You don't need a Kota...... in Kinabalu.

  The sun was just breaking as we glided towards KK.

 The only thing disturbing the silence was the buzzing of small boats zipping back and forth from Gaya Island.  An island not far from the mainland where the houses are not built on land but on stilts over the water. From a distance the shanties looked like they had just all blown across from the main island and come to rest against the shore.

Public transport between Gaya Island and the main land

Locals greeted us as we walked off the gangway. Instead of a floral lei as you would get in Hawaii, we were presented a with locally made beaded necklace…  Maybe we can use these as souvenir lanyards because we certainly have not received a Pacific Circle one from Princess (something about not being a world cruise, hmm I thought that was why we couldn’t use our future cruise letters).

Anyway I digress…. Traditionally dressed locals entertained us as we walked into the Terminal.  All passport processing was done by the ship, so we only had security scanning as we left the building.

A photo I couldn't resist.

Pat, our guide, met us at the port gates as they are strict on who can enter, and basically it is user pays.  There was a shuttle that you could catch into town but that came at a price. 

The tour we chose for today was a City tour and cooking class.  We had modern air-conditioned 12 seater van, a necessity in this part of the world.  To avoid the traffic jams in the afternoon we did our city tour in the morning then headed out to the village for lunch.

Kota Kinabalu is built on reclaimed land.  Their shore line and beaches used to sit at the base of the mountain that now forms the back drop to the city.

Our first stop was the Kota Kinabalu City Mosque, which gives the impression that is floating on the lake that surrounds it. The Sabah State mosque is another but smaller mosque that boasts beautiful gold domes upon their minarets.

They wanted to pose for us!

We drove the winding roads which took us up to the Signal Hill Lookout where we could get a bird’s eye view of Kota’s old and new skyline.  

A quick visit to the handicraft market was pretty much what you would expect to find in Asia - 100’s of stalls and each row a copy of the previous.

I bought this cute bag from this lady

As this was also a cooking tour, we needed to do a little grocery shopping before we headed out to the village of Kinarut.  No supermarkets here, everything is bought and cooked fresh. First we needed some fruit and veg, and as we meandered our way around the fresh market, Pat would stop and show us the key ingredients that are used.

The rows and rows of fresh produce is always sold out by the end of day. The bright colours and the smells had you salivating.  It was the prices that amazed us, as well as Pat when we told him the prices that we pay.

Next was the spice market, and as in Turkey, the aromas drew you into the entrance, wishing you could take bags full home.  You could walk through the aisles blind folded and think “yes this is curry”, “this coffee”, ooh and now that is fresh coconut.  You cringed as you watched the young boy crack open each coconut with his machete with speed and precision. Scared to distract him in case he misses…. Hmm he did seem to have all his fingers.

Approaching the fish market it would have been quite easy to turn and walk the other way.  The stench of fish was very overpowering (no wonder Pat gave us all a kafir lime leaf to crush in our hand to use as a neutralizer). I am glad we persevered, because once inside the market there was no smell at all… hmm or did we get used to it.

There were fishes of every colour, shape and size.  Crabs scurrying about trying to find an escape route out of their crates.  Fresh prawns as far as the eye can see. Beautifully coloured fish that you expect to find in a fish tank, Stingrays and little Reef Sharks.

The 20 kilometres to Kinarut was easy driving along one of the major highways. Pat’s mother, Halimah, owns a restaurant along the road side named D’Soka. Her family has been on this land for over 300 years. The restaurant has a roof, a floor, but no walls to create wonderful ventilation which suits the Malay climate.

Halimah and her staff warmly welcomed us and immediately gave us a cold and refreshing welcoming drink before we started the hard work of cooking our lunch.  We all donned our aprons, and as each step was displayed and each ingredient was explained, we all set about assisting with the process.  It was still Ramadan (no eating during daylight), and fighting the urge to taste, Halimah kept asking us to try each dish to ensure that it was seasoned well.  Not wanting to display any ignorance we smiled and nodded or shook our heads when asked more lime or salt.

Luckily we were only responsible for two dishes, a very aromatic and vibrant yellow chicken ayam and salad made from fern or was it fir … regardless, it was yummy, crunchy and full of heat from the sambal style dressing it was coated in.

Beef, prawn and fish dishes were added to complement our menu, finished off with what tasted like a coconut and vanilla milkshake.  By now we were bursting at the seams and as we waddled back onto the van, we made our farewells in the same fashion as if were saying goodbye to our long lost family.  Just like many trips back to ship, the scenery was admired from the back of our eye lids..

Sundowners white sail away party was a big event on the back of deck 14.  Table cloth covered tables and chairs were set up, waiters walked around with trays of finger food and the music played while we waved Kota goodbye. Kudos to Princess

And so it is “Sea La Vie” from the beautiful Sun Princess.

Tour : Kota Kinabalu City Tour

Company :  Equator Adventure Day Tours (check them out on Trip Advisor)

Email: equatorfpl@gmail.com

Pacific Circlers Gift Exchange

One of our Cruise Critic activities on board was a Pirate Gift Exchange.  The Idea was that everyone would buy a gift up to the value of $10. The theme, something that you find handy on a cruise.  

Most people put a lot of thought and went to great efforts with their gifts.  We had magnetic clips, plastic wine glasses, fancy lanyards, adult colouring book with Pencils (no not that type of adult book), fluffy pink handcuffs (yes, that type of handcuffs ) crosswords, sudokus, etc, oh and also that talking bottle opener.

