A trip to the rainforests of Borneo (Sabah, MY).

30 May 2015 to 7 June 2015.

Ok, this is my first attempt at writing! That is, writing something other than essays, letters, which seem eons ago, or in today’s world, an email, the chat messages, etc.. I never developed the habit of writing a diary when I was still studying in school, so let’s how this goes.

As usual, I had a recurrence of the wanderlust. And to keep up with my habit of procastinating, I spent almost an year contemplating this trip before actually working on the plans and finalising them with a tour operator just one month before the trip. One of the main reasons was to see the Proboscis Monkey, Orang Utan and the Pygmy Elephants of Borneo.

Day 1, 30 May 2015, Singapore and Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, MY:

The trip started off in a pretty crazy manner. While check-in and immigration at Singapore’s Changi Airport T1 was smooth and quick (as always), my debit/ATM card did not work when I tried to buy some Malaysian Ringgits. But after a couple of pints of beer, the card started working and I had the money.

Air Asia’s flight AK788, an Airbus built aircraft named Louis Gallois, from SIN to BKI was smooth, pleasant, on time and without any unwanted excitement. Thank you, Air Asia crew!

KKIA2 was something more than an extension of a large shed, that reminded me of the airports in some of way off cities in India. While we got to deplane using the rear door all of us had to walk to the International arrivals. The immigration area was small compared to a lot of the airports, but the staff were very efficient. I was in and out in about 10 mins or so. (As a side-note, Malaysia has this very good approach to immigration. If you have a multi-entry visa, they verify and stamp your passport. If you are a citizen of country that does not need a visa, then you may need to have your finger prints scanned. But, no immigration and customs declaration form!)

I was met at the arrival gate by the local guide cum driver who not only drove me to the hotel but also gave me a briefing of the night life and hot spots of KK and also drove me around some parts of the city. KK, as I found out, has a pretty good night life, especially on weekends.

For the night stay at KK, I had reservations at the Jesselton Hotel in central KK, about 10 minutes drive from the airport. The hotel is pretty good as such and is newly renovated. But then, they don’t leave the lights and air-conditioning on. So, one has to go looking for the light switches  in the dark and then wait a while for the air-conditioning to cool the air in the room.

After checking into the hotel, which was even quicker, I took a walk around the waterfront and mapped the eating places and watering holes. The European restaurant attached to the hotel closes at 9:30PM, so a good option was to visit the nearest KFC outlet for dinner. And the chicken was followed by about 5-6 hours of good sleep on a pretty comfortable bed in a room that had already become cold and pleasant by then.

Day 2, 31 May 2015, Kota Kinabalu, Sandakan and Abai, Sabah, MY

Woke up early after about 6 hours sleep, to catch a 7:00 AM flight, this time from the supposedly ultra-modern KKIA1, another glass and steel structure. Nothing great to talk about except a little bit from the past (all baggage have to x-ray checked before check-in),  a glass walled check-in enclosure,  and a big family that had to be more or less individually asked to produce their IDs that caused a delay in my breakfast. Walked past a McD to the mouth watering aroma of bacon and eggs, on the way to L2. Departures and arrivals within Sabah have a separate section! But a pretty nice view!

View from the departure area of Kota Kinabalu Terminal 1.

A breakfast of kaya toast and soft boiled eggs, with Kopi-O was followed by a 30 minute flight to Sandakan and the real beginning of the trip!

First stop was the Sepilok Orang Utan rehabilitation center to see the Orang Utan kiddos playing and being fed. This was followed by a short walk around the Borneo Sun Bear park next door and a lunch at a newly opened resort in the middle of a rain forest.

The Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Centre.

Two baby Orang Utans playing at the Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Centre.

In the sweltering heat and the humidity that goes with the rain forests, we walked through the stilt village (It is legal, you pay an annual fee to the government, u pay to build the house, you get legal electricity and water supply) to the jetty to board our 15-seater (speed) boat to Abai, a 47 kms journey that took us into the sea before taking us into the mouth and then the actual Sungei Kinbatangan. And these guys drive their boats like they are racing in a F1 (check the tilt on a bend on the sungei in this photo, this one is minimum)!

Stilt houses in the background with our boat in the foreground.

View from the boat leaving the Jetty.

The boat driver sat with both legs on the seat, one hand on the steering wheel, and the other on the controls, a very relaxed, high-speed turn for him.

We arrived at the Abai jungle lodge to the usual, warm welcome, followed by a nice afternoon siesta, and a late afternoon boat ride on a private boat. I got to see Collared kingfisher, Silver leaf monkey, Long tailed macaque, Monitor lizard and what I went for, the Proboscis monkey, besides a White bellied eagle. The pick of the evening was a 3+ meters (10+ feet) crocodile enjoying a siesta on the banks of the sungei.

A giant crocodile on the banks of the Sungei Kinbatangan near Abai.

<photos to be added>

 

Coffee and biscuits were provided on-board, in the middle of the sungei Kinbatangan, while we watched the sunset and waited for the darkness to set in. The boatman then took us to see the fireflies under a full moon lit night; looked like a christmas tree all lit up. Sorry folks, no photos!

Upon return to the lodge, followed by dinner, my guide offered to take me around the boardwalk to see some of the night life. A venomous viper, followed by an Oriental Dwarf Kingfisher, insects, a <…> ending with Abai Buffy, the owl.

Oh, by the way, did I forget to mention that there is no Air Conditioning in the lodge? It gets nice and pleasant in the evening.

Day 3, 1 June 2015:

Day 4, 2 June 2015:

Day 5, 3 June 2015:

Day 6, 4 June 2015:

Day 7, 5 June 2015:

Day 8: 6 June 2015:

Day 9: 7 June 2015:

 

 

 

Tags:

Abai, Abai Jungle Lodge, Danum Valley, Kinabatangan River Lodge, Kota Kinabalu, Lahad Datu, Malaysia, Menangol, Orang Utan, Proboscis Monkey, Red Leaf Monkey, Sabah, Sandakan, Sukau