Kuching Day 3: Bako National Park

Malaysia is rich in natural resources and has national parks scattered within the country. Bako National park is the oldest one of all and only 40 minutes away from Kuching. To get to Bako, we first drove to Kampung Bako, where we paid the RM10 admission fee and chartered a boat that took us to the peninsula of the park. The boat ride cost RM48 one-way and we shared it with another couple. The scenery along the Bako River was stunning and made the 20-minute journey very enjoyable.

Heading toward the Bako NP!

Houses along the Bako River

Mangrove forest

The coastline of the Muara Tebas peninsula

Because of the tides, the boat could only bring us back at certain times and we were told by the boat keeper when and where to meet him for pick-up in the afternoon. Once we arrived, we headed towards to the office to obtain a map of the national park. There are more than a dozens walking trails of various lengths ranging from 30 minutes to half a day. The staff was very friendly and suggested suitable trails to us. We at last decided on the Telok Paku, which led us to a small secluded beach, and the longer Telok Pandan Kecil, which ascended up the hill before reaching a scenic cliff top.

Overall the trekking trails were a bit challenging, but still manageable. Some parts were quite slippery and steep but all very well marked. Walking through the rainforest, discovering interesting plants and finally reaching the coastline felt like a true adventure! We also saw a few groups of monkeys along the way. But we made a big mistake of not bring enough water and we became quite dehydrated at the end. When we finally returned to the restaurant from the jungle I gulped down one whole litre of water!

After having a rest at the restaurant, we got picked up at around 4:30pm by the same boat and headed home.

Rocky beach along the coastline

Telok Pandan Kecil

The stunning view from the cliff

A wild boar and a monkey drinking Coke from a can!

Kuching Day 2: Cat Museum, Cultural Village & Damai Beach

Day 2 was a Sunday and I did not want Jo to miss her weekly fellowship so we went together in the morning. Speaking of religion, I was surprised by the level of religious openness in Sarawak. Although Malaysia is an Islamic country, I saw many Catholic parishes and schools at different parts of the city, some even built in close proximity to a mosque. Masses are often conducted in Malay, English and various Chinese dialects at the same parish, reflecting cultural diversity among the local Christians.

Our first stop in the afternoon was the Cat Museum, about 15 min away from the city centre by car. True to its name, it houses a mix of display in the theme cats, including Cats the musical and possibly the most famous cat in the world Hello Kitty! Other galleries are devoted to biological facts, social beliefs and myths related to the animal. I found the museum a bit strange and random and not that worthwhile unless you are a cat lover. Its location on Bukit Siol, however, offered an nice view of the Kuching city. Admission was free of charge.

The outlook and the entrance of the Cat Museum

Kuching from the Bukit Siol

After another 40-min drive, we reached the Sarawak Cultural Village, situated at the foot of Mount Santubong. Like many tourist attractions in East Malaysia, foreigners were charged more than locals. A ticket cost RM60 and came with a passport, with contained the map and a description of each of the show houses in the cultural village and spaces to collect a stamp at each stop. These houses were authentic representations of the local ethnic populations living in Sarawak and were staffed by natives of that particular tribe. Most of them spoke good English and were very knowledgeable in their own culture. A cultural show was performed in the theatre twice a daily at 11:30am and 4pm and incorporated music and dancing from each ethnic group. At the end of the 45-minute performance guests were also invited to join the dancers on stage :)

Sarawak Cultural Village with the backdrop of the beautiful mountain

The Melanau tall house, one of the 7 show houses.

Local musician

Us having a go at the traditional dance and music

Cultural show

Opposite to the Sarawak Cultural Village was the Damai Beach. A new shopping complex has just been completed by the seaside but nothing was open yet except for the food court. The beach was beautiful and the water was very clean. The sea was a bit too wavy for swimming but jumping waves is always fun!

Kuching Day 1: Singapore - Kuching

If it was not for Joanna who is now working in Kuching, I would never have heard of the place. Let alone visiting it. It has been a while since I went there to visit her so this won't be as detailed as my accounts of the Sabah trip.

This 5-day trip was my first time in Borneo and started on 20th August 2011. I flew to Kuching from Singapore with Tiger Airways and the return tickets cost me SGD95, with hand-carry luggage only. AirAsia also flies this route so it is worthwhile comparing the two.

I arrived in the capital city of Sarawak bright and early at around 9am and Jo wasted no time taking me to breakfast. One of the things that this trip has introduced to me was 福州 (Fu Zhou) cuisine. 福州人 is a prominent Chinese dialect group in Sarawak so 福州 food is very popular here. Throughout the trip I tried 鼎邊糊, Mee suah 紅酒面線, 煮炒, Kolo Mee, Popiah, Sarawak Laksa, 魚丸, and many more dishes that I have never seen or tasted before. And they were all very tasty!

After dropping my luggage at Jo's place, she brought me to the city area along the Sarawak River. Food stalls are set up on the river bank at night time but it is quite a nice walk here during the day when it's quieter. There are small boats waiting by the river for passengers and local people take them as a mean of public transport to cross the river. RM0.5 would take you across the river. Alternatively if you would like them to cruise along the river it would cost you around RM35.

