Land Below The Wind

 

My nephew and a mate share the same birth date and I’ve always thought it’d be fun to have them meet each other. So this year I decided to make it a reality. I bought air tickets as early as March, six months before our departure date. Then in early April, I started booking hotel and resort. Still a long way away but we were going at the tail end of school holidays and looking back, I was glad I made the purchases and bookings when I did.

 

Friday, 20 September 2024

 

Finally the long-awaited day arrived. I met the kids (my nephew and two nieces) at the bag drop-off counter and we made our way inside. I had managed to get myself upgraded so I didn’t drop off my bag. We parted ways outside the prayer room and I continued on to the Golden Lounge. Alas, the bathroom was being upgraded so I had to go and use the washrooms outside and couldn’t have my shower.

 

I met the kids again at the gate after evening prayers. The flight was pretty full. We boarded and took off in no time. We landed around 22:35 and hiked across the airport from our gate to immigration. There was one or two other flights that landed around the same time or slightly before so there were a lot of people around. And oh yes, as mentioned previously, it was school hols too.

 

The bags took a while to emerge (this is why I try not to check in my bag if I can help it) and then we had to wait for the person with our rented car to arrive. There was a crowd at the door and had we known, we would’ve gone to another door but we didn’t know and besides, the driver would have to pass the gate we were at first. Having gotten custody of the car, my nephew drove us to Hyatt Regency Kinabalu. There were two other couples ahead of us so a late check-in wasn’t that odd. It had been a long day at work and then travelling but I only managed to sleep after 00:30.

 

Caturday, 21 September 2024

 

An early start because morning prayers are early in this part of Malaysia. I pumped iron then showered before going down for breakfast. We left at 09:00 and headed for Ranau. Oh my, the drive was challenging with road works, road diversions, bumpy road conditions in some stretches, drivers suddenly appearing from nowhere… we also had to endure being stuck behind a lorry or a bus a few times. Finally, after close to two hours, we arrived at Perkasa Hotel Mt Kinabalu. We stopped there and enjoyed a bird’s eye view of the surrounding area. It was breathtakingly beautiful. If only Mount Kinabalu wasn’t hiding behind some clouds then. In fact, we didn’t manage to sight it at all.

 

After having some banana fritters, we performed prayers at the hotel prayer room before driving off to find lunch. We were heading for H Benjamin Café when we saw the many cars at Restoran Selera Kebun so after driving a bit, reading the reviews and discussing among ourselves, we decided to turn and have lunch there instead. We had to park at some homestay and walk up. We ordered two set lunches and they didn’t disappoint at all. The only downside was the presence of flies everywhere.

 

After the satisfying lunch, we drove back to KK. Just like the drive heading out of the city, the drive into the city was challenging. We reached the hotel after 4 p.m. and rested.

 

My mate, Eskay, came to the hotel for dinner with her two kids, sister, brother and sister-in-law and treated us to dinner. Alhamdulillah for the rezeki. Much appreciated, Eskay!

 

Sunday, 22 September 2024

 

After breakfast, we walked to nearby Gaya Street to experience the Sunday morning market. There were many sellers selling pearl accessories, brooches and other accessories, plants, vegetables, coffee from Tenom, and other produce. After that, we went to the waterfront before returning to our rooms. It was only after 10 a.m. and already very hot.

 

We checked out at 11:20 and waited for the e-hailing vehicle to bring us to Jesselton Point. The check-in office location had slipped my mind so we had to turn back and then endure a long queue to check-in. In the end, we didn’t manage to check in there but boarded the boat with the other guests and completed our check-in at the resort. The boat ride took 15 minutes. After the welcoming drink and cold towel, we were shown to our rooms where beautiful towel decorations waited on the beds. We waited a bit for our bags then performed prayers before venturing out to the pool bar for lunch. I must say that the small tables were inadequate if you’re in a group and if you sit at the sofa with the bigger table, it’s awkward to eat too because of the distance to the table. The food took a while to arrive so much so I managed to climb the spiral stairs up to the library, browsed books and came back with a Lee Child book and visited the washroom too.

 

We went for a short walk after lunch then the kids wanted to go for a swim while I went back to the room to rest.

 

Dinner was had at Feast Village then we retired to our rooms.

 

Monday, 23 September 2024

 

After breakfast, the kids went for a long swim and I went back to my room and book. We were finally blessed with the sight of Mount Kinabalu in the morning although the clouds covered it up by lunchtime. I met up with the kids and we rode the boat to Tavajun Bay. We stopped first at the Marine Centre and learnt about the rescue, treatment and care of rehabilitated turtles. We then had lunch before my nephew and one niece who decided they still hadn’t had enough soaking went for another dip in the sea.

