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Fish, Fur and Feathers
  • Arjun
  • Arjun

Fish, Fur and Feathers

Kiran and I are on the road again. The travel starts in Dubai and goes through Fiji, Australia and Borneo. We hike across tropical islands, dive in beautiful reefs, spot jewelled birds and animals. It is a tale we remember of fish, fur and feathers. Read more
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  • Trip start
    June 28, 2026
    ArjunFish, Fur and FeathersTraveler
    1Papa-Kiki crystal
    1Papa-Kiki crystal1

    The Dubai pickup

    June 28 in the United Arab Emirates ⋅ ☀️ 38 °C

    We were starting this year's trip with an experiment. Kiran would fly alone to Dubai from France, and I would meet up with him there. He was all of 11 years old, so there were some nerves before the trip. Esp with the US waging war in the nearby Strait against Iran, I was nervous too.

    Luckily, the flights went well and we met in Dubai to complete the Papa-Kiki crystal again! There was much to catch up on: missed hugs, gifts and stories untold. It was 45⁰ C outside, so we spent the next day just roaming around the mall, taking in the sights and witnessing the utterly ridiculous phenomenon that is Dubai. There is a three-storey aquarium inside of the mall!    Read more

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    The Atlantis

    June 30 in the United Arab Emirates ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C

    It was time to beat the heat, so we went to spend the day at the Aquaventure water park. Once again, the world's biggest park with slides. We spent most of the day in the water, and we had so much fun together. This boy is a water buffalo.

    Then we went to the aquarium near the water park. This was a really interesting take on an indoor aquarium, with the theme of Neptune permeating the whole building - including all the inside of the tanks. The light shows were mesmerising, and in the last two days I had seen more species of sharks and rays then in two decades of diving.    Read more

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    11

    Rainforest supercars

    July 1 in the United Arab Emirates ⋅ ☀️ 36 °C

    One thing I will say of Dubai: there is something to satisfy every interest and exceed every expectation.

    We went to the green planet, which I can only describe as an indoor rainforest. They have built a whole glasshouse around a massive tree and populated it with the most exotic creatures. I saw a nicobar pigeon preening as I walked in! I hadn't seen this even though I lived on the island for 4 months. We had a lovely time checking out the birds, and Kiran held his finger pointed out: "look papa, it's an Electus parrot!". Our spirit animal from the Iron Ranges trip last year was here.

    Then, I took Kiran to explore his other interest developed recently: supercars. This was the best city in the world for it, and so we went to a temple (showroom) of supercars. The hall was packed with Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Rolls Royce, Bentley's. He did not stop speaking in excited tones the whole time we were there, telling me the model numbers and features of cars I had no idea about.

    Then it was time to go! We had dinner at Ranveer Brar's restaurant, which Kiran declared to be the best Indian food he's ever had. And then it was time for his other interest: world cup football! I secured tickets to watch the match on the big screen in a giant event hall. We watched and screamed and jumped as Harry Kane expertly pulled England out of the mess they were with Congo. What a day!    Read more

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    Museum of the Future

    July 2 in the United Arab Emirates ⋅ ☀️ 37 °C

    We slept in and took in a slow morning. The future was calling, so we went to it's museum. This donut shaped building is an architectural marvel. The premise is that it is a portal into the year 2071, and we go to the spaceport and witness the miracles that the UAE has engendered in the last century. Most of it was scientific reiki to my mind and Kiran didn't seem too taken by the story. But the sensory effects and the building itself were just marvellous. We laughed a lot at the humanoid robot trying to hold conversation with the tourists.

    He loved the supercars yesterday, but we had not seen any Bugattis. So today we went to another temple that had Bugatti and Koenigsegg and more supercars. When we left the place, he hugged me with an emotional tone in his voice. At least now I know what gift to expect if he becomes very rich.

    To end our trip, we went to visit Damian and his girls. I had last met him nearly 20 years ago, and so we spent the evening catching up over gin and Syrian food as Kiran and the girls played in the pool.

    Tomorrow, we would leave Dubai!    Read more

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    23

    Kadavu is Fiji Untouched

    Jul 5–11 in Fiji ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    We flew the long haul to Brisbane, and arrived at dawn. We watched the world cup football match and slept in a hotel room to await Pranali. She joined us there and we got set up with our bags to fly... to Fiji!

