MY 2-DAY TRIP IN THE MAJESTIC COUNTRY OF BRUNEI DARUSSALAM

  The Jame ASR Hassanil Bolkiah Mosque

This is my first time to visit Brunei Darussalam, just a side trip when I climbed Mount Kinabalu.  Just for a reference, Brunei is a tiny nation on the island of Borneo with a total area of 5,765 square kilometers or 2,226 square miles, where the island of Samar of the Philippines is even bigger with a total land area of 6,048.03 square kilometers.   It has 2 distinct sections surrounded by Malaysia and the South China Sea. The capital of Brunei is Bandar Seri Begawan, the only city of the country, the home to the opulent Jame'Asr Hassanil Bolkiah mosque and its 29 golden domes.  The capital's massive Istana Nurul Iman palace is the residence of Brunei's ruling sultan.

Day 1

Lunch stopover in the town of Pekan Sipitang of Sabah, Malaysia

Our tour package afforded us to have a van transport from the city of Kota Kinabalu, also a part of Sabah, Malaysia.  After 2 hours and 50 minutes of land travel from Kota Kinabalu, we had a stopover for lunch in the town of Pekan Sipitang, also a part of Sabah.

Arriving Brunei after 6 hours of land travel from Kota Kinabalu

It actually took us four passport stamps for our land travel from Kota Kinabalu to Brunei, because there is a need to cross both Sarawak/Sabah and Brunei/Malaysia borders.  You will get stamped out of Sabah, into/out of Sarawak/Limbang, and into/out of Brunei's exclave (Temburong) before reaching mainland Brunei.  This this is the detailed road travel key checkpoints:

           Checkpoint 1:  Exit Sabah, Malaysia (Sindumin)

           Checkpoint 2:  Enter Sarawak, Malaysia (Merapok)

           Checkpoint 3:  Exit Sarawak (Limbang/Pandaruan)

           Checkpoint 4:  Enter Brunei (Temburong District)

Dinner treat at Borneo Kopitiam Restaurant with my cousin

As soon as we arrived in Brunei, my travel buddies had check-in to their accommodation which is just within the city center while I my cousin, Jovito Bracero, who works in Brunei, met me and treated me for dinner at Borneo Kopitiam and drove me to my accommodation at Poni Homestay just near his accommodation.  It was our first meeting after so many years, so he gave me 50 Brunei Dollars with peso equivalent of P2,350 and a Philippine peso of P1,700.  I only exchanged P6,000 at the nearby foreign exchange which was converted to 130.43 Brunei Dollars.

The Sultan Haji Omar Ali Saifuddien Bridge

After dinner, Jovito tour me around Brunei.  The first destination that we visited was the entrance of the Sultan Haji Omar Ali Saifuddien Bridge.  This is the very bridge that we passed thru earlier in going to Brunei from Kota Kinabalu.  This is also called Temburong Bridge, a 30-kilometer and US$1.7B structure connecting Brunei's Temburong District to the capital, Bandar Seri Begawan.  It is considered as the Southeast Asia's longest bridge which includes 14km of marine viaducts, 12km of swamp viaducts, two cable-stayed spans, and advanced RGBW LED lighting, cutting travel time to under 30 minutes.

With the backdrop of Sultan Haji Omar Ali Saifuddien Bridge

Jovito served to be my photographer and videographer.  He drove me from point to point of destination where he showed to me.  Luckily, the evening weather was perfect.  The weather is just the same with that of the Philippines.

With the backdrop of Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque

This area which Jovito brought me is a part of Brunei Darussalam Heritage Trail where we entered the Perpuspaan Main Gate 1968, this is a historic monument in Bandar Seri Begawan of Brunei, built to commemorate the coronation of the current Sultan, Hassanal Bolkiah, in August 1968.   This was originally located at a water village entrance, it was moved to its current site near the Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque in 1993.

The dancing light fountain

Another angle shot of the Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque

A wider angle shot of the Perpuspaan Main Gate 1968

The giant picture frame

The following are random shots while I was boarding my cousin's car heading to my accommodation where I stayed for 3 days and 2 nights.

After the quick evening tour, my cousin dropped me to my accommodation to check-in at 10:21 P.M.  It was so close to his accommodation where he works.

Poni Homestay:  My accommodation

Poni Homestay is a 3-star accommodation in Bandar Seri Begawan in Brunei located about 18.9 kilometers from the city center which sits in Muara at Lot 3480, Simpang 170, Jalan Serasa.  It has free parking on site and free wifi set with airconditioned rooms with a garden view.  It is so close to snorkeling area.  In fact, most of the guests are scuba divers.

Day 2

My cousin drove me to the city center to meet my travel buddies that availed this Brunei travel package.  It was such a refreshing day blessed with a perfect weather.

The Gadong Centerpoint

I was the only joiner who checked in outside the city center, thus, my cousin has to drive me to meet all my travel buddies at the city center early in the morning.

A Jollibee fastfood in Brunei city center

There is a Jollibee fastfood in Brunei, the topmost favorite fastfood of Filipinos, unfortunately, I had already a breakfast in my cousin's flat.

The Mall

This is just next block to Gadong Centerpoint.  Since, I arrived at 6:14 A.M. so early for the day tour, I explored alone at the nearby establishments establishments.  They were still sleeping in their rooms.

First Destination: Royal Regalia Museum

The Royal Regalia Museum

For the entrance at the museum, I paid 6 Brunei Dollars or an equivalent of P261.   By the way, ours was not really a tour package.  It was only organized for us, and we have to pay on the spot for every location we are in with no add on at all.  Just a bonus for us by our Mount Kinabalu climb service provider in the person of Dr. Eric Ranchez and wife Jonah Chavez Ranchez. This is also the arrangement for our Kota Kinabalu city tour.

To get inside the museum, one has to remove his/her footwear and leave it at the entrance. The following pictures are taken inside the museum:

Second Destination:   The Big Wall

The Big Wall

This attraction is a massive 15-story high mural located on Jalan Roberts in the capital, Bandar Seri Begawan, which was created by local artists to beautify the area where it features vibrant paintings of Kampong Ayer, the national Bunga Simpur flower, and Jawi calligraphy, makit it a popular cultural landmark and photo spot.

Destination 3:  The Colored Buildings

The Colored Buildings

These colored buildings near the prominent wall in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei, refer to the vibrant, multi-story shophouses located along Jalan Roberts and Jalan Sultan.  Situated opposite the massive stone retention wall that borders the Yayasan area, these colorful, historic structures blend traditional Chinese and Malay architecture.