Top Reasons to Try Borneo Travel

By Malcolm Matthew Wong

There are so many beautiful destinations in the world, and everyone who loves traveling want to see as much of it as possible. In the past few years, traveling in the island of Borneo became so popular that it attracts thousands of people all around the world. This beautiful island, divided into Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia, is well known for its untouched nature that makes it look like a paradise.

There are many reasons to visit Borneo, or at least, a part of it. Simply said, you'll be able to see things you can never see anywhere else. Borneo is where you can find peaceful nature on one side and modern cities at the other side, making it perfect for everyone.

Some of the top reasons one should visit Borneo:

1. Borneo rainforests are the oldest in the world; it is 130 million years old. It is known for its biodiversity - it is full of many different plants and animal species, some of which can only be found here. The wildlife in Borneo is something that must be seen.

2. In Borneo you can find the world's largest flower, the Rafflesia arnoldii. This flower is very beautiful and is nothing like other flowers. When it comes to wild life, Borneo is home to many unique animals such as the Asian Elephant, the Sumatran Rhinoceros, and the Bornean Clouded Leopard. There are so many cave systems in Borneo, with the unique Dayak Fruit Bat living there. The most famous animal found in Borneo is the Orang-utan.

3. When in Borneo, you have to climb Mount Kinabalu, the tallest mountain in South East Asia. It is over 4,000 meters, so it won't be easy at all, and it will take you a couple of days to do it. It is worth trying because when you get to the top, the view is amazing.

4. If you are adventurous enough, try a Borneo safari and experience this island completely. You can also learn how to survive in the wilderness, get a closer look at plants and animals, see what the jungle is really like and get to know the locals. If you get to see the Borneo Safari 4x4 Challenge, that's great. It one of the most extreme sports; a sport worth watching.

5. Kota Kinabalu is one of the largest cities in Borneo and it has a lot to offer, so don't miss it. It will take you more than just one day to see all of this city. Many people visit Borneo especially to go to Kota Kinabalu.

This island is so big and full of things to do that you probably won't have enough time to see everything. Even if you do, you will want to come back again. Borneo travel offers nature that is so pure and fresh that it will make you want to stay. There is also a modern nightlife in many of its cities, so go for it if you have any strength left after a long day in the nature.

Read more about Top Reasons to Try Borneo Travel on this website.

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Welcome to Borneo

By Kristina Sue

It's a jungle out there! Borneo is one of Southeast Asia's premier adventure-sports destinations, with a spectacular mix of jungle, water and thrills that will amaze both nature lovers and adrenaline junkies. If you like to experience a place by trekking it, climbing it, crawling through it or floating on it, you'll love Borneo. Borneo boasts some of the world's most species-rich equatorial rainforests - prime patches are easily accessible from multi-ethnic cities with great food.

Borneo Ancient Rainforests

If you love tropical greenhouses and can't wait to be enveloped by the humid fecundity of a real equatorial Borneo rainforest, we will help you to fulfil your wildest dreams. The island's jungles conjure up remoteness and peril, bringing to mind impenetrable foliage and river trips into the heart of darkness. The vegetation changes just as radically as you sail through the mangroves along the South China Sea. Deforestation makes for depressing headlines, but significant areas of the Borneo rainforest among the most ancient ecosystems on earth, remain intact, protected by national parks and conservation projects whose viability depends in part on income from tourism.

Borneo Culture Riches

Borneo brings together an astonishing array of cultures, religions, languages and cuisines, and thanks to the age-old traditions of hospitality in the island communities, all these are easy to approach. The city of Sarawak has significant Chinese communities, while the picturesque coastal villages are populated mainly by Malay, but head inland and the dominant culture is indigenous. Borneo's Dayak groups stopped nabbing noggins long ago, but many other ancient customs and ceremonies live on in harmony with mod-cons in longhouse communities. There's no better way to experience a slice of the Dayak way of life than drop by for a visit which is easy to arrange with a local tour guide.

Borneo Orangutans

Watching Homo sapiens encounter orangutans for the first time is almost an entertaining as watching our shaggy jungle cousins stuff half a dozen bananas into their mouths, grab a coconut and scramble back up into the jungle canopy. Both primate encounters are twice-daily feature at Semenggoh Nature reserve near Kuching in Sarawak. It is one of the best places in the world to see semi-wild orangutans swing from tree to tree, dangle nonchalantly from vines and take care of their adorable and very curious infants. The term 'orangutan' literally means 'man of the wild', or 'jungle man', a testament to the local reverence for these great ginger apes. Traditionally, orangutans were never hunted like other creatures in the rainforest; in fact Borneo indigenous people used to worship their skulls in the same fashion as they did the heads taken from enemy tribes-men.

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5 Things You Should Know About The Dayak - The Headhunters of Borneo, Malaysia

By Lela Iskandar

Malaysia is an exotic country -- with a blend of modern and colonial buildings weaving themselves into high tech industries and ancient cultures. As a result, it is not surprising that Malaysia is listed at one of the top 10 most visited county on earth.

One of the most fascinating things about Malaysia is the people itself. Here, we are going to look at 5 things you should know about the Dayak - a tribe living in the Borneo with the reputation for being fearful headhunters.

1. Dayak Were Headhunters of Borneo

The Dayaks were renowned for practicing headhunting, and had a fearsome reputation as a strong and successful warring tribe in ancient times. Sharing their homes by living in longhouses built on stilts, the head trophies were kept in the longhouse as a sign of valor in battle and brought prestige to the conquering warrior.

