SHAH’S RAMBLINGS

The Wind and Clearwater Caves are accessible from the Park HQ by a one and a half hour, 4km scenic hike along wooden elevated walkways. The more popular alternative route to the caves is by a leisurely longboat cruise along the Melinau River, stopping over briefly at a village in Ulu Baram selling local handicrafts made by the villagers.

A further 15 minutes up the river followed by a short uphill hike from the riverside brings you to the Wind Cave. This cave is part of the Clearwater Cave System which is reputed to be the largest cave system in the world. Along the numerous narrow passages within Wind Cave, a fresh cool breeze can be felt passing through, earning this cave its namesake.

These interesting unidirectional, pin-sharp structures are found on some of the sunlight-facing cave walls and are formed by photosynthetic microorganisms slowly eroding through the rock.

Spectacular stalactite & stalagmite formations can be seen throughout the Wind Cave. This regal formation nicknamed the “king” can be seen inside the King’s Chamber.

The next cave visit starts at the point where the Melinau River appears to abruptly end. This calm area of the river with crystal clear waters is in fact where the river calmly rises from the subterranean gushing torrents within the Clearwater Cave.

From this idyllic picnic & swimming spot, a steep climb up 200+ steps will take you to the entrance of the Clearwater Cave.

After the tiring climb up the endless flights of stairs, there’s yet more steps to pass through only this time you’ll be descending deep into the cave.

Unlike the Wind Cave, there’s no artificial lighting within the Clearwater Cave. Darkness envelops you as you venture furher into the cave but at the same time the subterranean river’s roar gets louder and louder.

It seems hard to believe how this turbulent, raging river gives rise to the calm, gentle stream outside of these cave walls.

The day’s cave tours end with a buffet lunch at the picnic area by the river. Since we had to catch our flight back to Miri a short while later we didn’t have time to dip into the river after lunch to refresh ourselves after soaking ourselves in sweat all that morning.

That morning’s cave tour as well as our entire Mulu trip came to an end as the longboat dropped us by the riverbank a little further downstream, after which it was a short 5 minute walk to the airport. No where else in the world can you find a more fun & scenic airport shuttle service

Two of the four show caves located at Mulu National Park are accessible by foot from the Park Headquarters. After registering at the park HQ at the scheduled times, a guide will then accompany guests along a 3km path to the entrance of Deer Cave.

The long journey by foot to the cave entrance is by itself an attraction as the surrounding landscape reveals interesting limestone formations as well as unique flora and fauna. Several times during the walk, we heard the sound of loud flapping wings up above and looked up just in time to see hornbills in flight.

The Lang Cave is our first reward for the long, sweaty hike through the humid rainforest.

This smaller cave boasts of interesting shapes and formations thousands of years in the making, all dramatically lit by strategically placed lighting.

Notice the glow worm threads in the upper right photo in the above collage?

Next on the itinerary is a visit to the nearby Deer Cave. Walking along the path through this huge cavern and passing by giant boulders along the way you won’t be able to help feeling minuscule as you realize how enormous this cave truly is. The roof of the main chamber is in fact over 100m high and the cave passage goes on and on for over 2km earning this cave the reputation as the largest cave passage on earth.

Deeper within the passage, a cave-in of the roof of the chamber allows sunlight to enter the otherwise pitch black tunnel, creating a lush area of vegetation known as ‘The Garden of Eden’. And from a nearby vantage point you can find a couple of stalactite formations known as Adam’s Shower & Eve’s Shower – named as such due to their close proximity to the Garden of Eden and their shower head-like appearance, complete with cascading flows of water. Adam’s Shower is in the upper left segment of the collage below.

Perhaps the most famous icon of the Mulu Caves is this profile of Abraham Lincoln which can be seen from within the Deer Cave.

You can also find this creepy profile nearby if you’re observant enough.

The Deer Cave is also home to millions of bats as evident from the amount of guano littering the cave floor. The end of the visit to these two show caves is timed to coincide with a highly anticipated event that occurs most evenings if the weather is just right – the bat exodus.

Over the hour prior to sunset, millions of bats fly out from the hillside in sporadic bursts. Each group of bats numbering in the thousands all exit in ever twisting spirals creating a spectacular show for visitors to the site.

Our visit to two of the other showcaves, the Wind Cave and the Clearwater Cave took place the following morning.

This trip to the world renowned Gunung Mulu National Park took place in June last year. Coincidentally this was the second visit to a UNESCO World Heritage Site in a single week since we were also at the peak of Mount Kinabalu that same week.

We departed from Miri for the half hour flight to Mulu. Despite the relatively short distance, air travel is the more practical option when visiting Mulu. The alternative would be to spend ten long arduous hours travelling by river from Kuala Baram and switching boats several times along the way. Or for the more adventurous, one could also arrange to get permission to hike from Limbang tu Mulu via the Headhunter’s Trail.

In Mulu we spent the night at the Royal Mulu Resort, a picturesque resort with expansive, well manicured grounds and picture postcard backdrops at every turn. The other accommodation option would be to rent chalets at the slightly cheaper Mulu National Park HQ nearby.

