Tangkoko Nature Reserve – North Sulawesi

March trip to North Sulawesi started with meeting my girlfriend Neja who was volunteering at Tasikoki Animal Rescue Centre. She could only get a few days off so we decided to visit a nearby Tangkoko nature reserve.

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Bako National Park

Last few days on Borneo we spent in Bako National Park. This is one of the smaller parks of the island, but one of the most interesting ones. It is a place where you actually do see animals, also the “furry” ones:) Read more

Kuching – the city of cats

Kuching was our last destination on Borneo trip. The city lies on the North-Western part of the island in the Malaysian state of Sarawak. It is a small city easy to navigate and with pleasant, relaxed atmosphere. After a rough travel to several national parks we could finally rest a bit, wash our clothes, drink COLD beer and do some souvenir shopping. Read more

Niah Caves national Park

Our next destination on Borneo trip was Niah Caves National Park. We wanted to explore the caves on our own and Niah Caves are a perfect place for this. From Mulu we took the flight to Miri and the with public bus to Niah junction and there we arranged a private taxi to the park HQ.
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Gunung Mulu National Park

Gunung Mulu (Mt. Mulu) national park was on the top of my “places to visit” list when Neja and I were travelling around Borneo. It is located in north Borneo on Malaysian side of the island. It belongs to Sarawak state and it lies close to Brunei sultanate. Read more

Sunset and nightmarket of Kota Kinabalu

Kota Kinabalu or KK is a base to explore Sabah, the Eastern part of Malaysian Borneo. We arrived to KK from Mt. Kinabalu NP and it was a love on the first sight. After three weeks of rough travel through jungles of Kalimatan we desperately needed a day or two in civilisation, to wash our clothes, eat some decent food and enjoy commodities of civilised world. Read more

Mount Kinabalu National Park

Mount Kinabalu National Park is one of the most beautiful places we visited on our trip around Borneo. We didn’t plan to stop here because we didn’t take any warm clothes and sturdy shoes for hiking with us. But we changed our plans when we talked to other travellers we met. Everybody was saying it is a stunning place, worth visiting.
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Transformers are among us!

I thought the movie was fiction. I was wrong.

Transformers ARE among us! This one is in Malaysia…

Mudskippers at Tarakan island

Getting from Derawan  to Tarakan island is an achievement itself. It took us the whole day and we used four different transport options; first we hired a speedboat to get to the mainland. Then we took a Kijang to Berau and there we switched to Tanjung Selor. In Tanjung Selor we boarded another boat to Tarakan island. It can be done in one day, but you have to plan carefully. Read more

Swimming with jellyfish and manta rays

Close to Derawan there are two small but incredible islands, Kakaban and Sangalaki. If you are staying at Derawan a visit to these two islands is a must. It is possible to make a day trip to both of them. Read more

Derawan Island, Borneo

Derawan island was on the top of our wishlist when we were planning our trip. We heard so many nice things about the island and also that it is really remote and it takes days to get there. Everything we heard is true, also the part of getting there. Here you can read what it takes to get to Derawan. Read more

Samarinda to Berau

After leaving Tanjung Puting National Park, where we met Orangutans, we headed to the East of Borneo, to Derawan island. The way there is not as straight-forward as it looks. We needed to get from the park headquarters In Kumai to Pangkalan Bun airport. Then we flew back to Banjarmasin. From Banjarmasin we took a night bus to Samarinda, which took us around 15 hours. We were exhausted and decided to stay one night to relax in Samarinda. Read more

Our red-haired cousins

Tanjung Puting National Park has three rehabilitation centres for Orangutans within its borders. It is said to be the best place to encounter these wonderful apes in their natural habitat. This was the main reason that we decided to visit it. In previous post you can read how we got there and how does it look like being there. But let’s get now to the Orangutans… Read more

Tanjung Puting National Park

From Banjarmasin we flew to Tanjung Puting National Park. It is supposed to be the best place in the world to see the Orangutans and this was the reason we decided to visit this place.
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Floating market at Banjarmasin

Banjarmasin is known also for its wonderful floating markets. When I was travelling in Thailand I visited Damnoen Saduak floating market, but it was a big disappointment. The place was crowded with tourists and locals were selling more or less souvenirs. Since then I really wished to find a true floating market where locals trade their produce.
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Banjarmasin canal cruise

Banjarmasin, the self proclaimed Venice of the East. This city was our first contact with Borneo on our trip to this amazing island. We arrived late in the evening and went for a short walk around the city. First impression was not really nice – the traffic is chaotic, nobody speaks English and nobody knows anything.
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Back from Borneo!

