Kuching

While in transit from Kathmandu to Kuching my stomach finally lost the war against Nepali cuisine. I stayed in transit for another two days (between my bedroom and the toilet) but recovered in time for an overnight trip to the jungle at Bako National Park. 

The park is only accessible by boat and comprises a several hundred square kilometers of thick jungle dissected by hiking trails. The stifling heat and 100% humidity made trekking hard work but the views across limestone plateaus and over secluded coves were worth it.

The park's other drawcard is the monkeys. Three different species can be found within a few minutes walk of the HQ including an army of tiny macaques which encircled the cafe and terrorized diners. At one point I was sitting in the cafe with three friends and made the mistake of putting an unopened packet of Oreo down in front of me. It took no more than three seconds before a monkey had darted into the crowded restaurant, circled around behind me, made a running jumped onto our table, scooped up the whole packet and made good his escape. Grand Theft Oreo.

Back to Kuching I headed out an orangutan conservation centre. Although I have never been a serious animal lover, being able to watch a whole family of primates interacting in a semi-wild environment was pretty special. At one point a juvenile male grabbed a coconut and banged it against a tree 7 or 8 times to open it. This attracted the attention of the Alpha Male who, in a very deliberate gesture, grabbed his own coconut, swaggered over to a tree and smashed it open with one thundering blow. The whole excursion, including a 45 minute bus trip and park entry, cost less than A$3. Unfortunately without a zoom lens I couldn't really get any great photos. 

Fortunately I made friends with a really cool dutch couple who did! I pinched this next shot from their blog.