112 AsiaSpa July/August 2017SpaGetaway
A
s our boat chugged along the
l a by r i n t h o f p a s s a g e s i n t h e
mangrove forest that dates back
500 million years, I looked up half expecting
to see pterodactyls. They did not appear,
but I wasn’t disappointed. In their place
were a convocation of eagles circling and
swooping in an almost choreographed
routine dazzling the boatloads of tourists
who gathered to watch.
We are in the UNESCO-endorsed
Kilim Karst Geoforest Park, one of several
geoparks spread across 104 islands in
the Langkawi archipelago featuring a
breathtaking limestone landscape, an
extensive mangrove forest system and
pristine beaches.
“This is my office,” says Aidi Abdullah,
our resident naturalist from Four Seasons
Langkawi. “I would rather come here towork every day than be stuck in city traffic,”
he quips while I take in another lungful of
rich oxygenated air.
The name Langkawi is said to originate
from the combination of the Malay words
helang and kawi which mean eagle and red-
brown respectively. The red-brown colour
is common on the brahminy kites with the
other being the white bellied, both eagle
species indigenous to the island.
Lying off the northwestern coast of
Malaysia and bordered by Thailand to the
north, Langkawi is an island steeped in
myths and legends. The most famous story
is that of a beautiful woman named Mahsuri
who was falsely accused of adultery and put
to death. As a sign of her innocence, white
blood flowed from her body when she was
executed turning the sands white, while the
island was cursed for seven generations. Thecurse has since expired and you can visit
Mahsuri's tomb on the island.
Another story tells of a prince who ate
half-cooked rice during a wedding feast,
suffered indigestion and farted at two spots
now known as Pulau Kentut Besar (Big Fart
island) and Pulau Kentut Kecil (Small Fart
island).
In recent years, Langkawi has prospered
due to the increasing number of tourists
every year, giving rise to even more
resorts and spas around the island. What’s
unfortunate is that the authorities have
placed a cap on the number of foreign
workers being brought into the island to
work, which could be detrimental to the
growth of the wellness industry.
However, Langkawi remains one of the
most attractive travel destinations for nature
lovers yearning to escape the crowd. The