#29 - Thursday, 23 February 2017 | Langkawi, Malaysia

What a day yesterday! I am exhausted and sunburned from an amazing adventure on the Andaman Sea aboard the Damai Indah. Captain Eva and her crew outdid themselves and the food, drink and hospitality were incredible. 

But before I talk about our boat trip I'll fill you in on what occurred on Tuesday. Two years ago when I first visited Langkawi a small group of us hired Wendy Chin for a guided birdwatching trip. Her business is the aptly named "Langkawi Nature Guide". She has begun to generalize a bit more and explores the island for wildlife other than birds now. Part of that I'd like to think is due to meeting Mark and I and learning more about spiders and reptiles. She arranged our trip into the mangroves of Tanjung Rhu for the Mangrove Pitviper (Trimeresurus [Cryptelytrops] purpeomaculatus) earlier in the week, and we hired her to take us to Teluk Datai on Tuesday. This is the area she had taken Mark in February and June of 2016 and where they found what we feel is a new species of arboreal tarantula. Mark wanted to return to the area and bring myself, Ray & Angela Hale and Jean-Michel Verdez along. It was quite the group of international tarantula experts, but we couldn't locate the adult female that Mark had discovered with an eggsac the previous year. We did, however, find what was likely one of her offspring and evidence of others in the area. I located one silken entrance to a liana hole and was able to spy the forelegs of a juvenile Phormingochilus sp. Mark has bought an endoscope that connects to his iPhone via wifi and he saw it as well. However, in the few hours we had to comb the jungle above Datai Bay we could not find other theraphosid spiders. We did observe quite a few "flying lizards" of the genus Draco and I photographed one very special species of true spider – the Curved Spiny Orbweaver, Gasteracantha arcuata.

Gasteracantha arcuata © Michael Jacobi

But back to the Andaman Sea ...

Our group of 18 – comprised of 13 mad hatters from Bristol, England, 2 originally from Birmingham, England and now of Polegate in the south of the U.K., 2 from northern France and this lone American – boarded a private coach to take us on the forty-five minute drive from Berjaya Langkawi Resort clockwise around Langkawi to the Langkawi Yacht Club in Kuah, the commercial center of the islands. I guess this is the time for me to tell you a little more about Langkawi ...

Langkawi is an archipelago off the northwestern coast of peninsular Malaysia. Some sources say it is a cluster of 99 islands, while many others state 104. It is officially known as Langkawi Permata Kedah or Langkawi, the Jewel of Kedah, Kedah being the state of northwestern Malaysia. The largest of the islands is Langkawi Island and that is where I am typing this from. In the map below you can see the dark line representing the border between Thailand to the north and peninsular Malaysia to the south. You will see that the Langkawi Archipelago lies to the west about 30 km almost even with the border.

Jeremy from Australia actually steered our vessel as we left the jetty of the yacht club while Captain Eva commanded her crew of three and her German Shepherd "Rebekka". The Damai Indah has a full bar and two coolers filled with beer and soft drinks as well. We weren't even underway before I had a cold tin of Tiger in hand and was slurping down some fantastic seafood cocktail. In was less than an hour before we were anchored at our first stopping point, and I was the first person to jump from the second deck into the ocean. Before long Mark and two other mates were bobbing in the Andaman Sea with me and we were chucked cold cans of beer. It's not a bad life treading water in the warm and salty turquoise water with a refreshing Tiger lager. Appetizers were continuously served when we re-boarded the Damai Indah, and included corn on the cob and a wonderfully marinated tempeh on skewers, and we sailed on to another anchoring location where we returned to our ocean swimming while a secondary boat took some of our group to a beautiful and secluded private beach. Dinner followed and there was plenty for vegetarian, pescatarian and carnivore alike with steamed mixed vegetables, broiled corn on the cob, rice pilaf, red snapper, prawns, meatballs, chicken satay, baked chicken and more. The drinks were flowing and I dozed under the shade of the upper deck while others sat atop under the sunscreen socializing and enjoying more than a few cocktails. As the sun began to set, we headed back to the main island's harbor where we arrived after dark.

Today I've spent a good deal of time resting my sunburned carcass in my air conditioned chalet, alternating correspondence with napping. I finish this blog entry after meeting Mark and family at the pool bar and having a late afternoon snack. Tonight we have a reservation at the Mizumi Japanese Restaurant in the Oriental Village.

