Late
afternoon on Friday 28th September, the 14 of us boarded the plane
from KK LCCT Terminal 2 bound for Tawau. The 45 minutes flight felt like 15 minutes for
I was just about to doze off when the crackling sound of the announcement
to land came out breaking my reverie. My
last trip to Tawau was like ages ago and that was for work related trip. I was looking forward to visiting Tawau again as
it would also give me the opportunity to visit my sister and her family of whom
I have not met for a long time. But that
would come later as we first had to travel to Semporna to stay for the night
before the trip to Sipadan Island.
The
2 vans were waiting for us upon landing at Tawau airport. The driver told us
that the journey to Semporna would take about 1 1/2 hours though it later felt
like forever. The journey was mostly on
flat land and in between dozes I managed to glimpse vast oil palm plantations. We were told that we would be staying at the
Dragon Inn in Semporna and when arrived, we were pleasantly surprise as the inn
was built on the sea which looked like a
floating resort.
walkway of the Dragon Inn
.. no time to shop...*sob*
The
following morning we woke up early to catch the boat to the islands. After
breakfast, we headed for the jetty where the Chairman of Sabah Parks, YB Dr
Joachim Gunsalam (now Datuk) and his family were waiting and travelling with us. Incidentally, this trip was sponsored by Sabah
Parks as part of its offer to the Reigning Unduk Ngadau and the Committee who will in turn promote these local tourist destinations.
cloudy day
the other boat...
children of sea gypsy
the sea is their playground...they can stay underwater for a long time and
catch fish with their bare hands.
the lady tourist was crossing the bridge to get to the other house, saw us watching and gave us a little dance ..hehe
..friendly diver tourists at Mabul Island with friendly locals
the other boat.. it was racing with our boat ...:)
We had earlier been worried as
the weather forecast had forecasted a scattered rain and thunderstorm. But the weather couldn’t have been more
perfect. We set off into 2 boats and out
into the open sea we went. The water was a little choppy and the ride was quite
rough that at times when the boat hit the large waves, it would bob up and down
giving out that loud thud that it felt as though the boat would split into two
and my breakfast threatening to spill out. We finally arrived Sipadan Island after like more
than an hour of a see-saw ride. ..phew! Sipadan Island is a small rainforest
covered tropical rising from a depth of more than 600 meters from the bottom of
the Celebes Sea. It is touted as one of the best diving spot in the world!
my first glimpse of the famed Sipadan island
to the turtle hatchery
.. out to the open sea releasing the day old baby turtles
..Go, baby go!!
of the hundreds released, we were informed that only 70% will survive.
Others will get eaten by sea predators..
awww... 'sweet young things' - that's Elsie and Mell
And the not so young ladies...
Opps can't remember who they are...hehe
We were received by the Sabah
Parks Representative who went on to tell us a little bit about the island. The
island is now protected and inhabited by army and Sabah Parks Staff only. In its effort
to preserve the island’s pristine state, the Park since 2005 has ordered all the onsite dive resort operations to move out and has also limited only 120
divers on the island daily.
Sabah Parks showed us their turtle hatchery place. This is part of their program to rehabilitate and protect the endangered leather turtles from extinction by collecting the eggs laid by the turtles, placing them in the hatchery and to later release them to the sea.
Sabah Parks showed us their turtle hatchery place. This is part of their program to rehabilitate and protect the endangered leather turtles from extinction by collecting the eggs laid by the turtles, placing them in the hatchery and to later release them to the sea.
Some of us later went snorkeling as diving would take a lot preparation of which we
were not prepared at all. We had fun snorkeling saw various types of sea creatures but we unfortunately did not have time to venture and explore more of the place. In the background, I thought I heard the
Sabah Park Ranger warning us not to step on the corals as a piece of coral can take years to form. Oopss, sorry but I think I had accidentally knocked onto some when I lost
my balance as I tried to remove water that had seeped into my goggle. In the process, I stumbled due to the weight
of the life jacket, teetered over and I felt a sharp pain in my legs. I had
grazed my legs on the prized corals!
..the present from Mr Coral.. :). I was not alone having this. We were later given first aid treatment by the Park.
We later said goodbye to the
island and left for Sipadan Mabul Resort where we were to have our lunch. Sipadan Mabul Resort which overlook the
turquoise blue sea is nestled in a coconut grove on the south-east of Mabul
Island. After our lunch, we headed home
with a stopover at majestic Kapalai Resort and the stunning Bohey Dulang Island.
'bye Sipadan
..did I say Mabul Island is nestled in a coconut grove...
a stopover at the beautiful Kapalai Resort
.. price to stay at this stunning place is beyond reach for ordinary folks like me.
Government servants are given special rates though....lucky
above : Kapalai Resort, floating man-made Sandbox...
God's spectacular creations...
the soft gentle breeze and wide crystal clear open sea
as far as your eyes can see
under the clear blue skies
..the Bohey Dulang Isle..note the cyan coloured waters
Hope someday to join a Photography Safari at this island..
sea weed - a pure marine-packed collagen
..still young giant clams..
