Basking At Bukit Padang

Bukit Padang is the name of a hill and the surrounding area near Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. It is famous for two reasons, the Tun Fuad Stephens Park and its floating seafood restaurants plus Sabah's one and only water theme park.

The Bukit Padang hill itself stood at 145 metres above sea level and frequented by many who took to the peak either by foot or mountain bikes. It is one of the best place to view the whole Kota Kinabalu city and I made it a routine myself to climb up the hill almost every weekend.

Climb it early in the morning and once on top you'll be blessed with this magnificent view.



The peak of Bukit Padang is a nice place to view the Kota Kinabalu city and its surrounding.

The Sulaman and Sepanggar area north of Kota Kinabalu.



The Penampang and Putatan area at the south side.



On bright sunny day, you can view the Mount Kinabalu itself from the top of this hill.



Mount Kinabalu is of course visible from almost every part of Kota Kinabalu.



The highest point or peak of Bukit Padang and couple of shots on top of it.





The area surrounding the peak is mostly flat with plenty of benches for climbers to sit and hang around while enjoying the scenery. Depending on individual fitness, the hike to the top takes between 10 to 20 minutes.

TLDM Open Day 2010

This is a bit late. Somewhere on June 2010 the Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia (TLDM or Royal Malaysian Navy) organised an open day for the public at Teluk Sepanggar, Sabah. It was a rare opportunity that couldn’t simply be turned down by anyone. You know how hard it is getting into any military base in the world without getting shot at.

So on a sunny Saturday I made my way to Teluk Sepanggar for a close up with Malaysia’s guardians of the sea.



Centre of attraction for they day is without doubt the KD Kedah, an OPV and the biggest ship in Teluk Sepanggar's line up.



On board KD Kedah with the forward or bow part of the ship and the turret of 76mm 62cal OTO Melara DP gun.



Apart from the big OPV, there are several Fast Attack Vessels. Fast enough I guess to catch the attention of the girl in pink.



Here is a close up of one of the gun on the Fast Attack Vessel, KD Ganas.



All the ships fly various kind of flags that stand for some naval codes, totally beyond my comprehension.



It means, "Danger Turret Rotates Without Warning".



On several section of the ship there are placements for weapons like GPMG.



The navy offer the public a ride on their patrol boats for a reasonable fee. Rare opportunity to enjoy they bay area of the base.



Also on display, some of the naval gadgets. Scuba suits and a Starbust SAM at the background.



All in all, it was a great experience despite the scorching sun. Too bad the Scorpene submarines are off limit!

Contest Giveaway by Nurul Khairunie

A friend of mine, who I haven't met for quite some time, is giving away free photoshoot in her own self-run contest.

Run down of the contest is pretty much simple. Send her 3 self-portrait photos of you, which then will be uploaded on her Facebook page and get your friends (and the occasional strangers) to vote for it by clicking 'Like' on the photo. The 'Like' represents the vote and the more 'Likes' you get mean the bigger chance of you winning the contest.

For more details on the contest, just go to Contest Giveaway by Nurul Khairunie.

Oh yes, Nurul Khairunie is her name. This Ranau lass also runs a photoblog, CoupleClick Photography with her beau and surely is avalaible for any photo job enquiries.

Here are some clues of what this girl is capable of, given the right camera for her.

Breath Of Life

I need to kick start this blog again (oh, by the way the photo above was not taken in Sabah, it was at Tanjung Jara, Terengganu instead).

The Kalology Of Keningau

So what would you do when you are assigned deep into the Interior Division for a 3 days and 2 nights assignment?

You bring along your trusted camera, despite knowing you won’t have much time to stroll around snapping photos.

Time constraint is the adversary here. Thus the only day where I am free to do what I love is on the last day itself. Which happen to be Sunday, which is the ‘Tamu Keningau Day’.



In these days of H1N1 fright, always come prepared.



Someone who has been to a Tamu in Keningau mentioned on lucky day, you will come across people selling python meat. I didn’t find any except for these two Labi-labi that will most likely end up in someone’s pot.





There are many traditional products on sale in Tamu Keningau, made by the hands of the elders.



Traditional herb known as Pokuntiou.



Sabah’s famous Tarap fruit.



Selection of seeds for your garden at home.



Even refurbished retro Japanese bicycle in some striking colour!

Kalology refers to science of abstract beauty. Thus this post will not be appropriate without exposition of Keningau’s finest.



Sunday morning sumandak went for Tamu in her cool shades and rattan basket.



Lovely sumandak of Keningau after Sunday’s mass.



And hot sumandak selling some delicious quail meat.



But of course, this lovely shot of Ina is personally the best for me. Who knows, she could be strutting the stage during her younger days in Unduk Ngadau contest?

God In Bundu Tuhan

Bundu Tuhan is captivating, mainly due to its godly name. Tuhan is what God is in Malay. But the name origin of Bundu Tuhan has nothing to do with God. It’s more about the fall of a Bundu tree in this place sometime ago. The name Tuhan is from the word Notuhan, which is Dusun for fall.

Nevertheless one can’t deny the Supreme Being as we drove back from Poring, reaching Bundu Tuhan at 6:05 pm only to notice the glorious view on the offering.

The cloud hit the peak of Mount Kinabalu, creating a pattern that makes it look like it is enveloping the peak.

While at the same time when u look east, strip of clouds strike across the setting sun.

Even the trees and cloud alone create such astonishing view.

The sky is like a huge canvas, where God paints on it.

And to the west, a full moon begins to appear on the darkening sky.

I simply can’t deny the existence of God in Bundu Tuhan, what with God’s finest creation, such as a group of four Kadazan girls to further testify on this.

And I fall in love.

Poring Without Portmanteau

Weekend in Sabah translates to wide range of opportunities for you to recuperate after 5 days work. And it usually involves something green, natural and exploratory.

Hence last Saturday I climbed up the twisting road to Ranau and paid a brief visit to Poring at about 3pm.

Poring is famed for its hot springs. But a nice warm bath in the pool is not what I had in mind, especially not during the school holiday when the area will be crowded with families and kids.

So with my fellow acquaintances we decided to hike the jungle trail to Kipungit Waterfall and Bat Cave, roughly 760 metres from the hot springs.

Kipungit Waterfall

Bat Cave. Visitors are discouraged to enter the cave.

Mamut River

It was nice to see the greenery and breathe the fresh air, away from the harum-scarum in Kota Kinabalu.

Visitors can also choose to go as far as Langanan Waterfall, 3525 metres into the jungle which also involve climbing up the hill. Apart from that there is also a Canopy Walkway which is 157.8 metres long and 41 metres high just nearby to the hot springs.

Due to time constraint I have to skip both.

Back at the hot springs I meet up with Park Ranger, Mr Palimin Barantis who share some tips on how to really enjoy Poring Hot Springs. Stay away during the school holidays and to really enjoy your tranquil moment in the pool, it’s best to come on weekdays, he said.

I couldn’t agree more.

So why the heck did I came here during school holiday and arrived at Poring late in the evening?

Well, someone tied the knot. That’s right, no more RS Café Kampung Baru Putatan for him.