Michi Photostory: Village

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June 30, 2017

3 Days in Kota Kinabalu Malaysia

Just this week, out of the blue my son asked me if he has been to Malaysia already and I said yes. He doesn’t believe me at first but I told him that we’d been to Kota Kinabalu, Kuala Lumpur, and Johor Bahru Malaysia. Then he remembered the Petronas Twin Tower in Kuala Lumpur and Legoland in Johor Bahru but he can’t remember our Kota Kinabalu trip.

Some people say that it is better to travel when the kids are already old because they won’t remember it when they are still young. But for me, my son may not remember it but I have pictures, videos and stories to tell. There are so many memorable stories that I can share with him.

Read: Why Do We Travel with Kids in Tow

In fact, Malaysia is his first out-of-the-country, our first family overseas adventure, and the cheapest out-of-the-country trip we’ve experienced. Would you believe that I only paid P2000+ for our round trip fare and that is for 3 persons. Thanks to Air Asia promo!

Read: Air Asia Experience

At that time, Air Asia only flies at Clark International Airport so we traveled to Clark Pampanga and parked our car at DMIA. Then after few hours, we landed at Kota Kinabalu Airport, the airport is not that big so we were out after several minutes.

Where Did We Stay in Kota Kinabalu Malaysia?

I availed the airport pick-up service of City Park Lodge so we won’t have any problem haggling for taxi rate. I’ve read before that they don’t use taxi meter there and base on our experience, kontrata nga lagi pagsasakay, I’m not sure kung ganun pa rin.

One of the reasons why our Kota Kinabalu trip was cheap is, we did not stay in hotel. We stayed at City Park Lodge, the lodge has a good location too so we just literally walk when we went to the port, restaurant, market, and other tourist spots. They even gave us a coupon too that we can use for our island hopping, RM4 per person discount.

Read: City Park Lodge

And because of our flight schedule, we have very limited time in Kota Kinabalu Malaysia. Sharing with you our trip.

Day 1

It was already late in the afternoon when we arrived in Kota Kinabalu so we just bought food and drinks at the nearest convenience store then we had dinner at Secret Recipe.

Day 2

The following day, we woke up early so we can start exploring the city. From the lodge, we just walk to Jesselton Point Waterfront. It is where we’re going to ride the boat for our Island Hopping.

Island hopping in Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park

We can visit Mamutik Island, Sapi Island, Sulug Island and Manukan Island but because we have very limited time, we just chose one island which is Manukan Island. It is 15-20 minute speedboat ride from Jesselton Point Ferry Terminal. We had a great time at the beach, this was the first time na nakapagbeach ako sa ibang bansa.

Read: Manukan Island

We only stayed for few hours on the island and we went back to Jesselton Point. From the port, we just walked to Suria Sabah Mall to eat our lunch. Most of the time we eat at KFC because it is everywhere and some stores are open 24 hours.

Monsopiad Cultural Village

Some people say that a trip to Sabah will not be complete if you will not visit Monsopiad Cultural Village, so I included this in our itinerary. Since we did not want to get lost and we want to save time, we rode a taxi even though the price is steep. RM100 taxi ride vs RM3 per bus per person.

Monsopiad Cultural Village is a historical site in Sabah so you will learn more about its history by visiting the village. Aside from that, they will show you how Kadazan people live before. If you like history, you will enjoy this tour but if not you can skip it.

Read: Monsopiad Cultural Village

Seri Selara

After our trip in Monsopiad Cultural Village, we asked the taxi driver to drop us at Seri Selara. He agreed but he asked for additional RM10. Seri Selara is an open-air seafood restaurant so don’t forget to include this in your itinerary.

This is like Dampa Restaurant here in the Philippines, where you can choose the seafood from the glass tanks and they will cook it for you. We enjoyed our food trip here, there is Filipino staff here and he gave us a discount. From the restaurant, we just walked back to City Park Lodge.

Read: Seri Selara

Day 3

Gaya Street Sunday Market

The following day, we woke up early to take advantage of the Gaya Street Sunday Market. From its name, it is only open every Sunday from 6:30 to 1PM. You can buy souvenirs, clothes, food and other stuff. I bought some souvenirs and pasalubong here.

DIY Kota Kinabalu City Tour

Since we are budget travelers, we did not book any tour packages so we just hired a taxi driver to tour us around for 3 hours. We visited Signal Observation Hill, Wisma Tun Mustapha (Sabah Foundation Building), Pu Toh Tze Buddhist Temple, State Museum, State Mosque, and Handicrafts/souvenir Center.

It was just a short city tour since we have to go back to our lodge to get our luggage. After check-out, we went straight to the airport so we won’t miss our flight.

Read: DIY Kota Kinabalu Tour

Note: If you still have time, you can also visit Brunei, you need to ride a ferry boat from Kota Kinabalu to Brunei.

December 11, 2012

Hong Kong Day 2: Ngong Ping Village

Night before our Day 2 Tour, I asked my hubby if he really wanted to go to Ngong Ping Village because if he wants the cable car there’s cable car in Ocean Park. I was trying to persuade him so I will not ride cable car but he really wanted to see the Buddha.

I have three options:

1. Buy roundtrip package of cable car.

2. Ride bus (roundtrip).

3. One way cable car ride then one way bus ride.

I chose option #3 but when we got there, I just bought the roundtrip cable car ticket because it is more fast and convenient than riding the bus which is 50 minutes travel time. $HK187 per adult and $HK94 per child, I find it expensive because all I wanted is roundtrip cable car but I guess they are not selling it so it is really better if you buy ticket online or in CTS to avoid long lines and to avail discounted tickets. I don’t know what other inclusions of the Journey Enlightenment because we only used the roundtrip cable car.

