I supposed it's been a while since I've felt completely overcome with wonder. There's travelling on your own, and travelling for work, which I've been doing a lot of. So in this latter, in the midst of all these obligations: getting caught up in 'deliverables' and 'shareable' photography... I've sort of missed the magic of feeling completely amazed. And that was the feeling that sunk into me amidst all of the sunsets that we experienced in Sabah, particularly the one that settled behind the horizon at Tanjung Simpang Mengayau - a feeling of sheer, simple joy at marvelling a beautiful phenomenon of the world.
Tanjung Simpang Mengayau, also known as the Tip of Borneo, is the northern most point of the beautiful island. It's where the South China Sea and the Sulu Sea meet, and the waves crashing around the slippery rocks are a testament to the site's power and beauty. Geography aside, there was this distinct quality about the place, like if J. K. Rowling had somehow made it to this part of Asia, I'm sure Voldemort would've buried a horcrux here. Maybe it was just the amalgamation of sensory immersions - the salt in the air, the pastel hued skies, the sounds of the ocean rushing into each other, and the rock scape that was just.. surreal.
I read a book a long time ago of two kids who spent a summer exploring twhirlpools by the beach, and it detailed so many of the colourful creatures and ecosystems that lay centimetres underneath salty surfaces. Maybe this was my first time seeing whirlpools in a long, long time and the visuals just drew me in entirely. The depths of the crevices and the amount of critters swimming around were just as hypnotising as the patterns and formations of the land. Parts of rockscape felt otherworldly, as if they've been transplanted straight from the moon, so much that it's almost mind boggling to accept that something so beautiful is so close to home.
The Tip is about a 4 hour drive from Kota Kinabalu. And if you ever need that extra awe on your trip, I'd say go for this one.
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