Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei March 1, 2018 in Borneo

Loaded these pictures in the cruise terminal while I tried to update my phone, it says it needs another hour.  Sadly, I will be running out of time.

Officially named “Nation of Brunei, the Abode of Peace”, this independent country on the island of Borneo is fascinating.  It is about the size of Rhode Island.  Bandar Seri Begawan is the capital.  We are docking eight miles away in Muara.  Most of Brunei lies within Borneo’s lush rainforests, yet it is one of the richest nations in the world.  This nation is the fourth richest in the world and the money comes from gas and oil.  The people are provided health care, education, and our guide was very loyal to the Sultan.  The port city of Muara is the gateway to the capital BSB.  Bandar Seri Begawan is home of the enormous Istana Nurul Iman, palace of the sultan. The largest residential palace in the world, with 1788 rooms, 257 bathrroms, a 110-car garage and a banquet hall for 5000 guests.  There are twenty-nine gold domes.  Gold, marble, and granite are everywhere in the palace.    Brunei has been ruled by the same line of Sultans for years.  Brunei won independence in 1984 and the 29th sultan became the ruler.  The Mosque in BSB is the largest in the country and can accommodate 5000 worshipers. 

On our excursion, we saw day-to-day life in a water village.   This was an authentic water village with houses supported by stilts on the Brunei River.  Houses, hospital, mosque, shops. etc were connected by walkways.  Colorful water taxis sped through the waterways.  

We learned about Brunei’s ancient technologies at The Malay Technology Museum which offered a remarkable collection of the island’s ancient ways of boat-building, fishing, metallurgy and gold-smithing.  .  

Visited a local market with fresh food vendors.  Most vendors were not open as the hours from 12:00-2:00 are for prayer.   

  

Mosque

Houses cannot be rebuilt if they burn, but if it is standing you can always add on.  

They love their peppers!

More peppers!

For Turtle Soup????

The Sultan

Not my photo.  World’s largest water village.  Kampong Ayer - Brunei-Muara, Bandar Seri Begavan. City district with more than 4,200 buildings built on stilts over the water. Buildings are linked with 36 km long walkways. This part of city has existed for more than 1,300 years .  There are new sections being built, but some people  won't move out of the old houses.

Not my photo  Mosque for 5000.

I did not get a picture of the Sultan's home.  Over a three day period after Ramadan, all his citizens are invited to the palace.  All men can have an audience with the Sultan and women with his wife, the Queen.  They are served a meal and given a present.  

FACEBOOK postDocked in Maura, Brunei Darussalam. Brunei Darussalam is an independent country about the size of Rhode Island on the island of Borneo. Gas and oil are the sources of Brunei Darussalam’s wealth. Bandar Seri Begawan is the capital of this 4th wealthiest nation in the world. In Bandar Seri Begawan, the Sultan’s home has 1788 rooms, 257 bathrooms and 110 car garage. There is also a banquet hall that can seat 5000 people. It is the largest private residential palace in the world. Over a three day period after Ramadan, all his citizens are invited to the palace. Men may have an audience with the Sultan and women with his wife, the Queen. The citizens are served a meal and given a present. There are billboards of the Sultan along the highways. Freedom of religion is guaranteed and 67% of the population is Islamic. We saw many beautiful mosques. 

In the morning, we went for a tour of a water village. Most water villages are found on major river tributaries and the houses are built on ironwood stilts. The oldest water village has 4,200 buildings and is more than 1000 years old. Some houses are old and dilapidated. A house can be remodeled, but if a house were to burn - it cannot be rebuilt. Some houses are nicely remodeled and many are somewhere between the two extremes. These homes have electricity. The homes, restaurants, mosques, shops and hospitals are all connected by 36 km of wooden boardwalks. We spent some time touring around in a boat and then stopped for a short visit and tea and cookies. The house we visited was a bit worn. The living room and dining rooms were quite large and the kitchen in the back was small. The government is building new water villages, but it is difficult to get the citizens to move to these new homes. Quite frankly, the water village we toured looked like a fire trap to me. 

Our second stop was the Malay Technology Museum. We saw six scaled-down versions of traditional homes. There were different architectural styles and construction materials. We saw several types of boats based on use including rafts, fishing boats, canoes and house-to-house vendor boats. We also saw a sugar cane press, brass casting, blacksmithing, gold smithing, roof making, etc. There were many school children in uniforms visiting the museum. 

Our last stop was an outdoor local food market with fruits, vegetables and herbs. I also saw little turtles in a tub. Turtle soup???