Mount Kinabalu

Kota Kinabalu Day 1 | 10 February 2008

2008-02-25T17:34:00.003-08:00

Many people might say that I'm crazy because never be home for CNY, instead going to KK for a mount climbing expedition. Well, I do not wish that I belong to one of the Petronas CNY ad's star(if you ever watch the touching ad fr Petronas).

Anyway, this KK trip was just for an experience! It was nothing bout relaxing or enjoying trip compared to the others, but this trip was for experience. Mount Kinabalu (Gunung Kinabalu) is a prominent mountain in Southeast Asia. It is located in Kinabalu National park in the east Malaysian state of Sabah, which is on the island of Borneo in the tropics.

10 February 2008, 7:20am.
We were now in Air Asia (Everyone can fly plane) taking off to Sabah! Yuhooo...
Some of our friends were already back at Sabah (their hometown) celebrating CNY with their beloved family members. And here we are, the few of us that cabut on the 4th day of CNY to attend a very important mission, that is to climb Mount KK. Wahaha...

Leaving the Kuala Lumpur atmosphere..

My deuter pouch given by Justin tat served me good and made my trip easier!

Justin with his GPS.. he was too bored cause everyone was snoring.. :P

Guess who is she? I caught her most beautiful moment?? Ehe.. It is good to stay awake all the time yea.. haha.

Entering the refreshing air of Sabah...

Finally, after 2 hours plus of flight, we reached safely at Kota Kinabalu International Airport. And our first visit for the day was to Pastor William Vun's church "Glory Christian Centre".

This was the worship moment and take note on the projector! This was the old typical China's instruments.. haha. Great!

There was a special performance from this little girl for the CNY festive season. She can really groove well.. =P

Church service ended bout 1pm and all of us were already hungry. We then moved on to have our lunch at one of the stalls.

These were Sabah's most famous steam dumplings..

These were the same dumplings, just tat they were fried.

And this was the Sarawak's famous Koa Lo Mee... to taste a real good koa lo mee, go to Sarawak!

Due to CNY, Joanna's family decided to hold a buffet dinner for us! Thanks for all the wonderful tasty food!! :)

These were all the dishes cooked by Joanna's aunt! Thumbs up!!!

And, our dear Jenny will turn 27 this year.. huhu. Sorry to say that we were bored with chocolate creamy cakes, thus, a coconut candle will be interesting and special!! Wahaha..

A pic with great effect huh?!

OMG, this little girl is seriously a princess charming! If you ever hear her laughter and see her smile, you will definitely fall in love with her! She's just a very beautiful little princess!!!

After dinner, we had a walk along the beach. Btw, Joanna's house is near this beach.. soo syook.

Our day finally ended with packing! Look at the amount of things that we brought for the climbing. It was real crazy to use 3 normal backpacks to go up the hill as I do not have any camping backpacks. And that was the time where all my bags were stuffed to the max. Haha..

Sleep well everyone!!!! :P

Kota Kinabalu Day 2 | 11 February 2008

2008-02-25T17:34:00.001-08:00

It was day 2 in Kota Kinabalu!
This was the place where we stayed in day 1 before we headed to the Mount Kinabalu. Huhu, first time staying in Backpackers and it was a real awkward kind of feeling as u have to stay with strangers!! And we called the stranger Justin's "bedmate" cause their beds were just near to each other. Hahaha...

We had our breakfast here before we left to the mountain. Look at my sort of pathetic food. Bihun with tauhu.. haha.

Me and Nicole choosing our favorite food... I miss her so much when I'm no longer "together" with her... Anyway, we will always be friends forever!

While waiting for the van that will bring us to the kaki gunung....
Justin posing at the coffee shop..

Me waiting boredly outside of the coffee shop..

These guys were enjoyed playing their favorite chinese chess...

And all of us taking a group photo!! These were the numbers that will be part of the expedition!

