|
Best travel advice to save money and have fun on any budget!
Main
Today's program was a 20-minute ride upstream to Tapinbini, a semi-modern Dayak Village, see how locals live, trap animals, and hike up to a holy place. Up before 4:00 a.m., because the Dayaks were loudly saying prayers in the village courtyard (they are not Muslim) and then the roosters started in. Sorry, but I can't sleep with that kind of racket, crabby and all adventured out, we decided to head downriver back to Pangkalan Bun for some air conditioning and a bed that was not a hard floor. Five days of adventure can go a long way at our age.
Crammed back in the little speedboat by 6:30 a.m. with goodbyes to the Dinsons, it was a 3:45 minute ride back (but who's counting) with the usual stops for gas, put the top up on the boat (it actually rained a little bit), pee and concentated on river sights just to get our minds off the discomfort. Flowering trees....View image, women washing clothes in the river...View image, a little girl fishing with her father...View image, were just a few that interested me.
Continue reading "Tapinbini Dayak Village and Pangkalan Bun, Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo)" »
The Dayak welcoming ceremony continued on. We moved from the floor to ceremonial seats in a place of honor while they draped head scarf on ex-Marine, and one across my shoulder. Two village elders sat on the floor in front of us with the ceremonial dish. He picked up ugly chicken and touched the chickens head with the piece of iron and then with his finger touched parts of our bodies. Head, arm, leg and a few other places. I was getting a little nervous what was going to happen when he picked up the chicken. Was he going to sacrifice it? Were we going to have to drink blood? Take a bite of the chicken's head? What in hell was he going to do with that chicken? Sigh of relief when chicken part of ceremony was over and none of the above took place.
He then sprinkled grains of rice in our hair and on us (my exploding hair shed rice grains for days), and tied on the string bracelets for long life. They're supposed to stay on for three days. Next, two very heavy buffalo horns with home brewed rice wine inside were handed to us to drink from. We both just pretended to drink and I'm glad I did.
Continue reading "The Dayak Hornbill Dancing Party Got Hot in Kalimantan (Borneo Indonesia)" »
Dinner time and about 7:00 p.m., preparations got underway for the our big Dayak welcoming ceremony. The bonang, a series of kettles in a rack related to gongs...View image... was set up and the Gamelan ensemble musicians...View image... began arriving to tune up, smoke and play. Some people call the bonang "gong chimes." Mrs. Dinson had a big bowl of Betel Nuts ready for the village guests, ceremonial objects...View image... were placed on the mat along with the ugliest chicken I've ever seen wrapped in a plastic bag , and the children were still glued to the television.
It seems that every single man, without exception, chain smokes in Indonesia. It's a marvel that the longhouses don't burn down but Fery said he's never heard of one burning. By coincidence, an article appeared in an Indonesian magazine while we were there that stated, "...cigarettes are sold individually from rolling carts outside school....there are no age restrictions...15 year olds are chain smokers...Indonesia is on par with India and China as the countries with the world's biggest smoking problems..."
Continue reading "Bakonsu Dayak Welcoming Ceremony, Kalimantan (Indonesia Borneo)" »
Even if you have the best bladder in the world, after jolting over the river for one hour and surrounded by water, a person has to pee...or at least, I do. Crammed into the speedboat seat with ex-Marine hogging the limited space, I asked Fery where to "go." Fortunately, there are little pee huts all along the river on individual jetties that each homeowner uses for toilet facilities, to dock their boat, bathe and swim off of, etc. Passed the word to speedboat driver. He'd scan the shoreline for a likely looking toilet hut, pull up to one, we'd get off on the jetty, pee and smoosh ourselves back in the boat.
On the way we passed villages...View image, small houses and mosques...View image. Some houses appeared to be nothing more than a shack while others had satellite discs in yards and on roofs...View image. Since I am a klutz, the steep grades from the river to houses always amazed me. Stop to think how many times a day the women scamper up and down with ease to wash clothes, use toilet facilities, etc. without falling or getting hurt.