Kuching literally means "cat" in Malay and many statues of cats can be found at different corners of the Cat City.

The Sarawak River

The boat keep will only start the boat when he gets enough passengers so you will probably spend more time on the boat waiting than crossing the river. It only took a few minutes to reach the other side and the breeze made it quite a pleasant ride.

After getting off the boat, we followed the crowd and found a bunch of shops selling layer cakes, "kek lapis". They all had different designs and colours and looked absolutely beautiful. They came in almost every flavour imaginable, from prune, Oreo, peanut butter to some more unusual ones like Milo, peppermint and pandan! We definitely came at one of the busiest times as a lot of Malay ladies were buying cakes as preparation for Hari Raya.

At night we went to the annual Kuching Food Festival. The event is a major attraction for tourists as well as the locals. Even finding a parking took us much effort and time. Over 100 food stall were set up and offered a wide variety of food such as Nyonya food, Taiwanese street snacks, char kway teow, oyster omelette and even durian pastry!

Sabah: Conclusion and highlights

The Sabah trip was such a blast. We had a few hiccups along the way but at the end we visited all the places that we planned to. I think anyone would enjoy Sabah because there are so many activities to do, from water sports and diving to hiking and wildlife watching. If you prefer a relaxing holiday, many resorts are located right at the beach. Accommodation, food and transport are very affordable. Here are a few things that in my opinion you should not miss if you visit Sabah:

Mount Kinabalu National Park (The park was beautiful. I can only imagine how amazing the view would be on the top)

River Kinabatangan - Observing the wild animals in their natural habitat was a very special experience.

The beaches!!!!!

We also enjoyed the food at these places:

In KK:

富源 (Foo Yuen) on Jalan KK Bypass next to Sabah Tourism Board. Nice bakery, Chinese and Malay food, kaya toast and more.

Food court at Tanjung Aru Beach. Dinner served with sunset on the beach.

怡豐 (Yee Fung) Laksa on Jalan Gaya

In Sandakan:

Kelly Cake House on Jalan Pryer. The bread and the pastry are very nice.

Roti cani. Freshly made Indian bread with curry, perfect with a cup of teh tarik!

Breakfast at the Sandakan Central Market

From Sandakan:

Sim-Sim Seafood Restaurant. Fresh seafood cooked in local style.

Sabah Day 9: KK - Singapore

This was my last day in Sabah (cry!) and my flight was at 2:55pm. With nothing much on the itinerary, we spent the morning walking around the city. We went to the central market and handicraft market by the river and KK plaza and shopped a bit at the supermarket. After lunch I took a taxi to the airport while my parents stayed behind for one more day. They moved into a double room at Sarangnova Hotel which was RM130 per night.

For the first time in this trip my flight was on time and uneventful (except I lost my sunglasses on the plane and the staff from AirAsia told me that they could not be found). Waiting by the boarding gate was however a little confusing as the screen displaying departure flight did not show actual boarding time and departure time. Most waiting passengers looked as confused as I felt. But considering how much I paid for my plain ticket, that somehow was not a major issue.

Bye-bye Sabah!

Sabah Day 8: Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park

The Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park consists of Gaya, Sapi, Manukan, Mamutik and Sulug islands, each lined with beautiful beaches with abundant marine life. Speed boats leave for these islands regularly from the Jesselton Point Ferry Terminal. There were many counters but the prices offered seemed to be similar. Return boat ticket was RM17 for one island and RM27 for two islands. Try to negotiate if there are a few of you because that's what my dad did and we only paid RM25 each person for Manukan and Mamutik Islands. We also rented snorkelling masks and life jackets for RM15 each. They were also available on the islands but it was cheaper this way as we could use them on both islands. We also had to paid a terminal fee (I forgot the amount, about RM7 each?)

Jesselton Point Ferry Terminal

Ticketing counter

The boat ride would take about 15 min, depending on which island you are heading. Our first stop was Manukan Island, which was one of the bigger islands. Upon arrival we needed to pay a conservation fee of RM10 each. This would only be charged once regardless of the number of islands you go to.

There were no lockers on the island but plenty of benches to put your stuff on. We jumped into the sea with our snorkelling gears and were surrounded by fish immediately. It was like being inside of an aquarium! Apart from fishes, we were also swimming with a lot of tiny jellyfish that were barely visible and we kept getting stung! It was not terribly painful but definitely not comfortable!

Bumpy boat ride

Fish swimming near the jetty

Ready for snorkelling!

They are not kidding about the jellyfish!

We got picked up at the jetty at 2pm to go to the second island Mamutik. Unlikely Manukan, we could not see any chalet or restaurant and the beach was much smaller. But the water was equally clear and the seabed was covered by spectacular coral reefs. They all had different shapes and colours and the species of fishes were completely different from those in Manukan. I got so excited when I saw Nemo! :P Our camera was not waterproof so we could not take any photographs underwater.

Either Manukan or Mamutik...

One type of coral fish was particularly aggressive and would try to scare you off and bite you if you swim into its territory. My dad was the worst victim among us three!

We took the last boat back to KK ferry terminal at 5pm. I was sooo exhausted but this was definitely one of the highlights of the trip :)