KOTA KINABALU, MALAYSIAN BORNEO

We have a few days to kill in KK before heading off to the jungle, so for the past couple of days we've visited Tunku Abdul Rahman National Marine Park, which consists of five small islands only a few kilometers offshore. Some of the islands have restaurants and resorts, some only basic camping facilities, but all are known for their nice beaches, swimming, and snorkeling.

Catching a boat to any of the islands is a little tricky, though: Boats only leave for an island when enough people (usually eight) sign up at the ferry terminal. So depending on what time you show up, you might have to wait a loooong time before departing (and sometimes, not enough people sign up, so the boat doesn't run at all!). Luckily, Chris was able to work a few deals both days to make sure we got to our destinations. On Thursday we visited Manukan Island, and on Friday we did a two-island combo: Sapi Island and Manukan Island (again).

Both were pretty nice, although not really spectacular for snorkeling, which was our main reason for going. On both days, the weather started out sunny, but in the afternoon, the clouds rolled in and it rained a little. Visibility wasn't great, and on Sapi there wasn't much coral, but we did see a lot of marine life. Mainly it was the same types of creatures we saw in Komodo, but there were a few firsts for me: On Sapi I saw a creepy-looking snake eel in its sand burrow, and on Manukan I ran across a weird pincushion starfish. Many of the reef fish were also very "friendly" here--they would actually swim up to us as we came near, and act as if they expected us to feed them. Schools of damselfish, wrasses, and sergeant majors would follow us around as we swam, and one damselfish even gave me a little nip on the arm. What's up with that?

Malaysia Fun Fact:

• Most of the residents of Sabah speak at least three languages: Chinese, English, and Bahasa Malaysia. Which of course makes me feel really dumb in comparison.