© Lonely Planet 572 Brunei ‘Where is Brunei?’ is usually the first question travellers ask – a query that can easily be solved with a map . ‘What is Brunei?’ – now that’s a much more difficult question to answer. It may seem like nothing more than a bucktoothed bite mark nibbled off the Bornean coast, but there is a lot more to this wee sultanate than meets the eye, and that’s where things get tricky. So perhaps it’s best to start with the things that Brunei is not. Brunei is not an ubermodern emirate bustling with a Vegas-like energy, nor is it an uptight Muslim stronghold ruled with an iron fist. This may surprise visitors at first – especially when they discover that the serene capital city (10 points if you can name it without looking at the highlights!) seems to prefer ramshackle stilt villages to architectural allegories for world domination. But make no mistake, Brunei isn’t a backwater oil rig either. In fact, for many centuries the sultan’s power extended across the entirety of Borneo and over to the Philippines. But far more interesting than the tall tales of erstwhile power is watching how this micro- nation grapples with its modern identity. Youngsters memorise names of popular recordings with the same alacrity as historical minutia, while higher up in the ranks, princes ride the waves of ‘black gold’, erecting myriad monuments to misguided spending. Day trippers will barely peer beyond the very staid mosques, markets and museums, so it’s well worth hanging around as the Napoleonic bravado melts away to reveal a spellbinding saga of one sultan and his faithful people. HIGHLIGHTS Wandering through spaceship-like mosques, a wobbly wooden stilt village, and several Empire Hotel historical museums in Brunei’s quiet capital, Bandar Serí Bandar Seri Begawan ( p577 ) Gadong Begawan Unleashing your inner sultan during a lavish weekend at the gold-encrusted Empire Temburong Hotel ( p586 ) Trudging through untouched acres of pris- tine rainforest in Temburong ( p590 ) Discovering Brunei’s version of nightlife at the shopping malls in Gadong ( p583 ) Diving mouth-first into the country’s unique dining scene, sampling the gamut of local BRUNEI BRUNEI cuisine ( p584 ) POPULATION: 390,000 AREA : 5765 SQ KM lonelyplanet.com BRUNEI •• History 573 0 20 km BRUNEI 0 12 miles Pantai Pantai Meragang Muara Bukit To Pulau Labuan Serasa Shahbandar Muara (35km) (103m) Empire Hotel MUARA Pulau Selirong Pantai Brunei Brunei Bay Sungai Basong International Jerudong Park Airport Playground Bandar Seri Jerudong Park Begawan Sundar S O U T H Medical Centre Lawas Sungai C H I N A Tutong Kampung BruneiBukit Pantai Parit Sale (218m) TEMBURONG S E A Seri Kenangan Sinaut Labu Trusan Kampung Limau Manis Abang Limbang Kampung Telisai Kuala Lurah Bukit Peradayan (410m) Bangar Oil & Gas Layong Sungai Lumut Tem Sun Bukit Patoi (310m) Discovery Centre Kampung Lamunin gai Forestry Sungai Liang burong Museum Tasek Peradayan Kuala Tedungan/Puni Forest Terusan Belait Seria Sungai Liang Merimbun Forest Recreation Reserve Sungai Park Kampung Batang Duri Sungai Kampung Kampung Kuala Belait Badas Merimbun Tujuh Sungai Mau Sungai Sungai Baram Kuala Belalong Luagan Lalak Field Studies Centre Limb Bukit Belalong Kuala Forest Reserve TUTONG Sungai Sungai (913m) Balai Damit ang Tutong Labi Ulu Temburong Wasai Wong Kadir National Park Miri Baram Rampayoh ὈὈ BELAIT Kampung Bukit Teraja Sukang Peat Swamp (442m) Forest Kampung Bukit Pagon Melilas (1850m) SARAWAK Marudi M A L A Y S I A ὈὈGunung Mulu National SARAWAK Park M A L A Y S I A HISTORY whittled away until, with a final dash of The earliest recorded references to Brunei’sὈὈ absurdity, Limbang was ceded to Sarawak presence relate to China’s trading connec- in 1890, dividing the crippled sultanate into tions with ‘Pu-ni’ in the 6th century, dur- two parts. ing the Tang dynasty. Prior to the region’s In 1929, just as Brunei was about to be embrace of Islam, Brunei was within the swallowed up entirely, oil was discovered, boundaries of the Sumatran Srivijaya Empire, turning the tiny state into an economic then the Majapahit Empire of Java. By the power overnight. The present sultan’s father, 15th and 16th centuries, the so-called Golden Sultan Omar Saifuddien, kept Brunei out of Age of Sultan Bolkiah (the fifth sultan), the Malayan confederacy, preferring that the Brunei Darussalam had itself become a con- country remain a British protectorate and the siderable power in the region, with its rule oil money remain on home soil. He’s cred- extending throughout Borneo and into the ited with laying the foundations for Brunei’s Philippines. solid development. The Spanish and Portuguese were the In 1962, in the lead up to amalgamation first European visitors, arriving in the with the new state of Malaysia, the British 16th century, but failing to make inroads pressured Brunei to hold elections. The op- by