I was promoting my Kampung Adidas climbing shoes with Nicole..haha. Well, this shoe is really reliable and good! If you wanna climb Mount KK, don't spend your money buying any other sportshoes that worth RM100-200 (u will definitely throw it away when the day ends), in fact, this RM6.50 Kampung Adidas shoes will serve you better!

The Bread Story in KK...

Me, Canny and Jenny....

Finally, we were all on the way to the mountain.. yahooO!!!
Along the journey... Oh no, it's raining season in KK!

We reached Kinabalu Park after 1 hour + of journey. The atmosphere here was bone-chilling and everyone took out their thicky jackets.. haha.

Pretty excited when I saw this certificate! Anyway, check it out whether I managed to climb to the peak!! :P

Waiting at Sutera Sanctuary Lodges to get our registration done for the climb on the next day!

The Trail Map of Mount Kinabalu! Great.. isn't it? It looks easy to conquer the mountain, but.. try it and you will know how challenging it is! It does not only require a good stamina, but, it does require an ultimate determination and motivation! Else, you will die halfway.. sounds scary tho. Ehe..

In this group pic, everyone looks fresh, excited, enjoy, active....
But, after the expedition.... will show you the pic later. Hehe...

Thanks to the rain that we had to dress up like green robin hood... lol. Please agree with me that everyone here looked like big fat penguins.. haha.

And this was the place we gonna stay for one night before we begin our expedition tmr!

The girl's room.... it was real cold and this hostel can save on fan/aircond.

Huhu.. guess most of our meals in Mount KK should rely on Maggis.. The food there was freaking expensive. RM15 for one normal fried rice with mix vege and yet it was tasteless? That was crazy @%$.

After lunch around 3pm, we rested at the lobby...

And.. dinner time!

At least, meals at Kinabalu Park is still acceptable. This ginger chicken rice worth RM7. At least it does not exceed RM10...

Day 2 ended with some briefing from Calvin and Kevin Yong, preparing us for the climbing expedition the next day!!

Kota Kinabalu Day 3 | 12 February 2008

2008-02-25T17:31:00.002-08:00

Day 3.. Lalalala, we were all pretty excited!!!
Our breakfast prepared by our cook, Marie and Jedidiah! Thanks to both of you....

We gathered at Kinabalu Park again to "check-in" our bags for the porters. It was not FOC, but RM8 for 1kg. They will help us to carry up and down, to and fro from Laban Rata. Some of our friends with strong solid muscles decided to carry their own bags.. check out their body after tat. Ehe..

We looked like ah ma and ah pek with tongkats. Haha.. Anyway, we will begin our climbing soon!

This rainy weather was so inconvenience for us to climb! Lolz, stop raining ler.. I don't wish to look like penguin during the whole trip.

We were all wet due to the rain and midst! And, we looked like half dead fish..

The beauty of the jungle....

Hungry Hungry.. biscuits to regain energy! Bottles of Livita and Red Bull for stamina! Thanks to the people who created this. Breathing and any further movement becomes increasingly difficult. This was torturing and yet we have to move on!

Ready to continue the journey??? Btw, the guy standing in the middle is our Chairman of this trip! He is Calvin Chong!

Finally, we reached Laban Rata bout 3pm, 6 hours of climbing under the rain. Laban Rata is approximately 3300m (10,800 ft). I had not got any beautiful pics along the journey due to the rain. :( I missed the surroundings that features a huge variety of flora, and is one of the world’s most important biological sites.

We had our lunch + early dinner at Laban Rata hut. It was approximately 12 degrees and real freaking cold. Not much appetite to eat as the tiredness is more than the hunger.

Look at the killing price at Laban Rata... I can easily get this Tiger biscuits for only RM1 at Jusco or Carefour! *faint*
The reason of killing prices is because since there are no roads, the supplies for the Laban Rata hut are carried by porters, who bring up to 30 kilograms of supplies on their backs.

Tired but still can smile.. haha.

Yea, he was one of the strong solid muscular guy that carried his own bag that weigh near 10kg up the mountain!

Yeah, this was the fried rice that worth RM15!!!!!!! Tasteless and .....

