Other Interesting Places to Visit

Kampung Minyak - Homestay Programme (Misompuru) A homestay programme (known as Misompuru) centered around Kampung Minyak 26km south of Kudat was begun in 2002. Around 35 families living in modern housing (with approved standards for bathing and toilet facilities) offer rooms to visitors interested in experiencing Rungus lifestyle. Many of the homes and surrounding gardens are attractive and the welcome absolutely genuine. Visitors enjoy local food with their host family and can even help gather the ingredients and preparing them if they wish. A wide range of activities and visits in the region are offered, depending upon the visitor�s interests. A trip over boardwalks above a mangrove swamp leads to the small pools where oil seeps up from underground. Known to the Rungus for generations and revered as a sacred site, these oil wells attracted the colonial British have never been exploited as they do not contain a commercially viable quantity of oil. It is nonetheless strange to see these oily pools backed by the dense mangroves.

Rungus Longhouse - Kg. Bavanggazo The Rungus longhosue at Kg. Bavanggazo was built in April 1992 as a pioneer project to preserve the Rungus Rungus culture. The longhouse comprise of several small apartments each containing a raised sleeping area and a living space with a hearth used also for dining. A longhouse usually begins as a single apartment built by the father. When his children grow up and start their own families, they add laterally similar apartments to their father�s unit, thus creating a longhouse. Relatives may with permission join in adding more apartments. Hence a Rungus longhouse us a very close-knit family complex. The Rungus people call their traditional longhouse �Binatang�. The longhouse may appear to be s simple structure but the materials used such as palm leaves for roofing, bamboo for flooring, fragile barks for walling, small timbers for support and rattan for elaborate knots and to tie everything firmly in place a serviceable and have been used by the Rungus people for centuries to construct their homes. The �Binatang� depending on the size and availability of building materials may take a few months to build. The Rungus position their longhouse on a west-east axis facing Mount Kinabalu to keep it cool and airy for comfort and good health.

Bee Keeping - Kg. Gombizau Honey is valued by the Rungus for the high nutritional and other benefits. In the old days, a dry coconut branch would be burnt to attract bees into a container and transferred them to hives. Nowadays, a golodok or wooden box measuring about 12-inches on all sides is filled with burning colas to emit smoke to attract the honeybees in the box and left for about a month in the jungle. The bees are then collected from the box and transferred to hives. At Kg. Gombizau, visitors can see bee keeping activities and watch the processes of harvesting beeswax, honey and royal jelly.

Gong Making - Kg. Sumangkap Gongs are the most prevalent of Sabah�s idiophones and are found throughout Sabah. They are widely used in areas inhabited by the Kadazandusun and Murut people. Gongs are made of brass or bronze and in early days were brought in from Brunei through trade. Usually thick with a broad rim, the gongs produce muffled sounds of deep tone. Each gong has a name which donated its sound or the rhythm it plays. These musical names vary according to sub-dialect and village. At Kampung Sumangkap, visitors can watch skilled craftsman at work making gongs in various stages.

Kudat Golf Course This is a recently open 9-holes to complete the Club�s 18-holes. It�s a five minutes drive fro the town area and the course provides two different kinds of environment to challenge players. The 9-holes is a more open course and the 18-holes has a denser tree line requiring more accuracy than length from golfers. For interested party, you may call Mr William Chin (Club Captain) at 019 831 6862 for more detail.

Sidek Esplanade An open area which boasts Kudat�s seafront that�s wide enough to host a carnival. This is an ideal leisure spot for evening runs or just simply for a relaxing walks. It is named in honour of Datuk Sidek Danta and officially launched by YB Tan Sri Datuk Chong Kah Kiat, Minister of Tourism, Culture And Environment on 27th April 2002

Tamu No trip to Sabah is complete without a visit to one of its tamu or open market. Kudat�s Sunday tamu is famous for its groundnuts. Visitors will be able to view the local produce and meats and of course all the seafood. Shopping at the tamu is a good value for your money!

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