TheOdom4 : July 2014

I started to write this blog when we got back from our trip, but then, as you may know, Gary had a seizure, and then a couple more, and so we have been spending time taking care, and meditating, and appreciating life, and trying to slow down a bit, because the doctor keeps saying that the root cause (other than the lesion) is stress.

And so, telling this story took a back seat, until today. Because tomorrow we start another trip home, stopping in London, Ireland, Wales, and while we are looking forward to it, we are also a bit nervous.

I guess it was a slow time of year for travelers to Kota Kinabalu, and we were staying in a kind of remote area, but for the entire week, we were at the resort with only about a dozen or so other people. At breakfast, we were usually the only ones, which has its perks... no line at the omelet bar, no line at the toaster, no waiting for water, but also has the drawback of having everyone who works there watch what you take, and what you eat, and even if they are not really watching or noticing, it makes you put back that second donut, because really... what if they are watching?!?

Another thing that the staff was considerate enough to do each morning as we walked in to the restaurant was to turn on Rod Stewart's Greatest Hits. And that guy really had some songs! I thought about writing this post entirely in Rod Stewart lyrics, but really, we didn't take a downtown train, or wake up Maggie, so I had nothing.

Here's the pool, also deserted. Great for splashing and making lots of noise!

Kota Kinabalu is the capital of Sabah, a region of East Malaysia. Because the islands of Malaysia are mainly Muslim there are lots of Halal food stands and restaurants. In Arabic, the word halal means permitted or lawful. Halal foods are foods that are allowed under Islamic dietary guidelines. According to these guidelines gathered from the Qu'ran, Muslim followers cannot consume the following:
pork or pork by products
animals that were dead prior to slaughtering
animals not slaughtered properly or not slaughtered in the name of Allah
blood and blood by products
alcohol
carnivorous animals
birds of prey
land animals without external ears

That was just FYI.

I had a plate full of veggies and rice, and while I was eating I was trying to think of which land animal doesn't have external ears. Do you know? Do chickens have external ears? What kind of rule is this?

R-Man was playing it safe by eating just a plain carrot. No ears on those. Luckily he wasn't eating corn!

Pooks also had some veggies and something on a stick. You are never sure what it is, especially here.

Last food stall photo of the night- sugar cane juice. How many of those can you drink? More than you think!

Another day by the pool.

As you know, R-Man is a rule follower. We call him OSHA because he always takes the time to read the rules and to insure they are adhered to. So, he loved these pool rules regarding attire. He said we had to take a picture because it was funny. Sexy Shorts are not allowed.

Ahhh... the day of our great fishing and crabbing trip. Here we go, on our three hour tour.

No poles, just line, sinker, bait. Old school. We decided to have a competition to make it a bit more interesting. Five points for each fish you catch, and ten for each crab in the trap of your choice (before it is pulled up). Can you guess who won? Let me give you a hint... it is the one person not born near the ocean in Florida.

Yup, it was me, with this beauty... the only thing we caught all day...

other than the bait in the crab trap.

Zero points for this baby!

Here is one of the many monitor lizards that were sharing the hotel with us.

The floating mosque. We didn't visit because modest clothing was required, but we had only sexy shorts (just kidding).

Downtown there are several waterfront restaurants with big menus, but all they seem to choose is burgers.

With fries, of course.

R-Man met this guy waiting for the bathroom and wanted to take a picture with him because he liked his shirt. It looked like a big candy corn. Who could say no?

Back at the market. More sugar cane juice.

Here we are getting foot massages. The faces are because we are all in one huge room, with like 50 chairs all facing forward, but there is this big Chinese guy behind us is snoring like nobody's business. We were cracking up, and just dying because no one else seems to think it is even a bit funny that this guy is OUT!

Here is a blurry shot of what it was like.

Near our hotel, at the Shangri-La Hotel, which was PACKED by the way, was an orangutan sanctuary. I cajoled Gary into going, despite the 98 degree, 98% humidity weather. It was the perfect day for a walk through tropical jungle, into a nature sanctuary.

So we join the line of sweaty explorers and make our way up to the look-out, where we are going to wait to get a glimpse of some wild (sort of) orangutans, as they come to the platform for some food.

In the brochure, they fail to mention that orangutans are mostly brownish, as is most of the nature around them. Additionally, the trees cast a mottled shade, that acts to further conceal the animals. That is how they have lived so long in the jungle, DUH... they are camouflaged... and so I have about 45 pictures exactly like the one above. Can you see the THREE orangutans in the picture?

I can understand why they have this sign, because after one hour of sort of seeing camouflaged orangutans, I was ready to wear a banana hat to get one to come closer!