Mushroom soup that cost RM15 as well....

Finally our day 3 ended at this restaurant.
I was totally restless to take any more pics!

Kota Kinabalu Day 4 | 13 February 2008

2008-02-25T17:31:00.001-08:00

Day 4, Laban Rata hostel.
Last night was a terrible night for me! It was freaking cold, the temperature went down to 6 degrees and I did not prepare any winter clothings. Shivering like "fei mao" even though I wore 3 jackets, hid under 3 blankets, 2 socks, gloves and winter cap. And 11pm, I vomitted 3 rounds in 1 time. Torturing plus suffering. Wish I could go back KL asap! Btw, to call for a helicopter to bring you down the mountain is RM3000. *faint*. Alternatively, to request for the porter to bring you down the mountain is RM200 per KM. *faint* Huhu... The weather was not acceptable at all until Canny took out all her t-shirts to wrap her legs. Haha..

This was our room.. really small and not only that, it was leaking! The heater does not work well, you will have to wait at least 15 mins after another person uses it. Else, the water is damn cold. During these few days trip, we really mandi kerbau..

The hostel....

Unfortunately, the rainy season in KK caused us to have no chance to watch the sunrise. And we didnt climb to the summit due to lack of strength. Ehe..
Thank God for a good weather in the morning.. and now, shooting time!! Wahaha.. I love it!

Can you imagine that if landslides happen here.. Oh no...

This is the journey from Laban Rata to the peak. The last 2 km (2600 ft), from the Laban Rata hut at 3300 m to Low's Peak (summit) at 4100 m, takes between 2 and 4 hours. The last part of the climb is on naked granite rock. It was too scary, that's why I quited. Haha..

Look at our porter and the amount of bags that he carried! Do you think these porters married? One of them even said that they're already poor, family members nearly die of hunger, how to afford to marry a wife? Also, they can KO anytime on the mountain. That's why they never thought of marrying a wife. If I'm a millionaire, I will definitely travel round the globe and help the poor..

Yes! We were going down now!! Yahooo.. and thank God for a good weather! With such a good weather, I can take lots of pics! Wahaha...

Along the journey ................................

Woah.. this porter carried nearly 30kg of things! They are realllly strong.. wuhu.

The green tank is not a pee tank, but that was where we refilled our mineral water. Pure and fresh mineral water from the mountain.

The loving couple... Andrew and Shueue Huey :)

Another loving couple .. Justin and Carysse. Ehe.. :)

Here's another loving couple.. Marie and Kevin!

3.5km.. Kambateh!!!

Yes!! Thanks to my digicam's macro that I managed to snap this beautiful web!!!

Yeah!!! Reaching soon !!!!!!!!!!!

This was the easiest trek among all!!!!

FINALLY!!!!! GOAL!!!! We reached Timpohon Gate safely!!!! YahoooO!!!

Look at everyone... haha.

Thumbs up!!!

Justin said : I missed KL...

Andrew in his sweet dream...

These were the Kampung Adidas shoes that served us good along the journey!

The grips that were so good until I did not fall even at slippery stones!

Our ever faithful tongkat. It was like tongkat ali that gaves us support and energy. Hahahaha...

These were the world's records.

Our next destination is to Mesilau Resort... check it out at the next post!

Kota Kinabalu Day 5 | 14 February 2008

2008-02-25T17:22:00.000-08:00

Day 5, 14 February 2008 = Happy Valentines Day!!!

First time celebrating Valentines with so many of my friends. Haha... Happy Valentines Peeps...

Mesilau Resort was so much more better than the other hostels. At least, I enjoyed myself here even though the water heater was a bit crazy.

Our room...

Our KK booklet prepared by Calvin and Kevin. Thanks to both of you and those who involved in developing this great booklet!

Andrew, Shueue Huey, Me and Justin...

That's the end of Kinabalu Park and no more climbing! Yes!!! Our next schedule is to Sabah Tea plantation!

