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Taiwan and Malaysia
  • Sean Plamondon
  • Sean Plamondon

Taiwan and Malaysia

A 35-day adventure by Sean Read more
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  • Trip start
    July 28, 2026
    Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon
    Hoops sportsbar, torontoView of distant downtown bankkok from my airport area hotelUnderdog breweryThis fish was gigantic!! All the side sauces were too spicy for me until they offered a kids sauceStreet of my downtown hotel

    Toronto and Bangkok

    Jul 31–Aug 3 in Thailand ⋅ 🌧 31 °C

    This trip leg is a long one and i made it even longer by flying out of toronto and taking the train from ottawa to toronto instead of flying.

    Did an overnight in toronto. Made some new friends at a sportsbar near my hotel and had a fun night. Flight wasnt until 7pm the next evening so got a late checkout and hit up a few nice places in the early afternoon for food and craft beers.

    The next 24 hours was all pampering. Three hours in the maple leaf lounge at the airport, then 5 hours to vancouver in a business class pod. Followed by another 2 hours in the vancouver maple leaf lounge and then 17 hours in a business class pod all the way to bangkok. I dont think i have ever eaten so much food in a 24 hour stretch. Yikes

    Got to my bangkok airport-nearby hotel at 5am, and rested on the hardest bed imaginable. Got myself downtown for lunch followed by a few beers at a local brewery i found. Then checked into my downtown hotel and slept a few more hours. Then out for a light supper and in bed by 11 as i had to be up at 5am the next morning's flight.

    Not super eventful but definitely an enjoyable journey to this point    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon

    Taipei

    August 1 in Taiwan ⋅ ☁️ 33 °C

    Got up at 5am to get to the airport for another flight. 4 hours to taipei. Much to my surprise, all the bars outside my hotel were still open at 530am when i stepped outside. Crazy.

    On landing in taipei, customs noticed my passport binding is becoming frayed and sent me to higher officials to chat. Was worried they might not let me enter but they said i really need to get a new passport when i get home. Hopefully not a problem anywhere else.

    Took the subway into the center and took me quite a while to find my hotel. Very confusing city. Mostly chinese signs and ground floor of most buildings are shops and corridors to center where theres an elevator. After a while i ventured into the center of the building and realized my hotel was up an elevator on the 6th floor.

    Rested for a couple of hours then got some food very nearby. The area i was in is quite the scene. Tons of pedestrian streets for blocks and blocks, and every kind of store. Weird coin operated vending machines for entire blocks for toys, shopping items, food etc.

    Found a great small place called beer bar and hung out there for a few hours. Mostly with two guys, one from detroit, the other from england who have both been living there for 5+ years. Might meet up with them again in a few days when i return to taipei.

    Back to the hotel at a reasonable hour as i had a big driving day coming up. Still catching up from jetlag. Looking forward to starting to see the country.    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon
    One of several never ending tunnels in taiwan
    One of several never ending tunnels in taiwanStart of gorge that is closed. BoooNight marketWhat on earth has happened at this sheraton restaurant for this to be in the menu!?

    Taitung

    August 2 in Taiwan ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    Picked up my rental car at 9am and surpringly got out of taipei relatively easily compared to the chaos i was bracing for. Despite not seeing any mountains near or within taipei, as soon as i left the city i was up and down mountains. And through. The engineering in this country is remarkable. Several different driving segments of at least 20 straight minutes each, going through a mountain tunnel. Thats a lot longer than it might sound. Huge tunnels.

    After 3 hours of driving, finally got to world famous taroka gorge. Except it was closed. How devastating! Literally meant to be the highlight of my taiwan trip. But it also messed up my other plans too. The highway through the gorge was the only way i could get across the massive mountain range down the middle of the island. Now i either gotta backtrack to taipei or drive all the way to the southern tip and back up the wrstern side. I haaaate backtracking, so i continued heading down the east coast. Really pretty drive!

    Got to a city called Taitung about 75% of the way down the east coastline around 6pm, so decided to stop there. Found a great downtown hotel for 50 bucks. and then went in search of a nice restaurant. Yikes, lots of restaurants but they all look like cafeterias. All of them. Decided to eat a nice seafood linguini at the sheraton fancy restaurant instead of eating in a cafeteria.

