admit that my knowledge in this area have improved significantly since I started traveling, as I have said on several occasions, I consider the most effective method of learning. Thus, the first time I learned of the existence of a country called Brunei, was not referring to any atlas, but flipping through a magazine Hello that fell into my hands. Sultan spoke of a filthy rich and opulence and luxury are manifested in each and every one of the photos feature where they dominated the gold, silks, marble and wood. Brunei then placed on the map but I never thought that one day could travel there and a lot less than you might see in person to that fairy-tale character.
Located in the northwest of the island of Borneo and nestled between the Malaysian states of Sarawak and Sabah, is almost covered by tropical rainforest and has a warm and humid throughout the year. The tourism industry is poorly developed and there are few travelers who will spend a few days. However, it seems they are beginning to promote the country and I read somewhere that Brunei have been baptized as " Venice Asian "by the amount of overlying rivers. I do not know how many "Venice" will in the world but apparently, any place that boasts tourist speaking, be compared with the city of canals.
Between the XIV and XVI was a very powerful sultanate and his Kingdom covered the entire island of Borneo and the southwestern Philippines. Upon arrival of the Europeans their power was weakened and in the nineteenth century lost most of its territory was taken over by the White Rajas of Sarawak. From the fourteenth century the Sultan has been in the same dynasty and is the head of state and government. The Islam is the official religion of Brunei and the Sultan is also the religious head of the country, so it falls on the same figure the total and absolute power. During the 60's there was a small rebellion against the monarchy that was controlled by the United Kingdom, of which Brunei was a protectorate (from 1888 to 1984). Subsequently, Brunei did not take part in the Federation Malay and has remained to this day as an independent country, without having to share with their neighbors the benefits of the exploitation of its abundant mineral resources: oil fields, natural gas and coal.
But all is not as nice as it looks for that great wealth is concentrated in the hands of the king and his entourage. The government is formed by a Privy Council, a Council of Ministers and a Legislative Council of 20 members, positions held by family and friends of the Sultan. Of its nearly 400,000 inhabitants, Bruneians do not reach 30,000. That minority has a high standard of living while the rest of the population, mainly immigrants from Malay and Chinese, who makes a living in the country but your privileges are limited. But I must say that in Brunei do not pay taxes, Social Security is free and the price of gasoline to laugh.
is from an absolute monarchy despite the king studied in London and has a great affinity with that country, the government has little tolerance in many respects. It is an Islamic country where people are forced to follow the strict model of religion. It is totally forbidden to consume alcohol and if a citizen of Brunei baby out of the country, is punished with imprisonment upon his return. There is also a penalty of ten years' imprisonment for homosexual relations and so on.
After reading some pretty critical and discouraging about the country, we were wondering whether it was worth spending a few days but when I by dates that we had the opportunity to coincide with the anniversary celebrations of the Sultan, the decision was easy to make.
Punctual we go to pick up at 11:30 am as we had left and apparently share a ride with Indonesian boy who travels to Brunei to visit his mother. A few miles away, the driver delivers us the visa papers for filling go quietly. We asked for passports and without lowering the car even passed the relevant output controls entry to Malaysia and Brunei respectively. And into new territory but following the same landscape, crossing almost the entire country, as the Empire Hotel where we stayed is located in the north, in Jerudong, near the capital Bandar Seri Begawan.
We said goodbye to fellow travelers on the hotel door and we gasp at check in. It is a fad that we are not used already allowed us to stay at such hotels. I knew of their existence by reading the comments on his blog Florencio friend http://fmanega.blogspot.com/2007/12/lujo-asiatico-en-borneo.html and accommodation rather than consider it as an attraction the country that can not be missed.
