Seria - Home of Brunei's Oil!

---

Brunei is certainly not top of everyone's list when it comes to travelling around South East Asia. The town of Seria is probably even further down anyone's list of priorities. The only people who visit are probably involved in the oil industry or the British military. Alternatively, like us, they may have friends connected with either of those industries. It's a curious place though, and really shouldn't be so easily dismissed.

Like many visitors, we were surprised at how "un-rich" Brunei seemed to be. Seria is a nice enough town but it could do with a little sprucing up. There is a lingering subtle smell of oil in the air, but that's hardly surprising when you see the nodding donkeys and the storage tanks all over the place. Most of the town is in the streets surrounding the bus station where a monument replicating the symbol of Brunei sits in a quiet square. Nearby is what looks like a giant food court where you would certainly be able to sample the local flavour. We weren't around at the right time to eat there though, settling instead for the highly recommended Fratini's in the evening.

The sights around Seria are definitely oil industry related. There's the Oil and Gas Discovery Centre if you are really interested in the industry, and it looks particularly good for kids. There is a seafront park with several static nodding donkeys which were once used for extracting oil, and there are lots of pipelines and valves around too. The main focus is on the Billionth Barrel Monument which commemorates the billionth barrel of onshore oil which was extracted in 1991. It is an interesting thing to see and there are some slate plaques nearby depicting scenes from the industry. Looking out to sea you can see some of the off-shore industry at work too. As far as beaches go, we couldn't imagine stripping off and going for a swim, and looking around nobody else felt the urge either!

If you are lucky, you might catch a glimpse of a hornbill while you are there. These bizarre looking birds are not uncommon, but we didn't get to see any until just before we left.

---

Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Thanks for the memories
We are enjoying this part of your trip.

[rrruss]

The end!
That was the last blog of this trip! :-(