Malaysia and Brunei

One of the lesser peaks in Eastern Malaysia, seen on our way toward Mt. Kinabalu.

Leaving Manila, we then had two stops on the island of Borneo: Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, and Muara, Brunei.  Being a smaller ship, we could, and did, make stops in smaller ports which may only see a cruise ship a few times per month.  Borneo is the third largest of earth's islands with tall mountains, unexplored jungles, and shared by several nations.

The peak of Mt. Kinabalu is rarely visible, usually (as on this day) cloaked in heavy clouds.

On our one day in East Malaysia, on the island of Borneo, we took a bus trip from Sabah to a nearby park on the slopes of Mountain Kinabalu, at 13,435 feet tall the tallest peak on the island.  We were at about the 5,000 feet level, high enough that the temperature was in the comfortable mid 70’s.  We took a short hike on a rough single-file trail (stepping over roots, around mud, and down embankments) through the rain forest, where a guide attempted to describe the unique plants living there.  Then re-boarded the bus for a lukewarm lunch at a scenic hotel.

On the trail at Kota Kinabalu; Dawn is ahead of me.

Clear stream coming down the mountainside.

Our luncheon hotel was located on a hilltop.  Here we see the agricultural fields in the valley below.

A few of the hotel wedding guests enjoying the outdoor garden. (Dawn is hidden in the background.)

An elaborate Islamic wedding was also taking place at the hotel.  Our impression of Malaysia was that the natives have a decent life but with small hope that their children will have better opportunities.  They are prosperous enough that traffic congestion is a problem.  However, there were few buildings or homes of architectural beauty, just basic shelter.  Public works projects appeared to be at a standstill or being worked on by very small crews, taking years to complete.  The English language is widely understood as a result of previous British influence.

It was refreshing to enjoy such mild weather as we approach the world’s equator.

Mosque as seen from shopping mall outdoor courtyard.

The following day was spent in the kingdom of Brunei which occupies only 1% of Borneo's land area.  The wealth of Brunei was obvious, but that wealth is shared by only about 470,000 citizens.  Other people live there, but actual citizenship is difficult to obtain.  There were many beautiful buildings, especially mosques, and many large masonry homes.  We were told that the average Brunei family has more than one vehicle.  Healthcare and education are free for those who qualify.  How can they have such wealth?  Oil production is key.  Also, it is extremely difficult to be accepted for citizenship; we were told of a lady who applied several decades ago and is still waiting.

Mosque as seen from reflecting pool.

The reflecting pool included a stone boat replica accessed by a walkway'

We had hoped to tour downtown Brunei on foot, but the weather was so hot and oppressive (to the non-acclimated) that we spent most of our visit in a nice, air-conditioned shopping mall (marble floors, sculpture, courtyard) and only a short time walking along the river and checking out a nearby mosque.  On the far side of the river is a water village composed of densely packed, small, simple homes built on pilings.  I am guessing that is where the non-citizens live.

A small portion of the water village can be seen in the background across the river.  It was such a hot day that we did not want to board a boat and weave our way through the water channels of that village.

The shopping mall we visited, although not ministering to every need, was first rate, well-kept, an excellent selection of world class merchandise, and accepting of foreign credit cards. Both Dawn and I made purchases there.  Interestingly, Kentucky Fried Chicken, or KFC, is a very popular eatery there (and also in Malaysia).  The official language is Malay with English and Arabic also popular.

Manila, Philippine Islands

 

Upon arrival, our ship was greeted by music and dancing girls.  Very enthusiastic despite the heat.  They stayed at the gangplank for hours greeting each person as the debarked.  Note the skyscrapers of a modern city in the background.

This is one of the entrances to the old walled city.

We were in the walled city (created as a fortress for protection from pirates) standing at the edge of a polluted river with a ghetto full of shacks on the far shore.  Two young boys evidently found a piece of wood which thy could use as a raft and were paddling across the river using their hands.

