Saturday, 25 August 2012

Our Tropical Island Getaway - Labuan


Labuan

Off the coast of Borneo lies a small Malaysian island called Labuan with a population of approx. 80,000. It is an hour and a half ferry ride from Brunei. We had heard about it from fellow expats who described it as a bit of a party island because of its duty free nature and close proximity to Brunei making it popular for the workers of Shell and other expats to let their hair down. We weren’t there for the party scene, but having access to cheap alcohol was a bonus.

We took the car on the ferry so that we could explore without needing to rely on taxis and/or courtesy coaches. The ferry ride over was smooth sailing with beautiful weather. When we arrived we drove to “The Chimney” which is probably Labuan’s biggest tourist attraction. It stands 106feet tall and remains a mystery as to why it was built. Locals believe it could have been to service the coal mines which were common in the 1800’s however there are no mines or shafts around the chimney, hence the mystery of the Chimney.






We stayed at the Palm Beach Resort and Spa. It certainly was an amazing location right on the beach with all the scenery you would expect of a tropical resort with palm trees and beach chairs. It even had a swim up bar to order CHEAP drinks from. Heinekens were around $2 NZ as was the coke and soft drink. The food was inexpensive also we were averaging $45 for the 4 of us to eat dinner each night. The boys lived in the pool and Jas and I spent time in and around the pool drinking beer. I managed to find time for  a manicure and pedicure at the spa of course.

Labuan has a rich war history, which would be most interesting to WWII enthusiasts. There are 2 monuments built to commemorate the atrocities of war.  We first visited the War Memorial Park which names Australian and English soldiers whose lives were lost protecting/reclaiming Borneo. We found the plot of the 1 New Zealand Soldier amongst the nearly 4000 plots at the park. We then visited the Peace Park, built by the Japanese express sympathy to lives lost during war. Next to Peace Park is Surrender Point which was built to mark where the Japanese surrendered control of Labuan to the Australian Army, which lead to the end of the war in the pacifc during WWII.


With Labuan’s 3 attractions visited, we had basically done all there was to do on the island! There is a big mall, which we explored and the boys went bowling to fill in our last day. We were planning to visit the bird park but it was closed, much to my disappointment (sarcasm). Those who know me well know I can not stand birds, the idea of being stuck in the 3 open air aviaries with over sized birds flapping about is my idea of hell on earth, such a shame it was closed.
 

The ride home on Friday after 3 nights in Labuan almost didn’t happen. We arrived at the Ferry ticketing booth an hour before our booked leaving time, however the ticket booth had no record of our booking having ever been made and the ferry was full for the day. It is about this time is when your blood begins to boil especially when you are holding the booking form and the email confirmation of your booking in your hand. Grrr. Making a scene is deemed a big no no in Malaysian and Bruneian culture so taking a breath and counting to 10 is the best way to deal with situations such as these. We were told to come back when boarding started and to wait and see if we could squeeze on. Thankfully we had taken my tiny car and were able to shoehorn it in next to a big truck. As nice as Labuan is, we were ready to come home and not really wanting to try and find another 24 hours of things to do. The ride home was rocky and left Noah feeling a little green but we got home safely, as did the car even with the tight squeeze against the truck.

 






Hopefully we are all rested for our return to school on Monday. The boys haven’t been to school since we left NZ so are a bit apprehensive about going. Pictures to come of their handsome uniforms. 

Sunday, 19 August 2012

Two Months in – Finally getting things sorted


Two Months in – Finally getting things sorted

Selamat Datang! (Warm Greetings)

After patiently waiting for just about everything we are finally ticking things off the ‘to do’ list. Firstly we have purchased 2 cars from an expat couple who are upgrading to new cars. My car is a little blue bubble Kia Picanto and Jason’s a 7 seater people mover Kia Carens (diesel). Car buying here is a risky business with such a hot and humid weather climate, cars have tendencies to over heat, couple that with the fact locals do not service their vehicles and there is no “Warrant of Fitness” requirement, it seems buying second hand is a recipe for disaster. There is general consensus that if you buy from an expat you may have more luck as they are more likely to have maintained the vehicle. Fingers crossed. Both our vehicles are manuals, which locals generally can not drive so we can only hope that they have a good history of expat ownership. The previous owners have added us to their insurance on the vehicles so that we can legally drive them while we wait for work permit, identity cards and drivers licences to be processed. We continue to wait patiently for those. Petrol is cheap at 51c a litre and diesel for Jason’s car 38c a litre. It costs me $16 to fill the tank and Jason $13.

The next thing we have crossed off the list is finding a house. After looking at around 30 houses we found a place that I liked. Yes that ‘I’ liked. Jason had a different favourite. I won. Although it didn’t look like the building and completion would happen in time for us to move in, somehow the landlords and property manager managed to coax contractors into pulling finger and completing everything within a week, ready for us to move in by the 20th. Otherwise we would have had to spend another month in Tungku (first apartment), which would have been painful.

It is a brand new semi-detached house which as been kitted out with most of our wish list furniture requirements, the boys are particularly happy with the 42inch 3D television. Funnily enough we now live in Mata Mata, a suburb just outside of city centre. It is convenient for Jason getting the boys to school 8km down the motorway and my school is 17km away, which isn’t too bad as my school is 11km up a coastal highway which only has two ends. My school is basically 20kms from anywhere in Bandar so my 17km commute is pretty good.

I am currently on a two week break from school and we are heading to Labuan on Tuesday 21st August for 3 nights. It’s a small Malaysian duty free island so bound to be relaxing and probably good for an ale or two. We will take the car on the ferry to the island so we can drive around and explore while we are there. 

This morning we celebrated moving in with bacon and eggs for breakfast. Muslims do not eat pork and will not touch/handle anything containing pork or pork products so at the super market there is a non-halal sealed section behind a sliding glass door where you can buy bacon, pork, sausages, gelatine, ham and pineapple pizza. The people who work in the sealed section are non-muslim so it is okay for them to touch/serve the food. This way the checkout operator at the main door does not have to touch anything non-halal.

We have become accustomed to life in Brunei and I think we are doing a pretty good job of adapting to the culture and differences. We watched the Chiefs game with friends from 4 different countries, which was pretty neat. The boys have made friends with every kid they have met and have given up worrying about the amount of head rubs they receive everyone thinks these blonde ‘twins’ are so cute and need there heads patted.




The boys have enjoyed summer camp during the school break. They went quad biking as one of their activities. This pick of Ethan shows what happens when a tree branch helps you do a back flip off a quad bike. Pretty superficial but a great conversation starter. The boys with finally start school on the 27th after a GIANT break.





On another booze run to Malaysia we came across every house and shack adorned with flags in celebration of Hari Raya (big celebration to end Ramadan-fastin).

 The Toyato car dealership also goes 'all out' when it comes to decorating for Hari Raya.

 Brunei is full of the unexpected, many weird and wonderful things to encounter. These porcupine were out the back of a furniture store which sold regal style chinese lounge suites and flashy expensive things. They had a 4 month old porcupine with a collar and leash in the shop eating melon! As well as a squirrel in a cage?!