The trip's over! We're back in Taiwan, after three amazing days in Hong Kong. There were so many cool things there. We went up the Midlevel Escalator, which is a series of escalators that go up through all these neighborhoods up in the hills. Then we made our way to a cool little zoo right in the middle of the city. After that we took a tram to The Peak, where you can look out over the city lights. Beautiful. The next day we took a half-hour gondola ride (with a glass bottom) to the biggest bronze seated Buddha in the world. It was really cool to see up close. Then we had our Thanksgiving dinner at a nice Thai restaurant. It wasn't quite like the states, but we tried to choose a place that felt kind of homey. (There were lots of families there and a Christmas tree) Then we went back to Temple Street night market and had one last look around before turning in and getting ready for our flight the next day.
And now we're back. Sue was nice enough to let us stay with her for these couple days before setting off to the states. It's so strange to be back in the old place and not have it be our place any more! Tonight we're getting together with some friends to drink beer and eat seafood on a rooftop restaurant near Daan Park. It's SO sad to say goodbye to people we've grown so close to and have had so much fun with over the past two years. I don't think it's really sunk in yet that we're leaving for good in two days. I'm trying not to think about it.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Vientiane and Hanoi
The tubing was everything we could have wanted. Incredible. Tubing is a bizarre water/party experience in Laos. We went with our British friends, Selina and Perry, who we've been traveling with for a few days. We got up early to fit it in before we moved on to Vientiane. We walked to the tubing place, where we signed a paper that excused the company of any injury that could occur while on the river. Then they scrawled a number on our arms in permanent marker and drove us up four kilometers by tuk tuk to the starting point, which was a bar. We met up with a couple of Germans and a taciturn Italian named Simone.
It was 9:30 in the morning, we were the first group, and we were offered a free shot of Tiger whiskey, which we all felt we had to accept. After that we all jumped in our tubes and floated by bar after bar, asking us to drink their beer and free whisky (and free bananas?). Some of the bars had slides and rope swings. The bar owners would throw ropes, life preservers, and bamboo poles into the water to reel us in. We stopped at a recommended one, famous for its enormous water slide and trapeze-like rope swing. Both were utterly terrifying and totally awesome. The water slide went up at an angle at the end, catapulting the slider high into the air, unable to control how they landed in the water. The trapeze was insanely high up. You had to climb a ladder forever, then teeter on the edge as the guy brought the trapeze to you. There were no harnesses or helmets, just the strength in your arms (which I don't have much of to start with). This was probably one of the craziest things we've ever done, and crazier knowing that it would be 100 percent illegal in the US, or just about any other country for that matter.
The last day in Laos we spent in the capital, Vientiane. Took the bus four hours from Vang Vieng, then checked into the Orchid Guest House when we arrived. We only had one evening there, but walked around a bit with our new British friend, Selina, and looked for lady boys. We saw a couple, too! The next day we were off on a flight to Hanoi.
We only spent one night here, also, but we made the most of it. We ran into a girl at the airport who was promoting her new hostel, called The Drift. We (John, Me, a couple from Britain, and a couple from Australia) got a free nights stay out of it. It was a really cool place with tons of information and an awesome rooftop bar, where we drank their specialty drink, the vodka bucket. It was a really great way to spend one night in Hanoi.
Today we got on a plane and now we're in Hong Kong, which is also totally awesome. It's like Taipei but way bigger, and with people always trying to sell you suits. We checked into our cheap but clean hotel and then visited the Temple Street market, where we ate some awesome wontons and talked for a long time to a Korean guy named Guan.
After so many days of going going going, we're excited to spend a few days in one place, just wandering. There's lots to see here, and we can't wait!