    The plane was a basic twin propeller island hopper. Before we took off, all eight of us craned our necks and looked with a mix of excitement and nervousness as the airplane sped down the runway. Then suddenly, it was all blue below us and we watched the wondrous hues of the reefs around the coast as we glided to Kadavu island.

    We land at an airstrip that is in excellent condition. Next to it is a single room which is marked nonchalantly as Kadavu airport. You could look on both sides of the room, but in keeping with the form we walked through it to arrive at the island.

    We were bundled into a boat and the powered dugout sped along the coastline for a good hour. We got splashed and drenched in turns, and we decided to just accept it and watched the green and blue drift past us. Finally we turned towards a little cove, and as we arrived we could spot a handful of thatch huts embedded in the forest, which was the eco-resort where we would meet my brother and his family.

    The huts were lovely, the staff were kind and attentive and soon enough we had sprawled out across the resort. Every day we heard the shrill squawk of the endemic Kadavu parrot, and looked up to find its electric green and scarlet red plumage. The kids played, the adults sometimes joined, we chatted, we napped, we ate and filled in on stories missed from the last year.    Read more

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    The great Astrolabe reef

    July 7 in Fiji ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

    Over the week that we spent there, we went nearly everyday to experience some of the Astrolabe reef. Right from the resort we could see the ocean swell curling up in high waves onto the outer reef and then break in a splash of sea foam. There were divers here who came to ride those waves.

    *That's how you can see that the reefs protect the coast. If it were not for the reef, all that wave energy would come and hit the shore", I explained to Kiran.

    It was evident enough while standing here. Going south beyond the reef edge here was... Antarctica. The open ocean really has to climb up in a hurry to make it to the reef crest here.

    I went underwater, with Srivas, with Pranali, with Rohan, with Kiran, and with a great sense of joy that I have groomed my family to go diving for more than a decade now. Bry and Jaya were dedicated snorkelers, coming out with the boat everyday. We were the only tourist boat and had the reef to ourselves the whole week.

    The open ocean and the mostly untouched forest on the land meant that these waters were pristine. With glass like clarity, we could see upwards of 30 metres through the water. The dives were beautiful, with a rich diversity of corals and signs of a hard recovery from recent cyclones. We saw sharks and rays and fish and octopus and fan corals and beautiful walls dropping off into the deep blue.

    "I think I want to stay in Fiji time", Bry concluded after a few days of meditative floating in this reef.    Read more

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    Kadavu school fest

    July 10 in Fiji ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    It was the final week of the school year in the nearby village. We were informed that today is the final day of celebrations, to which we were esteemed guests of the school principal. We piled into a boat and arrived at a sheltered cove and stepped on to a jetty. Immediately, we were in the middle of the village and headed to the school.

    We were ushered in to be seated at the edge of the stage on a few chairs that had been specially placed there to raise us above the fray. The fifty-odd children, their mothers, their aunts, their grandmas were all seated on the floor. While the music played - rather louder than you'd expect at a young school gathering - we watched the tots being cavorted and cajoled through a variety show. The whole crowd joined in with clapping and singing and a few twirls of joyous dancing.

    A little girl came up to me, looked at me closely, and then climbed into my arms. She stayed there for most of the show. I even had to dance a little jig with a lady while carrying the little girl. The older kids put on a folksy version of hip hop, or some other oddity of music for the setting - the teenage boys and girls were just standing on the grass at the edge of the school. With a deft move of turning your head to the left, they had created a stage where just minutes before it was only a meadow.

    Very many children got white-faced. Sporadically but frequently one or the other child would get their face scrubbed - while they are doing their musical act - with a puff of white powder. It was talcum powder I noticed when I got white-faced. Later, when I asked them the meaning behind this tradition, they said it was to celebrate that person. Why it was white face received no satisfactory explanation, but it was the most communal and uplifting white-face tradition I know of.

    As the school day ended, we got ready to leave. I was pulled into a men's circle by the village chief. He wanted to know where in the US I was from.

    "Australia. I live in Australia", I explained.

    'where in Australia?", the chief asked.

    "It's a place called Townsville, between Brisbane and Cairns", I said trying to anticipate the next question.

    "Townsville? Oh yes that's why my brother lives", he said. "Another in palm island".

    I was quite taken aback to discover this bit of strange globalist connection. This parochial scene in a meadow by the mangroves off the southern seaport of Fiji was not where I expected a connection to my unlikely town. This wonder stayed with me for a few days.

    Kiran was moved by the place, and told me he would like to donate his tablet for the school. So the next day we sent it with somebody who could take it to the school.

