5-25-6/1

Sunday 6/1

This morning, Andy, Lee, and I got up at 6:00 to go and look for birds. We first looked by the river and caught a few glimpses of birds but then decided to walk down the road. I ended up seeing nine new species of bird between 6:00 and 10:00 am. First we saw a Black and Yellow Broadbill which is a beautiful bird, although it was a bit backlit and hard to make out all of the colors. Then, before we saw another bird, and I’m really psyched about this, we saw a lizard from the Draco genus, known for their ability to fly. Andy and I actually both saw it fly and land on a tree, and we didn’t know what it was until we saw it scurry around the tree to where we could actually see it. The lizard was only about 6 inches long, but it was able to fly with way more precision and grace than what I thought it would. They fly by stretching out their ribs and gliding. We had learned briefly about them in herpetology and Andy and I had talked about how cool it would be to see one, but I wasn’t so sure we would be able to, and really did not think that we would be able to see it fly. We had our eyes peeled for birds, and were not searching for Draco, but we saw it fly through the air, land on the side of a completely vertical tree, and climb around to sit facing us about 20 feet away. We almost couldn’t believe it. After that we saw a bunch of cool birds, most of the time thanks to the eagle eye of Lee. We saw some different species of Bulbul, some Green Leafbirds, and Raffles’s Malkoha which Lee called the Doctor Bird, because it only makes it’s nests with leaves that are used in traditional Chinese medicines. Some of these birds are listed as rare on the app Merlin and are beautiful.  We were lucky to see as many birds as we did, however nothing really compared to seeing Draco. After looking for birds all morning we took a small rest, then went to swim in the river. We swam for about a half hour before Mr. Silver arrived to take us back to the Crocker Range Rest House for the rest of the day. We hung out and talked for a while and Lee kindly gifted Andy and I each a homemade parang; a large knife that everyone carries when they do work in the jungle. Lee used to work primarily as a blacksmith in his village, and still does a little bit, and that gift meant a lot to me. He was someone who took it upon himself to always help Andy and I with anything we needed, even after long days of work. He and Silver both had a huge impact on our overall experience in Keningau and they told us that anytime we want to return we have a place to stay. They thanked us for our time we spent with them and told us they see us as their brothers, something that meant a lot to both Andy and I. We also thanked them for welcoming us with such open arms and giving us an experience that we will never forget. They are truly some of the kindest people that I have ever met. It was a sad goodbye, but Andy and I packed our things in Silver’s truck and left Bayayo.

On the way to the Rest House we stopped at the Bataras Supermarket to shop for the upcoming week. While we were there, Jus, the other head ranger for the area along with Silver, called and asked if we wanted to play soccer with him and Silver in an hour. Andy immediately agreed. I hesitantly agreed. I’ll admit it was mainly because I just didn’t want to embarrass myself. We finished shopping, stopped at Silvers house so he could change his clothes, and arrived at the field  in a village near Keningau. When we arrived, it looked way more serious than I thought it would be. Two teams with their own uniforms warming up with refs getting ready to go as well. It was basically a men’s league. Kentut, it turns out, is on the team with Jus and Silver as well, so it was good to see him. They played three 30 minute periods and Andy and I would play in the second period. After the first period it was still a 0-0 game and I really did not want to go in, screw up, and give up the first points of the game. Luckily there so many people on the team that there was only enough space for Andy and I to each play half the period. Andy started, played really well, then it was my turn to go in. I was playing winger I guess, but had no clue what I was doing. I kicked the ball twice, then accidently had a handball. Shortly after a member of our team scored, giving me a break in the action to go sub myself self out. I called for Andy and ran to the sideline. They asked what I was doing coming out already (I played 5 out of my 15 minutes), and I told them I had no idea what I was doing out there! They all laughed and said some encouraging words, knowing I really hadn’t played before, and said they were glad that I tried. I was too, but I was happy witting on the sidelines and watching our team win by one point. After the game we all had some food at the field, then Silver took Andy and I to the Rest House around 7:30. I made some phone calls home that were long overdue, showered and went to bed around 11:30.

