The REAL honeymoon begins and we are surrounded by primates

Based on the luxury accommodations we just experienced in KL, we decided the REAL honeymoon would start in Borneo. We had nice digs (see next posting) and lots of wildlife viewing.

We started out with the orangutans. Borneo happens to be one of only two places left in the world to see orangutans in the wild, so we started out at an orangutan sanctuary, which serves as a halfway house for wayward and orphaned orangutans. These adorable creatures are reintroduced into the wild, given food and safety, and in return have to earn their keep by looking cute, scratching each other, and hanging from trees in front of guests. Basically they have to act like a bunch of apes.

Next, we did a jungle walk. We went into the jungle by ourselves at dusk, and as we went deeper, we were overwhelmed by the sound of nature. Frogs. Insects. And before we knew it, huge rustling noises overhead. We realized that there were many orangutans and other monkeys going back and forth in the treetops just over our heads. A few times, coconuts fell right in front of us shaken by the monkeys and apes in the trees above us. By closely watching the tree tops, we caught glimpses of the apes' movements through the trees and we even saw one walking across the ground for a minute. It was really amazing being alone and hearing the trees shake with their movement, knowing they were just overhead, and sometimes hearing them grunting from the underbrush. Granted, listening to monkey grunting is not a romantic Paris honeymoon, but it was still special...