Continue reading "Speedboating Up The Sungai Lamandau River to Bakonsu, A Dayak Village (Indonesian Borneo)" »
Lots of mosquitoes last night on the Sungai Kumai River and the crew woke us during the night while chopping away Nipa Palms as the tide rose and fell. Breakfast and the short, 1-1/2 hour ride back to Kumai. I bruise easily and am covered with amazing black and blue marks from navigating around the different boats, sleeping on a thin mat, and bumping into objects. On the plus side, neither of us fell down the klotok hatch or on the morning dew-slicked slippery decks. I'm going to miss our little boat, the jungle sounds, looking for monkeys and orangutans in the foliage and peacefulness of sitting, watching the river, no telephones, Internet or television.
Goodbyes (and tips) to the captain and boat boy, off the dock, a car met us for the drive back to Pangkalan Bun...View image... where there was actually some time to walk around the markets. The boat cook and Hary went to buy food for our one night Dayak longhouse stay while we browsed. A small jeweler in the market was selling semi-precious jewels. I found an Amethyst (not "gem quality") bracelet for 75,000 Rupiah (less than $7.00) to have as a remembrance of this trip since Amethysts are mined only a few hours away from Pangkalan Bun. FYI: There are diamond (Cempaka diamond fields), gold and agate mines in the Banjarmasin area and visitors are allowed.
Continue reading "Pangkalan Bun, Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) and Upriver to The Dayaks" »
Feeding time at Tanjung Harapan Orangutan Reserve...View image... is at 3:00 p.m. This reserve had the longest, and most difficult walk to the feeding platform. The dense forest was swarming with mosquitoes. The walk led over slippery branches, through mud, always keeping an eye out for those nasty fire ants and other beasties, e.g. poisonous snakes. (Man, does it hurt when fire ants bite. I accidentally put my hand on a piece of fence in Cambodia loaded with fire ants and speak from experience.)
A grand total of 12 tourists stood around the feeding platform created out of a small opening in the trees. The most extreme humidity of the trip with not a breath of air stirring, but it didn't take long before many orangutans began approaching the platform. More orangutan mothers with babies (one looked very young), orangutans coming out of the bushes...View image, sitting high in the tree branches...View image...View image, making their way to an ample supply of food.
Continue reading "The Orangutans of Tanjung Harapan, Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo)" »
Today was our last full day and we headed back downstream for visit number one, back to Pondok Tanggui Reserve for the 9:00 a.m. feeding. Pondok Tanggui had only the gigantic Alpha male orangutan last time and, impressive as he was, we were hoping for more orangutans today. There were five boats tied up at the jetty and ex-Marine and I made the short boardwalk walk to the feeding platform. Where, guess what...huge Alpha male orangutan was sitting in regal splendor in the middle of the platform, chomping away on bananas with gusto..View image...and slurping milk while other orangutans watched nervously from the trees...View image, and bushes hoping for a chance to snatch at least one banana...View image.
Greed, intimidation, fear, and respect is all part of the Orangutan world, especially once the big Alpha male made his reappearance. There's probably no way he would miss a free meal. Have to keep up all that bulk to fend off other competitors for the Top Male position.
Continue reading "Another Visit to Pondok Tanggui's Orangutans, Tanjung Puting Reserve in Kalimantan (Indonesia Borneo)" »
A person could spend most of the day in the little cold shower run by generator...View image. Hotter than blazes during the day, it becomes surprisingly comfortable at night. ex-Marine kept muttering that the last time he stood still and sweated like this was during his Marine Corps stint in the Philippines, circa 1958, and, not to dwell on the heat (though I am), my backpack thermometer showed 90 degrees in the shade with not a wisp of air moving! Can't imagine what it is out in the sun. The captain, boatman, cook and Fery spoil us shamelessly. There is plenty of bottled water, soft drinks, snacks, tea and coffee available at any time of the day or night. Fery even tucks an extra bottle of water under the mosquito net in case one of us gets thirsty during the night.
