Sylvie:

Kuala Lumpur:

When we first got to KL I was very excited about what this would be like. Although it was a bit out of my comfort space I still enjoyed the market. We had really nice long bottles filled with different types of fruit. I had a mango and dragon fruit. It was so delicious I could drink it all the time. The next day we went to the city centre and went into the aquarium and it was so goooood my favourite thing was a travelator along a dome where you could see sharks and other stuff with a turtle. The turtle was so beautiful that I was even more excited to go to turtle island.when we had finished wising around with a golf cart buggy thing the driver gave us some fruit. It was so good that we decided that we had to buy some but we ended up not buying it because he gave us the rest. We went to the twin towers at night it was so beautiful that I enjoyed it more than when we went in the day. The other thing I enjoyed in KL was definitely the butterfly gardens I even made a butterfly friend who landed on me twice. First was quite short but the second time was quite a long time so I made a video for you guys.

Borneo:

I loved Borneo so much that I want to come again one day. The wildlife that we are surrounded in, it was everywhere and it was so sensational. I think my favourite bit out of it all was turtle island. The big mamma was so massive I couldn’t believe how big and beautiful she was.

On the river we took a boat out and found some wild elephants 🐘 I felt so happy when I saw them because they were so close to the river so we saw them really closely. we also saw so many monkeys, the short-tailed macaques were so cheeky!

The sunbears were cute and I wanted to cuddle one but it would probably hurt me! The orangutang were so funny to watch one got a banana skin and whacked it around it was hilarious.

My top 5:

1) turtle island 2) seeing the elephants in the wild 3) orangutang and sunbears 4) spotting monkeys 5) aquarium in KL

Elijah:

Kuala Lumpur:

The best Part of KL was the aquarium dome were you could find sharks, stingrays and turtles and it was so cool. The twin towers were so big. The pool was one of the best things there because it was an infinity pool on the roof. You could jump in and it was deep as well so you didn’t hit your feet at the bottom. We went in the pool in the day and at night because it was always hot!

Borneo:

I think that Borneo is so radical and has lots to do. The turtles were the best part because turtles are my favourite animal so it was an amazing experience for me. I also liked the elephants in the wild and the hornbills in the jungle. I wasn’t expecting to see a crocodile so I was shocked when I spotted one right by the boat!

My top 5:

1) turtle island 2) seeing the orangutang 3) the different hornbills 4) spotting the crocodile 5) elephants at the river

Kate:

Kuala Lumpur was almost an assault on the senses after Fiji where we had definitely taken it slower, with no real agenda but spending time with friends and enjoy the island lifestyle. The city sounds and smells sort of hit you straight in the face – not that I didn’t enjoy it, but I needed a moment to readjust. Lots of the street markets and stalls brought back so many memories of my life in Taiwan, which I hadn’t expected. From the smells of durian fruit and street-side cooking, to the hustle and bustle of hawkers selling their goods… I felt like I’d almost gone back 20 years! KL really is interesting though, an eclectic mix of Malay, Chinese and Indian cultures (plus many more) and both the poverty and wealth you expect to see in a big international city. I loved eating and drinking the fresh street food and finding things to do as we walked around (aquarium, botanical gardens, butterfly house etc). Just as the Petronas twin towers are impressive and modern, so the Batu caves are ancient and full of spiritual history. I would definitely visit again!

Borneo. What a place. We only explored a tiny fraction of what I would’ve liked to have seen, but it definitely gave us a flavour of the land and it’s people. Everyone was incredibly friendly and helpful, and always wanted to know where we were from.

Turtle island was a huge highlight for me, it just felt so wonderful to be able to witness the incredible conservation effort there, but also to have the opportunity to see baby turtles released into the ocean and a mumma lay her eggs. Years ago I was lucky enough to be in Tobago watching massive leatherback turtles do the same thing, so to see green turtles, and with my family this time, was amazing. A special day indeed.

I was very grateful for the Airbnb I’d booked in Sandakan as we could do lots of clothes washing – very necessary in 38+ degree heat! It meant we at least started our jungle journey with fresh clothes even if we left with not-so-fresh clothes (fingers crossed our Airbnb in Bali has a machine!)

Ah, the Bornean jungle! A haven of wildlife for any nature lover and we absolutely loved it. I won’t lie, the heat and humidity is intense – it sucks your energy and you feel constantly sticky. But the rewards of being where you are and seeing what you see far outweigh that. There are alternatives to the accommodation we had, fancier chalets with aircon and more space, but staying with a local family was so eye opening. We literally lived in their house and shared their lives for a couple of days, and I’m grateful our children got to experience that especially as it’s a far cry from the luxury we have at home in Thornbury. Plus, the food was incredible and we went out on boats either on our own or with just two other people – so our experiences of the river were better. Seeing all the wild animals and birds was incredible. I don’t think I expected to see as much as we did, and to get as close as we did.

