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Sally's experience in the Borneo jungle...
Read about how Sally got on during the second part of her Malaysia programme when she headed off to the Borneo jungle to see wild orang-utans and live alongside the Iban tribe.
From Kuala Lumpur to Sarawak…
I'm pleased to say that my geography is improving hand over fist during this trip I might even choose geography questions in Trivial Pursuit in future! You may or may not know that Borneo is the 3rd largest island in the world and comprises the states of 3 countries Sarawak (Malaysia), Sabah (Indonesia) and Brunei.
Anyway, we flew from Kuala Lumpur (KL) to Kuching the capital of Sarawak and stayed in a fabulous lodge for two nights before our foray into the jungle began. We didn't have too much detailed info about our accommodation and thought there might be some serious lack of washing available hence the purchase of dettol wipes and yes, really, cotton disposable knickers - don't wince these are the realities of travelling!
Getting to the jungle...
Our transport was open canoe style boats with outboard motors being driven by what appeared to by 12-year-old (or thereabouts) Iban lads (Iban are the tribe with whom we would be sharing our jungle experience). We'd taken what we thought we needed of our overall kit leaving a good amount in Kuching, and that was wrapped in bin liners in the boats; we were all wearing life jackets and not a little uncertain about the degree of rocking that had been experienced as we clambered somewhat shambolically into the boats. The journey was to take about 1and a half hours and we were perched on little wooden seats at the bottom of the boat - numb bum or what by the time we got there! Francis, our guide who had accompanied us from Kuching had been making us believe we'd be weeing down at the river and washing in a bucket and sleeping on a wooden surface with only a thin mat to cushion the old bones. When we finally arrived that little tinker Francis had been fibbing, a trait of his we would come to love...We had sturdy and roomy bunk beds and showers (mostly cold but warmer in the afternoon) and joy of joys - proper Western loos!
Jungle trekking…
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We undertook our first trek into the jungle the following day - I should really say up into the jungle as the longhouse we were staying in was by the river and the jungle rose precipitously behind us. Now I've always for whatever reason been pretty rubbish at going uphill and this was to prove no different; and if you consider the heat and the humidity and the sometimes wet leaf litter underfoot I found it pretty tough going. In the photo you will see my face is puce and my clothes are wet through with sweat (as were everyone's). We saw a couple of old Orang nests but none of the occupants.
Wild orangutans…
Whilst on this topic I'll quickly backtrack... Our 2 days in Kuching involved a visit to Semengoggh - an area where orangutan that have been rehabilitated now roam freely, the only concession to "captivity" if you can call it that is that food is put out for them twice a day which they can come and get or not as the mood or need arises but they are essentially wild as evidenced by one of the females chasing and taking a large bite out of one of the rangers' legs the other week!
We were so lucky as we went early morning and it was an occasion when a number of orangutans came to feed including a huge male called Ritchie who had bitten the finger off one of the other males in the recent past. He came right down onto the ground -he was huge and hellishly impressive looking - quite scary actually when you consider they are 6 x stronger than humans! What was amazing was seeing them swing through the trees as God intended and I have to say it did make me a little wistful and wish that Wasabi could experience this freedom. They are the most amazing creatures to witness in their natural habitat and their high wire antics and their agility on the lianas is breathtaking. On our second day we went to the Matang Rehabilitation centre where work is done with orangutans and other animals that have either been seized from private owners or rescued from unsuitable places or have been orphaned. In addition to orangutans there were sun bears, which are native to Malaysia. There is a tremendous amount of education needed and much work is being undertaken with tribes people and children to develop a greater understanding for the need to value wildlife and to conserve endangered species and look for ways of finding common interests and making compromises on all sides.
Whilst at Matang we were offered the opportunity to try an orangutan favourite - the durian - it's a fruit which it's said by some to "taste like heaven but smell like hell", well the ones we were offered, what can I say... the smell made me heave at about 10 paces - it's so hard to describe - but once you've smelled it you'll know it again. Needless to say I opted not to try it (Emma) and those that did really wished they hadn't - hats off to them and all that but I'm really glad I didn't.
Meeting the Iban Tribe…
In addition to the trekking the other key part of the experience was interacting with the Iban who lived in a longhouse a couple of 100 yards along the rivers. We met up with them twice to do some weaving - a mat first and then a basket - I really enjoyed it and found it relaxingly therapeutic although you did have to concentrate and count - no wonder I was never any good at knitting mum - unlike you superstar knitter!
In addition to our weaving classes we had a party with the Iban on our last night, ate, played some games, and danced - it was a great time. The locally brewed rice wine was flowing liberally and a few peeps got a little merry with one of our number needing to be carried to and from the boat...The following day we packed and flew back to Kuching - I put my clothes through the express laundry service at the hostel!
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