17. On to Bangkok

Our driver is meeting us at 7:30 to drive us to the airport.  We have two flights to catch to get to Bangkok.  The first takes us to Kuala Lumpur and then we get a  connecting flight and should be In Bangkok by 3:00pm.  We have a street food tour booked for this evening.

Judith is green.  It’s not fun to be sick in your own bed; so much worse in a foreign place and a day that you’re on the move.  This is going to be an agonizing day for her.  And there’s no way she’ll be interested In a food tour when nothing is staying down. 

She is stoic about today.  There isn’t any complaining; just an attitude that at some point this day will end and be in Bangkok and able to go back to bed and convalescence.  

Last night before she crashed, she went out and bought a couple of cans of apple juice from the “Never Close Market” across the street from the hotel.  When she came back and started drinking it she thought it had gone bad because the juice had small solid jelly like chunks in it.  If you weren’t queasy already, then you’d be guaranteed to feel nauseous after thinking you’d drank something that was off.  

It turns out the apple juice was manufactured to have those chunky bits.  There was a little fine print on the cam that indicated there were chunky bits in the can, but who would have thought that would have even been an option for apple juice?

Before we left for the airport, I went out to secure edible food items for Judith.  I went and got some pastries from the hotel kitchen and since the “Never Close Market” wasn’t open, walked to a breakfast place and ordered apple juice.  I thought it was odd that it was being made at the barista area of the kitchen.  I wish I had watched him make it.  When I got it, it was a vivid green colour, not anything like Sunrype apple juice from home...  It was giving to me in a mug, I considered leaving it because it was such a weird colour and I didn’t think Judith would want it.  But I thought what did I have to lose, so I asked for take out and they poured it into a cup and sealed it (exactly like you would get for bubble tea).  

I came back to the room and Judith was getting ready to go.  To my surprise she tried the apple juice and to my greater surprise she said it was the best she had ever had.  Maybe she was delirious from being dehydrated. Or maybe she was being nice since I went out and sourced it. Or maybe it was really the best.  I remain sceptical.  In any event, good or not, it doesn’t stay with her.  

We are flying Air Asia.  This is a discount airline and up to this point, we have no experience with them.  The first flight from Kota Kinabalu to Kuala Lumpur went off without a hitch. Leg room was a little tight for Judith, but acceptable for someone as short as I am.  Judith wasn’t so happy with the smell of the chicken McPie that was being served up as the meal.  Something about making her nauseous.  But she kept it all together without saying anything.  In fact, the major difference when she's not well is that I carry most of the conversation.  Consequently there was less discussion that entire day as I was mindful of a sick travel partner. 

As we were waiting around the second flight got delayed by 2 hours.  Uggh.  That gets us into Bangkok at 5:00 pm.  We’re supposed to meet the guide for the food tour at 5:30 so by the time we deplane, go through immigration, pick up our luggage, find the driver, navigate to the hotel and get ourselves prepared to go out for a food tour, we will definitively be at least an hour late.  

But more importantly the delay extends how long Judith has to be somewhere other than tucked into a warm bed.  I can tell she won’t be going on the food tour.  

When we get out of the secure part of the Bangkok airport with our luggage, we don’t see our agent’s sign.  We check a few locations and try to follow the instructions provided in our detailed written guide provided by the tour operator, but they don’t make any sense.  When we ask someone to help us, they indicate that the instructions seem to be for the other Bangkok airport, Suvarnabhumi, not for this airport, Don Mueang.

So we attempt to call and see what’s going on, but can’t seem to get through.  There’s a number sequence to use a Canadian cell phone in a foreign country and I haven’t mastered it.  So Judith goes off to see if she can find a service desk and convince them to phone for us, while I wait in the exit area to see if our tour operator shows.  

While I’m waiting I take my phone off airplane mode from when I had turned it on to start the flight.  Up pops a voicemail indicator.  It’s from the tour operator and indicates that they’re sorry that the driver wasn’t able to locate us (because his instructions were to go to the wrong airport) and for us to get a taxi to the hotel for which they will reimburse us.  

So now I go in search of Judith and I'm towing our two bags through a crowded airport.  Fortunately she’s really, really easy to spot in a sea of short, dark haired people (Yes, like me.)  She’s already found a clerk at the information counter to make the call, so we wait patiently until she has an opportunity to interrupt and tell her that the problem has been solved.  

