Kota Kinabalu, Sabah (part 3)
Got an early pick-up for my Kinabalu Park trip.....woke up late and was too lazy to go out for breakfast so I ended up eating my stale left-over pizza from my previous night's dinner....hahahahha kalooy ko isab.
The difference between a DIY trip and a package tour is the waiting time.......from my 7am pick-up time, we had to go to 3 more stops to pick up other guests and was able to finally start with the trip only at around 8:25am!
The beauty of the Sabah countryside magically unfolds the farther we went out of KK city. We passed by several villages and roadside vegetable markets, feeling ko napaka fresh ng mga produce nila. One thing I regretted in this trip is not being able to climb Mt. Kinabalu. It will remain in my bucket list, and fingers crossed, hopefully I will be able to do it someday.....
After about an hour, we stopped over at a rest stop with a good view of the mountains, but what got me excited was the souvenir stalls next to it. Hahahaha I'm in sarong heaven!!!
First stop in our itinerary was the Botanical Garden for a little bit of intro to Sabah's flora and fauna. It was a scorching hot day but when we went inside the garden it was surprisingly cooler. Maybe because of our proximity (and our prior claim of the territory being part of the Philippines) the flora species we found in the garden are quite similar to what we have back home as well.
But this one is quite interesting and alien to me.....the kerosene plant! I don't know really what the exact name is but they call it kerosene plant because the seeds contains oil inside and you can light it. Our guide told us that the locals, before the advent of cooking stoves, used the seeds as fuel when they are cooking.
Next stop is the Canopy Walk.....you have to pass by the very communal Poring Hot Spring wherein the entire village is I think plonked in all the pools.....andaming tao! The queue for the Canopy Walk was also a bit long, we waited for about 20 minutes before we were able to get on it. There were a lot of crying children from a big group ahead of us. I don't know why the parents did not turn back, they instead forced the children to take the canopy walk.
It was okay. Though not really spectacular, maybe because of the location. There was nothing astounding about the scenery below the canopy. I was hoping for a more picturesque walk but its just a normal walk above the forest albeit through a swaying canopy bridge.
After lunch, we were supposed to go back already to KK but my seatmate, Thuy, wanted to stop to have a look at the Rafflesia, considered to be the biggest flower in the world. Since its not a part of our trip itinerary we had to pay an additional RM 20.00 per person just to look at these flowers! Kaloka, ang mahal!!!
The rafflesia plant can be found in Southeast Asian countries (well, even in my beloved Philippines daw but I don't know why I did not even have a clue about it!) and can grow as big as 100 centimeters in diameter during its full bloom. The life span of the plant is normally just 7 days and then it dies and falls off.
Loved our trip back to the city......the road was covered with fog. I always love the drama that comes with a place shrouded in fog and then it suddenly lifts and clears...then opens into a beautiful landscape.....
We got back around 5:30pm, I still have time for a last stroll around the city before I bid adieu tomorrow.
Tried the hawker stalls near the Night Market for a seafood barbecue dinner. Yummy!
Time off......it will be Hello Brunei tomorrow!!!
The difference between a DIY trip and a package tour is the waiting time.......from my 7am pick-up time, we had to go to 3 more stops to pick up other guests and was able to finally start with the trip only at around 8:25am!
The beauty of the Sabah countryside magically unfolds the farther we went out of KK city. We passed by several villages and roadside vegetable markets, feeling ko napaka fresh ng mga produce nila. One thing I regretted in this trip is not being able to climb Mt. Kinabalu. It will remain in my bucket list, and fingers crossed, hopefully I will be able to do it someday.....
After about an hour, we stopped over at a rest stop with a good view of the mountains, but what got me excited was the souvenir stalls next to it. Hahahaha I'm in sarong heaven!!!
First stop in our itinerary was the Botanical Garden for a little bit of intro to Sabah's flora and fauna. It was a scorching hot day but when we went inside the garden it was surprisingly cooler. Maybe because of our proximity (and our prior claim of the territory being part of the Philippines) the flora species we found in the garden are quite similar to what we have back home as well.
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| This is also a Pitcher plant but different color....baka ibang variety ito |
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| This is the more common variety.....as per my mother, this is very common in the Philippine forests... |
Next stop is the Canopy Walk.....you have to pass by the very communal Poring Hot Spring wherein the entire village is I think plonked in all the pools.....andaming tao! The queue for the Canopy Walk was also a bit long, we waited for about 20 minutes before we were able to get on it. There were a lot of crying children from a big group ahead of us. I don't know why the parents did not turn back, they instead forced the children to take the canopy walk.
It was okay. Though not really spectacular, maybe because of the location. There was nothing astounding about the scenery below the canopy. I was hoping for a more picturesque walk but its just a normal walk above the forest albeit through a swaying canopy bridge.
After lunch, we were supposed to go back already to KK but my seatmate, Thuy, wanted to stop to have a look at the Rafflesia, considered to be the biggest flower in the world. Since its not a part of our trip itinerary we had to pay an additional RM 20.00 per person just to look at these flowers! Kaloka, ang mahal!!!
The rafflesia plant can be found in Southeast Asian countries (well, even in my beloved Philippines daw but I don't know why I did not even have a clue about it!) and can grow as big as 100 centimeters in diameter during its full bloom. The life span of the plant is normally just 7 days and then it dies and falls off.
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| The size of the flower is still huge even on its 4th day |
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| It falls off when its dead.... |
We got back around 5:30pm, I still have time for a last stroll around the city before I bid adieu tomorrow.
Tried the hawker stalls near the Night Market for a seafood barbecue dinner. Yummy!
Time off......it will be Hello Brunei tomorrow!!!
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