Sabah - if I didn't live where I do, Sabah would be it

Simply the best place to view orang-utans. You can't 'cuddle an orang utan' anymore, and this place will explain why and the great job they're doing to rehabilitate orang utans back into the wild

I'm moved everytime I see the awesome Mt. Kinabalu. You don't have to climb it to experience it's majesty. Nearby is the Kundasang War Memorial - commemorating the Australian and British POW's who died on the Sandakan to Ranau Death March. Very moving as well.

Rafting down a jungle river in the heart of Borneo. The tropics all around you - Stuff you just dream about.

Only 20 minutes by boat from Kota Kinabalu, Mamutik Island forms part of the Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park. Here you can snorkel with tropical fish and coral reef - right off the beachfront. It's a fantastic relaxing day trip away from the city.

The last steam train in Borneo. Very colonial - with staff dressed in their crisp whites, pith helmets and a tiffin lunch. Unfortunately it's not running at the moment though. The line is being upgraded and due to open again mid 2008.
For a great adventure you can take a train (not the steam train though) all the way from Beaufort to Tenom. The Government is spending RM300 Million upgrading the line and it's a beautiful, if not bumpy, ride through the Padas Gorge to Tenom. Here, the Sabah Agricultural Park is a gardeners delight - a botanical paradise with an amazing collection of plants, landscaped gardens orchid collections.

It's easy to catch a morning flight from Kota Kinabalu to Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital of Brunei, and return later that evening. A 'must do' in Brunei is to see how the Sultan spends his money!. The mosques, his palace, the Royal Regalia Building which houses the Crown Jewels. The attraction about Brunei is that it is Different from other Asian countries. Led by the Sultan and very Muslim (the non-fanatical type), it's an interesting and eye-opening country to visit.

Now here's an unknown! Where is Miri and why? Miri is a large, and oil wealthy town in northern Sarawak just across the border from Brunei. You can easliy fly there from Kota Kinabalu. Miri is home to the biggest longhouse I've ever seen - over 300 meters long! But it's the whole experience of visiting a longhouse that makes the trip worthwhile. The cultural welcome, meeting the chief, giving of gifts, drinking the welcome rice wine - all before being allowed into the longhouse. What an educational experience into the lives of the Iban. You feel very priviledged to be able to visit their lives.

To get up close to the wildlife in Borneo, a trip to the Kinabatangan River (at Sukau) is a must. Stay in a riverlodge and take a small boat cruise early in the morning or late in the afternoon to see the Proboscis Monkeys, macaques, hornbills - and if you're lucky, wild Orang utan and the Borneo elephant.