During this period of confusion I find a sign in the airport that amuses me.  I love traveling to foreign countries and finding signs where the translation needs a bit more work or where you shake your head and wonder what were they thinking to end up with that result?  In this case, this sign was being held up in the airport by a travel agent looking for her group to show.  A name change would be needed for her to immigrate to one of several countries. 

We find a taxi desk and prepay our fare to the hotel.  There is an employee who takes our taxi receipt and gestures to Judith and I to follow her.  We're immediately placed in a waiting taxi and the employee passes the receipt back to us.

The taxi driver swings our luggage to and fro until she figures it will clear the trunk lip and then lets the momentum carry the case into the truck.  She is transgendered and has long fingernails and is wearing make up.  In the cab she is happy to let us know about her adult children and taxi ride stories.  

Early on in the long conversation, the driver tells us that the fare we just paid at the taxi desk does not include the highway tolls.  It immediately smells fishy (more on that fishy smell later) but we fork over the 120 baht requested to cover the tolls.  As I write the toll amount on the receipt for future recovery from the tour organizer, I notice that the form does confirm that tolls aren’t included in the fare.  At least that tells us we aren’t been taken for that kind of ride.

After the first expressway and toll paid, the driver indicates she is going another route, one that doesn’t take the second expressway as she thinks that expressway will be all blocked with traffic. She hands back the remaining toll money.  At some point along our new alternate route, she points to the beginning of the second expressway and sure enough, it’s at a standstill.   We zoom past those parked cars.  I’m pretty happy speeding by these stopped cars and I think Judith is even happier.  

We take another shortcut through a large hospital complex.  I think taxis are permitted to use this route but regular vehicles are not.  There are traffic officers regulating vehicles through the narrow streets and our driver seems to drive through the maze with great ease.  And then voila, we’re at the hotel where we’re greeted by the hotel staff for check in and by our guide, Paul.  

AriyasomVilla is a boutique hotel, 24 rooms, right in the middle of the city.  Of course, with a population of 8 Million, Bangkok has a big middle...Anyways our room was pretty nice, and the grounds seemed lush, perfect for us to hang for the next few days.  Judith is happy to finally lie down. 

Panorama shot of bathroom

But with the delay, it’s now dark and by the time I get ready to go back out again it will be too late.  Besides Judith isn’t going to go, so I think maybe we can delay this part of the adventure to another time to when she’s feeling up to it.  We discuss with Paul who agrees to amend our schedule and we agree to start at 8:00 tomorrow.

The hotel room also has a tray of fruit.  I pick out some rambutan (refer earlier comments) to show that I will have some.  The fruit is similar to lychee nuts.  Apparently they are often referred to as a piece of male anatomy.

With Judith heading for bed I proceeded to check out dinner in the hotel restaurant.  It concentrates on vegetarian dishes but you can add shrimp or fish to most of the dishes.  It all looks good except I really don’t like eating alone in a restaurant.  It’s not my thing.  I think meals are for sharing conversation and there’s no sharing when you’re by yourself.  So despite the tasty meal and the lovely restaurant setting it’s not a totally satisfy experience.  I finish dinner quickly and it’s off to bed.

16. KK - White Water Rafting

We're up very very early to head out to go white water rafting on the Pradas River. Our driver was going to be in the lobby at 5:00 for the long trip from Kota Kinabalu to Padas Gorge.  

It's still dark out when start the journey.  We're travelling by car to the city of Beaufort about 2 hours away.  From there we are board a train to the Padas Gorge. Our driver gets us to the train station an hour before the train is supposed to leave.  We wait outside but there isn't much more than a parking lot so we wait inside.  We open our takeout breakfast that the hotel made for us.  It reminds me of a mock chicken sandwich.  I only eat half of the sandwich and go out and give the other half to our driver.  About 10 minutes before the train arrived, Alex brings over Rio, who introduces himself as our rafting guide.  

We board the train at Beaufort and settle down into seats and begin the ride.  We're about two stations in when we're advised that we need to switch trains.  We stand around at Halogitat Station until a new train comes by.  We board and it needs to shuffle and connect with a train car at the station.  It's not smooth.  There's a simultaneous terrific jolt and banging noise as the cars hook up.  The train goes to Rayu which is the end stop for the rafting adventure.  The train is making a temporary stop while all the paddlers disembark, walk over the tracks to the rafting compound, leaves our bags containing towels, change of clothing, etc., and then get back on the train.  

