The weekend of the 24 and 25 October saw the annual Tamu Besar, or open-air market, at Kota Belud about 80km north of Kota Kinabalu. We hired a car with Chris and Daun and off we went but decided to take in the Tip of Borneo on the way - or should that be out of the way? Whatever, we arrived at Kudat in time for lunch but not a lot to see or report about Kudat. We continued on to the Tip, the most northern point on the island of Borneo, where the wind was fairly blowing and the waves were crashing on the rocks below, before backtracking to Kota Belud and the Tamu Besar. Before long it was raining heavily and by the time we arrived it was dark! All the accommodation was taken, and it would seem, we were lost. No sign of any festival taking place so we strolled through the evening market, had something to eat and drove back to the marina and bed.
Next day we tried again and set off at 7.00 for Kota Belud once more. This time we asked questions and were directed over the hill to the open-air market. It was actually a lot like any other market but we bought a few bits and pieces to commemorate our visit to Kota Belud and walked back into town. We noticed quite a few of the local ponies tethered around the padang and discovered that there would be demonstration by the 'cowboys of the east' at 1.30. With some nice shade to sit in, we watched as the ponies were dressed in their colourful clothes and their riders donned their traditional costumes in preparation for a demonstration of the riding skills of the Bajau horsemen.
Delayed by the arrival of the Sabah Chief Minister the event finally got underway and the horsemen did their stuff - chiefly riding in formation in lines, circles and more lines. It was very colourful, although not really exciting but worth the time and effort with plenty of photo oppotunities.
Day three of our hire car experience took us over the Crocker Range and into the Tambunan Rafflesia Reserve named for the world's largest flower. We didn't really hold out any hope of seeing one but upon arrival at the NP centre we were excited to find that there was indeed one in flower, about an hour's walk away. We weren't so excited about the RM50 ranger fee to be escorted along a well marked track. We were even more excited when we arrived as there were actually two in flower - one had opened since the day before. This particular 
flower, Rafflesia pricei, only reaches a size of about 30cm circumference and was about half the size of one we saw in 2007 in Sarawak. However, it was great to see and good to know that the National Parks of Malaysia are doing what they can to preserve such unique flora. The Rafflesia is actually a parasite with no leaves, stem or roots, and grows within a jungle vine. Buds, which look like brown cabbages, take 9 months to burst into flower and then last about 4-6 days before dying. Flowers are either male or female and are pollinated by flies which they attract by a rotten meat smell once they start to die.
Coming back through the Crocker Range we stopped off at a greenhouse, curious to find out what was growing in it. We had seen quite a few of them and suspected they were growing shiitake mushrooms. Sure enough, they were and after having a bit of a look around we came away with a nice bagful of fresh mushrooms!!
flower, Rafflesia pricei, only reaches a size of about 30cm circumference and was about half the size of one we saw in 2007 in Sarawak. However, it was great to see and good to know that the National Parks of Malaysia are doing what they can to preserve such unique flora. The Rafflesia is actually a parasite with no leaves, stem or roots, and grows within a jungle vine. Buds, which look like brown cabbages, take 9 months to burst into flower and then last about 4-6 days before dying. Flowers are either male or female and are pollinated by flies which they attract by a rotten meat smell once they start to die.Coming back through the Crocker Range we stopped off at a greenhouse, curious to find out what was growing in it. We had seen quite a few of them and suspected they were growing shiitake mushrooms. Sure enough, they were and after having a bit of a look around we came away with a nice bagful of fresh mushrooms!!