    We then went to a waterfall near the villages edge, and then found a boatman to ferry us back to our cove. We got a good many waves from various children looking on to the jetty.    Read more

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    To the chill lake

    July 14 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    The time in Kadavu was already over, and we found ourselves at the Nadi airport, chewing and making grand plans for meeting next year. Soon it was time to board the flight to Australia and let those plans become the anticipated story.

    We bought a house by the lake! Soon as we returned, it was time to get our life into boxes and move to the new home. Kiran walked through the place in wonder, and got the first pick of the rooms. It was a lovely house with charming sunset views.

    Day 1 in the house involved setting up an art studio, and going dragon shopping. Shopping board games and gifts for a new neighbour friend of Kiran. You know, the essentials. A couple of days later, Pranali left overseas for a work trip and Kiran and I were just two again. Well, three with Simba who was pleased to have this playful human.

    We made a staycation out of it. Exploring cafes, playing in the park, paddling on the lake, pickleball and badminton and all the rest that fill up the day of a sporty little boy. It's a very engaging way to live life, to wander and peer through the eyes of a curious and active boy. Just like that, two weeks went by at the chill lake.    Read more

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    Trail Day 1: scramble to Little Ramsay

    August 1 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    About eight months ago, I had booked 6 passes for the coveted Thorsborne trail on Hinchinbrook island, which sold out within minutes of release. Three friends dropped out due to the daily pressures of adulting. The three of us made up our resolve to go anyway. Then pranali got quite sick from her trip, and she decided to pull out as well. And now it was just the two of us, Kiran and I, heading out to attempt this multi-day trek on the remote side of Hinchinbrook island. I would be lying to say I wasn't nervous, as I played the what-if games necessary before each expedition.

    We had to carry all our food, water, utensils, sleep and camp gear on our backs. And then carry all our trash out. As the only adult in our party of two, I worked with Kiran to pare it down to the essentials that we need to sustain ourselves in the bush: hot chocolate, the Dune graphic novel, card game, 5x5 Rubik's cube and a pickleball.

    At Lucinda, we joined four other hikers on to the boat that would take us through the mangroves in the inner channel and bring us to the trail head at Ramsay bay. In the channel, John cut the motor and pointed at the ripples ahead. "Those are snub-nosed dolphins. Pretty rare and endangered."

    We hopped off the boat on to the boardwalk, hoisted up our backpacks and set off walking along this pristine beach. At the end of it we cut into the forest, follow the trail till it brought us back to the beach at Nina bay. From there we were on the rockhopper way, having to skip and jump over boulders strewn and bashed by the waves.

    It was hot. The bags were heavy. And we were desperate to have a swim in this beautiful and inviting lagoon just next to the campsite. But no, this is croc country. So we settled for a beach walk where we could get bitten by bugs instead.    Read more

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    Laces still white

    Trail day 2: slog to Zoe bay

    August 2 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

    We woke up in the rain. This was supposed to be the dry season, but there's always a little splutter hiding. We had a somewhat ambitious plan today - to get to not the next but the second bay. This was almost double of yesterday's hike, and we weren't sure if we were up for it.

    We continued along the coast until the trail ran out of it and veered off into the forest. We had mixed feelings about this because the trail went uphill, but it brought us to a lovely little rock pool where we could have a cool dip.

    The track went through all kinds of forest today. We had thick scrub, some kind of eucalyptus patch, salt marsh grass, tree root arcades and open mangrove nurseries. This variety kept the long hike interesting, but also challenging.

    We saw that we had only an hour till sunset and we were still in the forest. So we decided to hurry up, and just then the track decided to turn into a swamp. After a very inelegant game of the-floor-is-lava, we emerged back into the forest with our shoes caked in thick mud. A little further and we arrived at Zoe bay, with half a bottle of water left. This had been a slog but we had made it! Our reward was the beautiful long beach and the friendly sandflies that live in it.    Read more

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    Trail day 3: luxuriate at Zoe Falls

    August 3 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    The reason for the slog yesterday was this: to sleep in and not move today! Just above the campsite is Zoe Falls and we were just going to spend the day chilling.

    Zoe Falls turned out to be remarkably refreshing. It is a tall rock wall over which the water flows into this large pool. The water is crystal clear, there is a curious clan of jungle perch in there that follows us and swims right up to us, a light breeze blows into the falls as it faces the open ocean and there are plenty of boulders to hop over. I must reassess: Zoe Falls felt like a perfect waterfall on this day.

