Ben Tshin

So I’m leaving now…

So I’m leaving on a jet plane, don’t know when I’ll be back again…

Yah, I’m leaving SE Asia for a short while at least. It’s sad to leave here esp. with all the friends I’ve made here. But I’m quite certain that I’ll see most of them again.

Anyway, I can’t fully reflect on the past four months. I’m still in the midst of SE Asia (I’m at Bangkok Int’l Airport, actually) so I’ll have to wait until I’m back in ‘Sauga and back in my old haunts.

Travel legs:
Leg 1: April 25, Singapore to Mersing, 5hrs by bus
Leg 2: onto Tioman, 1.5hrs by high speed boat
Leg 3: April 26, Tioman to Mersing, 2hrs by high speed boat
Leg 4: onto Kuala Lumpur, 6hrs by overnight bus (10pm to 4am)
Leg 5: April 27, Kuala Lumpur to Kota Kinabalu, 2hrs by AirAsia AK106
Leg 6: onto Tawau, 9hrs by overnight bus (8pm to 5am)
Leg 7: April 28, onto Semporna 1.5hrs by bus, and onto Sipadan 1hr by boat
Leg 8: April 30, Sipadan to Semporna 1.5hrs by boat and onto Tawau 1.5hrs by van
Leg 9: onto Kota Kinabalu 8.5hrs by overnight bus (8pm to 4:30am)
Leg 10: May 3, KK to Labuan 3hrs by boat
Leg 11: May 4, Labuan to Muara, Brunei 2hrs by boat
Leg 12: onto Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei 1hr by bus
Leg 13: onto Seria 2hrs by bus
Leg 14: onto Kuala Belait 1hr by bus
Leg 15: May 5, Kuala Belait to Miri 2hr by bus
Leg 16: onto Batu Niah 2hr by bus
Leg 17: May 6, Batu Niah to Bintulu 2hr by bus
Leg 18: onto Kuching 11.5hrs by bus
Leg 19: May 8, Kuching to Johor Bahru 1.5hr by AirAsia AK603
Leg 20: JB onto Singapore (NUS) 1.5hr by bus/taxi

So I’m still in Brunei. And once again I’ve missed my connection to where I wanted to go. Now I’m stuck in Kuala Belait, a small town of barely 20,000 and no cheap hotel/hostel. I might have tried sleeping on the beach to save some $$$ but I haven’t used too much since KK so I decided to splurge… I guess I will have to bite the bullet here, althought I would rough it if I were properly prepared. I should’ve brought that sleeping bag!

Okay, it is boring. A bit more life than Labuan but that’s trying. The bus came earlier than expected and I saw the “wonderful” Brunei countryside which isn’t as wonderful as the KK countryside. Oh well, I’m only in transit here anyway. It reminds me a lot with Singapore: clean and orderly. But also not much to do here either.

I hope the alliteration for this country is not Boring Brunei. No alky, no late night partying (hic) and an economy built almost entirely on oil. Sounds already pretty dead. Well hopefully it’s a bit more interesting that lots of golden mosques and more of the sultan’s gold. Zzz. Nothing to do but wait around. Zzz.

So. Plans are meant to change! I’m not supposed to be here. But I really have no choice about the matter. I was supposed to jump on another boat and be in Brunei right now, but that’s not happening since all the boats are full. it’s the May Day/Labour day holidays mixed with Prophet’s Day so everyone is NOT where they are supposed to be (including ME!). When I’m on vacation and travelling it’s not fun if everyone else is also on vacation and also travelling.

Labuan is pretty quiet according to the Lonely Planet but it’s even quieter now. I’m staying at Hotel Sri Villa (RM35). It’s twice the cost of Lucy’s Homestay in KK but only half the comfort. And there’s nothing to do here either. At least Lucy’s had a TV and other people to talk to.

Well, Plan A (stay overnight in Miri) and Plan B (stay overnight in BSB, Brunei) both failed. I should really stop with these plans that are a little… uneducated!

Anyway, the time in Borneo is my own relax time. I can relax here, or wherever, it’s just my mindset anyway. Unluckily (or maybe luckily), Brian Chung canceled me going on a medical run with some OM guys. That frees me for two days at least now. But it was good just to talk to him and he brims with relevance, especially with my Perspectives course. The tour around town was also an extra bonus too. Better than Lonely Planet. So if you want to see any city, you better know someone. Mr. LP doesn’t know everything like the locals do.

I am now alone in my continuing adventures. All that I have to guide me is my intuition and excerpts from the Lonely Planet. Life should be relaxing now and it definitely is…

The din of chatter and dishes is invigorating, for the short while at least.

I have finished too many legs of this trip already in the last week. But all that journeying was punctuated by a 3-day stay at Pulau Sipadan. Abdillah Sipadan Paradise. Dive, eat, sleep. Repeat. Sleep was good, especially after another horrible 9hr bus ride from KK to Tawau. Sat at the very back of a very bumpy and beat-up bus. We got “upgraded” marginally, that’s after Hongkyu and I gave up RM6 of food coupons. If instead of RM45 each way, we coudl have got a nice painless 1hr plane ride for ONLY RM100. (I’m being sarcastic. I need to save every last ringgit!) We saved RM110 (counting both ways) but we sure didn’t save our sanity.

Diving in Sipadan with Hongkyu was very good. The water was clear, 10-15m visibility. Lots of fish and lots of divers too. I got lost once or twice following the wrong guy. Apparently there were also lots of sharks, manta rays and barracudas which we didn’t see because we were sleeping in. The Japanese divers in our group got started at 6am… so I guess it paid off to wake up so early.

Our divemaster was lots of fun. There doesn’t seem to be any room for dour, boring divers (or divemasters either). There were so many good things to see. So lively. But we wasted that one morning sleeping in. That’s a no-no. 6am might be early but it’s worth it to see hammerhead sharks. Then we made a so-so decision to goto Mabul Island for muck diving. Good and not so good. But it’s all about the experience, right? *everyone nods in agreement*

Diving is a rich man’s sport/activity. Or for hardcore Japanese 6-dives-a-day divers!! It’s a beautiful hobby, but it cost me way too much $$$. I guess after diving Sipadan, one of the world’s top ten, I guess I can’t compare to anything else. Time to develop another hobby that’s cheaper for the meanwhile.

Already 6 hours in this city but I want to get out already. Last night’s bus from Mersing was horrible. It stopped every hour between 10pm and 4am. After arriving at KL, Puduraya bus station, I felt dead horrible, legs like jelly. Went inside to look for a place to sleep but 40-50 other poeple were already parked on the benches soundly sleeping. I finally found enough space for me to lie down and sleep until the police arrived to rouse everyone awake at 6am. I stayed around until 7am half sleeping as I sat. Then time to roam the streets. I’m finally @ Delifrance inside Lot 10.

Salang Beach, Kampung Salang, Tioman Island.

A relatively quiet island with lots of tourists. Tourists probably outnumber locals here, but I’m sure the locals are quite well off here. So much US dollars and Singapore dollars floating around here. The beaches here are numerous so all us sun-loving maniacs have more than enough room to laze around, just like me!

The place is dotted with chalets and the occasional huge 4 or 5-star hotel resort. Seems like this place has one sole purpose: to provide escape for all us weary hard-working over acheivers from Singapore, although there is still a large population of Germans here. They seem to be everywhere.

Now the only thing that’s missing here is a nice massage on the beach.