We took off at 8:30 to go to the northern tip of the island of Bomeo. We drove east from Kota Kinabalu along the flat plain and passed through Tuaran where the main highway goes to the east coast. We continued north towards Kota Belud. The fields were full of rice paddies that were in the process of being harvested. Where the paddies were close together, combines with crawler wheels were in the middle of the fields harvesting the rice. Smaller paddies would be harvested by hand. Along the way, we saw a number of water buffalo that used to be used in tilling the rice paddies. The process is now highly mechanized.
To our right across the Tempasuk Plain off in the distance, Mount Kinabalu could be seen shrouded in clouds. It was very obvious why the mountain was so revered by the people of this land. Their belief was that this is where the spirit would go when they died. From the flat plain, we climbed over several mountains. As the road climbed alongside and over the mountains, we could see extremely lush valleys with small villages below. Where rivers made their way through the valley, the people had planted crops in the form of paddies, whether for rice or for other vegetables.
We stopped at a road side stand where we got some freshly cooked corn. The com had been cooked over small wood-fired BBQs. We also picked up some fresh fruit. Between the corn and the fruit, we were full.
Coming down out of the mountains, we entered another flat plain where palm oil trees had been planted. The goal for Malaysia is to increase the acreage for palm oil from 160,000 hectares to 300,000 hectares. From the flat plain, we climbed again into the mountains. The palm oil trees had been newly planted in steps along the slopes of the hills.
We stopped at a small village where they made the traditional gongs. In days gone by, the drums were made of copper and brass. Because of the high price of these metals, the drums were now being made of galvanized sheet metal. Technology has reached these parts as the drums were made in two pieces. The top part was a round disc that was pounded into shape with hammer and round anvils. The side part was curled using a roller. Both parts were then welded together, filed and painted.
Our next stop was at Kampung (Village) Bavanggazo where we visited a traditional Rungus long house. The house was almost entirely made of bamboo with a thatched roof of woven bamboo. The floor was made of split bamboo. One half of the house was a long hall. The other half was divided into rooms where the families slept. This one housed 11 families. When a daughter or a son got married, the long house was extended to include this new family. Over the door to each room was a woven band of cloth which identified the family inside.
We carried on to Kudat where we drove around the town before having lunch at the local golf course. Kudat is the former capital of Sabah (for only two years). Because of the long distance from other parts of the state (and the development of roads), the capital was moved to Kota Kinabalu. We had lunch at the local golf course and then started our return back to KK.
We drove down a side road for about 15 km to reach the Tip of Borneo. Along the right side of the road were about 2 dozen traditional huts that were used by vacationers. The white sandy beach was occupied by two dozen people at most, half of whom had fishing rods and Chines hats with baskets on their back. The surf was pounding on the shores. These people were catching fish and putting them in the baskets on their backs. The hats kept the pounding sun off their heads. The sky was clear blue. It was definitely paradise lost. We got out and took some photographs. The sun was pounding down on us and you could definitely feel the direct heat of the sun.
We continued our return back to KK stopping at Kota Belud where Mahani bought some prawns at the local market. We got back around 7:30 where we rested for about an hour.
Who did we have supper with?
