Religion:

Official: Sunni Islam
A considerable percentage of Christians, and various indigenous traditional beliefs.

Language:
Malay, Chinese dialects, and several other local dialects.
English is also widely spoken.

Time:
Sabah is eight hours ahead of GMT time.

Currency:
Malaysian Ringgit "RM" (local people refer to it as the Malaysian Dollar).

Credit cards: accepted in most hotels and in the supermarkets in the main cities.
Money changing: banks, money changes, hotels.
Traveler cheques: accepted, some money changes however only take cash.
Commission rates at banks can be very high.
Alternative: ATM machines; cash withdrawal with your cash card possible, but not available everywhere, so do not rely on it if you know you need cash.