    And by 1030pm, i was done. Sooo tired. Passed out immediately.    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon

    Douliou

    August 3 in Taiwan ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    This was a day!

    Knew i had a biiiig day ahead of me so hit the road at 730am. Drove to the southern point of taiwan and finally crossed over to the western side. Its funny how the west side actually has freeways!! That said, still took me 3.5 hours to reach the city of Taitan. Culrure hub of the country.

    Was soooooo hard to navigate my way in and find parking on the street but managed to do it and wander around to find a bunch of famous temples. They were nice but gotta say, not the wow factor i anticipated

    I then marked a waterfall in my gps in the mountains nearby and headed there. Insane drive up and down huge mountains and came across a massive suspension bridge that i of course had to traverse :)

    Couldnt find the waterfall but with the help of some locals on my very wrong locations at their house driveways, finally got guided where i needed to be

    One of my favourite hikes ever!! Through thick jungle, high above the raging river below, the path was bolted into the side of mountains and i was also able to walk behind one of the waterfalls too!

    Finished that hike at 5pm. Fully aware that i am literally on top of a mountain and sun going down soon, and no hotel yet booked, i raced down the other side in 90 minutes to Douliou, almost hitting a bunch of monkeys having supper on the road.

    Completly exhausted on arrival, just wanted food, any food, and a cold beer and bed. But things arent always so simple. I couldnt find an open restaurant at 8pm so i broke a rule of mine and ate at mcdonalds! Found a really nics pub that shockingly had guinness after that and caught up on some trip planning as the only person in the bar. Very quiet town in the middle of nowhere

    I wss about to leave at 1030 and go to bed, when this guy from new jersey walks in and sits next to me. We bonded immediately. Cool guy. Long story short, got back to my hotel at 530am after a lot of billiards and some food vendors he introduced me too. "Ace" says he might come meet me in malaysia. Either way, that was quite the day. 😴    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon
    Sun moon lake
    Sun moon lakeTrent from michigan. Here for the whole summerThis means Exit. Very important to know!!Shane from high school!Scott and Shane!

    Hsinchu

    August 4 in Taiwan ⋅ 🌬 35 °C

    Slept in until 11am and back on the road to beautiful sun moon lake. While circumnavigating the lake, i saw a tourist coming down from a trail. I stopped and asked him if it was a long hike up and the view from there. He said it was 30 mins. I didnt really have time for that with all the driving ahead of me.

    I asked him where he's going cuz we were in the middle of nowhere. He told me an hours walk to the next town. I told him hop in. We stopped by a lookout point on the way and eventually dropped him off at the town and continued on.

    En route to see my friend Shane in Hsinchu, i found a microbrewery in Taichung so decided to pop by there. Didnt realize how big of a city it was. The restaurant was on the 13th floor of a massive massive mall. Parked in the garage under the building and enjoyed a small break from the road.

    Shortly after, i got back in my car but couldnt find my way out. Not obvious and all the signs were in chinese. After circling around all over the place, i realized these two symbols 出口meant exit. And finally i escaped after following those two symbols everywhere in the labryinth of a parking garage.

    An hour later, arrived in Hsinchu and found my buddys house. Quick hi to his wife and a beer and then off to a night market where his brother scott met us. I didnt know scott was here too! Amazing. Had an awesome reunion and stayed up until 2am catching up. And slept in their spare room    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon
    Earthquake stabilizer in the taipei tower

    Taipei again

    August 5 in Taiwan ⋅ ⛅ 35 °C

    I got up around 1030am and hung out with shane and his son for 30 minutes before my 90 minute drive to yet another waterfall. Descended into a gorgeous valley to an amazing cascades of water off several rocks and took in the moment for a while

    Then got myself and car back to taipei. Before returning the car, i 100% had to see taipei 101 tower. Such amazing architecture! Took some fun shots from below then the elevator to the top.