 There were some who were a little unfair in what they contributed, and I felt the embarrassment as some gifts were opened.  It wasn’t till a couple days later that it was brought to my attention that a receiver sat down with his T-shirt, and on closer investigation, found the Princess laundry tag still attached.  This was quite upsetting and he walked out early.  Moving forward, I think we will ask for names and cabin no’s to be attached to the gift so recipients can be thanked in person!!

Getting that off my chest, I will now move forward and say what a great time we had.  Thanks Janet from the Northern Territory: her gift was her autobiography of her life as a part of the Royal Flying Doctors Service.  Well this gift became the hot potato of the day.  It was the most stolen gift where people didn’t get a chance to put their bums back down on the seat, before it was stolen again.  In the end it was easier to have the holder of the book stand up front with me! A lot of jokes and a lot of laughs.

Anyway, thankyou to all who attended and thankyou to those who helped make it a fun day…

And so it is “Sea La Vie” from the beautiful Sun Princess. 

Shout out to my beautiful Deck Angels

I am lucky enough to have a group of lovely ladies who are happy to deliver the reminders to each of the Pacific Circlers cabins. 

They are Sharon, Sandie, Ann, Loren, Larraine, Lorraine, Eileen, Keryn, Pat and Marie….

A big thank to each and everyone…

Oh but I do believe that there a couple of devils giving them a hand..

And so it is “Sea La Vie” from the beautiful Sun Princess.

Shellbacks or Pollywogs that is the question!

The consequences of crossing the Equator by sea is that King Neptune boards the ship along with his Queen Double D and his court.  Passengers who commit serious crimes are tried and punished according to the whim of the King.

Having become Pollywogs many years back, it was time for us to sit back and enjoy the show, while the unsuspecting Shellbacks get doused in chocolate sauce, flour and eggs.

Everyone was suitably impressed when our very own Captain Ricky took part, which ends traditionally with the Captain being thrown in the pool….  Those on our Ocean Princess cruise would know why I asked him where his green and red socks were, where he replied: “Peter and Jason took them” when they went down with the ship and defected to Oceania!

He who Dar.wins!

This was the first time we sailed into Darwin under the cover of darkness.  It took a moment but we  realised that this cruise started a month later than our world cruise, and sunrise was not until just after 7 am

We had a plan … well sort of a plan. We were getting off the ship!

This time, to make our way into town we followed the road out of the terminal then through Bicentennial park along to the Esplanade.  The park is home to many War memorials commemorating lost ships, lost planes and many lost souls.

The old out door Cinema... Garry remembers it from his time in Darwin

Lovely coastline

A bit of fun!

Upon reaching Doctors Gully we decided to weave our way back towards Darwin’s Chinese Temple.

The original Chinese temple was on this site since 1887.  Earlier cyclones and bombings from 1942, saw it repaired many times. It was Cyclone Tracey that totally destroyed it. A new temple was built and completed in 1978 to replicate the original temple.

Today several Chinese religions are practised in the temple, a sign of unity and harmony within the 

community.

Chinese Temple

Lovin that BBQ Chicken

You can feel the peace and serenity as you enter the temple.  Followers with their sweet smelling incense sticks praying to their deities.  One devoted community member even left a Woolies BBQ chicken still in its wrapper. I did notice one person open the bag slightly so the gods could be tempted by its aroma.

Memorabilia from the old Movie Theatre

Smith St Mall

After leaving the temple we headed back down to Smith St Mall where many fellow passengers were spotted with shopping trolleys full of provisions to see them through the cruise. 

After partaking in a bit shopping ourselves, we headed back to the ship. Walking back via the Esplanade, we passed Parliament House, more affectionately known as the Wedding Cake. This is due to its sparkling white presence. Across the road is the Governors’ Residence with its beautiful manicured gardens.

The "Wedding Cake"

Governors Residence

Keeping the old Facade the new church is built behind it.

Inside the Church

Ever Changing Waterfront

We walked back down to the Darwin Waterfront, this time using the lifts.  Each time we have visited Darwin we have witness the progress of the redevelopment of this area.  

There is the wave pool, a netted off swimming area that protects its swimmers from the local crocs.  Restaurants and Bars to tempt the weary travellers with a quick snack and drink.  Best of all is the addition of the covering along the long walk way to protect everyone from the sun… the only design fault is that the sun is on the wrong side in the afternoon and the shade is cast over the water.

Man Made beach fenced off from the Crocodiles.

Getting back on the ship with a bottle or two of wine was a little hit and miss, and everyone has a story about whether or not they were caught and charged corkage.

With a slight of hand, or quick step, Garry managed to take advantage of a momentary distraction and walked straight pass the collection desk.

With a couple more hours before we needed to be back on board, a few of us decided to enjoy a little more of the Darwin atmosphere (and heat) and enjoyed a pizza and drink at one of the restaurants by the water.

But it would be remiss of me not to acknowledge the great sacrifice endured by our good friends Marie and Mal, who walked back up all the way to Coles to buy a few extra folding chairs… bargain at only $10 each.

.

Making our way back again, the last of the passengers were browsing the stalls within the terminal for pearls, opals, crocodile goods and aboriginal art.  Marie and Mal turned out to be one of them, and as they made their last purchase they were suitably corralled back to the ship by a crew member, and just like an Indiana Jones movie, the gangway fell away behind them with each step, and they won the prize for last on.

Everyone from Stokes Wharf waved us goodbye.

Sail away was lovely, and in the daylight you could now see the Darwin skyline and notice how much it has changed.

And so it is “Sea La Vie” from the beautiful Sun Princess.