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October 25th 2015
Published: December 22nd 2015
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What the?What the?What the?

Think I've been told...haha...
After a fantastic time stumbling through the jungle it was now time to head (back) to Kuching, our final stop in Borneo...we had originally set aside almost five full days here, with the intention of doing two or three day trips but we were now down to just four with having lost a day the previous week...

No matter, arrived and made our way to our lodgings; a really cool boutique hotel near the waterfront called Batik...great place, rooms were good, location was great but it was the folks that worked there that really made the difference...very welcoming, would take the time to help with any activities we wanted to set up, but most of all we enjoyed sitting and chatting with them at their funky little bar over a cold beer...

Orangutans and Bako National Park were must-sees, we had originally thought of visiting a longhouse as well but having done that in the jungle we decided to skip it and look for another option...kayaking? Okay! Completely random, it was the Batik that recommended this company and they would tie in the Semenggoh Orangutan sanctuary with the day's adventure, perfect...

After a phone call to set up
Working Hard...Working Hard...Working Hard...

...don't tell K...
the kayaking for the following day it was off to eat, first stop Top Spot...I had read that this was a must-do in Kuching, and with the hotel being right beside it we figured it was as good a place as any to start our culinary tour...it's basically a large food court, semi-covered against the elements, and supposed to offer some great fish dishes...was not disappointed!

When we arrived the first impression I got was mayhem, complete and utter mayhem! It was packed; lineups at every stall, all the tables full and people running back and forth serving up the food, crazy...the majority of the food stalls run in a L shape at the back of the place, with a sea of tables and chairs taking up the majority of the area in front of them...dove in and headed to a stall recommended by the hotel for its fish, and with the help of one of the servers we managed to order food and get a table, perfect! The deal is you pick out what you would like from the assortment of fresh fish piled up at the stall, choose how you would like it prepared, pick any sides
GraffitiGraffitiGraffiti

Some cool artwork in downtown Kuching...
you may want and then head back to your seat and wait...then someone else came by offering beer, excellent...what looked like complete chaos was actually quite organized, and after ten minutes or so our food came out exactly as ordered...and it was awesome; we had a red snapper and tilapia I believe, both delicious and cooked to perfection (I had also ordered a "small" plate of prawns which was a mistake, they were huge and I couldn't finish them! Tasty though...). Highly recommend this place; food was great at a reasonable price, just don't go if you're looking for a nice romantic meal...haha...

We headed down to the riverfront Esplanade after dinner to get our bearings and check out the nightlife...it was nice strolling through the hawkers, food stalls and the odd teenager punk rock band that had set up along the way...tuning didn't seem all that important but fun nonetheless, love to see DIY music...decided to jump into some side streets in and around Chinatown, checking out the shops and making mental notes of some interesting little restaurants in the area when I spied a Guinness sign outside a funky little bar called Speakeazy, and I was thirsty!
On the Beach IIOn the Beach IIOn the Beach II

Hey look, I'm sweating... (KC)
In we went, sidled up to the bar and had a pint, all the while checking out all the cool posters, pics and sci-fi paraphernalia scattered about the place...

It wasn't too busy that night (it being Sunday I guess) so had the chance to chat with the staff, great folks...only planned on stopping in for a pint, but that slowly turned into the evening when a guitar came out and we all made our way out front to the patio on the sidewalk and proceeded to while away the night jamming on the street...awesome! A box appeared and my new friend Bobo used it as percussion, and I and another staff member traded off songs until the wee hours, way too much fun...realizing it was waaayyy past our bedtime and we had an 8am pick up the following morning it was hugs and goodbyes and back to the ranch...

Little fuzzy next morning as we made our way down to breaky, and then the gang from Semadang Kayaking arrived at 8am sharp and we were in the van and off for the day's adventure...just the two of us to start, there was another couple who would be
Cat StatueCat StatueCat Statue

...Kuching is supposed to mean Cat in Malay, so the theme is everywhere...
joining us for the kayaking portion of the day but our first stop was the highly anticipated Semenggoh Nature Reserve, home to some couple of dozen Orangutans...this is reputed to be one of the best places to see the native Bornean Orangutans, not to be missed...

