Buffets are really a bad thing... I feel like we've been eating like animals at a feed lot for our daily breakfasts and some of the other meals that are included with the tour. In fact, it has been a bit difficult to get out and about to sample some of the local cuisine lately because of the scheduling of meals on the tour, but most of the food has been good nonetheless. I'm definitely feeling my body get softer and more plump...
Speaking of feeding, today we were looking forward to one of the big highlights of the trip: a visit to the Sepilok Orang-Utang Rehabilitation center, where injured, abandoned orangutans are rehabilitated and gradually reintegrated back into the jungle. Orang-Utang is actually a Malay word translating to "Man (Orang) of the Forest (Utang)." Interestingly, they exist in only two areas of the world- here in the jungles of Sabah, and also in the jungles of Indonesia. Here are the first Orangutans we saw of the day. 
The center does some amazing work and nurtures the orphaned animals, many from infancy until they are ready to be introduced into the jungle again. We were escorted to one of the feeding stations with a lookout point, and at once we saw some of the orangutangs sitting in the trees, hanging on the ropes and just chilling on the platforms. They seemed to know exactly when they would be getting their food because as soon as the caretaker showed up with buckets of milk, string beans, and bananas, orangutangs appeared out of nowhere, hurriedly making their way to the platform. We were able to get some good shots of these guys chowing down. It reminded me of us at the buffet this morning. 
All in all, our guide told us that it was a good day for the Orangutang viewing- we were able to see 12 in all, and one of the young dominant males even came down from the feeding station to roam around on the viewing platform. We all made sure to keep our distance, since we were told that they are very inquisitive animals and if you're a guy, you especially need to be careful and not to wear baggy shorts because orangutangs like to "reach for the fruit between the branches."
We bid farewell to these playful creatures and headed back to our hotel for lunch before embarking on a short tour of the area. First we headed to the house of Agnes Keith, an American woman who lived in the town of Sandakan (on the far eastern tip of Sabah) in the 1940's- 1960's. She actually attended UC Berkeley for college! She was in Borneo as the wife of the first administrator of forest conservation, but ended up making her own claim to fame by writing some really witty books about her time living in the jungle, and adjusting to life among the natives. The house itself seemed like a quaint English style home, but set smack in the middle of the rainforest. Jack thought that the roots of this tree were more interesting than the house:
From there, we headed to a massive Chinese Buddhist/Taoist temple, set high up on the hill. There were tributes to the Buddha of the past, present and future, as well as to the Goddess of Mercy, and small shrines set up in honor of passed ancestors. The view from the temple overlooked the South China Sea. 
Our last stop for the tour was a rudimentary water village built on stilts over the sea. We were led through a maze of small pathways fashioned out of logs and ended up at an open air cafe which offered amazing views of the colorful village in both directions. With it being lowtide, we saw people in the far distance of the sea, appearing to walk on water, as they waded ankle deep, looking for fish. It was so interesting to see the lifetyles of these people, living as they have for hundreds of years, mainly as fishermen, and then to see the children come home from school, yelling "hello!" as they made their way through the small pathways to their hut.
We ended up back at our charming hotel at around 5pm, just in time for the hour long massage I'd booked for less than 30 bucks. It was ok. My relaxation was somewhat shattered when the masseuse's cell phone rang towards the end of the session with this really annoying ring: "You have a call! You have a call! etc..." Said in a baby voice. Lovely.
For dinner, we joined the group and ate a great seafood joint. The night was made all the more exciting by the flash lightning and thunder storm which we were able to experience quite fully since we were eating OUTSIDE under a canopied awning. Not much conversation since the drumming of the rain on the tin roofs drowned out all other sounds.
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