Blogs from Brunei, Asia - page 8
August 17th 2008
As I flew into Brunei for an overnight stopover, I got to thinking it's been far too long since the last visit to Asia, a region in the world that has long been a personal favourite of mine. But nothing lasts forever, and it's great to have an overnight stay in the Sultanate of Brunei. This small country on the north west coast of Borneo enjoys a very high standard of living, thanks to the oil and gas reserves located just offshore. Somehow it feels familiar to experience a taste of Asian culture again, and the opulence of the capital Bandar Seri Begawan after many years spent travelling in other continents. But let's get the journal up to date then, constant reader . We left off in Liverpool with a Beatles fanatic in seventh heaven. After ... read more
What a lovely way to spend the afternoon..
Published: August 11th 2008Asia » Brunei » Bandar Seri Begawan
August 10th 2008
lazing by a pool in hot sunshine and thinking back over the last few days. We managed to get to Mulu National Park although we had to stay just outside the park in a local guesthouse. That was an experience in living like the local people - water had to be pumped up out of the river into a large bin in the bathroom - then it was shower yourself with a scoop. The only trouble was that there was no water on the first day, so we learnt the hard way!! I need to go back a step first - to get to the park you either take a 10 hour boat ride or, in our case a short ride in a plane - powered by propellors. That was fine except the clouds came down ... read more
July 10th 2008
It's hot, wonderfully hot in Brunei - and glorious. We arrived yesterday at some time near mid-day, Royal Brunei airways were excellent, the food, servie etc all extremely good. From the airport we caught a bus for $1 into town and were dropped off right outside our hotel. After a little siesta we walked into the centre of town, to explore. It reeally is quite a quiet and ordered city, the traffic is not moving at some incredible speed and I have not yet heard anyone use their horn (is that the word for it?!!) The main mosque is having a face lift but it looks beautiful- golden dome and its lit at night. The streets ar also lit up - a bit like Blackpool says Shirley!! We explored the outside market last night after a ... read more
July 10th 2008
Let me set a scene for you - there are three of us on this trip and for these two nights we have shared a room with three beds. So far so good! Last ight I slept like a log after travelling for 24 hours with very little sleep, so tonight I assumed I would do the same again. Not a bit of it!! We came in after our meal at the local fast food street market, I chose noodles and sadly some chicken, which turned out to be chickens tails or the Parson's Nose and not being at all fond of them I left them, but really enjoyed the coconut milk which was served in a hacked out coconut. It was clear though, not milky like my previous experiences of the natural drink. Perhaps because ... read more
July 3rd 2008
Yesterday I had to go to work. Today I don't have to. This is what retirement is. Welcome to my Travel Blog! During the last month I've piled in sixteen entries to show a little of Brunei Darussalam, where I've been living for the last five years (deep at the bottom of the pile), and the major holiday trips I've made to different Asian countries. You may have seen some of the material elsewhere. Now I go live! Tomorrow I set out on an erratic journey which will finish in Sydney during October. It will take me first to Kuching and Kota Kinabalu in Malaysian Borneo. My goal then is to travel between Thailand and Hong Kong by train and by boat, via Cambodia, Vietnam and Southern China (but only if they agree to give me ... read more
June 29th 2008
I am off on another wandering trip soon, so if my emails to you are no longer welcome (ooh that probably means you don't like the fact that I am gallivanting again!) please send me an email and I will take your name off the list. Now where is my new rucksack!... read more
June 17th 2008
Creatures in Brunei don't seem as menacing as creatures in NSW. The leaf insect in the first two pictures was outside my supermarket. The lizard was up a tree in the forest. I photographed all ll the bugs and moths inside my flat.... read more
June 16th 2008
The range of pitcher plants and orchids that I've seen in Brunei is amazing. Here are some of my favourites. The orchids are probably mainly hybrids, but the pitcher plant is a rather humble natural breed which found growing in the wild. This one was a vine that grew all over the ground and up into the trees. The orchids are growing at the government-owned Rimba Orchid Centre, while we found the pitcher plants in the Berakas Forest Reserve.... read more
May 25th 2008
In my first post I included a video of being in Kampung Ayer in a water taxi. "Kampung Ayer" is Malay for Water Village. Traditionally the Malay people lived in stilt houses close to, or over, the water in rivers and estuaries. When Ferdinand Magellan circumnavigated the world in 1521, his ships visited Brunei. Antonio Pigafetta, employed to chronicle his voyage and its discoveries, described the splendour of the Sultan of Brunei's court and dubbed this village The Venice of the East. It was a bustling and extensive capital city then. Today the walls and many walkways are made of wood but the palm leaf thatch is replaced with corrugated iron and most of the piles are poured from concrete. In the second half of the twentieth century, buildings - especially those of the government and ... read more
May 16th 2008
Remember not to lick the stamps It is something of an irony that the best bit of Brunei - one of the richest countries in the world - is its most run down area. Being such an oil rich country it is hard to find cheap accommodation in the capital city of Bandar but we were lucky and bagged the last rooms in the government run hostel. The only drawback was that women slept in one wing, men in another. This was the first hint we got of just how strict a Muslim country Brunei is, although the fact that the sale of alcohol is illegal should have been a clue too! Having arrived in the late afternoon we chilled out and wondered round Bandar for a few hours, buying postcards of the main sights and ... read more
