The passionate animal lover knows how fascinating and fulfilling it is to watch a beast from the jungle from close quarters and in its natural habitat, happy and peaceful. Be it an adult animal or a young one, wildlife-sightings are once-in-a-lifetime experiences—the intensity and passion of that one moment when the animal looks up or turns around to gaze at you cannot be captured in a thousand photographs.
A holiday in Sabah provides such a rare opportunity. At the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre, orphaned and injured orangutans are cared for and nursed back to health and happiness before being set free. You can watch a feeding session or two, but reserve your biggest aww for the outdoor nursery where the babies are taught the life skills they will need to survive in the wild. The learning curve is steep! The babies tumble and fall on top of each other as they try to learn how to swing; some prefer to walk to get around, much to the irritation of their trainers.