Earthquake Does Not Stop Tourists From Holidaying In Kundasang

KUNDASANG (Sabah, Malaysia), June 8 (Bernama) -- Despite having to cancel their climb up Mount Kinabalu, a group of 35 local tourists from Malaysia's northern state of Penang still came to Sabah as planned for their holiday. Cheah Soo See, 45, who is in group, said they knew about the earthquake, which measured 5.9 on the Richter scale, that hit Sabah last Friday, but decided to go ahead with their planned trip to the state. "Although we cannot climb Mount Kinabalu, we can still visit several other places of interest in Sabah," he told Bernama at an inn near Taman Kinabalu Monday. Cheah said they had made arrangements for the holiday, including booking the flight tickets and accommodation for their stay, since last year. "This is my first trip to Sabah. We were very excited when we got here (Kundasang). The scenery is beautiful," he said. Another member of the group, Wang Choon Yiek, 46, said that although she was disappointed to not be able to climb Mount Kinabalu, she could still visit many places on interests. "We were scheduled to climb the mountain today (Monday), but because of the earthquake we had to change plans and go to the resort at Poring Hot Springs," she said. Wang said the plan to climb Mount Kinabalu was made since last year, and the date had been postponed three times for various reasons. "However, I am thankful that we are not on Mount Kinabalu when the earthquake happened," she added. The group will be in Sabah until Thursday before flying back to Penang. Choo Chuan Sin, who is also in the group, said they would be in Ranau until Tuesday and in Kota Kinabalu (capital of Sabah state) for another two days. "We will be back to climb Mount Kinabalu when it opens. The earthquake has not dampened our spirit," he added. Sixteen people have been confirmed dead in the earthquake so far. -- BERNAMA