"One's destination is never a place, but a new way" BorneoGrrl's Profile

Welcome to my page

Hi all and welcome to my VT page.

VT has brought me wonderful opportunities, not just in getting first hand information and tips of the places I visited, but also meeting a number of wonderful travelers who like me enjoy discovering new places but also equally enjoy sharing them.

If you're planning on visiting a place or just browsing, I hope you will find your stop here both helpful and entertaining.

Cheers :)

Need to update my pages but ...

Kitty on a break

I got hit by writer's block :(

I might be able to vocalize my thoughts and ideas without difficulty but putting them down on paper ... not as successful. There were many places and experiences I want to share but where to start, what to say, is it making sense??? Anyway, I'm gonna get there, fingers crossed.

Who is Borneogrrl?

Vienna International, 6am

You may wonder why I call myself BorneoGrrl, that's exactly who I am. I come from Miri, a town (now a city) located on the coast of Sarawak, Malaysia on the island of Borneo. If that sounds exotic, how about if I tell you that I'm from an indigenous tribe who long ago practiced head hunting. Well, that was long ago and doubt I can do that since I'm the squeamish type.

Anyway, I'm just a small town girl with big dreams of discovering the world, and I'm starting to do that bit by bit. Starting with discovering the beauty and wonder of my country, Malaysia, and on to Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, Africa & North America. It's been a fantastic journey. I'm really encouraged by the response I get from the fellow VT members who visited my pages, contacted me and rated my tips .... ahem, ahem. Thank you all and keep visiting because I do this specially for you

I've also had a blast meeting many VT members all over the world & hope to meet more of you guys soon.

This is actually one of my favorite pictures. Believe it or not, I took this picture with an old PDA. It was around 6.00 am and I had just arrived in Vienna on a 12-hour journey from Kuala Lumpur. Looking at the picture, I remembered how cold it was since I was about to experience my first winter. Plus, it's rare photograph of me in glasses which I don't wear anymore.

Fast forward 10 years, I'm back to wearing glasses. Age has caught up with me but thankfully they're not reading glasses, just for driving at night :)

Back in the Far East

Wave Rock, Western Australia

After over 3 years in Africa, I've returned to home to Malaysia and hopefully more opportunities to discover the wonders of Asia Pacific. My recent trips in 2009 include :

PHUKET, Thailand - Long weekend in my favorite Thailand destination

SIEM REAP, Cambodia - My dream trip to visit the Angkor kingdom

PERTH, Australia - First trip to Western Australia and met some lovely VTers :)

FREMANTLE, Australia - A day trip with the VTers and enjoyed Pipsqueak cider

SINGAPORE - Revisiting the Lion City and new sights

MUSCAT, Oman - Now here's a lovely place with a balance of the Gulf and modern life

HO CHI MIH, Vietnam - Had to come back for more coffee and Phό

VIENNA, Austria - Christmas and New Years once again in this beautiful city

Some visits in 2008

Tanah Lot, Bali

ISTANBUL, Turkey
So many historical sites and friendly people & cats. And the 'Hammam' was absolutely wonderful. Many places to visit & so easy to travel around

CAPPADOCIA, Turkey
A memorable trip to the Land of Beautiful Horses and fairy chimneys.

LONDON, UK
Went on a summer holiday to the capital of England. Not to mention the summer sales

MANCHESTER, UK
It's not all about football

LIVERPOOL, UK
Lovely trip to Europe's Capital of Culture 2008 to visit the coast & the Beatles

BALI, Indonesia
It was fun to visit Bali again and this time, I have my sisters with me. Fantastic time, food, people and places I revisited again and hopefully will return again.

