Sarawak, Borneo

Kuching, aka the cat city, is the capital of Sarawak in Malaysian Borneo; it lives up to its name by erecting the kitschest feline statues ever to be sculpted on every corner and roundabout. I'm not a huge cat fan at the best of times by when they're over 1 metre tall and surrounded by snap happy tourists they're even bloody worse. Ironically enough cats are about the only animals that I didn't see in and around Kuching. Most of our time here was spent getting in touch with nature. We visited the Semenggoh Wildlife Centre where orangutans are cared for before being released into the wild. Feeding time is at 9am and there is nothing quite like the experience of waiting in anticipation for these fuzzy ginger primates to swing through swaying trees and cartwheel along ropes to a natural soundtrack of birds and crickets. Orangutan is derived from the Malay/Indonesian 'Orang Hutan' which means 'people of the forest' - Apparently they are amongst the most intelligent apes and it's not difficult to see their human-like attributes as they walk around upright to munch on their bananas.

The rest of the week was spent at Bako National Park where we got to trek along some beautiful trails and see plenty more wildlife. The real stars of the show here are the less than attractive proboscis monkeys with their elongated rubbery noses but apart from this we were lucky enough to see eagles, flying lemurs, and bearded pigs as well as plenty of creepy crawlies including fireflies, poisonous tarantulas and the even more poisonous green viper:

The trek to Pandan Kecil and Besar Beaches is a gorgeous wander through the tangled Bornean rainforest that culminates in a breathtaking cliffside view. Despite the heat, the one and a half hour trundle through twisted roots, hanging vines and rustling trees is really enjoyable and gives you the feeling that you're lost in a tropical fairy tale forest. The beach itself doesn't disappoint either with scuttling crabs decorating the shoreline and beautiful sunlit caves piercing the wave sculpted cliffsides.

Our time in Malaysia ended on a loud and high note at the Rainforest World Music Festival which can't really be summed up too easily! Think of booty shaking Africans, spear wielding Australians, bagpipe playing Iranians, accordion squeezing Colombians, ribbon twirling Koreans, Norwegians dressed like Hobbits, shrieking tattooed Borneans, violin fiddling Irishmen; all against the backdrop of traditional native houses and towering backlit trees and you'll get a general sense of the awesome 3 days we spent enjoying culture, music and dancing! And all of it kicked off by this old chap with a flute up his nose. (I really can't imagine why this is a dying art. I may take it up myself...)