Serenity of Bintulu, Malaysia

I can feel the cool, salty breeze caressing my face as I stand at the beach and behold the "City of Light." The light is made of the colourful lights from the industrial area across from the beach. It is such a beautiful sight and so soothing just to hear the whooshing of waves.

Quick Tips:

Best Way To Get Around:

Walk or rent a car. As the place is a small town, it is very easy to drive, but be aware of road bullies.

My first impression is how such a town can get a beautiful, impressive hotel.

The lobby is spacious with Italian drawings donned on the wall. The food outlets consist of Luconia Bay (serving snacks like sandwiches), the M&D Rest (serving local and Mediterranean food), and Waves pub. It also has a swimming pool and gym.

After I check in, I walk to my assigned room. As I enter, I was even more amazed at the spacious room with a sea view. The room consisted of two deluxe beds, which can comfortably accommodate 4 people, the beauty of modern décor, and a parquet floor. I wish I had a bedroom like this.

The rate should be around US$40 if you book with Malaysia's travel agents. Since my friend works there, I booked under her name and got a very special rate that I cannot reveal.

As I drive to a small round from Jalan Tanjung Batu, I was shocked with another beautiful view of the sunset. The place looked a bit run down but, with such a view, who cares?

There were a few stalls along the beach, so I chose one. Since I was alone and really could not order much, I ordered a small portion of clams fried with dried chilies, which cost around RM10. The taste was just explosive. For those who do not eat spicy foods, then its better you don't try this. Unfortunately I wear shorts so I couldn’t stand the annoying mosquitoes.

This is a market that operates daily behind the Regal Hotel. The market consists of stalls selling a wide selection of local food like fish balls, fried mee, fried rice, Pork Rice Dumpling and buns, and Syrup Beancurd. You can get a bowl of plain fried noodle for RM1 (US$0.38).The meatballs and sotongs on skewers are just such a delight to taste. The place looks a bit unhygienic but, after bursting my stomach with a little bit of this and that, I didn't get diarrhea. It operates after 5:30pm.

The sea looks so high from this sandy beach that I feel like the sea can swallow the whole town. I just love sitting at the food stalls eating Satay (beef/chicken cubes on a skewer with sambal peanut sauce) and drinking my watermelon juice while I gaze on the sights of the sea itself and feel the breeze dance by. There aren't many activities, but just the sight of it is worth millions.

As I walk into a wet market in Bintulu, I really enjoy see some vegetables and spices I’ve never seen before. The Jungle Rambutan tastes very sweet but not much like flesh (RM2 per bunch). The reason I go to the market is to buy a type of spice very famous in Bintul – Belachan, which you can cook with anything, although you normally use it as gravy for our local food like nasi lemak and mee hoon. The price ranges from RM 5 per piece to RM 15.

My friend is a party gal, so I was dragged to a karaoke nightclub. As I entered the club, I almost choked on the array of smoke grasping me and I imagined that I was a smoker. The smoke was just too thick and the place was quite dimly lit.

As my eyes adjusted to the place, I could see a few old, dirty men groping a few escorts (who looked quite mature) and some youngsters shouting obscenities as if they were singing and that that was the norm. My friend persuaded me to take a drink, so I drank it real fast to get away from there. Within 20 minutes, we left the place.