Last night's excitement was a bat hovering around over the toilet, swooping around the little light bulb in the ceiling. ex-Marine was the first to discover the bat and urinated over the side of the boat rather than keep the bat company (the waste goes from the toilet into the river regardless), informed me and that settled that. I'd just have to hold it until dawn.
Continue reading "Lazy Days on The Sungai River in Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo)" »
Dr. Birute Galdikas uses up to five Dayak trackers who have no trouble climbing into the rainforest canopy for fieldwork since tracking the orangutans on the ground isn't easy because of swamps. It is probably thanks to her groundbreaking work that there are any orangutans left at all in Borneo with rampant tree cutting. She, Jane Goodall, who studied chimpanzees, and Dian Fossey who studied and protected mountain gorillas, truly were "Leakey's Angels."
It didn't take more than a few minutes of ranger calling before the trees began rustling, treetops moving and orangutans began approaching from all directions. Even though these older orangutans have been reintroduced into the rain forest, a free handout of bananas and milk is never to be disdained. Did you know that a male orangutan's arm span can reach 7 feet (2.13 m) or more? Take a look at this orangutan's arms.
Continue reading "The Camp Leakey Orangutans, Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo)" »
While eating lunch, the boat continued motoring upstream for another 2-1/2 hours before heading up a side creek to Camp Leakey. A definite difference in the water color as we approached the Sungai Sekoyner. The color changed from muddy brown to dark black due to tannin in this side creek. Incredible and gorgeous reflections...View image... in the black water along with some agile maneuvering by the captain. Pieces of land, branches and islands are continually breaking off and reforming. Each time we approached a stream-block, the "second mate" would grab a pole and try to break it apart so we could slip by...View image.
Dr. Birute Galdikas first came to Tanjung Puting Reserve, Indonesian Borneo in 1971 to study orangutans in their natural habitat. Not much was known about this African great ape at the time and Dr. Louis Leakey with the National Geographic Society helped Galdikas set up this research camp to conduct field studies. Dr. Galdikas became the "third Leakey angel" and a pioneer in orangutan ("Old man of the forest") study. She began by taking in rescued orangutans and studying their behavior and habits.
Continue reading "Camp Leakey in Tanjung Puting Reserve, Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo)" »
Tanjung Puting National Park...View image... is located on the south coast of Borneo in the Indonesian province of Central Kalimantan. (I'll refer to "Borneo," the third largest island in the world, as both Borneo and Kalimantan throughout these articles.) This park began as a reserve to protect Orangutans in 1936 and is now a National Park. Besides Orangutans, the main focus of our visit, there are gibbons, sun bears, crocodiles, over 200 species of birds and the rare "blowing mushroom." I haven't a clue as to what a "blowing mushroom is...educate me if you know...
Up very early, after all, it is almost impossible to sleep on a deck in bright light with forest/jungle sounds all around you, and tried to get organized. This was not easy and will take a while to get into a routine. First step is to forget about wearing contact lenses this week and attempt a "decent to scuzzy look." Anything more than that will be a losing battle. Breakfast of coffee, french toast, omelet and juice before chugging upstream to Pandok Tanggui.
Continue reading "The Orangutans of Pondok Tanggui, Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo)" »
A great buffet breakfast at Hotel Ciputra with whatever food a person could desire. Chicken, eggs, stirfry (developing a real taste for spicy noodles in the morning), really good banana bread and chocolate muffins. Reinvigorated and stoked up, we were transferred back to Semarang airport but the plane was delayed two hours. Didn't get to Pangkalan Bun...View image... in Kalimantan until 2:00 p.m. where we were met by Hary (local Borneo Discovery boss) and Fery, our guide. The schedule would have to be rearranged again since it was too late to make any of the Orangutan feedings this afternoon. No worries, though. We'd manage to visit all the available Orangutan Reserves during the next few days. It's less than a half hour car ride from Pangkalan Bun to Kumai where the boat was waiting.
