Malaysia – Less Car, More Life

Kuching Sarawak. Nine days in the City of Cats.

The view from our hotel room of the Sarawak River.

Kuching, the city of cats, was the jumping off place for our Batang Ai rainforest adventure in the previous post. Friends who know Borneo well (hi Ruth and Gary!) had said it was a nice relaxing city, and so it was. Rich booked us a newly renovated river view room at the Hilton and we settled in for nine nights, with two nights off in the rain forest in the middle. Kuching means cat in Malay, and that was enough for me. Cats, here we come.

Let’s go find those cats! This cat themed trash can looked like a good place to start.

Kitty? You in here? The pedestrian bridge across the river made for nice walking, although it didn’t really connect through to the promenade on the other side of the river.

The big trees along the river shade a lovely promenade leading to the dramatic pedestrian bridge, and it’s a popular destination day and night. Lunar New Year celebrations were still going on so there were loads of visitors, and the city had a fun and busy vibe.

Certainly the Cat Museum was a good place to find cats, right?

A bemused Rich as we realized the cat museum looked like the house of a cat fanatic. Minus actual cats.

The Cat Museum had cat everything, but no actual cats. This is a museum that would be a waste of time for travelers with fewer days to spend in Kuching. But Rich and I had a good laugh at the silly and kitschy collection, wondered how the “museum” ended up in the City Council building, and how it kept going. Our ticket price of about 60 cents was well spent, we figured, and on we went to explore more of this City of Cats.

There were plenty of cats represented in art and decor around town. Wire sculpture of a cat.

Even cat lights along the river. I appreciate a city that leans in to its shtick.

The chefs at a restaurant on the promenade not only fed this cat, but also gave it shelter from the rain with a cat and dog themed umbrella.

Searching for cats was fun, but couldn’t occupy all of our time in Kuching. It was still the rainy season in Borneo so we had some cloudy and wet days which was fine with us, the rain keeps the heat down. We try to walk as many places as possible, heat be damned, and walk we did. The Spring shopping mall was only 3 kilometers from our hotel, so we got out early one morning and headed off. We knew we would be facing some not wonderful walking conditions, we’d seen that much from our trip in from the airport. Kuching lacks public transport, with one bus line that makes a big loop around the city with arrival times every two hours, and lacks good pedestrian infrastructure. Things like cross walks and pedestrian lights are far and few between.

Sidewalks mostly exist, complete with raised tactile paving for those with vision problems.

Kuching is a very green city. The walking on this overcast morning was pleasant.

You see interesting things when you go on foot.

And then you get to an intersection with no ped crossing. It was Sunday morning so not a lot of car traffic, fairly easy to dash across.

And the sidewalk vanishes just short of the mall.

We don’t set out to find flaws in cities, but when we try to live our usual lives, walking, biking and taking transit, we realize where the weak links are. That makes us think about what it’s like for people who live in Kuching. Without frequent public transportation from the outer areas to the riverfront and commercial areas, people need to own cars, or use Grab rides to get around. Owning a car is a big financial commitment no matter where you live, and much of the money spent on automobiles is money that is not spent at local businesses – a point transit activists make everywhere. As for walking for transportation, we saw barely any other folks on foot once we left the riverfront commercial area. Like no one.

Walking to the nearby Borneo Cultures Museum, the building at the left, was fine.

As tourists we can stay near attractions we can walk to. But we see the car dependency, such as the big parking lots near attractions like the Borneo Cultures Museum- which is a fantastic and well curated museum. We joke that if you don’t see the entrance you can assume it’s closest to the parking lot.

The Borneo Cultures Museum was newly built and opened in 2022 – great museum.

A display about the traditional Iban weaving known as Pua Kumbu.

It was good to go to the museum before our trip to the rainforest stay at the Nanga Sumpa Lodge. The introduction we got to Iban traditions at the museum was a good first step, we had questions to ask our guide, and were introduced to the Chief whose photo appears in the museum.

My chai at the museum cafe, the gift shop was also well curated.