The Philippine Island group includes more than 7,000 islands; we spent one day in Manila.  Thus, my impression has a very limited basis, although, I did spend time at Subic Bay on my way to Vietnam many years ago.  I still remember talking with a young woman working as a server at the enlisted club on the American navy base, even though she had a college teaching degree, because the pay was better.  Our current visit was during Holy Week; the cathedrals were mobbed with worshipers.  The people here are highly religious and 86% Catholic.

Our excursion visited several cathedrals (and avoided a few because of massive crowds).  These people are awaiting their turn to enter the nearby cathedral.

The interior of the hotel that General MacArthur used as his headquarters in the latter states of WWII.  Still very luxurious today.

Manila is large; the number I read is 14 million people, and it is the capital city.  As such, it includes many tall buildings and other first world trappings.  But overall, it is a poor country; I was told 60% are below the poverty line, whatever that means.  The Catholic church encouraged large families.  Today, that would mean 4-5 children, but it previously was much higher (10-14).

Our tour included a cathedral, museum, historic hotel, park, and fortress.  Prior to independence in 1946, the country was sequentially controlled by the Spanish, British, United States, and Japan.  In 1945, the Battle of Manila was fierce and bloody with US troops, both Army and Marines fighting building-to-building expelling the Japanese.  We were shown a crowded dungeon where 600 prisoners were left to die of starvation and suffocation by the Japanese forces.

Today, it is not unusual to find Philippines serving in the US military.  There is a general positive attitude toward the United States.  That was more true back in 1967-8; I remember having that discussion when I first visited, but memories of the US liberation were stronger at that time.

Taipei, Taiwan

Often, a botanical garden is our first excursion when arriving at a new destination.  The quiet, tranquil surroundings are therapeutic.

I forgot to mention "beautiful" to describe the garden.

Main building at the botanical garden

Everything went perfectly in our flight to Taiwan, but it was still a tiring eight hour move. When we visit Europe, we have some familiarity with the languages and can at least read the alphabet, but here it is truly foreign.  People are helpful, so the experience, although taxing, is not unpleasant. First, we need to find our airline for check-in, then we face security, immigration, customs, baggage claim, and then find our transportation. At our Japan arrival, the immigration line by itself was 75 minutes long.  In Taiwan, the immigration line was about half that. (In Australia it was two hours long, 8pm-10pm when our cruise ship arrived.)

The city of Taipei is about 20 miles east of the international airport.  I was able to pre-arrange for a taxi service to pick us up from the airport and deliver us to our hotel through a service named "Klook", an Asian version of Viator.  We had ample luggage and arrived at rush hour, so the taxi made more sense than the metro train system.   We had three nights in our very comfortable hotel, Humble Boutique Hotel, before we joined our cruise ship.  This hotel is in the middle of the city; there is a large shopping mall below ground, beneath the nearby street intersection associated with the metro train system.  With city all around us, we elected to visit (by Uber) the Taipei Botanical Gardens: very quiet, lush, and relaxing.  Nearby was a temple complex, art gallery, and a 12-story condominium complex of amazing architectural design.  Through Google, I discovered that in a poll, Sotheby's rated this building one of the top five worldwide for its beauty function, and integration with the adjacent natural features of the park.  We found it stunning.

This condominium building is surrounded on two sides by the nearby garden.  All the building terraces have lush plantings on them.

Motorcycles and scooters are a major means of transport in Taipei

We encountered dance classes and dancing in an outdoor park.  We were invited to join them.

The following day, we embarked on a very long walk from our hotel enjoying the scenery and attractions along the way.  We came across a park where they were having an outdoor dance with lessons offered for beginners.  They offered for us to join them.  We then passed by a marketplace area with an extremely dense crowd of shoppers.  We stayed out of that, more concerned about health issues than any safety aspect.  Next, we walked to a very nice park complex which included basketball courts, a baseball field, an extensive children’s area, a rose garden, and an historic home with surrounding landscaped grounds.  It was satisfying to watch parents with well-behaved children using the swings, slides, climbing ropes, trampolines, and tree houses at the park.  When we visit our family in Washington, DC, we see unsupervised kids pushing the limits of behavior.... plus, some vagrants passed out on benches.

We elected to keep our distance from this street crowd.  Shopping?  Celebration?  We were not concerned about safety, but about germs and viruses.  We both got very sick on a previous trip in Italy.

