Kuching : Part 1

It was a semi-last minute decision to go to Kuching; the tickets were only booked two days before we left. Everyone, including me, thought it was crazy to be flying over to East Malaysia just for one night, but my mom thought that my relatives would enjoy it, and boy we sure did!

Since starting uni, i've really wanted to go over, especially since my roomie is from Sarawak. After this trip, i dont care- i will go next year! Hopefully i can time it for the Rainforest Music Fest.

Got up at 4something am (groan) to make the 7am flight, arriving at Kuching airport by about 10am.















Took a taxi to Merdeka Palace Hotel, which is directly in front of their Padang Merdeka, and very near the Waterfront. To be honest, i didn't do much homework on Kuching so had no clue what and where the heck Waterfront was till we got to our hotel room, which was lovely, and i saw the river from our window.
















As host and "in charge", i went to the Sarawak Tourism Centre to see about hiring a van to take us around. We basically only had time for 2 things; day one orang utan sanctuary and day two cultural village, both about 45mins away from the city.

Luck was on our side, and we got a driver/guide named Jumat who was great. He was really helpful, friendly, nice and sincere, not fake. Not only that, i felt that he didn't overcharge.

So first stop, Semenggoh Wildlife Centre.














It's a reserve for the orang utan, and we were warned that we actually might not spot any of them. Although there's 2 feeding times a day, if there's enough food in the forest they wont appear. Before going in, we gather at the entrance for some do's and don't from the Ranger. Photo's must be taken without using any flash because it hurts their eyes.




















Luck was still on our side, because we saw a total of NINE orang utan within the feeding hour. Jumat told us that we were VERY lucky to have seen so many. There were 3 sets of mommy and baby orang utan, one big 80+ kilo called George and two other solo ones swinging about.

Its amazing how great their sense of balance is; even on a thin rope they make it look so easy. George even reclined on the rope as if it were a hammock, holding on with only one arm, while munching on fruit.

The sanctuary originally took in 11 rescued orang utan many years ago, and since then they have been fruitful and multiplied to 23. A newborn stays with its mother for 3years before their old enough to be on their own, so thats why it takes longer to repopulate than say, rabbits.

Such a wonderful experience. At only RM2 per entry, i dont know how it survives. Thank God for the rangers who care and look after them.








<--Dont they look like typical tourists...















I definitely wanna go back there again.