Since we didn’t see orangutans at Nanga Sumpa Lodge, it was off to Semenggoh after we came back to Kuching

Semenggoh Wildlife Center is a 1,600 acre/653 hectares forest with a population of semi wild orangutans who are fed to supplement their wild diet. The acreage is not enough to support the animals with wild naturally occurring food. Founded as a sanctuary for rescued orangutans, the center has an established population with babies regularly joining the group. Visitors are let in morning and afternoon for the feedings of sweet potatoes, bananas, coconut, papayas, oranges, sugar canes, pineapples and hard boiled eggs. There is no guarantee that the orangutans will show up, they may just stay in the forest eating naturally growing fruit, especially during g fruiting season which it was. Thankfully the draw of food was enough to tempt out four the morning we went.

A reserve worker headed out to the feeding platform with a basket of food.

Staff on the platform watching for orangutans. The workers make whooping noises to let the apes know food is available.

Humans waiting patiently for the orangutans.

Here comes a momma and baby, and her toddler aged offspring.

There are no blasé visitors when the apes swing into view in the forest.

Semenggoh is about 20 minutes south of Kuching by car, 30 minutes north will get you to the jetty at Kampung Bako to take a boat to Bako National Park, which is on a peninsula reachable only when the tide is high enough for the boats to get through. For both of our trips we hired a driver we met on our rain forest adventure and he dropped us off and picked us up from both visits.

It’s a fun way to start the day – feels a bit survivor-ish.

We were super lucky to share a boat with Katherine and Chris (hello you two!) from Seattle, and we all hit it off so well we spent the day together hiking and marveling at the wildlife.

The rock formations are the result of erosion stripping away sedimentary rock to leave the thick, resistant sandstone behind.

A forest on top, highlighting the blue sky.

The park is very well run, with check in at the registration desk, overnight accommodations with reservations required, and well marked trails and maps. And the animal viewing! Really amazing. As our driver Ali said, Bako is for animals. Proboscis monkeys, silver leaf monkeys, and macaques. We also saw a flying lemur sleeping the day away in a tree, and a pit viper. And adorable bearded pigs.

Oh yes, no swimming at Bako due to saltwater crocodiles. Photo by Katherine.

We first saw a proboscis monkey spotted by Rich. Katherine’s photo- much better than mine.

No shortage of trails. You would have plenty to do with a two night stay.

The trails are well marked but tiring with the up and down and heat and humidity.

Our first beach. There should have been a monkey warning sign. We were quickly joined by a macaque who was certain he could bully us into feeding him.

The monkey took this for an invitation. Oh! Backpacks. Must mean food.

I am patient. I am persistent. I am monkey.

Katherine looking at shells. Monkey waiting.

It was so nice to have people to share the hike with – so glad we met!

After lunch Rich, Katherine, and Chris headed out for a second hike and I stayed behind to read and mind the extra gear, and watch macaques marauding the cafe.

The view from Bako to Santubong Peninsula.

Back on the boat after a successful and happy day.

Spending a week plus in one place means you get to do the little things that might not be on the top of your must do list. From our first day in Kuching we saw the little boats plying the river. Although the lovely pedestrian bridge crosses the river, you cannot go directly right from that bridge to the waterfront promenade. So, we took a little boat. A tambang (motorised water taxi).

The short boat ride took us across the river to Kampung Boyang, which was a fun glimpse of what most of Kuching probably looked like a few decades ago. A botanical garden and The Brooke Gallery at Fort Margherita, which told more of the history of the English dynasty of White Rajahs who governed Sarawak for 100 years. It’s a fascinating bit of history with colonization overtones, but one which is remembered with what seems to genuine respect for the Brooke family. Of course, both museums dedicated to the history of the Brookes are funded by the Brooke Foundation, so there’s that.

Signage for the sights- I love the hornbill mascot.

We certainly found enough to do, and enough good places to eat, to make our time in Kuching very enjoyable. It was a bonus that our hotel had a newly renovated gym and a big swimming pool(about to be renovated). Mornings were spent exploring, Lunch out, afternoons were at the gym and pool. Then it was back out for a walk and dinner.