The train gets going to the next stop Panggi, which is the stop for the start of our rafting adventure.  We get out and walk over to the rafting buildings.   There we get our gear (life preserver and helmet) and then receive our dry land training.  We get assigned to boats and walk down to the rivers edge.  

Our boat will have 8 people.  There's room for 6 paddlers and two of us will sit in the first two rows in between the paddlers and hang into them via the webbing on the life jackets.  There will be opportunity to swap with a paddlers during the run.  

We also do a bit of wet training.  Everyone in the boat is required to exit the raft and then climb back in.  I’m unable to hoist myself out of the water without assistance.  It seems whatever upper body strength I have is overwhelmed by my under body weight.  It turns out most of us had that issue.  The water was so warm.  

The rafting guidelines for this 3-4 level of white water rapids required you to be able to swim.  There was one woman from Korea in the boat who not only didn’t know how to swim, wouldn’t even get into the water to do her wet training.  All the training was conducted In English, I’m not sure how much she understood.  And the waiver was in English.  But in Thailand, I suspect it’s harder to prove negligence, so nobody objected to her being on the raft or made her do her wet training.  

Judith and I are paddling in the middle part of the boat and we have the non swimmer sitting in between us. Judith is paddling left on the port side; I’m padding right on starboard.  I have my feet wedged in under the seat bolster in front of me.  The seat bolster is secured to the raft and wedging my feet in allows me to lean out and still stay firmly planted in the boat.  

We paddle through the first few rapids and it’s great fun.  There are 9 in total.  All the rapids have names — I wonder if the “washing machine” or the “Snake” are used in other rafting locations.  

We come up to the most difficult of the rapids and our guide indicates we have about a 60% chance that someone will end up in the water.  We start paddling hard and slide over the first lip of the rapids bow first.  After that we started sliding starboard first. 

 I remember thinking this wasn’t the ideal direction since I was sitting on that side and the water was rushing over the gunnel.  

I could feel and see the water picking up the port side of the boat and Judith slipping down into the middle of the boat.  By this time the raft felt fairly vertical in the water and I was horizontal to the water.  I could feel water filling my helmet.  

And then as quickly as the raft became vertical, to my great surprise, the port side of the raft fell back onto the water and my body got lifted out of the water.  I started paddling again and we continued to slide sideways through and out that set of rapids.  

There was a great relief to be finished that set of rapids.  Our guide was dumbfounded as to why we all didn’t go over.  I think it was a combination of weight distribution (thank goodness for the heavy guy on the port side at the bow of the raft) and perhaps fortuitous wave action that helped right the boat.  I truly thought we were going over too and was already thinking about preparing myself to get my foot unwedged so I wouldn’t be floating upside down through those rapids.  

The next hardest rapid involved navigating through the channel and avoiding 3 large rocks that are spread across the waterway.  I could see two of the rocks as they stuck out of the rapids by at least a foot.  At least that’s what it looked like from up stream where the water was pouring around it.  From the backside, after we had made it through, I could see the rocks were significantly higher as there wasn’t gallons of water trying to be pushed over them from being on the upstream side of them.  I didn’t have to look behind; we actually went through backwards...

After the last rapid we could jump into the water and float/swim to the exit point.  It meant staying on the right side of the river, otherwise there was a possibility that the current would sweep you past the exit point and the rafting company would need to rescue you.  

We climb out over the big smooth slippery rocks in the river.  You can’t see them, there’s so much sediment in the water that the visibility is zero. 

We dry off and then eat a tasty buffet lunch. We decide to purchase the photo package taken by the rafting outfitters. It’s all going well so far.  Eventually it’s time to get back on the train and take it back to Beaufort Station.  We get the last two seats in the train car.  Judith is cold as the car is air conditioned, but I don’t have the same issues.  We change trains at Halogitat Station and get off at Beaufort.  Our driver and car are waiting for us and it’s a 90 min trip back into the city.  

By this time Judith tells me she thinks that the buffett contained MSG.  She’s really not feeling so great.  In fact, she gets progressively worse.  She hopes to be better the next day, which is good because it’s a travel day and it’s no fun to have stomach issues when you’re traveling.  

5. Kuching Day 2

We're up early to meet for bicycling.  It's pouring out.  Monsoon wet.  The rainy season isn't supposed to start until October or  November but it's seems to be early this year.

