I took a trip to Borneo recently to see the magnificent orangutans as they cling desperately to the last remnant of forest not yet bulldozed for palm oil plantations. As is the case whenever I land in a new town or country, my search begins for a caffe latte, made with espresso not nescafe! Staying in Kota Kinabalu the only option was the Coffee Bean chain. The coffee had that bland taste, lacking in any richness or depth. Their lattes came served in a tall glass with a tall 
plastic stirrer. It looked more like a cocktail than a coffee. I named this the Swizzle Stick Latte. I tried asking for a double shot but this didn't improve the flavour. When I left the city area and headed off into the mountains and over to Sandakan to see the orangutans, I gave up on the search for a caffe latte and decided, especially as there was only that foul tasting long-life milk, to do as the locals do and partake in the strong,black Borneo coffee. I found this coffee quite palatable but the 3 cups a day I was consuming did start to give me heart palpatations so I was forced to cut back.
I did come across this amazing petrol driven coffee grinder at a market in Kota Kinabalu. It was noisy but it seemed to do the trick!
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