Delicious thosai lunch at Ceylonese Restaurant Sdn Bhd. We also had dinner here twice, once with Katherine and Chris which was great as we ordered a lot of different items.

The Granary Kitchen + Bar, one lunch and one dinner. Lunch was a local menu and dinner was western.

And every day started with the fantastic breakfast buffet at the Hilton.

Rich buying our lunch, steamed buns, from Kuching’s youngest business man.

I’m still stunned by the green landscape, even in the city. Any land gives rise to a dense green.

We’re in Kuala Lumpur now, so glad we had such a good long stay in Borneo. Even with over three weeks there is still a lot more fun to be had. Did we adjust to the heat and humidity? Not really. It’s hotter here now in KL and it’s quite draining, even three weeks on. We’re just not hot weather folks. Mild San Francisco weather for 30 years will do that.

Borneo. Our places stayed: Koto Kinabalu, Mt. Kinabalu Park, Mulu National Park, Miri, Kuching, Batang Ai National Park, Kuching again.

Hikes of the world: Lambir Hills edition.

Almost everywhere we go in the world, we hike. Urban hikes. High desert hike. Hot and sweaty jungle hikes. Gorgeous countryside hikes. Dodgy alongside busy road hikes. Amazing coastal hikes. British pub hikes.

Rich is very good at finding hikes for us to do. And he’s a fast and strong hiker. The more uphill there is, the happier he is. I’m not fast and frequently get grumpy going uphill.

Hiking in the jungles and rain forests of Borneo is a challenge. Heat and humidity punish you, and the frequent heavy rains punish the trails, making them more like creek beds than trails.

These could be easy day hike distances in a different climate and with different trail conditions.

Hiking with a fan. Every little bit of breeze helps.

Our Lambir Hills hike started off nicely. Uphill on a decent trail. Huge trees.

Unknown to us vegetation. This climbing vine is so perfectly symmetrical. Looks like a tree zipper.

There seemed to be a period in Malaysian Borneo when trails were built and park buildings were constructed. Maybe 20 years ago, maybe 15? But maintenance is tough to keep ahead of. Or it’s not funded. It was sad to see the state of not just the trails, but some the other park infrastructure as well. After we crested the top of our climb the trail started to deteriorate. As it dipped up and down into drainage after drainage, ropes appeared to help you haul yourself up or steady yourself down the very rutted trail.

And up we go. Trail maintenance must be almost impossible on these trails.

We saw one other group of hikers, they were better equipped, with trekking poles and matching hiking shirts. They were just getting to the tough part.

So what do I do when I’m not loving the hike I’m on? First, I remind myself why we hike. We hike because we like to see places only reachable on foot, and so we can keep on hiking. During a long bicycle tour two years ago we forgot to stop riding and take rest/hike days so we could work our hiking muscles. We found ourselves in fantastic biking shape and hurting on long walks and hikes.

That’s not Malaysia! With our dear friends Cecily and Christine in Seattle, December 2023.

More dear friends in Wales, Hannah, Erik, and Thea. 2023.

Second on my list of hiking distractions is to remember hikes with people we love.

Christine, Annie, and Erika. Seattle December 2023.

My brother Steve and sister-in-law Claire, Pismo Beach California, 2017.

My brother Steve and my sister Kathy, Colorado 2020.

We’ve had some of our best discussions, and come to some of our most life directing decisions while hiking. What have we decided while hiking? Whether or not to have children. Should we sell our place and travel. Do we need to actually own a car. Answers, no, yes, and no.

On the Camino del Norte with Cecily and Christine, Spain, October 2022.

Snowshoeing with Cecily and Christine, Snoqualmie WA, 2023. Oh, that cold weather. Hard to remember what cold is like when you’re in Borneo.

Every hike has its tough elements. The moments when you wonder why you hike. But then nature reveals itself and you remember again why you hike.

These trees did not let you forget you were in a rainforest.

Including a waterfall at mile 5. From the waterfall it was only a kilometer back to the park office where our Grab car would pick us up.

The rainforest is stunning, but I was happy the hike was over and our air conditioned hotel beckoned.

