jungle stories...pt.2

jungle stories...pt.2

end of the 1st nite:  IN THE CABIN:

Finally settled in for the night and my last 'chore' before going to sleep was to brush my teeth. Then I wanted to rinse my mouth, but had finished the last of of my bottled water. I didn't want to wake any of the guys, so I tiptoed into the into the kitchen..in the dark...& took a swig from what I thought was a bottle of  water...... haha it turned out to be the kerosene .. (in what looked like a water bottle)....good thing i don’t swallow!!. .....tasted that for the rest of the night!  Glad none of the guys saw me,

2nd nite: WE SLEPT IN THE HAMMOCK THEY BUILT IN THE JUNGLE:
This turned out to be quite an eventful nite..
I went to bed at about  8:30 ...YES ME..who rarely hits the sack before 1AM!!  The 3 guides
stayed up another 2 hrs. drinking Tuak..(local homemade rice wine) by the dying campfire..but I was
totally zonked..
Awoke a few hours later cause my bladder was bursting. I knew I had to get up and walk around in the dark to find a bush to hide behind. It was so dark I literally couldn’t tell if my eyes were open or shut!!  It was the weirdest sensation.  .....

Quietly I crept out of my hammock ( I had the end one) &  used my little flashlite to find a spot..  DIDN’T WANT TO VENTURE TOO FAR AWAY...you can’t see a thing in the jungle at night....
Of course I managed to step on a branch which awoke Belansai.. who was in the far hammock.. & who came out
to investigate the noise.  I tried to be quiet so he wouldn’t see me.. but he’s a jungle dwelling native & hunter.. of course he’s going to find me!! He was getting closer & closer & my bladder was stilllllll not empty.....   finally realizing that I better  sacrifice modesty & identify myself before I was mistaken for a wild boar or civet cat and got speared!  So I signalled him with my flashlight...............talk about  getting caught  with your pants down!

Back to bed...to a sound sleep, but was awakened about 1 am by Lemon, the guide from the tour company (in the next hammock) shaking his mosquito net.. along with the entire structure, & cursing in his native language (all 4 hammocks were attached to a single frame)..  His flashlight had illuminated the side of my netting which I could see was covered with ants......
Since I was still half asleep & figuring they were on the outside I was thinking: “so what..after all we were in the  jungle.. “

I was starting to fall back to sleep....when I realized that he had previously endured bites from leeches & a wasp..without flinching....& maybe I better check to see why he was now creating such a commotion... Sure enuff.............just as I realized a few were inside the netting.. he was telling me to get out fast......I jumped out on the other side with bare feet..(LESSON: sleep with shoes on in the jungle).......stepping on thousands of fire ants ...trying to put my sandals on.. but couldn’t keep a foot on the ground long enough to put on even one ......
Finally,  holding my  sandals, I just hopped to a spot near the fire that he told me to go to.  I could see that all 3 of them were sitting sideways in their hammocks shaking out the netting, smashing ants & stripping the bedding & shaking it out..moving sequentially from one end of each hammock to the other.. 1 hammock at a time..1 guide was putting his bedding back together while the next one was still shaking his out...,left to right.. Janda shone his
light on the ground under the hammocks & I could see a departing river of ants that were travelling from the left to the right & veering off between Lemon’s hammock & mine.  He was filling his mouth with kerosene (I know how that tasted!!)  and spraying it on the ants..
 By this time the other 2 guides were finished & calmly back in bed while I was still jumping around by the fire having finally succeeded in getting my sandals on..but still getting stung by the ants.
NOW I FIRST THOUGHT OF VIDEOTAPING THE EVENT BUT MY CAMERA WAS STILL IN MY HAMMOCK..& PROBABLY COVERED WITH FIRE ANTS....
Without looking at my bed, Lemon told me it was safe for me to get back in the hammock..I made him check it
first anyway.. but it seems that he knew their pattern. They had approached from the left & veered off  just as they  had gotten to mine... which was when he awoke me.  He told me later he felt his hands & face getting bitten &
awoke to see they were all over him...Those things STING like hot needles. 

For the next 2 nites every time I closed my eyes I saw a white netting covered with ants...!

Up to that point the adventure seemed contrived.. not real.. Since I was paying for it, it had the feel of a  tv script that we were following..  But watching those guys shaking the ants out of the hammock, and feeling the occasional stings on my feet..brought the reality of the situation to me in no uncertain terms.  I was REALLY in the jungle & the tour co. was not in total control of the daily events..

This thought also crossed my mind each time I inched my way across a narrow ledge on the edge of a steep drop..where 1wrong step would  have been the end of me. And whoever was holding my hand trying to balance me would have gone over also!.....

..........to be continued.......

Jungle Stories Part 1 (notes made after my first solo trip into the jungles of Malaysian Borneo 2003)

Here I am back in civilization after 5 days of trekking & living in the jungle with 2 Iban tribesmen:
Janda & Belansai, as guides/ porters/chefs ...from one of the original head-hunting tribes in Borneo.
What a fantastic experience.  My only souveniers are a few relentlessly itching bites, a stinking bag of dirty clothes (laundry  is next stop!) some minor bruises, a wonderful walking stick that Janda made for me..which kept me upright and slightly independant, and some amazing memories that I want to share with you.

Day 1..Nanga Jelia: The jungle lodge that was to be the starting point. Due to low water level, the canoe was unable to continue to the designated drop-off point for what was supposed to be “20 minute hike” to the lodge.  Consequently I was thrown into this adventure quite abruptly when I was told to get out of the boat as we couldn’t go any further.  We had no choice but to climb up the steep river bank (approx.12’ straight up..) of mud & trees!!  My initial reaction was “You’ve got to be kidding!..I can’t make it up that hill!”  but they weren’t kidding as there were no other options.

