15
In Sarawak, the dominant tribal groups are the Dayak. Tribal people live in longhouses. There are the Iban (Sea Dayak), and the Bidayuh (Land Dayak). All of Malaysia’s tribal people feel a strong spiritual connection to the rainforest. The Iban grow rice and fruit, and hunt and fish. The longhouse is the very centre of communal life in Sarawak. There are over 4,500 longhouses in Sarawak. These communal houses, built on stilts, may contain up to 100 individual families in separate 'apartments' built under one long roof. The rainforest is home to 27 ethnic groups each with own distinct language and culture. The real longhouse experience begins with the journey upriver. River travel in a perahu - a shallow draught canoe - affords you the pleasure of seeing Sarawak at its best. Longhouses differ slightly from tribe to tribe but share the same basic characteri stic. The Iban

In sarawak

Embed Size (px)

Citation preview

Page 1: In sarawak

In Sarawak, the dominant tribal groups are the Dayak. Tribal people live in longhouses. There are the Iban (Sea Dayak), and the Bidayuh (Land Dayak).  All of Malaysia’s tribal people feel a strong spiritual connection to the rainforest. The Iban grow rice and fruit, and hunt and fish.The longhouse is the very centre of communal life in Sarawak. There are over 4,500 longhouses in Sarawak. These communal houses, built on stilts, may contain up to 100 individual families in separate 'apartments' built under one long roof. The rainforest is home to 27 ethnic groups each with own distinct language and culture.

The real longhouse experience begins with the journey upriver. River travel in a perahu - a shallow draught canoe - affords you the pleasure of seeing Sarawak at its best. Longhouses differ slightly from tribe to tribe but share the same basic characteristic. 

The Iban are the largest tribe in Sarawak and one of three native peoples whose past includes the practice of headhunting.

 

Heading upstream, your boatman will take you along idyllic waterways with white pebble beaches, under the over-arching branches of tropical hardwoods, whose dense emerald foliage allows through only a dappling of sunlight. As you meander upstream, and your

Page 2: In sarawak

boatman punts through the river's shallows, kingfishers glide past, hornbills fly overhead, and local children dive from the riverbank into the cooling waters. Longhouse inhabitants are very well known for their hospitality.  It is normal for people to just turn up and expect to be invited in by the headman (gifts are expected in return).  As you arrive at the longhouse, it is customary to be greeted by the longhouse maidens and young men performing traditional dances and playing ceremonial gongs. At the entrance to the longhouse there is a wooden arch with small baskets made of palm leaves hanging from the top. Offerings such as a few coins or a cigarette are occasionally put into the baskets and help keep evil spirits out of the longhouse. From the moment you step inside the longhouse you will be treated as an honoured guest. Visitors will be offered a glass of tuak - the very palatable local rice wine. Or more often than not, several glasses of tuak will be offered to wash down a banquet of local delicacies. Then your hosts will start beating the gongs. This is the cue for the traditional dance, usually the Ngajat. The inspiration for the graceful movements of the dancers comes from the effortless flight of the hornbill, Sarawak's emblem. Then your newfound friends will enthral you with stories of Sarawak's legendary past. Usually a longhouse party lasts all night. As the sun is eclipsed by the moon, weary from your day's travel, and a night of dancing and feasting, retire to the ruai- a covered verandah - for a good night's sleep.

 

In recent decades much of their rainforest has been cleared by logging and plantation companies. The Iban and other tribes have frequently blockaded logging roads to try to protect their forest.

In many Iban longhouses you find only old people and young children.  I got the feeling that the whole community is reduced to an exhausted past, and an uncertain future.Naturally, without the younger generations to inherit their rich cultural legacies, but traditions are dying. The ancient crafts of making boats, building  longhouses, weaving, dancing, tattooing, and native art are now

Page 3: In sarawak

dying fast. Even the whole oral tradition of telling tales and myths is disappearing.

How Can You Visit a Longhouse?

The longhouse has become a distinctive feature of tribal tradition; a simple, yet beautiful, way of life that remains strong in the face of modernisation. In light of this, it is inevitable that tourists are eager to get a glimpse of it, resulting in the rise of quick fix longhouse tours where it’s likely you will end up in a large group in a more commercialised longhouse, much like how the Southeast Asian homestays are evolving. That’s not how I wanted to see it.