Oh you thought this jungle was done with you?

Thankfully Rich did a quick step back and did not tread on this snake. Not a pit viper but we still gave him respectful space.

From the park office to the waterfall is a popular trail, and in better shape than the rest of the park.

The hot, sweaty, pink, but happy travelers.

We’re in Kuching now, the city of cats, and heading out for a jungle lodge experience at Batang Ai, at the Nanga Sumpa Lodge, early tomorrow.

Gunung Mulu National Park. A gentle jungle.

Sungai Melinau Paku River, with the mountains of Mulu peak in the background.

I suspect I’m not the only one who assumes that the jungle of Borneo will be so full of bugs waiting to feast on me that I’ll be slapping and scratching from the moment we arrive in Mulu.

Was that my biggest worry about our four nights in Mulu? Well, after our experience at Mt. Kinabalu I was also worried about leeches. And, for our first guided tour at Mulu both Rich and I wore sneakers, long sleeves and trousers to keep the bugs away. Our wonderful guide, Nim, was wearing shorts and hiking sandals. For every tour after that we wore shorts and sandals as well. So much more comfortable in the hot and humid weather. And so few biting bugs. We have the millions of bats and swifts to thank for that.

Sheltering from a downpour in the bat pavilion.

Our first very rainy afternoon. All the rain meant no bat exodus the first night.

A frequent site during the rain, yellow poncho clad visitors.

Fog at the mouth of the Deer Cave, where millions of bats shelter during the day.

Rainwater drips through the limestone to create amazing sights in the Deer and Lang Caves.

From the boardwalk you get to see stately trees.

Rich added for scale. This is a day or two after arrival when we had learned that shorts, t-shirts, and sandals were the way to go.

The two biggest attractions at Mulu are the caves and the bats. We jumped right in to cave tours, ultimately getting to walk in five caves, for a total of about 5 or 6 kilometers of cave walking. Wow, impressive right? Well, Gunang Mulu National Park has about 295 kilometers of explored caves. Every cave we visited was different, the giant chambers, amazing drip structures, or no drip structures due to wind blowing through a cave and inhibiting the fantastical structures.

Boats waiting to load visitors for a cave tour.

The boat rides were a fun way to start a tour.

A young helper, his Dad is handling the motor, he helps out at the dock and on debris watch, so the visitors don’t end up in the river.

At the entrance of the Cave of the Winds. A boat ride and 200 stairs up.

A sky hole in the cave. With light comes life.

After visiting Clearwater Cave you get to swim in the river that flows out of the cave. Incredibly refreshing.

Each cave is unique. And some have only been open to visitors for the last few decades or so, which means that they are pristine. Fastlane cave has had the lightest human touch, with no lights installed and a through route – in one mouth and out another – and the most dramatic formations.

The entrance. Flashlights are really needed in this cave.

Photography is a little challenging, you have to borrow torchlight.

A “showerhead” formation. Water drips through the limestone deposits, which were perhaps created by tree roots up above.

Over hundreds of years the shower head has created its own basin, or bathtub. The water is incredibly pure, but of course reaching in to it is strictly prohibited.

The size of the group is limited to 8 on the Fastlane Tour and our guide, Jonah, was super knowledgeable. He also had us all turn off our lights for a few minutes to really experience the cave as its inhabitants do.

Like these huge Huntsmen spiders who live in the cave and eat crickets. We also saw blind white cave crabs, blind cave crickets, swifts flying and navigating by clicking, and of course bats.

There are trails for self guided hikes, but to enter the caves you must be with a guide.

Gate at the cave exit. I was very amused by the spider web motif.

Inside the Cave of the Winds, in this photo you can see the boardwalk and lights.

The bats disappointed us our first evening, but on our second evening, we hustled out the 40 minute walk from the Park Office to the bat pavilion and settled down hoping for no rain and many bats.

We all did a pretty good job of being quiet.

The bat pavilion was the place to be, a lively global crowd on the Lunar New Year

And the bats came out. And out. And out. Millions of bats. In waves and waves. They flew overhead and circled back. You could hear their masses of wings beating.