    Returning the car was a 10 minute drive through the city but one wrong turn made it 40 minutes!! Oh well. Thats an assumed unwanted excursion when half way across the world haha. I got my moneys worth of more tunnels. Rental car place told me my whole trip cost an extra 20 bucks in tolls.. i felt that was a deal :)

    A few late nights in a row plus 12+ hour days of driving did me in. I got to my hotel at 5pm and got up at 5am for my flight. Woweee.    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon

    Langkawi

    August 6 in Malaysia ⋅ ☁️ 31 °C

    Long travel day to get here. Left my hotel at 530am for the lengthy commute to the airport. 4 hours to kuala lumpur. 2 hour layover and another hour+ to this island. Got in after 5pm with the time zone change.

    Walked the beach for 30 mins and eventually found a great beach bar at the other end and settled in. Met a really nice guy Mo from egypt and chatted for a while. From there, found a pub on the main street for food where i met garrick and phil from australia. They convinced me to come with them to a few other places.. so why not? :)

    A few places later, garrick wanted to play pool somewhere so we headed off to a place the bartender suggested. Poor phil was a mess and didnt make it.

    Played pool for an hour until they closed at 1am. Then continued at the bar next door. I challenged for the pool table there and won. And beat all the challengers for about 2 hours. Met sooo many people in that stretch, including elena from winnipeg who works for united nations. Super fun night!    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon

    Langkawi - Day 2

    August 7 in Malaysia ⋅ ☁️ 31 °C

    Slept in and had another relaxing day at the beach. First met a local at a beach bar and we chatted for an hour. Then found Mo a bit further down the beach and hung out with him for a few hours.

    We met a polish guy Conrad from poland who joined us for a while. Eventually conrad and i left to play pool and much like the night before i eventually became the reigning guy on the challenge table for about 90 minutes. Another fun relaxing day. Not much adventure though.Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon

    Penang days 1 and 2

    August 9 in Malaysia ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    Very quick 20 minute flight up and down from the island of langkawi to the island of penang. Got to my hotel at 1pm but couldnt check in until 3pm. So headed to a nearby pub to wait it out. This city sure has a lot of them.

    Met a really nice couple from auatralia and we had a blast chatting away for a few hours. Finally checked in and met back up with them at their new location. They had met up with a bunch of people from their hostel. Followed the group around to a few different places, a karaoke bar, then a live band and a club. Fun night.

    Next day slept in and then walked around the old town. Had a good meal and decided to have a quiet evening at my hotel and catch up on rest.    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon

    Ipoh

    August 10 in Malaysia ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    Picked up my rental car late morning. Or at least i tried to. Theres no "greenmotion" car rental kioak at the penang airport. Then noticed on expedia, they listed a location 10km away from the airport for pickup. Taxied there, and there was nothing resembling an office, etc

    Contacted the phone number on expedia and got a guy who says he doesnt work for them anymore. But he gave me a number to try. Finally got ahold of someone and they said they had my car waiting at the airport valet area. Taxied back to the airport and finally found them.

    After all that, got my car. Driving on left side of the road in malysia adventure had begun! So weird to sit in the right side seat, and some stuff was backwards, like my wipers were the side i am used to having my blinkers. I cant tell you how many times my wipers got activated while trying to signal a turn haha. We get so used to things in the same places

    For the first half hour i had to continuously tell myself "left side, Sean!" but i eventually got better at it. Such a mind bender at times.

    I had met a philippines girl Tricia that coincidentally needed a ride from penang to kuala lumpur, the same day i was departing. So after finding an interesting seafood meal off the island, i picked her up and off we went.

    Because of the late start, didnt have time to accomplish as much as i had originally hoped. But did get to a phenomenal cave temple just before reaching Ipoh. Insane shrines inside a huge cave and then 450 stairs to the top of the mountain. Really gorgeous place. Such a shame the weather wasnt cooperating for the pics.

    After that exhausting hike, found our hotel in Ipoh and wandered around and found a few good spots for a cold beverage, a really nice restaurant for supper and even a place for live music. Sleepy town overall but definitely some wow memories at that cave temple.    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon

    Kuala Lumpur

    August 11 in Malaysia ⋅ ☁️ 33 °C

    Started the day with a quick drive to a nearby temple cave, but was closed for renos. However, there was another one nearby that was open. The cave portion wasnt as impressive but the exterior garden areas were amazing with its natural tall rock formations

    Drove another 30 minutes south to gopeng and ventured really deep into its cave system. Absolutely massive!! Biggest cave i have been in. I really wanted to do the 4 hour water part of it too but i just didnt have the time to do that plus all the driving etc. So did the 1 hour dry part and its hundreds of stairs. Very amazing place.

