It was here that we discovered a simple way of dealing with all the taxi drivers who swarm everyone getting off the ship tenders. Upon the advice of a tourism official we walked over to the Concierge desk at the local hotel. There we found a chart listing the taxi rates: how much for how long and for how many people.

Compared to the requested tour rates, it was a steal. Hiring a cab for the morning, the two of us first went (on the advice of the driver who warned us of bad weather and too many people) to the cable car for a panoramic view of Langkawi. The view from the heights (700m above sea level) was amazing. The greens lush and the seas fading to grey. Just over the course of the hour we explored the levels and bridges at the top the clouds started descending. The rain was starting just as we returned to the cab avoiding both being trapped at the top and missing the experience completely.

From there, after an attempt at a couple of museums which turned out to be closed we stopped first at a glass blowers then saw a great exhibit of both local craft history and wedding customs. The adjoining store featured top quality goods by local artisans. We noted it is not on any of the tours. Perhaps they don’t do kick backs?