We also did the canopy walk. 25 meters up, 425 meters long, and apparently the longest tree based canopy walk in the world. The guide warned us it was not for those with a fear of heights. Or a fear of swinging swaying narrow walkways. The guide also warned us not to drop our phones as the locals would retrieve them for us, but would also charge for retrieval. A river retrieval would of course cost more than a jungle floor retrieval.

Heading out, two by two, per instructions. A fellow tourist took this photo for us. We all took photos of each other and shared via Airdrop.

The Canopy Walk was a success.No cell phones were dropped.

Mulu Park is quite well run. We had no problem signing up via email for tours in advance (recommended!). There was plenty of staff on hand to check you in for tours. The tour guides all came from local communities, and knew traditional customs and ways of life since their families lived them. Facilities were well kept up, the park cafe was open 7:30 to at least 8:30 and the food was pretty good.

And another lunch at Mulu cafe, overlooking the river.

Where were we when not walking through caves in Mulu? At the Mulu Marriott. The hotel was only about a six minute drive from the park, by frequent on-call shuttle van or open air truck. There are also options available inside the park, hostels or lodges, and home stays just outside the park and right across the river from the Marriott. Something for any budget, really.

Loading up the human cattle car. It was actually quite nice. A breeze. A view. Your fellow hotel guests.

Bamboo shaded walkway at the Marriott. The entire hotel is built up from the jungle floor on boardwalks and stilts.

Rich chilling waiting for the shuttle to the park.

Enjoying a glass of wine in the River Bar. Not only was this a great place to bird watch, but it was also the only place to get connected to WiFi.

The Travel Planner hard at work, binoculars at the ready for bird spotting.

Breakfast outside at the Marriott, binoculars still ready for bird peeping.

The resident cat family. Ever hopeful for food.

Little girls are always a good bet for tidbits to the cats.

And nice young men, apparently. The cats migrated from table to table.

We settled on Mulu National Park as a place to be over Lunar New Year, it seemed a good way to escape the crowds and noise of the cities and festivities. It was a great decision, peaceful, busy but not super crowded, and we had the pleasure of meeting a lot of other visitors. When you’re all staying at the same hotel, and doing the park tours, you get to know the other folks. Quite a few families who were living and working in Brunei had come to the park. It was nice to have opportunities to chat, exchange notes on the tours, and just socialize in general. That is something we can miss out on doing constant travel, the social part of life. All the ex-pat families were so friendly. I suppose it’s a necessity when you relocate for work, get out and make friends wherever you are. We appreciated it very much and loved chatting with folks.

Two sweet girls from Egypt, Dad is an anesthesiologist in Brunei. We got to know this family over a few tours and in the hotel.

Dave and Eileen (hi you two!) from Aberdeen. We shared beers and bat watching.

Four nights was a nice length of time. We could have filled a few more days, there were more walks to do, and for those who crave more adventure there were adventure cave tours, which involved crawling and squeezing and sometimes swimming through caves. Squeezing not for us but two nice American guys we met had a fantastic time on a cave adventure. They were exhausted and filthy but had signed up for another one so obviously enjoyed it.

The happy travelers ready to leave Mulu.

Next up: Miri and Kuching. Kuching is known as the city of cats, so you know what to expect from me!

Borneo, It’s a Jungle Out There!

Ah Borneo, the name for me summons visions of exotic jungles, wildlife, beaches or mountains. And who knew Borneo was the third largest island in the world, somewhat bizarrely split between Indonesia, Malaysia, and the tiny sultanate of Brunei. We have decided to focus on the Malaysian side of Borneo as it’s a bit more tourist friendly and jumping between both sides actually involves a lot more travel and flights. Seeing more of less is still our favorite way.

The 13,500 foot Mount Kinabalu shows itself only briefly most mornings

Our first sunset view in Kota Kinabalu or KK as the the locals refer to it.

We also vividly recall our great three week trip to peninsular Malaysia about 10 years ago. So as we touched down in Kota Kinabalu, the capital of the state of Sabah, we were both very excited. Not quite a new country for us, but a very new place. And there is so much to see and experience here.