The Empire Hotel & Country Club it was built by the brother of Sultan , Prince Jefri that almost left the country in ruins, its frantic pace of waste. The Empire is known as the 6-star hotel and its construction, which cost U.S. $ 1100 million, was carried out with the rich and refined materials brought from all over the world. After registering and changing currency (1 € = 1,625 B $ or B $) got into the room which is located in the Seaview building with beautiful views over the South China Sea. The campus is huge and we delivered a plan to put the various services. The hotel staff and customers wish they move from one place to another in golf carts, but we prefer to walk to the room. This is elegant, decorated in warm shades of blue but the most spectacular is the bathroom, with beautiful black marble tub in front of a window overlooking the sea. We're not used to moving between such luxury and examine every detail as if we were to find the hidden treasure.
With map in hand let's walk around the facility. The hotel covers an area of \u200b\u200b180 hectares and its construction involved a team of 200 architects and designers. The most striking is the so-called spectacular atrium with columns of 80 meters. Gold abound, but are combined with exquisite avoiding vulgarity. The marbles and granites are Italian and in some areas the soils are worked with tiles forming different drawings depicting birds, borders and motifs. The lamps are Swarovski crystal and stair rails are inlaid work. The carpets and rugs are made with wool New Zealand, cotton sheets, towels and linen is Egyptian and the furniture is French and Italian. In the very best that found at the time!. The hotel has a cinema, theater, 5 or 6 restaurants, shops, private beach and 9 swimming pools that are needed to fill 12,285,000 liters of water. Speaking of figures, it is also interesting to note that adding all paths from the hotel and country club, made no less than 22 miles.
When we got to the pool area, we were amazed. We eat there and then back to the room to put on our bathing suits. Upon entering, another surprise awaits us: we have left some dishes with chocolates and pastries courtesy of home. Greedy as we are, in a plasma plis leave no trace. All parts of the tableware and home accessories are Asprey London and the silverware .
went down to the pool and do not know where to start. One pool refers to a small beach and continues to the sea. We spent the afternoon enjoying the facilities and trying to track down each of the corners.
After dinner, we approach the activities desk, where an attentive young man tells us about the bus schedules to BSB, the Sultan's birthday party and had a good time chatting with her about different aspects of their country and culture which feel proud.
already in the room, the night gives us a big storm and lightning lit the sky over the South China Sea.
l E second day was very intense and us and us 6am alarm clock. Here the day starts early and although it seems strange, at 6:30 the breakfast room is already full. In fact, today is a special day because it celebrates the 64th anniversary of Sultan Hassanal Bolkiak and many of the distinguished invited guests are staying at the Hotel Empire.
For the clothing they wear, I imagine that many who are having breakfast at this hour will attend official events. Women, very elegant and with his head covered, yes, and most men wear the traditional dress of the country, shirt and black pants with a skirt kind of rich gold embroidery overlay essentially combined maroon and dark green. They all look in the chest medals and ribbons, so we deduce that must be important people. wait We went public bus that goes to BSB and stops at the hotel at 7am, while we contemplate the big car luxury fro picking up all the personalities who have had breakfast so fast as we are unable to enjoy the magnificent and abundant buffet. For the hotel spend two public buses, 57 and 58. In fact only a purple minibuses and cost only $ 1 B. For a number of stops and it took almost an hour to get to BSB. The area where the hotel is where people live more resources and we are running through different neighborhoods with stately mansions but not everyone in Brunei live in a very affluent. We arrived at BSB and down near Taman Sir Muda Omar Ali HJ Saifuddien, a large square which hosts the events.
The downtown streets are festooned with huge banners of congratulations and all city buildings such banks, shopping malls, public buildings, the headquarters of the airline, etc. in their facades look great pictures with the image of the monarch and the country's flag. We stayed in the Sultan Julan avenue which already focuses a lot of people looking forward to his majesty. In the center of the plaza, on the grass, stiff as sticks and sweating are still soldiers of different armies. In the stands sit under cover of government personalities, family and other VIP's.
the background, the golden domed mosque complete the stage where many journalists to try to capture the powerful objectives better picture of the day. It's funny to see many of the men with the typical dress of Brunei, but women do not wear distinctive detail with respect to neighboring countries and look the tissue with more or less gracefully. There are also a lot of police presence to their brand new BMW and women wear a light blue handkerchief under the uniform cap.
