The Strip

Langkowi is one of the many gorgeous tropical islands which adorn the coastlines of Malaysia. What sets it apart is that it offers pristine beaches with an established infrastructure in place to support tourists. Part of the island is a declared duty free zone which means you can purchase chocolate, perfume and alcohol and extraordinarily cheap prices and consume them during your stay. That later is particularly attractive for some visitors to the strip of beach known as Pantai Cenang. This strip is the most densely occupied region of the island due to the fantastic beach with aquamarine water and fine white sand as sand as soft as flour (unlike most Malaysian beaches which have much courser sand) . . . AND it is the location of the duty free zone. The area caters mostly to mid and low range travellers seeking time on a beach and an assortment of restaurants and bars to sample of an evening. Unlike at Batu Ferringhi where the beach front property is almost exclusively controlled by the hotels and resorts, the Strip offers many beachside venues where you can eat freshly cooked seafood or suck on a beer as the sun sets over the ocean. The cuisine of Langkowi was more mild than that of Penang and also cater more strongly to westerners with several Mexican and Italian restaurants lining the Strip.

My hotel was absolute beach front – it was so close to the water that I stepped straight out of the front door of my room onto sand. The only problem with that is you tend to drag sand back into your room no matter how hard you try to avoid it. Still, it is a nice problem to have!

Stowaways: Part 6

While soaking up rays of sunshine and mugs of rum in equal measure, I happened to notice my friends, the turtles, crawl out of the water and up the beach towards the Strip. I was in no condition by that stage for a chase and I need not have bothered because the later that day they appeared at the door to my hotel room, tails between their legs, hoping to hitch a ride with me back to Kuala Lumpur.  It wasn’t long before I had them spilling the beans on their treasure hunt and what a strange story it was . . .

A Prohart Inspired Diaspora

If you shot many differently-coloured paintball pellets at a canvas it would be somewhat reflective of the cultural mix of Georgetown, Penang. You have splatters of traditional Chinese, Indian and colonial British culture through the city with modern Malaysia exploding up through the very fabric of the canvas of Georgetown. Georgetown is not simply transitioning from old orient to new Asia; both new and old are thriving side by side. Winding lanes feature a host of stalls, stores and restaurants. Old colonial buildings, such as the 130 year old town hall, are still on active duty. And yet the skyline is dominated by the high-rise hotels and enormous shopping centres including Komtar and the Prangin Mall.

Icon of A Nation

Before the Patronas Towers, Malaysia’s most recognisable structure was the Ten Thousand Buddas Pagoda (Ban Po Thar) at the Kek Lok Si Temple. It stands 30m high amid a community of temples, walkways, stair cases and gardens. High on the hill overlooking the complex stands a 36.5 m bronze statue of Kuan Yin, the goddess of mercy. For 30 rm ($10 AU) you can have your name written on a tile which will be used to complete the roof over the giant goddess. Visitors come to pray or appreciate the aesthetics and tangible serenity of the temple (the largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia). The temple is rich in colour with lanterns hanging from almost every available space. Small flowering and fruit-baring plants fill the gardens and rows of candles, braziers burning incense, and the presence of monks attending to the items of prayer and faith set the mood of the temple as a true place of worship and reflection.

Food Glorious Food

The food in Malaysia has been delicious, of a high standard and dirt cheap. Penang provides an overwhelming array of hawker stalls, food courts, cafes, restaurants with a diversity of cuisines seen nowhere else in the world. Chinese, traditional Malayan, Indian, Thai, Nonya (traditional Chinese cuisine combined with Malaysian and a pinch of Thai) and a host of western cuisines (including the omnipresent KFC) make deciding what to have for lunch or dinner almost impossible!! The best approach is to try as many places as possible which means you want to try and cram in a couple of extra meals per day whenever you visit Penang!!

A Slice of India

It seems almost every city in Malaysia has some variation of a Chinatown. But of the places I have been, only KL and Georgetown have a large enough Indian presence to comprise a Little India. A visit to Little India, Georgetown, is a step into tradition, tourist-centric souvenir markets and an amazing sensory experience all at the same time. While all stores and restaurants are on the ground level, the signs, flags and decorations extend up one or two levels throughout the district. The colours are bright and almost exclusively primary and secondary colours with rich blues, reds and yellows being the most prominent. Every other store blares its own music which adds a colourful sound track to your explorations. Cars and mopeds shuffle along as they snake their way through the throng of people. Richly decorative Sarees hang from one store while the cardboard cut-out of an unnamed Bollywood star directs you into another. And all throughout Little India you are greeted by bouquets and aromas: cinnamon, sandalwood, ginger, onion, garlic, coriander, chilli and a rack of mysterious spices all enliven and entice you into sampling the traditional India fare. Whether it be Samosas from the stall by the roadside or a complete meal from one of the many café’s and restaurants vying for your patronage, you can’t help but indulge! I had chicken biryani – you have it served on a plate with spoon and fork or more exotically on a banana leaf and eat with your hands!!