It was 9:30 in the morning, we were the first group, and we were offered a free shot of Tiger whiskey, which we all felt we had to accept. After that we all jumped in our tubes and floated by bar after bar, asking us to drink their beer and free whisky (and free bananas?). Some of the bars had slides and rope swings. The bar owners would throw ropes, life preservers, and bamboo poles into the water to reel us in. We stopped at a recommended one, famous for its enormous water slide and trapeze-like rope swing. Both were utterly terrifying and totally awesome. The water slide went up at an angle at the end, catapulting the slider high into the air, unable to control how they landed in the water. The trapeze was insanely high up. You had to climb a ladder forever, then teeter on the edge as the guy brought the trapeze to you. There were no harnesses or helmets, just the strength in your arms (which I don't have much of to start with). This was probably one of the craziest things we've ever done, and crazier knowing that it would be 100 percent illegal in the US, or just about any other country for that matter.
The last day in Laos we spent in the capital, Vientiane. Took the bus four hours from Vang Vieng, then checked into the Orchid Guest House when we arrived. We only had one evening there, but walked around a bit with our new British friend, Selina, and looked for lady boys. We saw a couple, too! The next day we were off on a flight to Hanoi.
We only spent one night here, also, but we made the most of it. We ran into a girl at the airport who was promoting her new hostel, called The Drift. We (John, Me, a couple from Britain, and a couple from Australia) got a free nights stay out of it. It was a really cool place with tons of information and an awesome rooftop bar, where we drank their specialty drink, the vodka bucket. It was a really great way to spend one night in Hanoi.
Today we got on a plane and now we're in Hong Kong, which is also totally awesome. It's like Taipei but way bigger, and with people always trying to sell you suits. We checked into our cheap but clean hotel and then visited the Temple Street market, where we ate some awesome wontons and talked for a long time to a Korean guy named Guan.
After so many days of going going going, we're excited to spend a few days in one place, just wandering. There's lots to see here, and we can't wait!
Friday, November 20, 2009
Luang Prabang and Vang Vieng
We're in Vang Vieng! And it took some adventuring to get here for sure. We got to the Laos border town and got on a slow boat no problem, and met up with a really cool little group who we're now traveling with until Hanoi. There are three girls from New Zealand, two German guys, and a couple from England. We're all on the same page travel-wise, which makes everything easier and cheaper.
After we got on the slow boat it was a different story. We skipped the chance to sit on one of the wooden benches available and opted for the roomier floor at the front of the boat. We had all our pillows ready and settled in with books and ipods. After about an hour of clear skies and beautiful Mekong river views, we suddenly stopped in what seemed like the middle of nowhere. Eventually we found out (by way of sign language and deductive reasoning) that our boat had broken and were waiting for another one to take us the rest of the seven hours. After another hour, a significantly smaller boat showed up right along side of us, and there was a mad rush for seats. John and I waited too long and missed out on the seats. We ended up hugging our knees on the floor of the boat between two rows of people. Not fun. Not fun at all. We kept up a pretty positive attitude, I must say though. I wanted to complain so badly but there was just no one to be mad at. We were definitely excited to pull into the dock that night, and sleep in our glorified tent of a hotel room.
The second day was much better. We left at nine in the morning with about a third of the amount of people from the previous day. We all got nice spots (on the floor but with the ability to spread out a bit) and rode the rest of the eight hours to Luang Prabang. This day was really cold though, and we all spent the time trying to somehow make our pant legs and sleeves longer.
Luang Prabang was, yet again, incredible. The French had settled there at some point in history, leaving behind little French-like markets and cafes, and lots of baguettes. We had a great day walking around the town, watching the orange-robed monks everywhere, and visiting temples along the Mekong River.
Today we made the six hour minibus ride to Vang Vieng, where we are now. The scenery is breathtaking. Nothing but enormous jutting mountains everywhere, and really interesting villages along the road, and pigs and chickens and ducks constantly. We're all staying in these little bungalows by the river, and it's only costing us 30,000 kip (about three us dollars). We're planning on going tubing tomorrow, which is kind of the main thing you do here, besides explore caves. Might leave tomorrow for Vientiane, just three hours away by bus. Laos is amazing. We're loving it.