A very large park is located under the flight path of a local airport.

Who is this 'big kid' using the mini trampoline?

A traditional and historic home was also on display at this park.

Of course, the park also included gardens.

Taiwan in our eyes is very much a first-world country.  Great public services, excellent organization, and law-abiding people.  Taoism is the major religion with many temples evident.  We felt very safe here.  It felt more 'relaxed' than our experience in Japan.  We saw more diversity in dress and lifestyles.  I recently saw a poll (unknown source) that rated the people of Taiwan as the happiest of any in the region.

Our Oceania cruise ship departed from Keelung, a little over 20 miles northeast of Taipei.  Uber is present in Taipei, but their drivers did not want to go that far; thus, we used a taxi to meet up with our ship, Insignia.  The ship's first stop was at Kaohsiung in southern Taiwan.  Kaohsiung is an industrial port city; its main attractions were temples and religious monuments.

Kaohsiung, Taiwan, with its amazing modern architecture

Note that the young woman is praying before adding incense to the smoldering offering in front of the temple.

No shortage of Taoist temples in this region.

Perhaps you would like to buy some dried octopus.

Japan

Naritasan Temple monument

The distance from Denver to Taipei is great enough that I planned a stop in Japan as a reprieve and rest stop.  It has worked out well.  We stayed at the large Narita Nikko Hotel near Narita which, with its economies of scale, is able to offer free shuttle service to the airport, train station, and a local mall.  This service facilitated our arrival at the hotel.  I was given good instruction prior to arrival on how to access the shuttle.  Although the hotel provides such convenient tourist services, the hotel is much more tailored to serve native Japanese than tourism.  The buffet breakfast was full of items which were totally unfamiliar to us; a great chance to try new things.

From the shuttle drop-off at a mall, we had a map to guide us along a couple of narrow winding streets, full of interesting shops, to a major Buddhist Temple complex near Narita which offered volunteer guides to show us around.  This temple complex has been a significant religious site for more than a thousand years.  Although our guide’s English was not very good, he was obviously a very sincere person, trying his best to inform us.  He offered to show us the interior of a major Temple.  I declined, feeling ill at ease as a nonbeliever in a Temple full of true followers of Buddhism.  Should religious services be tourist fodder?

Entry to the temple complex

The temple grounds included forest, ponds, and gardens

It was early April and blossoms were everywhere.

Peace, tranquility, and a place to take an exercise walk

Not sure if these are gravestones or just religious monuments.

Dawn accepted his offer, removed her shoes, entered, and was swept up in a lengthy Buddhist holy service.  Loud drums, rhythmic bells, fire and smoke, and a parade of priests in their costumes and wooden clogs.  I have met some wonderful Buddhist people, but to me, the ceremony as viewed from outside seemed like some pagan ritual.  (As perhaps with other religions as well.)  The Temple complex also included extensive grounds with walking trails in a park-like atmosphere with koi ponds and forest.  We had lunch at a small Japanese restaurant located among the shops on our path between the mall and temple.  It was a chance to practice using chopsticks.

Lunch at a small Japanese restaurant.  Dawn is using chopsticks while I take the photo.

The following day, we went to the Sakura Castle Park.  The National Museum of Japanese History is co-located with this park.  ‘Sakura’ translates as cherry blossom, and the park was full of flowering trees, as you might expect for April.  It was a very pleasant day.  We had lunch at the Museum but did not tour it as it would take too many hours.  To get there, we took a shuttle to the large Narita airport which has its own train station.  Then we had to buy train tickets, determine the schedule, and know at what stops to enter and exit the train.  From the Sakura train station, it is about a 20-minute walk to the park.  We got a map from the local TI center to guide us.  Returning, we reversed the process.  Tickets are purchased from an automated machine with limited guidance in English, but I made the correct guesses to obtain our tickets.  Doing things like this on your own forces you to immerse yourself a bit deeper in the immediate surroundings. 

Large monument at the entrance to the National Museum of Japanese History

Sakura Castle Park was full of blossoming trees in a peaceful setting. 

