Sandakan is one of the towns I hardly visit probably because I hardly have any project there. So when my lady engineer invited us to attend her pre-wedding banquet in Sandakan, we decided to make a driving tour to Sandakan.
Sandakan has made much progress as far as infrastructure is concerned. With the CM as the state assemblyman of Sungai Sibuga, an area close to Sandakan, it was obvious he has taken great effort in developing this area. In fact, his aim is to make Sandakan the education hub of Sabah.
Sadly, the town which was one time being fondly referred as "Little Hong Kong" obviously is losing this identity fast because of the tremendous influx of "foreigners" of other ethnicity. When we decided to look for a traditional coffee shop for afternoon tea, we had great difficulty in finding one. We finally found one in a row of old shops situated close to the hill which is the original Sandakan town. As expected, all the shop assistants are non-Chinese including the boss who seems to be of mixed parentage (Not being racist - just making an observation!) All the shops in the area nearer to the seafront are practically run by non-Chinese. You feel like you are in Kelantan or Terengganu when you take a stroll in this city!
Fortunately, the stay was made pleasant when we had the chance to stay in the latest landmark hotel, Four Points by Sheraton Sandakan which indeed is very nice. The view at the 24th floor was fantastic.
We also took time to explore some of the well known tourist spots. The 1st spot we visited is Agnes Keith's old house which is built at a very strategic place on the hill overlooking the Sandakan town. Sabah owes much to Agnes Keith because of the phrase she coined for her book, "Land below the Wind".
Walking toward the Keith's old house
View of Sandakan From Keith's Old House
An old government quarter adjacent to Keith's old house was turned into a restaurant called "English Tea House & Restaurant". The scones served there was not bad!
We also visited the Sandakan War Memorial, a place where many Australians who still faithfully came year in year out to remember their dead heroes. This place should be kept in perpetuity to remind us of the atrocities committed by the Japanese and the evil of war.
On the way back, we also stopped by the roadside to look at a project we once did: The design and supervision of the remedial system for collapsed slopes by the highway. I was glad to see that it is still performing well after almost eight years!
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