BahBoys IIB: Oh My Onsen

With no concrete plan for the day, we headed to Mount Rosary on a whim. Took a short hike in the blazing hot sun. Along the trail were wooden crosses used by pilgrims as a prayer stop. In the end, we were greeted by a locked gate. The locals suggested that we try the main entrance, but that was locked too. Disappointed, and drained, we headed to Ranau. Looked around the Church of St. Peter Claver (lively youth group here), and then headed for lunch at the Ranau Hakka Food Court. Super popular judging by the crowd and the chaotic traffic and parking situation. Not impressed by the food and the price though. The Mee Tuaran was disappointing and the guy from Gerai Abang Sado was not sado lorrr.

Sabah Tea Resort is the poor cousin of West Malaysia's Boh Tea Plantation. Our arrival was greeted with the deafening sound of cicadas, much louder than what I experienced in Hokkaido during the summer. The parking lot was vacant, but at least the cafe was open. The cafe gave a view of the tea plantation which looked dehydrated and sparse. The buildings beside it should be the tea-processing facilities, but they look like they've seen better days. Some random attractions like traditional costume rentals and a tree-house visit. We opted for a leisurely time at the cafe, sampling their milk tea, and green tea ice cream.  

From Sabah Tea Resort, we drove towards Poring for the next leg of our journey. Poring is actually a hot spring resort, but I don't think it brought much development to the area judging the lack of any commercial activities in its vicinity. Found it hard to even buy food. Anyway, our first activity there was to visit Viviane's Rafflesia Garden. Called the number on the sign board, and a woman picked up. Turned out to be Viviane's mum. Parked our car and walked to the garden. Dark, dank, and full of mosquitos. Guess that's the best environment for the Rafflesia. Lucky for us, there was a Rafflesia in full bloom. We were allowed to view it up close, and strangely there was no smell of rotting flesh. According to the lady, the Rafflesia are cultivated by cutting liana vines and sprinkling spores into them. Baby Rafflesia look like dark cabbages. Funky. 

Hungry after our botanical pursuits, we went out to buy some banana fritters from a roadside stall, and returned to check into our room at Sutera Sanctuary Lodges which is actually located inside the resort. In the evening, visitors are allowed to roam the grounds of hot spring free or charge. Totally floored by how they claimed that it's inspired by Japanese hot springs. The only place open for dinner was the Rainforest Restaurant which was located in hot spring grounds. The burger and curry chicken with rice was decent.