Bugs, Rafflesia the World biggest flower and Sake

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27th March 2009

I was awake by 7:30am after no more than 3hrs sleep. I woke Pili up and tried to convince her that getting to the park before the tourists was a good idea, we had a lot to see today, not the least the World’s largest flower - the Rafflesia, the temperature was also rising rapidly. With a little grumbling (Pili’s not good in the morning until she’s had coffee), we had a sweet bread roll and a banana for breakfast and then informed the girl who ran the guest house we’d be staying another night. Pili joked that we hadn’t slept well because of the attack of the monster bugs. The girl told us that every morning she has to sweep up masses of bodies from the stairs, landing & bathrooms. I told her the simple way to stop this massacre and her extra house work was to change from fluorescing light to a coloured light, red or blue preferably, just not bright white, I promised her it would be 100% effective. Not to my surprise she had never heard of this, it seems nobody ever has, even in Pili’s native Spain the concept is unheard of. I think I need to start a business importing and exporting bug safe lighting, not only would it be good for the insect hating tourists it would also save millions of insects Worldwide EVERY NIGHT!

We arrived at the park at 8:30am walk straight in again and headed for the Canopy Walkway. A fee of 5Rm each for admission was charged then we started the steep climb up to the beginning of the walkway about 100-200 feet (30-40 metres) above the forest floor. I was very excited as I know this is where 80% of all the life in the forest is. Pili was not so keen even though she didn’t say anything but I could tell by her nervous smile she wasn’t happy with the swaying bridge so high up. Immediately I spotted a Brown Capped Woodpecker darting through the trees, a new bird for me and a great start. I then saw a few Oriental White Eyes which are not much bigger than the European Wren. Several were chasing bugs through the leaves. Then way above the canopy I spot a pair of Crested Serpent Eagle’s soaring effortlessly of the hot morning thermals. What a rush to be among this lush habitat, I take a moment to catch my breath and admire the splendid views. Pili is close behind, still gingerly edgings along the rope bridge. I tell her not to look down and take in the breathtaking view and relish every moment. Pili’s not great with heights but she never grumbled once and eventually relaxed and really realised how fortunate she was to be in such a place, I believe this fear she has truly put to bed.

The best part of this forest exploration was when I discovered the fragile nest of the Yellow Eared Spider Hunter, tucked into the base of some kind of Bromeliad plant growing on a thick branch of one of the forest giant trees. I couldn’t believe my luck, the male and female were returning frequently with grasses and small twigs and the occasional spider web and were expertly constructing their nursery in front of my eyes. It was tough filming as I had to put my full weight on the edge of the rope bridge, leaning into the abyss to find a clear path through the leaves for my camera lens to get a full unblocked view. The results were worth it, I filmed for a good ten minutes and captured the birds weaving material into the walls of the spherical nest then settling down inside to test for comfort and then a little adjustment to make sure it was perfect. The birds knew I was watching, at first they were a little hesitant about going to the nest in case they gave its location away to this strange, one eyed monster staring at them. They soon realised that I was no threat and went about their business while I observed in awe the secret World of this shy bird. Unfortunately it wasn’t long before I was disturbed by a mob of Japanese tourists, talking loudly, calling to each other and with camera flashes going off everywhere. It felt like a new Pearl Harbour in the trees, they were coming along the walkway in multitudes. I leaned further out into nothingness, smiled as they passed saying “Konnichi-wa” which is 'hello' / 'good day' in Japanese. They all returned the greeting with “oooooooo fffotografer” and then a little head bow. I am sure not one of them saw a single bird, in fact I think they thought they were in a giant salad bar!!! Ten minutes after they had all left I checked on the Spider Hunters and thankfully they had gone back to work. I snapped a couple more photos and left them in peace. When we got back to the beginning of the trail Pili was stopped for a photograph with the same group of Japs, the tourists sure do like Pili, I should start charging fees.

Next stop was the butterfly farm, which was very good except we’d probably left it a little late because the heat of the sun had made them very active. We stopped half way round and sat in the shade by the stream and made lunch, tuna sandwiches and Pringles washed down with lots of water. Pili, satisfied and exhausted from lack of sleep, lay down on the bench and fell asleep. I decided to leave her and wander around taking photos of the butterflies and the stunning dragonflies that were hunting along the banks of the stream. I let Pili sleep for a good half an hour before gently waking her, it’s the only way because if you startle her she spits and bites!

We then climbed the steep hill to see if Jackie wanted to play again but she was nowhere to be seen, which is not surprising as it was very hot and I’m sure she knew a cool place in the jungle to hide until it became cooler.

We parked up on the seats were we’d meet Jackie the previous night, used our bags as pillows and went to sleep under the trees with the scent from the Scorpion Orchids growing in the trees above drifting down over us. We had an undisturbed half hour and it helped partially lift a mild headache I’d had all morning. It was now 2:00pm and we needed a coffee before venturing of to find the Rafflesia flower which is really the whole reason we came here in the first place, so many distractions in such an enchanting place.

