Impressions of KK

I did one of those quick weekend trips to Kota Kinabalu on one of Air Asia's GoHoliday packages because a good friend was down from the States and we wanted some catch-up time in a nice place. You know, kill two birds with one stone -- have a break and some time to bond!

KK was just perfect. We stayed at the Hyatt Regency on the waterfront with a lovely view of the sea. An island just off the shore made it a very protected seafront and the lighted wooden walkway was a pleasant place to sit and breathe in the fresh salty sea air. O, what a refreshing change from polluted Kuala Lumpur!

But the trip to KK wasn't exactly the best. Air Asia was on time. The weather was fine. But, it happened to be a dinner flight because we left at 7.30pm. Unfortunately, the inflight food station ran out of food and all that was left was maggi mee in a plastic cup!

I found out that Air Asia stocks the inflight food station from the base early in the morning and doesn't replenish during the day. Now, why don't they do that?

So, if you have a passenger like me who has to have all her meals but in small amounts, she will slip into shivers of hunger flying on Air Asia during meal times! My hands were so weak, I couldn't even hold the cup! But, I had no choice and settled for the maggi mee. Boy! Maggi mee never tasted so good! I was that hungry!

Air Asia really should do something to ensure that there is adequate food at its inflight food station throughout the day. At least some hearty sandwiches should be available on demand.

Perhaps Air Asia wants to promote its online catering service. There was an announcement saying that meals could be ordered online -- something I didn't know about before the flight. Well, I suppose I have to do just that or switch to MAS if I am going on longer flights and at meal times!

To add to that, the landing was also most uncomfortable. It seemed like the pilot was taking the aircraft down too soon or something like that because the pressure was building up in my eardrums and I wanted my ears to pop and they didn't! My ears seemed waterlogged right up to the next day and cleared only when I took in the mountain air at Kinabalu Park.

The return flight, however, was very pleasant. The landing was so smooth the passengers applauded. And, we were prepared. We ate well before we boarded the plane and came armed with sandwiches which we had on the bus which connected us from LCCT to KL Sentral!

For this trip I gave Air Asia a rating of 6 on a range of 10 because having food available at meal times is important for me! My friend, Bridget, however gave it an 8, saying that for the price it charged, it gave good quality service!

I told the Air Asia stewardess that I would be writing about this on my blog. So, Air Asia staff, if, somehow you got to my blog and are reading this, please, do take note and do something to stock your inflight mobile food station with sufficient food for all flights. You don't want hungry -- and angry -- passengers, do you?


Other Highlights


Check-in at Hyatt

The counter service at the Hyatt Regency was pleasant and friendly, and we had an interesting exchange of words.

Counter girl: We are giving you a smoking room ..
Myself: O, no! We both have sinusitis. We can't have a smoking room.
Counter girl: O, ... with king-size bed!
Myself: King-size bed? No, we are good friends. We want twin beds .....
Counter girl: (Emphasising) King-size bed!
Myself: We are friends. We want twin beds. If it were my husband, you can give me king-size bed. Does she look like my husband?
Giggles! By now another assistant had joined her and they were giggling together!
Counter girl: Ok, non-smoking room with twin beds!
Myself: (Not giving up!) With seaview?
Counter girl: Yes, with seaview. You can change later if you want to.
Myself: (Relieved!) O, no problem. That room is fine. And thank you very much!

We received a very warm and welcoming service from Hyatt Regency!

Kinabalu Park

What amazed me most about Kota Kinabalu was that its tourists' attractions were so well maintained that just for a moment you might have forgotten that you are in Malaysia!

In comparision to Peninsular Malaysia's much-to-be-desired maintenance culture, KK's tourists' spots are very well kept. And KK has more than a few attractions to boast of.

Kinabalu Park was one of them. This is a World Heritage Site and it lived up its reputation. It is a two-hour drive from KK and the last 20 minutes before the park is the most scenic. You get to see Mt Kinabalu.

It was a cloudy day when we drove up and through our cab window we spotted the peak. Not quite what I had expected. Just above it was another layer of clouds and it seemed like the sky was a dark blue behind the peak. The cab driver kept saying, "behind, behind." Then, I saw it. Wow, what an awesome sight. The peak we saw was the lower peak. Perhaps it was Low's Peak, but the "blue" behind it was Mt Kinabalu, towering above the other peaks with its own peak disappeared in the clouds.

It is a sight I will not forget. I have never seen a mountain so high. On the return trip, we saw its wind and rain-eroded gullied peak quite clearly because the clouds had cleared. It was a sharp point jutting into the sky. What a marvellous work of nature!

The park at the foothills of Mt Kinabalu was well-landscaped and clean. It is a lovely place to enjoy the cool crisp mountain air and walk up and down the road and through the typical equatorial mountain foliage. The place has a few eating places. We had tea and sandwiches at the cafe next to the starting point for treks up Mt Kinabalu.

The tea was served in a big mug that had a good two portions in it! And it tasted just like Mamak stall tea in the Klang Valley! In the cool mountain air, it was the perfect warm-up before we did some serious walking around the park.

Tanjung Aru

Then, we went to Tanjung Aru to watch the sun set. We had heard of Tanjung Aru's famous sunsets and wanted to see it. Unfortunately, it was a cloudy day and the sun was low on the horizon when we reached the beach. But, we were able to catch the lingering hues of the setting sun over a calm sea with gently rolling waves. Walking up and down the shoreline with the waves swirling around the ankles and disappearing through my toes had a calming effect on me. The sea does that to me. The sound of it is enough to lull frayed nerves.

Night fell and we sat by the beach and chatted over fresh juice.

Seafood dinner

We then headed back to KK for dinner. Stepped into the Port Seafood Restaurant and had 1kg of boiled prawns in sauce and 1/2kg fish for two. That was a mistake because it was too much for two people and it was neither tasty nor fresh and soft. We packed most of what we could not eat and give it to the Hyatt Regency counter staff.

Island hopping

The next day, we only had a couple of hours between breakfast and lunch (I mean, we had to eat before the flight since we were flying Air Asia!) and we had time to do only two things. Visit the Filipino bazaar and visit one island. We made a quick walk through the Filipino bazaar where I bought a pair of earrings and Bridget bought abalone. Then, we headed for Jesselton Jetty where we managed to get a boat to Mamutik where we spend about an hour.

Just a few feet from the shoreline, the sea bed dips and for an area of about the size of an Olympic-sized swimming pool, the seabed is covered with brown corals.

But before you get to the corals, you will be greeted by schools of colourful fishes! It was quite an experience swimming with the fishes. I saw a small group of swordfish swimming just below the surface. I swam further in and had quite a thrill swimming above the seabed of corals.

So, there. That was how I spent my short weekend in KK. But, what made it most enjoyable was the company. Bridget now lives in the States and I hadn't seen her for three years. So, it was good to catch up with her and enjoy the friendship amidst beautiful unspoilt scenery.