Although very brief our three day trip to Borneo left quite an
impression. We traveled to Kuching, a coastal city in West Malaysia on the
Island of Borneo. Borneo is split between three countries; West Malaysia, Indonesia
and Brunei. Kuching was a perfect spot to explore some of the most interesting
sites such as the Orangutan rehabilitation center and a long house. The
rehabilitation center is where Orangutans that have either been injured or have
been in captivity are gradually taught to adjust to living in the wild again.
After release they stay near the center for months, or even years, and it is the
best way to see these apes in the wild.
The long house is a traditional way of living across Borneo. Typically they
are a long (over 100 meters for the one we visited) structure along a river bank
that is shared by several families that make up a village. The one we visited
was an Iban longhouse which is one of 27 different ethnic groups in Borneo.
Although not deep into the interior, it still took over four hours of driving
and then going up a river to get there.
Click image to enlarge