After breakfast we go down at 8:00 to the lobby to meet our guide.  She's a young woman, Nik, who suggests postponing the the ride until the afternoon or rescheduling to the next day.  The next day doesn't work because we already have activities scheduled.  We decide to postpone until the afternoon.  I figure it can't rain any worse than it was.  We agree to meet again in the lobby at noon.  

We decide to grab a newspaper and head to the pool deck and check out the action there.  At 8:00 am on a rainy day I'm really not surprised when no one is there except for one hotel staff member, Pauline.  We sat down at one of the covered, open air tables and ordered coffee.  

It was quite enjoyable being dry and listening to the rain falling so hard around us.  We had a nice conversation with Pauline who has worked at the Hilton for many years.  We spent the entire morning there drinking a little coffee, reading newspapers and monitoring the rain. We were pleased to watch it dry up in time for us to order some lunch before we headed out again.  I had the Roti Canai, the same dish we had on our food tour in KL.  Judith had some veggie pizza thing.  

We met up with Nik in the lobby and got into her vehicle for a short ride to the bike shop.  There we got fitted for bikes and helmets.  Our travel agent had asked for our heights as part of the pre trip planning before we left, but clearly that information didn't get passed on or was ignored.  In any event we get our bikes fitted and go and select a helmet.  I insisted that Judith wear one. I think she would have gone without if I hadn't said anything. I only found one helmet with an expiry date label.  It said May 2012.  

With our gear on, we took the obligatory picture and headed out on the street. Cycling the city streets was easy as Nik used a whistle to advise drivers that we were going to navigate in front of them.  It took a while to get used to what direction to look for cars due to their right hand drive system and numerous traffic circles. 

The villages are interesting. The homes used to be built on stilts because the river overflows its banks, flooding the area during the rainy season. It also provides an additional benefit of air circulation under the floor.  We stop by one of the oldest examples of these homes.  The posts are made from ironwood, a particularly hardy wood.  The long houses would hold multiple families and there would be communal areas for cooking, eating and ceremonies. 

We hop back on the bikes and stop in the driveway of a house to investigate a Pandan plant.   This plants gave off a fragrant smell when you crush the long slender leaves.  

We rode to the next village and visited the Satok Weekend market.  It's a big (and I mean big) open air market with many many stalls from local framers.  The vendors come from small nearby farms and bring an amazing amount of produce.  The selection is phenomenal.  We walked around the stalls.  First there was a dry market--produce, spices, drinks, goods, etc.

And Judith finds a cat at the market.

The other section is known as a wet market and sells meats and fish.  I only saw one stall selling meat and the sight was enough to put you off meat for the rest of the trip.  There was meat sitting out on this hot day.  Lots of flies buzzing about and the hygiene looked a little weak.  I think I like my meat less recognizable than what I saw in this stall. 

The wet market also had a ton of fish and shellfish.  We saw a local fisherman with a bagful of fresh river prawns "Udang Galah". sell it to the vendor.  He was paid based on weight.  

We gathered up some things to eat for lunch.  One of the items was Kuih Talam, a popular Malay cake that has two layers.  The white layer is made of coconut milk and rice flour.  The green layer is made from rice flour, green pea flour and extract of pandan juice -- the same plant we had seen earlier.  

  

We also ordered Laksa Sarawak, a rice vermicelli soup.  Since we already had lunch, I was too full to each much of anything.  Plus it was hot, and that tends to make me loose interest in consuming much.  

After we rode through another village back to the river.  We waited for a water taxi and it didn't take long for one to appear.

The water taxi ride was great.  Lots to see from the water side.  

This is a foot bridge connecting communities on either side of the river.

We drop off our bikes and come back to the hotel via the riverfront walkway.  We're hot and sweaty; showers are called for.

I end up blogging. Judith decides to hang out at poolside.  She tells me she ordered a "Singapore Sling" but it wasn't what she was expecting.  I think she wanted to be 23 again.  

We ended up at the White Barouk restaurant for dinner.  We ate out on the deck overlooking the Sawarak River.  There was a family eating on the inside of restaurant and the little boy started waving back at Judith and blowing her kisses.  That little guy was very cute.

After dinner we walked over to the Riverfront amphitheater and watched a show celebrating the indigenous tribes.

The act involved much singing and dancing. There was a demonstration on a blowpipe.  It's an amazingly accurate weapon.

We went back to the hotel. Another earlyish start.

