Wildlife around Kinabatangan river (07.04.09)

From Semporna I took a morning bus to Sandakan. I got off at the junction with Sepilok from where I walked 10 minutes to Uncle Tan operation base. Here I booked a 3 days/2 nights tour. From the base we took a minibus to a village (1hr) and from there a boar upriver (1 hr) to the camp. This was the worst ever river cruise, as it was raining hard, the boat didn't have a roof, and I was getting cold. The accommodation were very basic bungalows, they didn't even have doors. In the evening it stopped raining for a while, and we took another river cruise to look for animals. In the morning we got food weather and took another river cruise, followed by breakfast, a smaller cruise and a walked in the jungle. After lunch we went for another cruise on the river, followed by a night walk in the jungle after dinner. The most notable animals I saw in this 3 days were orangutans, proboscis monkeys, gibbons, eagles, flying foxes (the largest kind of bats). The third day we returned to the base. My original plan was to take a bus to KK, but since there were no showers at the camp, I took the afternoon bus to KK. In the evening I took a bed in a dorm. A good shower with hot water, having my laundry done and few hours of sleep, and life is good again.

Expenses (RM)
bus Sandakan 40
package 3d/2n 320
bus KK 35
room 22
TShirt 10
watch 15
sunglasses 18
dinner 10

Semporna (04.04.09)

I have spent and entire day and night on the road. From Bandar I took a bus to Muara (45 minutes), and from there a boat to Labuan Island in Malaysia. In 3 hours I had till the next boat I walked the streets and had lunch. Since the island was duty free, I enjoyed a cheap beer. From Labuan it took 3 hours boat ride to reach KK (Kota Kinabalu). I had another 4 hours to spent till the night bus to Semporna, where I arrived at 4:40 am. I found accommodation on a beautiful chalet on the water (named Singamata). They had there a restaurant and a natural aquarium, with lots of big fish. At 9:30 am I went for diving, at the nearby island Sibuan. I dove 2 times and then one more time after lunch. I as very lucky to find a spot for the next day trip to Sipadan island. There is a limit of 120 people that can dive daily at this place, and you have to wait few days- sometimes a week - to get a spot, if you don't have advance booking. I had the best diving day at the Sipadan island. I 3 dives (at barracuda point, south point, hanging gardens) I have seen around 50 sharks and 15 turtles, plus thousands of other fish and awesome corals. For the first time I was swimming next to a turtle and even had my palm on her back. Diving here is expensive but it worth every single cent. The third day I dove 2 more times around Semporna, but after Sipadan it wasn't too exciting.

Expenses (RM)
bus Muara 2 Brunei $
ferry 17 Brunei $
lunch 7
boat KK 34
dinner 7
bus Semporna 40
package 2 days 1 night/ 7 dives 425 Singamata
package 3 dives Sipadan 446
room+2meals Singamata 40

Mulu National park (30.03.2009)

Yesterday seemed to be a bad day for me. I missed the airport bus by one minute, so I had to wait for the next one...one hour 40 minutes. At airport although there were still 20 minutes till the morning flight would take off, they didn't let me board the plane, so I had to take the afternoon plane, which was...6 hours later. The flight was only 20 minutes and I found it expensive.
I found accommodation in a homestay, and we were invited to a funeral party. Well, it wasn't exactly funeral (was a week after) and also not a party (they did sing a bit and had some speeches), but a meal with 80 people.We had time to go to one cave and see bats coming out of a cave (tens of thousands).
Today I went trekking to 4 caves: 2 in one direction, in the morning - Wind Cave and Clearwater cave. They were interesting. On the way there we came accross a snake, sitting exactly in our path, and no plans to move anytime soon. Outside the Clearwater cave I had a nice bath; the water was, of course, clear and cold, but the current was strong, it was very hard to swim against it. In the afternoon we went to Langs cave and Deer cave, which was the biggest cave in the terms of volume. I would say they were pretty impressive caves. Unfortunatelly, I have to give up my plans to climb to see the Pinnacles, because of the cost and duration (what could be a one day trip has to be done in 3 days, with the guide).

Expenses (RM)
Airplane ticket 161
water 6
dinner 9
bed 20

Miri (28.03.09)

From Sibu I took a bus (7.5 hours) to Miri. This is another city where I had no map and not much info, but I guess I was lucky. I found my way around quick, manage to catch a bus from the long distance bus terminal, and the get a very nice room (TV, air con, hot water) for a good price. I walked around few hours but it wasn't much to see, other than plenty of shop houses, malls, and rather airy streets.

Expenses
taxi 13
bus ticket 40
breakfast 4
lunch 4
dinner 9
room 30 Fairland Inn

Sibu (27.03.09)

From Kuching I took a nice boat ride (5 hours) to Sibu. This is another city in the state of Sarawak. The most known landmark is the seven-storey pagoda. I didn't have a map of the city, but in the end I found a cheap room, could have been nice if it was cleaner. I had for lunch local food and a chinese beer, Tsingtao. In the afternoon I walked around the city center streets, and went to a very sad movie (Seven pounds).