The package we signed up for included accommodation for one night, guided visits to the four show caves, a set dinner with cultural show on the evening of the first day as well as a buffet breakfast the following morning.

When visiting Mulu, it’s better to plan for a two night stay. Since we only took the 2D 1N package, the following morning we had to rush through two of the show caves so that we wouldn’t miss our flight back to Miri. A trip to these two caves is no fun at all to do in a rush especially for those with an aversion to stairs since these caves involve climbing and descending lots and lots of stairs. A two night stay would have provided ample time to check out the attractions at a more leisurely pace as well as to try out alternative routes to get to these caves.

Pictures and info on the visits to Lang & Deer Caves on Day 1 as well as to Wind & Clearwater Caves on Day 2 will follow soon.

Since dah tak boleh sambut V day so mari kita sambut Nemo Day yer hari ni

P/S: Today is just another day in the calendar. Vice takes place every single day of the year so what’s the point of all the hoo-hah on this one single day? Besides, there are far worse ills in our society that should be taken care of first rather than going after couples who want to innocently spend a day to commemorate love.

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Benda yang paling menarik pasal iPhone & iPad bukan la gadget tu sendiri tapi dah tentu la Apps Apple yang dah capai beratus2 ribu jenis tu. Tak kira la game ker, translator ke, calculator ke, Apps2 hiburan, info, photo editor, kamera, video editor dan bermacam2 jenis lagi yang berfaedah & jugak yang tak berfaedah semuanya ada kat App Store.

Tapi sebenarnya ada banyak lagi benda lain yang buatkan iPhone & iPad ni menjadi gadget yang paling popular di seluruh dunia, tapi hampir semua pengguna kat Malaysia tak dapat merasa kelebihan ni. Apple iTunes Store kat Malaysia ni limited sangat sebab kita tak dapat nak access benda-benda extra ni di iPhone atau iPad kita:

Kita kat Malaysia ni langsung tak dapat sewa atau beli movie untuk tengok di gadget2 kita.

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Kita tak dapat beli atau sewa siri TV terbaru dari US

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Kita langsung tak dapat beli lagu2, singles atau album2 muzik dari iTunes store untuk tambah koleksi muzik kita

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Bagi kaki-kaki buku antara kita, kita langsung tak dapat beli beribu-ribu iBooks yang ada kat App Store US yang harganya jauh lebih murah dari kalau kita beli kat Times, Kinokuniya maupun Popular…

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Bila iOS 5 dilancarkan dalam masa beberapa bulan lagi, akan ada App baru yang dipanggil Newstand utk beli & langgan beratus2 majalah & suratkhabar popular.

Rasanya kat Malaysia nanti kita tak akan dapat merasa jugak kelebihan Newstand ni sebab majalah2 & suratkhabar2 online ni akan terima nasib yang sama macam iBooks & gerenti tak akan dijual di iTunes Store Malaysia.

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Jadi selama ni memang kita asyik kempunan jer la tengok kelebihan2 iPhone & iPad ni yang kita kat Malaysia ni tak dapat nak merasa. Ada jugak kawan-kawan kita yang ada kad kredit US dan ada pula yang guna kad kredit kawan kat US utk register US iTunes account & beli semua benda2 yang kita tak leh beli kat sini ni. Tapi bukan senang nak cari orang kat US yang percaya betul dengan kita nak bagi kita guna kad kredit dia betul tak? Kalau ada kawan yang kita baru kenal kat FB lepas tu kita minta nak guna kad kredit dia memang confirm lah lepas tu kita terus kena block dgn dia… Itu pun lepas dia maki hamun & kutuk abis kat wall kita & wall semua kawan2 kita.

Sebenarnya ada cara lain yang jauh lagi mudah kalau nak bukak akaun US iTunes & nak dapat access penuh US iTunes Store. Dah dekat setahun lebih aku pakai iPhone & dekat sebulan pakai iPad baru la aku terjumpa cara nak access US iTunes store ni bagi kita kat Malaysia. Jadi lepas ni semua kelebihan gadget-gadget canggih-manggih Apple ni dah boleh kita merasa & tak payah lah kita asyik terliur tengok iPad orang lain yang ada benda-benda ni. Apa guna beli mahal-mahal iPhone & iPad kalau kita tak dapat guna sepenuhnya kelebihan gadget-gadget ni.