15. Kota Kinabalu - Day 1 Cycling

Today we suit up to go cycling.  Our guide, Sebastian meets us in the lobby of the hotel at 7:30 a.m.   The SUV has two bikes on a rack in the back and two more in the back.  It's already over 30 degrees with a humidity of about 80%. 

We're diving to Kiulu about an hour away.  Kiulu is a rural community mostly of the Duson tribe.  We arrive at the town; the area has a population of about 2000 people.  The Kiulu River runs through the community.  There is white water rafting that operates on this river and one of our tasks during this trip is to decide whether we want to white water on this river or stay the course with the other, more challenging river we're booked on.  

On the way, we pick up the driver who will drive the support vehicle and meet us at specific checkpoints along our route.  On the way, Sebastian points out Mt Kinabalu, the highest peak on Borneo.  One of the excursions Judith could have selected was to do a two day hike up and down the mountain.  It would have required much more prep, so she decided on other activities.  While it take normal hikers two days to scale just over 2500 feet from the base parking lot, there is a crazy marathon, Climbathon that goes up and down the mountain, with the fastest time clocked in at 2 hours 22 minutes.  Yikes.

At Kiulu we stop and Sebastian unloads the bikes while Judith and I make one last pit stop.  He advises there is a market going on close by, but neither of us are keen to check it out.  We get our seats fitted and we're off, but not before the obligatory photo.  

We don't go too far and there's already a river crossing on one of the narrow cable bridges.  It's too narrow and unstable to ride across.  We dismount and walk.  

A bit more trail riding along the water and we cross over again.  The cable bridges are too narrow to ride across.  And the missing floor planks is also a concern.  

We ride along the country road a bit and take a break at a bus stop.  Also at the stop was a small building.  Inside was a woman running a noisy machine that removed the outer husk of a rice kernel. We learn that the difference between white rice and brown rice was the length of the growing season.  White rice is grown for 3 months; brown rice is grown for 3 more months. The machine uses rollers to remove the chaff which is blown outside via a wide diameter pipe and collected onto a ever growing pile.  

Part of the pile is burning to create ash to be sold to farmers to add it back into the soil.  I'm fascinated that it just smoulders without anyone tending it.  Why that big pile doesn't suddenly turn into a huge flame is a mystery.  

The kernels fall into a 5 gallon pail.  She is adept at swapping out the full pail with an empty one with the machine continually running.  She passes the rice through twice as that seems to be the optimal number.  Sebastian says that the local farmers bring the rice for processing and that her payment is a percentage of the rice that's been processed.

We ride a bit more through the community and end up having a snack at one of the local farms hosted by an older woman.  There are poultry around that have very cool feather colours.  

We sit in a covered patio enjoying a cold drink and some cookies.  I notice some speakers on speaker stands against the wall of the house and ask the farmer why she has these speakers.  She explains that they belong to her son and when I prod a little bit more, find out he's into Karaoke.  Apparently, he holds regular karaoke parties for the neighbourhood.  

We're invited to see the rest of the farm. The farmer puts on a wide brimmed hat.  I signalled to ask if she had another had and I end up borrowing one.

The first thing we see are the rice paddy fields.  

The next thing we see are the banana trees.  Once they bear fruit, they need to be chopped down. Otherwise they will continue as perennials, but never will bear fruit again.

The guava tree produces a female and male tree. The female tree produces the fruit.  The male counterpart produces a little white flower which is cooked and eaten.  The white flower is known to contain quinine, which explains why malaria isn't a problem  around here.  

And a pineapple plant.

We pass through a grove of rubber trees.  These trees were about 2 years old and needed another 2 years of growing before they can start harvesting the rubber sap. We come to some mature rubber tree and the farmer shows how she taps the tree for the sap.  I get to try doing it to another tree.  When I finish, she tells Sebastian that I'm hired.  

The rubber sap hardens and can has cool elastic qualities.  It can be bounced or stretched.  The sap is gathered and pressed into a thick sheet to be sold.  

We return to the patio area, get our gear back on.  We ride along the river which is shaded by overhanging trees.  The river which seems to have a gentle flowing rate.  We decide this isn't the speed we would be happy with on our white water rafting adventure.  The Kiulu river is more of a tubing speed, not white water rafting speed so we decide to keep our original Padas River plan.

The cycling by the river was the best part.  We crossed over on suspension bridges twice more and eventually returned via road way.  It was a smoking hot day, I had to pour water over my head to keep cool.  

