Thoughts: Christmas

My Christmas: By AV Latinggam

Christmas Day is here again and as we all know this is when celebrants all over the world revel in spirit, together to celebrate the auspicious occasion. This is especially true for Christians. This is when churches of all denominations stand together to rejoice in their respective interpretation of that day.
Christmas in the tropics is always interesting. We have this vision of snow, and snow sleds and toboggan;  we hear about frosted window panes and the fluffy falling snow outside and of course log-fireplaces We hear so much about winter wonderland that, as a child, I always look up the sky and wondered if the clouds will ever fall and allow me to touch it. 

We had mists in those days when we lived closer to nature: tall tropical rain-forests,  thundering water falls and vast untended fields.  But no snow (!!)
Growing up, we learned about our location: nopes! no snow here. All sun and rain, the occasional floods, gusts of cold wind..but no snow. (sigh) So we made do with what we saw on TV, and like Bing Crosby's song, we dream on. Later we made do with Hallmark's pictures. My first Christmas card was one that depicted a Bambi looking at a small snow-roofed cottage sited under tall snow laden pine-trees. I wonder how rubber trees look like laden with snow. Christmas is not all about snow though; its about glitters and baubles and presents too. Or so it seems. Well, we see Christmas trees all laden with decorations and underneath it, there are the gifts all wrapped and ready to be given away... 
Christmas nowadays is so commercialised; so much so that during this time of the month, we will see Christmas Trees all over the city; on side walks, in offices and of course the shopping malls. They sprout out in their glittery glory and then the pipe-music begin to play: Jingle Bells, Drummer Boy, Silent Night, Santa Claus is coming to Town...which reminds me; Santa albeit brown ones seem to walk around the malls here during this time. This is especially true where some promotions for Christmas gifts are. Way to go Santa! 
HEL says Christmas is all about giving and getting joy from the happiness and appreciation that lights up the recipients' faces. I totally agree. Some gifts do of course end up on a shelf or worse on the 'give-away' boxes.
Personally I believe that Christmas is a day of contemplation, delving within oneself and seeking further self-betterment: to thrive towards the side of life that cannot be bought: health and well being; forgiveness and love for others. This day symbolises the birth of a Man, whose selflessness and beliefs led towards the creation of a religion, that embraced the world and made it what it is today. His teachings live on in a book; all that are stated within, leads to goodness and the coming of the White. Not just Snow, for snow gets old and trampled and then it turns into grey cold slush. And then nothingness.
Merry Christmas.

Sights and sites of Sabah

Sunset at Kota Kinabalu Sabah

Sites and Sights
By AV Latinggam

Tip of Borneo

From the highest mountain to the valley, from sunsets to butterflies, flowers, birds and bees...Nature always offers the best there is; in all its stark beauty...

Kg Tombulion River Kota Belud

Eco-tourism

Of Nature
By AV Latinggam

The soughing wind over the tree-tops, the swishing sounds of bamboo fronds, distant calls of children and the ever rushing gurgles of water flowing down the river bed; these are the perfect scenario of rural life which of course translate to peace and tranquility.

The Hot Spring Garden Hotel has this to offer and more. This hotel sited within three acres of land, is located at the famous Poring Hot-Spring in Ranau, about three hours’ drive from Kota Kinabalu, the State Capital.

Boasting eight rooms, this garden hotel offers a tranquil getaway where guests can relax away from the hustle and bustle of city life; read or even surf as they have WiFi... go for walks and just enjoy nature around them.

Its a perfect getaway especially for city dwellers and overseas tourist, who wish to savour nature and to live for a few days within the perfect settings, where they can wake up to the sounds of nature.

These typical sights for the locals are quite the novelty with visitors, so they become the selling points by the hotel to their visitors. With this in mind, the hotel is tailored with simple functional accommodations where four rooms are equipped with dorm-style bunk beds, while four others are family style rooms.

Hot Spring Garden Hotel

The dorm style rooms offer eight beds, on double-decker while the family room offers beds for a couple and a child.

