WARM WELCOME
When we walked off the plane at Sultan Ahmad Shad Airport, our final destination at Kuantan – all the passengers had to make their way from the plane to the arrival hall, even the crew. I immediately sensed the pleasant anticipation to discover something new. We felt welcome immediately. The local people, mostly Muslim, were interested in what we were doing here as we dragged the eye-catching board bags out of the little airport. Some of the people asked with a certain respect as we explained our goals. They wished us good luck and a great stay in Malaysia. Some of them were wondering why we were not in Kuala Lumpur, where most of the tourists photograph the famous Petronas Towers or why we weren’t visiting the popular islands of Langkawi or Penang, where many tourists travel each year. We obviously had decided to discover a less prominent region for foreign travellers.
ACTION STATIONS AT BALOK
The first days brought us to the beaches around Kuantan. We were lucky as the wind showed up upon our arrival. The strongest periods of the day were during midday and in the early afternoon. At Balok the monsoon picked up to 20 knots and allowed nice jumps. No other windsurfers were out there in the crisp side onshore conditions. We just met Leo, a local kite surfer and Wolfgang from Mannheim, Germany, who started to run the cosy beach bar at the former Duta Village.
“Balok beach has had so much wind recently and it’s so relaxed here. Always warm and the nice view on the beach makes me happy. The area is safe with a friendly population and it’s not too bad to get some rainfall during the day. It’s just comfortable for people from Europe, who aren’t used to the hot temperatures” he told us. Immediately we were convinced that our decision to travel to the eastern coast of Malaysia was a solid call. The brown water reminded us of the conditions at our home spot Lake Neusiedl, but the ramps for jumping were much steeper and the tropical feeling wasn’t the same as sailing on a lake in Europe. A few hours later, we ate local seafood at Pak Su, in the village (Kampung) of Baharu, with the moonlight above the breaking waves of the South Chinese Sea. We really enjoyed our stay and only paid 14 € for a huge lobster menu! At low tide and during day time there is a nice spot to launch just next to the restaurant and have a lunch after.