This article first appeared in Options, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on September 21, 2020 - September 27, 2020

While Amran Ahmed did not see the pandemic coming – and with it, the closing of borders, the wearing of face masks and a fear of large crowds and physical contact — his hospitality proposition in Langkawi was clearly made for this new normal. Diana Khoo speaks to the youthful hotelier behind Ambong-Ambong Rainforest Retreat and Ambong Pool Villas.

Travelling in the new normal evokes three main emotions: loathing, resignation or excitement. After all, for many among us who used to travel frequently — for work and pleasure, to the point where there was always packed luggage on standby — 2020 is the year of almost forgetting what the drive to the airport feels like.

For most Malaysians, however, the Ministry of Health’s able handling, led by a most capable director-general, has resulted in a relative flattening of Covid-19’s epidemiological curve and several victories, both big and small. This includes not having to undergo all the hardship — physical, mental and economic — that a second nationwide lockdown would entail and keeping the number of new cases relatively low; low enough for many citizens to, once again, begin to feel secure enough to enjoy the pleasures of living a normal-as-can-be life as well as the relative freedom of being able to explore the country once more.

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