After we got on the slow boat it was a different story. We skipped the chance to sit on one of the wooden benches available and opted for the roomier floor at the front of the boat. We had all our pillows ready and settled in with books and ipods. After about an hour of clear skies and beautiful Mekong river views, we suddenly stopped in what seemed like the middle of nowhere. Eventually we found out (by way of sign language and deductive reasoning) that our boat had broken and were waiting for another one to take us the rest of the seven hours. After another hour, a significantly smaller boat showed up right along side of us, and there was a mad rush for seats. John and I waited too long and missed out on the seats. We ended up hugging our knees on the floor of the boat between two rows of people. Not fun. Not fun at all. We kept up a pretty positive attitude, I must say though. I wanted to complain so badly but there was just no one to be mad at. We were definitely excited to pull into the dock that night, and sleep in our glorified tent of a hotel room.
The second day was much better. We left at nine in the morning with about a third of the amount of people from the previous day. We all got nice spots (on the floor but with the ability to spread out a bit) and rode the rest of the eight hours to Luang Prabang. This day was really cold though, and we all spent the time trying to somehow make our pant legs and sleeves longer.
Luang Prabang was, yet again, incredible. The French had settled there at some point in history, leaving behind little French-like markets and cafes, and lots of baguettes. We had a great day walking around the town, watching the orange-robed monks everywhere, and visiting temples along the Mekong River.
Today we made the six hour minibus ride to Vang Vieng, where we are now. The scenery is breathtaking. Nothing but enormous jutting mountains everywhere, and really interesting villages along the road, and pigs and chickens and ducks constantly. We're all staying in these little bungalows by the river, and it's only costing us 30,000 kip (about three us dollars). We're planning on going tubing tomorrow, which is kind of the main thing you do here, besides explore caves. Might leave tomorrow for Vientiane, just three hours away by bus. Laos is amazing. We're loving it.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Moving on
Our time in Chiang Mai is up! We're leaving tomorrow morning to travel to the border by van. We're staying in the border town Chiang Khong, which is supposed to be very cool. Then we're off to the slow boat to Luang Prabang in Laos.
We went on a day trek today. Started by taking an ox cart ride, which was a bit hokey, but still cool. They took us in a little 15 minute loop. Kind of a time filler, but it was interesting to be on these old rickety carts. After that we went on a stifling bamboo raft ride. Sun beating down but again, totally beautiful scenery. When that was done we rode elephants. Absolutely awesome. It was a very bumpy ride, and terrifying when our elephant seemed like she wanted to take a shortcut down a cliff, but once I realized that the elephants wanted to fall down even less than we wanted them to, I felt like I could relax. One of the elephants had a little baby that trotted along beside the whole time. Later when the ride was over, we were all playing with the baby, and it wrapped its trunk around the strap of my camera and almost flung it into the bushes. John had a little tug of war with it and eventually won. After the elephants we visited a mountain tribe village where all the women had elongated necks and wore metal coils around them. We bought a couple hand woven scarfs which are absolutely beautiful.
Once we got back we ate khao soi (maybe our last bowl ever) and walked around the Sunday market, trying to resist buying everything we saw. We ended up getting 60 bhat foot massages, which were pretty intense, but left us feeling like we were walking on air.
Now it's off to get a good night's rest before our travels tomorrow. Bye Thailand!
We went on a day trek today. Started by taking an ox cart ride, which was a bit hokey, but still cool. They took us in a little 15 minute loop. Kind of a time filler, but it was interesting to be on these old rickety carts. After that we went on a stifling bamboo raft ride. Sun beating down but again, totally beautiful scenery. When that was done we rode elephants. Absolutely awesome. It was a very bumpy ride, and terrifying when our elephant seemed like she wanted to take a shortcut down a cliff, but once I realized that the elephants wanted to fall down even less than we wanted them to, I felt like I could relax. One of the elephants had a little baby that trotted along beside the whole time. Later when the ride was over, we were all playing with the baby, and it wrapped its trunk around the strap of my camera and almost flung it into the bushes. John had a little tug of war with it and eventually won. After the elephants we visited a mountain tribe village where all the women had elongated necks and wore metal coils around them. We bought a couple hand woven scarfs which are absolutely beautiful.
