The Delights of Brunei

 The Sultanate of Brunei is a place that we've all heard of, however who knows exactly where it is on a map - it is in Borneo between the two different Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak.

Not easy to access by road, the simplest way is to fly. The Sultan, (whose official name is nearly as long as this blog), is 78 and is the ruler and Prime Minister of Brunei. A wealthy country with lots of lovely oil and gas means that the citizens are well provided for, creating a relaxed and harmonious feel to the country. This is quite helpful as there is no alcohol anywhere and believe me, we triple checked.

The Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque was opened in 1958, it welcomes visitors and is quite spectacular. The Taj Mahal was used for inspiration, if anyone was thinking that there's a similarity.

Brunei's $5 million Mosque
The $5 million dollar mosque

Nice Lampshades
Nice Lampshades

Brunei is not really geared up for foreign tourists, so a week long visit requires attendance at all the attractions. The Regalia Museum has everything royal on display. This includes photographs of visiting royalty and all the presents received by His Highness from international dignitaries, no matter how apparently insignificant 

A cheery wedding photo of Mr and Mrs Sultan from the family album

Even the shopping malls are way more extravagant than anywhere other than Dubai.



An interesting trip is to the night market, where all the food (basically chicken), in this case fish, is laid out for you to help yourself. The prices are around £1-£2 per portion. Cats are everywhere.

Gadong Night Market

The capital of Brunei includes a village, Kampung Ayer, which houses 10,000 people. It is the largest village built on water in the world. There are mosques, schools, a fire station and police station. The houses are connected by walk ways and they now have Internet. They can be bought and sold, however there are a few in need of a little doing up.

Kampung Ayer

A river cruise is lovely way to see the city at night, plus the only way to see into the Sultan's Palace. He has 1778 rooms so has plenty of room for sleepovers. He holds an open house during Eid, however it seemed a bit extreme to wait until then, so a return visit will be needed to see inside. 

The palace, just visible over the top of the trees

This is the original port building from the olden days. It seems with the influx of oil money all the old, colonial buildings have been razed or given a major make over.

Brunei at night

What do you think, would you visit?



Comments

  1. Anonymous10 November 2024 at 03:32

    If you’re returning in Eid, give me a shout, it looks fascinating. Great blog x

    ReplyDelete

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