The boat is a traditional "Klotok" river boat about 12m by 2m with a roof that forms the upper deck for viewing the rain forest while gliding down the river. There was a hatch in the center of the deck that led to a wide open space below where the staff slept and a minute kitchen area. There was a simple, sit-down toilet (waste empties into the Sungai River) at the back of the boat and a shower, powered by the generator. Fery would have Captain turn on the generator to power up camcorder, batteries and computer as well, whenever needed.
Continue reading "Pangkalan Bun, Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) At Last" »
Air? Another complicated itinerary for many reasons. The easy part was to fly United Airlines, Chicago to Singapore, and then turn in United Airlines miles to get two free open-jaw Singapore Airlines economy tickets from Singapore-Jakarta and Denpasar (Bali) back to Singapore. After that, still needed tickets from Jakarta (CGK)-Pangkalan Bun (Kalimantan) with a return from Pangkalan Bun to Yogyakarta where we'd meet the Imaginative Traveller group. You can try to purchase on-line through BookingBuddy's Top Travel Deals newsletter and search Kayak for schedules, a difficult task. The small Indonesian airlines are in a constant state of flux (and bankruptcy) and I've found we're better off using Indonesia tour operators to purchase and arrange flights. They are there and can easily stay on top of schedule and airlines changes. TIP: Try to use miles accumulated on airlines for First or Business Class on long-distance flights (the only way we can afford to fly in those sections) and economy on short-hauls. It may only be 20,000 miles for a short-haul ticket.... .
BookingBuddy's Top Travel Deals newsletter highlights the industry's best deals from travel suppliers that you trust!
Visas? Visas are required for all visitors to Indonesia. Eleven countries are eligible for a "Visa Free" facility. Read the visa information section on Safari Tours & Travel site. As U.S. citizens, we could get a Visa On Arrival in Indonesia. You need a valid passport, onward or return tickets, and two color passport photos. There is a $25 U.S. charge for a 30-day visa. Check your nearest Indonesian Embassy for up-to-date information.
Continue reading "Planning An Kalimantan/Java/Bali, Indonesia Vacation" »
An intensive visit to Sulawesi, Indonesia left both ex-Marine (husband, Steve) and myself wanting more. Kalimantan to visit the Orangutans and Dayaks, Java and return to Bali. The two days spent on Sanur Beach in 1980 can't really be called "visiting Bali." I also wanted to delve into the Baliem Valley, in what was formerly called Irian Jaya and now just known as Papua. Bought a new Lonely Planet Indonesia book (Spend US$40 at the Lonely Planet Shop and receive free delivery and a free gift ) and began contacting tour operators.
Baliem Valley was eliminated almost immediately from my tight budget. The land costs were manageable but there is no such thing as cheap intra-Indonesia air and the airfare was exorbitant. This trip will have to wait. Researching more tour operators, I finally found a 14-day Imaginative Traveller trip, bookable through Adventure Center (see side bar) that would take care of the "East Java and Bali" portion.
Continue reading "Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo), Java and Bali" »
In the morning, there was a short jungle walk behind the lodge. For birdwatchers, there are hornbills, kingfishers (we saw one), egrets, darters, owls, kites, eagles, broadbills, doves, storm storks, herons, hawks, ospreys, and many others. My birding consists of ..."what's that green bird...ooh...that one is yellow..."...and so forth. Lots of different primates, snakes and birds...the trip here was a big success with the exception of wild Orangutans - very difficult to see in the wild.
