{"id":688,"date":"2010-08-09T08:56:28","date_gmt":"2010-08-09T15:56:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lisaandtony.com\/?p=688"},"modified":"2010-08-09T08:56:28","modified_gmt":"2010-08-09T15:56:28","slug":"tioman-island-malaysia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/lisaandtony.com\/travelblog\/2010\/08\/09\/tioman-island-malaysia\/","title":{"rendered":"Tioman Island, Malaysia"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia by T. Chen, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tony-chen\/4893037929\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4137\/4893037929_3f074d91d5_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia\" width=\"640\" height=\"428\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Total <\/strong><strong>Miles Traveled: <\/strong> 32,091<\/p>\n<p>Tioman Island is a large picturesque, mountainous island off of the southeastern coast of peninsular Malaysia. \u00a0It&#8217;s known for its diving and super laid back lifestyle. \u00a0There&#8217;s only a 2 mile road, and most of the kampungs (villages) are only accessible via boat. \u00a0To reach Tioman, we took a 5 hour bus from Melaka to the port village of Mersing and then took a 2 hour ferry to our &#8220;resort&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/lisaandtony.com\/travelblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/08\/map_tioman.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-707\" title=\"map_tioman\" src=\"http:\/\/lisaandtony.com\/travelblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/08\/map_tioman.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"643\" height=\"383\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Tioman Island is also where my cousin Javi owns a dive shop. \u00a0 Bali Hai divers is attached to a small &#8220;resort&#8221; called Panuba Inn. Panuba is for divers and is very &#8211; shall we say &#8211; basic. \u00a0The chalets are &#8216;clean enough&#8217; and different types of critters have made themselves at home in the chalets. \u00a0That said, you cannot beat the view!<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia by T. Chen, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tony-chen\/4893039255\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4079\/4893039255_0ebbfc601d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia\" width=\"640\" height=\"428\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia by T. Chen, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tony-chen\/4892012239\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4134\/4892012239_1052cc894e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia\" width=\"640\" height=\"428\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia by T. Chen, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tony-chen\/4893040149\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4139\/4893040149_faa74fe0ce_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia\" width=\"428\" height=\"640\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia by T. Chen, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tony-chen\/4893039255\/\"><br \/>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Also, since Panuba is a bay &#8211; the waves don&#8217;t crash like they do on the beaches &#8211; instead there is a contant whooshing of small waves that is really intoxicating. \u00a0I haven&#8217;t sleep so well in a long, long time! \u00a0Listen in the video below.<\/p>\n<p><object classid=\"clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" codebase=\"http:\/\/download.macromedia.com\/pub\/shockwave\/cabs\/flash\/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0\"><param name=\"data\" value=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/apps\/video\/stewart.swf?v=71377\" \/><param name=\"flashvars\" value=\"intl_lang=en-us&amp;photo_secret=8ed838b8b6&amp;photo_id=4898018457&amp;hd_default=false\" \/><param name=\"bgcolor\" value=\"#000000\" \/><param name=\"allowFullScreen\" value=\"true\" \/><param name=\"src\" value=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/apps\/video\/stewart.swf?v=71377\" \/><param name=\"allowfullscreen\" value=\"true\" \/><embed type=\"application\/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/apps\/video\/stewart.swf?v=71377\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" bgcolor=\"#000000\" flashvars=\"intl_lang=en-us&amp;photo_secret=8ed838b8b6&amp;photo_id=4898018457&amp;hd_default=false\" data=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/apps\/video\/stewart.swf?v=71377\"><\/embed><\/object><\/p>\n<p>When I mentioned to my cousin that I wanted to get my advanced certification he said not to worry &#8211; he&#8217;d hook me up. \u00a0And boy did he! \u00a0 I was able to complete my advanced certification and Tony and I got certified on enriched air (or Nitrox)!!<\/p>\n<p>Here I am doing my course on navigation with a compass underwater:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia by T. Chen, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tony-chen\/4892014951\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4080\/4892014951_03c2cde004_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Tony and I got to know the dive masters well in the short time that we were there. \u00a0Maybe that&#8217;s because we made a beer run with them &#8211; AFTER our diving of course \ud83d\ude09 &#8211; and treated them to a case.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia by T. Chen, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tony-chen\/4892018035\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4097\/4892018035_fd4875cbb1_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" \/><\/a>A<\/p>\n<p>And sharing some beers with my instructor Barry.