All the best, M

#28 - Tuesday, 21 February 2017 | Langkawi, Malaysia

It has been almost a week since I've blogged. Langkawi and the Berjaya Resort are paradise and I haven't wanted to focus on my laptop and write. This is a magical holiday and I have been consumed by some wonderful activities as well as relaxation in the pool with a cold Tiger lager. I am not much on swimming pools or daytime drinking, but this is a special vacation and the pool bar is a great place to unwind. It is very hot and humid here and everything is incredibly tiring. Being submersed up to your chest in the pool with a cold beer isn't a bad way to spend the afternoon. 

My chalet is my sanctuary where I have the air conditioner set to 16ºC and take several cold showers a day. My Instagram has depicted some of the wonderful wildlife I have encountered here on the resort grounds and also on a boat trip into the mangrove of Tanjung Rhu. Later today we are taking a trip with our local nature guide friend Wendy to return to the spot where she and Mark found a new species of arboreal tarantula last year. Tonight we have dinner reservations at the Pahn Thai restaurant that sits on the Berjaya seafront.

Last night we celebrated Mark's wife Kim's birthday with an elegant dinner on the beach. The Berjaya Langkawi staff outdid themselves with an amazing setting and delicious food for both vegetarians and meat-eaters alike. My friends Ray and Angela arrived Sunday morning and yesterday we took them to the Oriental Village. We took a VIP glass bottom Sky Cab cable car to the top of the island. It is said to be the steepest cable car ascent in all of southeast Asia if not the world. I am no fan of heights, but it was amazing to view the Seven Wells Waterfall and the jungle mountains of Gunung Raya from the aerial tram. Through the glass bottom we looked at the vast jungle below. Again, see Instagram for pix. I also have been posting daily snapshots during adventures to my exotic fauna Snapchat.

We disembarked at the top of mountain and I had an engraved heart lock made for Bailee, a lovely lady who is extremely special to me, and now my feelings for her are forever locked high above the montane Langkawi jungle.

(Side note: If you haven't heard the song I wrote for her ("Bailee's Grace") click here to listen to it on my Soundcloud page. I will be re-recording the song soon and intend to release a full CD of new original acoustic guitar music this year.

Tomorrow is our big boat trip. Two years ago when I first visited Langkawi we sailed with a German woman named Eva on her Damai Indah. Damai Indah and Damai Indah Lagi are charming traditional wooden cargo-boats that Eva, the only lady-captain in the area, has converted and renovated to become luxurious charter-boats. Captain Eva provides an amazing experience with full open bar, delicious food and a vessel that is a perfect party yacht for a group of 18 (15 mad Brits, one French couple, and this lone American). We all loved it and are excited about tomorrow's adventure on the Andaman Sea. As wonderful as drinking a Tiger in the pool bar here at Berjaya is, it pales in comparison to diving off the Damai Indah into the Andaman Sea somewhere between Malaysia and Thailand and having someone toss you a cold can of Tiger.

I type this from the cool comfort of my rainforest chalet, but soon will be off in search of spiders and, perhaps, reptiles. We have much planned between now and Saturday when I head back to Kuala Lumpur and then on to Dubai and then 15 hours of misery flying over the Atlantic back to Chicago. I'll try to write more when I can.

All the best, M

#27 - Wednesday, 15 February 2017 | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

This morning our group is traveling. After a flight from Kuching, Sarawak, Borneo back to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, we are headed to Langkawi Island and the beautiful Berjaya Langkawi Resort. Next week two more friends from England will join us to bring our group to 16. Langkawi sits off the northwestern coast of Peninsular Malaysia on the Andaman Sea very close to Thailand. Two years ago I surprised my mate Mark on his birthday whilst he ate breakfast that morning in the Beach Café. The resort grounds are teeming with wildlife and we will have plenty of hikes to other nearby locations in pursuit of spiders, snakes, birds and mammals. Kuching was amazing with very warm and humid weather and torrential rains. Langkawi promises to be significantly hotter and drier. This afternoon I will get situated in a rainforest cabin at the resort and settle back into the routine of almost exactly two years ago. All the best, MJ

#26 - Tuesday, 14 February 2017 | Kuching, Sarawak, Borneo

It is a rainy and heavily overcast morning here in Kuching. Last night torrential downpours forced our group to return from dinner in taxis. Of course, that is to be expected during the rainy season in the rainforest.