Once we got back we ate khao soi (maybe our last bowl ever) and walked around the Sunday market, trying to resist buying everything we saw. We ended up getting 60 bhat foot massages, which were pretty intense, but left us feeling like we were walking on air.
Now it's off to get a good night's rest before our travels tomorrow. Bye Thailand!
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Chiang Mai
So we left KK, and flew into Bangkok for one night before heading north to Chiang Mai. We stayed in the place we were in last year, right near Khao San road, which of course we visited and bought cheap clothes and good food from. Yesterday, we hopped on a V.I.P. bus from Bangkok and drove ten hours to Chiang Mai, where we are now. That bus was nice. Lots of leg room and an attendant who served us coffee and snacks. All for about 25 US dollars. I think we're spoiled now; trying not to expect that every time!
We arrived last night and found a nice, kind of sparse, but clean hotel within the town. We didn't have to walk far to find some amazing Thai food and fruit shakes.
We are now in the middle of exploring Chiang Mai, which is such an incredible place. It's much more laid back than Bangkok, of course it's much smaller, about a million people or so. The city center is in a square surrounded by a moat. The old wall is visible in some parts. This city is famous for its handicrafts, made by numerous mountain tribes that surround the area. Lots of silver, umbrellas, and textiles. All are so beautiful. We're heading to a night market later on, and hopefully tomorrow we're going to ride elephants and bamboo rafts on a short day trip out of the city.
We've also booked a van/slow boat journey to Luang Prabang in Laos for a couple days from now. That was a relief, because once we got here, we realized that it might not be so easy to find an easily accessible place to cross into Laos. So now that's out of the way, we're having a great time relaxing and wandering the town.
More later!
We arrived last night and found a nice, kind of sparse, but clean hotel within the town. We didn't have to walk far to find some amazing Thai food and fruit shakes.
We are now in the middle of exploring Chiang Mai, which is such an incredible place. It's much more laid back than Bangkok, of course it's much smaller, about a million people or so. The city center is in a square surrounded by a moat. The old wall is visible in some parts. This city is famous for its handicrafts, made by numerous mountain tribes that surround the area. Lots of silver, umbrellas, and textiles. All are so beautiful. We're heading to a night market later on, and hopefully tomorrow we're going to ride elephants and bamboo rafts on a short day trip out of the city.
We've also booked a van/slow boat journey to Luang Prabang in Laos for a couple days from now. That was a relief, because once we got here, we realized that it might not be so easy to find an easily accessible place to cross into Laos. So now that's out of the way, we're having a great time relaxing and wandering the town.
More later!
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Wild Animals
Let me just say, Borneo is probably the coolest place ever. We've had such a blast here; it's crazy to think we're flying out so soon! Have to talk about Sukau Rainforest Lodge....
So after we visited the orangutans, in the wild, no cages, no barriers, we were whisked away by speedboat two hours south to Sukau, where we got to our lodge. It's called Sukau Rainforest Lodge, an eco-lodge deep in the rain forest. This is the place. Our guide, Wan, was sure to tell us that this lodge was NOT a hotel and definitely NOT a resort. No air-con, many mosquitoes, all kinds of bugs. I was a little worried. But when we showed up, we were thrilled to find an absolutely beautiful Borneo longhouse-style lodge right on the edge of the river. The atmosphere was very relaxing, with the main area open to the rain forest, no walls. They even provided us with sarongs to wear to dinner, which was really nice.
We spent the next two days going on river cruises and a jungle trek in search of wild animals, which we saw plenty of. The river cruise was us six on the tour plus Wan, our guide. We went up and down the river, and took a million pictures of long-tailed macaques and the interesting proboscis monkey. We saw SO many of those, and apparently they only live in Borneo. There were also lots of colorful and interesting birds, egrets, storks, eagles, hornbills, and kingfishers of all sorts. It was SO incredibly cool to see these animals in the wild, I couldn't believe it.
The trek was fun, but a little more nerve-racking because we were brushing leeches off each other the whole time, and making sure our leech-proof socks (provided by the lodge) were staying up. Wan showed us lots of plants used by the indigenous people for all kinds of things.