By boat back up the Kinabatangan River to Sandakan to catch a plane back to Kota Kinabalu and a transfer to the Shangri La Tanjung Aru Resort.
view of Mount Kinabalu from the plane
Continue reading "Back to Kota Kinabalu, Sabah's Gateway - Borneo" »
Visited Gomantong Caves, famous for edible bird's nest. Have you heard of Bird's Nest Soup? If so, this is one of the areas where the makings originate. Over 1,000 Swifts nest in this cave and only two varieties of swifts make edible birds nests. Twice a year, men climb bamboo ladders to over 150 feet to collect the nests off the cave walls. They harvest between March-April an August-September and were busy collecting the nests while we were there. Good quality birds nests can fetch more than US$ 200 per pound and these collectors make a good income doing this! Highly dangerous and they deserve every $ they can earn from this. Just looking at those flimsy ladders was enough to give us "flop-sweats." The limestone cave had two caverns filled with bats, swifts and cockroaches everywhere ...crunching beneath our feet, climbing up the walls, Ick...ick... ick.
inside the cave
Continue reading "Gomantang Caves and Sukau, Borneo" »
We planned to visit Sepilok Orang Utan Sanctuary ( 26 km from Sandakan) after overnighting on Selingan Island. The next morning our boat prepared to leave for the 2-3 hour ride back to Sandakan....View image...
The Sepilok Orangutan sanctuary was about a 15 minute drive. Orang utans ("wild man of Borneo") that have been abandoned by their mothers or formerly in captivity are rehabilatated until fit enough to be returned to the wild. They are fed bananas and milk daily and are encouraged to forage for themselves. But even those in the wild come back for the free bananas. Babies stay with their mothers for up to six years in the wild while they learn survival skills. At Sepilok, a young ape is paired up with an older "buddy" to learn these skills. There are about 60-80 Orangs living in the sanctuary, an open forest reserve where the orangutans are free-roaming. Wild Borneo: The Wildlife and Scenery of Sabah, Sarawak, Brunei, and Kalimantan
Sepilok Orang utan Sanctuary
Continue reading "Sepilok Orangutan Sanctuary, Borneo" »
Sandakan, located on the Sulu Sea, at the northeastern tip of Borneo is Malaysia's biggest fishing port. We were going to spend the night on Selingan Island, part of Turtle Island National Park. This is one of the most important Green and Hawksbill turtle breeding spots in Southeast Asia. Green turtles swim hundreds of nautrical miles across the sea, but always return to the beach where they hatched to lay their eggs some 20 or more years later.
Turtle Island was about an hour boat ride from Sandakan but before we left, spent some time walking around Sandakan and learning a few facts about the town. Sandakan served as a major port for early settlers (primarily Chinese) to Sabah and was the former capital of British North Borneo from the years 1884-1946. After WWII the capital was transferred to Jesselton (now Kota Kinabalu). In the early as a major port for early settlers to Sabah, and most Chinese came through this port.
Continue reading "Kota Kinabalu to Selingan Island, Turtle Island National Park, Borneo" »
Out of the jungle for a quick day trip to Brunei, a small very oil-rich sultanate. What a change to leave the rainforest for Islamic Brunei, officially the Sultanate of Brunei, has a higher GP per person than the United States. It is located on the coastline of the South China Sea, and completely surrounded by the State of Sarawak. There are two unconnected parts to Brunei and our car had to ferry from one side to the other.
But before the road trip, Jacob, our wonderful guide took us to a shop that had some older items to satisfy my "hunting-gathering" instinct. My purchases? An older bead necklace with a leopard's tooth on it and one of those beaded baby carriers. The natives each create their own baby carrier while pregnant...spending months weaving the bamboo or rattan, designing and handbeading it. (I almost feel this "possession/compulsion" taking hold of me. What did I need a baby carrier for? Even if it is semi-rare.)
native baby carrier
Continue reading "The Sultanate of Brunei on The Island of Borneo" »
You have to fly from Miro to Mulu on a small plane with weight allowances. Not only do they weigh your small bag but your must also declare your weight! The flight was less than 30 minutes over rainforest - dense vegetation, rivers and mountains.
The Royal Mulu Resort was a luxurious retreat built entirely on stilts and our home for two days . ...View image... One sentence in their literature stated "...hike through a Dipterocarp rainforest past Belian (ironwood) trees that may be as ancient as 1,000 years old, immense buttressed figs and poison dart trees..." Can't get away from those poison darts! ...View image...