We came across a herd of water buffalo cooling themselves in the mud.  One of them  kept staring us down when we stopped to look at them.  I kept thinking it wanted to mow us down.  

The tour eventually ends at the place where the Kiulu River white water rafting organizes its events.  We have a tasty buffet lunch and Judith is happy to interact with the cats around the property.   Many of the cats we've seen since we've arrived have these funny short tails.  Some people have theorized that it's due to manual intervention but I don't think that's possible.  I've seen too many of these short tailed cats in too many locations to believe that something sinister is going on.

With the ride over we get driven back to the hotel around 4:00.  Shower and power nap for me, except the power nap ended up being somewhat of a continuous sleep until the next morning.  I did manage to wake up long enough for dinner at a local Vietnamese restaurant but it didn't take long for me to fall back asleep again.

Tomorrow:  white water rafting!

14. Goodbye Jungle

Another fabulous breakfast.  I have eaten lots during this trip and it's not over yet. I hope my now two year weight loss has not suffered much.   Personally, I feel as if I've sweated off several pounds since I've arrived at this lodge a couple of days ago.

The morning mist was pretty.  This was the morning breakfast view. 

We get suited up for our last jungle walk. We start out on the road and ran into another group.  The guide has a spotting scope trained on "Mike" one of the male orangutans that hangs around in the general area.  

In the same tree was a civet, but I missed seeing it before it disappeared. 

On our walks we've learned a bit about the flora.  There are many magnificent sized trees that grow in the rainforest and most eventually die from having vines grow around them and constricting them.  It takes a while.  This tree has a couple of vines circling it.

I think the fig trees are also interesting.  Apparently there are two main types of fig trees.  There is a variety that grows from the bottom up, like you would expect from a regular tree and these fig trees have a solid trunk.  There is another variety that establishes vines that first climb up and then sends vines down to establish roots.  These trees establish a group of thick vines as their "trunk".  You can see light shining in between the trunk vines.  Where else but the jungle could this plant grow?.  The guide also says that the trees here don't have tree rings.  Rings are found in trees that are subject to seasons and in the jungle there isn't one.  It's pretty constant temperature throughout the year.  

We walk down to the river to try and catch a glimpse of other animals but come up empty.  The lodge provides a tubing excursion on this river, but the water level is too low at the moment to be any fun.  

We return to the lodge and I spray off the muck from my boots one last time.  They've taken a beating this trip and will need a good cleaning when I get home.  We take advantage of Adrian's boot drying offer again.  The boots will be travelling back in my bag and they will smell less when dry.  

It's about 11:00 and we return to our room to pack our bags for the next leg of our trip.  As we take our bags out of the room there is a housekeeping person who radios for someone to come take our bags to the lobby area.  They insist that we go and have our last meal at the lodge.  They don't need to ask us more than once.

As I walk the boardwalk to the main building from our room for the last time, I finally stop to take a picture of the flowering trees.  They produce a cluster of bulbs before they bloom that reminds me of a flower at home (peony?) 

We get seated in the far corner and I go to the grilling area to order the ingredients for my stir fry veggies.  At this point I see Oliver who is waiting on table on the other side of the room.  Somehow between then and the time it takes to make up my stir fry, he's magically waiting on our table.  I can only assume he switched with his colleague.  I'm not sure how long he's worked at BRL but I'm guessing that he's figured out who's more likely to tip and that the likelihood is increased if you wait on the same people and if they engage you in conversation.  Tipping has become more and more prevalent in Malaysia, particularly with more and more western tourists coming to visit.  But it's still relatively new and recipients are often very surprised to receive any gratuity.  Or maybe they're good at pretending...

I snap a picture of Oliver.  He does what I call  the classic Asian pose. I have seen loads of people here in Malaysia posing with the late 1960's era piece symbol. 

At lunch there was a giant moth on one of the posts.  I get someone to put their hand up so you could see just how large this thing was.  It was easily 5 inches across.  

We got assigned new seat passengers for our ride to the airport at Lahad Datu.  The people we came with we're also headed there but were heading to a different destination after that.  Our new seat passengers, Roger and Jill ate staying at the same hotel in Kota Kinabalu, so I think that's how the organizers made up the grouping.  

On the way we went through a huge thunderstorm.  We were glad that we dodged this amount of rain at BRL.  It did rain during the nights but we stayed dry during the day.  