Stowaways: Part 5

The turtles had still not reappeared but I knew they were in Penang. I heard a taxi driver mention them to a colleague but when questioned he demanded money for information. I doubted anything he could tell me would lead to their whereabouts so declined to entertain his extortion attempt. Here and there I picked up signs of the turtles but nothing concrete until I saw them in Little India. They were talking to a man in front of a small café and pointing to something I could not see through the crowded streets. By the time I had pushed myself through the herd of tourists both the turtles and the man were gone. I knew they were looking for treasure but what possible set of clues could lead them both to Borneo and Penang? And what kind of treasure were the turtles looking for? Only time, and a bunch of rum, would reveal the answers . . .

I Want to Stay at the Hard Rock Hotel (sung to the tune of YMCA)

By any comparison, the Hard Rock Hotel is a nice hotel, with excellent facilities catering to those who wish to lay next to the pool, soak up the rays of the sun while sampling from the list of classic and contemporary cocktails on the pool bar’s menu. It is situated on a stretch of beach known as Batu Ferringhi which is famous for its idyllic coastline and gentle waters which make it a very popular holiday destination. By day the area is almost deserted as visitors to Batu Ferringhi remain within crawling distance of either the beach or their hotel’s pool. However, at night the hotels empty onto the streets as tourists hunt for bargains and souvenirs among the many stalls of the suburb-long street market. I visited Batu Ferringhi 9 years ago. At that time a handful of sellers spruiked watches, sunglasses and some basic unframed prints. Today the market rivals those of KL for diversity, quality and quantity of products. I recalled eating freshly caught and lightly spiced Tiger Prawns at an open-air restaurant on the main street. I returned to the same location hoping to re-experience the same delicacy again but to my disappointment all that remained of the restaurant was a set of tiles. The adjacent buildings were similarly demolished and the block lay vacant behind a blue, aluminium fence no doubt awaiting the development of yet another resort along the already crowded famous beach.

The Plot Thickens

Turtle Island

There is a very special group of islands off the coast of Borneo which are home to two species of turtles; the green and hawksbill turtles. These two species nest year round on these islands (approximately 6 months of nesting each) and the islands are particularly famous for having turtle hatchlings rise up through the sand 365 days a year. That is a lot of adorable but awkward first steps in anyone’s book! Turtle numbers have being reducing in the area due mostly to anthropogenic causes – in particular, the harvesting of turtle eggs by local fishermen for sale in markets as a delicacy. A research station has been established on two of the islands in the group to help preserve these two species of turtles in the region. We booked directly with the research centre months in advance in order to secure passage and accommodation on the island. Visitors are restricted mostly by accommodation availability with visitor numbers of approximately 14,000 each year.

You arrive early in the morning and settle into comfortable chalet’s before lunch in the cafeteria. The climate is much less humid on the island than the mainland and is the perfect antidote to the oppressive heat and humidity of Sandakan. There is a sandy beach from which swimming and snorkelling are indulged in by the visitors. It is a relaxing environment precisely because there is nothing much to do during the day time. I walked around the island in about an hour and came across the tracks of what I later learned were monitor lizards. Monitors are natural predators to turtle eggs. I managed to snap a few shots of one of these giant lizards before it scuttled in the adjacent low lying forest. At 6:30 guests are encouraged to visit the island’s turtle museum which traces the history of turtle conservation in the area and the lifecycle of the island’s two species. A movie is show at 7 pm which makes much of the content of the museum more accessible for those not on a guided tour (like us!). With the completion of the movie, dinner is served and then the waiting begins. Turtles lay their eggs at night. Turtle arrivals can begin anywhere from dusk onwards and finish just before dawn. But Turtles do no always lay eggs immediately upon arrival – if, indeed, they lay eggs at all! The female turtle will pull herself along the beach up towards the beginning of the vegetated areas of the island. She will then only lay eggs once she is comfortable with the location. This means, if she is not comfortable she will search for another location or simply pull herself back into the water and come back on another night. Once eggs are laid, the rangers take measurements of the turtles, make sure they are tagged, and then recover the eggs to rebury them in a hatchery where they are free from predators and accidental exposure. This is done to maximise the surviving offspring from each clutch. The night we spent on Turtle Island, the female turtles were not very comfortable with any spot on the beach.  And so we waited . . . and waited . . . and waited . . . and waited. The research centre decided to release some of the new hatchlings for us (as was part of the normal program) so we at least were able to experience some of the process. The hatchlings were taken to the shoreline in a basket and, after the visitors to the island had taken a few snap shots (without the aid of a flash), the turtles were released. The ranger present signalled the direction of the water by standing in the shallows and shinning his torch towards the water. The hatchlings use moon and starlight to identify the direction to the water. Under normal conditions, if they turn inland all they will see is the dark shapes of sand and trees where if they turn towards the sea, the starlight on the horizon will direct them safely towards the water. However, with many visitors holding cameras emitting small lights through view screens etc., and the occasional torch being turned on, some of the turtles were confused on where to go and began making their way back up the beach towards the visitors. This is not to say the presence of the visitors is hugely disruptive to the natural process, but is demonstrative of the fragility of the natural process and why, given the low numbers of turtles in the area, human intervention is required to ensure the survival of these beautiful creatures. Eventually we were able to witness a female laying eggs and a ranger collecting valuable data and reburying the eggs in the safety of the hatchery. That such drastic measures are needed to preserve an animal which pre-existed the dinosaurs is a sober reminder of effect on the world around us.