Mulu map
Continue reading "Mulu National Park, Borneo" »
After one of the sweatiest, most uncomfortable nights of my life, we had breakfast and hightailed it into our dugout to head downstream. The river was very low and our guide and boat owner had to push us off sandbars and rocks many times but we finally got to the Hilton Batang Ai.
A nature walk there was almost as scary as hiking in the jungle with the Ibans. The naturalist kept telling everyone..."watch out for those hook-like thorns...they'll rip your skin off"....or ..."stay away from that hole...there could be a poisonous snake in it"... and the jungle trails were very narrow. Borneo is not a tame environment...and I was already scared *#*#**##! At times like these, I have to rethink the whole adventure scenario...
Hilton Batang Ai
Continue reading "Kuching to Miri, Borneo" »
From Kuching, we drove through the countryside and along a mountain ridge to the Ai River to begin a 3 days/2 night Batang Ali combination. It was over a three hour drive to the Hilton Batang Ai Longhouse Resort and from there, we got into our longboat (a large motor-powered canoe), to travel upstream on the Lemanak River.
Our destination was Nanga Sumpa, a large Iban (formerly known as Sea Dayaks) longhouse for a two-night stay. An Iban longhouse is a single building in which each family has their own apartment and shares a large common space for social activities. Today, the longhouses are fairly modern, with electricity and other modern conveniences. A far cry from their infamous headhunting days.
ex-Marine ready for Longboat travel upriver
Continue reading "Batang Ai and Iban Longhouse, Borneo" »
A ride out of Kuching to Bako National Park. Bako covers the northern tip of the peninsula and has a wide range of vegetation - swamp forest,s mangrove forests, and beaches. It also had a number of well-marked trails covering 19 miles throughout the park - offering strolls and serious full-day hikes.
It only took about 35 minutes to drive to Bako Village from Kuching. From the village, it was another 25 minutes by boat to the Park. Bako has been a National Park since 1957 and is one of the best places in Sarawak to see wildlife in natural surroundings.
Long-tailed macaque and silver monkeys, proboscis monkeys (the male can have up to 10 mates in his harem), wild boars, monitor lizards and numerous species of birds abound in Bako. And then there was the plant life - specifically, carnivorious pitcher plants. (Remember, Little Shop of Horrors with the plant "feed me"?)
I think this was a proboscis monkey
Continue reading "Bako National Park, Borneo" »
Kuching is the capital of Sarawak, Malaysia's largest state, and uniquely positioned along the Sarawak River. At the beginning of the 19th century, Sarawak was a Malay principality under the control of the Sultan of Brunei until 1839. James Brooke (an English adventurer) used his ship to put down a rebellion again the Brunei Governor and was given the principality of Sarawak as a reward. The Brooke family ruled Sarawak until the Japanese invasion in 1941.
Kuching Map
Continue reading "Kuching, Borneo" »
This trip was handled by Julie, an agent we had used many times before (unfortunately, she is no longer in business...instead, part of her family's winery in Napa). Julie then booked everything with Discovery Overland Holidays in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Lots of e-mails until we came up with an itinerary. Our focus would be fouring Borneo's National Parks with a little R&R at the end in Kota Kinabalu. The parks were:
- Bako;
- Batang Ai;
- Gunung Mulu;
- Selingan, Turtle Island; and
- Sepilok Orang Santuary
With the time needed for travel from the U.S. and between all these places, it worked out to a 17-day trip. Time to work on the rest of the trip...
Continue reading "Planning A Trip to Borneo" »
I don't know what you think of when you hear the word "Borneo" but I think of Orangutans. ex-Marine (husband, Steve) was in the Borneo jungles during his Marine Corps days participating in a little altercation. To him, the word "Borneo" means mud, rain, leeches, poisonous snakes, heat and humidity. We were definitely on two different wave lengths.
Borneo is a place with lots of jungles, leeches, poisonous snakes, etc., but also has National Parks, white sand beaches and Orangutans - both in the wild and sanctuaries.
Borneo Map
Continue reading "Malaysia's Exotic Borneo" »
|