We also went on two night river cruises, which were an entirely different story. Being on a rickety little boat in the pitch dark with a spotlight felt kind of like the beginning of the pirates of the carribbean ride, except if we fell out we'd probably be eaten by crocodiles. We saw so many awesome animals those nights. Our guide, Marvin, shone a spotlight all around the banks, looking for the reflection of the animals' eyes. I was incredulous at first, but Marvin delivered. Right away we spotted a kingfisher, and got right up close to it, because apparently they're blind at night, and can't see the light or us at all. We saw a civet cat climbing a tree, and three of the largest species of kingfisher. They were huge and so colorful. Then we saw an owl, a purple heron, and a baby crocodile.
The second night cruise was even more exciting. We saw a big kingfisher and a baby crocodile again, then another civet cat, a couple of owls, and then, the most exciting, we saw TWO western tarsiers! Marvin said he'd only ever seen four of these little guys in eight years before that night. He was seriously excited about it, and so were we. I got a couple of grainy pictures of them. Not great but proof that they were there!
Now we're back in KK after a six-hour bus ride, wishing we were back at the rain forest lodge. We were sad to not see any elephants like some of the other people staying at the lodge had the week before, but those tarsiers made up for it, I think. If I could only come back to one place from this trip so far, I'd go back there definitely.
So after we visited the orangutans, in the wild, no cages, no barriers, we were whisked away by speedboat two hours south to Sukau, where we got to our lodge. It's called Sukau Rainforest Lodge, an eco-lodge deep in the rain forest. This is the place. Our guide, Wan, was sure to tell us that this lodge was NOT a hotel and definitely NOT a resort. No air-con, many mosquitoes, all kinds of bugs. I was a little worried. But when we showed up, we were thrilled to find an absolutely beautiful Borneo longhouse-style lodge right on the edge of the river. The atmosphere was very relaxing, with the main area open to the rain forest, no walls. They even provided us with sarongs to wear to dinner, which was really nice.
We spent the next two days going on river cruises and a jungle trek in search of wild animals, which we saw plenty of. The river cruise was us six on the tour plus Wan, our guide. We went up and down the river, and took a million pictures of long-tailed macaques and the interesting proboscis monkey. We saw SO many of those, and apparently they only live in Borneo. There were also lots of colorful and interesting birds, egrets, storks, eagles, hornbills, and kingfishers of all sorts. It was SO incredibly cool to see these animals in the wild, I couldn't believe it.
The trek was fun, but a little more nerve-racking because we were brushing leeches off each other the whole time, and making sure our leech-proof socks (provided by the lodge) were staying up. Wan showed us lots of plants used by the indigenous people for all kinds of things.
We also went on two night river cruises, which were an entirely different story. Being on a rickety little boat in the pitch dark with a spotlight felt kind of like the beginning of the pirates of the carribbean ride, except if we fell out we'd probably be eaten by crocodiles. We saw so many awesome animals those nights. Our guide, Marvin, shone a spotlight all around the banks, looking for the reflection of the animals' eyes. I was incredulous at first, but Marvin delivered. Right away we spotted a kingfisher, and got right up close to it, because apparently they're blind at night, and can't see the light or us at all. We saw a civet cat climbing a tree, and three of the largest species of kingfisher. They were huge and so colorful. Then we saw an owl, a purple heron, and a baby crocodile.
The second night cruise was even more exciting. We saw a big kingfisher and a baby crocodile again, then another civet cat, a couple of owls, and then, the most exciting, we saw TWO western tarsiers! Marvin said he'd only ever seen four of these little guys in eight years before that night. He was seriously excited about it, and so were we. I got a couple of grainy pictures of them. Not great but proof that they were there!
Now we're back in KK after a six-hour bus ride, wishing we were back at the rain forest lodge. We were sad to not see any elephants like some of the other people staying at the lodge had the week before, but those tarsiers made up for it, I think. If I could only come back to one place from this trip so far, I'd go back there definitely.
