Kota Kinabalu: attractions

As mentioned in my previous entries, I didn't visit any "must-go" tourist attractions while in KK.. maybe because I refuse to pay a high premium for the cultural experiences that I've been exposed to (aka taught in school and was made to memorize as a part of exams syllables).. just like I don't have the interest (nor curiosity) to visit those China-towns in foreign countries..

Anyway, I did go to 2 different aquariums in KK on Mar 9.. and here some of the photos and comments..

Aquarium & Marine Museum
This supposedly "state-of-the-art" marine museum in University Malaysia Sabah campus is anything but. Don't believe me? Just look at the photos that I took...

The main entrance... which looks innocence enough.. giving you false hope as to what to expect..

Ticket booth on your right.. which was not manned when I was there..

Entry fee is MYR$5 for Malaysians and an additional MYR$5 if you were to bring in your camera..







This is what you will see on the right.. miserable displays that lack proper tagging and explanation.

The way these bones were arranged was not inviting at all.. Even for someone who loves to read exhibit labels, I can't bring myself to read more than a handful...



And straight ahead, at a glance that is all there is... a couple of tanks are empty, many of them have algae growing and you can't see what's inside.. the fishes in the center tank seemed bereft of life..

Then there was a room lined with about 6 tanks.. each has either a crab or a prawn in it.. it looked more like a (minimalist) lab than a museum..

There's no proper signage.. so can't find the mangrove swamp.. most information kiosks are either missing or not working..

Verdict: NEVER EVER GO THERE!!
Don't get conned by the write-ups in the Sabah Tourism website. It was a complete and utter waste of time and transport cost!! All in all, I spent less than 10 minutes in this "museum".. and I didn't see a single staff in the vicinity, not even the ticket seller... luckily, I didn't pay the required MYR$5 entry fee, else I would have demanded a refund..


The Green Connection

Although the place could really use a thorough clean-up (algae-laden waters, mold-filled tanks and worn-out facilities), the staff is very knowledgeable and their enthusiasm (towards conservation) is very admirable..

Here are some of the photos.. :)

What I saw entering the compound.. lots of greenery but not very well kept.. you can see the ticketing booth in the background..






After paying the ticket fee of MYR$25, I was pointed to the entrance..

It looked kinda shabby, and I was feeling somewhat apprehensive.. did I make the right decision to visit??

First, there are many local native animals on display, like fresh water fishes, amphibians and reptiles, that can be found uniquely in Sabah and/or Borneo, in general. However, many of the display tanks were clouded by algae and/or mold. So I had to squint to make out what and where the exhibited animals were..

Here is a photo of a terrapin..

I was not able to take photo of any of the native animals as the display glasses were cloudy.. :(





The highlight of The Green Connection should be this reef tank.. where you can see sharks, turtles, stingrays and various different kinds of fishes..

At 11.30am, there is a talk and a live feeding..

There were just a few of us there.. all of them Caucasians..

Can't really remember the name of this gentleman, who spoke with an Aussie accent. He was explaining about the animals/fishes that were found in the reef tank..





Some of the inhabitants of the reef tanks..
Gangsta, the green turtle.. marble ray.. blacktip reef sharks and some fishes..






Then the diver came in.. and the feeding begun.. :) while the commentary continues..










Some of the feeding photos..

The two rays.. marble ray (left) and whip-tail ray..











As always, Gangsta kept wanting more... :)

We were told that Gangsta got his name due his ability to steal fish and the behavior of nipping divers to get more food... :) :) :)





After the feeding in the reef tank, there is another feeding of baby otters! :)

These otters were given to TGC about 2 weeks ago by local fishermen.. and boy, were they noisy..

A persistent little fella who won't let go.. :)

They were fed small fishes.. while the keepers are trying to figure out how best to care for them..








There is also a snake corner.. where one gets to touch and hold snakes.. There were 2 snakes "on display".. both had their mouth kinda taped, but they are still able to stick out their forked tongues..

I took the bigger one and put it around me.. Actually, I was hoping for a bigger one.. :p



After that, I came to a room (the Touch Pool) that has 3 large open tanks.. here visitors are encouraged to touch and feel the exhibited animals.. under a guidance of a staff, of course.. and since I was the only visitor, I had the full attention of the staff.. :)

First tank was filled with horseshoe crabs..
Among many things that I was told:
- how to differentiate male and female crabs..
- the blood of these horseshoe crabs (which is blue in color) are valuable research ingredients.. a tiny vial can fetched up to a few hundred dollars (USD, that is).


The next tank housed some bamboo sharks.. which unfortunately I didn't manage to get any photos of.. I was told to stroke it gently.. it felt smooth when I stroke it from head to tail, but rough when do it the other way round.. thus I was informed that these sharks were close to extinction in the 70s when its skin was sought-after as sand-paper..

I was then asked to guess what the following lump of slimy looking "thingy" is..

looks like some slimy clams..

Then the staff, it was a lady by the way, informed me that those were the eggs of the bamboo sharks!! Wow, what a camouflage! seriously, they sure don't look like eggs.. more like clams.. don't you think??

doesn't look like an egg, does it?

The last tank held a variety of star fishes and hermit crabs.. and I was encouraged to hold and feel them..

Pillow cushion star..

top

underside.. sharp little mouth in the middle..

Horned starfishes...

also known as "chocolate chip" starfish.. :)

underside.. its mouth in the middle..

its feelers...

Also elsewhere in the compound, there are many tanks where corals are being grown, fishes and turtles are being bred .. TGC aims to incorporate conservation with education... hoping to teach people, especially school kids, about the importance of saving and maintaining these animals/fishes..

Verdict: Worth a visit!
Spent more than 3 hours here.. had the entire place to myself, thus I was able to slowly look through all the exhibits.. had a great time and definitely worth the $$ and time spent..

Next up, the food (that I had while) in KK... :) :)