 Saturday 5/31

This morning Andy and I got up around 7:30, had a quick coffee and biscuit, and were picked up by one of the drivers named Jonathan. Jonathan took us back to the Keningau District Headquarters, and we picked up two workers who we had just met at the party on Thursday night named Khai and Arip. They would be taking us to the final Kaamatan festival in the city of Penampang, just to the east of Kota Kinabalu. We arrived around 10:00 and were met with a huge line of traffic. Jonathan dropped us off at the gate of the Kadazan Dusun Cultural Association Complex, referred to as the KDCA, and we joined the crowd of people entering. There was a lot going on, but the first thing that we did was walk through a little cultural village that showcased all of the different Dusun tribes from different areas of Sabah. Each tribe has their own type of traditional house and dress, and they were all on display to see, also selling traditional jewelry and trinkets. After seeing all of this, for maybe an hour, we went to look around the rest of the area, which was kind of like a big fair. With different vendors selling foods and items, as well as some booths selling things like air conditioning or cell service. After walking around this area we went to try to watch the pageant for the Unduk Ngadau. The Unduk Ngadau one of the main things celebrated during Kaamatan. The origin of the holiday, at least from what I have been told, is that a long, long time ago there was a drought and it was very difficult to grow food. Then, a beautiful woman, or the Unduk Ngadau, was sacrificed to end the drought and famine, and people were now able to grow rice. The Unduk Ngadou I think kind of commemorates this legend. Unfortunately, the line to enter the hall to watch was long and moving incredibly slowly. After waiting for about a half hour the four of us decided to call it and go eat some food. After we ate some pork soup, we walked around the cultural village some more. Now things were starting to pick up, and Andy and I once again got roped into joining a dance circle. I felt embarrassed but still had a great time, and I think people thought it was funny watching us struggle to keep up. When the song ended we left that house, got our picture taken with another group, then went to go wait for Jonathan to pick us up to leave.

When he made it to us, we hopped in the car and Andy and I both thought we were heading back to Bayayo. Instead, we drove into Kota Kinabalu, and Khai and the others wanted to show us the largest mall in Sabah. I’m typically not one for malls but it was pretty cool to see. It was 4 stories tall and had a mix of stores I recognized and had never heard of. It also had an arcade where we went and played some games which was pretty cool, then we walked around some more and ended up in a massive grocery store on the first floor. There was really a mix of everything there.  After we left I thought again that we were heading back to Bayayo, but instead went to a big public beach. This was the first time we actually went to a beach while being here and it felt great. There was a night market starting up when we got there, and there was a nice ocean breeze to cool us of from the hot afternoon sun. We had some cold drinks and some snacks and sat on the edge of the beach for about an half hour before heading back to the truck. I had wondered why I didn’t see many people in the water but on the way out I saw a sign for crocodiles that said swim at your own risk so I think that might have been the reason.

We left the beach, feeling pretty tired and drive all the way back to the Keningau District Park Headquarters and ate dinner at the resteraunt across the street. I had Deer Fried Rice Pattaya (Nasi Goreng Payou Pattaya) which was deer meat and fried rice topped with a thin sheet of scrambled egg.  It was delicious (sedap), as most food is here. Then we piled back in the truck, this time Jonathan switched out with another driver, and went back to Bayayo. When we got there, it was only Lee, Galis, and Kentut. Others had already left for vacation, and Kentut was getting ready to leave because his three month contract was over and he has to wait another month before returning. So Kentut packed up, and packed up the puppies as well because he was taking them home with him, and left along with the folks who took Nady and I back. The four of us that remained stayed up for a little while, but ended up going to bed around 10:30.