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Barry and us by T. Chen, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tony-chen\/4897790439\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4141\/4897790439_e26036d8c2_z.jpg\" alt=\"Barry and us\" width=\"640\" height=\"477\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Diving Tioman<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia by T. Chen, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tony-chen\/4892630918\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4082\/4892630918_9dc39a6b4f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>We did 8 dives over the course of 4 days. \u00a0Our favorite dive was a cavernous coral area that offered lots of pass throughs and small caves. \u00a0Unfortunately visibility was low overall, but we saw some amazing coral and got to swim around 3 different wrecks.<\/p>\n<p>Some of the coral at Tulai &#8211; the best coral garden we saw in Tioman:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia by T. Chen, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tony-chen\/4892653084\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4097\/4892653084_8c4c6ca970_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Giant Clam:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia by T. Chen, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tony-chen\/4892048361\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4079\/4892048361_4dd5fefa9c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Turtle (my favorite):<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><a title=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia by T. Chen, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tony-chen\/4892629474\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4075\/4892629474_83b2dfaa41_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">A Thai fishing boat wreck, 90 feet below the water&#8217;s surface:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><a title=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia by T. Chen, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tony-chen\/4892024435\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4114\/4892024435_b10a1cefb5_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>There were tons of reef fish (sergeant majors) hanging out around the jetty, so we happened to find some bread and cause a feeding frenzy:<\/p>\n<p><object classid=\"clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" codebase=\"http:\/\/download.macromedia.com\/pub\/shockwave\/cabs\/flash\/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0\"><param name=\"data\" value=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/apps\/video\/stewart.swf?v=71377\" \/><param name=\"flashvars\" value=\"intl_lang=en-us&amp;photo_secret=db627f220c&amp;photo_id=4893057245\" \/><param name=\"bgcolor\" value=\"#000000\" \/><param name=\"allowFullScreen\" value=\"true\" \/><param name=\"src\" value=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/apps\/video\/stewart.swf?v=71377\" \/><param name=\"allowfullscreen\" value=\"true\" \/><embed type=\"application\/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" src=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/apps\/video\/stewart.swf?v=71377\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" bgcolor=\"#000000\" flashvars=\"intl_lang=en-us&amp;photo_secret=db627f220c&amp;photo_id=4893057245\" data=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/apps\/video\/stewart.swf?v=71377\"><\/embed><\/object><\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, Tioman and many other dive destinations are suffering from warm water (29C+ or ~85F+) which causes coral to bleach. \u00a0Bleaching happens when coral expels the algae living inside of it and it becomes white.  This is presumably due to global warming, but the jury is still out on whether it&#8217;s that, or simply cyclical temperature changes in the environment.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia by T. Chen, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tony-chen\/4892615090\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4074\/4892615090_7f21a858cc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tioman Island, Malaysia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Check out more photos from our dives on the Flickr slideshow:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">[flickrslideshow  acct_name=&#8221;tony-chen&#8221; id=&#8221;72157624726037218&#8243;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Total Miles Traveled: 32,091 Tioman Island is a large picturesque, mountainous island off of the southeastern coast of peninsular Malaysia. \u00a0It&#8217;s known for its diving and super laid back lifestyle. \u00a0There&#8217;s only a 2 mile road, and most of the kampungs (villages) are only accessible via boat. \u00a0To reach Tioman, we took a 5 hour [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[9],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/lisaandtony.com\/travelblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/688"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/lisaandtony.com\/travelblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/lisaandtony.com\/travelblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/lisaandtony.com\/travelblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/lisaandtony.com\/travelblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=688"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/lisaandtony.com\/travelblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/688\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/lisaandtony.com\/travelblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=688"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/lisaandtony.com\/travelblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=688"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/lisaandtony.com\/travelblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=688"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}