Hello Borneo
- Jan 21, 2016
- 3 min read
Location:
Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Borneo, Malaysia
I can't believe we're here in Borneo. What a wonderful surprise. After a short taxi ride, we arrived at our hostel 'Masada Backpackers.' First impressions are good. The staff seem friendly which is always a bonus.
It's so nice to be back in Asia. To be honest, Kota Kinabalu isn't the nicest of cities but it shouts 'Asia.' From grotty streets to amazing street food. I know, grotty streets doesn't sound the best, but there reminiscent of the real Asian culture with clothes hanging out of each window. In a strange way, beauty is evident, even here. It's not all grotty, there are some nice parts of the city.
While we may not have done much on our first day as we didn't arrive until late, we did enjoy a nice trip to one of the islands, 'Sapi' which was only a very short boat ride away. It's like paradise with beautiful sandy beaches, gorgeous turquoise water and an array of coloured tropical fishes. As you can imagine, the water is so nice. I was fortunate enough to have a school of fish swim around me. It was very cool. I even managed to get it on video. Unfortunately, our trip to paradise was short lived and it was now back to the city!
On our arrival back to the main island, we both went exploring through the streets of Sabah's main city, stopping at anything that looked remotely interesting. For me, one of my favourite things about Asia is the food, and Borneo is no exception. Walking around all the different food markets soaking up the culture and the atmosphere while enjoying cheap snacks as you walk around. Jason was a happy bunny as we stopped off for a cheeky drink in a bar where he was able to enjoy a nice darts game. He was in his element. Asia, it's great to be back. I think we must have walked around the whole city that night. When we eventually got back, we fell right into it our laba's!
When it comes to cool day tour's, Asia is the place to do them. Not only is there lots to see, but there so cheap. Myself and Jason decided to do a river cruise where we would get the chance to see the endangered 'Propuiscus Monkey' which is endemic to Borneo and some fire flies. It took us a few hours to get down there, but it was worth it. We even had the privilege of being guided around a small house that will be playing host to a rather traditional wedding the following day. After our short tour, it was time for some coffee and banana fritters. Did I mention how amazing they are? As my lovely mother would say, 'They're Tasty Tasty Tasty.' Only exceptional food gets the three 'Tasties' rating.
After some light refreshments we boarded our little boat for a private cruise along the river. As soon as we left, we spotted some wild Propiscus Monkeys. That was really cool. Such beautiful creatures with there long nose's. The cruise itself was so nice. It was so relaxing just cruising along the river with so much vegetation in either side. Towards the end of our little cruise, we were greeted with magical fire flies. With their synchronized blinking, it's like seeing fairy lights on a Christmas tree. It's truly magical. Right at the end of the cruise we were pleasantly surprised to see a herd of 'Water Buffaloes' swimming in the river protecting a little calf. It was by far one of the main highlights of the trip. An amazing but yet, unexpected experience!
After our lovely cruise, we picked up three beautiful, traditional masks for our future home. That was followed by a lovely dinner where we enjoyed an abundance of different dishes. There was so much delicious food. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Our bellies were well and truly satisfied. After our delightful meal and rather enjoyable outing, it was back in the bus where we were city bound.
Personally, I really enjoyed our first stop in Borneo. The locals are so friendly. They are constantly smiling and saying hello to you. Definitely some of the nicest people in the world. There is so much to see here which we didn't realise. It's now at the top of our ever growing list of places we want to come back to if only to climb 'Mount Kinablu' which is a whopping 3,998 metres high. Now that's impressive. For now though, we're off to spend a bit of time with some Orang-utan's!
By Andrew
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