    I had been clever enough to pack the stove and food. So after a meal by the fishes, we went to climb up to the upper ledge of the falls. This was another place of astounding natural beauty. There is a natural infinity rock pool from which we got views right out of the bay from this forested hill.

    Eventually we descended for a sunset stroll on the beach, convinced that this whole day had been a compensation for our hike yesterday.    Read more

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    Trail day 4: make it to Mulligan falls

    August 4 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    Thanks to the rest day, I was up at sunrise. Watching the colour fill up the sky and the world is such a joy in these settings. Then I got busy packing up the camp and Kiran went beach combing. He found a beautiful cone shell that was larger than his fist.

    We now had to climb the vertical face of Zoe Falls like yesterday, but now with our backpacks on us. The rope climbing section felt a lot more precarious today.

    The track then goes in the opposite direction of the creek, and we had disappeared into the forest again. This was a thick forest with a lot of slippery tree roots to stub and glide on.

    As we had had a fully bugbite-free night, Kiran was pleased. During one of the pauses, we tried to count up the bug bites on Kiran. We stopped after we found 47 on just his right leg.

    We plodded through the forest, till we had crested the highest point of the Thorsborne trail. It was all downhill from here till the last campsite. We soon found out that it was the type of downhill that kept going back up. We grunted and pushed on till we emerged on to an open hill face with beautiful views towards Lucinda.

    From here it was only a hop and a stumble to get to Mulligan falls. The falls were just next to the campsite so we spent a lot of time there. The water was just as clear, the fish were just as friendly and the jump points were even more exciting. What a great place for the last evening on the trek!    Read more

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    Trail day 5: beach walk to George point

    August 5 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    We woke up to get our tent packed, but instead spent a good while just watching these two noisy pittas furtively hop about the forest floor. It's puzzling how such a bright and striking bird can go so easily unnoticed when it is in the lead litter.

    We got going on the trail and found some picturesque sections of forest. This was pleasant and easy walking which now brought us to the beach again. There was a tidal creek to cross, but the tide and season were on our side.

    We walked a good many KMs on the beach. We watched with some curiosity this strange shape on the beach at a distance. Slowly it grew bigger and we walked up to and past a grounded ship.

    We made it to the extraction point and met up with the other hikers. Kiran was feeling proud, and rightly so, for having completed this challenging track under his own power.    Read more

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    Cloud Kingdom Brunei

    August 11 in Brunei ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    We had a week at home to wash off the dust from Hinchinbrook island. We went visiting our favorite spots and people in Townsville because Kiran and I were getting ready to be on the road again. We said our goodbyes to Pranali and Simba, and headed with our bags to the airport.

    In the not entirely funny routing of airlines in North Queensland, we had to first fly 3 hours south to Melbourne to then catch a 7 hour flight to Brunei. We generally resisted doing the arithmetic and focused on the in flight entertainment. Until we were distracted by a sublime sight through the plane window. A white cloudscape of hills and crags and meadows - all made of clouds lay below us. We enjoyed this kingdom of clouds as we descended to the kingdom of Brunei.    Read more

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    Kinabalu is cool

    Aug 12–14 in Malaysia ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    We landed in Kota Kinabalu at night, and headed to a hotel. After a little drama that Kiran had lost his new tablet, we got a car and set off driving towards the north east. Soon enough the busy road turned upwards and our eyes were set on Mount Kinabalu. At 4000 m it stands tall as the giant of tropical Borneo.

    We went into Kinabalu Park to explore the high montane forest and check out the birds and insects. As a clue to the secret travel ahead of him, I had given Kiran the Birds of Borneo book to look through. We set off looking for the endemic specials of Kinabalu.

    We saw Whitehead's Trogon and Pygmy squirrel, but the broadbill eluded us - 100 other dedicated features with thermal scanning cameras who were on the road. We spent three days in and around Kinabalu Park, and with the cool mountain weather and the warm nature of the people we met, Kiran simply described our time there as "cool, beautiful and colourful".    Read more

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    Sepilok is just right

    August 15 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 33 °C

    We had wound our way down the mountain, and boarded a plane to fly east. We looked out and Kinabalu was sticking her peak out through the clouds, letting us know we were still in her watch. On landing, we grabbed a ride to Sepilok.

