It started to drizzle a bit when we reached Tutong but fortunately, it stopped raining once we reached Kg Bukit. Along the way to reach Kg Bukit, we saw houses situated a few in between, with some areas opened to grazing cows and crops. Eventually, we reached the village's centre or hall, where we were greeted by the Penghulu & Ketua Kampung as well as some villagers.
We were welcomed with open arms. We sat in the audience and were given a welcoming speech by the head of the village. The village is famous for its handcraft especially of traditional Bruneian designs such as 'Takiding' and 'nyiru'. After question and answer sessions, we were free to talk to the locals and watch their live demonstrations of basket weavings and such. They were also selling their local products and handicrafts. Some weavings are intricately designed and patterned.
As a souvenir, I bought a woven basket which costs $4. We were then treated to brunch by the villagers. After taking group photos, we ended the visit and thanked the villagers for their hospitality. We then made our way back to the main Tutong area but we first made a pit stop at Tamu Serambangun (my first visit! hehe) since everyone was craving to try out the famous Soto in one of the corner stalls. After lunch, we headed back to Jabatan Daerah Tutong and then made our way back to Brunei Muara.
Overall, it was an educational visit and I am glad to be able to visit some of the remote villages in Brunei! Below are some piccies from the trip. Enjoy! :)
The head of villages and Kg Bukit's representatives
Some of the participants
The women participants
My colleague, Dan, videotaping the whole trip
The local experts on weaving
An elderly woman teaching the young on proper weaving technique
Making baskets from raw materials
A local weaver
Observing and mingling around
Demonstration in action
Me, looking at the local handicrafts on sale
Some of the beautiful Bruneian traditional handicrafts
Some of the participants inspecting goods on sale
Displays
Group photo! :)
The scenery outside, on the way from Kg Bukit
Smoke rising.. forest fires?
53km to Bandar
Tutong Town
Tamu Serambangun, where we had our lunch
The basket that I bought as a souvenir. According to mom, this basket looks just like the ones that people used to place placentas on after a baby's birth in the old days! Hahaha, that I do not know. I was actually thinking that it's probably a nice place to put in fruits or something when I bought it, lol. Anyway, I'm using it now to put in my Wii remote and nunchuks instead, heheTil the next post!
