Wildlife adventures at Naturelodge, Kg. Bilit, Kinabatangan & The Sandakan Trail

Photograph of myself, HK Wan, my niece, Wan Pik Ki, my elder sister, Lai Meng, my son, Wai Yan and my wife, Sow Lan taken Sandakan Harbour Square (facing Sandakan Bay)

Our Travel: 22nd to 26th August 2009 during the School Holidays

Our Group: HK Wan & Family (Wife: Sow Lan, Son: Wai Yan), my elder sister, Lai Meng, my younger sister, Lai Ling and my niece, Wan Pik Ki.

Our return fare: Special return fare of RM 60.00 per person via Air Asia. As flight was at 7.15am, we stayed the previous night at Tune Hotel, LCCT at a special rate of RM 16.18 per double occupancy. Also, it cost us RM 1/person for transportation to the LCCT.

Our Accomodation:
1) The Nature Lodge, Kampung Bilit, Kinabatangan
2) Sea Front Hotel, Sandakan Town @ RM 69/Room c/w 2 breakfasts & free Wifi

Photograph of my wife, my son & myself taken at Kun Yam Temple - one of the Sandakan Attractions within the famous Sandakan Walking Trail. It took us about 90 minutes to complete the entire Sandakan Trail including stopovers for taking photographs.

Photographs of the 2 (two) Orang Utans at the Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabitation Centre. As our visit coincide with the fruiting season, only 2 orang utans turned up at the Rehabitation Centre during mealtime at 10.00am. The primates prefer the seasonal jungle fruits rather than the usual diets provided at the Rehabitation Centre.

During one of our morning cruises, we managed to see 2 (two) orangutans in the wild. However, before I could video or photographed them, they disappeared in the thick secondary jungle.

Photograph taken at the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabitation Centre. It cost RM 4/adult for mini bus transportation from Sandakan Town to this centre. The admission fee was RM 30/foreigners and RM 5 for Malaysians & RM 2 for child. However, the camera or video's fee was RM 10 per unit.

Photograph showing a group of Proboscis Monkeys during our wildlife adventure. Proboscis primates are only found in Borneo (Sabah & Sarawak) and Kalimantan in Indonesia.

Photograph showing a herd of Pygmy Elephants in the wild. The pygmy elephants are only found in this part of the world. They are the smallest elephants in the world and their size are about that of a water buffalo.

Another photograph sh0wing a herd of pygmy elephants in the wild of Kinabatanagan. According to boatman, this was our lucky day to see such a large herd of pygmy elephants. Occasionally, due to their small stature, you can only partly see the elephants as they are blocked by the tall grass. At certain time of the year, the pygmy elephants may not appear at all for almost a month.

Our Lodge - The Nature Lodge, Kampung Bilit,Kinatatangan.
Our accomodation consist of a chalet with 2 (two) twin beds and built-in bathroom cum toilet. There is no TV, no internet, no access to mobile phones, no newspaper, really peaceful and keep us fully concentrated on the wildlife adventure, jungle trekking, etc. However, there was electricity supply throughout.

The cost of our accomodation was RM 315/person - a special rate for Malaysian only with a 20% discount for my 11 years old son. The foreigners pays much higher than us (due to a special discount). The cost include all meals, 2 wildlife cruises per day, jungle trekking and night walk (with jungle boots provided). Also, pick-up from Sandakan Town or Airport cost us an extra RM 15/adult (child: FOC)

Photograph of my wife, Sow Lan and son, Wai Yan cruising along the Kinabatangan River in the drizzling rain (in search of wildlife). Various wildlife were sighted during our cruises such as various primates like orang utans, proboscis, the long tailed macaques, the pig-tailed macaques, silver leaf monkeys, herons, king-fishers, various hornbills , eagles, etc. However, the most exciting adventure was sighting a large herd of pygmy elephants in the wild. A crocodile was also seen but moved away as soon as noticed.

Photograph of my wife, Sow Lan and son, Wai Yan resting within the locality of an ox-bow lake after a strenuous 90 minutes of jungle trekking. At this resting place, a blood-sucking leech managed to crawl to my son's navel but it was laughter all the way.

Another photograph of my wife and son cruising along the Kinabatangan River. My son was also enjoying his Sony's PSP Playstation during the cruise.

We left Sandakan on 26 August 2009 by a non air-con minibus and it cost us RM 1.50/person and the bus stopped right up to the departure hall of Sandakan Airport. In all our budget travels, this is our cheapest transportation to any airport.

