Kota Kinabalu - Brunei - Miri - Bintulu

We started our return journey the day before Christmas leaving Kota Kinabalu at about 10.00am after having breakfast at one of the restaurants near the hotel. The children were noisy once we were off on the road pointing to these and that along the way but not too soon they were quiet and asleep, which was quite pleasant for us adults, some peace and quiet……

We took the reverse of the route we took getting into KK except that this time we could see the view against the night time when we arrived. There were many new developments along the way. New roads/highways and buildings were being constructed that will change the view of the urban area but at the countryside things appear to be the same all round with nothing new observed. Some parts of the road we took runs alongside the touristy heritage railway line where a special train for tourists runs the Kota Kinabalu – Beaufort heritage country route. We did not get to see the train but from the brochures the train still runs the route a number of times per week. There were mostly oil palm estates along this route but it was still a nice view to savour along the way, especially for the uninitiated tourist!!

Our destination on this portion of the journey was Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam. We had reservation for two nights at a hotel in BSB. Enroute we had to pass all the immigration and custom checkpoints, in reverse of the previous inward journey to KK. However it was all a breeze this time. There was hardly any queue at the checkpoints and the ferry crossings were fast too. The drive on the country roads was easy as we encountered very minimal traffic. We stopped in Limbang for lunch and visited the town mosque for our day prayers.

We arrived at our hotel just at about dusk and settled in our rooms. The next morning, Christmas day, we took a drive around the city and viewed the well known ‘Kampong Air’ or literally water village where clusters of houses were built on stilts over the river. Even the school and community hall were built on stilts over the water. This was how riverine villages were built many many years ago. I remember these types of houses in JB when I was a little kid but all these houses are gone now. Brunei seems to maintain them perhaps as an attraction of sorts. It was a pity that I left my camera in the room.

We also visited the Empire Resort, touted as the biggest hotel resort, and spent about two hours going around the complex. It was really huge and it was crowded too ……. The entrance lobby has tall ceilings and there were four levels of lobby area. The very large pool connected to several smaller pools along the expanse of the hotel garden and its utility buildings, were crowded with people, families with children and in all sorts of swimming pool dressings, frolicking in the water. It appeared as though there were no proper dress code for the pool. There were people in shorts and t-shirts in the pool. The beach was also just a short distance away from the swimming pools. An 18 hole golf course surrounds the main entrance part of the complex with the club building annexed to the main building.

We went for another drive around the town taking a different route this time and stopped for lunch at one of the restaurants that appeared to be more crowded than others, indicating we suspect, that they serve good food. In deed, the food that they served was good. The basic dish was chicken rice but there were a wide variety of chicken dishes served giving us choices. As usual we picked a few varieties and shared them amongst us.

After the children had their afternoon nap and after we had our rest too, we took them to Jerudong Fun Park, a theme park built some ten years ago, located some 30 kilometers away from the city. This theme park, I was told, was initially opened free to the public but recently they started to charge entrance fees and one fixed ride fee. However the charges were very minimal, nowhere near the charges imposed by other theme parks in the region. It apparently is heavily subsidized by the state. They provide the usual fun rides, merry-go-rounds, mini trains, paddle boats, bump-cars, motorized swings and other children playthings. The three kids just could not have enough of the rides. They try everything in turn and returned for more from the beginning. We were there at 5.00pm and at 9.30pm they were still actively at it. They protested vehemently when we said it was time to go back to the hotel. Even baby Haadieya protested. It was the same with other children too. Many did not want to go home when their parents wanted to. A global problem really…..

The following day we checked out of the hotel at about 9.00am and headed for Miri. There were only two checkpoints to pass through, one to exit Brunei and the other to enter Sarawak. We checked into an apartment, a regular place for Shaffik to stay whenever he brought the family to Miri, for an overnight stay before proceeding to Bintulu. The children played in the swimming pool in the evening and the next day Shaffik brought them to the Oil and Gas museum where currently there is a display of ‘prehistoric world’ opened to the public. Haadieya came back and showed us how dinosaurs roar…… complete with action. We left Miri in the afternoon arriving in Bintulu at about 5.00 pm.

It had been a very interesting week. We enjoyed the overland travel and the experience of going through the various checkpoints and the ferry crossings, of the countryside, the small towns and villages along the way, observing the people and their lives and livelihood. Now we need time to reenergize. It was quite tiring but it was very enjoyable and pleasant….

MKI Ramblings Unlimited

Petaling Jaya