The cold one: Life's a Beach: Island Hopping in Sabah

I never bring journals nor notebooks when I travel. And this makes me question myself if I'm really fit to be a writer. Such lazy habit makes me forget essential stuffs like directions coming from and going to certain places, the fare price, and even the exact name of the food I've eaten. But never the experience, I like getting lost anyways and ending up on a real adventure :P

The latest wanderlust I had was in Kota Kinabalu. Me and my bestfriend went to Sabah for a splurge and to experience the South. And our main destination was Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park named after Malaysia's first Prime Minister. It comprises a group of 5 islands located between 3 to 8 km off Kota Kinabalu. The park is spread over 4,929 hectares, two-thirds of which cover the sea. Before the Ice age, it formed part of the Crocker Range mass of sandstone and sedimentary rock on the mainland. However, about one million years ago, the melting ice brought about changes in the sea level and parts of the mainland were cut off by the sea to form the islands of Gaya, Sapi, Manukan, Mamutik and Sulug. Evidence of this can be seen from the exposed sandstone of the coastline forming the cliffs, caves, honeycombs and deep crevices.

Jesselton Point Ferry Terminal in downtown Kota Kinabalu is the ferry terminal for those heading to the islands in Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park (Gaya, Sapi, Manukan, Mamutik and Sulug). The terminal was just 10-15 minutes walk away from the famous Gaya street where we stayed at.

This ferry terminal is also the departure point for patrons staying at either Manukan Island Resort, Gayana Resort or Bunga Raya Resort

Inside, you will see a lot of travel agency booths about more than 20 or so ( I couldn't recall the exact count). We first approached the nearest, coming from the entrance and the offer was a bit too high compared to what I've researched over the internet. So we told the lady we'll be back and we'll just check if anyone offers a cheaper price. And the sweet talking lady suddenly turned like a mad dog telling us we'll never find anyone who offers cheaper than her tickets. So 'go.... go', she said driving us away.

We ended up making the right decision 'cos we got the package for two islands cheaper at Island Hop Express booth. And the owner was really friendly he even handed his business card.

Everything looked so pleasant, the blue waters and the sky blue clouds induced an awe-inspiring feeling in me. I really felt I'm on a real vacation.

We rode a speed boat that jumps like a happy fish over the water. The sea breeze was relaxing, the sun's heat just right and the day was fiesta fine.

I had to pay a one time fee for my entrance at Manukan Island, I asked the lady if there's a discount for students and she answered, 'students below 20 years old only'. I could've lied about my age, I look young anyways but it's always best to be honest.

We weren't really able to to swim. It was too rocky it hurts my feet and Tunku Abdul Rahman is really for snorkeling. There were a lot of unique beautiful fishes there that just don't catch my fancy.

We were picked up by the speed boat early afternoon and transferred us to Sapi Island where we had our lunch. It was actually cheaper to eat in Manukan Island, but we were so busy dog-swimming we didn't realize it was already time to hop to another island.