Borneo and its wildlife did not disappoint. One day I hope to return to this fragile piece of our precious Earth.

Martin:

My top 5:

1. Discovering elephants, a crocodile, many monkeys and colourful birds in their wild environment along the Kinabatangan River

2. Staying up late to witness a new mother Green turtle to the island, lay her eggs on the beach. Watch them buried safely in the hatchery and newborn babies released into the sea to continue the cycle. Knowing their future is a little more secure as a result of the super work being achieved on Turtle Island

3. Living and experiencing real and traditional Bornean home life with locals on the river

4. Tasting fragrant and spicy noodles & rice meals on the streets of Kuala Lumpur, amongst overcrowded and bustling city chaos

5. Watching orangutang play and eat on the edge of the jungle and surprise at the impressive weight and agility of big daddy orangutang

Spotting the vast and sprawling palm-oil plantations from the air as we flew into Borneo was eye-opening. Knowing that it is this deforestation and mono-culture that has killed and continues to destroy the wildlife we are coming to see is tricky to reconcile. It’s a complicated situation where many of those working on these plantations are just making ends meet and feeding their family. It is great to see the amazing efforts from the various groups / organisations that have been set up to protect, educate and re-establish these animals and I can only hope our contribution as tourists (aka ecotourism) provides a level of income that helps to continue the good work.

The heat and humidity is intense. The transition to 80-90% humidity with high 30° was tough. It wasn’t until we left the aircon rooms and slept with a simple fan, and covered in oily mosquito spray to minimise the bits, on the Kinabatangan River that I realised how tough living long-term like this would be. A special experience for the kids as one to compare with life in Thornbury.

One positive that came from this different way of living was the discovery and pleasure of a traditional shower, using a bucket of water and scoop. My first experience was in the homestay. The brown water was a mix of rain and river water that poured into the bucket while you poured the cold water over your body. Providing a momentary reprieve from the heat that’s refreshing and shocking is pretty unique.

Malaysia has been a whirlwind of city and jungle adventures but it’s ultimately the eclectic and precious wildlife balanced against the human impact that stays with me. I leave with a sense of optimism that we can repair and improve the situation for these incredible animals.

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We had one day to enjoy the wonders of Sepilok and we didn’t waste a moment of it!

Hot off the car journey from the river, we left our bags at our hotel reception and walked to the orangutang rehabilitation centre.

The Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre opened in 1964, as the first orangutang rehabilitation project for rescued orphaned baby orangutans from logging sites, plantations, illegal hunting or being kept as pets. The sanctuary covers 4,294 hectares of rainforest where the 60-80 orangutans can roam and the little ones learn to be orangutans!

Once you’ve paid for your entrance (which lasts all day) and left your bags (no food, drinks or bags allowed inside) in a locker, you follow a long wooden walkway through the jungle.

We had missed the morning feed at the outdoor nursery (where young orangutang aren’t ready to be released), but we’d made it in time for the morning feed at the platform… but so had many, many other people!

It was so hot waiting at the viewing spot; the heat of all the people pressed close together coupled with the heat of the day was pretty overbearing. We were very lucky though as two wild orangutang came to enjoy a bit of breakfast. Although the tourists obviously want to see wild orangutang up close, it’s a good thing to see none or a small number as it means that most of them have found their own food independently from the forest itself.

After seeing the wild orangutang, we headed to the nursery where we hoped we might see a few little ones. We were not disappointed, and we also didn’t just see little ones!

As we knew we would come back for the afternoon feeding (the centre closes between 12 and 2 for lunch), we didn’t stay too long but headed back along the walkway and out to the nearby Sunbear conservation centre.

The Bornean sunbear is the smallest bear in the world and is takes its name from the pale horseshoe shape on its chest, said to resemble the rising/setting sun. No two chest markings are the same, just like our fingerprints. Sunbears are at high risk of extinction in the wild due to habitat loss, commercial hunting (for their gall bladders and bear paws) and the pet trade (as the smallest bear in the world, the cubs are in high demand).

The Bornean Sunbear Conservation Centre is the only one of its kind in the world, founded in 2008. It’s mission is to promote conservation by rehabilitation, education and research. We were very moved by the videos and information boards at the centre – so many bears had such an awful start to life, but were on their way to successful release back into the wild.