 

We boarded the boat back to the resort and the kids decided to do some kayaking. I headed back to my room. Was starting to feel under the weather and I didn’t eat much during dinner either. It must be the heat or some bug going around. Somehow finished the 510-page Lee Child book which I borrowed from the resort library before I turned in for the night at 22:45.

 

Tuesday, 24 September 2024

 

I had a brief rest after morning prayers before getting up to finish packing. Went for breakfast – still lacking appetite -  and took paracetamol after my meal. We took the 11:00 boat and arrived at Jesselton Point at 11:20 (the boat left later than scheduled). We even went to get our bags instead of waiting for the porter to unload them and the Grab car arrived just as we walked out of the ferry terminal. We reached the airport at 11:45 and rushed to drop off our bags then went in to clear security and immigration. Well, it turned out that the MAS flight from KL was late so I even managed to perform prayers before boarding.

 

Despite departing later, we landed at KLIA at about 15:10 and this time, my bag came out early. So much so I managed to catch the 15:22 KLIA Transit train.

 

Alhamdulillah, everything went well and smoothly and I managed to fulfil my dream of bringing my nephew to meet my mate.

Deepavali 2019 Weekend

I bought a ticket to Kota Kinabalu back in April and subsequently decided to treat myself and book Gaya Island Resort. CT wasn’t able to come so I asked my nephew, RH, to join me instead. I redeemed some air miles and as the flight back was full, I bought a single AirAsia ticket for him. We met at the airport on Friday, 25 October 2019.

The flight left on time and we landed at KKIA at 18:10. I waited for RH to disembark and seeing the long queue to clear the immigration, we decided to perform prayers first. We headed for the airport bus kiosk and bought tickets to the city. The bus was scheduled to leave at 19:15 so I went to freshen up first. The bus was already there when we left the building at 19:00 but it only left at 19:25.

We got down at the last stop and made our way to Jesselton Point. There was a night market that evening (I didn’t recall there being one on my past trips) so there were quite a few people around. There were a lot of cars too seeing it was Friday evening and the start of a long weekend.

We made a stop at Suria Sabah before continuing on to Jesselton Point. I checked in at the resort’s check-in office then as we still had some time before our boat was scheduled to leave, we walked to a couple of convenience stores nearby before deciding to return to Suria Sabah to look for a supermarket. We found one at the third floor of Suria Sabah, which I thought was a bit strange as supermarkets are usually either at the ground floor or lower ground floor. Oh well.

We returned to the resort’s office. A few other guests had arrived in our absence. We boarded the boat at 21:00 and the boat left shortly after everyone was seated and had donned on the safety jacket. We arrived at the resort and were greeted warmly by the staff. After taking advantage of the cold towel, we went to Feast Village for our late dinner. I dithered and finally decided to have steak. While waiting, I went up to the library to browse the collection and returned to my seat with a novel. We finished dinner at 22:45 and went back to the lobby before we were shown to our villa. It was a good thing we had performed prayers so after changing, I hit the sack.

Morning dawned early in that part of Malaysia so we woke up early on Saturday to perform prayers. I couldn’t sleep again though. At 07:30, I woke RH up and we then went for a walk around the resort before going for breakfast. We even found a small beach and sat down in the hammocks before returning to the lobby and then on to Feast Village for breakfast. We returned to our villa after that.

I stayed in after my shower and read my novel. RH decided to venture to the library to get some work done and returned at about 13:00. We had made booking to go to Tavajun Bay for lunch and our boat was at 13:30. We had satay and rice for lunch then rested before taking the boat back. It was starting to drizzle when we were there which progressed on to rain when we arrived at the lobby. We spent the rest of the afternoon indoors.

The rain was only petering off when we left for dinner, again at Feast Village. I felt quite full so was only picking at my main course. There was supposed to be a film show (movie under the stars) but because it had rained pretty heavily earlier, the movie was cancelled as the ground was wet.

On Sunday, we woke up early for prayers. RH went to the small beach to have a swim in the sea so I took the opportunity to run the bath and soak in. After dhuha prayers, I finished packing. RH had returned by then. We left the villa just before 11:00 (check-out time) and went to the lobby to settle the bill. After that, I went to the library while RH went to rest in one of the small rooms near the pool area.