By the time we reached the airport there was a lot of flooding.  The drop off area was under 6 inches of water.  Fortunately, the driver was able to find a place further up and skillfully backed up between a double line of parked cars and stopped under the passenger walkway overhang so we wouldn't get wet.  Bravo I thought.  Probably not what he was permitted to do, but it worked for us.  

Inside was a single gate airport.  It can accommodate planes up to 60 passengers. No amenities.  The runway is situated so that the terminal is about midway.  The plane enters the runway in about the middle of it, then taxis out to the end and turns around before it takes off.  

The flight is fine enough and we meet our driver and head over to the Jesselton Hotel where we had stayed a few nights ago. This is an upgraded room.  It's larger and overlooks the front of the hotel.  There's so much activity on this street including an establishment named "Pang's Coffee". 

We meet up with Roger and Jill for dinner and head out.  We left the decision to them and Roger decides on a a restaurant that serves western food.  They opt for fish and chips, Judith has a pizza and I had to think hard and remember that i had a rice bowl with an egg, veggies and chicken.  Although It was really good, maybe that part of the meal wasn't so important to me.  I do remember a lovely wide ranging conversation about travel, family, the printing industry, banking, music, cycling, pets and a smattering of politics.  I like it a lot when conversation is the best part of my meals.  

We returned back to the hotel to get ready for the next day's activity - cycling.  

13. Sweating in the Borneo Rainforest

Breakfast was a leisurely treat. An omelet made to order, potatoes, pastries, waffles pancakes--the buffet has huge selection.  It's my favourite meal of the day.

This morning we're hiking to the lookout.  It's about 1200 feet up and about a 6 km hike.  It's already 30+ degrees and the humidity is constant at 100%.  We're all bringing 2 bottles of water.  Jungle dress code requires long pants, shirt, leech socks, hiking shoes (as some of the trails are pretty muddy) and an optional hat (for falling leeches).  

We're off around 8:30 and it doesn't take long before sweat starts showing up our clothes.  We start looking for animals on our way up.  Our guide is aware that there is an orangutan in the area, probably from the sharing of information from other guides on the mobile radios that carry with them at all times.  

We are part way up and one of our group sees movement in the tree canopy.  We follow our guide (which unfortunately involves retracing our steps back down) and find an orangutan in the trees. Since we're higher up on the ridge and the fig tree where the orangutan is located in in the valley, we're almost at eye level.  There is a youngster with the orangutan and together they are eating in the fig tree.  It's the closest we'll get to an orangutan.  Very cool. 

We return to hiking up the mountain.  Near the top of the ridge is a old burial site know as the coffin trail.  At this point we've come up a long set of trail steps--I think the coffin trail is really for hikers who couldn't go any further.  

The trail leads to a couple of ancient burial sites that time has made visible.  One of the  sites was the final resting place for a high ranking person, likely the leader of the tribe.  The other was for a small child or baby. There are many small caves in the limestone hill and bodies would be brought to the hillside for burial with higher ranking people laid to rest further up the hill.  We saw small wood planks at the child site and learned that caskets were used.  I suspect how high members of this tribe were laid to rest was a function of how much effort your family and friends wanted to drag you uphill.  

It's a sacred site and we spend a bit of time there.  Our guide was from this tribe; the bones lying on the ledge are a distant ancestor.  The tribe are former headhunters.  He said that in order to marry, men would often have to fight for the bride and you would present the head of one of the suitors to your future in laws to demonstrate you had the ability to take care of the daughter.  Nowadays that demonstration is via giving a water buffalo which is then slaughtered for feeding guests at the festivities.  I asked Adrian, our guide if he was married or saving for a water buffalo.  He laughed and said he wasn't married.  He told us about his lucky friend who married into a family where he wasn't required to pay.  Judith asked if the water buffalo gift had to be returned if the marriage didn't work out.  He said you have to pay back twice as much.  I pointed out that his friend was very lucky as 2 times zero is still zero.  

We then return to hill climbing.  By now I've already gone through my first bottle of water.  When we reach the lookout platform about 15 minutes later, it's a bit of relief to have made it.  We take in the vista provided for a few minutes before heading back down.  

The lodge from high above.

The soil underneath is slippery.  And some of the leaves that fall down from the canopy leave a  blanket of slippery leaves.  So far I've managed to end up on my ass twice.  Nobody else has except me--fortunately the only downside was a bit of additional laundry.  

On the path there is a big tree that I get my photo done.

