Malaysia & Singapore

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After my addiction to scuba diving started in Thailand, I couldn't help but be enticed to go do some diving in Borneo. Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located at the center of Southeast Asia. This island is divided between Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. Borneo is very rich in biodiversity compared to many other areas. There are about 15,000 species of flowering plants with 3,000 species of trees, 221 species of terrestrial mammals and 420 species of resident birds. It is also the center of evolution of various species of plants and animals. The remaining Borneo rainforest is the only natural habitat for the endangered Bornean Orangutan. The island historically had extensive rainforest cover, but the area shrank rapidly due to heavy logging for the needs of the Malaysian plywood industry. All this makes Borneo beautiful and a must-see if you are in SE Asia. But what I was more interested in was the diving. Blessed with some of the richest waters in the world, diving in Borneo Malaysia offers many experiences including being surrounded by schools of fish, hammerheads or mantas, diving with more turtles than you can image or discovering the amazing world of Malaysia's incredible muck dive sites. Two sites on Borneo are listed as part of the top ten dives in the world. Of course, I never got to do them. While diving in Thailand, I developed a nasty ear infection. I didn't discover that my ear was infected until I was in the airport on my way to Borneo, after paying lots for my ticket. Needless to say I was a bit bummed. But I wouldn't let that stop me from fully enjoying all the amazing things the island has to offer.

Within three days, I found myself climbing Mount Kinabalu. With its summit height at 4,095 metres (13,435 ft), Mount Kinabula is the fourth highest peak in SE Asia and makes Borneo the world's third highest island. Mount Kinabalu is well-known worldwide for its tremendous botanical and biological species biodiversity, with high levels of endemism (species which are found only within Kinabalu Park and are not found anywhere else in the world). As examples, it has one of the world’s richest orchid flora with over 800 species, over 600 species of ferns of which 50 are found no where else, and is the richest place in the world for the Nepenthes insectivorous pitcher plants (five of the thirteen are found nowhere else on earth) which are suppose to reach spectacular proportions. Its incredible biodiversity in plant life is due to a combination of several unique factors: its setting in one of the richest plant regions of the world, the fact that the mountain covers a wide climatic range from near sea level to freezing ground conditions near the summit, the jagged terrain and diversity of rocks and soils, the high levels of rainfall (averaging about 2700 mm a year), and the climatic instability caused by periods of glaciation and catastrophic droughts which result in evolution and speciation. Mount Kinabalu is essentially a huge granite dome that was pushed up from the earth’s crust as molten rock millions of years ago. It is considered a very young mountain as the granite cooled and hardened only about 10 million years ago. Its granite composition and the glacial formative processes are readily apparent when viewing its rough rocky peaks. It's a relatively easy climb from the base to the summit. It can be done within one day but they recommend you do it in a day and a half, as well as with a guide. It is also recommended to summit the peak the following morning, as to catch an amazing sunrise...I was not dissappointed!

After leaving Borneo, I headed over to Malaysia's mainland to it's capital and largest city, Kuala Lumpur. Kuala Lumpur is home to the tallest twin buildings in the world, the Petronas Twin Towers. Kuala Lumpur also has a mix of different cultures. Unlike the whole of Malaysia, where Malays comprise the ethnic majority, most of Kuala Lumpur residents are Chinese, as well as some other cultures. The city has many places of worship catering to the multi-religious population. Islam is practised primarily by the Malays and the Indian Muslim communities while other religions include Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism (mainly among Chinese), Hinduism (among Indians) and Christianity. Kuala Lumpur and its surrounding urban areas form the most industrialized and are economically the fastest growing region in Malaysia. It’s central business district today has shifted around the Kuala Lumpur City Center where many new and tall buildings with modern and postmodern architecture fill the skyline and the city thrives on becoming one of the most modern cities in the world.

Next, I headed up to the Cameron Highlands. At 1,500 m (5,000 ft) above sea level, it is the highest area on the mainland and enjoys a cool climate throughout the year. Apart from the cool weather, key attractions in Cameron Highlands include a butterfly farm, strawberry farms, rose gardens, vegetable gardens and of course, it's magnificent tea plantations. I visited BOH Plantations which is the largest black tea manufacturer in Malaysia. I was able to walk through the factory with a guided tour of the entire process of producing tea, as well as enjoying the final product. With a homemade scone to accompany my cup of tea overlooking the rolling hills, this was the perfect way to end my stay in the Cameron Highlands and it was time for me to head back to the city life to historic Melaka.

Melaka is the third smallest Malaysian state and is located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula. The historic center of Melaka was inscribed on the World Heritage List on July 7, 2008. The Malays who are the original settlers of Melaka since 1400, form the largest community. The Melakan Malays are rich in culture from their daily life to the architectual arts. The famous Melaka Steps, or Tangga Melaka, are common in front of many Malay houses. Because of its strategic location, Melaka has been controlled by people from many different parts of the world including the Dutch, Portuguese and the British as a major port city. These influences are still very obvious in both Melaka's architecture and culture.

After exploring Melaka's hitorical streets, I headed down to Singapore for the final destination of my trip. Singapore is an island country located at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula. Since independence from Britian, Singapore's standard of living has been on the rise. Foreign direct investment and a state-led drive to industrialization have created a modern economy focused on electronics manufacturing, petrochemicals, tourism and financial services alongside traditional dutie-free trade. Singapore is the 6th wealthiest country in the world in terms of GDP per capita. This small nation has foreign exchange reserves of more than US$177 billion. The population of Singapore is approximately 4.59 million. Though Singapore is highly cosmopolitan and diverse, ethnic Chinese form the majority of the population. English is the administrative language of the country. Singapore consists of 63 islands, including mainland Singapore. The south of Singapore, around the mouth of the Singapore River and what is now the Downtown Core, used to be the only concentrated urban area, while the rest of the land was either undeveloped tropical rainforest or used for agriculture. Singapore is a multi-religious country. According to Statistics Singapore, around 51 percent of resident Singaporeans (excluding significant numbers of visitors and migrant workers) practice Buddhism and Taoism. About 15 percent, mostly Chinese, Eurasians, and Indians, practice Christianity - a broad classification including Catholicism, Protestantism and other denominations. Muslims constitute 14 percent, of whom Malays account for the majority with a substantial number of Indian Muslims and Chinese Muslims. Smaller minorities practice Sikhism, Hinduism, the Baha Faith and others. I found the religious influence to be very apparent throughout the city. From restaurants to stores to individual neighborhoods, Singapore it quite a melting pot. In fact, it reminded me very much of walking the streets of Manhattan. Although my time was short in Singapore, I really enjoyed my stay. It is such a beautifully clean city. Modern skyscrapers are blended with ethnic neighborhoods and religious temples by lush flora and fauna. My favorite part was enjoying a Singapore Sling at it's origin at the famous Raffles Hotel. What a perfect way to end a perfect trip.

So, as my journey comes to an end it is time for me to reflect on my travels. I have met so many great people and seen so many wonderful places that it is impossible to say I returned home the same person. It was so nice to have cleared my mind of everyday life back home. I know so much more about myself and what I really want out of life now. I also have a completely different perspective on the world. But as amazing and necessary as my trip was, it is also great to return home. To see my family waiting to hug me at the airport never felt so good. And I will have some of the best stories, pictures and memories to share for the rest of my life.

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