There are two hour-long feeding times that tourists are permitted to visit, and there are no guarantees that any orangutans will show but fortune was with us that day as one large male and an adult female (with her baby!) showed up for a snack...they are large, magnificent, agile creatures, it was fascinating watching them move through the jungle...with hands for feet it was a little creepy too...haha...after about fifteen minutes or so you could see the treetops rustling in the distance, and soon another younger male showed up to grab some grub as well which was awesome...

After the successful viewing it was back into the van and off to do a little kayaking...this was to be an 11km paddle down the Semadang river, with a traditional Bidayuh home-cooked lunch at a small local village...arrived at the departure point, met the other couple who were to join us (nice young couple
My New LocalMy New LocalMy New Local

Guinness sign gets me every time...
from Sweden), grabbed our life jackets, signed the obligatory waiver and it was off and paddling...

Great day, I always like getting off the beaten path to see a different side of a destination, and this did not disappoint...the water level was unfortunately a bit low due to the time of year so we had to get out and pull the kayak through some of the low spots but that just added to the experience in my opinion...the river and surrounding jungle were beautiful, it was a nice leisurely tour down the river and through some small rapids (did get to swim in some as well which was a lot of fun)...stopped at a local village for the home cooked meal (delicious!) and then on for another hour or so to the end of the tour...our guide was great, as was the support driver/cook, both very personable and knowledgeable of the region we were in...he also had a waterproof camera with him and took all sorts of pics along the way of us and the surroundings, providing them on a free DVD at the end, excellent! All in all a fun day, but with all the fresh air (and
Mmmmm...Mmmmm...Mmmmm...

....Guinness Time! (KC)
previous late night) it was back to town and just a relaxing evening around the hotel...

Following day we were up (and surprisingly not sore from the kayaking!) and ready for the next adventure: Bako National Park...set on a peninsula an hour or so north of Kuching, it is home to most of the vegetation found in Borneo, with streams, beaches, hiking trails and a variety of wildlife, with the Proboscis monkey being the main attraction...the hotel showed us where we could catch a local bus that would take us to the park, and after breakfast we were off and running...

Took about an hour to get to the launch point of Bako Bazaar, where we now had to wait for a boat to take us the rest of the way...sadly we didn't arrive at the park until almost 11am, so decided to check out a trail, have lunch, try to squeeze in another trail and then head back...so off we went on what seemed to be a short trail recommended by the folks at the hotel, the map we received said it was about a kilometer but 1 hour hiking each way...we scoffed and figured this was for the slower folks, not us experienced hikers! Once again we were wrong; even with some of the trail being on boardwalks and stairs, there was still a lot of scrambling up and down hills covered in wet tree roots and rocks, and of course we weren't wearing the proper footwear either...gah...so after about an hour we came to the end of the trail at this beautiful beach, which you were supposed to be able to swim in but had had a crocodile siting earlier that year so was discouraged...too bad, after all the heat and humidity in the jungle it would have been nice to jump in...relaxed for a bit and then made our way back to HQ for a little lunch...

Lunch, would have been nice, but despite the signs confirming we were still within the correct hours to eat they had run out of food...so now we were sweaty and hungry, and as it was almost 2pm with the last boat returning at 4pm we had unfortunately run out of time to hit any more trails...dang...knowing what we know now I would probably recommend staying at least one, maybe two nights in the lodge surrounding the
The GangThe GangThe Gang

...the fine folks from Speakeazy, what a crew! (KC)
HQ, it's tough squeezing in a lot of hiking (and there are many trails) in just one day trip...and to top it off we didn't see any proboscis monkeys! Ah well, an excuse to come back, and with the luck of seeing the orangutans we didn't feel too bad...

Made it back to town and chatted with the staff at Batik over a nice cold beer, great way to wind up a day's adventure...jumped on a late afternoon river cruise which was nice, complete with traditional dancers...some dinner by the river would close out the evening...

Only thing planned for the next day was a tattoo...haha...had always wanted to get a traditional hand tapped tattoo and after some research found a place in Kuching and booked some time...still had the morning to ourselves, and after a recommendation from the staff in regards to the best Laksa in town it was off for a late breakfast...

Laksa is a noodle soup traditionally eaten for breakfast I think, consisting of prawn broth, spices, noodles and topped with chicken and prawns, it was a must have on our list...and man was it good! I think it was my favourite dish of the trip, the flavours were through the roof tasty...place is called the Choon Hui Café, apparently Bourdain has stopped here twice in his travels and loved it, although no pics or mentions of it in the café itself which I thought was cool...go here, make it a bit later in the morning though as apparently it's lined up out the door with folks stopping in before work (we went around 10am, place closes at 11am)...

