As I write this, we've past our 100-days at sea anniversary. In the past 100+ days, we've visited 7 countries and stopped at 19 different ports. Time has gone by quickly, even the cruising days at sea. Lately, I've upped my social presence. Normally, Connie's the "Social Butterfly" in our family. With her being off ship, I've forced myself to step up and try to meet more people and engage with them. It's been fun learning their various stories. I'm amazed at the accomplishments many of them have. I'm even getting better at remembering their names (usually).
Our daily happy hour has been a good way to meet various people. This has also led to several invitations to join them for dinner. I'm feeling more relaxed around them and no longer hesitate to invite myself to join several of them for a meal. It's great that we all have something in common - a desire to be on this world adventure.
Travel Log for May 21st to May 27th, 2026
We arrived in the city of Kuching, in the state of Sarawak, on the island of Borneo, in the country of Malaysia. If nothing else on this adventure, I'm sure learning a lot of geography. Kuching is the capital of Sarawak and the largest city on Borneo. The name Kuching literally means "cat" in Malay, which is why I saw cat statues all around and there's even a Cat Museum in the city. I drove by the cat museum but didn't stop for a visit. Kuching borders the rainforest mountains and the South China Sea. As with all of these local countries, it's near the equator and is hot and humid.
I failed to mention in my previous travel log that we crossed the equator on May 13th. Connie and I crossed the equator by ship a couple years ago on our cruise to New Zealand. It's a nautical tradition to have the "Pollywogs" become the "Shellbacks" as they celebrate their first-time crossing the Equator. This was the third time for the Odyssey to cross the equator. They always have a party to have the "Pollywogs" kiss a fish and then take a dip in the pool. They emerge as "Shellbacks".
Many times, the Odyssey docks at commercial ports that aren't necessarily accessible to the city. In Kuching, this was another one of those commercial docks. As usual when this happens, a shuttle bus was provided to take us into the city. Originally, I had planned to visit the Semenggoh Wildlife Centre (often called Semenggoh Nature Reserve) on the second day with a group of residents from the ship. However, the weather wasn't predicted to be good for that day. When I got off the ship upon our arrival, I quickly changed my mind and decided to visit the Wildlife center that afternoon on my own. I walked around China Town and waterfront for a while, then caught a Grab (Uber) to the Wildlife center.
Semenggoh Wildlife Centre is a well-known orangutan sanctuary and rehabilitation center located just outside Kuching in Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo. It's a protected forest reserve and conservation center established in 1975 to care for wildlife—especially orangutans—that were orphaned, injured, or kept illegally as pets. The main mission is to rehabilitate these animals and help them return to living in the wild. It's famous for its semi-wild orangutans—they are not kept in cages and roam freely in the forest. The highlight is the twice a day feeding sessions (typically morning and afternoon), when rangers place fruit on platforms and call the orangutans down. I timed it to arrive for the afternoon feeding. Sightings are never guaranteed, since the animals can choose to stay in the forest.
When I was doing research, Google told me the best time to see the orangutans was during "non-fruiting" season. "Fruiting" season is when the fruit is plentiful in the forest and the orangutans don't come in to get fed. During "non-fruiting" season, the orangutans are more likely to come to visit the feeding platforms. Google stated \fruiting season was November - March (not a good time to visit) and fruiting season was April - October (giving a better chance of seeing orangutans). Although it was May, there were signs everywhere stating it was fruiting season and there was only a "slight" chance to see them. When I arrived and saw these prominently displayed signs, my heart sank. Oh well, at least I'd get to walk through the Borneo jungle (rainforest).
The center wasn't crowded. There were only about 20 - 30 visitors on this day in the afternoon. We got lucky and were treated to a few orangutans making an appearance. At first, it was a female with a 2-day old baby. She hung from the tree while a ranger threw bananas up to her. The small baby was hard to see, but we could make out the legs and a head. The attached photos try to show you the baby. The ranger then tossed up a whole coconut. She went crazy tearing the bark (skin) off the coconut with her teeth. Once she got to the coconut from the inside, she started banging it against the tree to break it open for the inside water and meat. Soon, the nearby trees started to shake violently. The female and baby quietly slipped back into the jungle a little.