From the Philippines to Borneo
So we leavc Boracay and take an extremely concerning ferry boat ride back to the island of Mindoro (the port town of Roxas). We are headed for Sabang beach in the north of the island, but first must make it across the tempermental sea. Aboard the ship we rock back and forth and side to side over the choppy whitecapped waves underneath. The boat literally leaves the surface of the water and crashes back down, sending giant bursts of white water up to the top of the ship. Perhaps it's my inexperience in the nautical arena, but I don't think this is a good thing. However, as you've probably guessed, we survived.
We make our way up to Sabang via very mini-van and jeepney. A nice lady named Puri takes us to a great little cottage that sits just a few feet from the lagoon's edge. It's a bit rough inside, but there's a wonderful patio in front where Mel and I enjoyed some drinks and song. (I brought the mini-guitar hoping for this kind of scenario.) The "touts" are quite prevalent and offer us various goods and services, but they always seemed to meet our declines with a "bahala na" sort of attitude. Quiet in the day here, but a bit scandelous at night with the strip clubs ( or "discos"), many bars, foreigner-seeking Filipino women....and ladyboys.
Off after a couple nights in this very interesting town and bound for Borneo. We meet Ronald Go, our trusted taxi driver in Batangas who escorts us back to the International airport in Manila. We didn't find him right away and found the local police a bit sketchy, what with the knife-sharpening friend and the police allowing us to use their phone if we paid a price that was "up to us." Not all fun and games in the Philippines. But, we arrive to the airport safely and are soon airborn toward Malaysia.
Safely landed, we deboard in both Mel's and mine first Islamic country. We didn't know quite what to expect of Kota Kinabahlu, the capital of the western state of Sabah. Met a German who met two Malaysian ladies who took us into town for a few Ringgit each (Ringgit being the currency here.) Stay at the Hotel Holiday, a nice bare necessities type place in the city center. We walk around and immediately notice the cultural diversity of this country. There are men in tunics, women in burkas, Chinese and Arabic signs, Indian restaurants, Filipino influences and so much more. The people are an eclectic mix and seem to be all smiles when you exchange a glance. We are greeted by quite a few "hellos" and "where are you froms", as well as, many waves from the locals. The city is also surprisingly well developed. The Malaysian economy, although apparantly not doing very well at the moment, is clearly superior to the Philippines. It reminds us a lot of Taipei with nicer buildings, fully-paved roads and artistic landscaping.
We start off the following day for Sandakan, a city in the Northeast part of Sabah where we are to begin our tour to Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Center and cruise through rain forest along the Kinabatangan river, near the town of Sukau. In Sandakan we stroll the streets and take in the grittier, but possibly even friendlier, side of Sabah. It's a dusty little town center by the port and the smiles and waves are quite frequent. And the cultural salad is evident on every street corner. We had a nice dinner on the waterfront and headed to bed, early 740 rise the next day.
Morning came and we met our guide Mirwan who began the day by guiding us through a very interesting market outside of the hotel and to the van. He is a great guy, very laid back, but enthusiastic about his country. We also met our tour-mates Mark and Mel, Jocelyn and Di. All great folks, indeed. Mirwan or 'Wan' gave us the lowdown on the events of the day and some background about the Sepilok center.
Sepilok finds and rescues orphaned orangutans (which means 'people of the forest' in Malay) and rehabilitates/reintroduces them into the wild. It is a gradual process that takes years, but it is working to restore the numbers of orangutans in the wild. The deforesting through logging and palm-oil plantations has widdled down the population to endangered and left many orphaned. Sepilok, working with the government to help educate the country's residents, has done amazing things. The tour visits help bring much needed funds and increase awareness. Plus it's pretty radical for us, too.
Anyway, you walk along a boardwalk through the forest and find an open area that resembles a large house deck in the middle of the forest. Surrounding are several platforms, ropes and wild rainforest. No cages. No bars. Soon we spot a few of these incredible creatures swinging aptly by hands and feet. They seem so comfortable swinging from branch to branch. With incredible luck, an alpha male comes to the platform and gives everyone a rare treat. He is enormous and looks more like a gorilla than an orangutan. The crowd is stunned. A few pig-tailed macaques make their entrance, but don't get much from the big daddy. Wan tells us there would be more, but the other males don't dare come round when poppa is there.
