Dayus tripus

Borneo is not the untamed jungle wilderness that I expected. Instead, oil palm plantations stretch to the horizon. Some parts of the banks of the Kinabatangan River have been protected as wildlife sanctuaries and are homes to many species of tourists, who descend on the river at dusk, forming small packs of less than 10, with protubing cameras clicking from the relative safety of 40hp powerboats.

We were of the dayus tripus species, although most are of the overnightus variety, who seek shelter at night in nearby jungle lodges, complete with running water and power.

I'm glad we spent what seemed an exorbitant amount (8 times what we will pay for our hotel tonight) to do the tour. We saw snakes coiled around tree branches, probiscus and long tailed macaque monkeys chattering in the trees and throwing nuts at us, birds swooping over the water, and lizards relaxing on the sunny mudbank, but most importantly we saw a bit of untamed Borneo before it is lost. However, I'm glad we are not staying overnight there as the bugs started to come out at sunset and I'm looking forward to getting back to our wonderfully comfy room at the @ease boutique hotel to watch olympic highlights on the LCD TV and send this post over the free wifi.

Right now though, our excellent driver cum guide-in-training, Rain, is playing chicken with oncoming traffic on the dirt highway we are on and I'm happy to concentrate on typing this blog post instead of on watching the road.