Once we’d enjoyed the Sunbear centre, we popped in to the little onsite cafe for some lunch… lovely food and drinks but the serving of it was rather sporadic (Kate’s meal came after everyone else had finished eating and we had to ask three times for Sylvie’s extra chips!).

Just before 2pm, we went back to the orangutang centre to join the rest of the queues of people entering for the afternoon. This time, we went to the outdoor nursery area first thing to watch the young ones being fed.

It was wonderful to watch them play and interact with each other, so it was hard to pull ourselves away to see if any wild orangutang might come to the outdoor feeding platform, but we’re glad we did as we met this guy literally on the walkway…

Thankfully we did meet him as no wild ones came to the platform that afternoon… we waited for nearly half an hour but the fruity delights on the platform went instead to two large male pig-tailed macaques! Rather than wait any longer, we decided to go back to the nursery and just soak up the last orangutang viewing we could.

It was a great decision to go back to the nursery viewing area as it seemed that’s where all our hairy friends had gone… we loved watching them again. Big daddy even turned up again and had a fight with one of the babies – what a racket!

We were one of the last groups to be ushered out of the viewing area at 4pm when the centre closed – we could’ve stayed all evening. Back along the walkway we went, enjoying the sights and sounds of the jungle.

With wildlife-viewing over, we walked back to our hotel, checked in and went to our room – desperate to throw on our swimming cozzies and jump in the pool. Truth be told at this point Sylvie had a bit of a moment – she just got overwhelmed with tiredness and the heat and it all became a bit too much. She took it in her stride though, gave herself 5 minutes, and agreed to get into her swimming costume. As soon as she was ready Martin headed off for a run, while Kate took the kids for a swim. Turns out a body of cool water is the perfect tonic!

We even saw our friendly orangutang from the poolside – she was having a lovely time roaming through the trees above us.

Yet again, we were the last to leave when the pool closed – it was the first time we’d felt cool and fresh for days! Back to our rooms for a shower and a bag repack, and then we headed to The Banana Cafe for supper.

With bodies refuelled and thirsts quenched, we enjoyed a bit of chill time in the cafe with an ice cream and then it was off to bed!

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Now it’s time to leave the sweat-inducing wildlife-haven that is Malaysian Borneo. We have loved every minute of being on your shores – from beaches to jungles, from turtles to sunbears – thank you.

Two flights today, one back to KL and then on to Indonesia! Bali here we come!

Here began our jungle river adventure…

We had arranged a 2 night homestay here along the Kinabatangan river, complete with river cruises and jungle walks. The family (Wandi and his wife and kids, his sister and her family and his brother) welcomed us warmly and showed us to our rooms.

The only really sad thing about coming here is seeing the palm oil plantations. A reality we didn’t want to ignore but one we’d love to see reversed. It takes more than two hours to drive from Sandakan to the part of the Kinabatangan river we went to and 90% of that journey is through plantations. Some of which you can evidence from the river too…

It was good to face the reality of the situation though, and an important reminder to us all to try and avoid products with palm oil in them where we can.

Lecture over, back to the blog.

There were two other groups staying there with us – another family of four from the UK with young children and an Australian couple. It was really nice chatting and comparing notes on things we’d done – both families were off to Turtle island in a few days so we passed on our tips, and they had already been to Sepilok so gave us advice on that.

While the adults unpacked a bit and got organised, all the children (8 of them) started playing games – hide and seek, catch and tag. Elijah and Sylvie found it very sweaty work! Just as they decided they needed a break we were told the boats were ready… so off we went on our first river trip to find some wildlife!

Our first exciting sighting was of a female orangutan and her baby! They were a bit too far away to get any pictures, but that didn’t matter, it was just amazing to see them in the wild. We also saw several herons and a couple of eagles.

It didn’t take long for us to spot various monkeys in the trees – we saw proboscis monkeys, silver-leaf monkeys and loads of long-tailed macaques! One of the places we stopped at felt like a mini-monkey-nursery as there was a huge number of mothers and babies on one tree together.

After all the monkey sightings we were casually heading home when we happened upon this guy…

Back at the house we didn’t have to wait long for supper and it was absolutely delicious. A combination of rice, loads of different veggies, chicken and (to the younger children’s delight) crinkle cut fries! Plus watermelon and mini-bananas to follow, scrummy. Sylvie decided the mini-bananas were the best!

Then it was off to bed to get our beauty sleep before another 5:30am start.

