KK and Indy

Okay, so that was a rather disrespectful way to name Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia and Jakarta, Indonesia but I thought it was more catchy and it made me smile. (Are you noticing I do a lot of things merely because they make me smile? Good) Anyways, both ports were small so they fit on the same blog.
My first impression of Kota Kinabalu was the dirty water. To my memory I have never seen so much stuff floating in the water as I did entering KK. However, the welcoming party was nice. They danced for us in native regalia and then dragged some of us into the dance(I was carefully in the back of my group).
The day we arrived I really didn't want to go out. It had been a long week and I hadn't gotten much sleep. I told my friend days before that my plan was to relax/sleep in the afternoon and then find someone to go out with for supper and that was it for the first day. She tells me when we were allowed to leave to be ready in a half hour. Wait, What? Basically if I didn't go out with her shopping in the afternoon immediately she'd get stuck all afternoon with Doc (his name, not job) that no one liked because he was taking her/us to Clash of the Titans later. Grumble, grumble, grumble. I was ready 45 minutes later and didn't really perk up until the movie late that night. (Awesome movie and the only time I have ever said anything nice (or willingly) to Doc since he paid the three dollar ticket) Anyways, we went shopping and I got some dvds that had rather bad quality. (I picked up Race to Witch Mountain on Blue Ray and put it in my laptop. It skipped some but was easy enough to follow, until two chapters from the end when it stopped. grr. Oh well, it was cheap.) We also ate supper at an outdoor restaraunt that was pretty good. I ate what looked like Klingon golash (but dead) but tasted rather good and had some watermelon juice. (think the watermelon equivalant of fresh orange juice and you have a heavenly drink I always look for.) Well, that was that day.
The next day was more fun because I had helped plan it and knew it was coming. We got on the bus early in order to hit the markets but for some reason I wasn't in the mood to buy anything. We saw plenty of sparkly jewelry but I don't wear that type of sparkle, I like the subtle stuff that enhances, not out shines. Maybe it was just that stuff or the bright sun that day but I wasn't in the mood for that jewelry. I did buy a small "jade" round pendant I may play with and a sparkly green bracelet I'll likely take apart and use the pieces in a more subtle piece or two. I also picked up two bracelets of magnetized pearls. Yes, you read correctly: magnatized pearls. At that price I rather doubt that they were real and the magnetic clasp made the whole bracelet stick together but I found the idea amusing and decided to pick up two. (It made me smile. :D ) I made a video of the market which I'll try to get online. Basically the market we hit sold everything from religious stuff to bunnies, rats, kittens, puppies, pet birds, and turtles to purses and scarves as well as food and readymade jewelry.
Next up on the agenda was a massage. I like those. I'd gotten a neck and shoulder one the day before as we waited for the bus and liked that so I let my friend talk me into getting a foot massage and full body massage with her. Um, yeah. The foot massage was okay although it was odd as I'm not big on people touching my feet. She later said that the foot massage was rather odd for her as well, who loves that massage, and not to judge by that one. Lovely. Next came the full body massage. Hm, I'm basically naked and I had a man masseuse. Lovely way to start a massage. Anyway, I tried to relax and when he was working on my back he suggested something. I didnt hear him well but I heard something about a candle. um, no. A few minutes later, my friend, who was next to me getting her massage (by a girl grrr) asked me if I wanted it too, said the lady had suggested a lotion that was good for the back. Um, okay, my back could always use help, it's always tense. Nope, turns out we agreed to what is called cupping. basically they light a tiny tiny canble, put it on my skin, and put a glass cup on top of it. the candle quickly burns out, but it creates a suction that pulls the skin under the lip of the cup up. I think it's supposed to releave deep knots but it was uncomfortable, especailly on both shoulder blades where he did it wrong so it pinched. Needless to say, I was unable to wear anything with any type of open back for a week or so. grr. Well, that basically ruined our day but we still wanted to get to some islands nearby that had tropical forests on them and other cool stuff to do. We never figured out how to get there but we walked through the most smelly fresh market I've ever gone through. The smell of meat and possibly not so fresh fruit and vegetables permeated the air we tried hard not to notice in a market by the water I doubt got cleaned much. Yep, we were in such good moods when we decuded to eat at McDonalds and head back for the night.
The next night I went out for supper with a friend. The supper was okay, not quite amazing, the sunse was lovely but not as awesome as they claim to be famous for, and the night market was a disappointment. Oh well, the company was good and I got a few trinkets but have no real desire to go there again unless it's as part of a tour. There were plenty of things for tourists to do, including lovely resorts but not so much for people who want to walk around and do things themselves.
And now for Jakarta. We needed a large group in order to get off the ship so it wound up with me, my work buddy, Doc :( , and a few other people from work. Hm, two girls, three or four guys, and a massive mall of expensive fashionable clothes I doubt I'd ever wear. Sounds like a recipe for a lovely day. Yeah, I rarely speak around Doc because my momma taught me not to say anything if I have nothing nice to say. (Granted, sarcasm is my main language but it's usually said in joke. With Doc it would have been said out of spite and that just isn't right so my mouth stayed shut.) Doc decided he wanted to find a coffee called Kopi Luwak that is the most expensive drink in the world, or should be. An ounce of it in the US is about a hundred dollars, I think. If you remember Bucket List, it's the drink the rich man always drank. It's created by a type of cat eating the seed, then when it comes out the other end changed by their digestive juices, it's picked up, rinsed off, and shipped out to be ground and fed to people. Sounds appetizing, huh? It's said to be the best coffee anywhere and only comes from Indonesia. I had a sip from my friend's cup, it tasted like coffee which I can't stand but I can now say I tried. I ordered a delighful blueberry shake a laughed as they added sugar to their Kopi Luwak. We spent a few hours in that mall, much to my delight, :( and I got a Crispy Kreme, had a kind spicy supper folowed by a mint ice cream from Baskin Robbins, and found and bought a beading magizine in English. All in all, the trip picked up near the end but I was glad it was over.
And now I must go for lunch so this is Li'l B signing off and wishing you all a lovely day.