    Then a two hour drive to Batu caves just on the outskirts of kuala lumpur. Wowee. Huge cave system decorated throughout with shrines and ornate.. everything. And also a massive staircase to another holy spot and a huge chamber right through the mountain. Crowds were insane. And almost as many monkeys running around as people!

    Then the part i was most nervous for. The drive into kuala lumpurs center to my hotel. Got lost several times but managed to not kill any scooter guys and did indeed get to the hotel. So happy to park the car and not drive it anymore because the rental company offered to come to my hotel and get it. Yay

    Parted ways with Tricia and went for a nap. Then made my way to one of the craziest streets. Endless market stalls and restaurants that has to be seen to believe. Got my laundry done right there too while i had supper and watched the world go by.

    Bounced around to a few different places and met back up with tricia and her roommate for a beer. Then i went back into billiards mode and played pool for hours against people from around the world. Fantastic day.    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon

    Kuala Lumpur - Day 2

    August 12 in Malaysia ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    My goals today were to hit up the two massive towers in this city. First up, the petronas towers, which were the tallest towers in the world between 1998 to 2004, until Taipei 101 was built - that i visited just over a week ago too!

    Incredibly impressive from the street. I wanted to go up but they have very limited numbers of people allowed daily and sold out for next couple of days. My lack of research got me this time :)

    The heat this day was incredibly stifling. I walked 25 minutes to get to the petronas towers and desperately needed A/C somewhere to cool off. Had a small beer at a nearby irish pub and started to figure out how to get to the current worlds second tallest building. The merdeka 118. Found a taxi and then soon felt even smaller underneath this bohemoth. Very unfortunately the observation deck is still under construction and not possible to go up yet. Theres a hyatt lounge on the 74th floor, but they said i didnt meet the dress code. Booooo

    Made a highly questionable decision to walk 20 minutes in the heat back to my hotel. Didnt feel so great after that walk and lay down for a few hours in my frigid room to get my temperature back to normal

    A really nice couple i met in langkawi were also back in kuala lumpur and wanted to meetup. Elena (from mexico/winnipeg - odd pairing, i know haha) suggested meeting away from the downtown chaos so i took a 30 minute ride to the burbs and met up at 7pm. She works for united nations in myanmar, and oh boy did i have a lot of questions haha. Her boyfriend from Guinea eventually finished work and joined us too. Stayed there until about midnight and that was it. Too tired to even think aboit anything but bed.

    Loved my 2 days in KL. I would love to return someday.    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon

    Melaka / Malacca

    August 13 in Malaysia ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    The spelling of this city is very perplexing. I have seen it many different ways, and two main ways are inconsistently consistent depending on what source you are using.

    Took the bus from kuala lumpur which has the most sophisticated bus station i have ever seen. Its bigger than many airports. Electronic ticket scanning to get to gates. Several different levels for arrivals, departures, shopping, taxis etc.

    2 hour ride to melaka arriving at 2pm at my cute hotel. Walked around and got a small bite to eat but with the heat, decided to head back and lie down for a bit and go back out in the evening when its cooler and theres more open. Most places were closed in the afternoon.

    Walking around the canal area in the evening is spectacular. Everything is lit up and livelier. Tons of restaurants all along the canal. Such a pretty place.

    Didnt do a whole lot. Sat by the canal and had a nice meal, a few beers and caught up on a bunch of messages, blogs, checking into flights and country digital arrival cards. Flying into 3 different countries in each of the next 3 days.    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon
    My hotel
    My hotelSatay chickenRichardYash, kadar and leyshe

    Singapore

    August 14 in Singapore ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    One hour flight to Singapore arriving mid afternoon. With just the one night here, and the crazy heat, decided to just hang out near my hotel area, which was really nice.

    Had some satay chicken skewers and a beer at the open air restaurant on the ground floor of my hotel. Noticed on the map that there was a micro brewery 2 blocks away, so wandered over there to try it out.