Hey, hey we’re the Monkeys!

Sabah (a state of Borneo Malaysia) is truly an amazing place to visit if you are interested in getting up close to wild animals. Having already been blown away by experiences with the orang-utans and turtles, my expectations for the proboscis monkey sanctuary and Labuk Bay were lessened believing that as there was little hype surrounding this particular sanctuary, it must surely be a lessor experience. The Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary was established by a wealthy property owner who reserved a large track of land for the monkeys after encountering them in the wild. Like the Oran-utans, the habit of the proboscis monkey is been cleared and developed into palm plantation for harvesting palm oil. This sanctuary – not an official national park – offers approximately 300 monkeys 600 hectares of mangrove forest in which to live freely. There are two scheduled feeding times at which visitors to the sanctuary can get a close up view of these strange monkeys. I knew all this before entering the park however I could not have hoped to get as close to the monkeys as eventuated.

On arrival at the feeding zone, I walked several hundred meters along a wooden walkway suspended a short height above the puddled floor of the mangrove forest.  The pod of monkeys awaited our arrival nested on the hand rails of the observation platform, every eye turned toward us. A silence hung in the air which seemed to mute the ambient noises of the forest. I didn’t know whether or not to move but the photographer in me took hold and I slowly moved my camera into position and began snapping shots. The minivan driver who had shuttled us out to the sanctuary (and who spoke little English) strode out onto the platform saying, “friendly. See?”. And so I followed him out – somewhat less brazenly – onto the platform never putting the camera down for long lest I miss something. To say we were close to the monkeys was an understatement; I could have reached out and touched them had I not been fearful of a monkey bite! Throughout the course of the feeding session I witnessed monkeys feeding, mothers caring for their children, males posturing, snarling and even yawning. I saw juvenile males play wrestling – one so brazen he performed a victory dance after defeating his opponent only for another to leap on him and drag him to the ground. Most poignantly, the alpha male charge around the observation deck (in and around the observers!) and chased potential rivals away from the females. In the proboscis monkey world, the alpha male is the only one who mates with the females. Occasionally a cheeky monkey may service a female while the alpha male is not looking but otherwise the life of a male proboscis monkey is filled with unrealised sexual desire hanging out with large groups of bachelors . . . kind of reminds me of my junior footy days!

Palm Oil

You may have heard of palm oil. You may have even seen campaigns by Greenpeace and/or the World Wildlife Fund on TV. But coming to Malaysia it is impossible to avoid noticing the enormous investment in palm plantations all over Malaysia but most worryingly, for the unique wildlife of Sabah, the investment in Borneo seems to be absolute. Driving into and out of Sandakan, and to each of the sanctuaries I visited, it appeared the landscape was simply alternating palm plantations and palm oil refineries. Palm oil nets refinery owners approximately 700 RM per ton (of unrefined palm fronds). It is clear from speaking to locals and seeing the pride Malaysians take in the success of their wildlife protection measures that Malaysians have a deep concern for the survival of these species but you cannot help but feel that ultimately they are losing the battle to provide enough untouched habitat for these species to persist without the continued involvement of human beings.