Kota Kinabalu greeted us with multiple street celebrations and night markets; including the excellent Api Api food market Friday and Saturday Nights on Gaya Street.

The multi cultural melting pot is striking here with an intoxicating mix of customs, manners, religion, and of course, food. Malay (Muslim), Chinese, Indian, and a mix of indigenous and intermixed cultures means that you’ll always be guessing where someone is from.

So many choices and I was very tempted by whatever this spicy beef rib meat was going into, possibly a version of beef Rendang?

But we soon saw a modest line at this stall. This was the man responsible for some magic Mee Goring…we called him grandpa, as he made each batch one (or two) at a time at a very mesmerizing pace. Luckily we got in line early as it grew to near an hour behind us!

And finally perfect Penang Style Mee Goring

To add to the excitement and challenges, our travels have coincided with the lunar new year celebrations in Asia. A month long celebration of the year of the (Wooden) Dragon, with the actual lunar new year on February 10th. So my challenge as the travel planner was to figure out how to work around the potential high lodging costs and travel bottlenecks of the peak of the holiday from about the 9th to 14th. More on the success of our strategy in our next post.

Visiting Asia during the Lunar New Year period means surprise festivals and celebrations pop up everywhere

Very friendly locals in KK. Cheryl was thrilled to see these young ladies lion dancing.

Do not miss lunch at the Sri Latha Curry House in KK. The veggie and chicken curry sets were both colorful and flavorful.

The KK Wetland Ramsar Site is close on the edge of the city and has about 2km of boardwalk walkways and viewing platforms. We visited during low tide so mudskipper and crab viewing was prime. More birds at high tide.

Mud boots available if you want to wade through a short muddy section off boardwalk. We passed as nothing my size (US 14!) anyway, and the walkways were sufficient.

So, since India last year, I’m now a nacent birder and Borneo has an dizzying array of species. I only spotted a few of the 80 species reported just at this wetland center.

Cheryl slightly bemused at my intensity on spotting the White-Collared Kingfisher from a bird blind at the wetlands center.

We like Malaysia, but it it’s always tough for us to have to rely on cars so much to get around as there is no real public transit in Sabah. Grab is the dominant ride hail App here and it works pretty well and is cheap. So we have been using it and make sure we tip well as all ride hail and delivery drivers of the world often seem to be underpaid and under appreciated.

The Sabah museum complex has two separate museums and a dozen or so outdoor buildings from various cultures of Sabah.

The outdoor cultural building area of the Sabah grounds was quite nice, and we had it to ourselves. It could use a little more curation and text on each building.

It is hot in Borneo. So hot and so humid, but this raised indigenous house was surprisingly cool late morning…so we sat still and appreciated the wisdom of pre a/c design.

There were only a few people at the small and mildly engaging Islamic Civilization Museum, but there was a sweet cat.

Athée Islamic Cultural Museum, a beduk drum from Indonesia made with palm wood, cowhide, and tied with rattan …. (SF note: this would be SO cool on Hippie Hill!).

Even I couldn’t resist this sweet kitty while waiting for our return Grab ride. Grab is a ride hail App that is essential in Malaysia if you are not on a tour or renting a car.

Mount Kinabalu dominates this corner of Sabah and occasionally in clear weather, mostly the mornings, you can even see it from KK. It’s also a popular summit climb and epic if it’s clear; but we decided for a number of reasons to skip it. First off; February is still the rainy season here and climbs can be rained out or miserable. I also opted to travel light for 2+ months of travel with just my trusty Ecco sandals and very light running shoes/trainers. An additional pair of size 14 hiking boots takes half my Osprey pack. Oh, and it’s a slog up and down 8,000 feet in 36 hours with a 2am wake up.

At 4,095 meters (13,500 feet) Mount Kinabalu is impressive from a sea level sunrise in KK

There are lodging options outside the park if you have a car but keeping to our blog mantra, we just used a Grab to get to the Park HQ and stayed for 2 nights at the lodging run by Santera. It’s all a bit pricy for what you get; but you are paying for a great location next to the trails, forest and park utilty road. As well as spectacular views of the mountain when clear.