To adhere to the local norm, the hotel offers two different kitchens for guests, one for Muslims and one for none-Muslims. The cutlery and kitchen utensils as well as the plates, bowls and dishes are kept in different cupboards.

Presently, a camping ground is there for those who love the outdoor as well as a shower in the middle of the field. It can be interesting to cool off under it during a warm afternoon.  Tranquil and quiet, it is the perfect getaway indeed.

  

Tropical Paradise: Sunsets

Behold the Glory....

By AV Latinggam

Every time I see a sunset, I feel like saying 'Behold the Glory of the Creator' and at times I can only watch in silent wonder. How glorious is the curtain fall in the evenings in Sabah...whether it is applauded by thunder and lightning, or with fine drizzles or a breath-taking sunset...

Sunset seen from Pasir Putih Putatan

A sunset seen from Tip of Borneo, Kudat

A sunset seen from Sutera Harbour, Kota Kinabalu

Sunset seen from Beringgis Beach Papar

Tropical Paradise: Islands

Islands on the threshold of Eden

By AV Latinggam

HEL at Manukan Island Jetty

Five islands to choose from within Tunku Abdul Rahman Park: Pulau Gaya, Pulau Sapi, Pulau Manukan, Pulau Mamutik and Pulau Sulug. They all boast shallow waters,  beautiful coral gardens and vast white sandy beaches. The sun beating down, the waves crashing on the shore; Gentle Zephyr caressing one’s cheeks….its the threshold of Eden with opportunities for breath taking photographs….Indeed these islands off the Kota Kinabalu Sabah Malaysian Borneo are a must visit.

Manukan Island 

Manukan Island

A tropical Paradise

At Shangri-la Rasa Ria Resort Tuaran
By AV Latinggam

Shangri-la, indeed it is: a long stretch of beach, sun and sea...glorious sunsets. Lounging on the beach, looking into the ocean, waves crashing on the shore: the gentle breeze and twilight: my favourite time of the day. A brief one night stay but worth the memory in 'forever'.

HEL at the Poolside

The Sunset at Rasa Ria

Halong Bay Vietnam: Pictorial

Halong Bay Vietnam

HEL at Halong Bay, Vietnam >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

15 November 2012.

"In the olden days, there were aggressors against Vietnam and God sent Mother Dragon and her Child Dragons to help the Vietnamese fight the enemy. Ships of the enemy from the sea rush to  attack while the dragons landed down on earth. The dragons immediately ejected countless pearls which turned into jade stone islands, and blocked the progress of the invaders.” The name Halong was coined in the 19^th century where it appears on the map drawings of the Gulf of Tonkin. In ancient times it was called by many names mainly Giao Chau, Luc Chau, Luc Thuy, Hai Dong, An Bang…

Halong Bay, Vietnam

Hanoi Halong

At Halong Bay
By AV Latinggam

Vietnam is a country worth return visits as HEL and I found out as we entered the land of friendly people.

Being Asian, and looking just like them, I did not have a problem blending in with the crowds on the busy streets of Hanoi, a city in the North of the country. I was spoken to in Vietnamese. I can almost believe the statement ‘all Asians look alike’ spoken by a Peace Corp I met a long time ago.

The city was a busy one, especially with incessant traffic made up mainly of motorcycles and bicycles. Of course they were other vehicles big and small, but the two-wheelers were king. HEL and I became an expert in dodging traffic within a day, even using the imperious ‘stop’ sign by putting our palms-up sign!

Our destination was Halong Bay, about 170 kilometres from Hanoi. The fare was 1.6million dongs, the Vietnam currency in a four wheel and about 100,000dongs on a public bus. Translated they are about RM233 and RM15 respectively.

The sights of Halong Bay after five hours non-stop drive in a four wheel vehicle was worth it. Our Halong Tours were on a boat called Aurora, a 14-room contraption that was more wish than ship but was comfortable and served the purpose as it was.

Halong Bay seen from Surprising Caves

Halong a UNESCO World Heritage had an area of 1553 square kilometres with almost 2000 islets made of limestone.