Friday 5/30

Today we slept in again until around 8:00, had a nice big breakfast with some instant coffee, and got ready to start the work for the day. Today’s goal was to improve the water collection system here at Control Post Bayayo. To do this we needed to unroll two huge rolls of 2-inch diameter piping and drag it all up a trail and across the river a few times before taking it up the creek, the same way that I returned from my hike a couple days ago. Each roll of piping was probably about 70 meters long and it was pretty heavy. We split up so there were about 4 people per pipe. Each with a piece of it over the shoulder and dragging it through the twisting trail was hard work. We took fairly frequent short breaks, and a nice long break once we made it to the creek that we had to walk up. The whole point of bringing in this new piping was to go further upstream to reach a better, natural dam in the creek to make the piping more resilient during floods. Once we dragged the pipe up the creek, we had to get it situated up on the bank to keep it out of the path of floods. The difficult part of this was keeping it all running downhill so that the water would flow. After messing with it for about an hour, four of us walked back since there was not much else we could do.

Once we made it back to the Control Post, One of the workers named Galis made lunch. It was rice, some ginger chicken soup, and fish that were fried whole. This was one of my favorite meals that I have had here so far. After that, the others returned and ate, and we all took a rest. After we ate it was time to play some more sepak takro. This time there were only six us playing so we played a best of three match and my team lost. After that we all hung out for a little bit, but as it was getting dark Andy and I decided that we wanted to look around for wildlife again with our flashlights. Lee joined as well, which was awesome because he spotted a mouse deer. Tonight we just walked through the bamboo forest next to the Control Post. It was pretty far away and at first he just spotted the eye shine from the flashlight, but after looking more closely we were able to catch a glimpse of the smallest species of deer. We also saw a couple small dark blue birds called Black-naped Monarchs as well. It eventually started to drizzle a little bit, so we hurried back to take our clothes off the line that we had left them drying on. After that, we went to bed shortly after because we were leaving the Control Post the next morning to go to the final Kaamatan festival.

Thursday 5/29

We had meant to wake up this morning at sunrise to look around for some birds, but we ended up sleeping in until around 8 again and had some different biscuits and instant coffee for breakfast. When we were sitting outside we still saw some birds flying around and then ended up walking around looking for another hour and a half. I saw some new birds including a Spectacled Spiderhunter, a Red and Crimson Oriole, and a Penan Bulbul, as well as some other birds that we had seen before. The Molunggung Control Post is beautiful. Looking out from the porch of the office there is a small yard and pavilion that is bordered by a very nice stream. On the other side of the stream is actually part of the Salt Trail that starts in Inobong, and some big Banana Trees. After looking for birds it was time to get started on our task for the day. We had to move bricks from the parking lot, across the footbridge and cement path, to underneath the staff house. We had a wheelbarrow, a cart that could fit a little more than double the wheelbarrow, and 4 people, Andy, Lee, Ronnie, and I. Lee and I worked together on the cart for most of the time and I got to learn some words in local Dusun language. Mainly Asonong (great), and Awagat Kopio (Very Heavy). Andy and I have probably learned as much Dusun as we have Malay since being here. Dusun is the largest ethnic group in Sabah and most people know how to speak both languages.

We probably moved about 400-500 bricks, each probably weighing a little under 10 pounds, for about 3 hours, then it was time to go. We packed are things up and drove to the same restaurant in Tambunan for lunch. We ate fairly quickly and left to head back to Bayayo Control Post. At Bayayo, the whole Keningau Distract Parks staff was waiting for us, probably about 20 people. They had planned a small party for us because Andy and I will most likely not see a lot of them again. They had planned for today, Thursday, because a lot of the folks have work off for the final Kamaatan Festival this weekend. They had gotten catering consisting of rice, whole fried fish, chicken, and eggplant, and brought some beverages as well. We all ate, talked, listened to music, and some of the people even played guitar and sang. As the night went on we ended up playing some cards for a while, a game that I do not know well enough to try to explain here. I cannot emphasize enough just how nice everyone here in the Keningau District has been to Andy and I. They welcomed us right away, and now feel like friends that we have known for much longer than a week and half. I want to specifically thank the whole crew here at Bayayo, where we have spent most of our time. We learned a lot from a lot of people, especially Lee and Mr. Silver who did a great job of bridging the Malay/Dusun-English languages. We all sat outside for a majority of the night, eventually heading to bed around 11:30 to get a good night’s sleep.