    As i tried to enter, there was a guy at the door and a ton of people lined up inside. He asked if i was here for the event. I said oh, is this a private function? He said no, its our daily free beer event we do everyday between 5 and 530 and theres only 3 minutes left. He offered me a free beer only if i promised to buy another one after. I said sure, sounds good.

    This guy was the manager Richard from england. Super nice guy. Chatted with me for 30 minutes and then got back to work. Three guys from india sat next to me and eventually i struck up a conversation with them. Played pool with one of them for a while and then we all relocated to this taproom i spotted a block away

    At the taproom, they had fantastic craft beers similar to what i look for back home. We broke out a deck of cards and i taught them a game from canada, which was hilarious fun. Played for quite a while and eventually they all had to go

    One stayed behind for me to finish my pint and then we chatted and walked to his building. The friends made me promise i would get him home. Mission accomplished. Then walked down to the harborfront area where there was a huge number of people and establishments.

    Didnt stay too long and walked back to my hotel for the night. Singapore is such a fantastic place. I think i will stay multiple nights next time i am passing through.    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon
    Singapore airport
    Singapore airport1Singapore airportSingapore airportLaksa - yummy!

    Brunei

    August 15 in Brunei ⋅ ☁️ 34 °C

    Had a noon flight and the singapore airport is world famous as a place to be so i got there earlier than usual to have time to walk around a bit. So was up much earlier than i preferred :)

    The part of the airport that is famous is called Jewel. Its like an biodome ecosystem in there. Quite the sight. But also incredibly humid. After a while, i had to get out of there. The whole airport has really interesting areas. Could probably spend a day checking out all the nooks and crannies in the 3 terminals. I used one of my dragon passes and got into a fancy lounge.

    Landed in the kingdom of Brunei around 230pm. Got to my hotel and decided i would escape the midday heat and lie down for a few hours. Got up at 6 and walked 25 minutes to a huge mosque that i saw on the taxi ride from the airport. Incredibly beautiful. And i caught it just as the sun was setting. Perfect timing.

    Walked back to my hotel area and found an amazing restaurant called Balkony. Super busy with locals, which is always a good sign. Ordered a local dish called Laksa. Easily the best thing i have eaten all trip so far.

    Then was trying to decide if i should call it a night, or walk downtown. Opted to walk 40 minutes to downtown. To my shock, there was almost no one else walking anywhere. Almost spooky. Walked around the beautiful mosque by the river and along the waterfront. Eventually found a coffee shop and figured how to use brunei's version of uber, called Dart and got back to my hotel for 6 dollars.

    No alcohol in the kingdom, so its definitely a different world here. Even cigarettes are illegal. Doesnt affect me but wow never heard of that before.    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon
    City on stilts gas barMore city on stiltsMardiIn the mangrove

    Brunei to Kota Kinabalu

    August 16 in Malaysia ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    Flight to Kota Kinabalu wasnt until 730pm, so i booked a boatman to give me a private tour of the river. He took me past the mosques downtown, past the village on stilts and into the mangroves and areas with the monkeys.

    Lots of monkeys jumping around through the trees but also really shy at the same time and hard to get a good photo of. But still it was a really nice 90 minutes on the water, in nature and seeing the city from a different angle. And happy to give very sweet Mardi some tourism business.

    My hotel was kind enough to give me a late checkout until 130pm, so i rested in bed for a while then went back to that awesome restaurant from the prior night and got a gigantic soup.

    Eventually figured i may as well just go to the airport. Noticed my dragon passes work there, so went to the lounge for a few hours. Still no alcohol, but i gotta say very impressive food layout. I dedinitely ate more than i should have. Just too good.

    Also found out, along with alcohol being illegal in brunei, so are cigarettes, wow. I have never heard of cigarettes being illegal anywhere. Not that it impacts me personally, but quite surprising.

    Very quick 30 minute flight to kota kinabalu and an even faster escape from the airport despite having to go through immigration again. Found a nearby karaoke bar for a couple of beers to cap the night.    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon
    Highest mountain in malaysia
    Highest mountain in malaysiaView from my room

    Sandakan

    August 17 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 33 °C

    Back to the airport to pick up the car at 9am. To my dismay, google maps said 7+ hours to get to sandakan. Ugh. But at least it would be pretty and interesting.