All this time, we were viewing the orangutan from about 15' away and she was about 10' above us. When the trees got violent, the ranger had us all back up another 20'. A male was approaching and he didn't know if he was coming in to protect the female, or to get some food. He definitely made a dramatic entrance! Luckly, he was just looking for food. The ranger slowly approached him from below and started tossing fruit up to him. He ate his share of bananas. When the ranger held out a papaya, the male orangutan dropped the bunch of bananas and wanted the papaya. He enjoyed his free meal but kept a close eye on all of us spectators.
It was a great afternoon! I shared a Grab car back to the city with some other residents who came on their own. We then caught the shuttle back to the port to reboard the Odyssey.
The next day was when most of the residents from the ship went to visit the Semenggoh Wildlife Centre. This was the group of 45+ people that I originally was going to go with. Bummer for them, as it did rain hard and they didn't see any orangutans during their visit. For once, I was in the right place at the right time.
After leaving Kuching, we cruised for 2-days to arrive in Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia. During these sea days, the weather was fantastic. The nights were very clear, and I was hoping to see plenty of bright stars at night. The bow (front) of the ship isn't lit at night. It's the only dark place on the ship at night. This is to not blind the crew manning the bridge. It makes for a great place to view the night sky in mostly dark. The stars weren't as plentiful as I was hoping for, but there were many more than I usually see. What caught me by surprise was the "Big Dipper" was upside down. I've never seen (or noticed) it this way before.
I found out that I was lucky to even see it. In much of the Southern Hemisphere, it's too far north and completely below the horizon, so it can't be seen. Near the equator: you might see it low and "upside down". This is exactly how I saw it. Low in the sky, bright, and upside down. Being near the Southern Hemisphere, we're essentially looking at the sky from the "other side" of the planet. This flips the orientation of star patterns.
We also cruised past several oil platforms. At night, they were brilliantly lit and "venting". The sea was on fire in several areas.
Kota Kinabalu (also known as "KK") is the capital of Sabah state in Malaysia, located on the northwest coast of Borneo facing the South China Sea. Due to the port not being available for long, we were only allowed to be there for less than 10-hours. This was more like a visit to a port on a regular vacation cruise. In and out quickly. I decided there wasn't much time to do anything, and I didn't feel like taking the shuttle to the mall for a few hours. I remained onboard while we were at KK.
Travel Log for May 28th to June 2nd, 2026
After leaving "KK", we cruised for 2-days before we reached our next destination of Coron in the Philippines This is one of the most beautiful island destinations in Southeast Asia. It's located in northern Palawan province, part of a group of islands called the Calamianes. Coron is a very small town/village. It's very rustic. You won't' find any malls, grocery stores, or large department stores here. I think the most modern building is a "Jollibee" fast-food restaurant. This chain is the largest and most popular fast-food chain in the Philippines. There is also a McDonalds (they're everywhere).
What you will find in Coron are narrow roads with mostly "trikes" using them. These aren't really "Tuk Tuks". They are a motorcycle with a covered and attached sidecar. From the port to the middle of the town was 100 Philippine Pesos (about $1.70). You just flag one down from the only main road in town.
The houses, stores, and most buildings are made out of blocks, plywood and bamboo. It's a seaport town, with dozens of outrigger boats called a Bangka (or banca). These are narrow wooden main boat (the hull) with long bamboo outriggers on both sides (called katig) for balance. They're used for island hopping because they are very stable in open water and can travel over shallow reefs and lagoons.
Fishing and tourism are the main sources of economy for this small town. There's about 50+ small islands located near Coron. During World War II, several Japanese boats and ships were sunk near here. These and the several coral reefs make for fantastic and popular diving and snorkeling sites.
I've always wanted to learn to scuba dive and snorkel. Over 20 years ago, Connie and I took a scuba class and tried to dive in Mexico. That was a failure. I have difficulty breathing just through my mouth. I knew that many residents on the Odyssey go snorkeling at the several beautiful places the ship has stopped at. Before I left the states to board the Odyssey, I purchased a full-face snorkeling mask. I tested it home in our hot-tub and felt comfortable with it. A few days ago, I had my first chance to use it and went on an "island hopping" trip with several other residents.
16 of us left the ship on a rainy morning and were taken to the local pier to get on a bangka. Luckily, the rain eventually stopped, and it turned out to be a nice day. Our first stop was to a small island for snorkeling. My first attempt at snorkeling and it was fantastic! I borrowed fins from the tour company and we were required to wear our life vests. I have several GoPro cameras, and my mask has a holder for one. Camera rolling and geared up, I jumped into the ocean. We were told to swim around the island, returning to the bangka. A little concerned if I could do it, I started kicking. I love swim fins! Those and the life vest made swimming a breeze. I didn't need to use my arms, as kicking with the fins was plenty.
