Langkawi:
After spending the previous month or so grinding it out in chaotic urban areas, it felt incredibly good to roll up to the relaxed Malaysian island of Langkawi on the country’s west coast.
To give you some perspective, Langkawi is nearly the exact same physical size as Singapore. But while Singapore is packed to the gills with 5.5 million people, Langkawi has a population of just around 100,000. The island is surrounded by beaches, rolling green hills, and dramatic limestone karsts bursting out of the water. It totally lacks the frantic, over-the-top craziness of the Thai islands just to its north, which was the main draw for us. It is just way more relaxing.
However, let’s be real for a second: the beaches here are simply not in the same league as the ones in Thailand.
Avoiding the Main Drag for a Jungle Oasis
The main tourist beach strip, Pantai Cenang, sits on the west side of the island. My advice? Avoid this area entirely. It’s too built up and hectic.
Instead, we used our flashpacker instincts and elected to stay deep in the jungle interior. We found a good spot right in the thick of nature, waterfalls, and wildlife, parked directly on a sweet-looking rice field. Staying in the interior also strategically positioned us much closer to the nicer, less-visited beaches on the northern side of the island, like Pantai Pasir Tengkorak and Tanjung Rhu.
[Langkawi Strategic Layout]
Pantai Cenang (West) ──> Hectic, touristy, crowded. (Skip it!)
Jungle Interior (Center)──> Waterfalls, rice fields, peaceful vibes.
Northern Beaches (North)──> Secluded, pristine sand, zero crowds.
Because we chose this awesome, out-of-the-way location, renting a car was an absolute necessity. I have to admit, it was a bit trippy getting behind the wheel after a four-month driving layoff—not to mention adjusting to driving a manual transmission on the left side of the road.
Naturally, I was the designated driver for the entire stay because Barbie has proven over the years to be a real shit driver. Consequently, she had zero shot of getting behind the wheel. She would openly admit to this, so this isn’t just me being cruel and controlling.
Barbie has graciously accepted and fully earned the nickname “Crash.” Years ago back in the States, State Farm actually contacted Crash and told her they were no longer interested in her business. They dropped her from coverage because she was single-handedly on the verge of driving the entire insurance company into insolvency with her monthly fender-benders and claims. It’s a real shame State Farm isn’t a publicly traded company, because it would have been a phenomenal stock to short with Barbie onboard as a client.
The King and Queen of Decision Making
Driving through the interior to our cottage, we couldn’t help but admire the scenery. With those rolling green hills, it looked remarkably like a Hawaiian island. As we passed through the incredibly laid-back local villages, I knew instantly that we had made the right call to isolate ourselves in the quiet part of the island and skip the congestion of Pantai Cenang.
One of the things I love most about this independent journey is how spontaneous decision-making plays such an integral part in the overall experience. You have to call a lot of audibles and judgment calls on the fly. When you nail those calls, it completely transforms your trip. There is a massive sense of gratification when you get them right.
To date, our decision-making has been stellar with very few screw-ups. If this superior streak continues, I may have to officially crown us Big Doug & Barbie: The King & Queen of Decision Making. The more we navigate around these foreign countries, the sharper our instincts get on where to stay, what to do, where to eat, and—most importantly—where to shit.
Basically, this journey is like a box of chocolates: you never know what you’re gonna get. But when it’s time to choose a piece from the box, we do our homework to avoid pulling out the crappy one. Navigating foreign lands with relatively zero guidance from anyone has instilled a massive sense of confidence in us. That, coupled with a much clearer understanding of how the world actually works outside the routine of our own country, is what makes this lifestyle so rewarding and fun.
The Langkawi Food List
Since we had the rental car, we were able to skip the tourist traps and eat like royalty all over the island.
- Santai & Teo’s: Authentic, flavor-packed local dishes.
- Laila Kebab House: Hit the spot when we wanted savory middle-eastern flavors.
- The Kasbah & Red Tomato Restaurant: Great casual joints with a solid western menu when you need a break from rice.
- Scarborough’s Fish & Chips: Fish and chips right on the water.
- Coco’s: A great little spot to relax and grab a quality bite.
LOOSE STOOLS INDEX
- Rating: 5 / 10 (Living on the Edge)
The plumbing slipped a few notches on the index, and I am pinning the blame squarely on the local frog legs I downed last night. Man, those things were delicious, though. Would I pull the trigger on those frog legs again despite the subsequent plunge in the index? A resounding YES! After all, you’ve got to live on the edge a little bit, right?
NEXT STOP: THE ZAG
We are officially leaving Langkawi and executing the classic Andy Beyer “Z Strategy.” Instead of zigging with the rest of the tourist crowds, we are zagging. We’re jumping on a ferry, crossing the border back into Thailand, and heading straight to a remote island in the Andaman Sea.
It is time to enter super-chill mode and do absolutely nothing. My sole mission over the next week is to locate the single best hammock on the island of Koh Lipe and plant my butt in it. Koh Lipe has received a massive amount of hype lately, and Big Doug is on his way to see if it actually lives up to the reputation.
Big Doug & Barbie Drop Out of Society 