Category Archives: Travels

Sarawak

Orangutans @ Semenggoh Wildlife Centre, Kuching

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Take a walk on the semi-wild side of Sarawak, and come face-to-face with some “men of the forest” – the endangered orangutan of Borneo.

Semenggoh mother and infant orangutan

Ever since I was a young boy, I’ve wanted to see orangutans. These graceful, red-haired great apes of the forest captured my imagination. The closest I actually came to seeing one was when we visited the San Diego Zoo. Clyde, the giant grandfather orangutan, sat quietly (and forlornly, I thought) with his back up against the glass enclosure. It was kind of a deflating experience for me.

So I was quite excited to find out from my coworkers that there was a nature preserve quite near to Kuching where you could go see orangutans. The best part about it is, it’s not a zoo where the animals are kept captivity behind bars or cages. These orangutans are free to roam the forest park! It’s actually the humans that are penned in.

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Malaysia, Sarawak

Kompia @ Fatt Bakery, Sibu

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You’re liable to get fat, if you eat too many of these delicious buns.

Fatt Bakery Sibu

Besides Kampua Mee, Sibu is known for another favorite Foochow food: Kompia buns. These crusty baked buns are dense like a bagel but not as chewy. They come either plain or baked with sesame seeds. Kompia are made simply with wheat flour, water, salt and a little baking soda, yet they are simply addictive!

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Malaysia, Sarawak

Hung Kiew Kee Restaurant, Sarikei

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On the road to Sibu, through the verdant hills and countryside of Sarawak

On the road to Sibu

I wrote earlier about taking my mom (during her recent visit from Honolulu) to the Sarawak Cultural Village here in Kuching. Chronologically though, Kuching wasn’t the first place she visited when she arrived in Malaysia. About a week before she arrived, our good friend Mike told us that he was going back to his hometown of Sibu for a few days, and invited us, including my mom, to come join him. After confirming with her, we accepted his invitation.

The only problem was, Mike requested we arrive in Sibu on Saturday night, and my mom was set to fly in to Kuching from Singapore at noon that very day. It would mean picking her up, bringing her home for a very brief stop, then heading back out in the early afternoon to make the 6 hour drive to meet Mike in Sarikei where we would have dinner before continuing on to Sibu. We left Kuching around 2 pm.

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