Yesterday nine of our fourteen person group went to Taman Negara Bako (Bako National Park), home to about 150 endangered proboscis monkeys, bearded pigs and beautiful pitvipers. The 10 1/2 square mile park sits on the Borneo coast in Sarawak where the Kuching and Bako rivers empty into the South China Sea. The park can only be reached by boat. Starting from the jetty of Bako Terminal, we took two boats to beach on the Muara Tebas peninsula in knee deep silty water and walk across the grey-brown beach into the jungle. Two boats were necessary because of the high tide and big waves. Our group boarded one larger boat for a ten minute ride and then we met smaller boats at the halfway point and changed ship, as it were, in the rocking waters off the mangrove coast. Fortunately me and my camera gear were not swallowed up by the flowing estuarine abyss.

Our guide for the day was one of the two guides who had brought us to Semenggoh the previous day to look for orangutans. That day was a success and our morning in the sanctuary was followed by an early afternoon at the Annah Rais Longhouse. We toured the traditional Sarawak community of two tribal longhouses where rice and tapioca and ginger were laid out on mats to dry in the sun baking the bamboo floors. Annah Rais is also a homestay for the adventurous who want to spend the night in a tribal setting. However, I have only passing interest in “culture” and we will now return to Bako.

As we waited to begin our walk I milled about the grounds and saw my first bearded pig grazing in the field. These large porcine have amazing bristles covering the bottom of their heads. The male I photographed seemed completely unbothered by my presence as he rooted about the undergrowth. The trail we took through the rainforest was anything but a walk in the park. However, even those of our group who thought they might not be able to continue as path passed out of the mangrove flats and the tree root formed trail climbed and descended with precarious footholds made it one hour to where the jungle opened into another beach along the South China Sea. We caught glimpses of the rare proboscis monkeys high in the trees seeking the leaves that make up their diet. Once we arrived on the beach we were greeted by amazing rock formations and the moody skies above the churning waters. Long-tailed macaques were perched on the rocks of the beach and I photographed a mother with an infant with the skies as a backdrop. As ours and other groups took a break on the sands, I decided I’d rather make the return hike alone and set off back into the jungle. Again I saw proboscis monkeys from a distance, but they had too much cover and were too far away to photograph. Once I arrived back at the mangrove flats near the trailhead, where nice platforms form paths above the mudskippers and crabs, I sat on a bench and waited for everyone else to join me.

We had lunch in the cafeteria and our guide came and got me to “show me something”. I had told him that I sought pit vipers and spiders and was sure he had spied one of the beautiful green Wagler’s tree vipers that I had hoped to see or at the very least an orb weaver spider. Just behind the restaurant perched a couple feet above the ground was a gorgeous snake and I set about getting photographs. After lunch we walked about the area and were treated to a group of five or six proboscis high in the trees. Even with my longest lens they were out of reach, and my photographs are likely to be useless, but I was very much living in the moment as I watched these amazing “big nosed” monkeys chewing on leaves and leaping to neighboring trees. I thought about the people you see at concerts who spend the whole time filming it for social media instead of really immersing themselves in the experience. I love sharing my adventures, but photography seemed so unnecessary when I could just watch an endangered species I never expected to see in nature. As I stood straining my eyes towards the canopy I almost didn’t notice the large shape passing right in front of me. I looked down and saw 250 pounds or so of bearded pig strolling by as if with no care in the world.

Last night I had planned to get a traditional hand-tapped Iban tribal tattoo from Mark’s friend Ernesto who operates his Borneo Headhunters Tattoo Studio here in Kuching. I had really wanted to do it just for another life experience, but once I found out how much it would cost it made me reconsider the entire notion. The truth is that I am not a fan of tribal tattoos, even if this would be a true Iban tribal design and not the faux tribal that Caucasians walk around wearing. On top of that I had no idea where I would put it with my arms and lower legs already covered. I had thought to put it on the front of a thigh, but my quad muscles were strained and burning from the day’s trail ascents. I decided to cancel and I am so glad that the very sore thighs I have today aren’t even more sore from having a little Bornean dude hammering a needle into my flesh for four hours.

