Sapi and Mamutik - Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park Islands, Borneo

Hi and welcome. This is the penultimate posting on Borneo. Today you will see photos of two islands that are part of the Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park

We visited Sapi and Mamutik. One of the main reasons for going to KK was to snorkel. There were lots of fish but the coral was disappointing. We were treated to the beautiful colours typical of small tropical islands. Enjoy the photos. This is Sapi. From Kota Kinabalu, Sapi is just a 15 minute boat ride. 15 minutes that take you from the city to a tropical paradise
















Sapi is easily accessible from Kota Kinabalu.
You can take the ferry from Jesselton Point.
KK used to be called Jesselton
















Here's Daniela, just after we arrived






















Sapi is one of the smaller islands
in the marine park
















You can do a half day trip and be back in KK
for lunch
















Looking across to Gaya Island. A sand-bar
connects Sapi Island to the largest island in
the TAR Park. It is possible to walk across in
shallow water at very low tides
















Not just sand, the island also has some rocks
to explore
















and provides other photo opportunities
















Looking back towards the beach
















A pretty sea snail
















Gaya Island's lush forest is the richest of the five
islands in wildlife. Long-tailed macaques, pied
hornbills, wild boar, and monitor lizards
can be sighted there















But we found our own monitor lizard on Sapi.
Perhaps he walked over for a change of scenery
















Setting off to Mamutik island. The second building
on the seafront, set back slightly, is the Hyatt Regency
where we stayed
















The south of the city. You can see the State Mosque
















A typical "ferry" boat
















Inland, looking toward the cafe
















The jetty
















There is quite a lot of natural shade






















Mamutik is the smallest of the
five islands in the park
















It has an area of 60,000 square metres and
has a triangular shape






















The sand, the sea and the sky
















Daniela taking pictures of her feet!
















Wouldn't you like to be there now?
















It was a little windy and choppy which made
the air very clear. Perfect for photography
















A horizontal tree makes an interesting photo
















Daniela admiring the gorgeous view
















Final picture of the beach before we drag
ourselves away
















Looking back as we reach the jetty to go back to KK
But just one more photo..... of the author cum intrepid
snorkeller, a bit washed up!

















Thanks to Daniela for this shot. Next time the
Sunday market in KK

Young Orangutan gallery from Borneo

Hi and welcome. During our time in Borneo we went to see the young orang utans at the Shangri La Rasa Ria resort in Kota Kinabalu. A Rehabilitation Programme was initiated by the resort in support to the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Center of the Sabah Wildlife Department. To date, a total of 32 Orangutans have successfully passed the first stage of the rehabilitation process and subsequently returned to Sepilok for the second stage and final rehabilitation and have been subsequently released to the wild.

Fabulous creatures. It was a highlight of our holiday. Here is my gallery of "the children of the forest". The last nine photos are of the baby.




" I do not have hairy armpits like you!"

















"Bet you can't do this with your legs!"






















"You can only find me hanging out
in my natural habitat in Borneo and
Sumatra"
















"Tarzan was never as good as us!"

















"I eat fruit and leaves gathered from rain forest
trees. Sometimes I eat eat bark, insects and,
on rare occasions, meat"
















" You humans are great apes like us. You share
94.6% of your genetic make up with us"






















"That is why we are called
orangutans. It is Malay for
'person of the forest'






















"Hang on a sec, just need to stretch
the legs"
















"We travel, eat and sleep in the forest canopy
and spend 95% of our time in the trees"






















"Hmm! Where's that branch?"














"Studies have shown that we probably diverged
from the human lineage between approximately 12
and 15 million years ago"






















"If I had a Mum she would be with
me now teaching me all I need to
know. My Dad is somewhere but
he's not very good at childcare"






















"I can use my hands like my feet
and my feet like my hands which
makes me super agile"






















"I also know which branches will
hold my weight and which won't"
















"It's very rare but we do fall sometimes"
















"We can basically do anything: hang from branches
or stand on top of them with our limbs in any direction
and each limb can be doing something completely
different to the others"
















"If I wanted I could scratch my ear with my foot!"



















"We are the only red apes and in the sun we
positively glow!"



















"Ablaze in the trees"



















"I am the wild, hairy girl from Borneo!"















"These trees are perfectly positioned for a good
stretch"






















"Now for a good old think"






















"Hello. My name is Ten Ten and I am 1 year old"






















"I was taken away from my mummy to be
someone's pet. I miss her so much and I
am very angry with the human who took
me away"




















"She would have stayed with me for 10 years
and taught me everything I need to know"






















"But this ranger is very kind, only he
isn't very hairy!"





















"They say there are only about 7,000 of us left in
the wild"



















"We are in danger of extinction mostly because
of logging, conversion of our forests into palm
oil plantations and timber estates, mining
and clearing forests for settlements in Borneo
and Sumatra"





















"You humans are very selfish neighbours"





















"But there are lots of humans who help us"






















"Please come and see me. You'll have
to pay but your money will help run this
sanctuary"