Malaysian Borneo: Kuching

My first destination in Malaysian Borneo was Kuching (meaning "cat" in Malay), the capital of Sarawak. I showed up just in time for the Moon Cake Festival, a week long event which takes place in China town every night during the festival. My first night at the festival I met a local man who took me, along with two other travelers he met, to some nearby beaches the next day.

While in Kuching I went to visit the orangutan sanctuary (orang utan is a Malay word that translates to "forest people") where they rescue orangutans that have been captured and are being sold for profit and rehabilitate them for the wild. We showed up just in time for feeding time and we were able to see the animals in their natural habitat, not restricted by cages.

The most interesting part of my visit to Kuching though was crossing the river and walking around the several kampung (villages). I walked several kilometers to the end of the road and saw many colorful Malay-style houses along the way. It was a rather small dirt road and as I was walking I felt like somewhat of a celebrity: people would call out to me from windows, "hello!", children would follow me at a distance on bicycles, and food stand vendors were offering me to sample the goods. Everyone wanted to know where I was from, how long I was in Sarawak, how I liked it, and funny enough, "Where is your mommy?". I was there in the midst of Ramadan, which for Muslims means fasting from sunrise until sunset (including water, sex and tobacco). At sunset (6: 36 pm) everyone disappeared into their homes for a much anticipated meal and I headed back across the river to the other, much different, side of town.

Smoke in Kuching from burning rice fields in Indonesia