Beautiful creatures.
We make our way up to Sabang via very mini-van and jeepney. A nice lady named Puri takes us to a great little cottage that sits just a few feet from the lagoon's edge. It's a bit rough inside, but there's a wonderful patio in front where Mel and I enjoyed some drinks and song. (I brought the mini-guitar hoping for this kind of scenario.) The "touts" are quite prevalent and offer us various goods and services, but they always seemed to meet our declines with a "bahala na" sort of attitude. Quiet in the day here, but a bit scandelous at night with the strip clubs ( or "discos"), many bars, foreigner-seeking Filipino women....and ladyboys.
Off after a couple nights in this very interesting town and bound for Borneo. We meet Ronald Go, our trusted taxi driver in Batangas who escorts us back to the International airport in Manila. We didn't find him right away and found the local police a bit sketchy, what with the knife-sharpening friend and the police allowing us to use their phone if we paid a price that was "up to us." Not all fun and games in the Philippines. But, we arrive to the airport safely and are soon airborn toward Malaysia.
Safely landed, we deboard in both Mel's and mine first Islamic country. We didn't know quite what to expect of Kota Kinabahlu, the capital of the western state of Sabah. Met a German who met two Malaysian ladies who took us into town for a few Ringgit each (Ringgit being the currency here.) Stay at the Hotel Holiday, a nice bare necessities type place in the city center. We walk around and immediately notice the cultural diversity of this country. There are men in tunics, women in burkas, Chinese and Arabic signs, Indian restaurants, Filipino influences and so much more. The people are an eclectic mix and seem to be all smiles when you exchange a glance. We are greeted by quite a few "hellos" and "where are you froms", as well as, many waves from the locals. The city is also surprisingly well developed. The Malaysian economy, although apparantly not doing very well at the moment, is clearly superior to the Philippines. It reminds us a lot of Taipei with nicer buildings, fully-paved roads and artistic landscaping.
We start off the following day for Sandakan, a city in the Northeast part of Sabah where we are to begin our tour to Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Center and cruise through rain forest along the Kinabatangan river, near the town of Sukau. In Sandakan we stroll the streets and take in the grittier, but possibly even friendlier, side of Sabah. It's a dusty little town center by the port and the smiles and waves are quite frequent. And the cultural salad is evident on every street corner. We had a nice dinner on the waterfront and headed to bed, early 740 rise the next day.
Morning came and we met our guide Mirwan who began the day by guiding us through a very interesting market outside of the hotel and to the van. He is a great guy, very laid back, but enthusiastic about his country. We also met our tour-mates Mark and Mel, Jocelyn and Di. All great folks, indeed. Mirwan or 'Wan' gave us the lowdown on the events of the day and some background about the Sepilok center.
Sepilok finds and rescues orphaned orangutans (which means 'people of the forest' in Malay) and rehabilitates/reintroduces them into the wild. It is a gradual process that takes years, but it is working to restore the numbers of orangutans in the wild. The deforesting through logging and palm-oil plantations has widdled down the population to endangered and left many orphaned. Sepilok, working with the government to help educate the country's residents, has done amazing things. The tour visits help bring much needed funds and increase awareness. Plus it's pretty radical for us, too.
Anyway, you walk along a boardwalk through the forest and find an open area that resembles a large house deck in the middle of the forest. Surrounding are several platforms, ropes and wild rainforest. No cages. No bars. Soon we spot a few of these incredible creatures swinging aptly by hands and feet. They seem so comfortable swinging from branch to branch. With incredible luck, an alpha male comes to the platform and gives everyone a rare treat. He is enormous and looks more like a gorilla than an orangutan. The crowd is stunned. A few pig-tailed macaques make their entrance, but don't get much from the big daddy. Wan tells us there would be more, but the other males don't dare come round when poppa is there.
Beautiful creatures.
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