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25th June, 2010
MELBOURNE: There are few places worth traveling across the world for, and Mabul Sipadan Resort, on the east coast of Sabah is one of them, says Australian jounallist Annie Hall, who recently holidayed in Sabah with her family.
She said tourists from Europe, America, Japan, China and Australia visited Mabul to enjoy the peaceful tropical paradise there.
“They have another reason to come to Mabul. It’s a short boat ride from Sipadan Island, renowned throughout the world as a diving site and described by the late Jacques Cousteau as an untouched work of art,” said Hall.
Hall is the deputy chief sub-editor of the Leader Group of Newspapers, which has a readership of 1.8 million people here.
“We weren’t diving at Sipadan, but snorkeling for the day at three sites,” she said.
“The brilliant blue waters of the Celebes Sea give no clue to the remarkable treasures that lie beneath. But pull on the flippers, put on a goggle, then fall out of the speedboat, and you’re in for a shock”.
SIPADAN
Hall said the reefs around Sipadan were a landscape of extraordinary form and colour, the result of coral growing on an extinct volcano.
“Swimming in it is the most incredible profusion of marine life. Hawksbill turtles had an effortless grace underwater, they swam close by and were so numerous, some small as a hand, others the size of a table.
“Darting among them was the most amazing array of tropical fish that could be imagined; suffice to say that more than 3,000 species have been classified around Sipadan.”
“Mixed in with this was a big, dense school of barracuda while mooching along the bottom were mantra rays and a few sharks. “
“Time went as fast as the fishes before our eyes,” Hall said. “Before we knew it we were being asked to swim back to the boat.”
The snorkelers and divers headed to Sipadan for their breaks. The island made international news in 2000 when 21 people were kidnapped by a group of Filipino outlaws.
They were eventually safely released. Since then Malaysia has stationed army troops on the island while the navy patrol the waters.
MABUL
There are also police on the island of Mabul and the resort employs its own security guards. They form a significant but unobtrusive security presence.
According to Ben Loyola who is the manager of Mabul Resort, security problems have ‘never happened again’.
“Our delicious morning tea and lunch were prepared by Mabul Sipadan Resort,” Hall said.
Morning tea was a choice of tea or coffee with biscuits while lunch was a spread of dishes including noodles, main dishes, pasta, fruit and sweets.
Late in the afternoon the speedboats return to the resort and another day in paradise ends in luxury. The resort offers two types of accommodation either bungalows sheltering in the beautiful gardens with water views or on the opposite side of the island is the water village which is built over the sea”.
ACTIVITIES
“There are a number of places at the resort that are ideal for relaxing. We enjoyed a refreshing drink at the jetty, a fine place to watch the sunset,” Hall said.
“Other activities include a range of massages and beauty treatments, or if you’re feeling more active then you can grab one of the kayaks on the beach. The resort is very relaxed, with meals offering a great variety of Malaysian and western food.”
“It’s definitely worth flying a great distance to visit,” Hall said.
Details of the resort are available on www.sipadan-mabul.com.my. Annie Hall stayed at Mabul Resort courtesy of East Asia Tours.
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