..the Sleeping Lady Isle, sleeping peacefully.
could not help noticing the twin peaks ... hahaha..isn't she gorgeous!?
goodbye Bohey Dulang.. hope to visit again someday
We arrived Semporna almost 5:00 pm and
headed direct to Tawau where the Tawau Kadazan Community there accorded us a grand
dinner reception.
The Dragon Inn is just darling isn't it?? Did you try the keemah for dinner?? I suppose that's an aquired taste. I spent a night there when my squadron commander and I had to bring Shafie Apdal in to assess the Abu Sayaff situation one day after the first abduction in 2000 as best I can remember.
ReplyDeleteIt was the follow-up to this that led the military to reinforce the police in the PAdanan Sipadan Island Resort (OPS PASIR)and yiu would have seen them there.
Oh we like Dragon Inn very much especially as the materials used were mostly from wood, simple but elegant. Did you notice what the bathroom floor was made of. It was hysterical but so sweet haha. I love keemah, that's the big clams right? Ahemm.. they are protected species now hahaha, so didn't have the opportunity to have it there but every now and then we find people selling them at the local tamu.
DeleteWow, so you were part of the team assessing the situation after the first abduction in Sipadan? Gosh those were tense moments and I know as the sister of one of those kidnapped is a good friend of mine. Thank God they were released but not without a lot of drama! The presence of the military on the island is a good thing as it gives some comfort to visitors worrying about history repeating itself...touchwood.
There should be better times ahead for the islands, but not in the near future. Even with the truce signed with the MILF 2days ago, we have to remember that the MILF are the remnants of the MNLF that had no skill but to kidnap. Weren't these the people who were recruiting from our coastal towns of Kudat and Sandakan during the 70s after Marcos imposed martial law? The MNLF had gained some form of autonomy during Ms Aquino's rule, but the MILF continued as they were not rehabilitated. Perhaps a few years down the line they will no longer have cause for this, as the Phipines moves further away from the ravages of martial law.
DeleteAnd perhaps, with the truce there may be a backdoor solution to the RCI. Let's hope all's well that ends well Angie.
DeleteI really hope what you say about the truce, that there will be a solution to the RCI issue eventually. Looking at it as a layman, don't seem to see any light at the end of the tunnel yet. 'sigh'
I am as scandalised as you are Angie, over what our ruling elite have done, turning your lands over to the very people who have an unresolved claim over it, in return for what is worth less than 30 pieces of silver. I do love Sabah, and even now as I read my previous posts and see the pictures I took of your various nooks and crannies as a pilot in Sabah Air, my heart breaks.
DeleteI do not trust a solution in the way of Truth And Reconciliation as was in post-apartheid South Africa.
But I sense a backdoor open, as our government has had a history of dealings with the rebellious south, and you can likely trace it back to your first head of state, who opened the front doors in the first place to these his kith and kin. Perhaps now it will fnally come full circle and find its own restitution. We can hope, and we can pray still, for "Middle Earth".
Almost threw up at a statement in the paper made by that Federal Minister recently saying that there is no threat on security posed by the huge presence of illegal immigrants in Sabah. What the heck is he talking about? I give up! Grrr No, I too do not trust a solution by way of Truth and Reconciliation. With people up there with this kind of mentality, how can we trust that this will be resolved any time soon.
DeleteSo crappy wasn't he??
DeleteThe resolution can never lie with the instigator Angie, for that is not his purpose. He and all alike him are there to perpetuate conditions favourable to their exploits and denying others the conditions which would threaten said exploits.
Had I not lost touch with you at the very time I stepped into Sabah, we could have had many futile talks over this!! :P
The resolution, Angie, lies with us joining hands with those odd people who for years have been telling us something different, but we were too stupored to afford them any credibility.
It starts with making a choice, for now we are being treated as if we have absolutely none.
Anyhow this has been fun. Hope we can one day do this face to face.
Hi Angie, very beautiful resort. This resort like in paradise, good place to relax and get away from city life. Thanks for sharing all your beautiful pictures. Really enjoy looking at all your very well taken pictures.
ReplyDeleteHave a nice day ahead.
Hi Amelia
Deletethank you for dropping by. Yes, the resorts are beautiful and if not because our trip was sponsored, I would never have a chance to visit it as it is quite costly. But for foreign tourists, aiyaa.. like kacang only to them. I was told that staying at Kapalai Resort is around RM1k and above per person per night. Even with that price, the resort is almost always 90% full mostly foreign tourists. :)
Likewise, you too have a nice day.
Beautiful place indeed; I'm beginning to fall in love with Semporna already. Hope to visit this heaven one day.
ReplyDelete
DeleteHeard that someone is planning a photo safari to these island sometimes next year. I will let you know if it materialize. A few of my photographer friends couldn't talk about their trip which they made last year, :) hence the repeat visit.
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DeleteEs necesario darle las gracias una vez mas fantasticos metodos personales que ha citado anteriormente.
ReplyDeleteEs extrano que personas como ofrezcan públicamente.
Estas ideas inspiradoras también actuaron como una manera fantastica de saber
que el resto tiene los mismos suenos que mi cuenta para
poder ver mucho mas sobre este inconveniente. Estoy seguro de que hay miles y miles de momentos pero agradables
en el futuro para muchos que visitan tu blog.