Proboscis Monkeys at Lubuk Bay

One of the highlights a recent trip to Sandakan last year was a visit to the Lubuk Bay Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary. These unique cousins of the Homo sapiens have long noses which droop over the mouth in the males. The females have similiar trademark noses but are much smaller. Pot bellies are also very much in evidence in all adult monkeys.

A male Proboscis Monkey (Nasalis larvatus) settled down to munch on sliced fresh fruit on humungous roots from the mangrove swamps.

The entrance to Lubuk Bay sanctuary which is set inside an oil palm plantation.  There are some grammatical and spelling errors in the English version :I 

The herd chilling off on dried mangrove roots.

A nice picture of cosy domesticity.

Meal time was presided by the head of the household, a dominant male with several consorts and their offspring.

This Alpha male gorged on watermelon wedges to cool off from the tropical heat.

A female got hold of a bunch of grape-like fruits to indulge in.

A contented female perched prettily on a wooden strut of the platform.

Maslow's hierarchy of needs seems to be showcased here, fulfilling very basic needs, at the physiological level. He straddled without a word and she obliged silently.

"As soon go kindle fire with snow, as seek to quench the fire of love with words" - William Shakespeare

Matrimonial duties can be energy-sapping so taking a brief respite from those chores must be a welcome relief.

“There are 193 species of monkeys and apes, 192 of them are covered with hair. The exception is a naked ape self-named Homo sapiens” - Desmond Morris

Monkey see, monkey do.

 
A baby monkey scrounging for food ...

under the watchful eyes of mum.

 
and other adults.


This trio were getting ready for the three wise monkeys' act of "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil"  They were at this stance for a long while.


When the crowd thinned out, this youth summoned the courage to snarl at the few of us who remained behind.
  

There were many Hornbills at the Sanctuary. They hanged around and perched close by to beg for morsels of fruits. Its eye bags need working on with heavy dabs of night cream but ...

its long eyelashes would be the envy of many of us, females. Blue mascara would enhance them further and complement the blue eyeshadow on the eyelids.

A Fragranced Rose & Another Without

I have only two types of rose bushes. One is structured but totally devoid of fragrance. Yet it is frequented by predator insects like this semi-transparent tiny spider.

After a shower, this itsy bitsy spider emerged from somewhere and started flexing its eight hairy limbs. The big drop of water at the centre of the flower seemed to be its watering hole.


The progression from young flower bud to full bloom over several days:

 


 

 
 
Here it is at full bloom and at its most beautiful.

 
The day after full bloom, the petals curled back further, everting them.

This itsy bitsy spider has the run of the rose. On this bloom, it seemed to be possessed of strong territorial traits .

Probably because of its tiny size, it constantly raised its limbs to appear bigger and more threatening.

A single rose can be my garden...a single friend, my world ~ Leo Buscaglia.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The other type of rose that I've planted is the old fashioned rose which I've known from my childhood days. Someone told me it is called the damask rose.

It is bluish-red with unstructured petal arrangement

and imbued with the most glorious rose scent.

Sometimes when there are numerous blooms on the bush, I would plucked some and freezed them for rose-flavoured ice-cubes.

A single rose and Tristellateia australasiae (Maiden's jealousy) in a coloured glass bowl as centrepiece for the dining table.

These are old silver modesty plates from Sulawesi used by little girls. This were tied from the waist to hide the sex, both to protect the modesty of the child and to ward off evil forces (From my sister's antique silver collection). 

Bougainvillea Flaunt @ Casa Del Rio

Sometime in September last year we visited Melaka, a much sought after destination for both local and foreign tourists. We stayed at the riverine Casa Del Rio Hotel. When we approached the hotel, I was bowled over by the stunning display of multi-hued bougainvilleas from the balconies.

This is the view from the corridors of the guestrooms.

"A flower cannot blossom without sunshine, and man cannot live without love" ~ Max Muller

 
Its not surprising that the Bougies here are in their full glory as Melaka is one of the driest city in Malaysia. 

Bougies thrived and flourished in full sunlight with minimal rainfall.

This humongous raintree provide a verdant background to the colourful blooms.

They seem to be sprouting like weeds from the top of walls

and balconies.

The bougies were planted on almost every tier of the hotel.


At the central courtyard of the hotel, a large three-tiered  fountain gurgled and bubbled noisily. Four Frangipani (Plumeria) trees graced the courtyard.

In the evening the lighted lamps bathed the flowers in soft amber light.

Yellow and red bougies seen through black wrought grill.

Tall containers lined up against the wall provide colours to the stone facade in front.

This Portugese-inspired arch which is the gateway to Casa Del Rio Hotel in Melaka. In the early 1500s the Portuguese came to Malacca and ruled the place till 1641. 

A Reflective Praying Mantis on Bougainvillea

Praying mantis looks like walking dried twigs. The eyeballs are enormous compared to the size of its head. The mouth piece is very small and this give the head an overall triangle shape. It is weird looking like some alien from outer space.

The front pair of legs are habitually in a praying hands posture, thus its moniker.

It has an adventurous spirit and nimbly crossed this floral bridge of variegated bougainvillea.

Every now and then it stop to survey the surroundings from a leafy podium.

It selected a vantage point to have a good view of my garden and stayed a long time, possibly to reflect. 

"By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest" - Confucius 

 

It finally settled on a pale yellow leaf, without any variegations. When I got clicking away,

 

 it turned to face me, and I gotcha this shot with the half-opened bedroom eyes, scrutinising me.

 
Pure white flowers on yellow-green variegated leaves.

This is the stomping ground of this intrepid praying mantis. Light purple and white flowers are borne on the same stem. Light blue Plumbago Auriculata flowers and numerous leaf blades of Neomarica longifolia (Yellow Walking Iris) are seen below it.

An antique silver neck ring (hansuli) worn by women living in the Rajasthan Punjab region.
(circa early 20th century, from my sister's collection)