Blogs from Bako National Park, Sarawak, Malaysia, Asia

O tretej rano robila check out ukecena baba. Plan do np bako bol ist na 10.00 bus. Predtym vsak behnutie na ranajky pri ubytku na rohu k cinanom. Nudle ok, odtial smer reservoir park kde mala byt keska aj s tb. Kedze centrum mesta je male, v parku som za 10min. Tu dve jazera, pekne upraveny park so zelenou a par cinanov praktizujucich rychlochodzu. Jednemu do kroku pomahalo i radio. V parku fungovala aj cistiaca cata. Fukarom premiestnovali opadane listy na kopu, kde ich dalsi ludia zbierali. Nechybali ani metlovy zametaci. Narozdiel od kl, to tu robili cinania a nie indovia. Tych som tu vela nevidel, holt cinske uzemie. Su tu aj dve ihriska pre deti ale nic moc. Odpajam sa z hlavneho tahu a bocnym trosku zanedbanym chodnikom prichadzam k bunkrom z ww2. Prieskum 4miestnosti, ... read more

Divided into 3 countries, Borneo is something of a cult tourist hit. It's not so much the urban attractions, although there are obviously cities on this island, but rather the alternative that lures those tourists in. Welcome to the jungle. Borneo's jungle comes in 50 shades of green (there has to be a sequel book in there somewhere) that is clamorous and alive enough to evoke, perhaps falsely, a sense of immortality. We chose Kuching as our landing point partly because the city seemed exotic in its own right and partly because it is on the doorstep of forest that houses 2 tropical rainforest wildlife dignitaries. Borneo is Orangutang and Proboscis Monkey country and we had our eyes on a sitting with both. Turns out Kuching is a charming town with a languid riverside setting and ... read more

Sarah and I had decided we wanted to go to Bako National Park together for some trek time. After visiting the orangutans yesterday, we were supposed to go and enquire about booking accommodation to stay there but the office was closed. So in the morning, we went with fingers crossed there was space for us. Joined by Jimmy from New Zealand, we managed to grab the last chalet with 3 beds. Lucky for us! We all had to get some last minute things before catching the local bus, including a towel, mozzie spray and the use of an ATM. Sarah and I lost Jimmy in the mall, so we thought rather than searching for him, we would meet him at the bus stop. Logical thought right? However, only having 5 minutes to go and catch the ... read more

We were all looking forward to visiting Sarawak and we were certainly not disappointed. In only just under two weeks we recorded a number of 'firsts' including sightings of (semi-wild) orang-utans, proboscis monkeys, the huge Rafflesia and a host of other creatures from stick insects to millipedes with fluorescent tails! We trekked through some fantastic rainforest and coastal scrub forest, and explored an enormous cave system, all within the relatively small south-west corner of Sarawak. How we would have loved to have spent a few months exploring the rest of the State ! Our first impressions of Kuching city were that, for a capital city, it was pleasantly compact and unhurried, lacking the usual crowds, traffic and skyscrapers and shopping malls. The city meets quite abruptly with forest at its fringes and in fact at least ... read more

I had the misfortune to visit Bako on a rainy day. As in, it rained all day. I left Kuching on the second bus and arrived an hour later. After buying a poncho to keep dry, three other people and I were herded into a boat. Of course, we somehow were assigned the boat with no cover. We were told to choose a return time, and hoping for better weather later in the day, we opted for 4pm. You can't change your boat time and you can't change your boating group. We weathered the icy speed boat ride with our heads down. Upon arrival at the dock, we made a beeline for the cafeteria to get tea and warm up. Finally, around noon, the rains seemed to be letting up, so we set out for one ... read more