Our flight was only at 15:30 so we had most of the day to kill before leaving the park. We spent it lounging around in the cafeteria. A very old local tribesman arrived to collect supplies from the kitchen stores. Traditionally and practically dressed he also carried a serious looking machete. He shouldered a massive load in a hand-woven reed pack and headed off into the jungle – tough looking guy!

We eventually decided to walk to the airport. Only about 1.5km – still enough to break a sweat in these hot and humid conditions. There really is nothing here besides the national park. It’s a chilled out spot where the control tower guys hang their washing out the windows and the x-ray and metal detectors aren’t even manned. We had another few hours to wait at the airport – it was painfully boring. The plane ride was uneventful (always a good thing) and we were once again thankful for the Milo and muffins.

We are back at Kinabalu backpackers for two nights. If they had a membership programme we would be at ‘gold’ level already. After a full day here in civilization we’re heading back into the jungle!

[Pictures: Hefty load there old dude]

– Posted from my iPhone via WiFi