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Up we got the following morning ready for our 6am boat trip. This turned out to be a bird-watching expedition as the monkeys are less active at that time of the day. We were lucky enough to see so many different birds:

• Oriental-pied hornbill
• Black hornbill
• Rhinoceros hornbill
• Wrinkled hornbill
• Fish eagle
• Yellow crested eagle
• Oriental Darter (also called a snakebird)
• Storm stork
• Bats (not a bird but does all the flying!)

It was so beautiful being out at that time of the morning, we could hear so many calls and cries from various animals and birds. It was also lovely and cool, which made a change from the heat and humidity we knew was coming.

We got back to the house just after 8am to breakfast ready and waiting for us. Veggie rice, eggs and toast with a new favourite for Sylvie – pineapple jam!

The next plan of action was to layer and mosquito-spray-up ready for our jungle walk at 9am.

Back into the boats we went for a little pootle down the river and then continued on foot from there. For any entomologists out there, this would be a real treat as we saw insects of all shapes and sizes! We saw elephant dung (a year since they had passed through) and listened to the almost whistling sound from the hornbill wings as they flew amongst the branches above. Elijah got a little leech friend on his leg not long into the walk, but other than that plus a dozen or so mosquito bites, we went unscathed.

We had a couple of hours to ourselves before lunch so we just napped and chilled at the house. We had asked to go on the longer ‘elephant hunt’ boat ride which left at 1:30pm, so it was good to just rest before then. After another delicious meal for lunch we headed out on the boats, this time armed with extra water, hats and sunscreen.

We weren’t sure how hopeful to be about spotting the elephants but after only about half an hour…

Bornean Pygmy Elephants – so incredible to see these wonderful animals up close and in the wild!

The elephants were fabulous, but they weren’t the only creatures we got up close and personal with…

All river trips must come to an end… sadly.

A totally brilliant day! Finished off with more excellent food, a game of cards and a rain-water-bucket-shower!

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The next morning we were up and packed ready for breakfast at 7am (noodles, fried eggs, sausages, toast and fruit). A brief goodbye to our fellow travellers and host family and we were back on the boat heading across the river to the jetty where our car was waiting to take us to Sepilok.

From hot and sticky KL to hot and sticky Borneo… out go the skyscrapers and city lights and in comes the jungle with a sprinkling of townships (except bustling Sandakan itself!)

We arrived fairly late in the evening, and had an early start to Turtle Island the next day so the only thing we did when we arrived was unpack at the Airbnb and catch a Grab car to a nearby restaurant for a meal. We thought we were in the wrong place at first as you had to walk into a Chinese hotel lobby then take a lift up to the top floor. It was more Westernised than we’d planned, but the food was delicious and it had a lovely vibe.

After supper, we headed back to our Airbnb and got to sleep. Day two here was our trip to Turtle Island (see separate post).

On day three, we got back from our turtle-viewing extravaganza pretty tired, but not wanting to waste the day. After a quick shower and unpack, we caught a Grab to the Labuk Bay Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary. This was a 50 minute drive from our apartment, which allowed for a little snooze in the car!

Our driver was also really chatty and helpful, and agreed to drive us to the feeding platform (avoiding a 2.7km walk in the heat of the day), wait for us and bring us back again afterwards – which was lucky as the sanctuary is far removed from the main roads and it probably would’ve been hard to catch a ride back.

There are 2 platforms and 4 feeding times at the sanctuary – and other than a tiny cafe at Platform B with a couple of staff members, it’s pretty quiet when it’s not feeding time. It’s all a-go when you hit the right time and follow the walkway to the platform though!

Endangered proboscis monkeys aren’t the only animals you can see here – there are also silvered leaf monkeys and oriental-pied hornbills amongst other things. We would have happily spent the whole day here, slowly wandering between the two platforms and trying to spot wildlife on the way, but as we knew we still had to get organised for our river trip the next day we made do with a shorter visit.

The proboscis monkey’s distinct appearance sets them aside from other monkeys – they have big noses, pot bellies and webbed toes. Adult males can reach 23kg and females about half that size. Males develop huge protruding noses when they reach sexual maturity, with the biggest nose of all taking the role of Alpha male. They generally live in groups with one alpha, lots of adult females and their offspring.

There are feeding platforms stationed all around the viewing hut, allowing visitors to find some space to watch these incredible creatures. We saw many mothers with babies, juveniles and adult males and females . It was so fascinating to watch them interact with each other – sometimes playfully, sometimes aggressively. The large alpha male we saw as very protective over his food and sitting space! Elijah especially enjoyed following his journey around the platforms and through the trees – with cries and screams from the smaller monkeys moving out of his way.