 

Sakura 'castle' was a fortress with walls constructed utilizing existing ravines plus moats and walls consisting of piled up dirt (long ago).

After enjoying Spring in Japan, only a month later we were experiencing Fall in Tasmania. 

We elected not to include visits to Tokyo proper or other major tourist attractions.  What interests me most is concept of what would it be like to live in one of these foreign locations.  What would our home be like?  What would our meals be like?  Where would we shop?  What transportation would we use?  What recreation opportunities would be available?  Are public services reliable?  Is the area safe?  Dawn and I have seen our share of cathedrals/mosques/temples and museums.  History is interesting, but present-day life is more relevant.

While in this Pacific region, I bought a newly published biographical book, "The Good Daughter", written by a Kumi Taguchi (Japanese father/ Australian mother, divorced) who struggled to bring together these two cultures in her life.  She worked in media and traveled the region and world-wide.  She wrote about the 'regimentation' that guides behavior in Japan.  We could see it in the uniformity of behavior and dress, school uniforms for the children and almost identical suits for office workers. 

Index of Entries, March 2025

  Entry titles are listed in order from oldest to newest (top to bottom) in this index; however, the actual blog entries are posted from oldest to newest (back to front).  Thus, the 2005 entry will be at the back end of this blog.  Find a topic in the left-hand column, then click on the corresponding archive year in the right-hand column to get close on a time scale to the desired entry before scrolling up or down for the specific entry.

 December 2005-   Building my first boat, Leaving home and Nebraska (my bio) 

February 2016-     Travel Blog, Croatia preview

March 2016-         Iceland, Copenhagen, Zagreb, Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro, Ireland

July 2016-             Scandinavia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Berlin

September 2016-   Colorado

November 2016-   California coast

December 2016-   Washington DC, Island of Maui

March 2017-        Argentina:  Buenos Aires, San Carlos de Bariloche, Mendoza

May 2017-           Northern Italy preview

July 2017-            Alaskan cruise

September 2017- Venice, Lake Garda, Lake Como, Lake Maggiore, Genoa, Nice, French hill villages,                                        Portugal & Algarve 

October 2017-      Lisbon & Sintra, Washington DC

December 2017-   Eastern Caribbean cruise:  St. Kitts-Nevis, Martinique, Antigua, Barbados, Grenada,                                Puerto Rico

February 2018-     South Pacific preview

March 2018-         Tahiti & Tuamotu cruise, New Zealand

April 2018-           New Zealand South Island, Australia

September 2018-   Road trip to Colorado. Idaho, Wyoming

September 2018-   Galapagos Islands, 2015

September 2018-   Panama 2014 trip

September 2018-   San Blas islands cruise 1981

October 2018-       Krakow, Poland

November 2018-   Zakopane, Danube, Budapest, Azores

January 2019-        European trip preview

May 2019-              northern France, cruise to Med, Mallorca, Rome, Copenhagen

July 2019-              Azores, Maine, Cape Cod preview

August 2019-         Omaha visit

September 2019-   A Voyage to Remember, Florida to Panama, 1980

October 2019-        Azores, Maine, Cape Cod

December 2019-    Puerto Vallarta

February 2020-      Madeira Island, Azores

April 2020-            The Lost Vacation (due to Covid), Switzerland, (now rescheduled)

August 2020-         Road trip to Montana

October 2020-        Road trip to Arkansas

April 2021-             Living in Panama, 1979-1982

July 2021-               Brazil preview (canceled and rescheduled April-June 2022)

August 2021-        Raising Children in the Military

September 2021-    Switzerland:  Lausanne, Interlaken, Lucerne, Zurich

April 2022-             Road Trip to Omaha, Washington DC, and Florida 

May 2022-              Roatan snorkeling, Our 1972 Road Trip

August 2022-            A Lifetime Travel Partner

June 2022-              Bocas del Toro snorkeling, Panama               

October 2022-         France:  Strasbourg, Colmar, & Mulhouse

                                Switzerland:  Basel, St. Gallen

April 2023-             Spain, Canary Islands, France, England, and DC

September 2023-    Scotland, Sardinia

November 2023-    Travel Planning Details

December 2023-    DC, Dubai, Mahe Island (Seychelles)

