Kota Kinabalu 2005

Kota Kinabalu | 03.01.05 – 07.01.05

We bought this package off Air Asia for a 4D3N stay at Hyatt plus airfare for only RM$298. It was an offer I couldn’t resist.

We touched down pretty late at night the first day so there wasn’t anything we could do. The next day we set out early to catch a bus to bring us to Mt Kinabalu. As we had previously booked this package, we could not take the climb up the mountain as it would span two days. So we ended up taking a day hike around the base with my boyfriend leading the way.

The air was pretty thin which made breathing quite difficult for me. Guess I needed more exercise. At 1000+ m above sea level it was already hard to breathe, I wonder how things will be like up there on the summit which is another 3000 m away. Set back for town.

The next day we took the ferry to bring us to the Tungku Abdul Rahman Park which is a marine nature reserve. We spent the afternoon snorkeling here and I actually got to see a turtle swimming under me.

The next day we signed for a package for horse back riding. It was my first experience and I rode a middle sized black stallion, Poppy. We took the beach walk, that being the elementary one. Poppy kept wanting to be first and it made me really frightened initially when he started trotting faster and faster but soon I got the hang of it. Well that wasn’t too bad for my first try. =p Then we went back to the hotel for a much needed rest and relax till evening when we went walking around.

On our last day we spent it lazing in bed and then more visits around town to look for last minute shopping and taking a hike up Signal Hill. I guess this trip must have taken its physical toil on us as we were so tired at the end of it. But definitely a place to come for those physical workouts. When I am more fit definitely.

Afternote 2012: With this author’s sudden craze for mountain climbing, Mt Kinabalu has become my personal mountain climbing aspiration at 4,095 m above sea level. I will not rest until I have conquered that peak.