It may be surprising, given the island's small size, but even though the Besar Islands is dominated by tourism, it has a distinct native culture, with its own laksa dish and unique cultural elements. Find out how to explore them on your tropical island holiday on Pulau Besar.
The Pulau Besar community was always small, and has become smaller still. Yet the sense of a community is evident in little touches, the moment you disembark from your ferry. Though there is but one village lane along the coastline connecting the entire community, it is paved, so that villagers could transport goods with small motorised vehicles like electric buggies and motorcycles, and move around on bicycles. There are maps of the island at regular intervals, along with reminders that the island is a Marine Park - and its rules.
But the small community is more than just organised. Besar Islands is close enough to the mainland to be part of the same culture community as Mersing, but isolated enough that many of the old ways survived while the mainland changed as new influences arrived, giving us glimpses of Malay culture of the distant past. As Malaysians say, kecil-kecil cili padi - like bird's eye chilli, don't underestimate what's small in size.
Why is the island called Pulau Babi Besar?
The legend of Babi Besar Island
Why is it just called Besar Island now?
History of the Besar Islands
Like many of the small islands along the peninsula's eastern coast, the Besar Islands have long been inhabited by fishermen of native coastal people, the Malays. Of the Besar cluster, a perennial community exists only on Pulau Besar itself, which is the largest of the islands.
Today, all the villages lie along the western coastline of the island. However, the original village was located up in the hills. This made life as a fishing community less convenient. But back in the day, it wasn’t necessarily safe to be near the coast. The elders say that there were many sailing ships passing by, and soldiers once occupied the shoreline. During the Second World War, naval battles were fought between the British and the Japanese around these islands; the Battle of Endau took place not far north of the Besar cluster.
During the Vietnam War, Malaysia suddenly received a large influx of Vietnamese refugees fleeing the conflict. A few islands were designated as refugee camps. One was Pulau Babi Tengah (Middle Boar Island). There are still some traces of the camp along Tengah Island's hiking trails. Eventually, all were moved to third countries or repatriated. But occasionally, some of them - or their descendants - visit Tengah Island to honour the past.
History of Besar Islands
The villagers moved down from the hills in modern, safer times. The island received government amenities such as a school, police station, and clinic. In the 1960s, many left the island to join the FELDA government program, to settle plantations and become the country's first oil palm smallholders. Later, the village diversified from fishing and copra production into tourism, as the islands became gazetted as Marine Parks. Every year or so, the survival TV series Expedition Robinson comes to film.
As opportunities improve on the mainland, the village community gets smaller over time. The last teacher of its folk dance, and the last speaker of the island's dialect, have moved to the mainland as they aged. However, sustainable tourism efforts in present times provide opportunity to share this culture, and perhaps revive it beyond the Besar Islands.
Besar Island cuisine
Nowadays, with tourism growing in the Besar Islands, the food culture has changed. You will find the typical hotel menu range in the resorts. However, since the village isn't really separated from the tourism, you can also easily just walk or cycle to village eateries for something a bit more local.
However, in the old days when even the short distance to the mainland was not often crossed - and especially in the tengkujuh monsoon season - the food culture of Pulau Besar required more intimacy with the islands. The island is just large and hilly enough that fresh water was not a concern. Food, however, came from fishing in the abundant coastal waters of the Besar cluster, as well as forage from the island's food forest.
The Austronesian food forest involves managing a modified forest, where food crops are intentionally planted within a forest ecosystem, to increase long term harvest without much repetitive effort. The jungle bush of Pulau Besar still has fruit trees bearing durian, mangosteen, and langsat, which the villagers harvest in season as needed, but otherwise leave to the resident flying foxes. But certain jungle herbs and leaves were also foraged - sometimes for medicine, but also just because it makes food more delicious!
A food garden is planted closer to the homes. Yams were the primary carbs, for rice only comes from the mainland. A variety of shrubs produce cooking ingredients - for instance, aromatics like pandan, belimbing buluh for acidity.