Found only in the mangroves of Borneo, proboscis monkeys are highly vulnerable to extinction, and as such are a legally protected species here. Despite this, their numbers are still declining, mainly due to habitat loss. The sanctuary here provides a safe space for them and is consistently acquiring and restoring degraded mangrove forests in an effort to provide a more sustainable habitat.

Monkey business is hungry work, so we asked to be dropped off at a local seafood restaurant that had been recommended by several of our Grab drivers and our Airbnb host, called Jalan Buli Sim Sim.

We were starting to feel the effects of only 4 hours sleep and the choice was overwhelming so struggled to decide on what to eat – apart from Elijah who promptly ordered a plate of sweet and sour crab! We added some rice, seafood dumpling soup, honey chicken and green vegetables to that order and hoped for the best!

After lunch we got ourselves to the local mall in town, to pick up some supplies and cash. Elijah and Kate had fun choosing interesting snacks to try from the supermarket, while Sylvie spent her money on her new pal “Ginger”.

So that’s about all from our time here in Sandakan. We are heading back in a couple of days, and we have orangutang visits in mind for that part of the trip. But for now, we are looking forward to seeing what we might be able to catch a glimpse of in the wild, as we head to the Kinabatangan river!

The day after arriving in Borneo, we packed up a rucksack, left the rest of our stuff in our Airbnb and headed to the main jetty in Sandakan. We had booked a one night trip to Selingan island, where two types of endangered turtles nest – Hawkesbill and Green – and visitors are allowed to witness the conservation process.

We booked directly (via WhatsApp!) with a company called Crystal Quest – the only operator on the island and so the only way to go. There are Bornean tour companies that will arrange this for you, but it’s much more expensive so we took the direct route. It does mean you don’t have an English guide on the island, but as the island is tiny and there are strict rules about the beach and timings, this isn’t a problem.

The island only allows 50 guests per night, and the rules are strict – everyone clears off the beach at 5pm (apart from one area where you can watch the sunset until 6:30pm and then the whole place is out of bounds) so that the mother turtles have a safe space to nest. There is a hatchery that is protected and guards that patrol the island. The park rangers spend the evening watching for mother turtles and making sure they nest and return to the sea safely.

Once we’d made our way off the boat and dumped our stuff in our room, we strolled onto the beach for our first swim. Oh boy! The water was beautifully warm and so clear you could see lots of fish and other ocean creatures right below you amongst the coral.

Our lunch was served at 12:30, so by then everyone on the island congregated in the ‘communal dining hall/waiting for turtle sightings’ area. We were given lots of instructions about timings and rules to follow and then sent on our way to enjoy the island at our own pace for a few hours.

We spent a glorious few hours swimming, snorkelling and lazing about on the beach listening to the sounds of the jungle above and behind us (interspersed with the occasional Malaysian pop song coming from the soldiers phones guarding the island). On the way back to our room to shower (with sea water) and change, we happened upon this guy…

And his much larger friend…

The sunset was gorgeous; hard to capture its beauty on camera though so we mostly just sat and enjoyed it.

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After sunset, it was back to the communal area for a video on how conservation is happening on the island and then supper. Then it’s just waiting time! We were split into two groups (we were group 1) so that there wouldn’t be too many of us around the turtle when the time came. The waiting was fine at first – we played cards and chatted, but by 10:30pm the kids were getting restless. It was really hot, we were all tired and nothing seemed to be happening.

At about 10:45pm one of the guides came and said that one mother had come up to nest but hadn’t laid any eggs, so we had to keep waiting – but that we would be able to see baby turtles around 11pm. A slight deviation from the usual format (which is: nesting, egg collection, checking the mother, egg burial, release of babies) but as the hatchlings can’t be left too long before being released, the program was just switched around slightly.

At last! Baby green turtles, what a sight.

There were strict rules we had to follow – no videos, no flash photography and no moving beyond the line drawn in the sand. We didn’t mind though, just thrilled with the opportunity to watch it all happen.

After the baby turtle excitement we had to head back to the communal area for more waiting. This was quite tough; the heat and humidity was really draining and we weren’t allowed back to our chalets to wait there.

And then all of a sudden, at 12:22am we heard the words we’d been waiting to hear all evening, “turtle time!”… there was a scramble as everyone woke up/got up and quietly followed the ranger as fast as possible down to the beach. There she was – a mumma green turtle, in her egg-laying trance…

Once she’d laid her eggs (75 of them), we were allowed to see her fully and watch as the ranger checked, measured, and cleaned her. She had no tag, so was a new arrival to the island!

A couple of facts we learned during this process – the temperature of the sand will determine the sex of the babies. Hotter temperatures will produce females, colder sand will produce males. Also the female stores the sperm from her many mates and eventually (she can store it for years) decides which is best to fertilise with.