As of this writing, I just found out that Walking with Buddha Tour and Monkey's Tale Theatre is included in my package. We avoid this tour because there’s an additional payment. I was so clueless, imagine I already paid for it and we did not avail this. I just checked my ticket and I noticed the WWB and MTT at the back of my ticket. Waah! #stupid.

Lesson learned: Always listen and read carefully. I did not listen to the girl who gave me the ticket, I just count my change, say thank you and walk away.

smile kahit takot.

Anyway, past is past. Let’s move to our cable car experience. It was a 25 minutes cable car ride but for me it seems forever. I did not sit beside my husband and son because I don’t want to see the movement of cable car while we are going up. I just read brochures to keep myself busy during the ride.

It was foggy so we can’t see the beauty of Ngong Ping Village and it is hard to take clear pictures without the fog. We ate light lunch at Subway and I bought banana bread $HK17 in Starbucks.

kita ba yung buddha?

Rain showers began to pour so we have no choice but to stop and stay in souvenir shops, We’ve been waiting for so long and we can’t continue with our tour. Whether we like it or not we bought raincoat, $HKD25 for adult and $HKD20 for kid.

After Ngong Ping Village we went straight to Buddha and we climb over 200 steps just to see the Buddha statue. It was a big challenge going up because I’m not very active so I was gasping when we reach the top.

nasan ang Po Lin Monastery?

Then we went to Po Lin Monastery, no clear pictures again because of the fog so we immediately went to Wisdom Path. Because of the fog we are just walking slowly, it was a bit scary but we still continue walking till we reach our destination.

ang layong lakaran, ito pala yun

According to Discover Hongkong site, Wisdom Path is a large scale outdoor replica of an ancient Buddhist prayer called the Heart Sutra. The 38 wooden pillars that display the sutra are a symbol of the harmony of people with nature.

We’re tired already and it seems that the sky would not be clear anymore so we decided to go back to cable car terminal. I was thankful for the fog because I can’t see anything inside the cable car so it was a smooth ride for me.

Shopping is not included in my itinerary but we need warmer in order to survive the coldness of Hongkong. We dropped by at Citygate outlet and buy some clothes. We’re not prepared for this kind of weather, akala ko lamig Baguio lang.

No Symphony of Lights again because we want to sleep early.

How to get to Ngong Ping Village from Nan Lian Garden:

From Diamond Hill Station, we took MTR heading to Tung Chung Station; there are few interchanges of train line. Then go to bus terminal or cable car terminal, just behind the City Gate Outlet.

Ngong Ping 360

MTR Tung Chung Station Exit B and walk 5 minutes to the Tung Chung Cable Car Terminal

10am to 6pm (Mon to Fri);
9am to 6:30pm (Sat, Sun and public holidays).

Standard Cabin (Round Trip) Adult – HK$125; Child (age 3 – 11) – HK$62

Crystal Cabin (Round Trip) Adult – HK$188; Child (age 3 – 11) – HK$125

+852 3666 0606

www.np360.com.hk

July 01, 2011

Monsopiad Cultural Village in Kota Kinabalu Malaysia

They say that you have not seen Sabah if you have not visited Monsopiad Cultural Village that’s the reason why I included this in my itinerary. It is a thirty minutes drive from Kota Kinabalu City, you can ride a bus or taxi and I chose the latter because I do not want to get lost. Asking price of the taxi driver is RM120, we haggled for RM100 (roundtrip) but if you will take the bus, it is only RM3 per way. (big savings!)

Monsopiad Cultural Village is a living museum and historical site in Sabah. It was founded in 1996 in memory of Monsopiad, the great head hunter and Kadazan warrior. He was the famous headhunter who defended his village three hundred years ago. No enemy could match his power and as a proof, he took 42 skulls with him.

The 42 skulls are displayed in the legendary House of Skulls. Aside from being a living museum, the village aims to revive, conserve, keep alive, and document the culture, traditions, and Kadazan community beliefs. You will learn more about the ways of life of Kadazan people and Monsopiad warriors’ stories.

The entrance fee is a little bit expensive, RM75 for the guided tour and cultural show. As I was told in the email, a guided tour can be anytime but we ended up waiting for the cultural show which is 2PM before the guided tour.

I was a bit disappointed because we would not be able to visit Green Connection and Lok Kawi Wildlife Park, but I could no longer back out because I already paid RM150.

After the registration, you will proceed to Riverside Café for your welcome drinks (coffee or tea); we stayed here for almost one hour, waiting for the cultural show. The cultural show lasted for 30-45 minutes. We enjoyed the show; visitors can also take part in the cultural show.

Start of guided tour. We learned about Rice Wine Making, Sago Grating (mamagalus). Sago Grub (butod), Shooting using Traditional Blowpipe (monupuk), Catapult (lastik) and Stilt walk (tampanau). Some of these are familiar to me since I live in the Philippines, alam ko may ganyan din sa Pinas.

We paid RM75 per pax but we were not able to experience all the inclusions in the package like “Taste betel nuts and Traditional cigarettes” and “Experience Traditional Handicraft Making”. They just need to improve their guided tour because we kept on waiting for the next activity. If you are into history, you will enjoy the experience but if not, you can skip this tour.