Jadi kalau korang berminat nak beli buku, movie, muzik & siri TV direct dari iTunes Store US ini caranya:

1. Buka program iTunes di komputer. Di column sebelah kiri tu select iTunes store

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2. Scroll ke bawah & click “Change Country” di bawah column “Manage“

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3. Pilih “United States“

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4. Kemudian klik “App Store“

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5. Cari mana-mana App yang percuma & klik “Free App” untuk download

Entah la kenapa tapi kena juga download apa-apa App free ni baru boleh register untuk akaun US ni

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6. Kemudian bila keluar window ni, select “Create new account“

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7. Masukkan matlumat berkaitan & klik “Continue“

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8. Bila sampai part untuk masukkan matlumat kad kredit – select “None“

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9. Part seterusnya ni kena tipu sikit la kalau nak sangat akaun US iTunes ni… Kena google sikit untuk dapatkan mana-mana alamat di US. Tak kisah alamat tempat apa asalkan poskod, area kod telefon, bandar & daerah semua matching. Cuba jer la google “Burger King California address” atau “Subway Chicago location” atau aper-aper jer la asalkan dapat nama bandar, kod daerah, poskod & area kod telefon. Yang lebih2 tu kelentong jer pun tak per. Kemudian bila dah dapat matlumat tu masukkan di sini:

10. Klik “Continue” & iTunes akan hantar email dengan subject “Please verify the contact email address for your Apple ID“  ke alamat email yang baru korang guna utk register US iTunes account tu. Buka email tu & klik “Verify Now“. Akaun US iTunes dah aktif terus sekarang. Sekarang kena top up kredit dalam akaun tu pulak sebab kad kredit Malaysia tak laku untuk beli barang-barang di US iTunes Store ni.

11. Since tak boleh guna kad kredit M’sia utk directly bayar US iTunes account, kita terpaksa beli iTunes Gift Cards dari 3rd party seller. Kalau cari melalui google memang ada byk sangat 3rd party sellers iTunes Gift Cards & ada yg offer harga lagi murah dari nilai sebenar card tu. Tapi yang murah-murah tu diorang kena hantar melalui pos ke alamat di US so memang kita tak dapat order la. Ada jugak banyak sites yg penipu & gift cards codes yang palsu atau expired so kena jaga-jaga la bila beli iTunes gift cards online ni.

Link di bawah ni link yang ada orang recommend kat aku baru-baru ni – lepas buat payment tak lama lepas tu korang akan dapat email yang ada link ke salinan gift card yang dah di scankan. Harga dia memang lebih sikit dari kos Gift Card tu tapi at least site ni memang boleh percaya la. Setakat ni aku dah top up dekat USD$100 tak de masalah apa-apa. Lagipun bayaran melalui kad kredit ni guna PayPal hosted site so boleh percaya la transaction dia tu & kalau ada apa-apa masalah boleh complain terus ke Paypal.

Sila klik di link ini untuk membeli iTunes Gift Cards & ikut langkah2 seterusnya.

12. Select nilai iTunes Gift Card yang nak di beli

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13. Pegi ke checkout & buat bayaran guna kad kredit di Paypal hosted payment site ni:

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14. Lepas tu check email dan salin kod gift card yang di scan macam yang di bawah ni.

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15. Pegi balik ke iTunes di komputer & click “Redeem” kat column sebelah kanan ni:

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16. Masukkan kod dari Gift Card tadi.

17. Bila diminta, masukkan email & password utk US iTunes account ni utk confirm Redeem. Pastikan masukkan email & password untuk akaun US ni & bukan akaun iTunes Malaysia korang. Kalau tersilap nanti tak boleh redeem Gift Card tu.

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18. Check baki kredit untuk akaun iTunes ni di ruangan ni:

Baki akaun aku ni dah nak kena top up dah ni tinggal sikit sangat lepas shopping sakan semalam

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19. Lepas tu, shopping lah buku, lagu, movie & siri TV puas-puas dan tengok la puas-puas masa kat dalam LRT masa nak pi kerja, dalam kereta masa jem, kat opis masa tgh keje, masa tengah beratur nak beli tiket bas balik kampung, kat atas katil masa orang rumah tengah berdengkur, kat kedai mamak masa orang lain sibuk tengok bola sebab kau tak minat bola, kat dalam bilik termenung dan kat mana-mana saja

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Disclaimer:

Almaklumlah oleh kerana benda yang di ajar kat atas ni tak mengikut kaedah-kaedah yang sepatutnya bila berkaitan dengan penggunaan akaun iTunes, maka aku dengan ini tidak akan bertanggung-jawab kalau tetiber iPhone korang meletup, iPad korang tumbuh kaki dan lari dari rumah atau kalau iPod Touch korang berangan nak jadi iPad. Aku juga tak akan bertanggungjawab kalau tetiber korang termengandung, tetiber Apple batalkan akaun US iTunes korang ni atau korang tetiber jer tak leh beli apa-apa guna akaun US tu atau korang tak terima email kredit iTunes Gift Card tu dari company yang jual tu atas apa2 sebab sekalipun contohnya silap tulih email korang atau broadband korang tak bayar bil jadi tak leh bukak email atau berlaku gempa bumi dasar laut kat Lombok yang merosakkan jaringat internet seluruh galaksi bima sakti atau apa2 jer la masalah yang berkaitan atau tak berkaitan termasuk la kalau kepala korang berdenyut-denyut sakit lepas baca instruction ni atau mamat warung tu silap bawa air teh tarik sedangkan korang order air teh o ais limau kurang manis atau korang rasa macam buang masa jer baca disclaimer panjang berjela ni.

Sekian, harap maklum.