Once we’d left our mumma turtle to make her way back into the ocean in peace, the next stage to watch was the ranger burying the eggs at the hatchery. The eggs are all counted again and the date, time and type of turtle is recorded on an identification tag, which is placed in the nest with green mesh to protect it from predators. We stayed watching right to the end and Sylvie was invited to place the tag in the sand for ‘our’ batch of eggs!

It was about 1:30am by the time we slumped into bed, exhausted but exhilarated!

4 hours later we were back up again and packing our things. We headed down to the beach at 6am (any earlier is forbidden) and were rewarded with the incredible sight of turtle tracks in the sand.

All too soon it was time for breakfast and a last farewell to this special turtle-haven.

What a phenomenal way to spend 20 hours of our lives – thank you Pulau Selingan!

Whoopee, we made it to Kuala Lumpur and woweee was it hot and humid! The temperature was about 34deg, but felt so much higher with the humidity. Once we got through immigration we used an app called Grab (which is similar to Uber) and got a car to our Airbnb. We had a lovely driver, who gave us lots of tips for things to do while we’re here and pointed out various landmarks along the way.

We’d booked an apartment through Airbnb here, which is part of a huge complex going up about 45 floors. There’s a gym, spa and pool on the 6th floor and top floor, which Sylvie insisted we try as soon as possible of course!

As we were all pretty exhausted from the ‘airport sleep’ and travelling, we decided to venture no further than one of the local food markets, grab some supper and come home. We aimed for Jalan Alor – a very popular food street in the heart of the city.

We couldn’t resist the fresh fruit juices – mango, dragonfruit, watermelon and guava to name a few!

Wandering up and down the streets absorbing the sights and the smells was quite overwhelming. It was hot and humid, we hadn’t showered or slept properly for a couple of days and the noise from hundreds of people just felt a lot. We still really enjoyed ourselves though – it felt like we’d really arrived in SE Asia.

We settled on a place to eat and ordered 5 dishes – salt & pepper squid, chicken satay sticks, prawn noodles, sizzling beef and some green beans. Kate was so excited for the green vegetables that she dug into these first only to discover they were the spiciest thing we’d ordered, ooops!

With tummies full and senses overloaded, we headed back to our apartment to get an early night. Well, that was the plan… but it turns out there was more we could squeeze out of the day, and that was a nighttime rooftop swim!

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Day two dawned and we were ready for another adventurous day. We decided to wander the streets (heading in the direction of the twin towers) as it was still relatively cool and we wanted to get a feel for the city. It didn’t take long for us to feel hot and bothered though, so the Bukit Bintang Walkway was a welcome relief – this is an elevated walkway between the major shopping/entertainment centres in the city centre and means you avoid all the traffic below.

At the end of the walkway we found ourselves in the KLCC, and right by the Aquarium, much to the children’s delight! We spent a lovely few hours in there…

After our fishy fun we headed to the park by the famous Petronas Twin Towers. This is a wonderful asset to the city, with a huge play park, a water park (sadly shut for cleaning when we were there) and lots of spaces for a picnic or just to escape the sun for a bit.

We had a lovely wander through the parks and around by the towers, and then carried on further down the streets on the hunt for lunch.

The twin towers stand at 451.9m tall and are the world’s tallest twin skyscrapers. They were actually the world’s tallest building until 2004, when they were taken over by Taipei 101. The steel and glass outer look was designed to resemble motifs of Islamic art.

We decided on an Indian Muslim restaurant called Nasi Kandar Pelita, and chose some dishes – mostly chicken and rice variations with some veggies on the side. The fresh juices looked wonderful too, so we ordered a few of those and Elijah even opted for a coconut! Despite ordering “no spice” food, quite a lot of it was pretty spicy!!

With hunger satiated and thirsts quenched, we grabbed a Grab and made our way to the Botanical Gardens. As we were driving, the weather turned and it began to pour with rain! Thankfully we’d brought our raincoats with us, but even with them we decided to hop on a golf buggy and give our legs a bit of a rest.

Our driver was really informative about the park, but also quite happy to take us outside after we asked where the butterfly gardens and bird park were. Sitting in an open-sided golf cart with no seatbelts being driven around the chaotic, busy roads wasn’t quite what we had planned!

At one point our driver stopped to pick himself up some fruit from a street seller and we spotted several monkeys in the trees. He kindly offered us some and although we were keen to try them, we didn’t know how to open them at first. They looked like new potatoes on a stalk (like sprouts) but tasted delicious, a bit like a lychee. They are called longan (which means “dragoneye” in Cantonese), and are actually easy to peel once you get the knack. Yum!