Wednesday 5/28

Everyone slept in a little bit this morning, waking up closer to 8:00 rather than 7:00. We all ate breakfast and sipped coffee, then I packed up my things were when a driver arrived. We would take Lee and I to go pick up Andy, then head towards Tambunan to go to a couple different places in the Northern Crocker Range. Forst we went to Gunung Alab Substation, about a 1.5 hour drive from Keningau. Gunung Alab, or Mount Alab, is high enough to be considered a cloud forest. We stepped outside of the car, the weather was foggy and seemed to be in the low 70s, maybe even high 60s. We took a small hike on a boardwalk with Lee through trees, all covered with moss, almost looking like we were in the Pacific Northwest. Then we took another hike through an area with lots of different rhododendrons and pitcher plants. It was really cool to get to see this different kind of mountain top environment. After our 1.5 hours walking around Gunung Alab, we drove down into the town of Tambunan for lunch. We went to a Javanese restaurant, and spent about $2.50 USD per person on big plates of chicken and rice and veggies. This is the average price of a meal here. It’s nothing super fancy, but it is really good food.

After lunch we switched drivers to someone from the Tambunan Region, named Ronnie, and he took us to Mahua Substation. The attraction here is Mahua Falls. A 55 foot waterfall that is 500 meters from the Substation. We took the paved path back through the old growth forest with massive Suriya Trees. The whole way, walking along the crystal clear river littered with large boulders. Along the path there are little pavilions where you could have a picnic, as well as bathrooms  not far from the falls. When we got to the falls there was only one other group there. Two British people along with their guide who had just finished the 16 km trail from Gunung Alab down to Mahua Falls. These were the only tourists that we have seen while being here. The waterfall was stunning. A strong rush of water dropping 55 feet into a small pool, producing a nice cool mist. We hung around for a little while looking for birds, but only saw some very common yellow rumped Bulbuls. After this we walked back to the Substation and hung out with the workers for 20 minutes, friends of Lee’s. Then we got back in the Truck and went to our final destination for the day, Molunggung Control Post.

 It was dark when we arrived, but we carried our things across a small bridge over a stream, and back along a short cement path to the Control Post. There were multiple buildings there. A building for the 1 staff member who lives there, an outdoor kitchen, some small sheds, a bathroom, and the Control Post Office. We took our things to Office, where we would sleep in a bedroom with a couple beds, and met with the staff member Zeno. Lee calls him Uncle Zeno, he said he is a worker who does a great job and he really respects. He helped us get settled and we talked with him for a while. Then Andy, lee, and I decided to go walk around with flashlights and see what kind of animals we could find. Andy was the first one to find something, a wild gecko that bit him on the thumb when he caught it. It was beautiful. It had two lines that ran laterally along it’s back, with another set of long spots that ran on the outside of the lines. It’s tail was just plain brown, and we suspected that it had lost its tail at some point and grown back. When this happens, they usually are one solid color. Next we saw some frogs that we weren’t sure about. Probably Ranids, one was medium sized with green and brown stripes on its hind legs, the other was small and dark but had red eyes. After that, Lee and I went off the path and into some woods to have a look. The only thing that we found was another gecko of the same species, this time with a horizontally stripped tail that was black and brown. We eventually got tired and went inside to make some dinner around 10:30. We had some instant coffee and some shrimp flavored noodles. After that we went to bed around 11:30.

Tuesday 5/27

This morning, I got up again around 7:00, and went outside to hang out with everyone while. Here at Bayayo they always take their time in the morning and make a nice big breakfast. While We sipped and coffee and had breakfast, we talked about the plan for the day. Today, Andy would leave Bayayo and head to Malidang, where I was the previous week. The plan for me was to take a hike and explore around the Bayayo with a couple others; Lee, Kento, and Danu. Later at night we would all meet, along with some other Sabah Parks employees, to play futsal in Keningau.