We went to the Pool Bar at 11:30 for early lunch. We finished at 11:53 and rushed to the jetty for our boat back to the mainland. There were a lot of people returning at that time so we had to board the second boat. Back at mainland, we walked to our hotel. It was a good thing we managed to check in immediately, alhamdulillah.

https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/bkimd-le-meridien-kota-kinabalu/ 

We went out to the dry seafood market to buy some dry seafood products then went back to the hotel to deposit our packed purchases at the hotel store room. Then we went to Centre Point in search of an ATM (!). I walked on but RH decided to return to the room. It turned out that he couldn’t enter the room with the key card for some reason. I rang him shortly after to ask him to meet me at Wisma Merdeka. We then returned back to the hotel to rest.

I ventured out again that evening in search of dinner. It was raining then so I went to borrow an umbrella from the front desk. We had dinner in our room (very generous portion!) and had an early night.

On Monday (Deepavali), we woke up early again for prayers. We finished packing and went for breakfast at 07:20. I must say that the breakfast spread at Le Meridien was better than Gaya Island Resort (!!!). We returned to the room but couldn’t enter. None of our cards worked so I told RH to get help. He returned with a technical support staff. Well, the batteries for the room key had gone kaput and they needed to replace the batteries. But oh it took some time to do that. I went back to the lobby to use the washroom and when I went up again, the situation was still unresolved. Another hotel staff showed up with a laptop - I think she needed to re-programme the door or something.

Having managed to open the door, we quickly entered the room and gathered our things. The hotel staff were still working on the door but left just before we did. We took the lift down and I quickly checked us out. RH then called for a Grab car to take us to the airport.

It took us 20 minutes to reach the airport and I quickly went to drop off my bag and box of dry seafood purchases. I rushed in and of course the security queue was long. I saw RH ahead of me and caught up with him at immigration. Then I went with him to his gate (his plane was at 09:50, mine was supposed to be at 10:05) and a good thing too for he didn’t hear the announcement and was wondering which gate to head for.

After seeing him off, I walked to my gate. A few minutes later, I had a message saying that the plane was delayed... to 14:00! We waited for further announcement then went to a counter to collect food voucher (a choice of either McDonald’s or Jesselton Food). I decided to go to the lounge.

At about 1 something, there was another announcement informing that the flight was further delayed to 15:00. What?! We managed to finish most food at the lounge but food was replenished. We finally were called to board after 15:00 and I dozed off while waiting for take-off. I believe we eventually took off between 15:30-15:40 for we landed at 18:10.

My check-in bag and box were out quickly and I took the 18:40 train back to the city.

As much as I love KK, after the delay on this trip, I don’t think I’ll return so soon... (my last trip there before this trip was back in September 2016, more than three years ago).

Photos Of Gaya Island Resort: Day 2

Nature Walk. A couple of wild mushrooms/Mini stream/Crossroads/A species of the pandan plant (this species has fruits)

 Early morning walk. Gayana Eco Resort in the distance/Resort grounds/Mainland in the distance

 Signboard/Staircase for the Kinabalu Villa guests to the other parts of the resort/Lush pandan plants/Mini pond/Wet boardwalk/Lanterns

 Way past-sunrise

 A Bayu Villa/Deserted pool/Gym and a Kinabalu Villa

 Beach and jetty/Gazebo where I rested for a couple of minutes/Gazebo and boat/Beach

Boat ride to Tavajun Bay and the private beach at Tavajun Bay

Photos Of Gaya Island Resort: Day 1

 Leaving Kota Kinabalu behind/Mount Kinabalu in the distance from the jetty of Gaya Island Resort/A glimpse of Kinabalu Villas

 Pool/Pool Bar/Pool and sea

 Reading or relaxing rooms. There are six of them if I recall correctly, all of the same size. I stepped up closer to take the photo on the left

 The corridor leading to Feast Village, gym, Reading Room/Corridor leading to the lobby//Lobby/Corridor from below the gym and Reading Room

Room/Closet area (the straw bag is there)/Writing table and walkway leading to the bathroom, WC, two sinks and bathtub/Sink/Bathtub/Balcony

My Malaysia Day Weekend

I had earlier planned to spend the Malaysia Day weekend (3D 2N) in Kota Kinabalu and had bought the air tickets accordingly. I had also planned to go to an island but when I checked closer to the date of travel, I found that the resort was already fully booked for 16 September (I didn’t want to book earlier as my card would already be charged at the time of booking and I was – still am - a bit stretched these few months). The resort offers a residents’ package but for a minimum stay of two nights so I had no choice but to book a hotel in the city for one night and change my flight ticket to return a day later. I had to pay for the ticket reissue (RM100) and fare difference (RM6) so in that aspect, changing the return date wasn’t expensive. Having stayed at Sutera Harbour Resort a few times and twice at Hyatt Regency Kota Kinabalu, I decided to book Le Meridien this time for one night and then made booking for the resort at the island. I didn’t have much choice and had to settle for Canopy Villa.