Most train cars are Rolls Royce and I guess that belong to the large collection of the Sultan. A collection well known to all fans of luxury cars as it is mentioned frequently in various magazines. Its fleet is estimated at more than 7000 vehicles from brands such as Rolls Royce, Aston Martin, Mercedes, Bentley, Lotus, Lamborghini, Jaguar or Ferrari, among others. However, the highlight of his collection is the originality and uniqueness of the touches and finishes, such as the Rolls Royce with solid gold decorations used at weddings. It also has a large collection of Formula 1 car champions.
I imagine that the guests will have to pay much imagination when buying birthday gifts for a person who has everything. For example, in 1996 to celebrate its 50 years, Michael Jackson hired the same year, there was a week-long celebration with concerts by Stevie Wonder and Whitney Houston to celebrate marriage of his eldest daughter to whom he gave nothing more and nothing less than an Airbus when he turned 18.
Since we were not invited to the palace food, try to devote the rest of the day to learn something about BSB Area .
We went to the Mosque of Omar Ali Saifuddien we have not lost sight of during the celebration and named the 28 and father of the current sultan, who ordered lift. It was built in 1958 in an artificial lake near the river Sungai Kedayan . Stresses the great stone ship is a replica of a sixteenth-century royal barge. It is not permitted to enter non-Muslims and we must settle for admiring the building from the outside. On a side door ajar can see inside but the slightest movement with the camera a policeman approached me and asked me to show you the latest pictures taken. When they see that I have not taken any pictures, relax and just talking about the FIFA and the English. We turn and continue along the lake toward the dock. We passed the Yayasan shopping that despite having closed stores focus a lot of people on the ground floor, I imagine it to cool the intense heat. Most people round here are immigrants, many of them Indians.
arrived to the pier where there is a frantic taxi boats moving back and forth continuously. This confluence of rivers Kedayan and Sungai Sungai Brunei and hired a boat trip with the idea of \u200b\u200breaching the reserve Pulau Ranggu and then visit Kampung Ayer.
started the course and off-center and went through the Persian Taman Park Damu from where a beautiful view of the Sultan's palace, Istana Nurul Iman with its 1788 rooms 200 / 4 bath, cost more than U.S. $ 350 million. We also pass in front of the mosque Hassanal Bolkiah Jame'Asr , built in 1992 to celebrate the 25 anniversary of the mandate of the Sultan.
mangroves grow and continue upstream to the reserve Pulau Ranggu , a species of mangrove island where lives a large colony of proboscis monkeys. We turn in the direction back to BSB and visited Kampung Ayer, a town of about 30,000 completely built on wooden stilts in the water. The town has several primary schools, restaurants, two mosques, power station, fire and police or even a museum. We walk around the maze trying to imagine how normal a day passes in Kampung Ayer. People move in taxis and the traffic from one side to another is constant. We returned to the dock after two hours of travel, so we consider a reasonable price $ 15 B per person.
We stroll around the dock where all the little shops are open but it is so crowded that we can hardly or walk. Already been done lunchtime and headed toward the center that is full of small restaurants.
After lunch and a view that all museums are closed, we decided to return to the hotel. Buses 57 and 58 are the only ones that stop at the Empire Hotel and are rare so we must wait almost an hour while we entertain ourselves in the busy season. We spent the rest of the afternoon walking, reading and soaking in the pools.
next day we continued with the same lines buenvivir. I vote for BSB back to visit museums but I am in a minority of one against two who prefer a little pampering the body. Around two p.m. ask a taxi to the airport and pick us up a brand new Mercedes that in fifteen minutes we left the terminal to catch a flight from Air Asia to Kota Kinabalu, the capital of the province of Sabah, again Malaysian Borneo.