It was a real wildlife experience for our 6 (six) members group as we were the only Malaysians amongst the caucasians during our stay at The Nature Lodge. Also, my 11 years old son enjoyed during this Wildlife Adventure at The Nature Lodge, Kampung Bilit, Kinabatangan.

Posted by HK Wan (Email: hengkei@gmail.com) on 7th September 2009

Free & Easy Travel to Yogyakarta from 5th to 8th June 2009

Buddha's statue in one of the opened Stupa within Borobudur Temple Complex.



Photograph of myself taken inside the Prambanan Temple Complex.



Myself, HK Wan, my elder brother, Heng Wah and my elder sister, Lai Meng taken at the Borobudur Temple Complex.

We planned our budgetted self-tour to Yogyakarta or Joyga about 9 months prior to our Air Asia Flight on 5 June 2009. Our return tickets cost us RM 220/person (excl. airport tax at Jogya) despite it was during the School Holidays so that my younger sister, Lai Ling - a teacher could accompany us.

There were 4 (four) of us, namely, my elder brother, Heng Wah, my elder sister, Lai Meng, my younger sister, Lai Ling and myself, HK Wan

On arrival at Adisucipto International Airport, we took the Prambanan Express Train to Tugu Railway Station at Joyya. It cost us Rupiah 7000/person. Our first ride on an Indonesian Train (although we travelled regularly by trains in other countries like Thailand, China, etc) . On arrival, we walked to our budget hotel, Mataram Hotel and stayed there for 3 (three) nights.

The next day, we booked a 7-seater MPV for our full day tour within Jogya, viz. The Buddhism Borobudur Temple Complex, The Hindu Prambanan Temple Complex, Merapi Volcano, etc. it cost us Rupiah 412,000/person including all entrance fees (excl. lunch). It was so easy as the tour operator was located right opposite our hotel.

The next day, we went on our walking tour within Jogya and visited various tourist attractions such as Jogya's famous Malioboro Street, Vredeburg Fort, Beriningharjo market, The Independence Monument, The Palace or Kraton, etc. We returned by horse-cart @ Rupiah 30,00 for the 4 (four) of us.



Photograph of my younger sister, Lai Ling taken at Tugu Railway Station, Yogya. This is the Prambanan Express Train from Jogya to Solo or Surakarta; a distance of approx. 60 Kilometres. The cost of the train ticket is fixed at Rupiah 7000, irrespective of the number of stops

My recommendation is that should you travel by air to either Yogya or Solo, you should not miss the cheap train transportation between the 2 cities @ Rupiah 7000/trip. The trains are regular scheduled and you should plan your holidays by visiting the best of both cities at budget prices.




Photograph of my younger sister, Lai Ling taken outside our budget hotel, Mataram Hotel. It cost us Rupiah 275,000 per night inclusive of a simple breakfast plus free WIFI.

This hotel is located just diagonally opposite the rear exit (for motor cycles parking). We were not aware of this exit. On our arrival, we just followed the crowd via the main entrance and ended up taking a 20 minutes walk to our hotel (instead of less than 1 minute) if we exited via the rear entrance.

Posted by HK Wan on 7 September 2009

Free and Easy Holidays at Pattaya & Bangkok from 16th - 20th july 2009

My brother, Heng Wan, Sister-in-law, Rina, myself, HK Wan and my sister, Lai Meng cruising at Pattaya, Thailand on our way to Coral Island

Photograph of my brother’s family taken at The Grand Palace, Bangkok.

Left: My nephew, Wai Onn, Sister-in-law, Rina, Brother, Heng Wan and nephew, Wai Kit

Reasonable Western Breakfast at Pattaya @ Baht 60 per person. You can have various choices consisting of 2 pieces of toast with butter & jam, coffee or tea, plus bacon, ham, sausages and 2 eggs cooked in various styles.
The most reasonable and delicious Western breakfast at Pattaya at Baht 60/person. We can hardly find similar breakfast in Malaysia at similar prices.

We had a simple and economical 5 Days/4 Nights trip to Pattaya and Bangkok from 16th - 20th July 2009. Our group consisted by my younger brother & family, i.e. Heng Wan, Sister-in-law, Rina Chee and my 2 nephews, Wai Onn & Wai Kit plus my elder sister, Lai Meng and myself, Heng Kei.
We arrived at Bangkok Airport, cleared immigration and then took the airport shuttle bus to the transportation centre. From here, we boarded the Pattaya Bus @ Baht 106/each. On arrival, we took a Tut-tuk to our guesthouse - The Victoria Inn, Soi 6, Pattaya. It was a reasonable guesthouse with free wifi and cost us Baht 600/standard room. The next day, we had an economical tour to Coral Island, etc. plus lunch @ Baht 400 per person.

