754km back to civilization

Five stages and a rest day for our sore bottoms brought us back to our starting point in Kota Kinabalu. We drove for countless kilometers through palm oil plantations, in the almost uninhabited hinterland far from the coast, but also through parts of almost untouched nature.

Our trusty mopeds didn't let us down, even when the thermometer felt like it was approaching 50 degrees or the road was made of rough gravel, which fortunately didn't happen very often. We are also very grateful that all other road users were cautious and thoughtful on the sometimes steep and winding roads. In Germany, one would probably hope in vain for such consideration.

Nevertheless, even on this part of the route, our impression was reinforced that Malaysia is a country in which, above all, many things are not allowed: you are not allowed to drive a moped to the observation tower 10 km from the main road, but you can drive a car; Good Friday is a public holiday, so the national park and the café are naturally closed, and when you go shopping for clothes you are only allowed to take four items into the changing room.

But as always, there are also good counterexamples. Like in the Maliau Basin: staying overnight there is only possible as part of very expensive, pre-booked multi-day tours. But if it looks like rain and the two strange long-nosed guys on their mopeds look pretty worn out after a good 200km that day, they just keep searching the price list until they find a single, affordable overnight stay.

We quickly notice that the young manager, who has only been working at the conservation and research center for three months, would like to make more of the facility and, above all, attract more tourists to this wonderful place. With a few suggestions from us experienced travelers, she now wants to approach the National Park Administration at the other end of the state. We wish her the best of luck, exchange phone numbers and promise to stay in touch.

Robert