(From top): Malaysia’s coastline throws up some of the most picturesque beaches in the world; a tourist gets ready to scuba dive in Penang; a visitor enjoys the natural beauty of the landscape; a traditional Malay dancer; one of Malaysia’s several world-class golf courses

Did I miss the opportunity of a lifetime? There I was at the A’Famosa Resort in Melaka, Malaysia and there a few yards away was a full-sized tiger in all his magnificent glory. The keepers insisted he was as tame as a pussycat and that we should sit on a nearby bench and feed him a bowl of powdered milk. All we had to do was put the bowl on our laps and he would lap it up gratefully. Did I grab the opportunity? Did I have my Jim Corbett moment? The answer, sadly, is no.

But I did make up in other ways before hitting Melaka. At Batu Ferringhi beach in Penang I mustered up the courage to go parasailing after being given a crash course (pun intended) on the do’s and don’ts of flying above the waves. “Just run a few steps ahead and let go. You will fly high, very high,” said Mahesh, the instructor, who was obviously not a man for detailed instructions.

Following his commands to the letter, I clutched tightly to the parachute strings as if my life depended on it ? it did. Once I had got my breath back, I found myself looking down and taking in the sights below. I even had my Leonardo Di Caprio moment shouting, “I’m the king of the world” to the wind and a few passing seagulls.

In the tourism game the Malaysians are truly pulling out all the stops. Surrounded by the Thais and the Indonesians with their glorious beaches, the Malaysians are working hard to offer travellers that little bit extra that makes all the difference.

So, I found myself at A’Famosa Resort, an almost five-hour drive from Penang. Spanning a 52-hectare area, it’s surrounded by rolling hills and lush countryside. You may think it a bit kitschy but this resort has an extraordinary mix of attractions for jaded travellers who’ve been there, done it all and got the postcard. For those who like nothing better than to swing a club across the greens there’s an international class championship golf course. And, if you are like me, there was a waterworld where you can get a close up view of the most exotic underwater creatures and an animal world for terra firma beasts where you can go on a safari. If you are looking for entertainment of a different kind, you could spend time in Cowboy Town or the Monkey Island. There’s even a microlight flying club and private holiday bungalows. Yep, there’s truly something for everyone here.

What do you get in a Malaysian reconstruction of the pistol-packing days in the Wild West? Cowboy Town had everything from live bands, restaurants, disco pubs, cowboys and cowgirls, country songs, stunt shows, street brawls and trick horse rides.

The cowboy bands came after a cultural evening of a different sort. In Penang we ? an assortments of journalists and travel industry professionals ? had gathered at the very picturesque Bayview Beach Resort for a Chinese New Year 2006 dinner. The proceedings began with a traditional Malay welcome dance, the Zapin that is very colourful with its ribbons and fans fluttering about. In the background the musicians bang away on instruments like the drum and the erhu.

Nevertheless, the best part of the evening was the sumptuous banquet that had been laid out. It was an exotic and unforgettable eight-course meal ? with items like tom yam soup, tandoori chicken garnished with onion rings and fresh lime wedges, deep fried prawns with fragrant curry leaves, braised mixed vegetables with Pacific clams and my personal favourite, black mushrooms.

Once we had been through all that, the waiters came out bearing deep-fried whole snappers with Thai sauce, Oriental fried rice with seafood and silver anchovies. Dessert was chilled honeydew sago with blended ice cream. By the end of it all, I was finding it slightly difficult to breathe. Can I please have a bit of sympathy?

We decided to let the food settle down by talking a stroll through the night bazaar where I recovered from the meal with selective shopping. I picked up a collection of colourful Chinese trinkets for myself. Then I followed that up with some handmade paper fans, junk jewellery, shell curios, wall hangings and scarfs. Great. Now I had taken care of the folks back home.

The next morning we visited a batik factory and the Penang Butterfly Farm. The guys at the batik factory have perfected the art of winning over the tourists and getting them to ooh and aah. We were shown how blocks of different designs are etched on plain white stretched thin cotton cloth using hot paraffin wax. These designs are then filled out with the most vibrant colours. The end products ranged from wrap-round skirts and traditional Malaysian dresses to sarongs and scarfs ? and they were on sale at the factory for anyone who cared to part with their cash.

Later we headed to the butterfly farm. But on the way we saw rows of houses that had been rebuilt after the tsunami by the Malaysian government. Back at the hotel, it was time for watersports. That’s when I had my first attempt at jetskiing that sent a thrill coursing down my spine.

What about food in this land where three cultures meet? Beginning my Malaysian explorations in Kuala Lumpur, I had dined on an indifferent masala dosa, so there was no chance of getting nostalgic and missing Indian food. When I got a bit more courageous, I tucked into the nasi goreng ? the rice dish which is popular in this part of the world.

Also, on offer during our frequent travel stops were fruits ? lots of them. I bit into every exotic fruit that I could see like the Miracle fruit (a tiny red-coloured fruit), lemba, jambuara, fig, nam nam and tanpang. The more familiar fruits I sank my teeth into were avocados, bananas, jackfruits, nutmegs, pomegranates and papaya.

Like Indians love their bhelpuris, the Malays love their fruit chaats. Now a word of warning: the fruit chaat looks very attractive, topped off with dark, sinful chocolate sauce and nuts. But beware of the sauce. It’s unlike any chocolate sauce I’ve ever tasted.

That might seem like a sour note to end my journey. But when you’ve been parasailing, jetskiing and even had an encounter with a tiger ? the trip was anything but tame.