Stowaways: Part 4

With my adventures in Sandkan complete, I had to fly back to Kota Kinabalu to catch a second plane to Penang. This gave me a 5 hour window to continue tracking the turtles. I made enquiries and discovered that Paul Nair liked to spend his down time in a bar called Hunter. Hunter was easy enough to find – it was down near the harbour and had a large yellow neon sign that still had all the letters of Hunter intact. The bar was L-shaped, wooden and covered in water marks from patrons who placed their condensation-covered glasses directly onto the wood instead of the paper coasters provided. I sat at the bar and order a glass of Tiger. A local overheard me and laughed. I asked him what was so funny and he smiled at me and explained, in this part of the world if you ask for a tiger, you might get one! I chuckled to humour the man then turned to my freshly poured beer and took a sip. I turned back to the man to appraise him properly. He wore a white collared shirt – a light cotton weave which was perfect for the climate – tan trousers and a pair of black boots which looked well worn but were clean and polished. I told him I was looking for a man named Paul Nair and asked if he knew him. He told me that Nair could often be found at Hunter but was presently working out of town but if it was a guide I was after maybe he could assist. I looked into the man’s eyes. I had seen something in them. The man noticeably stiffened for a moment then relaxed again. It was a moment so brief an untrained eye would not have noticed. But I had sailed with cut throats and thieves and I knew a liar when I saw one. I turned back to my beer and drank it to the bottom of the glass. The man looked at me and his eyes asked why even though his voice failed. I told him I never like to let fighting interrupt me while I am drinking a cold beer. Now that I was out of beer . . . I left possibility of conflict hanging in the air until I noticed the muscles in his neck tense and then I jumped to me feet, knocking over my stool. I stared at the man, locking eyes giving him no room from his seated position. You’re Paul Nair, I told him. He nodded. He said he didn’t want any trouble. If it was a guide or . . . information I needed, he was a man who provided such services. Good, I said. I told him about the turtles and asked if he had seen them. Nair became very forthcoming and told me how they had come to him asking about treasure and when he told them there was no treasure in Sabah the described a location to him in great deal and asked him if he could take them there. Nair admitted at first he thought them fools but there description was precise and familiar. In fact, he said, the location was not very far away at all. He said he could even take me there now. I told him I had a plane to catch but he said we could be there in an hour as most of the territory could be covered by motor vehicle. I had just enough time to make it there and back. MY curiosity was peaked. The turtles were after treasure as I had suspected. But what treasure were they looking for in the jungles of Borneo? I walked Nair to his Jeep and we drove out of town on the main road before making a turn onto a bumpy access road which lead north into the jungle. However after 45 mins or so I could tell we were heading back towards the coast and I began to get suspicious. Nair pulled the Jeep over and told me the rest we must walk. I was on high alert. The location felt wrong. No treasure could remain hidden so close to civilisation whilst still having enough clues survive to lead the turtles here  . . . I made Nair lead, not trusting him at my back. The jungle was hot and I was sweating badly. That beer was trying to leave my body as urine but I dared not expose myself here. This was Nair’s territory and he could quickly lose me in the dense jungle which even now had me doubting the direction back to the Jeep. The hour Nair promised had turned into an hour and a half. I asked him if it was much further and he told me that it was only a few minutes away. I was beginning to suffer badly in the heat. Leaches were clinging to my neck and mosquitoes constantly buzzed around me, sampling my blood and causing welts to appear on my arms but I dared not remove them. Without announcement we arrived at a clearing and Nair turned to me and said, we are here. My eyes scanned the clearing looking for signs of a lost culture or temple or anything . . . but there was nothing. The clearing was large. In fact, it was too large to be natural in a jungle this dense. I picked up a rock and began digging. After only a few strokes I hit something hard. I quickly cleared away the sandy soil to discover a large flat stone. The whole area was stone just beneath the surface. This was man made. I turned to Nair and asked him what the turtles did once he had delivered them here. He told me the scratched around as I had done then asked him and apparently decided whatever they were looking for was long gone and asked to be taken back to Kota Kinabalu. I was shocked. What could any of this mean? I was completely dumb founded and with little interest in the answer I absent mindedly asked Nair what was this place. He said, you are standing on the last remains of the original British settlement of Jesselton which was destroyed in World War II by Japanese invaders. If he was not mistaken, this sight was probably the town square where markets sold produce during the day and fresh seafood cooked by the fisherman to a local recipe in the evening. All I could do was stare at Nair in disbelief.

