The Ocean and the Mountain

For me, Sabah has three main highlights: the ocean, the river, and the mountain. Sipadan is well-known for its amazing diving. Sungei Kinabatangan is well-known for its wildlife. Mt. Kinabalu is well-known as the highest peek in Southeast Asia. Alas, my one week was not enough to do all three, so two it must be.

November 15th-17th (Tuesday-Thursday)

The Ocean

Though a bit pricey, my trip to Mabul/Sipadan was well worth it. It was nice, for once, not having to worry about anything such as bus schedules or menus or anything. All I had to do was to show up on time for the boat, and then off we go on another fabulous dive.

In two days, I did seven dives, each one fun and relaxing. I must say, diving with turtles was an amazing experience.



The island of Sipadan is now closed as a resort, but it's only a 30 minute boat ride from Mabul. It's main draw is definitely the turtle population, but sharks, rays, sea-snakes, and pretty much any type of fish one can imagine can be found. Sipadan also drops 600m down into the depths, which is quite intimidating at times.

The island of Mabul itself is split into two. The resorts are plush and swanky, but are separated from the local village by a barbed-wire fence. Crossing into village life, where litter is strewn all over and kids run naked, must be another of those must-do slumming experiences that the rich tourists of Mabul/Sipadan contragulate themselves in doing. Am I being too cynical? One thing about going on these expensive tours is that I must also suffer being around so many rich foreigners. . .

I was lucky to watch a local wedding. Unlike the private events of the west, this wedding was a public celebration, with the bride and groom on a stage and the rest of the village there to watch the dancing, listen to the karaoke, give presents, take pictures, eat and drink food they purchased themselves, and just to have fun in all the excitement. I really like how they try and make the bride and groom feel like royalty for the day.



And, of course, the children of the island were wonderful. Never before have I been swamped by so many kids wanting their pictures taken. These three girls followed me around for half the island, posing here, giggling there, collecting little clams, and diving under-water. Such fun.



Not just the kids, but the adults too! These workers liked showing off how they could hoist heavy bags over their shoulders!



It's a shame that my trip to Sipadan was so short. If even I return to Borneo, I'll return to Sipadan.


November 18th-19th (Friday-Saturday)

The Mountain

Looming above at 4095 meters, Mt. Kinabalu is a daunting sight; at least it would be if it wasn't almost always obscured by cloud cover. The hike itself isn't that hard, as long as one remembers the altitude and keeps it slow and steady. Most people split the hike into two sections: a 6km hike from HQ to the camp 3700m above sea-level followed by an early morning 3km hike up to the summit. We leave the camp at about 2:45am. Hiking under the moonlight was a first for me, and dragging myself up the side of the mountain in the dark was quite tough. But, to catch the sunrise, and even better, to catch the clouds rolling in, was well worth it.



As fast as one goes up the mountain, one must try and descend even quicker so as not to be stuck in the clouds. People have gotten lost, and the bitter cold and jagged rocks aren't too inviting!

One thing to look out for though are the porters hired to carry up absolutely everything, from the food and water to the building supplies. It's quite a sight seeing a guy walking up with three huge pieces of wood, maybe 15 ft long. No wonder everything was so pricey up at the camp. It's also kind of embarrassing not being able to keep up with these guys!

Mission accomplished.