January 2024-      more Seychelles Islands, Maldives Islands, Sri Lanka

February 2024-    South Africa, a brief stop in Brazil

March 2024-        Snorkeling Sri Lanka & Maldives

April 2024-        Military Travel

September 2024- Revisiting the Past, Germany

October 2024-      Garmisch, Germany to Hall, Austria

                              Salzburg, Munich, and Onward

                              Istanbul, first encounter

                              Cappadocia, the Balloon Capital

                            

November 2024-    Back to Istanbul and a Cruise

                               Tuscany, Italy

                                Living in the Sweet Spot

January 2025-           New Destinations 

February 2025-         A Time for Reflection

March 2025-             Puerto Rico, instead of a Cruise

                                

Puerto Rico, part II

 

Looking toward the Hilton Ponce golf course

We had already planned to spend three days in San Juan, now it would be thirteen days, enough time to get a taste of other locations on this 100-mile-long island.  Some day we may want to bring our entire family here for a holiday; this may be our chance to preview some resorts.

After visiting Viejo San Juan, nearby Escambron beach, and an excursion to El Junque rain forest in the interior mountains, we picked up our rental car and headed for Ponce on the south coast. There we stayed at the Hilton Ponce Resort.  Lazy days by the pool, watching the iguanas feed on fallen fruit and other food scraps.  We are not used to such leisure, but strenuous activity means exposing ourselves to the tropic sun. Now we are more health conscious and prefer the shade of palm trees and umbrellas, avoiding long exposure to direct rays of the sun.  One reason we enjoy snorkeling is that it gets us under the water.

   Relaxing near the pool

Instead, we enjoy a late afternoon walk on the beach and then an evening circuit of the entire property including part of the golf course.

The sunset view from our hotel room at Ponce.

From Ponce, we drove the coastal road to the resort of El Conquistador near Fajardo.  This resort is even more impressive; visit the resort website if you want more details.  My favorite activities there were evening walks on the golf course, taking the ferry to Palomino Island, and speeding down the water slides at the marina water park.   

An evening walk on the golf course

Me, speeding down a water slide.  When you hit the pool, you skim across its surface

   On the ferry to Palomino Island

   Evening view from our hotel room with a full moon

    Resident iguana at nearby hotel gardens

Our time on Puerto Rico has been very enjoyable, new and different but familiar.  English is widely understood.  Interestingly, heights in Puerto Rico are listed in feet but road distances are listed in kilometers.  Most liquids are sold in quarts or gallons, but gasoline is dispensed in liters.  Thus, they have a 'hybrid' system of measurement.

Puerto Rico Instead of a Cruise

 About one week ago, I received an email from our planned cruise company, Viking, stating that our Caribbean 10-day cruise was oversold, and they were seeking people willing to give up their reservation in return for a future enhanced cruise.  The incentives offered were attractive.  Doing our own planning and bookings, I knew what was needed to alter our plans for this opportunity.  After a quick check of open alternatives, I left an overnight voicemail with Viking stating that we were willing to make the switch.

The following morning, I received a return call.  After quickly discussing future cruises, we settled on an 18-day cruise from Buenos Aires around Cape Horn to the Pacific Ocean ending at Santiago (Valparaiso) Chile. Instead of a standard stateroom, we will enjoy a penthouse junior suite, 405 sq. ft., with its added amenities. Viking has returned all our funds committed to the present cruise, and the future cruise will be free (list price $31K)!  Now, I needed to quickly fill a 10-day gap in our current vacation plans.

We needed to make travel bookings with only one week of advance notice. Kayak.com couldn’t help me for flights or car rentals, too short term.  Smaller, value accommodations were already completely booked.  We elected to stay on Puerto Rico.  The island is 100 miles long and the home to 3.2+ million citizens.  First, I was able to directly contact Enterprise for a vehicle rental.  Next, I directly contacted two attractive, major resorts, Hilton and El Conquistador, for reservations, one on the south coast and one on the east coast.  I wanted something similar to the experience of a luxury cruise. 

