into the Borneo rainforest, one of the oldest in the world.
Our destination was the small Bidayuh village of Annah Rais, where the 500 or so villagers live in a traditional longhouse. A longhouse is like a small collection of huts or houses raised above the ground and connected together by a bamboo floor which acts like a walkway and a 'drying board'. The use of bamboo doesn't stop here as it is used in almost all forms of activity and is the single most valuable natural resource here.
Not being quite sure what to expect we were a little surprised that we were the only visitors staying in the village of 500 plus or so. It was a great way to get off the beaten track and meet with the locals (those that could speak English anyway). It was however a bit alarming when we learnt that this village was one of the most notorious of the old Borneo Head Hunter tribes and proceeded to show us some of the skulls they had collected. Assurances were given that they no longer behave in this way now!
On arrival we were greeted with a fried rice breakfast and met with our guide, local villager, Tony. Tony is one of these old and wise jungle types and was very much at home leading us through the jungle as he'd hack a path out with his machete. Collecting plants and leafs as he went Tony led us to a waterfall where we could cool off. What could of been perceived as mindless hacking and slashing soon became clear as 'harvesting' as Tony proceeded to cook us up a lunch of chicken in Bamboo with wild ginger and fern, and rice served in the leaf.
The following day there was more machete based jungle trekking. This time we made our way through the jungle resulting in quite possibly the most sweat released in a single hour possible. A sharp turn of the head would result in an Ali v Foreman style sweat fountain. In a vain effort to cool down (and due to the fact it was the only way to go) the shoes came off and we had to wade waist deep in the river to make our way upstream.
The reward however was just. Tony built an 18 foot long bamboo raft and took us on an hour long cruise down the river Venitian Gondola style. Of course he had to stop a few times to teach any low hanging branches a lesson or two with his machete. We also had to get off and guide it over some rocks a couple of times. Despite this it was one the most relaxing ways of seeing the jungle, gently meandering down stream whilst lying back and enjoying the view.
In the evening we were treated to some fantastic and humungous portions, usually six or seven different foods for dinner plus soup. We had the traditional rice in bamboo, chicken in bamboo, fish in bamboo, and of course roasted bamboo shoots. Seriously, the use of bamboo is everywhere and they have nine different varieties here each with it's own specific use. We also tucked into some river fish, including catfish, and some river snails we had collected during our rafting. We also had a bottle of the local tipple, rice wine, or tuak as it's known. We're going to put this one down as an acquired taste.
On our final day we visited the nearby hot springs. These are natural hot springs and as such the temperatures are not regulated. These pools however were hot enough to boil an egg in so we choose to stay clear and take a dip in the river instead. On the way back to Kuching we stopped off at an Oran Utan rehabilitation centre where we got to see plenty of wild Oran Utans come swinging through the jungle.
They're so human in movement that when they're down on the ground look like humans in costume. In Malay, Oran Utan means 'people of the forest' and it's easy to see where the name comes from.
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