force. In the early 19th century, the position Ra’ayat Party, which wanted to keep more subtle approach of the British, in the Brunei independent and make the sultan a guise of Sarawak’s first raja, James Brooke, constitutional monarch within a democracy, BRUNEI spelled the end of Brunei’s power. A series won an overwhelming victory. When the of ‘treaties’ was forced upon the sultan sultan refused to allow the new government as Brooke consolidated his hold over the into power, an armed rebellion broke out, town of Kuching. In 1888 Brunei became supported by the Indonesian government. a British protectorate and was gradually The uprising was quickly crushed with 574 BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN lonelyplanet.com British military backing, and the ‘Abode his personal or any official capacity’. Perhaps of Peace’ has been under emergency laws the sultan was worried that his marriage to a ever since. 27-year-old Malaysian journalist (technically Saifuddien abdicated in 1967, leaving the his third wife – he’s still married to the first, throne to his popular son and heir, Sultan and divorced his second in 2003) might have Hassanal Bolkiah. Early in 1984 the new ruler undermined his popularity. Either way, don’t reluctantly led his tightly ruled country into expect to see Bruneians at a polling booth complete independence from Britain. As a any time soon. former public-school boy and graduate of Whatever its political waverings, Brunei’s Sandhurst Royal Military Academy, the sul- wealth still allows its citizens to enjoy an un- tan rather enjoyed British patronage and the precedented standard of living. Literacy stands country still has close ties to Britain. at 94%, average life expectancy is 77 years, and After independence, Brunei veered to- there are pensions for all, free medical care, wards Islamic fundamentalism, adopting a free schooling, free sport and leisure centres, national ideology known as Melayu Islam cheap loans, subsidies for many purchases Beraja (MIB). This institutionalised dogma (including cars), short working weeks, no in- stresses Malay culture, Islam and monarchy, come tax and the highest minimum wages in and is promulgated through the ministries of the region. The sultan even marked his 60th education, religious affairs and information. birthday in 2006 by awarding civil servants In 1991 the sale of alcohol was banned and their first pay rise in 20 years. Economic di- stricter dress codes were introduced, and in versification and new deep-sea explorations 1992 the study of MIB became compulsory for oil aim to keep the cash rolling in, and as in schools. long as it does, the people of Brunei should In recent years signs have begun to emerge stay happy with their lot. that Brunei is not the model state it once was. The government has recognised a relatively NATIONAL PARKS & RESERVES small but growing unemployment problem, Brunei has one major national park and several and disaffected youths have been blamed for forest reserves, including the following: isolated incidents of crime. The most disaf- Lake Merimbun ( p588 ; 1.2 sq km) Centred on Brunei’s fected youth of them all, the sultan’s younger largest lake, this park, 27km inland south of Tutong, has brother Prince Jefri, became a byword for trails and nature observation posts. extravagance both in his private life and, Peradayan Forest Reserve ( p589 ; 10.7 sq km) A rather more seriously, in his role as finance section of the Peradayan Forest Reserve in Brunei’s minister (see the boxed text, p587 ). The sultan Temburong district; treks through the jungle lead to sacked Jefri in 1997, but the damage had been the summits of Bukit Patoi (310m) and Bukit Peradayan done, and Brunei found itself with seriously (410m). depleted financial reserves. Ulu Temburong National Park ( p590 ; 500 sq km) Perhaps as a result of these factors, the pre- An untouched expanse of forest, with trails and a canopy vailing climate in Brunei today seems to be walk; accessible by longboat only. one of controlled reform as the sultan strug- gles to keep pace with the modern world. In 2004 the legislative council was finally re- stored after 20 years of ‘ emergency’ law. So BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN far the 29 incumbents are all royal relatives pop 258,000 or cronies, but the constitution has been If you’re expecting some kind of lavish mini- amended to allow the council to grow up to Dubai, think again – Brunei may fancy itself 45 members in the future, with 15 of them an oil state, but there’s no nouveau-riche elected by the public. In another significant ostentation here, and the country’s capital step, former radical leader Muhamad Yasin is as polite and unassuming as its people, Abdul Rahman, who was once jailed for his wearing its wealth almost prosaically in part in the 1962 rebellion, has been allowed places.