OVERVIEW OF KUCHING, Sarawak, Borneo, Malaysia
Text and images by Helen Oon

Sarawak known as ‘Land of the Hornbills’, was once the fiefdom of the Brooke dynasty from England who ruled Sarawak from 1841 to 1946 as the White Rajahs of Sarawak.

This Malaysian Borneo state still retains an air of mystic of its colourful past. Its picturesque capital city Kuching, is beautifully laid out with manicured landscape along the Sarawak River that meanders through lush mangrove forest and rustic villages.

Kuching means ‘cat’ in Malay and it is said to derive its name from the Mata Kuching trees, a sweet fleshy fruit with large brown seeds that resemble cats’ eyes. As a tribute to its name, cat statues are erected in Chinatown and a cat museum is opened to exhibit statues, pictures and paintings of cats from all over the world charting the roles these felines play in different cultures including famous people past and present who own cats as pets. It is reputedly the only cat museum in the world of that scale.

Kuching has not shed its colonial cloak and the city centre is peppered with restored historical buildings inherited from the White Rajahs. One of the most prominent monuments left by them is the Astana, a castellated edifice now the official residence of the incumbent governor of Sarawak. With its gleaming white walls and symmetrical towers, it stands imposingly on the north bank and was built by the second Rajah, Sir Charles Brooke as his stately pile in the tropics.

If walls could speak, it would tell the tale of the savage historical past and intrigues of the White Rajahs’ reign that was plagued with local rebellions, swashbuckling battles with pirates and uprising among the peasants, stuff of epic proportion of a Victorian adventure novel. A legacy of its ruthless past is Fort Margherita, a white fortress just a stone’s throw from the Astana, built to protect the White Rajahs. It was reputedly named after Ranee Margaret, the wife of Charles Brooke. Today it is a police museum.

In contrast, modern day Kuching is a vibrant metropolis steadily cruising into the 21st century but with its traditional value still intact and the modern buildings are not quite skyscrapers …yet. Charming old shophouses, remnants from the Brooke era, still function as grocery stores selling household goods with spices, rice, flour and sugar displayed in gunny sacks by the five-foot way like in days of yore. The bustling Sunday market gives an insight into the lives of the local people. It is heaving with activities with the sight and smell of local produce - bright red chillies arranged in neat clusters, aubergines pile high into a purple mount, exotic fruits and orchids of every hues bursting with colours while the stench of fresh and salted fish permeate the air.

Sarawak is mostly an eclectic mix of Chinese, Malays, Indians and ethnic tribes of which the Ibans, Bidayuhs and Orang Ulus are the prominent indigenous groups. The tribal people are skilled in native crafts and indigenous music played from instruments crafted from natural products from the rainforests. Against this setting, Kuching offers an ideal choice for the biggest world music festival in Malaysia.

Every July it heralds one of the biggest events in the Malaysian tourist calendar – the Rainforest World Music Festival (RWMF), borne eleven years ago by the Sarawak Tourism Board as an avenue to attract tourists to come to Sarawak. It has paid dividends and every year the number of foreign arrivals increase as words spread across the world about this unique music festival set in the rainforest. The RWMF is to world music what Glastonbury is to rock concert.

For further details, contact Tourism Malaysia Tel: 020 7930 7932 www.tourismmalaysia.gov.my For flights and tours to Malaysia contact Skytrak Tel: 020 8570 8061

 

5 September 2008

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