More on Brunei

There are many beautiful and grand mosques in Brunei, many with gold-plated domes. I can't recall what this one is called, but notice the dome- it's gold plated. Many of the domes here are gold-plated including the one at Istana Nurul Iman, which I heard is solid gold.



I love their teh tarik India. I had one glass everyday I was there. It tastes like teh tarik but the way it is prepared that is giving its presentation. First you stir condensed milk and evaporated milk in hot water; then pull it to form froth. Pour in thick hot tea. Voila!

I also sampled their Mee Kolo (but no picture to prove- as I was so hungry). I do not know whether the one I had was authentic Brunei or not, but it was sedap! It is different from Sarawak Mee Kolo (which I have never tasted, but seen pictures of). Cucur Pisang and Murtabak Kosong is Goreng Pisang and Roti Canai, respectively in Bruneispeak.

I went to Jerudong Park, but it was closed during my stay there. They only open during the weekends. Admission and the rides used to be free until year 2000.


The Kampung Air was a nice experience. The 10-seconds boat ride costs 50 cents a way. The people may appear to be poor, but I change my mind when I saw their cars, parked at the specially built parking bay near the jetty.

Signboards of establishments are written in Jawi as well as Rumi. I had a fun time testing my Jawi proficiency. Notice Pizza Hut is Pondok Pizza in Jawi.

Empire Hotel and Resort

This 5-star hotel lies about 20 minutes from Bandar Sei Begawan. The opulence of the hotel should merit the hotel 6 stars, but a star was deducted because this hotel does not serve alcohol. It is a lovely place for Prudential sales incentive if only the Agency people know.

We did not stay here though. I was informed a night stay costs B$199, which is reasonable. The grounds are beautifully landscaped, but I can't help but compare them with the ones in Bali which I find far more outstanding.

Interesting Finds

Instead of “Encik” and “Puan”, they use “Awang” and “Dayang”, though these could also be a family name. So, I was addressed as Dayang M. I saw “Awda” in their literature and I thought it was a typo for "anda"; but no. It is the combination of Awang and Dayang. So in a sentence, it is used like this: "Awda dijemput untuk ke majlis...."

“Kami” means “Awak”. So if you are eating with your Brunei friends, and they say “kami bayar”, it means they want you to pay.

Their official baju is called MIB, or Melayu Islam Beraja.There are about 380,000 people living in the whole sultanate, out of which a third are foreign workers or expats.

Bruneians do not ride kapcai unless they are McD delivery boys, couriers or newpaper men. Most drive to work. They ride super bikes after office hours.

Cars are cheap here. Vios costs B$23K. Mercedes B$80K. B$10 petrol can fill up the gas tank.

The drivers are very polite. They readily give way and patiently wait for you if you make a wrong turn. Generally, honking is frowned upon. You risk of getting slapped on the face if you happen to honk at the “wrong” car.

Kain ela is "the" thing to bring home. They have the "latest" designs and price is very the cheap. My friends and I enjoyed shop hopping the outlets of Nazmi, Hong, KoFom and YMRM and their branches all over Bandar Seri Begawan and Gadong.

Starting salary for a graduate working with the Govt is B$2,600. He/she enjoys free medical coverage and housing. After 15 years of service, he/she can perform the Haji for free.

Every Bruneian can apply for a piece of land or “tanah kurnia”, but it cannot be sold.

Despite their good salary and many perks, Bruneians are big borrowers; they borrow money even for hari raya celebrations.

Brunei Escapade

The plane was scheduled to take off at 3.15pm on 20th Feb 2007, but was re-timed to 4.oo pm because our assigned plane was still at Langkawi Airport. At 4.30, we were still not boarding, and then the rain came. We were given each an umbrella to cross the tarmac, but suddenly the rain got heavy and we were shooed back to the wait lounge. We finally departed at 5.30 pm amidst still bad weather. In mid-flight, there were a couple of scary turbulences, and I was very relieved and grateful when we landed, albeit late. We were further held back in the plane for another half hour, not sure why, but the plane had to get to another gate before we could disembark.

We were lucky to find a shop near our hotel, Le Gallery Suites that agreed to serve us dinner at 10 pm. We had nasi goreng kampong and teh tarik. It felt like Malaysia but we were already in a foreign land.

Merapu, meraba.

Hari ni, Embak dipaksa tukar ke format baru. Tak tahu lagi apa kelebihannya, tapi sebab dah lama tak post berita, Embak cerita dulu, sebelum intai apa yang bagusnya format baru ini.

Semalam, Embak habis membaca buku A Civil Action, oleh Jonathan Harr berkenaan kisah benar seorang peguam, Jan Schlichmann yang berjuang membela pelanggan-pelanggannya dalam satu suit melawan 2 syarikat besar dalam kes pencemaran pada tahun 80an. Embak ingat, ceritanya berakhir dengan kegembiraan, tetapi sebab ianya kisah benar, tak bolehlah pengarang membuat cerita sendiri. Walaupun akhirnya, Schlichmann berjaya mendapatkan pampasan untuk pelanggan-pelanggannya, tetapi dia menjadi bakrup. Buku ini sarat dengan proses perundangan dan prosiding di mahkamah. Penat membacanya.

Bila di "google" nama peguam ini, Embak lega yang dia kini kembali menjadi peguam, dan telah berkeluarga. Kisahnya telah dijadikan filem dengan wataknya dilakunkan oleh John Travolta. Ebert memberi 3 setengah bintang untuk filem ini.

Mulai 3 Februari, sebaiknya baik demam, Embak telah mulai kelas nurseri lanskap di UPM. Ini yang buat Embak teruja ni. Lima kali sahaja kursus ini yang akan berakhir pada 3 Mac ini, yang kebetulan Hari Lanskap Negara. Sekarang memang tengah kemaruk subjek ini.

Rancangan TV yang Embak ikuti sekarang ialah American Idol. Cuba juga nak tengok Heroes, dan Gray's Anatomy, tapi tak gi lah. Akhirnya Embak tengok balik DVD House MD Seasons 1-2. Tiada yang setanding siri House ini. Bilalah AXN nak mula siarkan Season 3?

Itu sahajalah rapuan ku ini. Oh, sebelum tu, Embak nak cerita, satu hari di masjid subang jaya, Embak terdengar sekumpulan budak perempuan sekolah agama bercerita, in disgust tentang seorang ustaz yang suka meraba. Mereka menggelarnya "Rubber Tapper".