The headhunting culture no longer takes place nowadays, but the tribe was still known to be fiercely territorial. In 2001, the Dayak armed with spears, machetes and blowpipes roamed a market town in an Indonesian province in Borneo to drive out migrant Indonesian they claimed took up their jobs and land.

In less than a week of violence, 200 migrants were killed. They were either hacked with traditional Borneo swords or shot with poisoned darts from blowguns.

2. Rich Culture

The animist Dayak (the majority are now Christian) observe both Christian and traditional ceremonies, particularly during marriages or festivals.

Significant festivals include the rice harvesting festival of Gawai Dayak, the bird festival of Gawai Burong and the spirit festival of Gawai Antu.

During the festival, the Dayak gets together to drink rice wine called tuak and perform a unique war dance called ngajat (depicting a man going to war or a bird flying as a respect to Iban's lord of war).

Visitors to the longhouses (or rumah panjang) are normally invited to witness the dances and took part into the drinking the tuak ceremony with the headman of the longhouse as their host.

3. Singer-Actress Jessica Alba was a Dayak

Jessica played a Dayak in the 2003 Sleeping Dictionary movie by Guy Jenkin. Filmed in Sarawak and is set during the British colonial rule in the 1930s, Jessica played the role of a woman who sleeps with a young and naive Englishman, John Truscott (played by Hugh Dancy) who went into Borneo to try and apply his father's work to the Iban society.

The love story was built on the concept of ngayap which was the Iban way of courtship practised in the early 1920's and '30's. Jenkins combined the story with the story of young Britons being posted to jungle outposts and being "thrown in the deep end" when they had to learn the local language in express time.

The film never went big, but received several DVDx awards, including Best Actress to Jessica Alba.

4. Courting girls at night (ngayap)

The ngayap courting activity is a test of a young boys' courage and maturity as they have to travel at night through forest, crossing rivers or swamps to reach the girls' longhouse. The night courtship should last no longer than 3 nights, and at the end of the courtships, the boy will be asked if he is serious about marrying the girl.

The night courtship is pre-arranged with the girl and it should not involve more than a series of talks to let the two parties know each other.

In the headhunting days, this kind of night travel could be a very risky affair as they could fall upon a band of marauding enemies. But as Dayak is known as a warrior tribe, the night courtship is accepted as a sign of a bravery of a headhunter.

5. Modernised Dayak

The Dayaks today are now to be more placid and hospitable than those during the colonial era. Some longhouses are now equipped with air-conditioners, refrigerators and the internet.

The days where headhunting is a norm is long gone and despite being a tradition, dayak tatoos is increasingly becoming just a symbol of heritage and culture. The increasingly urbanised Dayak is reduced to an exhausted past and the ancient crafts of boat building, weaving, dancing and tatooing are dying fast.

JomJalan offers visitors to Malaysia a guide to the modern cosmopolitan city of Kuala Lumpur. A local product, the site talks about the hotels around the city, attractions as well as tips and tricks to get the best of the city.

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Borneo - Eco-Adventure and Cultural Diversity in the Land of Headhunters

By Sylvia Arad

The third largest island in the world, Borneo is a tropical paradise housing the oldest and most bio-diverse rainforest on earth, endless pristine white beaches and an abundance of national wonders. Borneo is divided between Indonesia, Brunei and Malaysia, the largest territory being appropriated to Malaysia. The two states of Sarawak and Sabah, separated from mainland Malaysia on the west by the South China Sea, make up Malaysia's part of Borneo.

As large as it is, Borneo is still a microcosm of spectacular flora and fauna, housing the Rafflesia, the world's largest flowering plant, and the scary, insect-digesting Pitcher plant. As well, Borneo is home to unique animals, among them the shy Orangutans, the rare and unusual Proboscis Monkey and the ludicrous Bearded Pig.

Travel to Borneo is a step into adventure. An abundance of national parks, virgin jungles and rainforests, meandering rivers and cascades, extensive cave systems and sandy white beaches offer adventures of every kind for every level. A morning stroll in Mulu National Park or a week's trek in pristine jungle; a river safari or white water rafting on the Rejang, Malaysia's longest river; caving and exploring the world's most extensive cave systems or snorkeling and scuba diving off the unspoiled reefs of the South China Sea - all are here for the taking.

In concert, Borneo's cultural diversity, including 27 distinct ethnic groups speaking 45 languages and dialects provides a unique local experience. Indigenous culture remains ingrained in the lifestyle of its inhabitants, who adhere to a variety of native traditions, practices and religions. Beyond the towns and cities, life here still revolves around the longhouses, kampungsand the rivers. Malays and Chinese established themselves alongside native groups with such evocative names as Iban, Melanau, Penan, Kelabit ad Bidayuh, grouped together under the general term Dayak, to form a richly varied population, each with their own culture and traditions. To this day, the largest group, the Iban, reputed to be Borneo's most formidable headhunters of past, dwell in communal fashion in longhouses, stilted structures with many rooms that house an entire community of families. Beside them, the Melanau, traditionally fishermen and seafaring people, live in Kampungs (Malaysian villages) - a cluster of wooden homes on high stilts near Borneo's rivers.

Be it eco adventure outdoors, a cultural experience or both, Sarawak and Sabah, Malaysia's Borneo Island states boast the most diverse, exciting and the very best of family adventure travel on earth.

Sylvia is a trip consultant, planner and manager who creates unique intercultural adventures for families and loves to impart information,tips and personal experiences especially related to family adventure travel.

Sylvia Arad http://www.familyadventuretravelworks.com

http://www.familyadventuretravelworks.com/borneo-%e2%80

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