Kapalai Island

The day after Christmas, we woke up early and flew northeast to the Island of Borneo, the 3rd largest island in the world. From there, we drove about an hour, along the edge of the Malaysian border, to a little town known as Sempora, located in Sabah. Any farther south, and you would be in Indonesia. Along the drive were fields of palm trees, strategically planted to produce an exorbitant amount of palm oil.

Once we reached the end of the island, our driver transferred our luggage to a small boat. We then proceeded to take a 45 minute boat ride to Kapalai Island. When they say "island," they're being very generous. Our hotel/resort was a boardwalk, if you will, built on struts upon a submerged sandbar in the middle of the ocean. Malaysia had banned resorts from building on its tiny islands in 2004 due to tourist destruction, and so the alternative was to build them on submerged sandbars. Think paradise. And you start to get a picture of the two and a half days we spent here.

Each little cottage was appropriately built for two, each with it's own bathroom, bedroom/living area, and private balcony. All wooden windows and shutters could be open while still ensuring privacy. The balcony opened up on the beautiful teal colored water. In the water were starfish, schools of small and large fish, sting rays, coral, etc. "Feeding time" was often heard when the larger schools of fish came in and surrounded the smaller schools. The splashing would attract the birds on the sandbar and the show would go on for several minutes. A constant sea breeze and salty smell occupied the small living quarters and provided a sense of total relaxation and peace.

Once we were settled in our little resort, where shoes/flipflops are not allowed in public areas, we spent a day underwater. Justin, his mom, dad, and I loaded onto a boat with several others and were taken out to Sipadan Island, about a 15 minute boat ride. From there, Justin and his dad went scuba diving, and his mom and I snorkeled for hours. Never have I seen such colors. Electric blue starfish, hot pink coral, flaming orange fish, and a medley of other shades filled the underwater world. I'm in love with snorkeling now and want to get my scuba diving certification.

And for all you curious romantics, Justin proposed to me at this wonderful location. One night, after a bottle of red wine on our little balcony that overlooked the endless sea, he proceeded to walk inside and come back out with a little red velvet box. He then sat on my lap, and asked me to marry him.