With a private guide and a specific request to get out into a remote longhouse (long journey times do not bother me in the pursuit of a ‘real’ experience) I was luckily enough to visit an authentic and less frequented longhouse located within the jungle of Batang Ai – a four hour drive and one hour boat trip ride from the capital city of Kuching.

Many longhouses are based in and around this area including the Batang Skrang and Batang Lemanak regions. Alternatively you can head to Sibu (the next big city east of Kuching) and visit the nearby towns on the Batang Rejang river. Most longhouses are by invitation only and so for a truly ‘local’ experience it is said to try your luck and hope that a local invites you over when visiting their town.

My Experience

The four hour trip towards Batang Ai was a beautiful journey on a main road flanked constantly on both sides by a dense mass of jungle; tall trees whose long trucks were like arms reaching up to touch the sun; trees so tightly packed together you couldn’t see the soil below; varying shades of infinite green – the grand jungles and rainforests of Sarawak, interspersed by small towns, such as Serian, and other local markets where the indigenous people have either integrated into the community or joined the throng of local traders to sell their homemade goods,  before returning home.

Page 4: In sarawak

The one hour boat journey served as a reminder of why so many come to value the beauty of this part of the world and call for it to be protected – the imposing jungle watching us as we leisurely traversed the calm waters, knowing we were not the only beings passing through its luscious landscape.

Page 6: In sarawak

Upon arrival at the longhouse, it looked just like any other hut-like structure you see often in Southeast Asia – the intricate assemble of timber, thatch, bamboo and whatever other durable materials are readily available and cleverly converted.

It wasn’t until I stepped inside that I realised the enormity of it and how long the ‘long’ in longhouse is. Although a simple structure, with gaps in the floor boards and walls, gathering dust and rotting in parts, it was a feat of rural architecture.

Page 8: In sarawak

This one was 500m long with 29 rooms – with one family living in each room.  I instantly noticed that there are more women than men – the men mostly working in the nearby towns to support their family and community – and that everyone likes to sit together huddled in groups suggesting they are not at all bored of each other.

Page 9: In sarawak

The Ibans will greet you with smiles and they love to shake hands  – a custom they have come to know from the days of British rule and present day interaction with westerners. This became my only form of communication since only my guide spoke a little Iban. Some, still not used to outsiders, cower away in the shadows of the common room, taking time to get to know the alien in the low light before coming closer.

Embrace an Experience Outside Your Comfort Zone

Many people end up disliking their longhouse experience because they expected a certain degree of comfort and so I will put this simply – forget it. On a visit like this you sit on the floor to eat your meals (a simple mix of meat, fish, rice, noodles and vegetables), sleep on a small mattress with a mosquito net, use a toilet housed in a shanty wooden hut (built into the room) and shower with a hose.

Page 10: In sarawak

There is no sense of privacy, with the members of the house tasked to host you (they take turns in order to equally share the revenue sporadic visits bring) walking in

Page 11: In sarawak

your room whenever they please, to start cooking or to gather for a loud discussion, which gets louder with the consumption of rice wine. All manner of bugs circle your head during the evening as you are entertained by your hosts and croosters are your 4am alarm clock.

You are living in the jungle, at one with nature and the most simple of surroundings, and if you can’t embrace it then you won’t appreciate the experience. I absolutely loved it, although I admit its tiring and I couldn’t do it for days on end.

Page 13: In sarawak

A holiday in Sarawak is not complete without a visit to the longhouses that are the traditional dwellings of many of the natives here such as the Iban, Bidayuh and Orang Ulu. A longhouse is a terraced street of separate dwellings covered by one roof. A tuai rumah (headman) is the head of the longhouse. Every family has their own separate bilik (room). Communal activities are carried out on the ruai (verandah). Male visitors will spend a night on the verandah whereas female visitors are invited to stay in the bilik or room. 

Longhouse communities normally wear practical clothes like jeans and T-shirts. They only wear their traditional costumes during festivals like Gawai Dayak or the Iban harvest festival and also during weddings. Tour groups are normally greeted with a glass of tuak or rice wine and a welcome dance. After that, they will tour the longhouses and will be entertained by various cultural performances. You are usually invited to join in the dancing. Visitors can spend a night at the longhouses or in a nearby guesthouse. Getting HereBy Road and RiverThe distance to your longhouse depends on where you're going, but a common programme, run out of Kuching, picks you up at your hotel for the 2-hour drive to a jetty by a major river. After that you may go up or downriver by longboat for one or two hours to reach the longhouse. Who To Contact

Page 14: In sarawak