Perhentian Island Squid Fishing…..a short family trip..Part 3

OK I’m back for Part trois….

I once caught a squid soooo big that........yeah right...ueeeekkkk!!!

Squids or Calamari (Spanish word) are not the most favourites of seafood in Europe…In Malaysia they’re a delicacy, we call them ‘Sotong’. They come in various species and sizes. Another meaning for ‘Sotong’ in Malay is Queer…go figure..

From the Nerdiest website on earth aka Wikipedia: Squid are cephalopods of the order Teuthida, which comprises around 300 species. Like all other cephalopods, squid have a distinct head, bilateral symmetry, a mantle, and arms. Squid, like cuttlefish, have eight arms arranged in pairs and two, usually longer, tentacles. Squid are strong swimmers and certain species can 'fly' for short distances out of the water…but who is interested anyway??

My question is: If they’re not a fish, then why do people ‘fish’ squids?????

Somehow…my Dad always has his fishing gear ready…apparently he already had Squid on his mind….he actually brought brand new squid jiggies with him!!

This is the weighted jig...u need to skewer or squeer??  a fresh fish through the stake (Ooohhh now i get the it, the link of Sotong with queer...)....the Squids will hold on to the fish with its tentacled and the fine pins will stick through the squids as you pull up...

The lighter jig but much more attractive...the colours are to attract the squids, it glows when shone by the bright light from the powerful electric bulbs

The plan was to leave just before dusk, …fish or squidging the whole night and come back early the next morning before dawn…

Gettin on board...

 I have been fishing since forever with my Dad…whenever I have a chance, I try to spend quality time with him. As a fast growing teenager, my Dad told me that a young man should do 3 things in life and they all start with F, Flying, Fishing and F……, Hmmmm I don't remember the third one lah….

Daniel and the ship's Captain, looks like Papa and son eh?? Hehehee

Unfortunately whilst fishing is right up there among my most favourite of hobbies….sea-sickness has always been my kryptonite. I for whatever reason just cannot stand being on a swaying boat for more than 5 minutes, I will be so sick that I will vomit my intestines out!! 

But I never learn….I once lost a brand new Nokia on the coast of Pulau Kapas in the late 90’s because of this problem….somehow I have almost forgotten all this until I stepped onto this traditional wooden boat at Perhentian… A boat whilst still in motion, moving forward is OK, but the moment it stops and starts to sway like Michael Bublé, I turn green…

A very excited Dad getting ready with his gear...

Eureka!!! Moments before the green face effect....I never learn..

One for the album.....and moments after this I was puking more often than an anorexic hollywood teen star, my face was plastered on the wooden boat's railing just like a Carpenter....Karen Carpenter to be exact...

Man made light vs the beauty of nature's wonders...sunset view, South China Sea

In this trip, Dad, me, my nephew Daniel, my sister and Intan, my lovely wife followed. The wife followed???....Bad mistake…knowing that I will turn into The Incredible Hulk and be spewing all night long will only give my wife priceless ammunition to make fun of me for the rest of my living days…in the future, whenever the word ‘boat’ or ‘fishing’ or ’squid’ comes up during any conversation with friends or family….to her, I shall be the green faced clown who fertilized South China sea with my innards  … Dang!!

Here we go.....Uuueekkk!!!

 We arrived at the fishing spot….The moment the boat stopped, I felt nausea…Nothing has changed and yet everything seems different….within a few minutes….all hell broke loose!! And the waters were quite choppy!! They all had a good laugh…..in the end I did not catch a single thing but poured my heart away to the sea, I would like to think of it as giving the best bait for the squids and fish…Daniel kept his cool a wee bit longer than me and Aida had to give in too in the end….My Dad was having a whale of a time and my wife was laughing all night long…We…or rather they caught a few squids only, maybe due to the fact that I was down ill…u see…there may be plenty of fish in the sea, but to catch them, you must first become a Master Baiter…..gettit?? hehehee

At least Dad is a happy man....

The weather was turning for the worse, apparently a storm was coming in…..not that I gave a bloody damn!! By this time my head was permanently over the side of the boat… The news that we were heading home…to dry land…to firm unswaying land was the best news by far!! We got back to the jetty just after midnight…all in all, it was just about a 7 hour trip…6 hours of agony for me!!

Spike Milligan once said…’A sure cure for seasickness is to sit under a tree’…Yeahhh tell me about it…

I hate that grin at the bottom right of the pic.....

Guess what did we have for breakfast the next morning??? Grilled Perhentian Squid!! No marination, just fresh, brimy squid by the pure white sands of Perhentian….Priceless…

Extremely satisfied

 

Everybody had a whale of a time (apart from the seasickness laa)...nobody really wanted to leave but reluctantly, we all had to....we waved goodbye to Abdul's thinking one day...we will be back...definitely...

Notice the life jackets??...we insisted...

As we drove off from Kuala Besut heading south, we stopped at a famous beach stall to eat the delicacy of Terengganu…fried fish and squid in batter….Yummmm…

So if you are immune to seasickness…..Let’s Jom!!!!