We left Pattaya on 18 July 2009 by Bus directly to Ekamai Eastern Bus station @ Baht 113/person. On arrival, took another bus to our guesthouse, The Riverview Guesthouse which was nearby Hualamphong Railway Station and Chinatown - which were our usual places of accomodation within Bangkok due to the reasonable food, shopping, easy transportation within Bangkok. The cost of our guesthouse was Baht 650/standard room. As usual, we had our usual Chao Phraya River Taxi ride to The Grand Palace and the nearby attractions.
We left Bangkok via our usual economical travel via train from Hualamphong to Hua Takhe @ Baht 7 person for almost an hour ride to this station. However, we were surprised that they have stopped the usual bus service from this station to Airport transportation centre (usual: Baht 15/person) but nevertheless, taxi services are available from here to the airport and it cost us a reasonable Baht 100/taxi right up to the airport.

Posted on 7 Sept 2009

The Museum of the Former Residence of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen, Cuiheng Cun, Zhongshan, Guangdong

My elder sister, Lai Meng, my younger sister, Lai Ling & myself, HK Wan travelled from Jiangmen to Cuiheng Village. We took the bus from Jiangmen Station to Zhongshan @ RMB 16/person and from there. we boarded Bus No. 12 to The Museum of the Former Residence of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen, Cuiheng Cun. The journey took about 1 hour and the fare was RMB 5.50 per person. You can never miss this place as the Museum is on the main road and can be clearly seen from the bus stop.
On the day, 21/3/09, we were surprised that the entrance charges was free-of-charge, perhaps to commemorate Dr. Sun's death anniversary on 12 March 1925. The previous trip, I visited here was almost 4 years ago on 1st July 2005. I came with my octogenarian father and my elder brother and we were taking my father back to our Ancestral Hometown at Jiangmen, Guangdong. We came by mini bus from Gongbei @ RMB 10/person and the mini bus stopped right in front of The Museum of the former residence of Dr. Sun. At that time, the entrance fee was RMB 20 each for my elder brother & myself whereas my elderly father need not pay any entrance fee at all.

This museum is the most visited touristic site within Zhongsan Perfectural City. No trip to Zhongshan is complete without a visit here. Dr. Sun Yat-sen was born in Cuiheng village in 1866. He headed the Chinese Revolution that overthrew the Qing dynasty in 1911 and was sworn in as the Provisional President of The Government of The Republic of China on 1st January 1912. He also co-founded the Kuomintang (KMT) where he served as its first leader. He was also a uniting figure in post-Imperial China and well revered in both Mainland China, Taiwan and by overseas Chinese in Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Malaya, Thailand, Indonesia, America, etc.

The Museum of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, consisting of the Former Residence of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, Cuiheng Folk House Exhibition and the Cuiheng Farming Exhibition, is a national protected cultural site to commemorate Dr. Sun Yat-sen.

The Former Residence of Dr. Sun Yat-sen
The Former Residence of Dr. Sun Yat-sen is a distinctive two-storey building. Dr. Sun lived here from 1892 to 1895, when he practiced medicine and engaged in revolutionary activities in the Pearl River Delta. There are many legacies about Dr. Sun’s childhood, his family, and his early education. The Former Residence is maintained exactly the same as the original look. In 1986, the Former Residence of Dr. Sun Yat-sen was ranked by the State Department “National Protected Cultural Site”.

Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall
This Memorial Hall was built with the 40 million yuan raised by the municipal government and upon the approval of the State Administration of Cultural Relics. On exhibition here are the valuable historical photos and real objects reflecting the life of Sun Yat-sen. Equipped with advanced equipment, this is a modern multifunctional exhibition hall. The exhibition hall provides fascinating insights into the history of Chinese nationalism and an introduction to Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s life story, deeds, personality, thought and theory and revolutionary activities under his leadership. On the second floor is the exhibition of “Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s Relatives and Descendants”, reflecting their great support and contribution to the revolution and their sacrifice for the revolution led by Dr. Sun. The second floor also has rooms for temporary exhibitions.


Photographs of myself taken at Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall

Photograph of China's most famous "Soong Sisters" taken at Dr Sun Yat-sen's Memorial Hall.

