just how safe is brunei?

it could be their strict law enforcement.

or it could be the fact that most of brunei darussalam's people are well to do and well-educated that committing a crime doesn't even cross their minds.

i've been reading from travel books that it's generally "safe" in brunei. but being the ever skeptic that i am, i don't usually buy into those stuff unless i experience it first-hand.

here's how brunei fared:

i knew i wouldn't be meeting my host Gillian right away since she was teaching and won't be able to slip away from the university until about 5pm. i got to bandar seri begawan two-ish and figured it would be difficult to fluff around the city with a huge bag slinging on my shoulder. so i texted her asking if i could leave my baggage outside her flat. "it should be safe for you to leave it there," came her reply.

"sweet," i thought.

when i came back 5pm, i was greeted by Gillian and saw my bag inside. after exchanging short pleasantries, she showed me my room and toured me to different parts of the flat. i immediately noticed that her place was surrounded by sliding glass doors/windows. coming from a country where it's not safe to leave windows open and "security" is a major concern, i almost instantly inquired, "what time do you usually shut the windows?"

"i dont, it's safe to keep it ajar. i don't totally close it but leave a bit of space to keep my papers from flying because it can get windy during the night," she answered.

great, here i am worried about security and she's concerned with flying papers!

well, that's good to know!

[the view i wake up to each morning]

previously, i wrote how rare it is for people to walk since most locals are expected to drive their own vehicles. thus, if you're not "most locals" and wanna go and visit the Places of Interests, you either have to take a bus or walk. luckily, the one i wanna see (Brunei Museum) is accessible by bus. glancing at the map, i surmised the nearby places of interests would be walk-able.

it took me 2 hours to wander around the museum, and by the time i got out, it's almost past lunch time. the receptionist said that there's an eatery in the vicinity. after walking a few hundred meters and still no sign of the eatery, i decided to stop at the nearest (and ONLY) grocery store. i got myself a cup of yogurt and isotonic drink. the middle-eastern-looking shop owner and his friend eyed me as i downed my yogurt. i told them i was a filipina touring brunei, and asked how far my next destination was from the shop.

"15 minutes, 15 minutes," they replied.

"i can handle that," i judged.

"where are you going? bandar seri begawan?"

i nodded and repeated my next destination.

the shop owner offered i ride with his friend. "He's going to bandar. He'll take you. bandar you said?"

hesitant me responded, "no thanks, i can walk."

but the friend insisted, "i go to bandar. come."

stealing a look at the scorching road, i caved in.
and prayed, "Lord keep me safe from this stranger".

this should be quick. i reckon if it's a 15-minute walk, we'll get there in 2 or 3 minutes. i learned that he was Pakistani and that he had a Filipina friend before named Rosario Garcia. then we sat awkwardly the entire time. nothing scary happened. soon i realized that the 15 minutes they were talking about was not a 15-minute walk but a 15 minute drive!

i am just so glad that i hitched.

i got off and was endlessly saying thank you in all the languages i know
Terima Kasih!
Shukriya!

so is it safe in brunei?
you bet!

brunei walking tour

it is quite uncommon for people to walk along the streets and roads in brunei.

so when i was pottering around Bandar Seri Bagawan, i would get weird stares. passing drivers would even take a second look! sometimes, i just wanna scream, "keep your eyes on the road!" i definitely don't wanna be the cause of an accident.

later, i learned that people in brunei are classified into three: royalty, working class (which would be the maids or cleaners), and everyone else.

Royalty and everyone else would definitely have their own cars. So if you're walking, moreso alone or under the rain (which was my case occasionally), then you belong to the working class.

no wonder. these passersby would be thinking, "what is this pretty woman doing walking in the streets by herself?"


[humor me please. but truth be told, in my three days in brunei, i never saw any human being prettier than me, given that i consider myself an ugly duckling. haha.]

laksa

whichever part of Malaysia you visit, they seem to have their own version of laksa [a popular spicy noodle soup from Peranakan culture, which is a merger of Chinese and Malay elements found in Malaysia and Singapore - Wikipedia].

KL Laksa

Singapore Laksa

Kuching Laksa

my Skybridge pass

view from the Skybridge

i could never understand the hype about getting a Skybridge Pass. some of my local hosts said that KLCC only gives out approximately a thousand passes to visitors per day. and for you to get one, you should be there early, like 8am. if not, you might miss the opportunity.

NOT in my case!

since i got there around 10am already, i wasn't really keeping my hopes up. i told my host not to even bother because they might've given out all their tickets. we reached the booth where they give out the passes, and to my surprise, we were still given one! our viewing was scheduled 3.15pm.

they had to set a schedule to limit 15 visitors per trip. that was ok because that gave us enough time to go around KL.

when our time came, they gave out red ID tags and let us in an AVR where they gave out slightly-tinted aviator shades. cool, i thought. then i learned that today was the first day they were showing the Petronas presentation in 3D. yay!!!

after the 3D show, we were then led to the elevator that brought us to the much coveted Skybridge.

and 15 minutes is all we had to savor the moment.

THE Skybridge empty of visitors

tourist spotting 101

some of the things you can do while at Bako National Park is to spot wildlife (monkeys, birds, exotic plants) and do some trail hikes.











but the one i find most amusing is tourist-spotting. you usually see them clustered together, heads tilted upwards as if quietly looking for a prey. they also carry with them metallic gadgets that they bring up to eye-level as you can see here:



and they come in groups everywhere. here's another in Semenggoh National Park. i think they're keeping their eyes peeled for the Orang Utans.



another special group is found in a mosque. the female species are garbed in blue long robes and a piece of cloth over their heads. male species on the other hand are found in their normal state.

s.w.t.

the reality of what i've been doing never really dawned on me until i met Zahid.

Zahid is a Bangladeshi linguistic researcher who joined our jungle trek to one of the villages in Sarawak, Malaysia. Eight hours trek, one river crossed, numerous hills traversed, and one rainy night after, we had a small "chat". He discovered that I've been to several countries and was mostly travelling on my own. Amazed was he when I could keep up with their hike, and ate whatever (and with whatever) I was fed.

All this time, he thought solo women travellers are confined to European females only. He never saw any Asian woman do it. He thought all Asian female travellers are finicky and "sheltered".

I definitely broke his mindset.

After we dropped him off, he simply uttered, "You are unbelievable!"

*gasp* it's official:

I am a solo woman traveller.

nearly thirty

my 29th brings me to malaysia this year.

there's something about reaching a certain twenty-nth age that you just stop celebrating. for me, i try to escape reality by running off to another country or a different place than home.

coward.