After taxis spared us from a drenching post-dinner, our group sat on the LimeTree hotel rooftop and had our nightcaps. A couple of bottles of tuak (traditional rice wine) had been purchased at the longhouse and shots were passed around. I had shared a few jugs of Tiger lager during dinner and my nightcap was a lime mojito. So beer, rum and tuak were combined to make me wake before 3 a.m. with a splitting headache. I was so exhausted, but I was agitated by something and, as I laid in bed thinking, I became increasingly restless. The pain medicine took effect and my eyes were heavy, but my mind was racing and sleep became more and more elusive. So here I sit at breakfast alone typing this. I intend to hang the “do not disturb” sign on my door and have officially cancelled this day. I had already told Mark that I planned to keep to myself mostly today. I am used to being alone and being part of a group of 14 that likes to do everything together is not in today’s plans. I have work to do on my laptop, and now I am in need of a few more hours rest.

All the best, M

#24 - Saturday, 11 February 2017 | Kuching, Sarawak, Borneo

It's early Saturday morning. It is my mate Mark's birthday and he and his entourage of mad Brits is en route to join me here in beautiful Kuching. I finally got some sleep. Last night I sat on the rooftop of the LimeTree Hotel and had an amazing plate of vegetarian Tom Yum fried rice and downed two extra delicious and perfectly chilled pints of Tiger draft. The LimeLight Rooftop Lounge had a refreshing breeze. I arrived in overcast conditions in Kuching and the weather was much less stifling than it seemed in Kuala Lumpur. Perhaps I've already acclimated, but it was an incredible surprise to experience cool winds blowing above the fifth floor of our hotel. I love it here. 

My flight from Dubai to Kuala Lumpur was made better by being on a brand new 777-300 and having an empty seat between my window berth and the young German lady on the aisle. Her name was Louisa and she was to meet friends in KL to begin a two month adventure in Malaysia, Cambodia and Vietnam. In between our conversations and both of our failed attempts at sleeping, I watched the movie The Girl on the Train. Louisa and I walked through KL airport together and it took us almost an hour to get through customs. It was a grueling trip to arrive and I'm trying to put my eventual return feat of endurance out of mind. 

Last time I was in Kuala Lumpur International Airport it was in the middle of the night and the place was deserted. Yesterday the it was so unbelievably crowded and it seemed like the humidity was about 300%. I had a fairly long layover, but made the mistake of going through security as soon as I could and ended up exhausted near the gates with little options for food and zero options for beer. I decided to try to keep awake and have a triple espresso and a little snack. Eventually I plopped my tired carcass into a comfy business class seat and prepared for 90 more minutes of air travel that would bring me from mainland Malaysia to Kuching, in Sarawak, Borneo. It took all of 8 minutes to get from the plane to taxi. I was the first off and the first to customs and then headed straight to the airport taxi desk and was whisked into a tiny and timeworn taxi on the curb. 

The drive from the small airport to LimeTree Hotel was no more than 20 minutes. The hotel staff was extremely attentive and I was rushed to my cozy third floor hotel room. I was completely exhausted, but also wound up, excited and badly in need of a long shower. I dozed a bit while surfing the Internet, but ended up seeking Tiger lager and some food. 

This hotel is amazing. I type this during breakfast of coffee, fresh lime juice, buttered toast, plantains, omelette, potatoes, shrimp, cakes, jack fruit fritters, and laksa.

As always, see Instagram for more pix ...

It looks like rain is coming and I forgot to grab rainjacket from the Wheelhouse sitting almost 12,000 miles away. But I am off to walk the city a bit before Mark, Kim, Brandon and the rest of my Brit mates arrive in a few hours.

All the best, Michael

#22 - Monday, 6 February 2017 | Bowling Green, Kentucky

Apparently I have become a regular at this Country Inn & Suites in Bowling Green. Last night was my third stay in less than three weeks. Yesterday was a shorter driving day. I left another Country Inn (my favorite chain for value rooms that are modern and clean and not creepy) in north Macon yesterday and was easily relaxing in my hotel here long before Super Bowl LI started.