We were told that the people living on some of the islands around the Halong Bay mostly derived their livelihood from fishing and that they were presently actively participating in tourism.

When tourism was introduced to Halong Bay, the people had benefitted in some ways, where the women and some men were paid to take care of kayaks in their village.

Our guide Peter Qiet shared, “We can’t carry our kayaks in our boat all the time so we choose a village, in this case Vung Vieng Floating Village,  to park our kayaks. We then pay someone in the village to take care of it, against theft and such like. We usually bring our tourists in and encourage them to go kayaking in and around the water village.”

He also said that the villagers benefitted through their little stalls, either on the floating platform or on small boats that they anchor near jetties to touristic spots.

We visited the Sung Sot Caves one of their favourite spot to anchor, where they wait and hope for customers. They sold various types of foodstuff, such as noodle cup and sweets, as well as water and carbonated drinks, a hit with the customers, who came down from the caverns all hot, sweaty and thirsty.

A cruise boat at Halong Bay

The Sun Sot Caves was quite interesting even though the stairs up the hills and in and around the caverns were steep. There were some interesting rock formations within, with one that looked like a turtle. Some people rub its head for luck and left money around it.

After the trek, Peter took us outside where a few stalls were selling t-shirts and souvenirs, the standard tourist fare, but the scenery was breath-taking.

“So that is how we earn our living, and send the children to school,” he shared pointing out the little boats that carried wares in and around the bay, busily selling their goods to the customers on the various and many boats showing off Halong Bay.

The tour of Halong Bay ended on the second day after a night on board. It was an interesting experience, to see the islands around us, like ancient hulks fossilized on the water, straining towards the sky. The eerie quiet when everyone had gone to sleep was like a giant’s bated breath until he rumbles again as dawn approaches. The boats, big and small did make quite a din….

Leaving Halong for Hanoi in a packed bus, where long-legged people grimly persevered for the journey, I looked back once more and said a silent goodbye. I learnt a little about the inhabitants of the area, the struggles and their hopes, their wish to better themselves during the brief visit, thanks to talkative Peter. We share the same struggle to surmount poverty and to progress. Maybe Sabah has developed more rapidly and we are on a better platform then they are, but in all else we are the same. Maybe the Peace Corp was right after all.

Vietnam, or bust!

Tourism Trivia

By AV Latinggam

Most of us are very alert when we leave our country for another on a visit or any other reasons. Mostly we ensure that the expiry date on our passport is a few months in the future and that our name and passport numbers concur with our airplane tickets. The other thing is, find out if our host country wants a visa for our stay. If all these are seen to and processed well, travel we go and may the gods of fun and adventure accompany us, that’s what I’d say.

Interestingly this was what happened to HEL on our ‘Vietnam or Bust’ escapade. He had read that visas could be acquired at arrival…in Hanoi Airport that is…but when we tried to check in at the Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok, he was told by Vietnam Airline check in staff, ‘No, nope..na ah! Get a visa from the Vietnam embassy and come back…’

‘Today? If it’s possible…if not, we have the same flight tomorrow…’

HEL on the streets of Hanoi -03-11-2012

Stumped, unhappy and dejected, we turned back to Bangkok, waited in line for a visa, got a photo taken for the visa …nice pic by the way, made HEL look a decade younger…and then paid 2700bhat for the visa and 200bhat for the photo.

Meanwhile, we knew we would never make it to Hanoi that day, November 12…and so HEL had to call the airline to cancel and reschedule. The Result? AUD50 per person penalty.  It seemed that we paid a price for letting up on our attention to details.

The flip side of the coin was of course a day more of walking the streets of Bangkok and admiring the shrines and the stuff for sale along the walkway.

We re-visited the central world and ogled handbags, shoes, dresses and everything else available on the streets. At least for the day.

The next day, lucky 13^th of November, we duly walked into the airport again and without much ado, parted the clouds over Thailand towards Hanoi, Vietnam. Can you say ‘Goooood Moorning Vietnam…’? Oh, by the way, Malaysians don’t need a visa to visit Vietnam.

HEL at Ho Chi Minh mausoleum  14-11-2012