Sarang by the Brook at Kuala Kubu Bahru

How appealing would it be to have a cozy stay in a colorful tinted container amidst the jungle not too far away from the city?  With the birds chirping away and a cute little salt water pool?
That’s exactly what we experienced a couple of months back.

We booked a night stay at the Sarang by the Brook at Kuala Kubu Bahru and it was one of the most perfect stays ever.

 

We were not headed there from KL but Gerik, so we only managed to check in at 3.30pm. The check-in was rather smooth. The staffs were really helpful and quick. The parking slots within the gated compound are limited, but there are more parking slots just right outside the gated compound and it is safe.

We were there on a weekend, so it was already crowded with a group of college kids and a couple of other families by the time we checked in. A smooth and simple check in later, we were given the back most room, where its balcony was facing the jungle. We weren’t really in favor with it in the beginning. Obviously, who prefers to have nothing but jungle as their staycation view, but later we realized that gave us the most privacy. So thankful for that!

The room was not fancy or anything of such. But it was so cozy and comfortable. The rooms come with an attached bathroom as well. Clean room with comfy bed and fluffy pillows! And lucky for us, our balcony was facing the forest and its the closest to the forest too!  We could hear the sound of the waterfall the whole night. It was just perfect.

We had our dinner and dessert at the tiny balcony with the sound of the waterfall.  Ahhh...Bliss! Exactly what we need. Away from the hustles and bustles of the city!

The initial plan was to go for a night trek but it was raining that night. So we dropped the plan. We didn't go to the pool either because it was crowded with a bunch of college kids. Which were totally fine about. We were more than happy to have spent our night gazing away from our tiny balcony.

The next day, we were up all early to a beautiful misty morning. I still remember the beautiful sight I woke up to that morning.

 

We decided to go on a search towards the sound of the waterfall we heard the whole night long. We trekked for about 5 minutes, hoping that we could find the waterfall only to learn from one of the staffs, the waterfall requires quite a bit of trekking. He told us that the in house caretakers can provide us with the guides for the trek. Sounded great but we were running late and were super hungry, so… ABORT MISSION. Maybe the next time around, we shall continue the search.


              

So anyway the stay was inclusive of breakfast. They provided us with a packet nasi lemak each.  It was neatly kept in a clear container with the guest name. Such a cute presentation!  We were served with some bread and coffee and tea as well.

 

The guests can use their kitchen if they wish to cook their own meals. It is quite well equipped. But got to be sure to wash and clean up after using the utensils.

What's next after breakfast? The salt water pool!! We jumped straight into the pool. Was the pool salty? Yes, it was!! LOL! And the pool is open all day and night! There was this huge unicorn float to just chill on. We spent the whole morning swimming away and we had the whole pool to ourselves. It was a perfect morning swim.

The check out time is at 12 pm. We left the place in the afternoon with huge smiles on our faces! A perfect quick getaway to rejuvenate the mind and soul!

Additional info
You can rent a bbq pit and apparatus to have barbeque dinner.  Unfortunately, we didn’t have any time to get the raw items to marinate in time for the barbeque, so we opted for Chinese dinner in the nearby KKB town. There are some good restaurants in the nearby town and for dessert, there is Secret Recipe in the town as well. So there are no worries about the food.

This is not a sponsored post. A genuine review from me.

COLUMNAR BASALT BALUNG COCOS, TAWAU

Do you know we have our very own columnar basalt ?? Malaysia homes a columnar basalt!! YESSS we do!!

That’s exactly how excited I got when I read about in Google! And what got me even more excited was the fact that it is in Sabah, Borneo Island right between Tawau and Semporna! YEAYYY! 

Okay, all excitements aside.

So if don’t know what's columnar basalt already, its formation of rocks due to contraction during the cooling of lava on land from the eruption of a volcano.If you noticed in the pictures, the stone formations are in hexagonal and heptagonal in shape. Apparently, that’s how its formations are by nature. How cool!!

 That also means, we actually had active volcanoes thousands of years ago! Our one and only columnar basalt is a result of the eruption of Mount Maria about 27000 years ago.  The volcano is not active anymore for sure. And the mountain is not accessible for the public.

A couple of weeks ago, I made a quick trip to visit the place from my little coastal town, Semporna.

I google mapped my way there, but let me highlight here, if you are going to google map the place, be sure to search for

COLUMNAR BASALT BALUNG COCOS (SUNGAI GIRAM)

 

DO NOT, let me repeat, DO NOT map to BALUNG COCOS BATU BERSUSUN.  Because if you google map to Batu Bersusun, it's going to take you to the longer route with the badly maintained road. Never ending road. So save the hassle, map yourself to COLUMNAR BASALT BALUNG COCOS (SUNGAI GIRAM).

The junction to Kampung Balung Cocos situated at the Tawau Semporna main road. At the entrance of the junction, you will be greeted with a white welcome board, stated " SELAMAT DATANG KE KAMPUNG BALUNG COCOS". 

Just drive further in the small beautiful village, and you will come across a tiny wooden board on your left that’s written “columnar basalt”. Turn into that narrow road that looks almost non-existence in between a purple house and a pink house.

Continue driving up the road, you will come across an empty land with palm trees.  Just drive down the road, and you will come to an end road with a huge open space with a wooden house on your left. And that’s the parking site before heading to the columnar basalt.

There’s a very reasonable entrance fee, RM2 per pax, and there you go! Just walk straight down for about 10 minutes and you shall be rewarded with a BEAUTIFUL view!

Do note that this is in a private space owned by a teacher and he maintains it apparently. So be respectful when you are there.

It’s a beautiful place to unwind and relax with a couple of friends. Families with children can even have a picnic there, but please keep this place clean. It is still untouched and not heavily commercialized. Let's just keep its virginity! In fact, when I asked my fellow colleagues about this place, none of them were even aware of the existence of such a place. A beautiful secret spot that is slowly gaining its popularity.

 

 

 

There's a river flowing from the mountain nearby. The current heavily depends on the rainfall. When I was there, it was rather hot, so it was of medium flow. On the days with heavy current, the local kids do river tubing. HOW FUN??

Another fun fact, this place, Balung COCOS is named after the COCOS ISLAND of Australia! There's a whole of a story behind it. You may want to google about it. Its interesting to learn about!

If you are planning a trip there, here's a tip or two you can learn from my mistakes.

1) Wear adequate sunblock or get an umbrella or hat or cap, just anything at all to protect your skin from the brutal heat. The path down to the river is open and there's no shade. And Tawau is a coastal town and its extremely hot! Save your skin from patchy sunburns and heat rashes. 

2) There are no stalls selling any sort of drinks or snacks nearby. It’s a residential area. So bring your water, you will be thirsty!

3) No toilet!!!!! And most places are too open to do your business in nature like cavemen. Just so you know. But there’s a tiny wooden hut for clothes change if you wish to change.

Lastly, enjoy your trip! Enlighten yourself with nature and its astonishing formations!!