The 3 sisters, namely the eldest, Soong Ai-ling, the second sister, Soong Ching-ling and the youngest, Soong Mei-ling were the daughters of American educated Methodist Minister, Mr. Charlie Soong who made a fortune in banking and printing. Their mother was Ni Kwei-tseng.

In the 1930s, Soong Ai-ling and her sister, Mei-ling were the two richest women in China at that time. Both of them supported the Nationalists, while Soong Ching-ling later sided with the CPC. Eldest Sister, Ai-ling was the one who loves "money", she married the richest man and Finance Minister in China, H.H. Kung.

Ching-ling was the one who loves "China" was married to Dr. Sun on 25 October 1915. In the later years, she was a Vice Chairman of The Peoples Republic of China. She was the first non-royal woman to officially become head of state of China, acting as Co-chairman of the Republic from 1968 until 1972. She again became head of state in 1981, briefly before her death ( 29 May 1981), as President of China. Soong Ching-ling is sometimes regarded as Asia's first female head of state, although her title of Honorary President of the People's Republic of China was purely ceremonial.

Mei-ling was the one who loves "power". She was a prominent political leader in her own right, the wife and partner in power of the leader of the Kuomintang (KMT) , Generalissimo of the Chinese armies, and later President Chiang Kai-shek.

Posted by HK Wan, May 2009

The Wan (Pinyin: Yin) Family Ancestral Home, Hehou Li, Jiangmen, Wuyi, Guangdong

Photograph of myself, Wan Heng Kei, my elder sister, Wan Lai Meng, my 85 years old father, Wan Kam Tai and my younger sister, Wan Lai Ling taken at the unoccupied Wan Family Ancestral Home, No. 57, Hehou Li, Jiangmen, Wuyi, Guangdong.

The Yin (尹) or Wan (Guangdong) surname
Yin (Chinese:) or Wan (Cantonese) 尹; pinyin: Yīn; was originally a pictogram of a royal headdress. It was first used in 2,597 BC by the son of Shao Hao (one of 5 kings in the "pre-China" Five Kings era), who took on the surname and became the Duke of Yin (a village in northeast China). In 1,783 BC, the Shang Dynasty created the Position of Yin (equivalent to First Minister, most-favored Minister, or Lord Protector). Lord Yi Chi of the Hua tribe helped orchestrate a near-bloodless coup bringing the Shang Dynasty to power, was rewarded with this title, and changed his name to Yi Yin (伊尹). In 800 BC, Bo Jifu, a renowned judge during the reign of Zhou Xuan Wang, also held this position, and changed his name to Yin Jifu. During the era of the Imperial Examination System, three other magistrates took on the surname Yin (尹) to denote their Imperial rank and royally-favored status. Yin settlements in China can be found south-west of Tonghui in Gansu Province, as well as in the Pearl River Delta.

The Yins are/were exempt from China's One-child Policy due to the rarity of their surname and reverence for their historical role.

Chinese : from the name of Yin City, in present-day Shanxi province, or from a status name of a government official. A grandson of the legendary emperor Huang Di (2697–2595 bc) was granted Yin City and in due course his descendants adopted the name of the city as their surname. Additionally, throughout the Shang (1766–1122 bc) and Zhou (1122–221 bc) dynasties, there existed a high government position called Yin. Many descendants of Yin officials adopted the status name Yin as their surname.

My Ancestors from The Wan Family originated from our Ancestral Home at No. 57, Hehou Li, Jiangmen City. This Ancestral Home was almost 200 years old. My siblings , my cousins and myself were the 23rd Generation whereas my father, Wan Kam Tai was the 22nd Generation. A copy of the Wan Family Ancestral Heirloom from 1st Generation until present is still available.

According to the Wan family heirloom, the 1st generation started during the Ming Dynasty. Although my father was born in Klang, Selangor, Malaysia; he returned to the Ancestral Home in 1930 together with my paternal grandfather, grandmother, my father elder sister, younger brother, younger sister and my father. Thereafter, my paternal grandfather returned to Malaya to work for my grand-uncle but passed away the following year of tuberculosis. My father and his sublings spent their childhood and education at Jiangmen until 1938 until the Japanese invaded Guangzhou. Due to the Japanese war attrocities against China, my father and his younger brother returned to the then Malaya to avoid the Japanese but not for long as by December 1941, the Japanese has begun their invasion of British Malaya.

