Boat ride at Kampung Ayer

Continued from The market of Tamu Kianggeh.

From Tamu Kianggeh we went to the Brunei river banks where Sobrina, the eldest daughter of our host Hajah Sopiah has booked a boat.

She had promised to bring us around the village of Kampung Ayer and this is fulfilled on our last day.

Kampung Ayer literally means the water village. It is a vast settlement on stilts in the wide Brunei river just besides the capital Bandar Seri Begawan.

OK. Let the pictures tell the thousand words. And believe me I took about 100 pictures for this boat ride alone! :]

The market of Tamu Kianggeh

Sunday 8th August 2010, it is to be our last day in Brunei. Our flight return to Malaysia would depart sometime in the afternoon so we decided to go and visit places around the capital starting with this, a famous market very much favoured by the locals.

Situated besides a river it is called the Tamu Kianggeh.

For the record it is named after the river Kianggeh.

Tamu on the other hand is the Malay word for guest.

At some places as in Brunei it is used to denote a market as a place where guests are invited.

Whatever Tamu Kianggeh offers a colourful variety of foodstuffs and such.

It is interesting to note that one could reach it directly by boat!

It was from a place across the river that I only saw the signboard.

A view of the market from across.

The coastal road from Kuala Belait to Seria

Continued from South China Sea from Kuala Belait.

We next headed to Seria using the coastal road.

There parts are rather pleasing with much open space and monuments like this.



If I remember correctly this should be part of a golf course.


Then there's a football field.

Soon houses like this came into view.

As we get to Seria oil related gadgets and buildings began to conquer the field.

While Seria houses the oil industry command centre and supporting industrial logistics it is clear to me now the industry's residential parts and support is located more towards Kuala Belait.

There are houses built for oil and gas workers and officers too here such as this Minangkabau-roofed bungalow but Seria practically smells too much of the industry. Kuala Belait could be said to be its leisure counterpart, hence the existence of a golf course and football field.

So if you want to be in thick of action Seria is the place. But I think I prefer Kuala Belait more as oil is not exactly my cup of tea.

South China Sea from Kuala Belait

Continued from The river that gives name to Kuala Belait

We next went to the coastal fringe of town where lies the main mosque.

Then we could see the local branch of the state broadcasting station.

Across lies the open waters of the South China Sea.

As usual I feel I must stop to appreciate the view from a number of angles.

The river that gives name to Kuala Belait

Upon return to Brunei from Miri we went around the town of Kuala Belait.

For the record, it is the closest Bruneian town from the international border to Sarawak.

Sizewise it is about the same as the town of Seria.

However to me, Kuala Belait feels more relaxing maybe because it is not the centre of petroleum industry activities like in Seria.

Furthermore Kuala Belait has this scenic river nearby.

The name of the river is Belait and its mouth is just behind the ship seen in the background.

As this place is near the river mouth it is called Kuala Belait.

Kuala means the mouth of a river and you can see the town not far in the background.

Views of Miri

Continued from The town of Seria.

OK. The reason we had to stop at Seria was to sort out papers regarding our Brunei registered car.

We have to get the papers in order as we wanted to cross the national border to get to Sarawak.

For the record the border entry point to Sarawak is only about 31 km from Seria. Travel another 34 km or so and you can reach Miri, the second biggest urbanised area in Sarawak.



Being a city of fair size with all sort of facilities it is a sort of haven for Bruneians who tend to cross the border to shop and get things not available in Brunei.

Information from Wikipedia...

Miri (pronounced /ˈmɪəriː/) is a city in northern Sarawak, Malaysia, on the island of Borneo. Miri is the second largest city in Sarawak. It serves as the government administrative centre of Miri District (4,707.1 square kilometers) in Miri Division of Sarawak; the District has a population of about 269,000 (2008). Miri was elevated to city status on May 20, 2005 and it is the 9th city in Malaysia and its local authority i.e. Miri City Council is the 10th city council in Malaysia.[1]

Miri is the birthplace of Sarawak's and Malaysia's petroleum industry, which remains the major industry of the city. The first oil well was drilled by Shell in 1910 (the Grand Old Lady), and is now a state monument and one of Miri's tourist attractions. Shell also built Malaysia's first oil refinery in Lutong, a suburb of Miri in 1914. Recently, vast oil reserves were discovered just offshore northeast of the city. Miri has grown phenomenally since oil was first discovered in the early 1900s, burgeoning into the business, commercial and educational centre it is today.[2]

The city's other major industries include processed timber, oil palm production, and tourism. The world famous Gunung Mulu National Park with the Sarawak Chamber, a half an hour flight from the city, is one of the favourite eco-tourism destinations. Miri is also the main tourist gateway for the Loagan Bunut National Park, Lambir National Park, and the Niah Caves. Miri is lately known for its exotic coral reefs as well.

Now let me tell you. All these pictures are of the city of Miri taken from one of the floors of the building seen in the first picture.