A Mixed Bag in Semporna, Borneo

Because of Malaysian tax laws, we had to be back in the country by December 30th. Since we still had a week left of holidays, we decided to check out the island side of Malaysia; Borneo! Although a bit of an emotionally conflicting trip (more on that), it was fantastic to have a look at another dimension of Malaysia..not to mention, being able to show Catherine Barker a bit of our host home (although not KL).

We flew into Tawau and made our way to the coastal town of Semporna located on the east coast of Borneo. Again, without doing any research, and taking for granted that we would be in Malaysia (meaning our bank cards worked and we could could confidently order from a menu) we had few preconceptions. We arrived in Semporna in the evening. Everything was closed, it was dark and the town seemed pretty dead. Having the excuse of wanting Catherine to sample everything Malaysian, we had a large feast of Chinese Malaysian food and as Tyler and I had spent the night before in the airport, we went to bed.

We woke up the next morning really excited for a day of diving and New Years Eve celebrations! We were super pumped, as diving was the main reason we chose to visit this small town and the surrounding islands. The waters and marine life were to be second to none, as most people venture here to dive in the world famous national park, Sipidan. We had been warned the night before by our friend Hutchy who had arrived a few days earlier, that the waters were absolutely stunning, however that the amount of garbage was equally staggering. After we geared up and cruised out of the harbour (where there is always a certain amount of garbage lingering) we marveled at the absolutely brilliant clear blue waters. The sun was shining, the water was relatively calm and we were in good company. As we made our way out into open waters however, it was amazing just how much plastic was floating on the surface of the water. So much garbage that our boat had to stop several times to rid its motor and propellers of the trash before continuing on its journey. Still the garbage didn't seem to hinder our day of diving too much. We did three dives seeing some beautiful coral, fish, turtles..and of course were serenaded by Hutchy's underwater rendition of the Mission Impossible theme song..which makes it seem like we we are on an important mission ourselves :)

 
That night, we geared up for New Years Eve celebrations! Again, we gathered to share a feast of seafood, Malay, and Chinese food before hitting up a (the) small pub in town. We danced, chatted with randoms and rang in the New Year. As far as New Year's goes, it was pretty typical. The next day we were all feeling pretty lazy (myself in particular) so we sought out the only pool in town. We wandered into the hotel like we were guests, eventually were sussed out, and paid the fee. Little did they know how much we love a lazy New Year's Day. From the pool, we all visited the spa for massages, ate at the lobby restaurant, then watched a movie in their cinema room. We totally loitered and lingered perhaps too long.

The next morning we sadly had to say goodbye to Catherine Barker, as she was heading back to Qatar. Danielle, Tyler and I were off the spend the remainder of our holiday on Mabul Island, an hour trip from the mainland. After we arrived and got our rooms all sorted out, we were in utter awe of the beauty of our surroundings! The water was unlike anything I had seen before! We hung around our little resort for a while, then decided to venture to the beach. To get to the beach we needed to walk through the village. Walking through the village was a bit of a shock. The amount of children in the streets was overwhelming (Ty later looked it up..about 2000 people live on the island, with about 1000 being under the age of 14). Furthermore the amount of garbage piled up was heartbreaking. We made our way through to the gated resort, enjoyed the beach and made our way back. As we sat out drinking beer and enjoying the sunset, small children would float by in their canoes asking for money. When we gave them money, they would then ask for food. It was a heart breaker. Over the next few days we did some dives, swam and relaxed.We also spent a lot of time reflecting on topics such as poverty and trash.

Thanks to Danielle for some of the great photos! (Follow her on Instagram @daniellecorbett. Her pics are fantastic!)

 Although in the most beautiful place I have ever traveled to, I had a lot of trouble really enjoying it. It was hard to encounter naked children rubbing their tummies and asking for food, then turn our backs to head off to the gated resorts for an afternoon of spa treatments, ice cream and tanning. This isn't the first place we have gone where poverty is overtly apparent, but something seemed different about this one. I think (although I have no idea) it was that the children didn't seem to smile all that much. In other countries we have gone, the children seemed to play, and engage a lot. Perhaps they are just sick of tourists clicking photos. Again, I have no idea, nor presume to know what the true inner workings of the island, village or its inhabitants are. I do know, that it was not easy switching on and off the vacation/reality mode.

The second issue that weighed heavy on my mind was the apparent problem of garbage disposal. Since kids we have all heard about campaigns that read slogans such as 'Save the rainforest', 'Clean up our oceans', etc. We all know that these are important initiatives and serve a purpose. However for me, they didn't really mean very much. Yes, have seen the result of industrial pollution in Lake Ontario, and know all about the collapsed fishing industry in Atlantic Canada. I am well aware that I could be criticized as 'the pot calling the kettle black', however until seeing the ocean environments in East Borneo and the tangible damage that is being done firsthand, it was nothing I felt passionate about.
While in Mabul, we sat up scratching our heads about the devastating amounts of garbage in the water in contrast with the breathtakingly beautiful ocean. We discussed ways the problem could be irradiated, but nothing really seemed viable. In developed countries we create the same amount of garbage (if not more). Yes, we bury it, burn it, collect into one place. We are lucky enough to be able to put it in an out of sight location, and therefore it is out of mind. Ignorance is truly bliss. In a place like Mabul, they do not have the infrastructure to deal with the garbage, so everything is chucked in the ocean. Again an issue that I have really been now awaken to, however left unsettled and unsure of any solution. I suppose there is no one solution, but an array of possibilities; The simplest ones being, stop creating so much garbage, recycle, and educate. Don't be ignorant to where your garbage is going and what the long-term affects of it are. Tyler and I are as guilty as the next person, but now it's time to decide what we are going to do about. Before we left the island, we were in a gift shop looking for some souvenirs. I picked up a marine life book, and read this quote that seemed apt;
 “The oceans are the planet's last great living wilderness, man's only remaining frontier on Earth, and perhaps his last chance to prove himself a rational species.” -John L. Culliney 

The homes in Mabul were amazing!

 I really apologize for the negative tone of this blog post. To say that our vacation to Boreno was life-changing might be a bit of a reach, however it was certainly eye-opening and thought provoking. Don't get me wrong, we left Borneo with killer tans, having completed six dives in unreal locations, sharing laughs with great friends and welcoming a New Year. The reason we travel is to educate ourselves, and beyond measure we have been certainly schooled! Just as we are expected to when we graduate, it is now time to do something with our experiences.