More from our anniversary celebration at Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia. Our last day in Kota Kinabalu was spent hopping the islands of Tunku Abdul Rahman Park (TARP).

TARP is made up of 5 islands, namely Mamutik, Sulug, Manukan, Gaya & Sapi. These names relate to each of the island’s history. The largest island, Gaya meant “big.” Manukan meant “fish,” while Mamutik related to “shell collection.” Pulau Sapi meant “Cow Island” or related to the sound of a mowing buffalo. Pulau Sulug is commemorative of the ancestry of the Sulu peoples of Sabah. TARP was gazetted as Sabah’s second national park.

We opted to go to Pulau Sapi and Pulau Mamutik. But some of our french boat mates were headed to Pulau Gaya, so we had to drop them off first. Here’s the dock at Pulau Gaya. 

More from our anniversary celebration at Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia.

Signal Hill (Bukit Bendara) is one of the highest points in KK city proper, so they built an observation deck which is one of the best spots to get a good view of Kota Kinabalu city. You can take a taxi to the observation deck, or you can try the jungle trek where you scale the side of Signal Hill.

More from our Chinese New Year trip to Pangasinan. 

Coastal patterns at the town of Anda.

More from our Chinese New Year trip to Pangasinan.

This queer natural rock formation in the town of Agno is called "Umbrella Rocks". Sabangan Beach is also an great spot for snorkeling.

Kipungit Waterfalls at Poring Hot Springs, Ranau, Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia.

Taken while on a mini bus to Poring Hot Springs at Ranau, Kota Kinabalu. It was so hard getting a clear shot of the tallest mountain in Asia, as there were electrical wires by the roadside.

Secret beach at Anda, Pangasinan, Philippines.

Sunset at Patar, Bolinao, Pangasinan, Philippines.

Golden hour at Anda, Pangasinan, Philippines.

I kept telling myself that I would wake up early to catch the sunrise at the beach. But my alarm failed to wake me up. When I finally woke up, I had to run towards the horizon to chase the sunrise.