Not only did I have to climb it.. but had to change from sandals into hiking shoes while standing on a
perpendicular wall of mud with a backpack & camera gear, while balancing on 1 foot & using 1 hand to hold
onto a tree branch  ...each time I let of  the tree branch to tie a shoe I would slide down... but someone
was always around to push me back up.

Janda & Belansai had no problem balancing precariously while repacking our supplies in their rattan
backpacks..we had to leave some stuff on the boat..including the cooler..(our only source of
refrigeration by the way)..as they had also planned for level beach-type landing.

SOMEHOW I made it up the hill...thru a combination of being pulled & pushed when I slIpped back..& wondering what the heck I got myself into...
It turned out that was one of the EASIER parts of the trek...many parts consisted of uneven paths about 12” wide, covered with wet leaves & branches.. alternating between the edge of a ravine or a straight drop to the river..

I COULDN’T DECIDE WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN THE LESSER OF THE 2 FALLS.. however due to help from the guides, extreme concentration on where I put each foot, occasional glances downward to ascertain what would be my fate if I lost my footing..I stayed on the path.

The remaining trek consisted of steep uphill & downhill climbs which took every bit of strength and courage I had.....it didn’t help my ego knowing that  the guides..each carryng about 40lbs of food, clothing & bedding for the 4 of us..were not having any problems & were probably wondering what they got themselves into with me!!

It was almost dark as the “20 minute” hike turned into an hour of difficult trekking..and we arrived at Nanga Jelia..a bare-bones lodge (no electricity or hot water).. furniture consisted of a picnic-type table in the “kitchen” & thin mattresses on the floor of “rooms” separated by 4’ high partitions..
& a separate cold water shower & flush toilet in nearby shacks.

I unpacked and settled in by the lite of a kerosene lamp while the 2 Ibans & Lemon, the Bidayuh guide from the tour company.. made a fire &  started preparing (by candle light) what turned out to be the first of many delicious meals....using traditonal Iban methods of sanitizing utensils & preserving food. It must have worked.. for I never got sick.... considering we spent 5 days carrying around unrefrigerated meat..in temperatues of 100+ (remember the cooler was back in the boat!) washing hands, plates, food..with cold water.. & .no toilet paper...!!

As my first intro into this lodge was in the dark, I had to sort thru my stuff (fortunately I packed
lightly) find the nails on the wall to use for hooks while avoiding cobwebs & whatever was in them, & clean up by flashlight,... as the kerosene lamp was just sufficient illumination to see the location of the walls & mattress.

I will never know how they made such a good dinner in the dark..after that climb...with only a trickle of cold water & huge wok over a wood fire..while I had my hands full just unpacking my bag & finding mystuff..but it was great having 3 men prepare dinner for me after that walk!!  I felt guilty not helping..but realized the best help I could be would be to keep out of their way!!  After dinner..while THEY cleaned up by candle light..I took a shower.....never enjoyed a cold shower so  much & luckily the flashlite didn’t allow me a clear view of whatever creatures were in there with me.

The next days & nites were spent hiking, swimming, eating & sleeping in the jungle.. in shelters they
made as we went.. however, although I improved immensely, the route to our destination at the salt
lick where we had a  better chance to see orang-utans...was getting increasingly more
challenging..the ledges were narrower..the drops higher & the hills steeper..& we ALL agreed that the
city girl may not make it back in one piece if we continued.. so we turned back!!

We had many adventures en route.. including the time they were stalking a wild boar to bring back to their longhouse for food...(Thank goodness I slowed them down so much...and was so noisy.... that they lost it!!) & an attack by fire ants when we were sleeping..
But I’ll save that for another post....

Jodi’s Background

Jodi started her teaching career as an art teacher in New Jersey, however soon became re-certified to teach Science and Social Studies at the high school level in Connecticut.  As a teacher, Jodi enjoyed giving her students the “insider’s scoop”: incorporating behind the scenes information from world-wide travels into her Science or Social Studies classes wherever appropriate.  She left teaching to indulge her growing passion of world travel.

Jodi’s explorations stopped after “discovering” Malaysian Borneo. “Everything I ever traveled to see is all in this one fantastic land: wildlife, rainforest, indigenous people still living in the forests, a harmonious, multi-cultural society, tropical climate, and the icing on the cake: English is a 2nd language in Malaysia, so it was possible to have extensive contact and develop true friendships with the locals.”

The woman who “never goes anywhere twice” has made approximately 15 trips to Sarawak, each of 2-3 months duration in the past 10 years!! Although no longer teaching, Jodi retains her love of sharing knowledge, and decided to share her experiences more directly.

Why did she start organizing tours to Borneo?
 “During the course of my visits I have made a lot of friends, many of whom are involved in tourism. Living there part-time each year, I am now more of a local than a tourist and decided to use my experience and contacts to design tours for the western market  and share this paradise.”

Welcome to Jungle Jaunts Blog

Welcome to my first attempt at blogging!  I plan to use this format to share interesting stories about my experiences in East Malaysia (the part on Borneo Island, also known as Malaysian Borneo) and also interesting feedback from some of my clients.

From time to time I'll add travel tips here and special tour offerings.
At the moment there are 2 specials I'd like to share:

• I have a single female who will be traveling in East Malaysia during the month of October.  Please contact me at junglejaunts.com (or through this blog) if you would like to know more and would like to join her.
• Early-Bird Discounts are still being given for trips booked prior to September. The discounts will be applicable for tours through 2014 while the offer is still valid however this can change at short notice. Contact me for details.

Please note these 2 offers are now expired. However every year there is a window for Early Bird Price Freezes.  
Occasionally I do have single travelers looking to join up with another single or group, so feel free to contact me if this interests you.