Short trip to Sabah

Assalamualaikum 

Yay, I felt very excited because it was actually my first time coming to Sabah. We spent four days visiting interesting places near Kota Kinabalu and Kundasang.

We arrived at Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA) from Senai Airport at around 11 am. We rented two cars (for 9 of us) for four days and on day 1, from the airport, we start off our journey to Kundasang for a night stay at Kiram's Village. Whoa, the roads a bit of hilly and very challenging (for me!!) and it takes about two hours to reach to the homestay.  Throughout the journey, we stopped at Upside down House in Tamparuli. 

In my opinion, the upside down house was very unique and interesting, however, it's not worth at all. We have to pay RM10.60 (admission fee) and just walked for 2 minutes, very short tour.... and we were not allowed to take a picture (which is understandable). 

There were a lot of stall or restaurant that served "Sinalau Bakas" which is Sabah's most popular food (Grill: Sinalau, Wild boar: Bakas). They can very easily found along the way from Tamparuli to Kundasang. Beware (for Muslims). Kundasang.... very spectacular view of the mountain and cool breeze of air. Ahhh... I still feel the coolness of Kundasang fresh air... Ok. I miss you, Kundasang... Sobs.. 

Kiram's Village was quite affordable and very comfortable with four large queen size beds and two single beds. No fan no air cond (but it's okay!!). Blankets, pillows, water heater and TV were provided. A small resort but very beautiful landscape full of flowers and a pond in front of our chalet. We loved it so much... Highly recommended. 

The next morning. 

After a cold and shivering night at Kiram's, we checked out early and went to Desa Cattle Dairy Farm, which is just located 3 KM from our chalet. The entrance fees are RM5 for adult and RM4 for kids. Breathtaking and mesmerizing scenery that you don't see every day. The green grass with the beautiful landscape of Mount Kinabalu...Also the moo moo.. That's why this place is called "New Zealand of Sabah". We also bought some Desa product; gelato, fresh milk, yogurt and pudding. Everything was fresh and so good. There are other activities such as feeding the calves and goats with milk and grass. For me, this place is a worthy place to visit. Love love lovee.. 

Next, another place in the list is Poring Hot Spring. It's almost 40KM away from Desa Cattle Dairy Farm and it's quite far. The admission fees of RM3 were charges to the visitors. Hot spring is not only the attraction here, we can also explore the Poring Canopy Walkway. The climbing up to the canopy walk was very tiring but exciting too and they enjoyed the canopy walk (i don't like it. I gayat..)

We decided to go back to Kota Kinabalu and I planned to drop by at the famous Lokan panggang and puding kelapa however due to the constraint of time, we didn't manage to make it. Maybe next time :(. At KK, we stayed at Farhana Homestay at Api-api Apartment. It's conveniently located near to Mc Donalds, shopping malls, Pasar Philippines and Jesselton Point. The homestay is provided with two bedrooms and bathrooms, as well as water heater and air conditioner in every bedroom. It's also provided with washing machine, refrigerator, and kitchen. We also rented cars from the same owner of the homestay. I felt a little bit frustrated because they didn't provide a parking lot or parking coupon. The next day, we have been charges because we didn't put the parking coupon. And we have to pay for it. At least, the rented company need to prepare that parking coupon because we don't frequently come to KK. We rent your car--you give the coupon (win-win situation). 

We spent the night with.. seafood! Based on my friend's 'research', Hj Manja Restaurant,  which is located at Todak Waterfront is famous for their delicious and affordable price. We ordered a lot! It's delicious but we think the service is too slow and not all ordered food received, however, the price were reasonable and the staffs were mesra alam. :P 

The next day

We decided to go for island hoping at Tuanku Abdul Rahman Marine Park. We went to three islands (Pulau Sapi, Manukan and Mamutik) and paid RM50/pax (student price, yay!) inclusive boat, life jacket and snorkeling equipment. It was a great experienced and mesmerizing view, especially at Manukan Island. However, the weather was turning stormy and we were advised to return back to the Jesselton Point jetty as soon as possible. 

It was a great experience for a first-time visitor (like us) to Sabah. Of course lah tak puas! Ada banyak tempat menarik yang kami tak sempat nak pergi.. Haihh... Till then, bye!!