After 4 days in Kuala Lumpur, we flew to the eastern island of Borneo. This is the 3rd largest island in the world and divided between 3 countries: Brunei, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Borneo is less touristy than the Malaysian peninsular which I really enjoyed. We released our inner Amazon women and went hiking through lush rainforests to secluded beaches and kayaking through the jungle. That was a great workout; my arms were sore for some time afterwards. We went to the orangutan wildlife sanctuary to see the "wild man of the forest." This sanctuary prided themselves in allowing the orangutans to live in a wild and natural habitat but allow visitors the opportunity to view them. Every morning, the staff put out breakfast for the animals to enjoy if they choose to. If they didn't, this was taken as a positive sign because the monkeys are less dependent on the food. That morning, we saw close to 10 monkeys climb up and down trees and swing back and forth from vines. So cool. The monkeys climbed down to the breakfast platform before promptly stuffing several banans in their mouth and guzzling down water bottles. The adult monkeys were covered in a long, reddish-brown coat while babies were cloaked in short, orange fuzz. Orangutans are native only to Borneo so this was an amazing experience to see.
Borneo was a great time to relax and enjoy nature. Our hostel had a giant deck that faced a mini jungle so Marianna and I spent countless hours with new friends playing cards and hanging out. The majority of people we met were from Sweden and taking minimum 3-4 months to travel. I even met a girl who was planning on backpacking for two years (traveling alone too). I really admire these people because I do not know anyone who would take this much time off to backpack and simply enjoy. They either postponed work or college to indulge in this fantasy/adventure which I think is great for them. I hope I can be just as brave after I start working one day to follow suit. As much as I love Borneo, it's time to discover more of Malaysia.
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