Closer to shore, coconut trees are abundant, providing food, oil, and other benefits. And even this close to shore, there is forage yielding snack foods - like sea almonds.
Must-try food: Laksa pulau
Island food isn't just forage and simply prepared dishes. Different regions of Malaysia have their own laksa versions. Did you know that the Seri Buat archipelago has their own delicious variation of this spicy noodle soup dish?
Laksa pulau, or island laksa, is distinguished by the smoked tuna flavour in its slightly tangy spicy broth. It is served simply, with dried noodles and shredded smoked tuna, limes and chilli sambal on the side - and little to no vegetables.
The flavourful laksa pulau nevertheless tells the story of its geography. The monsoon is a season of storms and high winds, during which it is difficult to go to sea or reach the mainland. Fresh food is scarce. So islanders prepared for the monsoon by smoking their catch to preserve them.
During the monsoon, they made laksa with the smoked fish, flavouring it with coconut milk and their store of dried spices from the mainland, and pairing it with dried noodles from the monsoon season supply.
Laksa pulau is a must-try dish on Pulau Besar, and is available at Warung Besa Bamboo.
Sira gula melaka
Of course, on a tropical island like Pulau Besar, with coconut palms everywhere, you can expect to get fresh coconut drinks. Villagers even grow kelapa pandan specifically, which is a coconut variant with particularly delicious and fragrant water.
However, the island has an even more delicious thirst quencher. Stop by the stall Kelapa Cik Nor for sira air kelapa and try Pulau Besar's local refreshing drink of coconut water sweetened with palm (gula melaka) syrup.
Tip: If you bring your own wide-necked drink container, you can help the village reduce tourism-related plastic waste.
Pulau Besar food
Learn to cook Malay cuisine with Rumah Eko
Do you like doing community activities on your vacation? You can learn to cook traditional Malay cuisine with the Pulau Besar community through the Rumah Eko "Cooking with Community" program.
Join a forage and harvest fresh ingredients from Rumah Eko's on-site food garden, and enjoy social time with the community while learning how to cook island cuisine. And of course - have a feast after! (Note: advance booking required.)
Join a biocultural walk & forage on Besar Island
Alternatively, you can also book a guided trek with Rumah Eko that focuses more on the island's food forest ecosystem. Spot skink burrows and upside down flying foxes along the way, snack on petai belalang, and enjoy the island views.
There are two biocultural trekking routes on Pulau Besar. Review trekking information on the map below.
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Zapin pulau - a Mersing cultural dance
The zapin is a traditional Malay dance of Arab origin, common across the Malay cultural region of Southeast Asia, and especially in the Malaysian state of Johor. A swift dance, it is choreographed to melodies performed with the gambus lute, rebana drum, and accordian.
Many variations of zapin exist across the region - and the Seri Buat islands have their own! Called zapin pulau, or island zapin, this variation belongs to the islands of Mersing and Tioman Island, with remaining teachers from the islands of Babi Besar, Tioman, and Aur. Zapin pulau differ from others in that the steps are more orderly, with many unique motifs, such as the basrah step, the oblique step, the udang step, the ayam patah step, and many more.
On Pulau Besar, you can enjoy zapin performances during island festivals. The best way to find out when the next Festival Pulau Besar takes place is by following Tengah Island Conservation's social media.
Anyam ketupat - Malay palm origami
Anyam ketupat is a Malay weaving craft where palm fronds are woven into different shapes, like origami. This craft is common across Austronesia, found across Southeast Asia, in Polynesia, and the Indian Ocean. In most Malaysian communities today, the craft is limited to the weaving of ketupat containers, to make the traditional Malay compressed rice cakes. However, the full range of skill can produce creative variations from birds, fish, fruit, stars and even goats.
The craft survives in its original artistic skill in a few communities: for example, the Mah Meri in Selangor - and Pulau Besar. You can learn basic palm weaving on your holiday with Mak Odah, one of the island's last palm weavers. Enquire at Rumah Eko to arrange a session.
