Day 38 - A Visit to Kota Kinabalu

Arshad picked us up at 6.15am to take us to the airport for our 8.30am flight. We had a few days off, so April, Steph and I were off to Kota Kinabalu for one night, while Vijan was headed to Kuching. We had breakfast before experiencing the quickest security check I have probably ever had! As we had some time to kill, we decided to try out the massage chairs near our departure gate – which were only three ringgit for nine minutes. It was an interesting experience, especially one bit that kept rising out of the seat right beneath your bottom – we weren't expecting that!

The flight was so short we were practically descending as soon as we'd taken off – it was probably only half an hour in the air. Once we landed we ordered an Uber straight to our first destination – Monsopiad Heritage Village. It was only around a 15 minute drive, and Amoy said her descendants are from this tribe. Upon arrival we were greeted by our lovely guide, Junior. He was super

friendly and was asking us lots of questions about where we were from, before telling us more about the tribe's history. Many years ago, a mysterious disease had swept through the tribe, so the high priestess practised her black magic and asked the spirits to help. One spirit did, and legend has it he still lives in the rock that sits in the centre of the village. Monsopiad himself was the leader of the tribe and was personally responsible for killing 42 outsiders who tried to enter the village perimeter and steal supplies. He died after punching a wall in the village, which was unfortunately made of yellow bamboo, which is poisonous. He walked to a nearby hill and that's where he died and is buried – so lesson is to not bottle up your temper folks!

We then went to see the skulls of those he killed, which are 350 years old and on display in a nearby hut. Before entering, you need to say the phrase above the door – Siou Do Mohoing – to ask permission

from the spirits to enter. There were a few artefacts and things inside – including an original funeral jar. People get buried in it, then are later dug up and their bones are removed so the jar can be reused. We then had a go at the different tools used in farming, for grinding rice into flour etc (this machine was hard work to operate!)

Next we took a look at the sago grubs, which were in a glass tank nearby. You can eat these raw (and alive!) or cooked – no thanks – and apparently they taste a bit like butter. We held one in our hand, they move in the strangest way, pulsing and bulging along, and they look quite like witchetty grubs. My grub decided to be naughty and bit me right between two of my fingers. It actually hurt quite a bit! You don't eat the head Junior said, because if you eat them alive the head can keep working and actually eat through your stomach!

Then we headed to the fire hut – where Junior and another guy tried to show us how to start a fire the Monsopiad way. This basically involves cutting a slit in a long piece of solid bamboo, and placing some bamboo pulp underneath. Then you use another piece of bamboo to rub quickly against the first one, with the friction creating a lot of smoke, and eventually a spark. Well, that's the theory. But today the bamboo wasn't playing ball. The guys tried 12 times to get

it started – but the bamboo kept cracking. By the end they were sweating profusely and we were all laughing at the struggle. But they were determined to show us it works, and we all cheered when we finally saw fire!

Then we walked across the suspension bridge over the river. On the nearby bank, several guys were constructing a boat from wood. It was coming along nicely, but apparently it had already taken two months to get this far. After a tea break we tried three types of local alcohol. The first was Lihing, made from fermented rice. This is a bit like the rice wine we have tried previously (and my favourite) – this one was around 5%. Next it was distilled rice wine (Talak) which is 40% and tastes more like a shot of vodka or something similar. Then there was Sikat – at 70% alcohol it is more for medicinal purposes than your average Friday night drink. It is made from herbs and barks and you can taste the earthiness.

Then it was into the big hall for a traditional dance. We all wore a sash (the closest I will ever come to being Miss Universe) and hopped up on stage to follow Junior. The dance basically consisted of shuffling from side to side and circling and flapping our arms like birds – I reckon we nailed it. Before we left we simply had to stick our heads through the holes of the painted murals by the entrance. April was particularly good at looking like a murderous warrior...

Then we headed off to our accommodation – The Palace Hotel – where we had a quick lunch before our next tour to Mari Mari Cultural Village. For this one, we had paid a company to drive us and pick us up. I thought they were coming at 2pm to collect us, but I got a phone call at 1.20pm to say our driver was in the lobby! Turned out they had sent an email with a pick up time, but it went into my junk folder. So we rushed around to check in so we could get going. On the way, we could see the Kota Kinabalu Mosque across the water, it was a pretty amazing building, framed by palm trees. When we arrived at the village, one of the staff got talking to me. He was so sweet, and said I had beautiful eyes. He was amazed by the fact they were green – I guess that is quite unique here. He said he is trying to improve his English, but he was very well spoken.

Our guide then escorted us around the village – one lady was very cranky that she didn't speak Chinese! Why on earth would you assume that? In order to move on she would tell us to 'mari mari' or 'come come' – so we felt rather like orangutans, as that's how we call them back inside. It was a lot more polished than the Monsopiad village, although it's an artificial representation of the five main tribes in Borneo. However it's all built in the same way the villages would have been, and showcases the same practices and traditions.

