Blogs from Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei, Asia - page 14

We managed to get about an hours sleep at the airport, I got a bit more on the plane after we had taken off & then Claire woke me up for breakfast. When we got to Brunei we got our bags checked at the airport & questioned if we had alcohol with us. Although alcohol isn’t illegal here for non Muslim people you are only allowed to bring in a certain amount for personal consumption & have to declare it at customs. We arranged transport to the hotel we had booked & checked in about 1pm. We had air con in the room & as it was so hot outside & we were so tired we watched TV, had a shower, had a sleep & eventually ventured as far as the supermarket across the road ... read more

In Brunei all that glitters is gold. Nagara Brunei Darassalum (Brunei: the abode of peace) is a welfare state but it has no income tax and is the only country in the world that hasn't held any elections at all since 1962. (Why bother rigging elections?) The GDP per person in Brunei is $US23,600 (2003 estimate. CIA FACTBOOK) It is one of the worlds smallest countries with a welfare system that includes free health care, education and even help from the government with buying a house. The reason for this wealth is that gold that doesn't glitter - black gold:oil. IF VOTING CHANGED ANYTHING... Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, whose title has passed within the same dynasty since the fifteenth century doesn't bother with things like elections. His father tried it once. 1962 - Legislative ... read more

On the way back to NZ we stopped off in Brunei for another 24 hours, to see more and to break up the journey. We had one thing we wanted to see, and that was some Proboscis Monkeys. We were planning originally to take a regular water taxi, as the tours were expensive. But then we found a company with a special on in February, and persuaded them to let us have that same price in January (well, it was close to the end of the month!) This meant we still paid a bit more than with a regular water taxi, but had longer out, a better guide, and a better chance of seeing monkeys. If there werent any in the first couple of places the regular guys took you to, it was a case of ... read more

We've had a busy couple of days in Brunei since the last post. After writing that, we went to Gadong night market, spending a whopping NZ$2.50 on dinner for two. Deep fried vegetable bits and pieces and this thick pancake thing full of chopped nuts, sugar and chocolate powder. Yesterday we went on a trip to Ulu Temburong National Park. It was a 45 minute water taxi ride from BSB to Bangar (mangroves, some jungle, crocodiles, herons & egrets, monkeys), then 20 minutes drive to the tour company "lodge" where we had morning tea. From there we took off in a traditional longboat, only they are now powered by outboards. The river was going pretty fast, and got wet and bumpy over the rapids. It was another 45 minute ride up river to the park. That ... read more

Had a very busy visit to Brunei, and saw lots of amazingly wealth houses. Of course it is a very rich place (mainly from oil), and it shows everywhere. Also a very muslim country and all the usual restrictions in place. Saw all the Sultan's treasures (well most of them) including the two gold carriages both about 40 feet long, and both of which were pulled by what looked like hundreds of guards when he was crowned, and then for his jubilee. All a bit over the top actually. We saw an interesting floating village, which actually looked a bit delapidated, but which actually proved to be owned by only rich people who have boats to take them to the land, and they leave their cars at the wharf so that they have transport on land ... read more