April 7, 20241 yr Can’t fault it as an expat place, very Chiang Mai, old Penang style shophouses strung along a river, prob 20% cheaper. Much greener, the jungle intrudes fast. $9 2 for 1 Guinness pints. English spoken everywhere, makes the Thais seem a bit stiff in comparison. Downside is the Muslim ultra-lite factor, but if you can day drink during Ramadan, it’s not oppressive. Will consider Kuching for next season’s Chiang Mai smoke dodge. Anyone here done a long stay here or in Malaysia in general?
April 7, 20241 yr Couple weeks for me was enough, as a tourist, didn't see it as an expat place, more expensive as mostly tourists. I saw one job advertisement, said female, under 35, no Muslim
April 7, 20241 yr 9 hours ago, Prubangboy said: Can’t fault it as an expat place, very Chiang Mai, old Penang style shophouses strung along a river, prob 20% cheaper. Much greener, the jungle intrudes fast. $9 2 for 1 Guinness pints. English spoken everywhere, makes the Thais seem a bit stiff in comparison. Downside is the Muslim ultra-lite factor, but if you can day drink during Ramadan, it’s not oppressive. Will consider Kuching for next season’s Chiang Mai smoke dodge. Anyone here done a long stay here or in Malaysia in general? Worked out of Miri many years ago, always stayed at the Marriott, nice location on the beach. Sunday brunches were fun, had some alcoholic drinks included in the buffet price. Mondays were more difficult, getting on the chopper with a hangover. I travelled to Brunei many times. If you have time, go and hang out with the King of Brunei, he has a nice car collection.
April 7, 20241 yr Author Brunei is an extension to my jungle tour. They’re richer than Borneo and have a nicer jungle. How was the Indian food? Supposed to great,
April 7, 20241 yr Best things about Borneo was climbing mount Kinabalu, scuba diving and river jungle trek, orangutans in the semi wild sanctuary
April 7, 20241 yr Author On I’m on an intepid tour. Aus. Company, very Lonely Planet Ethic. its worth the premium to have all that stuff booked and sorted. Famous bat cave today. Restaurant-wise, Kuching is a deal. Cantonese tasting menu at The Hilton was fifty bucks, with plenty of prawns and duck in the mix.
April 8, 20241 yr I quite liked KK and Kuching. Nice beaches and fairly reasonable. Spent about a month there. The headhunter trail was great. Loved the bat cave as there were no mozzies! LOL
April 8, 20241 yr On 4/8/2024 at 4:53 AM, SAFETY FIRST said: Worked out of Miri many years ago, always stayed at the Marriott, nice location on the beach. Sunday brunches were fun, had some alcoholic drinks included in the buffet price. Mondays were more difficult, getting on the chopper with a hangover. I remember having a few beers in Chaplin's many, many moons ago.
April 9, 20241 yr Was in the Brit Army in Brunei and Labuan in the early 1960s during the Indonesian insurgency. All our unit were pushing for a transfer to Kuching, but only a lucky few managed it. Don't know if things have changed since then. Brunei was very Muslim, but there were a couple of restaurants where you could get a a beer and Labuan was quite relaxed. Wonder if I'd get a discount for helping to rid the place of Sukarno's lot? 🙂
April 9, 20241 yr Spent a few weeks there about end of 90s. Lovely people, good English. Wanted to do a week trecking in the jungle.Went to Hilton and managed to get a lady guide who had family up river.Magdalene. We left Kuching by car, then a canoe up the river Skrang, stayed overnight near the Penans tribe, and higher up the ancient headhunters.,Wonderful. I took cigarettes, aspirins, various medications, disinfectants, plasters and bandages, some cakes, pens and paper,kiddie books , etc as presents as everything food and mat was free, no charge. They gave me evening parties, dances by the elders, how to smoke the heads to keep the skulls nice, blowpipe hunting, fruit and herb gathering, I had the very best time of my life and I will never forget it. Wonderful people who are unfortunately left out of any help in progress , at least at that time, maybe it’s changed. The traditional longhouses are a wonder to be seen and I consider being allowed to spend days in them with the people a treasure.
April 10, 20241 yr Author On 4/9/2024 at 7:25 AM, Roo Island said: I quite liked KK and Kuching. Nice beaches and fairly reasonable. Spent about a month there. The headhunter trail was great. Loved the bat cave as there were no mozzies! LOL Just did the bat cave. Very compelling. Malu Park was nicer than any similar nature reserve I have been to in Thailand. A Tiger beer was $3.50. In Kotakimbalu now, ready for trip up the river for the orangutans. Modern, blah town but glad to go to Dunken Donuts. I have shaken the hand of Doc Watson in your avatar, and my wife will soon be at Merlefest, the bluegrass-apalooza festival dedicated to his son. Shoot me a message if interested.
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