    The landscape here is flat, mostly agricultural. We tried to check in to the resort, but they wouldn't let us. We had turned up at the wrong resort. While waiting for a ride to the correct one, we leaned over the railing to look at the croc I had spotted at the lake surface. It turned out to be a monitor lizard. While looking at that I noticed a string below my beard, which turned out to be a small snake. Despite being at the wrong place, this seemed like the right start.

    We checked in, and for some reason, they put us in a massive chalet. The walls and the floor were timber, with three connected chambers. "Wow, even the bathroom is bigger than my room at home!", said Kiran. "Shall we take a bath?" I was puzzled by the abrupt shift in attitude, until I noticed one of the chambers had a freestanding bathtub in it.

    Instead we headed out to the rainforest discovery centre, which promised canopy walkways through tall dipterocarp forest. We walked down a wobbly suspension bridge, and soon as we got to the other side "Papa look! Up there, Orangutans!". A ball of shaking leaves rolled through the highest branches as flashes of bright orange peeked through. Wild Orangutans at our first spot? How special!

    Meanwhile a clan of macaques were busy jumping and cavorting through the lower branches. An oriental darter stood gracefully on a log sticking out of the water. All around were noises of a rich forest. We walked the ground trails and soon after there appeared a furiously bright trogon sitting on a nearby branch. Despite the heat and humidity, this was turning out to be the right forest for us!

    We walked the canopy walkways. I was delighted at the chance to casually stroll past the high canopy of trees that are 20-30 metres tall! Now we were craning our necks to look down, not up at the trees. We saw a flying squirrel pop it's head out of a hollow, but it decided not to fly.

    We came back for a night walk through the forest. A ranger gathers half a dozen of us and with terse and no-need-to-respond instructions, he switches on a flashlight and heads off into the forest. We try and keep up with him. We saw a hooded pit viper, tarsier and a slow loris. As a primate that evolved about 65 million years ago, I was left wondering the types of challenges this primate faced to evolve to be the only venomous primate. Just as we finished the night walk, a pair of eyes looks up at us. It's a Malayan Civet! We went to bed finally at 11 pm.

    Kiran had tried to negotiate that we sleep an extra 30 minutes and wake up at 6:30. I let him sleep and we stayed in bed till 9 am. We deserved a break after almost a week of early starts, and the luxury chalet was the right place for it.

    We went to the orangutan rehabilitation centre next door to our resort. This is a conservation centre built into the forest to help the orangutans that are orphaned or injured due to poaching, logging and other human atrocities. We went to the outdoor nursery, where the promise of fresh fruit brought out a group of resident orangutans. They were an absolute delight to watch! They swing and walk with their arms, and hold food with their feet. It's all hilarious and amazing. When one of them catches you in an eye lock, the gaze is deep and chillingly human. This is a brother, not a creature.    Read more

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    Storm's StorkRain safari camera

    Sukau is sizzling

    Aug 16–18 in Malaysia ⋅ ☁️ 33 °C

    At the end of a lonesome road that turned off from the highway and meandered through endless palm plantations, arrived at a little boat ramp. We heave our luggage into a little boat, and are brought to a wooden ramp that creaks and whistles as we walk over it. We were at this family homestay on the Kinabatangan river.

    Every chance we got we went out on the boat to explore the creeks and tributaries of this deep brown river that was surrounded by forest. The forest was teeming with wildlife! And the rain was pouring down on the first evening. We travelled in the rain as we watched crocodiles, a family of Pygmy elephants, kingfishers, macaques, hornbills and eagles that flew overhead. That's two of the Borneo Big Five on the first evening. As the storm subsided, a rainbow shone through, and overhead flew a Storm's Stork! The rarest stork species with lesser than 500 remaining in the wild.

    Next morning started with a male orangutan feeding whole-heartedly on Durian fruits. He chomped through their thick skins like they were berries. Families of Proboscis monkeys cavorted on the branches above the river. The long-tailed macaques were an absolute riot on the branches and on the ground between the mangrove roots. There! Between the roots, the blue-headed Crested Firebacks peck at the floor. Monitor lizards lounge on the dead branches in the sunshine.

    Before we see them, we hear them. The 30+ strong family of Bornean elephants trumpet loudly, and with clear anxiety, at the female and child that had wandered off too far into the forest. The matriarch of the group was not pleased and let them know. One female drew long grass out with her trunk and waved it about over her head before folding it into her mouth. One large female sat till her head in the water, oblivious to crocodiles, and used her trunk as a snorkel. The baby elephants did baby things and were just adorable.