Our Viking cruise was scheduled to be San Juan-to-San Juan after visiting a selection of eastern Caribbean islands.  We had done a similar cruise previously (not all the same islands), and our motivation for this cruise was mainly to escape some winter weather.  Thus, our ‘sacrifice’ was not major.  We have not spent any time reflecting on the forgone cruise.

A Time for Reflection

The beach at Palomino Island

Today we visited the Fajardo yacht harbor on the east end of Puerto Rico.  The number of yachts or “vessels” was amazing.  We talked to the harbor master, asking how many vessels were there (this is only one of many harbors).  He said they count in “acres” of boats, but there are easily over 1,000 in the harbor.    We walked the docks looking at the large sizes, almost all over 30 feet with many much larger.  Think of the wealth on display here!

Dinner at the harbor viewing Vessels beyond counting, 1000+.

What do they do in case of a hurricane?  Each owner has to submit a hurricane plan when they purchase dockage.  The harbor officials take no responsibility.

The situation recalled some major memories for me, involving a vessel, which were life changing.  When I left home sixty years ago, I vowed that I would have a future avoiding unattainable dreams; instead, such thoughts needed to include detailed plans to be acted upon, or else be forgotten.  I was a dreamer in HS and accomplished little; that life was done with.

 After my US Navy service with navigation training and exposure to the world across an ocean, I had sailing classes and sailboat rentals at college in Santa Barbara. I also did an engineering research project on boat hull design.  Looking out on the Channel Islands, I thought, “wouldn’t sailing around the world be the ultimate adventure challenge?”, and steps toward a plan began.

After marriage, Dawn & I bought a 14’ Lido daysailer for experience.  Then, we bought a 27.5’, 3.5-ton Morgan ocean-going sailboat on San Francisco Bay for expanded experience.  I read a book on Polynesian navigation methods and also other books about previous voyages.  Is this really what we wanted to do to see the world?

At the same time, I was disappointed with my engineering career, not the challenge I had expected.  Instead, my job seemed to revolve around corporate politics much more than engineering.  Was I running away from career frustrations or toward this adventure?  After such a voyage (which would take a few years) my engineering degree would be obsolete. What then?  I realized that my future career was the more important concern. Dawn suggested I look at a career change…. and the ‘adventure’ changed.

I quit my engineering job, went back to school to fulfill some prerequisites, got a part-time job as an airline agent, signed up for the national Dental Aptitude Test, and started completing applications to dental schools. Would my application be looked on favorably?  Oh.... and we took a big loss on selling that sailboat.

With successful application, we moved to the Midwest (Omaha), and I went back to school for four years.  Dawn found another hospital job; we were still living the student lifestyle, and I applied for an Army scholarship.  We discovered that the military lifestyle includes travel and a variety of new circumstances which appealed to us.  Later came three years of post-graduate training and testing for National Board certification. There were no dreams, only plans to be pursued step-by-step.

It all worked out. I have had an interesting and successful career in dentistry. As a dentist in the US military, our entire family traveled widely.  Our children were raised in South Carolina, Panama, Alabama, California, Germany, the Netherlands, and Virginia.  They watched the Panama Canal be handed over to Panama by President Carter.  They were in Berlin to participate in the Wall being toppled.  We were in Yugoslavia just prior to the Balkan War (and again afterwards). We watched Germany be re-united and the “Iron Curtain” collapse.  We joined the celebrations in Prague as freedom was regained in Eastern Europe.  We were in New York, including standing atop the World Trade Center, shortly before 9/11 and then returned with our children shortly after 9/11.

In the end, we have traveled the world (60+ countries), we continue to travel, and we have had our adventure while also meeting career challenges.  We simply chose a different path to get there. We didn’t sail around the world, but I did serve as navigator in bringing a 46-foot-long diesel trawler from Miami to Colon, Panama.

A dream is simply the ephemeral product of imagination.  A plan includes all the needed steps to make that thought into reality, plus the commitment to get started.  Sixty years ago, at 19 years old, I made a vow to myself to live a life of plans, not sterile dreams, it has made all the difference, and we have future plans still to unfold.

Wayne & Dawn, Feb. 2025