Saturday I drove about three hours from the state park to Barracuda RV & Boat Storage in Ocala. I parked my traveling home and then continued about four more hours to north Macon. The drive was easy, with overcast skies making it less tiring than driving in the blazing sun. I've driven this road so many times. I've made plenty of trips from Chicagoland to Florida. But even more than that I've driven both north and south when I was based in Nashville. The stretch between Nashville and Louisville, Kentucky is particularly well-traveled as I used to exhibit at a monthly reptile show in Shelbyville, KY. Each month I would drive three hours north on Interstate 65 to just south of Louisville before I'd veer east to continue to Shelbyville. Trips to visit family and friends in the Chicago area were fairly frequent when I was living in east Nashville. Nashville south to Atlanta was also an oft traveled path, and I was thinking yesterday how that road must be disconcerting to some travelers. When driving I-24 out of Nashville to head to Chattanooga and on to Atlanta or elsewhere in the southeast, some motorists must become confused. As you near Chattanooga you suddenly see a sign welcoming you to Georgia. I wonder how many drivers think they have missed a turn. Five miles farther another sign welcomes you to Tennessee. The mountains forced a brief dip into Georgia before I-24 could turn back northeast toward Lookout Mountain and the city of Chattanooga. 

I'll be back in Huntley and Hoffman Estates this afternoon. Tomorrow I have lunch with my sister Lisa and dinner with my bonus dad Joel scheduled. I also need to get ready for Wednesday evening. I'll be at O'Hare at about 5 pm to catch my 7:40 Emirates flight to Dubai. It arrives Thursday evening due to time zones and the fact that it is a bloody long flight of about 15 hours! Then I arrive in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Friday morning and catch a flight to Kuching, Borneo. Then it is a taxi to the LimeTree Inn where I should arrive in the mid-afternoon. I'll have an evening to myself Friday night before my friends/second family join me on Saturday. It will be my mate Mark's birthday and, as far as I know, our plan is still to visit his friends at Borneo Headhunters Tattoo in Kuching to get traditional hand-tapped tribal tattoos.

All the best, M

#7 - Sunday, 8 January 2017 | Huntley, Illinois

This blog is still in its early days and readers are few and far between. However, I am committed to growing it and using it to journal during my travels. I have decided to make a magnetic sign for the back of my travel trailer that will have my Instagram/Twitter (@jacobipix) and the URI to this blog. Once I am posting about my hikes, animal sightings and such, hopefully the blog keywords will also draw new readers in. In the meantime, I ask the few of you who are reading to share via social media and the like.

As I wrote in the last entry, now that spending all of January in southern Florida was a dream unrealized I am making the best of the opportunity I have. Unfortunately, making two trips south before my trip to Asia has become increasingly unlikely as well. I probably will just resign myself to spending time with family and friends and preparing for my adventures while I wait until I have both truck and RV to leave. Although the truck being also delayed has been a great disappointment, I will make the best of it and wait until I have both truck and travel trailer before heading south. Yesterday the Ford dealer found an identical truck (color and features) in another state and has put in a trade request. Tomorrow their Ford rep will tell them when the originally ordered vehicle should arrive and if it wouldn't make it by January 17, the day the RV is supposed to be completed, hopefully the out of state dealer will be willing to trade.

Today is the 8th and that means that it is exactly one month until I depart for Asia. I just was texting with my best mate Mark about our plans. I am excited about visiting Sarawak, Borneo for the first time and especially eager to trek in Bako National Park. There are so many amazing creatures there I wish to point a lens toward. Proboscis monkeys, orangutans, silver langurs, tree vipers, river dolphins, crocodiles, and assorted spiders are among the animals I seek. After Borneo we will be on Langkawi Island, Malaysia where I visited two years ago. There we will also find amazing animals like colugos, lorises, spectacled (dusky) langurs, butterfly agamas, flying lizards, water monitors and tarantulas. Those of you who follow my Instagram (@jacobipix) may have seen my organized camera gear all laid out yesterday.

We will have a group of 14 in Sarawak and my dear friends Ray & Angela Hale will be joining us in Langkawi. We have several birthdays to celebrate and have hired a boat for the Andaman Sea. Our captain is a German woman named Eva who we hired two years ago. Her sailing craft has a full bar and we are served appetizers and mini meals all day long with unlimited drinks. Mark and I love treading water in the ocean while drinking a cold can of Tiger lager. Last time we saw sea otters swimming nearby and it was exhilarating. I am extremely sensitive to motion sickness and was very apprehensive about the boat trip two years ago. However, the sea off Langkawi is calm and with Dramamine I had no worries and we had an amazing day diving off the second level of the boat into the ocean and exploring little islands.

All the best, MJ