At the end of the walk we stop off to a spot at the river to check out the "spa fish". These fish enjoy eating dead skin so if you stick any parts of your body in the water and don't move about, they will come and search out dead skin to gnaw on.  Admittedly I was expecting to see fish that were smaller than the ones in this river.  Some of these critters were over 6 inches in length and they all had sharp teeth.  I could tolerate the nibbling below my ankles but anything above that seemed to hurt a bit.  

We returned from the walk and use the boot washing station to remove all the muddy gunk from my boots.  Adrian points out there is a boot drying service and offers to dry our boots for us.  I'm happy.  Dry boots are always better than wet boots.  

We return to our rooms and shower.  There isn't any air conditioning in the room so the 100% humidity stays constant through the day and night. You're really wet as you're hiking around and showering and kind of damp all other times.  Judith is happy with the effect of the constant moisture on her skin, less so with the frizziness of her hair.  

We go an have another fabulous meal at the restaurant buffet.  We run into one of the group, Aioki, who said she found a leech on the front by her stomach.  She had put on a bandaid but it bled through onto her dress which explained the big wet spot on her dress.  She had to get a bigger bandaid from the lodge.  

There is so much variety to the buffet and the restaurant seating is in a covered open air patio.  By this time we've met a favourite server, Oliver, who is always smiling and willing to answer all of our many questions.  

Then it's back to the room for a bit of siesta time before our afternoon walk.  I find the heat zaps my energy, it's good to recharge via power naps.  We wake to get ready for our afternoon walk. 

 We suit up for our afternoon walk.  It's the canopy walk high up in the treetops.  Aioki decided not to join us and I wonder if it's because she got a little freaked out by the leech.  There's about a half hour walk before we get to the ramp up.  Some of the canopy walk has only been opened for 4 months.  One of the giant menggaris trees which was part of the old canopy walk fell down and a new route was constructed.  

Here's a picture of our guide on the entrance to the canopy walk.  Notice his shirt is soaked through from sweating.  

The canopy is amazing.  There's a blanket of trees for as far as you can see.  We see a pair of hornbills in the distance and I manage a few photos before they fly off.  On the walk we can also overlook a few old orangutan nests.  These nests are created every day (fresh branches are most comfortable) for sleeping or having their babies.  

We snap a few pictures for prosperity.   

We return the the lodge as it's dinner time.  As I remove my leech sock I'm not happy to see blood seeping out of my sock.  Because my pair of socks was dark blue I didn't notice anything amiss until I took them off.  Out fell a fat leech who had clearly been gorging on me.  Maybe I was fortunate in having it already fully fed and detached.  Otherwise I would have needed to be careful in removing it to ensure all the body parts exited.  

While I'm not grossed out I was dismayed to find it happened to me. I have no idea how it got on me.  I can only surmised it was already in my sock before I put it on.  I had a couple fall on me from the canopy, one of which I flicked off and the other had to be tugged on by Adrian until it detached from the back of my hand near my thumb.  But it hadn't yet drilled into me so pulling was all that was necessary.  

Judith was so excited that I would get the certificate from the Lodge acknowledging that I had been a victim.  I was not excited.  

Leeches are nasty little animals and have developed highly effective ways to extract what they need without you knowing it.  First they can sense your body heat and are sufficiently mobile to find you.  Once they are able to find a spot of free flesh, they release an anaesthetic before they bite so you won't feel them.  Then they release an anticoagulant so that you bleed nicely for them.  I can admire nature for creating such efficient creatures, but I'm not keen to be around them.   They need to blood to sustain their young during reproduction so they can't reproduce until they find a victim.  

I apply a temporary bandaid (because I know it will bleed for a while), snap a picture of my offending leech and return to my room to clean up for dinner.  I wash out my leech sock and my regular sock I was wearing inside my leech socks.  I was surprised by how much blood was in my regular sock.  Damned leech.  

Dinner was of course great.  It was as leisurely as it could be knowing that there was a night walk in store for us and that we would eventually have to move to suit up again.  

On the night walk we mainly stuck to the gravel road, using flashlights to find those reflective eyes and then entering the jungle to get closer looks.  We saw a deer, flying squirrel and a bearded pig.  We also saw many insects and frogs.  

Back to the lodge.  I decide to hang for a little while at the restaurant bar area.  Wifi is only available in the common areas.  Lots of other people are there as well.  I post a blog as I'm a few days late now.  The wifi isn't fast but I managed to get it posted.  Then it's bedtime.  We're off for a morning walk before we depart.