The flood that has fallen overnight and morning rain still requires us to change plans and discard the idea of \u200b\u200bgoing to PNLamber Hills. Thus, also has no sense to plant at 8:30 in a shopping center in Miri, so call reception delaying the transfer to the city to 10. This morning, all TV channels give the news that the English team won the World Cup in South Africa, the talk of the star of the trip, both taxi drivers and waiters with no exceptions. 
We went to Central Market and give a tour of the various positions and by the shophouses external run mostly by Chinese. We have still 
Miri We continue our tour and arrived at the port reminiscent of the small fishing village that was Miri before the oil settle in the city. 
Although it has been a great day and do not have time to go to PN Lamber Hills and being Monday Petroleum Museum is closed for weekly holiday, which means that we can not know the Grand Old Lady, the first oil well. 
Visiting a longhouse is one of the most sought after attractions in Borneo, but not interest me at all to go to a longhouse tourism, how pretty it was. For that we had visited the Sarawak Cultural Village when we were at the Rainforest World Music Festival . Before entering a longhouse (unless you have paid a considerable amount to a tour operator) always wait to be invited. In the tourist office on paper scored me the name of the boss, Rh.Jarek, with whom we should ask. It did not look too out why soon to meet us. First we approached the head and then a group of women and children who invited us to enter. 
The chief and some of the younger women speak English well and are bombarded with questions. The rest, listen without understanding, but we look and smile. They are also interested in aspects of our culture and greatly surprised they only have a daughter and they have an average of six children. The longhouse is relatively small, and is "only" 23 doors. We have proud to have electricity 24 hours a day, running water, toilets and the small town also has a kindergarten and an elementary school. I am interested in the famous tattoos were, if only the oldest of these shows the tattoo on the nut. The tattoos were accustomed to the whole body, arms, legs and back and top of your hand if you had cut off a human head. The different reasons, flowers and birds, have a great symbolism and each design has its own reason for being. Tattoos are surprised by Westerners and do not understand very well that fashion, although young people were, but not the whole body tattoos like their ancestors, some current design combined with other traditional. 
To access paths should cross the Sungai Niah river boat and there is no bridge. 1RM only costs but the journey does not last even two minutes as it is literally going from one bank to another. The first thing is is a small museum located in a beautiful wooden building that shows the different archaeological site, which showed the presence of humans about 40,000 years ago. Besides being the first town in all of Southeast Asia, was never abandoned. It has found a large cemetery where the different periods from the Paleolithic to 1400 BC located in different layers, demonstrate this fact. Also found many items, from pottery, jewelry, etc. that accompanied the deceased during their long journey to the afterlife. 
The first cave is located, the call Merchants Cave, is where formerly conducted business transactions . 
The place is impressive and the rock formations are covered with a greenish color of guano. The cave is quite dark and the light from the flashlight does not reach the highest point and can not see the nest but can hear the cries of birds overhead. Must walk with caution because the ground is very slippery. The images from inside the Great Cave to the outside of a movie straight out of Indiana Jones and stalactites hanging from the ceiling along with the forest vegetation in the background we offer a magnificent panorama. The boardwalk continues inside the cave, but first you have to climb a long staircase. That the torch is why it is essential completely dark and we look good where we put the feet. Here the scene of Indiana Jones movie becomes a horror film scenario. In some places there are holes through which natural light enters and dimly lit. 
turn to Miri and now it lead to another kid, that of long fingernails. We wonder if we stop at the beach but prefer to follow the path. The return trip has been more or less the same, perhaps it has not reached the 160 but has dropped from 140km / h. We have left the hotel, we have paid 180RM and never again. The tour but we love the fame I had read on the hostel Highlands not see too well deserved: three quarters of an hour late, tight like sardines in a fairly rickety car and what is worse, a suicide at the wheel. We have given no picnic bag as he had read and not spoken to us throughout the journey. At least we have returned safe and sound. 