Day 3: Of flowers and crocs...

" Serve No Pork " - an unfamiliar sign as we could see it in most restaurants in KK, Sabah.

I made it! I could see it, with my own pair of eyes! I saw it! Getting up early was rewarding, no regrets. As soon as my alarm rang, i burst outside the lodge and rushed to the spot where i could clearly see it. I saw the Mount Kinabalu, and i am proud i did!

Me and the mount.

Our guide informed us that we could only see it in the morning as later in the afternoon, the clouds will blanket and cover the mount. What a wonderful, marvelous view of the mountain. I wished i could be closer though.

I Will Climb Mount Kinabalu- That's A Promise!

After enjoying the marvelous view of the mountain, we had our breakfast before checking out and later headed back down to KK city. The journey down was just as tiring and dreadful as the journey up to the Kinabalu Park. Luckily, we made several stops along the way to stretch our legs and rear.

Our guide drove us to the starting point of the hike up the mount. The view from there is fabulous. Someday, i will climb the mount.

After the short rest, we headed to a Rose Garden. It was similar to the one i visited in Cameron Highlands back then with my schoolmates- i will never forget the sweet memories. However, i would admit that this was not as good as it. Having said that though, the flowers here were lovely and rich in colour.

Me posing with one of the many flowers.

I like this shot! What say you?

And this too. Fresh and beautiful!

And this too! I am amazed and impressed that my handphone could actually take photographs this good. Credits should be given to the flowers, it is mostly their 'job' anyway.

Something unfortunate about the visit to KK was that we were unable to see the live rafflesia. Because of that, we could not stand the unpleasant odour from the rafflesia here.

Me busy snapping shots of flowers.

Eventhough it is known as the Rose Garden- because of it is a majority there, there Garden is divided into many other sections like the Orchid Garden and in the picture is the Cactus Garden.

It was relaxing to see the flowers, and i already slowly began to miss the Mount Kinabalu. It was nearly noon and the clouds had covered the mount from sight. We continued our journey down and rested again for lunch in a place near Tamparuli. According to our guide, it was actually known as 'Tempat lori' but when the word got around, mostly the Chinese, the name slowly evolved to Tamparuli. Lunch was good, and we later continued our tour to the suspended bridge in Tamparuli, made when there was a need to cross the river when the road is flooded.

Experiencing what the locals have experienced. It wasn't as heart-racing as on the canopy walk.

We were back down, no longer on highland very soon. The next stop was in Tuaran, where we visited the Crocodile Farm. It was all well, until something had spoiled the beauty of the place. There were many crocodiles in the farm and the set-up of the farm is interesting. We walked on bridges, over the crocodiles.

From the bridge, high up from danger.

They were large reptiles! Wow...

There was a place for the crocodiles born with defects. It was nice to see that they have a place to live too, just like humans do. This one here is born with a short tail.

This poor croc is born with a hunchback. There were crocodiles who are blind and one who is a bisexual.

After strolling around the farm, visiting more that just crocodiles- ostrich, lizards, fish, we went for the crocodile show. Sorry to say, the show did not impress me much. I had anticipated for a much better show and the crocodiles were not even cooperating much. In other words, it was a letdown. The photograph here shows the performer kissing the aggressive beast.

After the crocodile show, we shifted ourselves to the long house where the cultural dance show was to be played. The show started late and the place was steaming hot! When the performers appeared on stage, i was not blown away. If the crocodile show was average, the cultural show was not at all near average. It was boring. It was lethargic. We dreaded sitting in the long house and could not wait for the show to end. We still clapped for their effort though. The farm was worth a visit but the two performances definitely needed to buck up. There are still room for improvements and they better improve on it so that visitors will someday be impressed.

We reached KK city and checked into our hotel- Tang Dynasty Hotel. Dinner again was seafood. Most of us suffered from stomach upset and could not eat much. Me, as a seafood lover, took for granted and had lots and lots of crabs and fish maw.

What an interesting day it was? It was a wonder to see the mount, and a pleasure to soon climb it! wc08 is into the third day, and of flowers and crocodiles too.