When we finished breakfast, Andy got picked up and I started to do my laundry. I had not done it in a while and was running very low on clothes. Doing laundry here is very simple. You put your clothes in a bucket with soap and water and wash and rinse them. So far I would say I have done just an okay job washing my clothes… they don’t smell THAT bad. After I finished that it was time for our hike. Our goal was to walk a couple kilometers up to a waterfall in a small creek. On the way out there, we walked on a wooded hillside, covered primarily by bamboo, crossing over a couple steep washes as well. On our hike we were also joined by the Kurudot, the dog who lives at Bayayo and accompanies us everywhere. Apparently one day she showed up and looking very sick, so they gave her medicine and nursed her back to health, and she stays at Bayayo now. Kurudot also has a litter of 2-month-old puppies that live at the control post as well, but they did not come with us. Shortly into the hike we heard a sound and Lee said they were monkeys, but right away Kurudot ran towards the sound and started barking, scaring them away. We kept walking and took a break once we reached the stream, probably about 1.5 km. We talked for a while and then continued up the stream, walking through water that ranged from ankle to thigh deep. We eventually reached the waterfall which was not huge, but was very pretty. We took another break here before heading back. When we got back to where the trail cuts back away from the stream Lee asked me if I wanted to take a different way back where we get to cross the main river twice. I said that sounded fun so we continued down the stream. Not too far downstream from where the trail cuts up, Lee showed me where they get water from for Bayayo. There is plastic piping, 1-inch in diameter that they place in the stream, that leads all the way back to the Control Post. They used to have a damn where the pipe starts, but a flood had wiped it out a couple months ago, so every couple days the make the hike up to make sure that nothing is blocking water from getting into the pipe.

 After that we continued downstream a couple hundred meters until the stream flowed into the main river that flows past the control post a little further downstream. We crossed the river and continued on a path that took us maybe half a kilometer where we had to cross the river once again. Once we crossed, we finished the last hundred meters on the path we started and arrived back at the control post. On the hike, they gave me a pair of shoes to wear since we would be walking in the river. They are low cut rubber shows with big rubber lugs on the bottom that grip really well in mud, but also on wet river stones. You can wear them with or without socks and they are about 5 USD. They worked really well and I think I’ll have to get a pair to bring home with me. Once we got back, it was time to relax for a couple hours before futsal.

Around 6:00 pm we all piled into the truck, with about 5 people in the truck bed, and made the 30 minute drive into Keningau to an indoor futsal facility. They had rented it out from 7:00-9:00pm. A long time, especially for me. The last time I played any kind of soccer was when I filled in for my roommate Zane’s intramural team and allowed like 10 goals while playing goalie. This time I did not play goalie and had a lot more fun. Everyone was very skilled, but we all just had a good time playing with each other. Nobody kept score, and different people kept subbing in on different teams for the whole 2 hours. We were all exhausted. On the way home we picked up dinner and all showered and went right to bed.

Monday 5/26

I got up this morning around 7am and hung out for a little bit before heading outside. The control post here is technically still under construction, but the setup is pretty cool. The actual control post contains a couple bedrooms, a small living room, and a bathroom. Right outside there is a roof, half metal and half tarp, that covers some storage, a table and chairs, and also a makeshift kitchen with a sink and two burner gas stove. There are about 9 of us here right now, and we all ate breakfast, and got ready to start the day. The first task of the day was to continue their work on the walls of a small building that will be bathrooms. These walls consist of river rocks and cement on the outer walls, and brick and mortar for the dividing wall of the two bathrooms. First, we went down to the river and collected a bunch of rocks from along the river that we put in wheelbarrows and brought up to the building. Then, we mixed the mortar and started to work on building up the walls for a couple hours. Andy and I mainly worked on laying the bricks for the dividing walls, while Mr. Silver and a few others worked primarily on the outsides with the river rocks.