Jo-Lynn and Jackie from Batik then agreed to take us to a project they were involved in, a weaving collective called Tanoti...as described by their website: "...a congregation of Sarawakian women weavers and artisans dedicated towards the production, promotion and proliferation of hand-crafted fabrics." with a vision to "...improve lives and livelihoods of womenfolk and rural communities through the ancient art of songket weaving.". The fabrics were stunning, and the amount of time and skill required to make them was unfathomable...

Did a bit of poking around the waterfront on our own after that, picking up a few last minute souvenirs...then it was off for the tattoo that would take the rest of the afternoon...the hand tapping was certainly different from the
Semenggoh Wildlife CentreSemenggoh Wildlife CentreSemenggoh Wildlife Centre

Manap and Sadammiah hanging out...
usual gun, hurt about the same but not too bad...artists were great, lot of fun and did a great job...

It was now our last night in Kuching, back to Singapore in the morning and then home the day after that...Jackie had recommended a restaurant to us called Bla Bla Bla of all names, and what a great/funky spot...enter into the place by stepping on tiles over an indoor pond, then into a cozy and chic restaurant. Food was amazing, K had the mango duck which was brilliant in both taste and presentation, and I had a blackened fish of which the type escapes me, but excellent...nice, relaxed atmosphere, loved the place...

It was getting late but there was still one thing left to do: back to see the gang at Speakeazy! Haha...definitely had to return for a last pint and say hi/goodbye to everyone...no guitars this time but got to meet the owner Mac who is a great guy...ton more laughs, goofy pics with the gang and after blowing our self-imposed curfew again it was sad goodbyes and back to the Batik...

I loved Kuching, it has a wonderful laid back atmosphere, with amazing food and wonderful people...great hub to get out for day trips and easy striking distance to Bako, really wish we had an extra day here...could not think of a better way to wind up this Borneo adventure, really hope to return someday, and tip a pint of Guinness at my new local...


Additional photos below
Photos: 48, Displayed: 31


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Semenggoh Wildlife Centre IISemenggoh Wildlife Centre II
Semenggoh Wildlife Centre II

Manap and Baka having a snack..
Ruby having a peak...Ruby having a peak...
Ruby having a peak...

...as mom Sadammiah has a bite to eat...
Ruby IIRuby II
Ruby II

...at Semenggoh Wildlife Centre...
Rock FormationRock Formation
Rock Formation

...along the Semadang River...


24th December 2015

Cool Blog
Did you get your tattoo?
24th December 2015

Thank you!
...and yes I did, took almost four hours but turned out great in the end...
24th December 2015
What the?

Adorable
Wish we knew what was on his mind
25th December 2015
What the?

Probably wondering what all these weird looking creatures are that always show up to watch them eat...haha...
26th December 2015

Awesome!
You must post a pic of your tatt - i'm a big fan of traditional tattooing methods even if they are often stupidly painful sounding. Do you have a pic of the tools they used? my shoulder piece I had done in French Polynesia using pig bone and shark teeth only took just under 3..id love to see yours :)
26th December 2015

Added a pic, it's the last one in the series...mine was a little more conventional than yours, shark teeth? Wow...it was more the technique that was traditional than the gear, they used two different sized sterilized needles lashed to sticks of some sort...I'll include that pic as well at the end...do you have a pic of yours? Suspect this won't be the last travel tattoo I get...haha...
27th December 2015
Needles

Love it
What a great tatt...your design? I have no experience of the Malay tattoo meanings...I cant even read mine (well, its on my back so I guess that is one reason) but I know each line means something. The polynesian traditional tatu needles look very similar - I love tattoo collecting :)
29th December 2015
Needles

Not my design entirely, I wanted the flower part of the tattoo, called a Bunga Terung and then worked out the surrounding piece with the artist (based on Iban motifs, it is a tree of life morphing into a serpent and then a dragon). The Bunga Terung is a traditional tattoo, an eggplant flower with the coil in the middle representing the rope of life, the coming of age of a young man...these are typically done in pairs, one on each shoulder for balance...

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