We did a loop our first afternoon up the Pandanus to the Kiau View trail…probably best in the morning when you are likely to get more views.

Fungi and spores everywhere in the slightly more temperate rain forest at 1,600m.

One of the many beautiful orchids in the botanical gardens.

The hiking trails were interesting, but except for the main Silau Silau Trail, not too well maintained. The small botanical gardens boardwalk loop walk is worth doing with a guide (free at 9am or 3pm) as otherwise you’ll miss a lot.

Ok; it’s a bit muddy, steep, but all is ok on our first foray into the NP forest…then it started to rain, and with rain comes leeches.

We made it to the end of the trail but Cheryl was not thrilled with her two leach discoveries… we’ll spare you photo of the welt on the bottom of her foot.

And then Cheryl had to remove this from between my toes…a credit card comes in handy , but this guy had his fill of my blood.

It dumped rain for hours the second afternoon and evening, making the forest and creeks rage with water. We felt bad for the climbers that had set out that morning, but perhaps they missed the worst of it by getting to the first shelter by late afternoon.

This mini Raffesia flower startled us when pointed out by some fellow hikers.

The rainforest around Mount Kinabalu is stunning in some sunlight.

The Medinila were one of the delightful things blooming in February

A fungus city just above the forest floor.

No leeches on Day 2 with pants tucked into socks and no rain in the morning.

We were surprised to learn of the tragic death of 18 climbers on the mountain in the large 2015 earthquake. A huge rock pinnacle let go and also trapped some 100+ climbers.

The lodging in the park ranges from hostel to suites, and there is a decent and pleasant restaurant open for all meals.

Getting back to KK 2 days later was a bit more challenging as no Grab drivers would respond out on the remote location (not surprisingly) and we ended up booking a car back through the park HQ. It all worked out fine; but was about double the Grab rate; even with our generous App tipping.

Back in KK for two nights, we took an early boat to Mamutik Island and were able to snag the end of a picnic table in the shade and have some time to swim with some fish in peace.

Our early boat out to the island. Lots of families travelling during the peak Lunar New Year holiday. Fun to let go and be part of the celebrations.

Our boat captain was definitely racing the adjacent competition to the island. We won as he kicked in large twin engines…ha!

We opted for an apartment near Jettleson Quay in a giant new high rise complex as hotels had already doubled in cost with the run up to the New Year. It was conveniently just a few minutes walk to the boat docks to the islands, but was loud with concrete block echoes, and music and road noise about due to pre-holiday festivities.

Mamutik Island and Mount Kinabalu before the rest of the daytrippers arrived. Those sole footprints are mine.

Monitor Lizards roam all the islands of Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park.

I had hesitations in visiting one or more of the Islands off the coast of KK after reading about overcrowding and trash issues. We didn’t want to add to the problem, but it did seem that trash issue were more discussed pre-pandemic. We also opted for just one island, as you can visit one, two, or three islands in semi scheduled service from one of many boat/tour operators. The crowds did show up later morning but it was not bad, as trash disposal was good and the water seemed clean. Kudos to the park management for this, but they still should revamp and consolidate the many competing boat services, and work on the supply side of plastic, which is everywhere and in everything in Malaysia.

We were pleasantly surprised to see good garbage control on the island and almost no trash on the beach or in the water.

Lunar New Year Instagramming was part of the attraction at these busy islands.

Lots of shade as the midday sun is fierce here. Only the Westerners sat on the beach in full sun, and swim costumes are modest both for cultural norms and sun protection.

Very pleasant in the shade with a breeze.

Happy Travellers enjoying the Lunar New Year vibe in Borneo.

At Kota Kinabalu Airport heading to our next adventure in Sarawak.

Our first week in Borneo was intense. And all peak travel has its ups and downs, but the blessing of having time is to be able to smooth out the bumps and go with the flow a bit more. Sure, Lunar New Year partying meant getting less sleep a few nights in KK, but the festivals, food, and people make up for it. We’re here now and savoring every moment. Happy New Year!