It was fun working together on this and we went until we ran out of mortar. Then we down to eat lunch. We had rice, spinach, papaya buds and flowers, and chicken curry. After lunch it started to downpour and everyone went to rest and take a nap. A couple hours later, when the rain subsided, Mr Silver asked if we wanted to learn how to throw a casting net. It reminded me of when I was younger trying to throw one on beach vacations, but these ones were a little different. The difficult part was not necessarily throwing the net, but positioning it on your hands and arms to throw. We eventually got the hang of it after practicing in the yard and we drove outside the park boundary to go try and catch some fish. We parked the truck, got in the river, and waded to the other side. We were out there for maybe 10 minutes when Mr. Silver told us all to hurry and get back to the other side of the river because it is going to start flooding. We waded back to the other side and sure enough, within 10 minutes the river was at least a foot higher and looked completely different from when we had first gotten there. He said he could tell because he knew we had the rain earlier and then he started to see more leaves and debris start to come down through the water. It was a good thing that we were with people who had that kind of experience and knew that we had to cross immediately to be safe.

When we made it back to the control post, we immediately jumped right in to playing a new game for Andy and I. It is called Sepak Takro, and is basically a mix of volleyball and soccer, with a smaller, less bouncier ball. There are two teams of three that have to try and kick the ball over the net in three kicks or less, you can also use your body or head, just no hands or arms. It was definitely tricky to pick up and I was still not very good. I did get lucky though and was on a team with two studs, Josalin, and Jus, and we went undefeated. We all had a blast and played for maybe an hour and half. Then, some of us took quick showers and got dressed to go to the night Market in Keningau. It was Jus, Josalin, Lee, Andy and I. Jus and Josalin dropped the three of us off, while they went to run an errand we explored for probably 45 minutes.

There was a bunch of street food, as well as fresh fruits and vegetables. We eventually sat down and had some Bakso and waited for Jus and Josalin to be ready. From there we went to a supermarket to load up on groceries for the control post. When we made it back to the control post we hung out for a couple hours, talking with everyone about many different topics, before heading to bed around 11:30.

Sunday 5/25

Today being Sunday, I slept in a little bit until almost 8:00. When I woke up, I worked on putting together my last post. Andy and I thought that we had Sunday free, but at 10:00 Andy got a text from Bille saying that we would be picked up at noon by Mr. Silver, one of the people who is in charge of us who was gone for a conference last week. Mr. Silver would be pick us up and take us to his village for their Kaamatan Festival, and then take us to Control Post Bayayo for the night. Andy and I got packed up and hung out until 12:00 when Mr Silver arrived, with his little boy Sylvio to take us to his village.

His village, Kampung Tigot, is right outside of Keningau. The geography is flat and has a lot of fields, particularly for growing rice. Kaamatan is the biggest holiday that is celebrated in Sabah, and as I would learn later, the biggest cultural festival in all of Malaysia. Kaamatan comes from the Dusun ethnicity, which is the largest ethnic group in Sabah, but is celebrated by most people today. It is about celebrating the rice harvest for the year, and there is singing, dancing, and pageants where people show of their traditional dress and their ability to speak Dusun.

When we arrived, we were welcomed by many people and were told right away to go get some food. They had all kinds of traditional foods to try. I had rice, some kind of noodles, some chicken curry, watermelon, and a dish that had raw fish, lots of lime, some crisp veggies, and some kind of white sauce. Someone also came up to me and told me to try this special kind of rice, wrapped in a large leaf. The rice had a slightly different aroma and tasted different. The celebration took place under a large pavilion and a few small tents. Mr. Silver explained the whole village was there, and that everybody knows everybody. There were probably no more than 150 people there and it was really cool to see that kind of close-knit community. It being such a small village also means that they do not get a lot of visitors. Especially American visitors during Kaamatan. There were a lot of people who came up to talk to us, and get pictures taken with us. Everyone from groups of young children, to old men. Andy and I sat with Silvers family for a while during and after lunch. And were brought Tapai, the local rice wine, by many different people to try. While sitting there in between events on the stage at the end of the pavilion, Andy and I were surprisingly introduced as guests, and a lady came over and asked us a few questions with the microphone such as where we are from and what we think about Kaamatan. After that, we went to go play some of the games that they had set up under some other tents. We went over there with a man named Edward, who also lives in the village and works at the Bayayo control post as well. We played games such as Mystery Box, where you reached inside of a box and had to guess what you’re touching, A game where you had to rearrange bottles in a correct order, and a game where you throw darts at balloons. It was fun and a lot of the children got a kick out of us playing the games.

