Sabah Trip cont.: Braving the Den of Thieves

Family Dinner
That night, we had dinner with my aunt and two cousins. My aunt has the inimitable ability of carrying on a one-sided conversation, all night long. I was able to catch up on all the latest family gossip and events, in one go.

K was left to his own devices, and seemed to get on well with my cousins, who are nearly half his age. And he popped the question: have any of you gone to the water village on Gaya Island?

No, said my elder cousin, but I have friends who've been there. It used to have a bad reputation, but the authorities did some cleaning up, and it's safe now, most of the inhabitants are citizens.

Thanks coz.

With that encouragement, K was all fired to go, and dug me out of bed early the next morning to embark on the trip. My curiosity was pricked by this point, so I didn't put up too much of a fight. I guessed it wouldn't hurt to find out more about it before deciding to go or not.

Jesselton Jetty
We took a taxi to Jesselton Jetty, the only jetty in KK town. I asked the driver whether he'd ever gone to that water village.

No, said the driver, but I've friends who've been there. I hear it's ok now, not dangerous at all.

Hmm. Heard it's ok, but never been there. Sounded familiar.

We arrived at the jetty, which was newly renovated, and shone with a fresh coat of paint. The building housed tour operators who provided boat trips to the islands in the Tunku Abdul Rahman park.

Nearly Ripped Off...
The tour operators were a little surprised to hear we wanted to go to the village, and not hit the touristy beaches of Sapi, Manukan or Mamutik. If we chartered a boat, they could bring us there, and around the other islands, for a nominal fee of RM200.

RM200?! The one way trip shouldn't cost more than RM1-2.

You shouldn't get off the boat there, said two tour operators, it's dangerous, even us locals don't go there.

We looked for a second opinion, and talked with a couple of shopkeepers. Some echoed the 'it's too dangerous' theme. But one woman said it was ok, she had friends who'd been there, but no she'd never been herself.

Okay...

Finally the Truth...
One of the tour operators got tired of our persistent questions, and found a guy who actually lived on the water village. He looked like a normal guy, no eye patch, wooden leg, or M16 strapped around his chest. He drove a tour boat for a living. And he was really nice, gave us lots of information.

The water village's inhabitants took boats from the Wet Market not this jetty, and the one way trip cost RM1.50. Tourists may be ripped off, RM40 per trip. But he had a friend who was a boat operator, named Idrus. Just tell him Ramadan sent you, he said, giving us Idrus' cellphone number.

Ramadan also assured us that the water village was a safe place, there were schools (primary and middle), mosques, and peace-loving people.

Now we were psyched. The wonders of accurate information, and its calming effect. We set off on foot to the Wet Market, all ready for our island adventure. (to be continued...)