    We saw 6 of the 8 hornbills that are found in Borneo during our stay here. We were lucky enough to spot the endangered Helmeted Hornbill flying off into the canopy. The iconic Rhinoceros Hornbill helped complete our Borneo Five. With crocodiles with eyes the size of tennis balls, and kingfishers spiking through the water, and the primates tugging and jumping on the branches and the torrential downpour splattering on the chocolate brown river - Sukau was simply sizzling!    Read more

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    White capped shama
    White capped shamaSpotted wood nymphBlue headed pittaPair of broadbills roostingMalaysian blue flycatcherSpotted Wren BabblerTarantulaWood owlLong-trailed parakeet matingFlying lizardBlack crowned pittaCrested FirebackSunda scimitar babblerRed eyed bulbulLesser leaf bird

    Danum valley is demanding

    Aug 19–22 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    After a day in Lahad Datu, where we managed to wash away most of the smell of the river, we got into the mini bus with four others. This bus would bring us, over 2.5 hours of jumping and jarring roads, to the Danum valley forest.

    The field centre here is run by a foundation and it manages these 400+ km² of primary lowland forest. These forests are home to umpteen specialist birds, several big mammals and plenty of giant trees.

    Kiran and I came here with some niche interests in mind. I hired a private bird guide and gave him our wish list. Daryl chuckled but not dismissively. We went out on the side trails looking for pittas, which are jewels of the forest floor, but oh so shy! He tells us that this is the wrong time of the year, and there has been no rain. "No leeches, no happy pitta" he explained. With Kiran's wildlife luck still strong, we spotted a blue-headed pitta on the first walk. The first they'd seen in a month and a half. I barely get to see the pitta in full for a photo.

    In another walk, an absolute unit of a male orangutan held the stage. This was our 11th wild Orangutan, so Kiran wanted to move on to hunting for pittas, while other groups rushed and gushed at the leaves overhead.

    The primary dipterocarp forest is thick and dark and twisted. There are brief breaks in the dense canopy whether the giant old-growth trees stand tall. We hear the sounds of birds all around us, but we can hardly ever spot them. This is deep in twitchers territory, like the iron ranges last year.

    Daryl has been a naturalist here for 17 years. His eyes are tuned to the movement of every leaf, his ears to every tweet that comes from the woods. He is a fount of knowledge about the plants and animals that live here, and also about the politics and history of what made these forests so expensive to visit.

    On the last day, we set out to even deeper woods to get one of the two pittas we wanted to see. Half an hour in we hear the bird calling back. We get on it's trail using sounds. It draws us deeper into the woods, and after almost an hour of skulking through the vines and the branches, it pops briefly into view: a black crowned pitta! Three seconds later it's gone!

    The next morning we woke up to go view the sunrise. As we stood there in the dimness of the first light, I tried to decide whether I loved or hated Danum valley. It showed us some incredible sights - bringing our count to 15 wild Orangutans - but not the ones that we wanted to see. Danum valley is demanding, is all I could conclude.    Read more

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    Gaya island for luxury

    Aug 22–25 in Malaysia ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    Enough of the bush, it was time for some luxury. We arrived in Kota Kinabalu and were directly whisked off to the Gaya island resort. Relaxing here a few days will be a succour to our sore sides.

    The island is hardly an hour from the city, but is within a marine national park. Either through rigorous conservation control or some deft corruption, no development is allowed on the islands except for the three resorts on it.

    Our villa faces the rainforest and stands on stilts above the reef. We watch rainbow parrot fish chomp away at the algae below us. A flock of nine hornbills perch on the tree above us. We take a long circuit snorkeling the bay with the house reef. The macaque family makes its daily arboreal visit from the forest.

    On one of the days, we went out for a couple of reef dives. The reef was pretty and thriving in parts, although others were looking in a sorry shape. We saw cuttlefish and Anemone fish and a stingray. It was a shallow and warm basin, so we could dive without wetsuits.

    Just as wonderful as all this is the infinity pool that overlooks the bay. Kiran spent so many hours in there that he made his usual wrinkled skin joke "look papa, I'm an old man". We tried every possible way to enter the pool while jumping into it. There were dives and flips and somersaults and cannonballs and ragdolls.

    A few days in this luxury with a comfy villa, delicious food, friendly service and an expansive view out to the sea was the perfect way to unwind and look out towards what comes next over the horizon.    Read more

    Trip end
    August 27, 2026