After that we went back to sit down, and I talked to a man named Stevenson, who had one the big Kaamatan pageant in Kota Kinabalu a few years ago. He gave me a good rundown of the Holiday and then traditional gong music started to be played, and we went to go watch that. While we were watching it, some older women grabbed Andy and I to go do a traditional dance. I am no dancer and felt a little embarrassed, but I tried my best. We were in a circle of about 10 people and would move around in a circle, then people on opposite sides of the circle would enter and dance together then switch sides. It was quite the experience, but I really appreciated everyone teaching us. After that the pageants started and I took a seat, but then the woman who had introduced Andy and I early came over. She asked me if I would be willing to go get a henna tattoo that her 13 year old daughter was doing for people and I agreed. While I was waiting for my turn I talked to some of the children, many of which asked me what state I was from. I was surprised to hear that most of them knew Ohio. When it was my turn I told the girl that I would let her choose what design to give me. She talked with her friends for about 5 minutes then showed me a picture and told me it was a local design. I agreed and then for the next 20 minutes she went to work, talking to me the whole time about my internship, college, and also her interests and what she might want to study. When she finished it looked fantastic. I was walking back to the table and saw her mom again. She asked me if I knew what the design meant and I said I did not. She explained that it is about unity. Each shape around the circle represents a different person from a different ethnicity. And the circle in the middle is Tapai, the rice wine. It shows hoe everyone comes together and drinks the wine together. I thought that was a great design that she chose, especially with how welcoming everyone had been to Andy and I. After that Any and I were waved over by a group of men hanging out at a table and we went and talked to them about various things for about a half an hour before it was time to go. When we went to leave, a couple people had asked to take pictures with us. Then, they announced to the whole crowd that we were leaving and it seemed like almost everyone wanted to take a picture with us. We were there for at least another half an hour. When we did leave, Mr. Silver told us that there are hardly ever American visitors around Keningau, and that everyone was very happy to be able to meet us. I told him that everyone was so welcoming and kind and that I was just as happy to meet them.

When we left we went straight to control post Bayayo. When we arrived we ate dinner and hung out for a little bit. While we were sitting there, someone had been walking around and spotted a Slow Loris. There was a bunch of excitement and we all got up, went along the nearby river and shined our flashlights about 30 feet up in a tree to see a Slow Loris just sitting in the trees looking back at us. It was pretty cute. Slow Loris are a type of small, tree dwelling mammal with big eyes, and as the name suggests they do not move fast. After that we went back and got ready to walk up the road with flashlights to look for more wildlife. When we started off, we saw some common paddy frogs and about 20 minutes in we saw our first cool find. A frog from the Megaphryidae Family? We’re not really sure. It was fairly large, had a big head and mouth, and was grey/blue in color. After that we continued walking and went and looked in a small clearing off the side of the road. Here we saw multiple large stick insects. Two of them, one green one brown, were a solid 8 inches long. I’m not really a bug person but this was really cool to see. After that we what we initially thought was Wallace’s Flying Frog, but after closer inspection appeared to just be a massive tree frog. We got to a creek and walked upstream along it for a ways. Here we saw a black spotted rock skipper frog that was way more green than the other ones that we had seen, but other than that, nothing. We made the walk back to the control post, and saw another Slow Loris along the way, Climbing around way up high in the trees. After that, I took a quick shower and went to bed feeling exhausted from a great day.