Three Quarters- Almost There But Not Quite..

July 3rd: Adrian and I set off at 9 am, after getting organized with the Park and our guide, Mahali. We set off on the Timpohon trail. Total distance today, approximately 6 km. Destination was to the Laban Rata rest house which was at 3,270 m (10,728 ft). The easy bit. The trail has been described by a friend to be "easy like a highway". The walk was tiring but not hard. We met this other couple, Alun and Rebecca, English teachers currently based in Vietnam and started hiking with them. Along the way, porters carrying crazy cargo passed us by: gas tanks, table tops, supplies..easily weighing 30kg? And some of them even hiked in Crocs sandals. Those crazy porters.. Once we get to higher grounds, the scenery was just beautiful. Especially when we got above the clouds. We were literally surrounded by white clouds. The only disappointing aspect was the lack of wildlife. We saw an occasional squirrel on the way up and the infamous pitcher plant. Would be nice if there had been mor...

Mount Kinabalu was beautiful. On the first day at the National Park, we stayed at a hostel 500 m away. Once we dropped our bags and organized ourselves (or rather Jamil organized us) at the Park, we set out for hikes at the base of the Park. There were a few trails that ranged from a few hundred meters to approximately 2 km. It was quite amazing at how quiet it was- as in, we hiked for close to 4 hours and did not meet a single soul along the way. My favourite trail was the Bundu Tuhan trail. Not very long and a fairly steep hike, we reached the lookout and was rewarded with a beautiful view of the Kinabalu ranges. Although the view may not have been the best that we had during this trip, but because the spot was so isolated and quiet, I felt as if it's my own little patch on a hill. After spending some time admiring the view and contemplating life as one does when on a hill, we made our way down and back to the hostel, right before the heavens decided to pour down on us. View from...

2nd July: Kinabalu Park. 6 am: up and about, waiting for our guide from our tour company. Was to be picked up at about 7 am. Guide did not show. Turns out that there was a miscommunication and they were expecting to pick us up only on the 3rd. Waited another 1.5 hr in a coffee shop, drinking more Kopi O ais. There's something rather comforting, or perhaps even nostalgic about being up and about in the early hours in a small town. None of this hurried rush that you'd get in the big city. 9 am: Guide turns up. Jamil and from then on, we were in good hands. Stopped by the Kundasang in our efforts to buy a guitar. Kundasang's a pretty interesting place. It was Tamu (market day) and we had everything on sale. Produce, poultry, homewares and more used-looking clothings (even possibly underwear, which was a little disconcerting). We booked accommodation outside the park, and the view from our view was pretty spectacular. Kinabalu is pretty spectacular anyway. We are planning to g...

Happy travel tales!! Adrian came to visit in Malaysia. While here, we went on a 11-days trip of Borneo awesomeness. The trip was short but amazing. Nature, food, people, music. All the elements in life that makes me happy. To recap: Jul 01: Arrived in KK. Checked into hostel in Jalan Gaya. Nothing flash about KK- in fact, it seems like a town stuck in the 80's. Architecture-wise. Anyhoo, asked reception about the town's best spots and was pointed to its 3 major malls. Go figure. Spent the afternoon wandering around town and checking out the markets and the jetty. The harbour's pretty pretty especially during sunset. Fish market was a riot- fresh and CHEAP seafood. Swordfishes, 3 for RM5! Goodness.. if only I had a kitchen. Unfortunately, despite the availability of fresh seafood, dinner was surprisingly disappointing. We had grilled fish, crab and squid. Everything was meh. Walked home through some night market selling more used(?) looking clothing. More local yum-yum. This...

Here's another random post. Just to let you know I'm still alive. Somewhat. Here's Melbourne celebrating the New Year... Was a memorable night. Blustery winds, rain rain rain, and a thunderstorm. Started the year by conquering the Anderson Hill (slowly and with much effort) and a late-night meal of McDonalds with Milo.

This is to announce, (now that I have to get down to serious writing, I'd probably be desk-laptop bound for a LONG time. Which inevitably means that I will be distracted by the power of the internet. Which means that I will probably find my way back here periodically during periods of my "much-needed breaks"), that I am back (ish). Here's what I hope to post sometime: 1. My trip to Europe 2. Recent escapades in Victoria 3. XX's visit to Melbourne Too late now. Will have to do it later!