Hi everyone
Recently I posted about going to a jungle retreat in Malaysia as I was feeling quite apprehensive. A few people said I should do an update when I get back, and we flew back last night so here it is :-)
KL was lovely and we enjoyed the sights, especially the Batu Caves and the Jalan Alor food market after dark, and in our accommodation we loved the 51st floor infinity pool, which was quite something.
But the jungle retreat, which we did after KL, was out of this world. I promise I'm not connected to them in any way and don't work on commission haha. I won't reveal the name unless someone specifically asks me. The place was so beautiful - Garden of Eden springs to mind - being situated inside the jungle was so special, incredible vegetation and such proximity to animals: about fifty monkeys who came by every day, the great Hornbills (a type of large colourful bird), a beautiful green viper which lived in a tree by the pool house, other birds, bats, squirrels, geckoes. Insects wise - which was my biggest worry - there were just lots of visible ants, we got bitten (very) few times by mossies when we became complacent about mosquito repellent otherwise they are no bother. In the evenings we chilled in the Pool House (open air) without any visible insects, despite the light.
Our accommodation was really spacious, lovely, rustic, very comfortable, not luxury in a standard sense but just so aesthetically pleasing and lovely, and we felt at home. And so, so safe. Too many memorable moments to go into but for me personally it was really special to swim in the infinity pool after dinner and watch the darkness descend on the jungle.
We were the only four people in a retreat that can host 16, so we were really spoiled, being looked after by a team of five staff. I've never experienced such attentive and warm service, even in 5* hotels. Our retreat host was a wonderful man I'd be honoured to call a friend.
The food was out of this world, I ate three times a day (I'm normally always on a diet) and didn't put on a gram, which is unheard of for me, normally I come back half a stone heavier. There was just so much fresh fish and seafood every day, a real feast for every meal but all so fresh and healthy.
There isn't a single bad thing I can say about it. DP and my DC (teenagers) also loved every moment of it. Even when we saw a giant spider on the outside of the netting covering our windows (trying to get into the master bedroom, haha), I didn't freak out (and my DP kindly scared it off). I'm not a big nature person but felt so blessed and grateful to be a part of this wonderous natural environment. It's made me look at wildlife in a new way. Us humans normally just bulldoze through nature, this place found a way to create something inside nature that's completely integrated and respectful of the nature's other inhabitants.
The only bad thing is that on the penultimate day I developed an ear infection, it's something I'm prone to, so on the last day I went to a clinic on the island and was prescribed various medications. The doctor appointment and all meds were 95 Ringgits, or less than £20!!!
Just to fulfil the usual format of this thread, here are the options (don't worry if you don't want to bother - this is really just an update for some other posters who had stayed in jungle retreats and wanted to hear how this one was):
Reasonable: it's clear why this was a (very surprising!) holiday of a lifetime
Unreasonable: jungle and bugs are scary and I'm crazy for having (unexpectedly) loved this place so much