After seven weeks of travelling to Egypt and Borneo I am finally back home to Slovenia. Home sweet home! Borneo is an island full of surprises and extremes and travelling there was not an easy time! It is a special place that makes you cry in one moment and jump for joy in the next.

More photos will follow shortly, but for now just this baby Orangutan. His name is Peter and he is an orphan at a logging camp in Kalimatan (Indonesian Borneo). With my girlfriend we are trying to get him to a rehabilitation centre that he would get a proper care and attention. Not an easy thing to do!

Yala national park safari

Yala NP is the most popular national park in Sri Lanka. No wonder why, we were there for about three hours and yet we saw amazing number of wildlife.  I have been to several African countries for Safaris so I did not expect much from Yala. But I was pleasantly surprised by both the landscapes and wildlife we encountered. Here are just some photos of the animals I took during this wonderful safari.
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Dickwella – a hidden Buddhist haven

Dickwella is just a small town to the South of Sri Lanka. It is not on a tourist map although there is quite interesting temple to visit. My local guide told me it is nothing special and that we should skip it to save time, but I insisted to stop there. A friend of mine told me it is a must to see it.
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Kinari Bazaar

Agra is one of the most visited cities in India with foreign and local tourists. Its glorious Taj Mahal is a must see for every tourist visiting this diverse country. Most of the people visit just Taj and Red fort, maybe Fatehpur Sikri on the way to Rajasthan. But there is a lot more to see in this touristy city. Read more

Buddhism in Kathmandu

Praying wheels at Swayambhunath stupa.
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…of the bears and tigers…

Last summer I was visiting Guilin, China. Since my flight was early in the morning I had some spare time and decided to visit Bear and Tiger Mountain Village (Guilin Xiongsen Bear and Tiger Mountain Villa). It is located on the way from the airport to the city. It is not difficult to find it because of its megalomaniac entrance. I was told that this is some kind of a conservation project where they rehabilitate tigers and Asiatic bears. The place is supposed to have more than 80 tigers, 200 bears, lions, snakes and other interesting animals as well. As a nature lover I was quite enthused to visit this place.

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The greatest monument to love

This photo doesn’t tell you much? Ha ha, read on…
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Koi fish soup?

Koi is Japanese word for Carp, a kind of freshwater fish. Koi fish are found in virtually every Chinese and Japanese garden where there is a pond. The gardens themselves are usually quite lifeless; paths, ponds, stones, stones, bridges, pavilions, stones… There are also some plants of course, but not as many as in Western gardens. You will find Bamboos, Magnolias, Gingkos, Lotuses, Pine trees,… To understand the philosophy of the gardens you must know the symbolism in almost every object placed within the garden. My personal opinion – very different, quite interesting, a bit dull. Fortunately there are throngs of Koi fish swimming around and they offer some great photo opportunities. Some of them grow very big, they look like lazy orange submarines. Read more

Pudong area, Shanghai

Shanghai is one of the most amazing cities I’ve ever been to. One of the things that fascinates me the most is definitely its modern architecture. Especially Pudong is futuristic and in the evening it is even more attractive. The Bund offers good opportunity for photography and there are always numerous photographers trying to capture these magnificent views. But usually the air is so humid and polluted, that it is impossible to see bright sky. This year I was there four times and only once I got lucky with weather conditions. It was a windy evening so it was difficult to get sharp photo, even with a tripod. Here is the photo from that night (it was in mid August): Read more

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