Expenses
breakfast 2
local bus 1
boat sibu 45
lunch 9
dinner 12
movie 8
water 2
room 25 Holiday Inn

Kuching (26.03.09)

The day didn't start well, the direct bus to the airport has been canceled, but in the end I made it. I took a flight to Kuching, which is on Borneo Island (this is a huge island - home of the headhunters). I found accommodation at Anglican rest house, which is an very old Chinese house located in the big yard of the Anglican church. There are many temples, but what I liked the most was the riverfront. While I was resting on a bench watching the sunset I realized I am lucky to be here.


Expenses
skytrain 2
metro 2
shuttle bus airport 8
room 20 Anglican rest house
taxi 7
breakfast 3
lunch 4
dinner 9

Batu Caves (KL) (25.03.09)

Having one more day to spend in KL, I went to Batu Caves just outside of the city. Those caves have been used by Hindu priest for more than a hundred years. There were so many monkeys around, some of them getting very close (and eventually try to steal).
In the afternoon I went to a mall where I saw a movie and run into an old friend, Carls' Jr.

Expenses
room 30 Travelers
breakfast 6
bus batu caves 4
KTM train 2
skytrain 3
towel 22
sunglasses 5
razor blades 9
lunch 8
dinner 15

Taman Negara (24.03.09)

The day before yesterday I took the Jungle Railway train. It is a mail train that leaves 6 AM from train station (10 km off Kota Bahru) and goes valleys, jungles, and rural areas. It was an interesting ride, I could see brown rivers running for kilometers through jungle. After 11 hours I arrived at Jerantut and I made it just in time for the bus to Kuala Tahan (a village just across the river from park). The accommodations were expensive so I settled for a dorm bed. Yesterday I cross the river around 8:30 and entered the park. This is an 150 million years old rainforest. First I went for the canopy walkway. This is a swaying bridge made of ladders and bound by ropes set at 40 meters above ground. It is the longest in the world. It was a nice experience, although I couldn't see any bird or animal there. Then I went to a 340m hill where I could have a good view. After that, I went for Lata Berkoh. It was nothing spectacular, and I walked more than 8 km for that. There I thought I could take a boat back, but I wasn't so lucky, so I had to return by foot, another 8 km. The trekking through jungle was interesting. The jungle was hot and humid, but I was well protected from the sun. The vegetation outside the path was thick, I couldn't see too far. A couple a times when I've lost the trail I barely made it around, without a machete it will be very hard outside of the beaten path. At some point I've notice a little blood on my sock, I thought I probably cut myself in some tree, but when the stain became larger I stopped to have a look and I found leeches having a feast. An experience that I would prefer not to have it. On the other hand, I heard that they might actually do some good, sucking the bad blood. This morning I took the boat downriver to the Kuala Tembling. It was a pleasant 2 hours ride. From there I took a minibus to Jerantut and later the bus for KL.

Expenses
taxi 7
train Jerantut 13
bus Kuala Tahan 7
room 10
lunch 10
dinner 10
room 10
boat 35
minibus 5
lunch 9
dinner 10
bus KL 19

Perhentian Islands(21.03.09)

The day before yesterday I took a bus to Kota Bharu (almost 8 hours). I didn't do much in the afternoon, except watch the movie on the rooftop at the hostel I was staying. Yesterday morning was raining hard when I took the minibus to Kuala Besut. This is a small town 45 km away from Kota Bharu; when I got there it wasn't raining anymore. From there I took a speed boat to the Perenthian Kecil (small island). After I got the room on the Long beach, I went for a swim. The weather was great. I have spent the entire day at the beach, under an umbrella. The beach has fine sand and water is warm and crystal clear. What I liked the most was the cool breeze in the late afternoon. At night there was a beautiful clear sky. Today I spent the day at the Coral bay, a 10 minute walk from the long beach. I returned to the Kota Bharu late in the evening.

Expenses
bus ticket Kota Bharu 37
room 20
minibus Kuala Besut 10
ferry 2x35
dinner 7
breakfast 2
room 30
park fee 5
taxi boat 2
umbrella rental 10
lunch 22
beer 9
dinner 11
breakfast 9
lunch 15
taxi 17
dinner 10
clothes 17
fruit 2
water 1
room 20
baggage storage 2

Penang (18.03.09)

Yesterday I took a bus from Cameron Highlands to Penang (4 hrs). This is an island connected to the land by a bridge 13 Km long. I found accommodation in China town and in the evening I went walking around. I've seen few streets in China town and some parts of te colonial city - Fort Cornwallis, Victoria Clocktower, City Townhall. Today I rented a motorcycle and went first to the Penang Hill.I took a funicular to the top on the hill, where was a mosque, a Hindu temple, a small hotel. When the weather is good, view from the hill is great. Unfortunately, when I got there it was cloudy. The next place I went was Kek Lok Si Temple, a large Buddhist temple. After that I headed north, and had a great ride along the sea for many kilometers. I went through 2 beach towns and at the end stopped to a national Park, where I took a 45 minutes hike (each way) to Monkey beach. The ride back along the coast was just beautiful. In the evening I had mexican food and beer, which was pretty expensive.

Expenses
breakfast 2
bus 30
room 25
lunch 8
bus local 3
water 3
juice 3
room 25
dinner 40
lunch 7
moto rental 25
gas 5