To KK with Love

I miss Kota Kinabalu or KK to be short.

I miss -

1. the food;

2. the beach;

3. my buddies;

4. most importantly, the feeling of "going home". [Okay, I'm a Sandakan-ian to be exact but going anywhere in Sabah is considered going home to me =)]

My trip back home this time is to bring my dear friend, Jazmyn to have some fun there. We boarded the 2+1/2 hours morning flight from LCCT to KKIA and were warmly picked up by my dear Feiyi and Carmen. The 1st thing we did.. well of course.. was to EAT!

The amount of food that we consumed throughout our trip this time was beyond the maximum capacity that our stomachs were able to consume. I'm not exaggerating!

I think I was the culprit (if the girls read this, they would have nodded their heads viciously because after every meal, I would have suggested to continue eating somewhere else). Oh well, that's the fun of it, in't it? [sly grin]

Ok, so the 1st day at KK was to stuff ourselves silly.

Ka Hiong Beef Soup Noodle

Prince of Egg Tart

Me and Feiyi with YOYO Bubble Tea

"Mongolian" style crab at
Welcome Seafood Restaurant

Roti Kahwin at Fu Yuen, Damai

Sinsuran "Sang Yuk Mien"

Mr Waiter serving the delicious hot buns at Kedai Kopi Jeong Hin, Inanam

Pre-made Kopi 'O' bing in Carlsberg bottles

Just-Out-From-The-Oven buns

Our itinerary on the 2nd day included a river cruise at Kelias to watch the infamous Proboscis monkeys in the day and to dance with the fireflies at nightfall. I felt like a tourist back at my hometown! LOL! Credits must be given to our dear tour guide, Joel.  The cruise was not too bad but frankly, I won't go the second time (unless I have to accompany another visiting friend of mine). The monkeys were quite difficult to spot 'coz they were all hiding themselves way up on the trees.

The tour groups boarding the boat for the river cruise

I enjoyed the night cruise though (probably because this was my 1st time seeing real-life fireflies). I think we gushed like kids when we saw the trees lit up like Christmas trees. Yeah, we did. Just wished ALL of them were the Christmas ones.

The firefly that "flew" to us

Our "pro" in action. Some of the pictures here are Jazmyn's contribution =)

 

We didn't bother to wear life jackets or the raincoats. We just wanted to fool around. Okay, we were the monkeys!

AND a trip back to KK is not complete without basking under the sun on the BEACH! Feiyi arranged for a trip to Mantanani Island. An hour's drive from KK to Kota Belud and another 45 minutes boat ride took us to the island. The island was loveeeeeely - clear BLUE sea, clear BLUE sky and quiet with an easy number of visitors. That's what I'd like; a congested beach is never appealing. A day trip to Mantanani Island (inclusive of lunch and snorkelling) cost around RM180-RM200.

Mantanani Island

The fisherman and his son back from
the sea with their catch of the day
 

Catch of the Day for RM65 only!

Mr Lobster, sowieee, we "HAVE TO" eat you!

Cooked and served

The meat was juicy and sweeeeeeet! Goshh, the 1st time I had such a fresh lobster!

Carmen obviously did a better "kissing the fish"pose compared to me!

Fishy o' Fishy

We didn't dive 'coz none of us have a diving license yet, sadly speaking (except Feiyi)! so we just did some snorkelling. Frankly, there was not much to see inside the sea. So, we went back and chilled on the beach after that.

Followed by a series of photo-taking sessions by our talented photographer/director, Ms Joel, our day was very much completed. Let's just say, the pictures were definitely for private viewing only! Those were some hilarious moments though. Hahahaha

Hammock-ing with a good read under the sun

 

Caught in action by Jazmyn!

I had a nasty sunburn but am loving it!

"Longgang Panggang"

A stop we made on the way back to KK

Once back to dry land, we continued our eating expedition. Stopped for cold pudding in coconuts and grilled clams on the way back to KK. Our final stop was Tanjung Aru Beach. This is the much congested beach in KK where families or everyone else who wanted to stroll along a beach without having to take a boat ride out, will visit.

We had a durian, a variety of "jeruk", "sotong" (which Feiyi MUST eat if she goes to Tanjung Aru Beach) and a good view of the sunset before heading to the airport to board the plane back to KL.

Corn and Peanuts at Tanjung Aru Beach

Given that I was going to board the plane, I had only 1 'coz I wouldn't want to poison the passengers with the after-effect of durian consumption!

The variety of "jeruk" we can get

Sun-setting at Tanjung Aru Beach

So, well yeah, I miss KK!