A Glimpse of "Last Time" in Borneo
continued
Former Headman's Resting Place
The boat arrived at around 11:00 am, so I showered the headwoman and other people with thanks and boarded the boat back to Tatau. Had I gone to the longhouses popular with tourists I would have probably been given better tasting food, seen dances and such put on just for the tourists, and been taken on a tour given to every tourist. I would probably have come away with some better pictures too, as they would know what tourists like to snap photos of. But I would have missed all the spontaneity that I saw the first evening as people went about their daily lives. I would have missed interesting conversations with people who have rarely seen white people. After all, I went to the Sarawak Cultural Center in Kuching to see what was on display for tourists (and had a great time, I should add). The experience of Rumah Bilong was real, a genuine glimpse of a fast-disappearing life. It was a much richer experience for that. And hey, the dog curry wasn't all that bad!
Robert Wilson is an English teacher in northern Thailand. Pictures of his travels can be seen at photos.yahoo.com/robert_92122.
Other stories in this series:
Finding Religions—Plenty of Them—in Kuala Lumpur
Luang Phabang: The Lao Fairy-tale City
From Monkey to Monk
Along Cambodia's Backroads
Listening to the Rice Grow: A Journey Up the Nam Ou River in Laos (Part 1 and
Part 2)
Don't miss future articles from Robert in our continuing series, Window on Southeast Asia.
