Kuantan/Cherating (23/01/01 to 26/01/01)
Kuantan
Took a coach from Larkin Bus Terminus, JB at 10.30am. There is a 10.30pm schedule if you prefer the night. We booked the super VIP seat for RM24 each from Damai Rai. Bus was punctual and comfortabe. I had wasted 2 hours waiting at my previous encounter with another bus company!!!.
It took about 6 hours ride from JB to Kuantan. Bus stopped at 2 intervals. Of course, most of us would rush to the restrooms when the bus stopped for intervals. Previously, you needed to pay 20cents for the usage. Now it is free. I guess this is marketing strategy.
We arrived in Kuantan in late afternoon. The first thing I did after arriving was to purchase the return tickets to Singapore or JB. Most tickets were sold out except one bus company. I had no choice but to purchase it which I very much regretted later on. As I said, I had no choice... Why most bus companies do not sell return tickets when we are buying our going tickets?? It is risk you have to take. I took the risk.
Kuantan is a small town and I think it is the capital of Pahang. I noticed there was vast improvement since my last visit about 10 years ago. The biggest shopping centre in Kuantan is called Berjaya Shopping Mall (I write from memory, so please pardon me if it is not the exact name). This shopping mall is just next to MS Garden Hotel which we stayed for one night at RM148 which included breakfast for two. It is quite a nice hotel. I especially like the toilet which was spacious with all the modern facilities. The swimming pool was not so clean, though. Well, I suppose you cannot expect everything to be perfect. MS Garden Hotel is about 15 minutes walk from where we alighted from the bus. I think this bus station is called Makmur Bus Station. The reason why I chose a hotel near the bus station was for convenient purpose - that was for us to board the bus back home..
As it was Chinese New Year holidays, most of the shops were closed. Luckily, some of Muslim restaurants were opened. We tried the nan and quite liked it. Nan seems to be quite popular food there. We ordered a big prawn(RM10) because it looked very nice. However, despite the size, the meat was quite insufficient for 3 of us. It did not taste as good as it looked.
Cherating
We took a taxi from the Makmur Bus Station to Legend Resort at Cherating. I paid RM40 for the fare. It took about an hour. Before I came, I was actually quite worried about how to reach Cherating from Kuantan. Could not find much info from the web. Sad. Well, there were a lot taxi waiting nearby the Makmur Bus Station. On the way, being very chatty, the driver kept talking from starting point to ending point. Some I could understand, some I could not. The conversation was in Malay.
As it was holiday season, the resort was packed to full capacity. At that time, most of the resorts were. We booked a 3D 2N trip for RM437. It included daily breakfast and one dinner for 2 adults and 2 children. At Legend, there are 2 very nice pools and a ever popular wading pool for the kids. Imagine a resort without swimming pool !!! The room was not quite up to standard. I suppose it is quite a old resort. Nevertheless, we had enjoyable and relaxing 3 days stay.
As with most resorts in Cherating, Legend is very near the beach. I guess this is one of the attractions to visit. There are some eating stalls outside Legend. We tried the Peninsular Seafood restaurant which served Chinese food. It is just at the corner at the entrance to Legend.
There is eating place in Legend called Beach Restaurant. It is facing the sea. It is very nice to enjoy the cool breeze while a cup of your favourite tea. The food sold here is cheaper than the coffee house of the resort.
We spent our time in the resort as we did not feel like going out. Besides, it was no easy to go out if you did not have transport. Most of guests, I noticed, drove. Some even drove from Singapore. We had to book the resort limousine to fetch us back to Kuantan to catch our bus back home. We paid RM50.
As I mentioned earlier, the bus back home was long and tedious journey. It was something like pick and drop kind of bus. It stopped at so many places that it took about 8 hours instead of 6 to reach JB!! Sometimes, you just have to accept this kind of unexpected to happen while travelling.
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