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Published: February 6th 2013
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Thanks for all your messages. Really lovely to hear from you all.
No I've not been eaten by any crocodiles - although they came a little too close for comfort in my opinion!
For the last two days I have been on adventure down the Kinabatangan river, seeing an array of wildlife, far beyond my expectations. I will add some photos later just as a taster of some of my favourites
February 4 th, we started out on a one hour bus trip to Sepilok Orangutan (man of the forest) centre. It is a " rehabilitation centre" which teaches the orphaned orangutans to survive and those lucky enough to pass with flying colors will then get transported by helicopter to a forest twice the size of Singapore to learn to survive again in the wild. We were lucky enough to catch mum and baby, with a much slimmer younger one looking on in admiration at feeding time. I have never before seen anyone or anything eating so many bananas so quickly. They were an absolute joy to watch.
From there we transferred to the jetty to continue our trip down the Kinabatangan river to Abai jungle lodge.
Rushing through the twists and turns felt rather like a James Bond movie, with crocodiles along the way slithering from the muddy banks back into the river.
I must admit I was a little apprehensive at the idea of having to bunk up with others in a dorm. Much to my surprise I had my own room. Phew! Those of you that know me well will already know of my idiosyncrasies and will appreciate where I'm coming from.
I was lucky enough to meet some lovely people from all walks of life during my stay and we all headed up the river for a night cruise through until the evening. It was quite a surreal experience floating on still water drinking coffee and watching the sunset, seeing all that Sabah has to offer in terms of wildlife. Borneo is a wildlife paradise and so far I have only seen a small part. One of the highlights were the fireflies. My sister had told me how magnificent they were, but seeing them is believing. I can only describe them as "Christmas lights twinkling in the trees" - stunning!
After a very peaceful nights sleep at the lodge we
had an early start at 06:30 to experience even more. This time we proceeded to Lake Pucas, just off the river, full of man made plantation water orchids imported from South America, cutting off the river from the peninsula. We saw egrets, otter, red broad bills, three species of hornbills and best of all the very rare Asian paradise flycatcher. An absolute delight.
After breakfast we headed over to Abai village and to say these people live a simple life, with the most basic of amenities is an understatement. They still remain the happiest, most accommodating people I have ever met. Starting off we each planted a tree with a very unique number alongside to allow ownership before a nice lunch served on banana leaf. After lunch and many more photos we headed to the Kinabantagan riverside lodge, Sukah. Here I had my second experience of crocodiles - almost one on every corner. They just kept getting bigger!
The proboscis monkeys were wonderful, giving a whole new meaning to a family tree! Not to mention the wild orangutan, white bellied sea eagles, hornbills and enough egrets to open a bird sanctuary.
With my over indulgence of wildlife,
we left the lodge early this morning to arrive back at Sandakan, in time for a Teh Tarik, which essentially is a very very sweet tea, made I think, with condensed milk.
A day of relaxation I think for me before heading out this evening for some more food delights.
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