According to my father, when he was staying and studying at Jiangmen in the 1930s, there were about 80 houses within Hehou Li and all these houses were exclusively owned the Wan or Yin Clans but some of the houses were rented out to others families. However, during our last visit in March 2009, there was only about 3 (Three) Wan Families left. Some of the houses were demolished into apartments, hotels. One of the still remaining Wan Family was the present neighbour at 56, Hehou Lane. The elderly Mr. Wan of House No. 56 was 2 years younger than my father and he was my father's school mate. He belongs to the same 23rd generation as myself or my siblings.
During the latter years of the 19th Century and until the 1950s, most of the Wans from Hehou Li have migrated to Malaya, Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau, Vietnam, America, etc. This include my paternal grandmother and my father younger sister (Auntie) who migrated to Malaya (via Hong Kong) in 1951 just after the Chinese Communists took over the country.


2) GONGKENG TEMPLE AND SPARROW FLOWERS

Photograph of my Jiangmen relative, Mrs. Mai Qiming, my younger sister, Lai Ling and elder sister, Lai Ling taken at the Bamboo Groove, Gongkeng Temple.


Photographs of Sparrow Flowers taken from Gongkeng Temple, Xiaopenglai Hill, Tangxia Town, Xinhui. Jiangmen,

The Sparrow Flowers is one of Jiangmen's precious plants. Every year around April, strings of blossoming Sparrow flowers hang all over the branches. Every blossom has a "head', 'tail'. 'mouth' and 'eyes'. When breezes sweep by, the 'wings' flap on and on just like millions of sparrows that are about to fly.
Gongkeng Temple which is situated at Peng Lai Mountain (Pinyin: Xiaopenglai Hill) of Tangxia Town, Xinhui - about 13 kms south of Jiangmen City is the best place to watch this beautiful sight. It is well covered by green woods with small stream runs through Gongkeng, making it a famous tourist site within Jiangmen.
On the hill of Gongkeng, there is an ancient temple, TIANCHENG TEMPLE (also named Gongkeng Temple) which was built during the last years of the Song Dynasty. On the left of the temple is the "Rock of Dragon Head". There is water running out from the rock all the year round. The water is cool and sweet, called "Dragon Fountain Water". Beside the rock is the three-storey Yiyun Tower. From here, you can get a full view of the scenic spot within Gongkeng Temple. There is a long winding path leading up the hill. The path is sheltered by big trees and sparrow flower vines. Along the path, you can see fantastic scenic spots, such as Guanyin Rock, Yading Rock, Tagong Pavilion, Wangjiang Pavilion, Immortal's footprint, etc.
Around Gongkeng Temple grows an extraordinary kind of creeping and climbing plant - the vine of Gongkeng Sparrow Flower. It is called the 'exotic flower of South China'. The wine stems, which twine around the big trees, hanging like swings and ribbons. The vine blossoms during the Qingming Festial for about a month.
The flowers looks like a sparrow, and almost the same size. Clusters of flowers hang on the vines like thousands of sparrows nestling in the tees. Each creamy colour flower has one receptacle and four petals. The receptacle is like the head of the sparrow, with two black spots like the eyes on two sides. The petal in the middle looks like the body of a sparrow, and the two petals on the sides look like two wings. The petal underneath stretches like the tail. The styles and stigmas inside are like the internal organs. If the flower is scratches, it will shed a small amount of red juice - just like the blood of the sparrow. One or two hours after the flowers are plucked down from the tree, the colour becomes brown, just like the colour of the feather of a real sparrow.

HK Wan (Email: hengkei@gmail.com)

April 2009

The WAN Family of Tiong Nam Settlement, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - (Photograph taken on 31 January 2009 at The Royal Selangor Club, Kuala Lumpur)

Front Row: Marcus Wan, Wan Lai Meng, Aaron Wan with Baby, Keegan Koid, Wan Heng Wah, Wan Wai Yan, Wan Pi Ki & Rina Chee
Middle Row: Ivan Wan, Wan Heng Wan, Wan Mei Suet, Wan Lai Ling, Patriarch of the Wan Family, Wan Kam Tai, Doreen Ting & Wan Heng Kei
Back Row: Wan Wai Wen, Wan Wai Kit, Wan Wai Onn, Doreen Cheong, Wan Ee Lin & Husband, Koid Hsiang Lin
Not in the picture: Grand Daughter Wan Po Yee (Studying in Purdue, Indiana, USA) & Wan Heng Lim