A NIGHT AT KK AND IN TRANSIT TO BRUNEI [KOTA KINABALU TO BRUNEI] ~ MOUNTAINS&BEYOND

It was a rain filled evening on our last night at Kota Kinabalu but despite the throbbing in every inch of our bodies after our Mt. Kinabalu climb, we managed a hobble stroll around Tanjung Aru Beach and the night market seafront of KK.

Tanjung Aru open-air restaurants by the beachfront are ideal for people who prefer a private quiet meal. But located at the middle of the cozy dining place is a hawker area for locals or tourist on budget. It was here that we tried their local barbecues and drinks.

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After our short Tanjung Aru tour, we rode a cab to Kota Kinabalu’s night market seafront with wide selection of restaurants - from as classy as Waterfront to as thrifty as the sailor’s corner. We chose the latter where we dined with sails docked beside us. I was amazed by the sight of king crabs, tiger prawns, giant lobsters and fishes of different kind all served at the night market. Back at home, even the seafood restaurants rarely offer these types. Wow… a testimony of the richness of Borneo seas.

On the next day, we arrived at Jesselton Point just in time for the 8am boat trip to Labuan which is about 3 hours from KK. Then at Labuan, we had our meal while waiting for the 130pm trip to Muara, Brunei. It was another 1hr 15mins sail making it a total of nearly 4-1/2 hour ferry ride with a fare of about RM75 [all economy class]. We noticed that FOREX is few in KK even in Labuan, the extra ringgits saved as souvenir were used as ferry fare.

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At Muara Port, we learned through a Filipino staff of the bus ride to Bandar. It was also here that we exchanged some USD to BND. The bus ride to Bandar cost BND2 and an hour of travel. From Bandar we shifted bus bound to Jerudong [for BND1] for another hour of travel.

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We’ve been traveling for 9 hours already and can’t wait to stretch my yearning muscles at the soft beds of Jeruton Hotel.

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We agreed to make the most of our time at Brunei even if every muscle yearns for a stop. Our supposed first agenda was a sunset by Jerudong beach but sadly, rain kept pouring locking us inside Jeruton. Maybe it was God’s way of keeping us put and to have a forced rest...

We surrendered our saunter and just treated ourselves with a buttered milk prawn courtesy of Jeruton Lounge. For best hotel rates and availability, check out this link.