray to the Dungun Thursday night market. Dungun is a  coastal district and town near Tanjung Jara, in Terengganu. Why first? We would have checked out on Thursday after our usual two-night stay.

The night market was not too different from the others we’ve been to in other parts of the country. This one served predominantly local food like ‘apam balik,’ ‘ketupat,’ and ‘satay,’ at affordable prices. They were yum. We also stopped at a fair, which we thought was another night market, because it too had similarly lit stalls. We were pleasantly surprised by its orderly layout and offerings that included tacos, lasagne, pizzas, and artisanal ice-cream.

My husband and I were relaxed. We did non-routine stuff each day. We enjoyed leisurely breakfasts, delicious food, cannot-complain service with no urgent pressing issues that required our attention, and best of all – a tranquil environment. Despite all of the above, we both admitted to feeling fidgety. Not much, just moments/pockets of restlessness. Hmm.

So, did we pass the test? Yes, I think😊.

Because … it’s not not normal to feel whatever – bored, sad, out of kilter – even in the most idyllic of places and happiest/bestest of situations.