Nation of Brunei

             

This mosque is truly magnificent in every way possible. I walked completely around the gateway. It wasn’t clear to me if I was allowed to enter, so I only walked maybe 1/3 of the way towards the mosque and then, out of respect, decided I should turn around. The mosque is surrounded by water on 3-sides, with a large ceremonial, highly decorated “boat”  floating next to it.

Over the last few years, the sultan has added a large space next to the mosque, which is kinda an open park space for both locals and tourists to enjoy. I only saw a few people walking around. There’s also a modern foot bridge which is very nice, and includes a half moon sculpture in the middle.

When I got back into Hans car, he told me that he had asked the gentleman at the front of the mosque if I would be allowed to enter, as they do allow tourists on certain days and at certain times. We drive to the front, I put on a appropriate cover to hide my legs, and was given a quick tour of the interior. As a surprise, one of the caretakers asked me if I’d like to take a photo or two, and I said if that was allowed, I’d be honored. I even took a quick video, with his permission. Fantastico!

After that, I walked through the Royal Regalia Centre, which showcases the coronation of the sultan.

I was then taken to walk through the Empire Hotel, which is a monstrous hotel complex, hugging the waterfront (I believe it’s located in the southern part of the South China Sea). When the Empire was first built, I was told it was one of just a handful of 6 star hotels in the world. The lower lobby is over the top incredible, with 75 foot “gold painted” tall pillars. Outside, there’s a number of water features, pools, plus a couple of private coves, a golf course, and the shoreline. I was there as the sun was going down, so the timing was great.

 

Just before I was picked up about 7:00 AM, it was pouring rain. The ride took 20 minutes, then I hopped into a fast water taxi for a 45-minute trip to the town of Bangar. Along the way, we passed through a maze of waterways/water highways, dense forest areas and lots of mangroves.

Afterwards, I took another vehicle to Batang Duri. Enjoyed morning tea, before boarding a long boat for Ulu Temburong, which is a National Park. It’s interesting to note that this park in Brunei is separated by water from the rest of the country, with a sliver of Malaysia betweeni the 2 parts of Brunei.

Ulu Temburong is known for its dense forest with an elevated canopy walkway. We walked along a dirt pathway and a 750 step incline (ouch). Once on top, I was faced with a 25 story, straight vertical scaffolding ascent. I walked up 3 flights and just couldn’t go any further, as my legs were unsteady. I wasn’t able to enjoy the scenic views from the canopy above, which was the main reason I signed up for this tour. I’m super bummed out that I had to turn back, but I gave it all I had, and have to be satisfied with what I was able to achieve.

We then visited a waterfall.

Part of this tour included a rafting/kayaking trip down a moderately small river.

At 1:30 PM we enjoyed lunch, and then started to head back to Bandar Seri Begawan, arriving around 5:00 PM.

The weather was about 80 degrees, lots of clouds, and the humidity once we entered the rainforest was incredibly intense (I was 100% wet, through and through).

About 100 people make this trip per day, of whom about 10-15 get all the way to the top of the canopy. In our group, we had 4 tourists from China, all under 25-years old, 1 32 year old guy from London, and me, a61  year old guy. Only the guy from London made it to the top of the canopy. I asked him to Airdrop me a few of his photos from the canopy, so I could see what I missed, and share those with you as well.

tour info:  Freme Travel Services
Total cost approximately USD $108

Brunei factoids:

400,000+  locals reside in the country

First off was a stop at the gorgeous Jame Asr Hassanil Bolkiah Mosque. It’s surrounded by gold painted metal fences, with a huge covered walkway to the entrance of the mosque (it has cubby units for worshipers to leave their shoes before entering to pray).

The actual mosque is very large, with a number of gold covered smaller domes, as well as one large dome. Unfortunately it’s not open to visitors on Thursdays, so I wasn’t able to go inside. On the grounds of the mosque are water features, and some very nice garden areas, not to mention a grand circle outer staircase. Overall, stunningly beautiful!

As we were driving to a waterfall I had read about, we passed a nice looking park, so I hopped out of the car and walked around for a few minutes. There’s a small river running towards the back of the park, and I saw a large monitor water lizard, but it was way to fast for me to get a photo of it running along the waters edge. I did see 2 smaller ones as well.

I was then taken to a different park which is fairly close to the main part of the city. It felt like it was part of a small forest area. About 3/4 of a mile in, there’s a very picturesque waterfall.

In the afternoon I had booked a 1/2 day tour of the original water village, as well as a mangrove forest. Unfortunately, the driver never showed up.