The first tribe was Kadazan and the highlight was the rice storage area, which was kept right alongside the 'head storage' area – for those who dared try to steal the rice. The huts are very quaint, and are built largely out of bamboo and palm leaves. Here we tried more Luhing – I preferred it to the other one, and lucky me got a few extra samples because some people didn't want one. To make it, rice is soaked in water for one day, then crushed into a powder, rolled into balls and left to dry to make yeast. This is then added to boiled rice and left to ferment for a month – you can also add sugar or dried tobacco leaves to sweeten or make it more bitter. The kitchen system was very clever, with a shelf-style unit built over a fire – so you could cook directly on the flames, steam fish on the rack above and dry wood on the top level. The cooking technique is to take a hollowed out piece of bamboo and line it with banana leaves to prevent the food burning. Then you can fill it with chicken, onion and other bits and cook it on the open fire. At the next hut we again got to try the distilled rice wine (it all adds up!).

Then it was on to the Rungus tribe. Here we got to try some honey, which is harvested from stingless bees. It was very sweet and didn't taste like honey, more like maple syrup. There are also ways to tell if a lady is single. For this tribe it is the length of your sleeves, for

others it may be whether you do or don't wear beads around your head. The layout of the hut is usually a bedroom downstairs for the parents and a room up above for the single daughter, accessible via a ladder. Any boys in the family would usually sleep on the lounge room floor. However this particular tribe lived in big longhouses, with one family per room. One longhouse could host the whole tribe. Here there was a big, tall trap (similar to one we had seen earlier for catching fish). It was made from bamboo, and one end consisted of pointed spikes, so something could glide in easily, but would not be able to get out without being impaled. However we were told this one was for humans! Who would then be thrown in the river and would drown. Here we witnessed the fire-making technique again, although things went a bit more smoothly this time!

Then it was on to the Lundayeh tribe, who were known as strong hunters and fisherman. We tried some tapioca dipped in sugar, it is very strange, a bit like a mixture of potato and pineapple. We also had a demonstration of how cloth is produced from dried tree bark, and crafted into clothing.

Next up was probably my favourite tribe – Bajau, the second largest ethnic group in Sabah . Here we got to try payan juice, which is

made by boiling payan, ginger and sugar cane. It was absolutely delicious, and quite sweet. There were also biscuits made from rice flour and sugar. A special spoon with holes in it is used to add the mixture to hot oil so it fries like a bunch of noodles. We also tried payan cakes, which are little sweet, green pancakes made from coconut, rice flour, sugar, an egg and some banana leaf.

Lastly it was a visit to the Murut tribe. They were quite fearsome and, like the Monsopiad, before asking for someone's hand in marriage the man was required to bring the family a head of someone they had killed, to show they could offer protection when required. The nominated leader of our tour group had to place his hand on the tribal leader's shoulder and answer some questions about why we were visiting before we could enter. Inside was another longhouse. The highlight was a square in the floor that was lower than the rest. This was effectively a trampoline, built from bamboo and a

particularly springy tree! The game is to jump, and spring up to pull down a 'prize' – aka one of the ribbons that's hanging from a structure on the ceiling. Several of the people dressed as tribesman demonstrated this, with around three people jumping at once to help increase the height. The leader of our group was then invited to try, but his feet barely left the ground. Poor effort mate! Then the three of us got up and held hands with the tribesman to try it ourselves – it was truly incredible how much bounce you could get! At the end of this longhouse you were able to get a henna tattoo. So we all did, but it wasn't 'proper' henna, so it only lasted a day. Next it was our turn to try and use a blowpipe – it was actually much easier than I thought, and takes only a small breath to send the dart flying, although I'm not sure I will win any prizes for accuracy.

The final part of the tour was to enter a big hall and watch some traditional dancing from the tribes. It was very interesting, particularly when they placed some bamboo sticks on the floor and the men jumped between them, getting faster and faster each time. At the end they invited people up on stage to try some of the steps, but we held back, as it was very crowded. We did go up for a photo however, and they had told us to take off our shoes before going up, which is customary here. But we forgot, until I got near the top of the stairs and quickly slipped off my thongs. Steph noticed this and started profusely apologising while trying to hop on one leg and remove one of her shoes. We were in stitches as she nearly fell over a few times in the panic!

Once we arrived back at the hotel we had a quick rest and got changed before heading out to a place called Laundroluxe for dinner. I had discovered it on Trip Advisor, and it was the top rated restaurant for Kota Kinabalu. It has to be said it didn't disappoint! Weirdly it is a laundrette and a restaurant, with all the washing machines and driers running along one wall, and separated from the restaurant by a glass panel. The menu was incredible and the table was laid out in a proper restaurant style. I ordered a cosmopolitan, and a mushroom risotto for a main, and it was one of the nicest meals I have ever had! Before the main arrived we were also treated to two mini bread rolls – one herb and tomato and one cheese – with some dipping oil. It has been so long since we've had nice bread, and this was to die for. It was so soft and fresh. I decided to have a desert as well – lemon pie. It was the first desert I have had in ages and it was also a treat for the taste buds. Although it would probably be considered quite fancy compared to other places we have eaten, the bill still only came to about £16 for my share!!! Amazing value. If you're ever in KK, I recommend a visit.