The coral reef around the island was beautiful and the water was crystal clear. Tons of colorful fish, various coral, and lots of various types of sea anemone. I just floated with my head in the water with no difficulty breathing, amazed I was doing this with wonderful views of the ocean life. About 45-minutes later, I was back at our starting point. I'm hooked. I'm buying a snorkeling vest and swim fins next week when we stop in Manila. I'll be snorkeling in beautiful places around the world!
Our next stop was at Kanyangan Lake, one of the most famous natural attractions in the Philippines. It's surrounded by dramatic limestone cliffs and lush greenery. The clear water reveals jagged underwater limestone formations. Wearing a life vest is required, but snorkeling is optional. I decided to bring my snorkeling mask. The problem was, you had to climb several hundred steps to a viewpoint, then climb down the other side to get to the lake. Then we had to hike back up and out. My legs still ache! I swam around the warm waters of the lake. This lake is uniquely 70% fresh water and 30% sea water. Few marine animals live there, but the jagged limestone rocks underwater created interesting shapes. I had gotten separated from our guide, and I missed visiting a cave there. But other residents on the ship have a YouTube video of the cave (below).
By now, we were all hungry. The boat crew had been cooking us lunch all morning. We headed to a white sand beach and enjoyed the huge buffet meal they had prepared. It was delicious. Next stop was to the Twin Lagoon, a natural attraction made of two lagoons sitting right next to each other. This popular stop is known for its bright blue‑green water and dramatic cliffs. No snorkeling here, as the water is deep. We just dove in and swam and floated around the lagoons. Again, life vests were required, which made it easy to just float in the sun and admire the limestone cliffs. Finally, the day came to an end as we returned to the pier and a short van ride back home (the ship).
After spending 4-days in Coron, the Odyssey was scheduled to cruise to Boracay Island. This is one of the most popular beach destinations in the world. Famous for powdery white sand beaches, crystal‑clear turquoise water and stunning sunsets and tropical scenery. There's no dock there for our ship, so we would anchor offshore and use the ship's tender boats to shuttle us to shore and back. Unfortunately, weather wasn't in our favor. Gale force winds were predicted creating high waves. Always concerned about safety, the tender boats wouldn't be safe to use. Villa Vie and the ship's captain looked at several other options where we could go. Again unfortunately, there was no ports available on this short notice. The captain decided we would go out to sea for a day to create fresh water and discharge our wastewater (yes, it's treated and legal). Then we would return to Coron for 3 more days where they had room for us to dock at the port again.
We returned to Coron this afternoon. I have an all-day trip planned for tomorrow, which doesn't involve snorkeling. However, I'm thinking about finding a snorkeling trip to go on for our last day here. I failed to mention a failure on my part about my first experience snorkeling, as explained above. I was excited to view the video coverage of my snorkeling trip. However... I didn't get any. Without going into details, the battery on the GoPro wasn't tightly secured. Although it turned on when I started to get in the water, it came loose when I jumped in. No video coverage of my beautiful underwater snorkeling experience. I fixed the battery issue. I just need to get in the water again for new videos. I hope to have some for my next travel log entry.
Instead of a snorkeling trip, I went with a group of residents to the Calauit Wildlife Sanctuary. It was nice, but a bit touristy. They only had Giraffes, Zebras, and small deer. Giraffes and Zebras in the Philippines? Oh well, it was fun feeding the Giraffes. Lunch was good. The rest of the day trip was supposed to be a boat ride to Black Island and a water cave. However, high winds prevented boats from going out to sea. Oh well, some trips don't meet expectations. But at least I got out to see the country for the day.
Today, I took a "trike" into town for lunch and a little snack shopping. Connie wanted me to try some "Jollibee" fried chicken. I ended up getting a lunch with 1-piece of fried chicken, spaghetti, French fries, rice, and a large soda for $4.15. It was pretty good. I then walked to the grocery store and purchased a couple large bottles of Philippine rum and a couple packs of cookies for $10.12. The round trip on a trike was $3.40. I could get used to these prices.
We'll spend another day here in Coron, then take a day cruising to Manilla, Philippines. I'm trying to organize a World War II Corregidor Island tour and Bataan Death March tour while in Manila. Until my next travel log, Happy and Safe Travels!
