Kota Kinabalu Cont...

More Photos from Manukan Island

On Christmas morning we had decided to have a relaxing day enjoying the beach at the hotel. After breakfast we noticed that the tide was out so far that it made the island opposite us accessible. It took us just under an hour to walk to the island. As we approached the island all you could hear was the sounds of the jungle. I can imagine if you were to spend the night on one of these islands these awesome sounds would be a little unnerving in the dark. Actually the island to the left of the one you see above is the actual island that was featured on the first Survivor show. I did want to visit it, but time got away from us. Soon after the tide started to come in, so we headed back before we had to swim. We had a nice lunch on the deck of our chalet, then cleaned ourselves up for our Christmas dinner.

For Christmas dinner we again headed back into KK. We booked a table at one of the ritzy resorts whose Xmas smorgasboard was meant to be amazing. And amazing it was! I have never seen such a spread. They had traditional Christmas food from all over the world. As well they had a whole row of seafood including lobster, crab, oysters, salmon and much more. I always wish I were a man when I eat at a smorg, as I never seem to have room for it all! The boys jaw dropped when they saw the dessert counter. They had about 30 different cakes, assorted cookies, icecream, and a chocolate fountain.

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The following day we decided to leave our hotel and stay in the city. That way we could walk most places and not have to have the 40 minute drive at the end of the day. We booked into a hotel right on the waterfront and spent the day wandering around the city.

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On the 27th, we had previously booked a snorkelling tour. So again we boarded a boat excited for our day on the water. This time we went to an island called Sapi Island. This island is the most popular for snorkelling. We jumped in the water right off the boat and had an amazing time exploring the reefs. I can't tell you all the amazing sights we saw. The fish were vivid and beautiful and until recently thought I'd only see them in fish tanks. There were many times when I seemed to be swimming within a school of these beautiful fish. This is definitely a place I will be taking anyone who wants to come and visit me!