Today we played hooky from boat chores and took the ferry across the channel to Langkawi, together with Canadian friends Deirdre and Mike from s/v Cheshire Cat who have been here for a year, on and off. We first met in Panama five years ago and, typical of the cruiser lifestyle, have shared anchorages here and there across the Pacific. They've just found a buyer for CC and are soon flying to France to embark on their next adventure, exploring the canals of France.

We shared a rental car and were happy to have Deirdre and Mike chauffeur us around the island, acquainting us with where to shop and how to find things. Burger was excited to find well-stocked marine and hardware stores while I noted the supermarkets and salivated at batik boutiques, but we'll postpone serious shopping till we return in January.

Twenty miles offshore from mainland Malaysia, Langkawi is a resort island and cruise ship destination, and its duty free status explains in part its popularity with sailors in this predominantly Muslim country. We saw our favorite Mount Gay rum selling for US$12 a bottle.

The highlight of the day was taking the cable car up Gunung Machinchang (2,300 ft). We ascended past cascading waterfalls and steep green mountainside on our way to the top, where we hiked up and down stairways and across hanging bridges to enjoy the views of the island and across the Adaman Sea to nearby Thailand. Deirdre was looking a bit poorly during the ride, having little confidence in the maintenance of the cable car equipment. But we all survived the day, as this blog confirms.