Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Borneo!
Who knew - Borneo isn't a country, but the name of an island encompassing parts of Malaysia, Indonesia and all of Brunei. I certainly didn't. But here I am, in the heart of Borneo. Sounds exotic! But actually I'm exagerating. It's been a long time since I've spelled that word - something looks wrong, but I'll assume you know what I mean. I'm not really in the heart, but more in the outer leaves somewhere, and in the city, not the jungle. To be precise, I am in the city of Kuching, Malaysia. Why Kuching, you ask? If you know me and you know what Kuching means, then you would understand immediately. You see, Kuching is Malay for "Cat". This is the city of the cat and though I have yet to see them, I hear there are cat statues and an ailurophilic museum. And being Malaysia, there are sure to be many cats as well, though surprisingly I haven't seen many of those either.
Other than that, I don't have much to say about Kuching or Borneo yet, seeing as I just arrived. I will, however, pass on the recommendation that was given me to stay at the Borneo B&B to anyone who happens to come this way - it is terrific!
So, let me go back in time briefly with an update on what I've been up to since.. ah, Kota Bharu. Well, the Jungle Train was a good ride, and on it I met some Malaysian teenagers whose favourite singer is Avril Lavigne. They also let me try some "buah keraji" which is some sort of fruit that looks like a nut, has a spongy texture and tastes like prunes. They were "sedap", which means tasty.
At Taman Negara, I went on a mini jungle trek and stayed overnight at an animal hide with an English friend named Finn who I met in KB. During the jungle trek, Finn was brutally attacked and was left with large blood stains on his shirt. No, we did not encounter a tiger. In fact the largest animals we saw were the well fed rats in the hide. The culprits of the attack were the innumerable leeches that danced in the wet leaves all along the track. My gaiters offered me some protection against them, but I still flicked dozens of them off of my clothes and skin. Though we had started with grand plans to hike back on the longer, harder trail, in the morning we were happy to pile into a boat with our fellow "hiders" and cruise back down the river. Though not quite on par with the elephants we might have seen if we were lucky, I thought that the big black cow creatures we saw from the boat were pretty cool.
Back in civilization at Jerantut, I booked my plane ticket to Borneo and waited until 2AM for a train to Singapore with Finn and a german girl named Katrina. We were able to stay in a hostel waiting room where we watched "Sister Act" and 2 or 3 other movies on TV as we whiled away the hours.
In between a few spurts of sleep on the train, I talked with a Malaysian girl who was headed south to visit her sister with her mom and another sister. Though I have picked up a few words handy for the traveller, my Malay is not enough for much of a conversation. Her English was infinitely better, but still the conversation involved a great deal of smiling and nodding on both sides.
Upon arriving in Singapore and getting to the hostel, I discovered that it would not be possible (other than by a very expensive taxi ride) to get to the Johor Bharu (JB) airport across the border in Malaysia in time for my 7am flight the next morning. So, instead of checking in, I phoned the somewhat seedy-sounding (based on the Lonely Planet description) hostel (the only cheap option) in JB and told them I would arrive that evening. As I was rather tired from two nights of minimal sleep, the day in Singapore was a bit of a blur. We wandered around visiting such sights as parkades, stairwells, and construction sites, among others. Then, leaving behind a lively hostel and friends in Singapore, I made my way across the causeway towards JB...
If it wasn't for the Lonely Planet describing JB as a rather dowdy place where the "barber shops" are brothels, well and also if I wasn't so tired, I wouldn't have been so reluctant to go. Based on this description and the fact that the sun had set, I had decided to take a "Teksi" to the hostel rather than to try walking, and it was discouraging when all of the taxi drivers I came across seemed to be set on charging me 3 times what the guidebook said I should expect. As in KL, however, I found that by walking past the waiting ranks to catch a taxi as it drove down the street, I was able to get one for (close to) the official rate. What a relief it was when I got to the hostel and it turned out to be perfectly fine and in fact the staff were very friendly. And even better, 2 of the 4 cats came into my room to play (conversely, at the hostel in Singapore, there was a sign on the dorm room door saying "no cats"!).
And now.. I am off to explore Borneo. After I have a catnap.
Kat
Other than that, I don't have much to say about Kuching or Borneo yet, seeing as I just arrived. I will, however, pass on the recommendation that was given me to stay at the Borneo B&B to anyone who happens to come this way - it is terrific!
So, let me go back in time briefly with an update on what I've been up to since.. ah, Kota Bharu. Well, the Jungle Train was a good ride, and on it I met some Malaysian teenagers whose favourite singer is Avril Lavigne. They also let me try some "buah keraji" which is some sort of fruit that looks like a nut, has a spongy texture and tastes like prunes. They were "sedap", which means tasty.
At Taman Negara, I went on a mini jungle trek and stayed overnight at an animal hide with an English friend named Finn who I met in KB. During the jungle trek, Finn was brutally attacked and was left with large blood stains on his shirt. No, we did not encounter a tiger. In fact the largest animals we saw were the well fed rats in the hide. The culprits of the attack were the innumerable leeches that danced in the wet leaves all along the track. My gaiters offered me some protection against them, but I still flicked dozens of them off of my clothes and skin. Though we had started with grand plans to hike back on the longer, harder trail, in the morning we were happy to pile into a boat with our fellow "hiders" and cruise back down the river. Though not quite on par with the elephants we might have seen if we were lucky, I thought that the big black cow creatures we saw from the boat were pretty cool.
Back in civilization at Jerantut, I booked my plane ticket to Borneo and waited until 2AM for a train to Singapore with Finn and a german girl named Katrina. We were able to stay in a hostel waiting room where we watched "Sister Act" and 2 or 3 other movies on TV as we whiled away the hours.
In between a few spurts of sleep on the train, I talked with a Malaysian girl who was headed south to visit her sister with her mom and another sister. Though I have picked up a few words handy for the traveller, my Malay is not enough for much of a conversation. Her English was infinitely better, but still the conversation involved a great deal of smiling and nodding on both sides.
Upon arriving in Singapore and getting to the hostel, I discovered that it would not be possible (other than by a very expensive taxi ride) to get to the Johor Bharu (JB) airport across the border in Malaysia in time for my 7am flight the next morning. So, instead of checking in, I phoned the somewhat seedy-sounding (based on the Lonely Planet description) hostel (the only cheap option) in JB and told them I would arrive that evening. As I was rather tired from two nights of minimal sleep, the day in Singapore was a bit of a blur. We wandered around visiting such sights as parkades, stairwells, and construction sites, among others. Then, leaving behind a lively hostel and friends in Singapore, I made my way across the causeway towards JB...
If it wasn't for the Lonely Planet describing JB as a rather dowdy place where the "barber shops" are brothels, well and also if I wasn't so tired, I wouldn't have been so reluctant to go. Based on this description and the fact that the sun had set, I had decided to take a "Teksi" to the hostel rather than to try walking, and it was discouraging when all of the taxi drivers I came across seemed to be set on charging me 3 times what the guidebook said I should expect. As in KL, however, I found that by walking past the waiting ranks to catch a taxi as it drove down the street, I was able to get one for (close to) the official rate. What a relief it was when I got to the hostel and it turned out to be perfectly fine and in fact the staff were very friendly. And even better, 2 of the 4 cats came into my room to play (conversely, at the hostel in Singapore, there was a sign on the dorm room door saying "no cats"!).
And now.. I am off to explore Borneo. After I have a catnap.
Kat
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