DUBAI, UAE
A short trip to the United Arab Emirates and have some fun at the newly launched Atlantis the Palm

KHARTOUM
Capital of the Sudan and a place where I used to live

My Top Places

Beautiful Hallstatt

Here are my favourite places:

MIRI, Sarawak - of course,
BALI, Indonesia
MASAI MARA GAME RESERVE, Kenya
HALLSTATT, Austria (See photo)
VIENNA, Austria
NEW YORK CITY, USA
PHUKET, Thailand
SIEM REAP, Cambodia

Fond memory : First Winter in Wien

Playing Eskimo in Schonbrunn, Vienna

Arriving in Vienna on a cold January morning, I was hoping to finally experience my first snowfall. To my dismay, I was told that this had been a mild winter and I may not see a single snowflake. A few days later, for some strange reason, snow began to fall. Well, Vienna is beautiful in the snow and I spent hours walking around the city in -10 deg C weather.

Getting dressed for winter is no fun at all though, all the layers & layers of clothes. By the time I'm dressed with my coat, scarf, hat, boots, I feel too tired to go out. Still, I think it's one of the best experiences I've had but doubt I will be repeating in a while :)

Well, I shouldn't have spoken too soon because I returned to another winter in Vienna, and will again for Christmas. Haha ... joke's on me :(

The content (content being images & text) of Borneogrrl pages in this website is copyright © BorneoGrrl.
All rights expressly reserved.

Intro Updated Apr 6, 2013
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Personal Pages (5)

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Comments (224)

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balhannah Yesterday

Wow! Love the opening photo! Thanks for the Birthday wishes, I had a really good day.
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davesut Apr 5, 2013 at 1:46 PM

Happy birthday for the other day, hope you had a good one.
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  BorneoGrrl Apr 5, 2013 at 11:07 PM
  
  Thanks Dave. I did and hope you're having one too
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heydelin Apr 4, 2013 at 5:52 PM

Hi Valerie! I see you are from Miri, I was supposed to go there when I visited Brunei last year.
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  heydelin Apr 7, 2013 at 4:56 PM
  
  Awww, I should have met you! ;)
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  heydelin Apr 7, 2013 at 4:56 PM
  
  Awww, I should have met you! ;)
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cyndymc Apr 3, 2013 at 12:24 AM

Belated happy birthday Val! I was down with flu the past days so sorry for the late greeting.
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  BorneoGrrl Apr 5, 2013 at 11:11 PM
  
  Hi Cyndy, thanks for the greetings. Lovely to meet you and Willy again. Oh dear, I hope you've fully recovered from the flu by now
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mavl Apr 2, 2013 at 11:03 AM

belated happy birthday! can't remember if i greeted already. hope it was happy!
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  BorneoGrrl Apr 5, 2013 at 11:11 PM
  
  Thank Miko. Yes it was
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suvanki Apr 2, 2013 at 4:30 AM

Belated Happy Birthday Wishes!
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  BorneoGrrl Apr 5, 2013 at 11:15 PM
  
  Thanks Sue. Hope that the weather is much improved where you are
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DaHongHua Apr 1, 2013 at 10:08 PM

Hello Valerie, nice to meet you in today's birthday list. Happy birthday and best wishes to you to keep more travellings. Greeting from Perak.
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  BorneoGrrl Apr 5, 2013 at 11:16 PM
  
  Thanks for the birthday greetings. Wish you a great day
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Donna_in_India Apr 1, 2013 at 6:16 PM

Happy Birthday Valerie!
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  BorneoGrrl Apr 5, 2013 at 11:16 PM
  
  Thanks Donna !
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aussirose Apr 1, 2013 at 3:44 PM

Happy birthday matey!! See you again at the end of the year! Hugs xx
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  aussirose Apr 1, 2013 at 5:03 PM
  
  Definately more swine and wine mate! I'm doing that travelogue today :o)
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  BorneoGrrl Apr 5, 2013 at 11:17 PM
  
  Yeah I just saw it. It's brilliant especially the pic with the two monkeys on my head
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globetrott Apr 1, 2013 at 2:22 PM

Happy Birthday, Valerie, and best regards from Switzerland !
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  BorneoGrrl Apr 1, 2013 at 4:36 PM
  
  Thanks Michael. One day I will get to Switzerland but I should be dropping by the Netherlands soon