After a few days in Penang with our Aussie friends it was great to be back on Bali Hai with them on the island of Langkawi in Malaysia.
As we wanted to give them a sailing trip to the beautiful clear waters of Thailand we only lingered briefly in Langkawi where we hired a car and took in some of the sights, including the board walk at Hole in the Wall.
Before we left for Thailand I was somehow persuaded to join our friends on the famous cable car ride up Mt. Machinchang, the mountain that towers over our anchorage in Telaga Harbour.
Having quite a fear of heights I was justifiably nervous as the cable car takes you 2.2km up the mountain to the height of 708 metres above sea level and is purported to be the highest cable car in the world!
To save waiting in a long queue (it was school holidays) we paid a little extra and went through the express lane. What we didn’t realise was that the extra payment also entitled us to a gondola with a glass bottom!
So not only did I have to cope with being suspended by a cable at some vast height but also experienced the terrifying and vertiginous feeling of looking past my feet – down, down, down, – argggggh!
However, I have to admit, once I had recovered from the journey up, the views from the top really were glorious and it was amazing seeing Bali Hai no bigger than a dot in the anchorage below!
It was quite chilly up at the top of the mountain, especially when clouds started to gather and we were surrounded by a cold mist, so we didn’t stay up there for too long.
The downward trip didn’t seem quite so bad but I was very glad to be at the bottom once again with my feet planted firmly on the ground!
Salty tales from Bali Hai on Sunday 