Malaysian side of Borneo: Sarawak and Sabah

In order to experience more jungle and wildlife, I decided to continue my journey in Borneo. Unfortunately, there was no ferry or any other ship from the Peninsula to Borneo, so I had to fly to Kuching. Kuching is the main town of Sarawak, the western province of Borneo. The city is an ideal starting point to explore the nearby national parks. First, I visited the Semmengoh Sanctuary to see orangutans that live there semi-wild. Semi-wild because they can move freely in the park but are provided with food twice a day as a supplement to their own foraging. I also visited the Bako National Park, where the landscape was particularly spectacular and the proboscis monkeys with their long noses. On the way back to the city, our speedboat got stuck because the tide was so strong. The water level had dropped about 7m compared to the morning. I didn't think it was possible to get stuck with a boat.

A small propeller plane with around 30 seats took me to the Mulu National Park after Kuching. The beautiful tropical rainforest, the impressive caves with all kinds of stalactites and stalagmites, and huge cathedrals, the diversity of jungle dwellers, and the perfect organization of the park also made this stay a great experience. Unfortunately, we had some bad luck with the weather, it rained a lot. Yes, I know it's a 'rain' forest, but even the locals said that wasn't normal. Because of the heavy rain, my trip to the Pinnacles was canceled, so I spent the afternoon with a Czech couple at the swimming pool of the 4-star hotel.

After a short stopover in Kota Kinabalu (the capital of Sabah), I set off for my final adventure in Borneo: the 3 days / 2 nights boat tour into the jungle to see more wildlife and especially wild orangutans. In the three days, we saw a lot of monkeys (proboscis and long-tailed monkeys), a small crocodile, many fluffy birds, flying foxes (giant bats), hornbills, and countless mosquitoes. And on a boat trip, we actually saw an orangutan mother with her baby.

The reason why the chance to spot wildlife is so high in this river region is actually sad: the habitat of the animals has been restricted to a canal about 50-100m wide along the riverbanks due to palm oil plantations.

From the small sleepy town of Sandakan, which seems squeezed between the jungle and the sea, I flew back to Kuala Lumpur.