After 5 years, partly due to Covid, we again visited the Resort of which we treasure so many , terrific memories. Langkawi Village Resort, then Frangipani Langkawi Resort & Spa, now also known as Cottages by the Sea Langkawi by Frangipani, at the beautiful Pantai Tengah beach.

Since 2005 the Resort has a new owner, dr. Anthony Wong Kim Hooi, Professor in Earth and Environment.
The Resort has become a Sustainable Green Eco Resort, the Greenest Hotel in Malaysia: over 200 ways to save water & energy, recycle, produce food, , managing the natural assets of Langkawi. The resort has already received multinational recognition with a string of awards won. Moreover, the Frangipani implements the wastewater treatment by using the wetland system, an innovation Anthony promotes in every way possible, as we noticed during several free lessons in Earth and Environment, during breakfast, lunch and dinner . . . .

If you like to know more about environmentally friendly and ecologically responsible decisions and lifestyles, there is a lot to read on the internet : just google dr. Wong.

During our holiday at the Frangipani Resort we had the opportunity to take part in all kinds of activities at the resort: traditional fishing, raising Sunny the adopted sunbird (fallen out of the nest), the bunnies , a guided tour of the Frangipani farm/garden/wetlands, painting shells and stones.
The new environment staff, ms. Latifah and mr. Wai, inspired many guests enthusiastically with the daily activities at the resort. They also organized a trip to Tanjung Rhu beach to enjoy the yearly sandbar phenomenon, very low tide. Early in the morning, about 7 am we were able to cross the see, walking from the Tangjung Rhu beach to the island Pulau Chabang, accompanied by ms. Pennie (the new financial controller of Frangipani), Wai, Nicole, Hanna and Dirk (a very nice family from Germany). Walking there we met several other staff members of Frangipani and a lot of enthusiastic locals. It was very crowded with happy families, watching, walking, making pictures and collecting see animals for food.

One of the reasons to return to Langkawi is the choice of food and it was like expected: great, delicious and with enough variety. Due to Covid some of our favorite restaurants were closed, so beside our longtime favorites, Unkaizan (the Japanese restaurant) and The Boat (Chinese/Thai), we were happy to find some other good restaurants, like Island Dish ,Zhong Hua Lou, and The Cliff - with a nice view on the Pantai Cenang beach.
The Mentari restaurant of the resort has a small but tasty menu. And with a view of the fantastic sunset (of course not every day) having diner becomes a very romantic experience.

A great part of our time was spent sitting at the beach or near the swimming pool, reading, swimming, walking, and some activities.
We again made a Mangrove tour, very well organized and with a perfect ranger, mr. Shah. We had the chance to visit a pencak silat performance by underprivileged children in a kampong nearby.

We were invited at the wedding of the daughter of ms. Rohanna, whom we know since 2000. It was a very colorful traditional Malay Muslim wedding, where a delicious lunch/diner was served. Also (old) employees of Frangipani were invited, which made it more relaxed.
And we visited Kuah, the capital of Langkawi, for some souvenirs. Too bad we planned it on a Friday (most shops closed, because of Muslim prayers). But we used the time to visit the new, 138 m high, Maha Tower with a 360-degrees-view of Kuah, surrounding islands and the sea, at the Sky Deck and the Sky Lounge. And a free lunch!

At the resort we spotted many different kind of birds, fishes and other sea and land animals. Especially in the garden there seemed to be more birds , probably because of the rather quiet period of Covid. Here is a list of the animals spotted:
Dusky Leaf Langur Monkey, Red-Bellied Squirrel, Mina, Great Hornbill, King Fisher, White Bellied Sea Eagle, Brahmin Kite, Yellow or Golden Oriole, Silver Heron, Fairy-Bluebird, Creater Coucal, Zul Ya or Greater Raket-tailed Drongo, Blue tailed Bee Eater, Brown Shrike, Sunny Bird, Yellow-vented Bulbul, and sea animals like crabs, jelly fish, Octopus, Barracuda, Sea Snail, Argus Butterfish, Cow fish, Tripod fish. At the farm of the resort rabbit, duck, goose, chicken, stingless bees for the honey.
In the farm the smallest cucumber in the world is grown.

Close to the resort we spotted the Brown Night Tree Snake (feeds on birds and mice).
Always nice to visit: the renovated and improved Wildlife Park (former Bird Park) and Underwater World.

pictures