Bario

We got to the airport and all the flights seemed to be mixed up so we aren’t even sure we booked the wrong flight. We actually didn’t have to wait that long and got on a early flight to Bario.

We had an amazing 4 days in the Kelabit Highlands. The Kelabit highlands is a remote jungle region in Borneo near the border of Indonesia. It was built up as a military post previously by the British which made it more accessible. It's in the middle of nowhere so we had to fly in on a tiny 16 seater plane to get there. The flight was a thrill in itself. Once there we had arranged a Homestay with a local artist who was married to a Dane. All our food was provided and they take you in like family. We even got invited to the grandmothers birthday party. We did lots of walks around the rice fields and up a couple small mountains (Prayer Mountain). The people we met were the friendliest we have met on this trip and so welcoming. We stayed at another Homestay in Pa' Lungan for 2 nights with Supang and Audie, which was even further in the jungle. It was a 2 hour boat ride or 4 hour walk from the main town Bario. Our plan was to do an overnight jungle trek while we were there but things didn't work out exactly. The intended shelter was damaged so we settled for day walk in the jungle. We got the short end of the stick with guides again and could only understand 10% of things he said. The memorable story was about German tourist that climbed a giant tree. The best guide in the village was resting for a multi-day excursion so was unavailable. None the less, it was such a fun experience being in the middle of nowhere surrounded by jungle. Without a map, we ended up making a wrong turn back to Bario and a local gave us a lift back to town after we had already walked for 4 hours. They also have the best pineapple and rice in the world. I think what we really liked was everything was so simple and laid back. It was probably the most relaxing destination we have been to. In addition, since it was the highlands the temperature was much more temperate, however we still have been rained on everyday in Borneo.

The one funny thing is even though we were still in the middle of the jungle in an old wooden hut they still had satellite TV. Who would have guessed it.Læs mere