Okay, behind again (surprise, surprise).What we did long ago in Sabah...
We arrived in Kuching after our time diving near Kota Kinabalu. What a fabulous place! There were so many things to do in "day-trip-able" distance. We started it off by heading out to see the Rafflesia, Malaysia's big smelly flower that can grow to about one meter across and 
apparently smells like badly rotten meat when it blooms. Happily we missed the reek, but had the good fortune to see two of them (they have no specific blooming season and are only open for about nine days). This is one of the few things that Phil had not seen during his two previous trips to Malaysia.
apparently smells like badly rotten meat when it blooms. Happily we missed the reek, but had the good fortune to see two of them (they have no specific blooming season and are only open for about nine days). This is one of the few things that Phil had not seen during his two previous trips to Malaysia.The other happened to be some rehabilitated orang-utans. 
We met a very nice Aussie on our last day in KK who had been to the Orang-utan Rehabilitation Centre and said that not only had he seen about seven of them, his whole group had been chased by Richie, the dominant male. Richie looked a lot more chilled out when we saw him (thankfully because he's huge) and we also got to see a number of mellow females and some very active babies. They only come down to be fed when 
there isn't much fruit available in the forest, so we were lucky to be there at the right time and get to see all the fun.
We met a very nice Aussie on our last day in KK who had been to the Orang-utan Rehabilitation Centre and said that not only had he seen about seven of them, his whole group had been chased by Richie, the dominant male. Richie looked a lot more chilled out when we saw him (thankfully because he's huge) and we also got to see a number of mellow females and some very active babies. They only come down to be fed when 
there isn't much fruit available in the forest, so we were lucky to be there at the right time and get to see all the fun.And continuing with the theme of luck, we got to see some great stuff in Bako National Park. Not only did we get to see a lot of 
fabulous Proboscis monkeys (all of whom look like little old men wearing white underpants) but we also had the amazing luck to see a flying lemur (a nocturnal animal) during the daytime! It was great, but of course I don't have a picture to post (though Leigh should be proud because all the ones up are ours, including the proboscis monkey who was only about five meters from Phil, happily munching on leaves, when this picture was taken). We did a number of very sweaty walks in the rainforest but saw the best wildlife near the park headquarters.
After Kuching we headed to Melaka, a town on the coast just
South of Kuala Lumpur. Like everything we saw in Malaysia, we were happily surprised. The town was lovely, with a nice little canal running through it which you could stroll beside. We stayed in Chinatown and had the good fortune to be there for the weekend evening market where we ate our fair share of dim sums and little chocolate/caramel filled pancakes. Yummy.
fabulous Proboscis monkeys (all of whom look like little old men wearing white underpants) but we also had the amazing luck to see a flying lemur (a nocturnal animal) during the daytime! It was great, but of course I don't have a picture to post (though Leigh should be proud because all the ones up are ours, including the proboscis monkey who was only about five meters from Phil, happily munching on leaves, when this picture was taken). We did a number of very sweaty walks in the rainforest but saw the best wildlife near the park headquarters.After Kuching we headed to Melaka, a town on the coast just
South of Kuala Lumpur. Like everything we saw in Malaysia, we were happily surprised. The town was lovely, with a nice little canal running through it which you could stroll beside. We stayed in Chinatown and had the good fortune to be there for the weekend evening market where we ate our fair share of dim sums and little chocolate/caramel filled pancakes. Yummy. Melaka also offers an astounding number of museums and historical buildings which we checked
out. Phil obviosly enjoyed the Maritime Museum (yarr!) and there was an interesting, but incredibly hot, Beauty Museum which documented various types of mutilation-for-beauty (piercings, neck/ear/etc stretching, waist-cynching).
out. Phil obviosly enjoyed the Maritime Museum (yarr!) and there was an interesting, but incredibly hot, Beauty Museum which documented various types of mutilation-for-beauty (piercings, neck/ear/etc stretching, waist-cynching). After a very full few weeks of intensive sightseeing (well, for the likes of us anyway), we had one evening in Kuala Lumpur's chinatown before starting our two-day bus ride up to the border with Thailand on some very comfy buses.
