Holy Week in Sabah, Malaysia

Back in high school, there was a debate whether Sabah must be part of the Philippines or Malaysia. Apparently, Malaysia won and it’s no wonder why our country was trying to make it part of our archipelago too. The moment we landed at Kota Kinabalu airport, we didn’t feel any different. Apart from the Caucasians/Europeans lurking everywhere, Malaysians could easily be mistaken for Filipinos. They look like us, the sound of their language is Tagalog-like and the city itself feels very homey, as if I was just taking a stroll in old Manila. They even have a bay area very similar to our Roxas Boulevard. Even the countryside felt like we were on our way to Ilocos, Bukidnon or Sorsogon.

On our first night there, we sampled a few of their local restaurants and bar scenes and the only thing missing were people partying. It was a good  Friday and most of the locals were also out of town. So we didn’t stay very late and headed to our hostel –Borneo Global Backpackers– a youth hostel which is a melting pot of all cultures! We made friends with travelers like us from all over the world! It’s so awesome! The place is very affordable (56RM/night), clean, everything you need is there and the people are so friendly. The owner of the place, Charles, has been so generous and kind to us. It’s like having a 2nd funky dad!

Anyway, One of the few times we did feel we were really in Malaysia was when we boarded this creaky old train on the way to Padas river in Beaufort for our white water rafting adventure the next day. The awful smell of people around was enough to make me appreciate our LRTs and MRTs more. But then again, making friends to foreigners was priceless and I couldn’t believe I finished the whole activity alive!!!! There were several river points (Head Hunter, Cobra, Scoobi Doobie Doo, Lambada, Barbeque) where the water was really rough and wild but I braved them all! Peter fell off the raft half of the way but it was so much fun!!! We’ll do it again here at Chico River. It is shorter and less wild than Padas River so it wouldn’t be a problem at all (I think!).

The next day, we also visited Poring hot springs where we took a sulfuric bath that is believed to heal skin diseases. On the way there, we passed by the massive view of Mount Kinabalu (the tallest peak in Southeast Asia) then headed to Kinabalu Park where we visited their butterfly garden, climbed the Timpohon Gate which is the starting point when climbing Mt Kinabalu (which we plan to do next year hopefully) and did the Canopy Walk 150+ meters above the ground. Whew!

Island hopping and parasailing on our 4th day came next! We visited 3 islands - Sapi, Mamutik and Manukan (the largest and most developed).White sand and clear, turquoise water. It was heaven!   There were so many HUGE fishes of different kinds. So different from our small fishes here.

On our last night, Charles toured us to the nearby towns and sampled some local cuisines. Overall, Sabah is a Pinoy-filled (mostly from Zamboanga) laid back town. It would be nice to go back there soon.