Day 265 – Kinabalu Mountain

For the next 3 days we are going to be eco-touristing on Borneo, the world's 3^rd largest island (after Greenland and New Guinea, according to this list) as well as the world's 3^rd highest island (after New Guinea and Hawaii, according to this list). Administratively, Borneo is divided among Brunei (1%), Malaysia (26%) and Indonesia (73%). For now, we are in Malaysia, but will go to Brunei for 1 day as well; that will be interesting, with all its oil and dry law, and generally being another random country on my list (along with UruguayJ).

Reporting from the inside

It's almost the end of my travel in Malaysia, and I still cannot get excited about all its beauty. It makes me sad. But unfortunately, there's no way I can force myself to enjoy the stuff that simply doesn't speak to me. I'm trying to find reasons though, because, seriously, look at the pictures – isn't it beautiful? Of course, it is! So, what the hell is my problem?

• Potential reason #1: Maybe it's too commercial? There are a lot of gorgeous places, but all the good pristine beaches are part of huge resorts, to get to the best diving island you have to get in line for months in order to receive a special permission, because they limit the number of people who can be there at a time; there are a lot of tourists on the hiking trails everywhere you want to go, and it's not even the high season; in general, nothing seems to be "wild", everything is part of some reserve or preserve or UNESCO recognized and fenced off…
  
• Potential reason #2: Maybe I am just hopping around too much? Lately, I like "lazy" time-spending. I don't care if I see and do a lot of stuff. All I want is to stay put in some beautiful and peaceful place and do nothing, just melt into the environment. And, of course, being part of this group doesn't allow for this. Our task is actually to see as much as possible, to experience many facets of Malaysia. Right now, sitting on the balcony and looking at and listening to the sea, I'm thinking that maybe I have been unfair to this country, and if only I had a chance to sit somewhere for one full day (preferably all alone), I would have fallen in love with it…
  
• Potential reason #3: Maybe it's just not my "energy spot"? When I used to just go on vacation several times a year for a week or a couple of weeks, I never had a chance to notice that some places make me feel comfortable and some, not so much. I simply enjoyed the new and the vacation itself (the only exception being Dubai many years ago). But now that I've traveled for several months in one stretch, I have realized that - without a doubt - there are some places that give you energy and make you feel powerful, happy, even talented, in those places you make some positive shift (New York, Cozumel and Argentina are definitely my "power" spots). There are other places that don't really do anything to your deep emotions: there, you enjoy and love almost everything but feel almost nothing. And finally, there are places that challenge your emotional equilibrium, make you question your likes and dislikes, your values, the ingredients necessary for your happiness… I guess, Malaysia is one of such places. As I was writing this passage, I realized that I shouldn't be frustrated with my not liking the beauty of this country, but rather be grateful for the challenges it presents to my feelings and thoughts.
  

Speaking of being thankful: one of the girls from our group gave me a beautiful gift – a little "thanksgiving" stone that you have to carry in a pocket (or a purse) and whenever you remember, touch it and say thanks for something (whether it's health or an opportunity to look at a blue flower). Just a tiny reminder to appreciate your life more.

Reporting from the outside

In addition to all the deep thoughts I have been thinking today, I also participated in all the eco-sightseeing: walking around the Orchid Garden (apparently, there are 140 kinds of orchids in Malaysia that don't grow anywhere else in the world); hiking to the waterfalls; washing my face in the sulfur hot springs (and then accidentally drinking the sulfur water that we put in a bottle for the future "facial" – now hoping that I'll stay alive); walking along a chain of narrow flimsy bridges suspended very high above the jungle.

Originally, we were also supposed to go to the Mount Kinabalu, but it was closed today for the Climbathon – a climbing 21-kilometer marathon up the mountain! So today and tomorrow you can only reach the top if you participate in this event. Therefore, we had to be satisfied with view of the mountain instead of the view from the mountain. I don't think it was any less beautiful though. By the way, the mountain name – Kinabalu – is translated as "Chinese Widow" and based on a pretty interesting didactic (for women) tale (I had to look it up on Wikipedia, because the story our Chinese guide told us didn't make any sense whatsoever, although we really made a concerted effort to collectively decipher it on the busJ).