    Took hours to drive over and around the monsterous peaks of borneo. Stunning scenery. But a constant battle to get past really slow moving trucks too. The last 3rd of the drive was on really poor roads and construction as they are in the middle of building a new highway.

    7.5 hours later, arrived at my hotel. I really really wanted a jungle lodge but amazingly everything around here was fully booked months ago when i tried to book. I didnt expect deep borneo to be so popular.

    But i ended up booking a really nice resort style hotel towards the city. Giant pool, multiple restaurants tropical setting.

    Ate my first meal of the day as i arrived and then went into relax mode sipping on beers by the pool and snacking here and there. By pure exhaustion, i went to bed around 1030pm.    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon
    Sun bearsSun bearsTiny tiny viper on a leafGuys from france that i hung out with and gave a ride toSim sim 88 seafood1

    Sandakan - Day 2

    August 18 in Malaysia ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    Enjoyed the resorts massive breakfast buffet and then drove 40 minutes to the organgutang consevation area. Protected jungle area for the orangutangs.

    Spent time in nursury area where they help them back to good health and theres also at a feeding platform setup in the jungle area for nearby orangutangs to feed on twice a day.

    A massive orangutang showed up on the human walkway at the feeding area instead of through the jungle, making everyone scatter. Pretty humourous. And then it went back into the jungle and made its way to an elevated feeding platform and hung out there grazing and relaxing. The orangutangs at the nursery were much more active rolling around and swinging on ropes.

    From there, went to the sun bear conservation park. This area waa actually fenced in but lots of natural area to roam around. Also saw the tiniest of vipers on tree leaf. Almost impossible to spot.

    Then onto the probiscus monkey conservation park. This was quite something. Completely in the wild but with feeding times and oh boy did they ever come out in numbers plus a different species of monkey too. They even jumped into our viewing area and mingled about. Soooo crazy. One grey monkey stole the baby of a probiscus monkey and joined us on the viewing deck. Maybe for protection? Anyways, this was an amazing experience.

    From there, went to a wildlife preserve with a massively elevated canopy walk through the trees. Gorgeous jungle views from the treetops. Walked the way back on the ground and came across a mother and baby orangutang high above us. Amazing.

    Back at the probiscus monkey conservation, i came across two guys from france with no car. So i offered them a ride to the viewing platform which was easily a km or 2. And after the viewing i also offered them a lift back to the city/hotels but first going to the wildlife preserve. They were so grateful. A good 55 minute combined drive. And despite me telling them it was all on my way anyways, they insisted on giving me 50 ringits. They said i am kinder than anyone in france because no one has ever been so kind to them. Aww 🥰

    Decided to try a waterfront area seafood place in a stilted village area. Had one of the best fish ever, sweet and sour flavour too. Yum!! Plus a fish soup. I unwittingly hugely over ordered. The local restaurant cat got the biggest fish serving of leftovers ever 😁    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon
    More orangutans!
    Best soup ever!!More orangutans!Red leaf monkey. Lucky to find!I hadnt yet realized my surrounding company yet1Cockroach town meetingThey are just naturally weird monkeys :)Pygmy elephantsMacaqueThe crew from RomeLisanne and shadi from Lyon

    Sukua

    August 20 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 33 °C

    Third day in sandakan i wanted to hire a boat to visit one of the nearby islands. No tour company would agree unless i stayed overnight. So i went down to the harbour to charter my own ride. But english became a very real restrictor and ultimately didnt happen

    So had a fantastic day lounging by the pool all day instead. Not a terrible plight :)

    Next day, drove 2.5 hours to renowned kinabatangan area. Biggest concentration of wildlife in borneo.

    Checked into my very simple hotel and found a small restaurant in a tiny village for lunch. Super duper muslim area, all women in headscarves. When i came out of the restaurant, tons of schoolkids in different areas all frantically waved at me yelling hi. I waved back and they repeated until i was out of sight. So cute. I should have taken a pic. Darn.

    Did an early afternoon cave tour. I had heard about this cave being out of an indiana jones movie and yup, checked out haha. You would not believe how many cockroaches were in this cave. Wild.