Friday, 16 September 2016

A very early start to the day. I left after Subuh prayers and a very light breakfast. It was drizzling as I made my way to the bus stop for the bus to KL Sentral. I had to wait for a bit but the light traffic meant I arrived with plenty of time left. I didn’t want to get wet so went into Nu Sentral and navigated my way to the bus station at KL Sentral for the bus to KLIA. It rained on and off along the way.

I was so weak and hungry by the time I reached KLIA and went to hunt for food (the mug of Milo and cereal earlier was too early and too little). Alas, the Food Paradise was closed when I went to check it out (it looked like it was undergoing some renovation work) so I bought two Gardenia buns instead. I sat down to eat and finished my novel and buns simultaneously. Then I got up and head for my gate.

There was a delay in take-off due to the queue at the runway and I was surprised when I woke up from my doze to see we were still on the ground! We took off not long after and I decided to watch a movie (due to the late flight times of late, it’s been a while since I last watched an inflight movie) and finally settled on The Intern. Our brunch was served shortly after and I chose nasi dagang over chicken murtabak (I’m still cutting down on my chicken intake).

We landed at KK 20 minutes later than scheduled (due to the late take-off earlier) and I managed to get the 13:15 Airport Bus to the city. I got down at Centrepoint and browsed a bit before making my way to the hotel. As check-in is from 15:00 and there was no possibility of an early check-in as the previous occupant checked out close to noon, I decided to perform prayers first.

My room was at the 7^th floor and had a view of the sea and islands. I rested for a while, had a cuppa and went out after 16:45 to the market across the hotel. I walked around the market then continued on to the Filipino Market then the dry seafood product market before having dinner. I finished off with some durians before turning back. Before returning to the room, I ventured to Warisan Square and Centrepoint for a quick browse.

It had been a long day and I turned in just after 23:00.

Saturday, 17 September 2016

I woke up for morning prayers and before long, heard the sound of rain. It turned heavy at some point before petering out but it continued for some time. I had wanted to go for a morning walk and jog so I finally headed to the gym. But I dislike gym and I disliked the gym there with its leaking ceiling. I did some cycling and stretching then returned back to the room to shower.

It finally stopped raining while I was having breakfast. Alhamdulillah. I had planned to walk to Jesselton Point and was not prepared to fork out RM15 for a mere 1.5-km trip. I ate too much for breakfast though and had a tummy discomfort. Fortunately, it didn’t last long. I checked out at 11:10 and set off for Jesselton Point. It took only 23 minutes to get there.

I actually walked right past the resort’s office and had to ask around before I was directed to the office. I must say I wasn’t at all impressed with the small cramped office and having been to Pangkor Marina, I was disappointed that we were not given any scented cool towel or cool drink before boarding the boat.

We left slightly later than the scheduled time of 12 noon. The boat trip took less than 20 minutes and there was a small group of resort staff who were at the jetty to greet us and lead us to the lobby. We were finally handed a cool towel and a glass of drink at the lobby. Before long, I was attended to by Jason, a Filipino from Manila. He then showed us around: the pool, the Pool Bar, the six rooms where you can drop by to relax, read or have a little nap, the reading room and gym building and Feast Village where breakfast and dinner are served. Those on residents’ package can opt to have their lunch at either the Pool Bar, Feast Village or at Tavajun Bay, a private beach only for the resort guests. After comparing the menus of the Pool Bar and Feast Village, I decided to have lunch at the latter. For lunch, those on resident’s package can choose either a starter and a main course or a main course and a dessert. I chose prawn salad and pizza.

I only finished lunch at 15:35 and hurried back to the lobby. Jason was nowhere to be found though so we waited until another staff came to bring me to my room. Canopy Villas are on a higher elevation (Kinabalu Villas are even higher; one would really need to hike up to one’s villa but one is rewarded with a view of Mount Kinabalu in the distance). I must say I wasn’t best pleased when I saw my room. It didn’t have any view (except for that of some secondary forest); there was no sliding door between the bedroom and the rest of the villa; there is no outdoor pool; and I was expecting a different day bed. And the bedroom slippers were the common slippers that any three-star hotel would provide. Seriously, for the shitload I was forking out for the villa, I expected more. Maybe it wasn’t fair of me to compare it with Pangkor Laut but hey they’re both under the same company. (And yeah, I know I’m fussy).