Once we’d had our fill of zooming around the botanical gardens we decided to go to the butterfly park for the rest of the afternoon before heading back to our apartment for a little rest before the evening’s activities.

The butterfly park is one of the largest butterfly houses in the world. It opened in 1992 and it’s most famous resident is the Rajah Brooke’s butterfly – the national butterfly of Malaysia.

Sylvie was desperate for a butterfly to land on her, so she spent a good 20 minutes patiently “making friends” – and that patience was rewarded!

What to do when it’s 5pm and you’ve had a good day out? Back to the pool!

After a refreshing break, we headed out into the night for food and whatever else we might find. First stop: Jalan Pataling street market. Martin got himself a new pair of sliders and Sylvie couldn’t resist the cat bags… but we all needed some liquid refreshment!

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Next stop: food! Chinese was the order of the day and we happily slurped our noodles, chicken and dumplings.

Last stop: back to the twin towers to see them at night! They were quite spectacular, shining in the darkness, but it was even busier than when we’d come in the morning.

As it was getting late, we tried to catch a Grab car home but it was so busy we would’ve had a 20 wait, so we made the decision to walk back instead – not the easiest with tired little legs but we made it and no one had any trouble falling asleep!

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Day three saw us have another one of those “why did we plan a 5:30am wake up again?” days, but boy was it worth it (as always). We went to see the Batu Caves – a series of limestone caves on the outskirts of the city and home to one of the most popular Hindu shrines outside India. It gets its name from the Malay word “batu” meaning rock.

Apart from a couple of devotees, we were the first people there, so it was lovely and quiet.

The giant golden statue is of Lord Murugan, the Hindu god of war, and is the second tallest of its type in the world standing at 43m.

The caves themselves are believed to have been used as shelters by the indigenous people, but came to be a sacred Hindu shrine around 1890. The steps were converted from wood to concrete in 1940, but only painted in 2018.

Once inside, you can see the temples built into the rock. We took our shoes off and headed to the main temple.

While we were inside we happened to strike up a conversation with a man from Singapore who explained that he and his wife had come that morning specifically for a ceremony they requested. He kindly invited us to watch and it was incredibly fascinating. What luck to have been able to witness it!

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The ceremony took around 25 minutes, and by the time it had finished we had been joined by many other tourists and Hindus (all fascinated like us). We headed back out of the temple, popped our shoes back on and walked further up into the caves.

Soon it was time to head back to the apartment, pack our bags and get to the airport ready for our flight to Borneo.

Our driver this time was a lovely Chinese-Malay man who was very keen to chat to Martin about his job and discuss his son who he hoped might get an internship in England. The kids thought it was hilarious to hear Dad back in ‘work mode’ for half an hour.

A quick turnaround at the apartment (kids were gutted there was no time for another swim) and we were heading to the airport. We had a slight mix up when we realised we’d booked to go to Terminal 1 (international) rather than Terminal 2 (domestic) but that was soon sorted and we were on our way!

We’re back in transit again – this time flying from Auckland to Singapore, a 14 hour layover and then a quick flight from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur (1 hour).

Singapore Airlines definitely gets a thumbs up from us in terms of flight travel – the seats are comfy, their inflight entertainment is excellent and the food is delicious. Big tick!

We arrived in Singapore pretty tired, and solely focused on finding a good spot to sleep in for the night (Changi Airport has several free loungers, massage chairs and couches in each terminal but you have to be lucky to grab them!)… we were so determined that we completely forgot to collect our bags from baggage claim! 🤦🏻‍♀️ With all our other double flight days, our luggage had been checked through to our final destination so I think we just assumed this was the case and hadn’t thought it through properly!

Thankfully, we remembered soon enough (although it was after settling the kids down on some couches and they’d gone to sleep) and headed through immigration and out to collect our bags. We also took our two biggest bags to a baggage storage facility – will pick them up on 30th August on our way home!

So, armed with only our rucksacks, we headed off to the Jewel – a nature-themed shopping/entertainment mall that is public, but also linked to some of the terminals at the airport. We were hoping to see the Rain Vortex, the world’s tallest indoor waterfall and the centrepiece of the Jewel. Unfortunately, the waterfall stops at 11pm so we’d arrived too late. The kids enjoyed the colourful lights through the terraced forest though!

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We couldn’t check in for our next flight until 7ish the next morning, so sadly we couldn’t get through to the comfy departures lounges… we were instead looking at a long night on the floor or hard plastic chairs!