At the bottom of the hill outside the park lies a small shabby looking restaurant. Yesterday evening we’d met the woman who worked there, she offered to take us to see the elusive Rafflesia for a fee of 10Rm each, which works out at today exchange about £2:00 each. This seemed like a good deal and we’d agreed that today we would take her up on her offer. At the restaurant the woman was sat at the cash till with her young son and infant child. She beamed a huge smile when she saw me and asked me in her broken English “do you want see Rafflesia flower”, I nodded and said, “two of us”, holding up two fingers. She stuck out her calloused hand and said “20 ringgits please”, her smile was now even broader exposing her stained and rotten front teeth, caused from chewing paan (a combination of Betel leaf and areca nut). I gave her a limp twenty and she shoved her young son towards us. The poor lad obviously didn’t want to take stupid tourist to see a stupid flower; he sulked and dragged his feet all the way thrashing the grass with a small stick he carried.

He took us down a small muddy path and into the riverside jungle which was predominately bamboo stands. On the way I found a couple of beautiful Ginger plants growing near the paths edge. This strange and varied family of plants grow flowers straight out of the ground, no obvious leaves just a bright red or sometimes orange flower growing directly out of the top of the concealed root tumour that lies just beneath the soil surface; this is the part we eat. I take a few brief photos in the gloom and head on. Eventually after many twists and turns through the forest we come to an embankment fenced off with bamboo barricade. There beyond lay the magnificent Rafflesia in full gaudy bloom. The flower is a good metre across, red with white spots and if I’m honest a little plastic looking. The inside holds the sunflower shaped stigma that produces a rotting flesh smell to attract small wasps & flies. Not something you’d put in a vase on the kitchen table for Sunday tea! This giant of a flower is pollinated by the minute little wasp, no bigger than the tip of a felt tip pen. Both wasp and flower exist completely reliant on each other, without one the other could not exist. The Rafflesia is actually a parasite and draws its food directly from the roots of a vine called Testrastigma, by penetrating the vine root system with a microscopic network of filaments, much like fungi do, then drawing off nutrients and water as it requires. Of the nine species of this rare plant three haven’t been seen for six decades, probably lost to over collecting and the relentless deforestation to make way for farming and the hideous oil palm plantations.

I explained to the young boy that I needed to photograph the flower up close and that I was going to climb over the shaky bamboo fence, he obviously didn’t understand, but when I said I’d give him 1Rm he nodded and smiled. I climbed over and sat down next to the flower, Pili started taking photos as I inspected the inside closer. The walls inside the bloom looked like they were made from wax, I never seen such a strange and primate looking plant. After two to three minutes I told Pili to climb over and I took charge of the cameras. I forgot to mention next to the bloom, about 2 metres away, lay a very sad, dead Rafflesia. It had turned pitch black after its brief five day boom and eventually will decay into a black sludge. The flower only blooms once every nine months, usually in dark, dank parts of the forest. These particular flowers were only average in size and I’ve seen footage of much bigger specimens, David Attenborough’s ‘Life of Plants’ comes instantly to mind. That particular flower you could have had a bath in!

Elated Pili and I followed the small boy out of the jungle; his demeanour was now somewhat more cheery. We asked our small guide to pose for photos with us. We then left only stopping briefly for Pili to make a fuss of the infant belonging to the woman at the restaurant. I wonder what these simple people think of us crazy, nature loving westerners.

Wanting more we went in search of another Rafflesia site we’d been told about. The site was advertised by the side of the road by the owner of the land it was growing on, about a mile down the steep hill from where we were staying. It’s quite a bonanza when these bizarre flowers are discovered by the locals as they can charge an entrance fee to the eager tourists for access to their land to view the plant. This is obviously helping preserve these precious plants and it needs to be thoroughly encouraged.

Again we paid 10Rs each and again a small boy led the way. This one was more cheerful but he did scratch the back of his head for the ten minute trek, I hate to think what was bothering him, my skin crawls just thinking about it. This time we really hit the jackpot, not one but two flowers, one partly open and the other at least a quarter bigger than our first flower. We went through the same procedure as before to get good photos. A few ringgits and I felt better climbing the fragile fence for a closer look.

I still can’t believe we’ve seen three beautiful specimens all in one day, we are very lucky and we have great photos and film to treasure forever.

Once again we head up to see if Jackie the Orang-Utan wanted to say hello. We saw her briefly but she shunned us in favour of a large mango she was consuming. We said goodbye and left her in peace to consume her fruit.

For the last time we decided to take a VERY hot soak in the hot springs. Today the water was scorching and we could only bare a couple of minutes before taking a cold and refreshing shower. This beats having to share the shower block with the monsters back at the hostel.

We went back to the same restaurant as the previous night and had another delicious meal washed down with cold beers and a little Sake (local rice wine) that I’d had in the restaurant fridge from the night before. It was very strong and I only took a small glass, Pili’s drink went straight back into the bottle. The reason I bought this 6Rm bottle of liver destruction was so that Pili could have the label for her ever growing collection, well that’s my excuse and I’m sticking with it. I think I’ll probably travel with it for medicinal purposes obviously!

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Photos

The Yellow Eared Spider Hunter
she's been collecting nesting material

At work building her nest
She was very particular and made sure everything was perfect

Comments

[axle rose]

reflessia
wow!!!what abig and beautiful flower