I ran the bath tub, poured in the bath salts and unpacked a bit while waiting for the tub to fill up. I then had a soak but not as long as I liked as the tub plug didn’t plug in well and the water slowly trickled through the hole.

After prayers, I went to the Spa Village for the group meditation scheduled for 18:00. It lasted slightly over an hour and after a quick run back to the villa to apply my eye drops and use the bathroom, I went off for dinner. Unlike lunch, those on resident’s package can have a starter, a main course and dessert. The full moon was out and it was a beautiful evening.

The resort has a Movie under the stars programme at 2100 outside the lobby area if the weather permits. I stopped for a couple of minutes then decided to return to my room.

Sunday, 18 September 2016

I decided to go for a morning walk after morning prayers and when I stepped out, I found the ground wet. It drizzled lightly but not heavy at all to bother me. I wandered up to the end of Canopy Villas, turned back and walked up to the Kinabalu Villas, spotted a monkey, walked on, heard some jungle noises and took a staircase down to the Bayu Villas. The area around the Bayu Villas was somewhat swampy and there was a boardwalk that connected the Bayu Villas to the Feast Village and the rest of the resort. I also went down to the beach.

It started raining in earnest as I was at the beach and I quickly grabbed a brolly at the lobby (one thing about YTL resorts is they are thoughtful like that). I then sat out at the gazebo overlooking the jetty but got restless after a while and decided to return to my room and read a bit before breakfast. I went for breakfast at 08:00.

I joined the 09:00 guided nature walk and as there were about 20 of us, we were split into two groups. The trek lasted an hour and I learnt that there are no leeches in jungles near the coast. I also saw the ara trees, the tongkat ali plant, some lizards and flying lizards too. After that, I went back to the lobby to inform that I wanted to take the 13:30 boat to Tavajun Bay. Then I returned to my villa to shower and rest.

It was a hot afternoon when I emerged out and I hurried over to the jetty. There were only four of us for that boat ride and we arrive at Tavajun Bay barely five minutes later. The same two-course-for-lunch applied. I had kicked off my FitFlops and wandered to the water and then put my straw bag (provided by the resort in each room) at a beach chair. I was looking at the menu when a wild pig appeared. I had seen photos of them  but I was kinda hoping I wouldn’t bump into them (before my guided nature walk, the guide told me a guest saw a wild pig at the resort area that morning. Man, I was so glad and thankful that I didn’t bump into it especially as I was alone!). The pig went to one of the reclining beach chairs and snagged a straw basket. Luckily, some staff chased it away and I quickly went to rescue my FitFlops and straw bag. I spent lunch keeping a lookout for potential reappearance of the pig or its family member.

I took the 14:45 boat back to resort and rested in one of the rooms while waiting for the Yahai Pupuan activity at 15:30. I started reading my book but the heat and the recent lunch made me doze off a bit. I managed to get up on time for the activity. It involved stretching and breathing. I really need to work on my breathing.

After that, I returned to my villa to shower and rest. I went for dinner after 19:00. Thankfully, they changed the menu slightly. Imagine having to eat at the same restaurant for dinner every night you’re there! There are other restaurants (a Japanese restaurant close to the Canopy Villas) and Fisherman’s Cove but you’ll have to pay to dine there. Tonight’s movie was Terminator 3 and, well, thanks but no thanks. I wanted to read but was too sleepy so I turned in early.

Monday, 19 September 2016

I left the room just before 08:00 and stopped by the lobby on the way to breakfast. Each guest (including children) have to pay a conservation fee of RM32 for the first night of stay and RM22 for each night threreafter (inclusive of 6% GST) by Sabah Parks, an organisation set up as the caretaker of Tunku Abdul Rahman marine Park conservation triangle. I was hoping the fee would have already been included in my room charge but no such luck.

I had arranged to take the 09:00 ferry back to mainland and again, it set off late as we had to wait for a fellow guest/passenger. Back at Jesselton Point, we had to wait for our bags to be brought from the boat to the office. I then took a cab to the market and bought some dried seafood products and buttons for Abah’s baju Melayu. Then I walked to the bus stop across Centrepoint for the airport bus.

We took off about twenty minutes later than scheduled and I spent the whole journey up in the air reading. We landed at 15:20 and I went to perform prayers before collecting my bag. I hadn’t taken the KLIA Express since the price hike but decided to do so in the interest of time.

And so that was my trip to Gaya Island Resort. I might share some photos later (no promises though). Will I return? I doubt it. I wouldn’t mind returning to Pangkor Laut Resort though. Now that leaves with with Tanjong Jara Resort to explore next. InsyaAllah one fine day I’ll get there.