Tour of Kuching

---

This morning, I spent the day on a walking tour of Kuching - the capital of Sarawak- the name is said to have derived from the Malay word for cat, kucing and is known as 'cat city', as a result there are a few cat statues dotted around, but surprisingly very few cats!

We set off from the hotel and quickly ended up in a really small alley way which links 2 of the old streets in this area together, half way down the alley we found the Indian Muslim Mosque which is pretty well hidden and was the first in Sarawak, built in 1837. After a few photos, we headed off to Gambier Street with numerous spice and textile shops; the smells from the herbs and spices was amazing as you walked on by. Part way down the street we came to a Chinese Medicine shop, I was baffled by the number of drawers containing herbs used in medicine - I was told there are over 10,000 in that one shop alone, God knows how they remember where everything is!

We continued the tour and came across a couple of oragutan wall paintings, apparently the first in Kuching. There are quite a few paintings as you wander round the streets and it seems there are quite a few underway at the moment awaiting completion. Turning around, I noticed a cat statue, which is a recent addition to the city and I really liked it - my guide on the other hand wasn't too keen!

We also visited the Sarawak museum, it was opened in 1891. It contains a lot of artefacts from the various tribes in the region, including a shield used by an infamous headhunter who used locks of hair of those he beheaded to keep count of how many he'd done - 39. The more common way was to make a notch on the blunt edge of the sword to keep count.

We later visited a couple of Chinese temples, both dating back to the 1800's, as you'd expect, they're both brightly coloured and ornate. Both temples have been renovated with a wood and carved stone facade added to the Tua Pek Kong temple, it looks very impressive. Many locals believe this temple protected the town from Japanese bombing in WWII and saved a whole row of old buildings, the corner where it is located has been named corner of good hope.

A short walk from here and another cat statue to check out before heading to the river front to jump on a water taxi to head over to a traditional Kampung village and sample a few of the layer cakes produced here. The cakes were so nice with dozens of different flavours and the colour of them amazing - blueberry cheese was my favourite.

A return journey in a water taxi and a walk down the water front back towards the hotel taking in the views of the parliament building, Istana Palace and Fort Margherita.

This afternoon I was left to my own devices and decided to head out to the souvenir shops close by the hotel. After picking up a couple of bits and bobs, I decided to head over to the orchid garden across the river, so yes, you guessed it - another water taxi! It was lovely walking around the orchid garden, but, SO hot! I pottered a bit and decided to head back to the river and head up to Fort Margherita to check out the view, my tour guide also gave me a challenge to find 6 shrunken skulls in there so figured I'd give it a go. After a massive trek between houses and down paths that looked like they lead to nowhere, I eventually made it to the fort... To find it in the middle of renovation! Just my luck! I was able to look round the gardens and check out the renovation they're currently doing so not a total waste.

After chilling out for an hour back at the hotel, I took a walk down the waterfront to check out the night market. Loads of arts and crafts for offer and a bit of local music being played along the way.

All in all, a great day albeit the hottest and most humid I've ever experienced. It was 90% humidity today, and man did I know about it!

Tomorrow I'm heading off to the rainforest for a home stay at Kampong Melano for a couple of days so I'll have no internet connection - I'll update you when I'm back to civilisation!

---

Photos

Chinese Medicine Shop
How do they even find everything?!