Big and Little Paradise

I don’t know what Manukan and Manukit mean but if someone told me they meant Big Paradise and Little Paradise, I would believe them. We woke early and purchased croissants at the supermarket next door – the supermarket, incidentally, is awesome! It even has bacon!! If only I had a way to cook it!! Afterwards we ventured down to the jetty where we booked a seat on a boat out to Manukit Island (Little Paradise). Manukit is approximately 300 meters long and is all of one small stretch of beach where visitors can swim and snorkel out to the edge of a small coral reef. Fish swam up to me to say hello and one cleaner fish did me the kindness of clipping my leg hairs! I found a pair of clown fish nestled in the tentacles of an anemone. I watched them for a while. One fish stayed predominately near or within the safety of the anemone while the other ventured further out to intercept potential enemies from getting close to their territory. There were a pair of smaller brown fish which were routinely chased away by the clown fish. Interestingly, when I reached in with my camera to take a photo the brown fish attacked me (much to my surprise the first time!). But if the brown fish ever got to close to the anemone, one of the clown fish would chase the brown fish away. There is no fixed accommodation on the island but it is possible to camp

A short boat trip away is Manukan Island. Manukan is a slightly larger island with similar characteristics to Manukit except it is also harbours a resort and expanded facilities for visitors. The hillside chalets are hidden by the blanket forest over. While there are many visitors on Manukan, there are more secluded corners of the beach in which to relax. Throughout the afternoon I lay on white sand and swam in the clear water. The water is almost perfectly flat except for the fading ripples caused by the boats transporting visitors to and from the island. If you lay on your back in the water with your eyes closed, the sound of swimmers is drowned out so all you can sense is the warm caress of the sun on your face and the soothing cool of the ocean around you. A mask and snorkel reveals the plenty of fish darting in and around the coral in search of food or avoiding predators. I could have almost spent the rest of my trip on Manukan if not for my desire to see Monkeys and the Man of the Forest.

Stoways: Part 3

The turtles disappeared shortly after we arrived in Kota Kinabalu. They said they were going down to the bottle shop to get some rum but they never came back to the hotel. After their behaviour in Kuala Lumpur I was not surprised by this turn of events. I made some enquiries around town in between trips to the jungle to observe the natural wonders of Borneo. There were a few sightings here and there but no concrete leads. Finally, I tracked them through a local who informed me the turtles had been in contact with a renowned guide and explorer, Paul Nair. But that information came to me too late and  so I departed Kota Kinabalu not knowing where the turtles had gone but somehow sure I would see them again . . . if only when they needed something again.

Reflections on Sandakan

Sandakan is a city you can drive through for 20 mins before realising you are in it. It is a sprawling assortment of small strip shops and spaciously arranged housing until you reach the “city centre” along the Eastern Coast of Sabah. It is hot in Sandakan. Even the city sweats in the salty, tropical heat making everything sticky. Here you will find a collection of grimy buildings with small retail outlets on the ground floor and tiny apartments on the upper levels. You can find some respite along the water’s edge but mostly you have to retreat to an air-conditioned building. There are no great shopping malls or districts in Sandkan as there was in Kota Kinabalu. The markets here are filled with fresh produce and seafood so fresh it is still flipping in the fisherman’s basket when it is sold to you. But the locals are accustomed to tourists none the less and are friendly and accommodating in a way which makes experiencing Sandakan a real highlight of my trip.

Man of the Forest

The word Orang-Utan literally means man of the forest. The brochures tell you the gentle creatures are thus named due to their human –like qualities and behaviour. But what does that really mean? They peal their bananas and slice them up to put in their cereal? I don’t think so. The Orang-Utan sanctuary in Sepilok rescues Orang-Utans from human-settled areas and rehabilitates them for re-introduction into the wild. Visitors to the sanctuary are able to watch scheduled feeding events for Orang-Utans in the first stage of rehabilitation. Tourists crowd the observation deck pointing their zoom lenses at the feeding platforms in ravenous anticipation of a wild encounter. I can only imagine that the view from the feeding platforms would be akin to that of standing in front of a firing squad! However, this does not appear to concern the Orang-Utans who gracefully swing their way down from tree top to platform as easily as you or I would walk from the living room to the kitchen. The first to arrive was a female Orang-Utan with a small baby cupped under her arm pit. The baby was playful and climbed over and around its mother like she was a hairy jungle gym. It was clear in viewing the two together that the mother took genuine joy in playing with her child. She sometimes pulled the baby in and cuddled it to her chest or face. Shortly after the first arrival, a male Orang-Utan joined the mother and baby on the platform. Although the male was larger than the female, there was no display of dominance, nor was there competitive appropriation off food. There was simply harmony. The female lay on her back, the baby climbed over her body and onto her legs and the male joined them on the platform and stroked the female and played with the baby. The male cupped the baby’s head in his hand just in the way a father would his child. He then lifted the baby up by its hands and let the baby swing back and forth before climbing up onto his arm. Watching the three together was just like watching a human family. This was a family which was bound together by love.