    On the way to the cave, there were two orangutans in the trees and also a rare red leaf monkey further down the path. Amazing!

    Immediately after the cave tour hopped in a boat for the famous river tour everyone comes here for. Immediately came across two huge probiscus monkey troups. Only found in borneo btw.

    But then the rainforest held up to its name and holy moly we all got wet. We pushed on and found pygmy elephants by the riverbank but my shots arent great

    Our boat guys eventually called off the tour. Just impossible weather in fully exposed boats. My 3.5 hour tour was only 90 minutes :(

    On the boat, met really nice lisanne and shadi from France and played yatzee with them at the hotel. Also met 6 really nice italians while my france friends did a night tour. Hung out with them for 2 hours

    Then when my france friends returned, i taught them a card game that they loved and we played until midnight and then bed. Fun day. But maybe a little less rain in the rainforest next time :)    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon
    My hotel room view
    My hotel room viewHotel restaurant viewMeatball soup. Or as they say "beef ball soup""Barry"

    Kundasang

    August 21 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    Drove 5 hours back up into the high mountains and found my mountain hotel. Had another amazing soup lunch. My god this country has the best soups on the planet. I could literally live solely off their soups for the rest of my life

    Took a nap and chilled in the room with my amazing mountain room. Was tempted to go for a mountain hike but i really badly stubbed my second toe the night before. Every bathroom in this country has a one or two inch lip on entry and i keep tripping over them. Its pretty bad this time, cuz i am limping a bit. Possibly fractured. Hoping just a bad bone bruise. Its really swollen and red. And hurts a lot.

    Found a great restaurant further up the mountain in the national park of mt kinabalu. Had another yummy noodle dish. My god i am spoiled with amazing food on this trip. The collision of malay, chinese and indian people living here has quite the culinary affect. Just amazing.

    Decided to head down the road into town to find an atm and a bar to relax and catch up on messages, accounting and this blog even 😁

    Soon before leaving, met a really nice Malay guy named Barry(?) as i left the bathroom. I am sure thats wrong, but it was loud, in my defence. He came by my table after and we chatted for quite a while. Malay people are soooo kind and welcoming to foreign people. Its soooo nice 🥰

    But it was getting late and i told barry i really needed to go and i had another 4 hour drive in the morning. Was a bit sad to go because i knew i would know 30 more malay people if i stayed 30 more minutes. This is really off the grid and i was the only non malay person in the establishment. The way i prefer. Even when i came in, i didnt understand the waitress, and 4 other malay girls joined to help solve the "problem". I think they are all just really curious about this obviously foreign person amongst them :)

    But the road beckons and sleep is kinda important :)    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon
    1
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    Tip of Borneo!

    August 22 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    I had a 3.5 hour drive to my beach villa. Decided to splurge on one of my last days for what looked like a really nice beachy experience. Borneo isnt just jungles and monkeys and i wanted to have that experience because who knows if i will ever be back, right?

    Another amazing drive down the mountain and honestly just fun almost coaster like driving the zigzag roads. I am getting so comfortable driving on the left side of the road now that i am almost concerned about driving on the right in canada on my return 🤣. Sounds hyperbolic, but i actually am concerned. Its almost a month rewiring my brain now. The wipers were opposite the turn signal at first and now i have zero memory of what back home is. I feel left right brain fog. I need to look into this haha.

    The beach villa is in the farthest north area of borneo, but there is literally a part called "tip of borneo". So i decided to drive a bit further past the villa and get to just the tip :) crazy beautiful views and beaches. Absolutely amazing. Climbed up and down rocks to reach the absolute tip. Mostly just a bragging point but i love that i got there 🥰

    Ten minute drive back south on the coastline and i found my villa resort place entrance. Gate guard guy stopped me and made me show ID. He showed me a clipboard of expected guests and it was a list of only me 😅

    He told me drive right then left. After the left, there were two uniformed people on the drive-in smiling and waving me into my private villa entrance. After parking, now there were 4 people including the manager all welcoming me and trying to assist.