Look at some of the poor family. Some of them don't even have water or electric supply. Wish there will be help from somewhere..

It was Valentines.. thus, let me get you lovely flowers, Joanna!!!

I'm not really into flowers and I told Justin don't have to get me one.. So, a picture with flowers will do. Wahaha...

This place is known as Kundasang. Their veges were all pesticides free and really cheap. And I bought some veges back.. funny?? Haha.

The fruit that I was holding called as talap (sorry if the spelling is wrong :P). This fruit is only visible in Sabah and you will not get it in KL.

Lydia showing her Keropok Bayam. Quite special cause they fried the bayam and make it as keropok. Special Special... Those who loves keropok but not vege, try this!

Sabah Tea Plantation... SABAH TEA is fresh, natural and pure tea grown on the rich soil of Mount Kinabalu. It is a single plantation tea without any blending of tea from other plantations. Therefore, quality of the tea can be controlled to ensure consistency.

Oh no! Lecture hall????

After the ultimate usage of muscles during the climbing, everyone now walked like penguin! Hahaha...

THE MANUFACTURING PROCESS

The conversion of green leaf from the carefully nurtured tea fields to black tea is a very specialized process to maintain the final quality of the product.

1. Harvesting
The tea leaves and a bud are selectively harvested by using shears or mechanized cutter by tea harvesters.

2. Withering
The initial stage of processing, where the freshly cut shoots are spread evenly in special racks, and conditioned air flow through and around the leaf to absorb the moisture and concentrate the juices in the leaf.

3. Rolling
The withered leaf is passed through machines which twist and squeeze the juices to the surface of the leaf.

4. Fermentation
This is an oxidization process where the tea juice in the presence of air oxidizes. The period of fermentation varies depending on the external conditions and there is a distinct change in colour and aroma. Fermentation is essential for the teas to be palatable.

5. Drying
Fermented teas are transferred to drying machines (oven) which remove the moisture and arrest fermentation. The teas from a coppery brown become black in colour after this process.

6. Sifting
The final stage of the manufacturing process is the sorting of the tea particles to different grades according to sizes and shapes for identification by various specialists involved in tasting, buying and exporting of the tea.

6. Despatching
The graded teas will finally leave the factory either packed in the familiar tea chests oraluminium lined paper sacks or in different forms of consumer pack.

Hotspring is the next destination that everyone is looking forward to. Poring Hot Springs is part of the vast Kinabalu National Park. It is some 13 kilometres from Ranau, or about 40 kilometres from the Kinabalu National Park Head Quarters in Kundasang. The sulphuric, hot waters of the spring are piped into open-air Japanese-style baths, where you can rest your tired limbs after the climb of Mt Kinabalu.

Poring is named after a species of giant bamboo that grows abundantly in the area.

Lunch time....

Transformers bought and fixed by Andrew..

My wah dan hou worth RM5 at Ranau.

At last, back to Borneo Backpackers!!!!! Just can't wait to fly home tmr.... yipeee!!!

Keropok Bayam that I bought home....

And the cheap veges....

RM5 for all these three.. can you believe???

This will be our last dinner at KK.. will miss this trip I guess. Ehe...

Tata day 5... looking forward to LCCT on the next day!! YahooO!!!!

Kota Kinabalu Day 6 | 15 February 2008

2008-02-25T17:06:00.000-08:00

Day 6.. yes!!! It's time to go home!!! I really miss my bed, water heater, fish.. I miss so many things back in KL.

Our certificate... proved that we did climb Mount KK. Ehehe... Guess I will only use this cert if I wanna become porter in KK. Hahaha...

KK Airport....
Me and Sok Fong.. miss you so much ler. Especially your crappy jokes and laughters.

Justin and Lydia....

Goodbye Sabah... see you again next time? Definitely not for mount climbing, but, snorkeling!!! Yes!!! Let me learn how to swim first.. wahaha.....

That's all bout my KK trip.. KK is indeed a nice place to visit if you really love nature.
See yea again for snorkelling!