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Crossing
the Sungai Sarawak
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Kuching is a pleasant start to any Borneo trip. It's a laid-back,
modern city with many traces of its history still intact in
the marketplaces and the covered sidewalk shopping streets.
The Sungai Sarawak (river) cuts right through the city. The
Istana and Fort Margherita are to the north of the river.
Everything else is on the south bank. There are a lot of markets,
alleyways and small streets to explore in this city.
Kuching was pretty quiet when I went. I stayed at the B&B
Inn which seemed deserted. The only other travelers I met
were Per and Magnus, two Swedes on a five month journey through
Asia. The quickest way into the center of the city is up the
winding road next to the Inn. This road takes you right to
Kuching's collection of bars and food stalls. Beyond this
is the main road that runs along the river.
Some people prefer to end their trip in Kuching, which is
the best place to relax and stock up on authentic handicrafts
and souvenirs before returning home. I chose it as the starting
point for my adventure.
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Kuching is the Bahasa Malay
word for cat. As a constant reminder, scattered around the city
are a multitude of cat statues. |
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The riverboats ferry passengers
back and forth across the river for the equivalent of US$.20. |
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January 2, 2001
Kuching
After Cathay Pacific cancelled my flight to Singapore
without telling me (I found out when confirming the
flight), I was risking getting stranded in Singapore.
The woman from Cathay explained to me: "Well, we've
booked you on a later flight to Singapore, but unfortunately,
your Malaysian Airlines connecting flight to Kuching
leaves before your Cathay flight even leaves Hong Kong!"
Great.
And after getting the run-around from Cathay to Expedia
and back again I asked to speak to a supervisor. Bingo.
"It is our responsibility since we cancelled your flight
to get you to Kuching." So I took an earlier flight
to Singapore and stayed overnight.
Now, the official language of Singapore is English
and Mandarin and yet the taxi driver (paid for by Cathay)
didn't speak English. "Shuo guoyu, ma?" he asked me.
Uh... "Yi dian yi dian. Lei sic gong dong wah?" I wanted
to know if he could speak Cantonese. "Sic!" In fact,
he speaks Hokkien and Malay also. He tells me Le Meridien
Changi is a terrible, terrible hotel for taxis since
it's out of the way and there are no fares on the way
back.
Up at 6:00AM. Fly to Kuching.
Right out of Kuching Airport and I am sweating bullets.
Reminds me of the good ol' days when I lived in Singapore.
I like it. But the ATM doesn't take my crazy seven-digit
pin and I've long since forgotten my four-digit pin
for my other card... I didn't follow my own damn backpacking
checklist and prepare properly!
Then on the ride into town, it starts raining. And
I regret not bringing a rain jacket for the 16 days
of rain that Sarawak and Sabah get in January.
B&B Inn is exactly what I expect from a hostel. No
amenities, just a cot in a room, bare walls, concrete
floor. Strangely, no other travelers around. Maybe they're
all out exploring the town?
Anyway, up a winding road past the local high school,
the first thing I see as I walk through the shopping
center is a place called Cyber City. Internet!
And here I am.
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Kuching is wired. Every
street corner seems to have an Internet cafe and everyone seems
to have a cell-phone. |
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January 2, 2001
Chicken
Rice, yum...
Exploring and getting lost and pulling out the map
and finding my way... I pass by plenty of restaurants
before I finally find Suan Chicken Rice. As soon
as I sit down, a plate of chicken rice is set down in
front of me. No need to order. There's only one
item on the menu. With a drink, it costs US$1.30. And
while it's not perfect, it comes close and is much better
than anything that I've found in Hong Kong or Los Angeles!
Then, along the riverfront I come across the Chinese
History Museum, a one room building with an exhibit
consisting of some furniture, some musical instruments
and some pottery. But mostly, the walls are covered
with written descriptions of the various immigrant groups
from China: Hakka, Cantonese, Hokkien, Chao Ann, Teochew,
Hainan (home of chicken rice), Foochow, Hunghua and
Luichew.
The entire south of China is represented in Sarawak.
Listening to people talk, it's a mix of Hokkien and
Mandarin and Malay, all at the same time...
Wandering past the western market -- fish, poultry,
meat, fruit -- through a covered alley bordered by sundry
stores I find another Internet cafe: Cyber Station!
Cooling off...
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Getting lost trying to
find the Policemen's museum, these two taught me how to ask
"Can I take your picture?" in Malay. "Boleh
saya ambil gambar?" |
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I used my newly learned
Malay phrase to ask this guard if I could take his picture. |
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January 2, 2001
You
can't escape MTV!
I'm eating really good Nasi Goreng in a hawker
stall and everyone is staring at the television, transfixed.
MTV is on the tube. Boy and girl bands galore.
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Boarding to return to the
other side of the river. |
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January 3, 2001
Crossing
the street, the rain and the Kuching Cat
There are no crosswalks in Kuching.
So good luck trying to cross the street considering
most roads are one way, intersections are circular roundabouts
and therefore, cars don't ever stop.
While I wait for a "safe" (L.A. standards) opening
to cross the road, everyone is jumping out into the
street and timing it so that they weave through the
cars!
We're talking Frogger margins of error here.
The rain. I'm pretty much used to the constant
drizzle where you never quite get soaked -- you dry
off as fast as you get wet. And if it ever really starts
to pour, I just wait a couple minutes under cover and
it passes.
I don't mind being hot and sweaty but I hate being
stinky. And right now, I really stink.
The highlight of the day? Uh, the famous Kuching
Cat Statue?
Why the cat? Well, most people I ask don't want their
pictures taken. Pointing to the camera and then to the
person usually elicits the wave off. So I figured instead
of pointing with my index finger (did I read somewhere
not to do that?), I'd point with my thumb like I see
other people do. Still no! I learned "Boleh saya
ambil gambar?" (Can I take a picture?) from some
locals and it worked once so I'll see how that goes...
One thing about these Internet cafes: the connection
is down half the time... and I'm paying big bucks to
be online! US$1.50/hour.
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The Good Life Cafe is a
late-night hang out for healthy eating. |
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