After several hours of semi-solid sleep for the kids and none for the parents, we decided to get up and moving for the day. 6am milkshakes was the order, and caffeine for the parents!

“Let’s go and see the waterfall!” was the next plan of action. But in true Coyle-transit-debacle-style, when we got there we discovered the Rain Vortex doesn’t start again until 10am (by which point we’d be back at a gate ready for our next flight!). It was good to have a wander about the trees and plants though.

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We are determined to get a look at that waterfall!! We have made it our mission to come and see it on our transit through on 30th August, watch this space!

For now though, we bid you adieu as we head onwards to the Southeast Asian leg of our adventure!

** Update **

Turns out we could’ve stayed to see the waterfall this morning, as our flight to KL got delayed. We’ve also just found out that that plane isn’t going at all, so we’ve been given free snacks and water (sound familiar?) and are being sent to a completely different gate to catch a completely different plane (hopefully landing at Kuala Lumpur a couple of hours after we’d expected)!! 🤦‍♂️🤦

Ce la vie!

Sylvie:

I think Fiji is amazing, when we went to Plantation Island I had the best time in my life. When we went snorkelling we saw this coral reef which was outstanding – we could see loads of fish and starfish and coral and me and my mum even dived down to see them closer. We also saw a sea snake!!! My dad found it.

The inflatables on the sea were so fun I wanted to stay on them all day. We jumped off them and slid down them which was really really awesome sauce! My other favourite was the air pontoon, we jumped off it and played “who can stay standing on it”. Daddy pushed me off and I did a big belly flop!

There was a lot of pools there too, even if some of them were too deep to stand up in. I loved playing “catch Elijah” and “mermaids” with Nathan and Annabelle and also teaching them Go Fish.

My top 3: 1) snorkelling 2) inflatables 3) pools

Elijah:

I thought Fiji was a great experience because there were lots of cool islands you could go to and the sea was so clear you could see the fish in the ocean. I think people go to Fiji for the islands not the main island. But it is always hot and there are mosquitoes everywhere. It was cool to have the Ongers with us on the island but they are a lot younger than me and Sylvie so they like different things sometimes. If you were to go out at night you would find frogs everywhere and there was a chance you could step on one which is not ideal.

When I went snorkelling I saw some cool star fish which were blue and a sea snake with lots of coral everywhere. There were so many different kinds of fish, a huge variety.

My top 3: 1) snorkelling 2) being warm 3) tropical smoothie

Kate:

Well, what a beautiful, welcoming country Fiji is – everywhere we went there were shouts of “Bula” and big smiles. The warm weather was a lovely change from the chill of South Island, but it was trickier to get used to the humidity. Nadi town felt quite chaotic and busy compared to the relaxed lifestyle on Malolo Lailai Island.

A massive plus for me was having Vicky and her family with us for a few days. It was such a special time, just being able to spend time together in a gorgeous part of the world. The children got on really well, and I think our two enjoyed being the cool, older ones! I wish we lived closer, but we’ll treasure these memories forever and hopefully it won’t be too long before we see each other again.

Staying at Plantation Island Resort was a big treat for us, as resorts are not usually our go-to choice. I always feel like you miss out on experiencing the ‘real’ country, and we usually prefer an Airbnb where you can venture out for local food and things to do. That being said, we thoroughly enjoyed living on a “slice of paradise” for a few days and all the luxuries that came with it!

The fact that our children are strong, confident swimmers helped too as it meant we could venture out into the sea for hours, snorkelling and playing on the pontoon and inflatables. I loved being a water baby with my water babies for a few days.

I am definitely leaving Fiji full of happy memories; more relaxed, more tanned and with a slightly burnt bottom!

Martin:

The shock of transitioning from crisp, cold, winter weather with a hire car that gave us autonomy to start and stop journeys on our terms to the sweltering, humid Fiji with total reliance on people you don’t know to get you places when they decide, while waiting in their queues was tough! I struggled for a day or two to let go of what I’d got used to.

What replaced it was in fact a piece of paradise and luxury I was not familiar with, and loved it thoroughly. The highlight for me had to be the snorkelling and general playing in the clear blue sea with the kids. I also indulged a little in the local Fiji Gold and Fiji Bitter beer. Feeling grateful for the beauty Plantation Island had to offer and relaxation I felt at the end.

My reflections wouldn’t be compete without contrasting the island with the chaos and poverty of Nadi. A shock to the system but an important experience to remind ourselves that we do indeed live in a safe and privileged bubble at home. Something I’m keen for myself and the kids to acknowledge and remember, and not become complacent or entitled in our day-to-day life back home.

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