    Gave me a quick tour and i couldnt believe two different buildings were all for my villa including a massive wrap around pool and living room and kitchen etc etc. Its impossible to explain. Just massive. I asked about a restaurant but no restauranr. Just a menu and i message the manager what i want and when i want it and it will happen

    Finally walked towards the beach and this huge piece of property 10x my peoperty at home was all mine with villa including a private beach too. Nobody anywhere!

    Hung out by the beach, walked to the sandbar and eventually watched the amazing sunset. Fantastic supper too. What a comfy location    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon

    Mamutik island

    August 23 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

    Drove 3.5 hours from tip of borneo to mamutik island just across from kota kinabalu city. Extremely short boat ride and an extremely small island

    Very pretty clear blue waters but difficult to enter. Lots of sharp coral and when i found a better beach entry, aggressive fish kept nipping at me to the point i had to turn around.

    Had a relaxing evening by the water but i really underestimated how tiny this island was. Oh well. Nice to have down time too. Chatted with the really nice bartender for a long time too.

    One day left on borneo which i will spend in the city kota kinabalu tomorrow, where i am flying out of. Adventure ends here 😁    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon
    Pad thai yum!!Friendliest restaurant cat everOne of the many bar sharp shooters

    Marooned in Bangkok

    August 30 in Thailand ⋅ 🌧 30 °C

    I was only supposed to be in bangkok one night and then fly to india for two days and see the Taj Mahal

    But a week earlier in borneo on a jungle river boat ride, i got hit with a monsoon that drenched my passport and it altered my photo page enough for IndiGo Air to not let me on the flight because my passport wasnt scannable

    Pretty emotional moment finding out my passport was no longer usable while almost at the farthest point from home. Immediately taxied to the canada embassy where they told me it would take between 1 to 4 weeks for a new one. Yikes

    After a lot of thought, i recalled how i got from malaysian borneo to bangkok by using the kiosk machine to checkin and print my boarding passes. Whereas that india flight required me to go to a check in counter and talk to someone. So i strategically rebooked my points flight to germany and then canada, feeling i can pull off the kiosk printing of tickets. Risky maybe but i liked my chances

    Feeling overwhelmed and deflated, spent the next 5 days in bangkok hitting up different restaurants for amazing food, and playing a ton of pool in the sukhumvit area. Love this area so much. One night i literally went 7 hours without losing a game. Every bar here has in house players you can play against. Beat them all. Super fun.

    But didnt really have any gusto for exploring. Probably a combo of 4.5 weeks of adventure and my passport situation taking the wind out of my sails. Definitely stressed. And i admit i had a bit of a cry at the airport that day i was denied.

    I didnt mope around or anything of the sort. But didnt have any desire to explore. Was in a fun area and met new people daily plus became a popular regular at a nearby restaurant with the staff. Made me feel like a home away from home. And a restaurant cat that often would sit in my lap. Sorry butterscotch and waffles!

    Anyways, made lots of new friends and disvovered some really amazing locations for food, beer and pool. Looking forward to returning. But stressed about being able to depart. 😳    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon
    Very pretty main plaza
    Very pretty main plazaCamera shy Teona

    Frankfurt

    August 31 in Germany ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    My plan worked. On arrival at the airport in bangkok, i couldnt scan my passport at the kiosk and staff came by to help. I asked if my digital boarding pass was good enough and they said yes and i got out of there quickly!

    Was able to scan my passport thru the immigration exit machines thankfully and i was on my way.

    On landing at frankfurt, took the short train to the downtown station, right next to my hotel. Walked to the old town, took a few pics, but pretty quiet. Walked back to my hotel area and had a beer at the nearby irish pub. Met Teona from the country of georgia and chatted for a few hours. She gave me a good recommendation of a german tavern to visit, and off i went.

    Met a few guys at the bar there and became buddies right away. They bought me some shots and we finished the night with lots of laughs - many at Trump's expense 😅. Last stop until home!    Read more

  • Sean PlamondonTaiwan and MalaysiaSean Plamondon

    Montreal

    Yesterday in Canada ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    And finally home (sorta)

    14 flights, 3 car rentals, 3 buses, 2 boat rides, countless ubers, 1 lost crown, i fractured toe and 1 mangled passport

    And one helluva trip 😁

    Back to reality

    Trip end
    August 31, 2026