It was our last morning in Mulu. We had to say goodbye to this part of heaven, and to the wonderful people who cared for us in the Mulu Marriot Resort. No more sitting on the balcony, listening to the birds or boats. No more enjoying watermelon juice mixed with Sprite (can't remember what they called it; only remember how good it tasted).
We went back to the park for one last walk, this time along the path the Scottish Couple told us about -- the one that ended in a perch over the river. Go along the valley loop trail and turn left when you get to the dead end sign.
This trail was part board walk and part ground. However, we were both wearing sandals (my shoelaces were tied around the grill of the air conditioner, to maximize the benefits of the fan and drying air), so we did not fear the ground. And the sky was reasonably clear.
The main sights along this trail were insects. There was a stick bug on a railing that looked remarkably like a patch of moss. There was a many-legged two inch long oval creature that was black, except when it articulated. Then orange bits showed.
Naturally there were butterflies aplenty, few willing to stay still long enough to be photographed.
We walked slowly sometimes, confident that if we looked carefully, there would be another wonder to behold. We were not on the beaten path, so we only passed one other person. It was quite marvellous.
We turned around when we got to a blow down that covered the path. We could have scrambled through, but there was no need. The likelihood of creature spotting on the return journey was high and we didn't want to miss our flight.
The hotel restaurant was full at breakfast. We had never seen so many people. When we got to the airport, we learned why. Only two of the five flights on Boxing Day landed. Two days worth of people were trying to leave today.
When a plane landed, there was applause. It wasn't our plane, so our worry heightened. Soon after, we were called for our flight, and the world was a good place once again.
The plane was the same size as the one we took from Kuching -- 18 pairs of seats. Since business class was only $10 Canadian more than economy, I booked us into business class. On this flight, it meant Anita and I sat on opposite sides of the aisle, with no companions beside us. We also had more leg room.
I loved Mulu, and took pictures as we left. This was my undoing. When we arrived in Kota Kinabalu an hour later, Anita hustled me off the plane as quick as she could. I took my raincoat out of my pack, and left. My camera and iPad were left behind.
I realized this before we left the airport, and tried to attend to it. First, I went to the wrong office. Lost luggage takes care of these things. So back into the secure area, near the luggage carousels, through the exit doors.
The lady at lost luggage called the plane, asking the cleaner to be on the look out. After 15 minutes, she said she could not talk to the cleaner directly, and that she would call when she had something to say.
We were just entering the hotel room when I got the call. They found my iPad, but not my camera. They could not send it. I must collect it. Sigh. Fortunately, I only lost one day of photos. I had been fairly diligent about downloading them regularly. And I had a back up camera that I purchased in Singapore when the trusty old one ran out of battery.
The bus stop for the air porter was close by, so I left Anita to get settled, while I made my way back to the airport the cheap way. Turned out the $5 bus would be a 35 minute wait. I took a taxi, identified the iPad by typing in the correct security code, and headed over to the airport bus stand for a ticket back. This time, the wait was 45 minutes. Another taxi it was.
Getting back in the hotel, I ran into the Scottish Australian family, or at least the mother and teenager portion of the family. They enjoyed the hike along the Headhunters Trail, and the dad was on his way back to Perth for three days of work. We decided that since we kept seeing each other, maybe we ought to do something together. Neither of us had plans for the next day, so let's go to an island together.
And a new day means a new blog post.
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