LAST FULL DAY IN BORNEO

Thursday, August 30, 2018
Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia
August 30
Sine we hadn’t had much time to explore Kuching when we arrived the week before, we decided to spend our last full day in Borneo revisiting the city.  We got started early and had the shuttle drop us off at the entrance to Chinatown and found a little place to have a light breakfast.  Despite being the largest city in Borneo and the fourth largest in Malaysia, Kuching, billed as one of the cleanest cities in Asia, has more of a small town feel and was surprisingly peaceful compared to the hustle and bustle found in many of the other larger cities we had visited.  The tourist scene in Kuching is mainly centered around the meticulously maintained waterfront and adjacent bazaar in Chinatown.  We were on a mission to find Bill a good tee shirt from Sarawak so, as we passed through the decorated archway and working temple, that welcomed us into Chinatown, we spent an hour or so, after breakfast, strolling in and out of the multitude of shops that lined the streets. We found two great tee shirts and a few other items that we couldn’t resist purchasing.  I had to laugh when we passed a huge statue of a white cat wearing a black bow tie sitting in front of one of the arches leading into Chinatown, seemingly, protecting the palace.  Apparently, locals as well as visitors are known to dress this outlandish statue for different events throughout the year.. Another building, that seemed quite out of place, was a ten-story high parking structure, all trimmed in pastel colors. 
After our walk through Chinatown, we went down to the waterfront. We thought the beautifully lit up bridge, that we had seen the evening we arrived in Kuching, was a passageway to the other side of the Sarawak river for both vehicles and people. However, we discovered that the Darul Hana Bridge, which means, “a place of peace and quiet” in Arabic, is a beautiful pedestrian bridge that opened in November of 2017.
The bridge is 336 meters long and is supported by two cables that are 45 meters high and connected with two outward-facing steel pillars with hornbill wings, representing the Rhinoceros Hornbill, the national bird of the state of Sarawak. Prior to this, the inhabitants of Kuching had to cross via a water taxi but now, the population as well as the tourists can make the crossing from the south to the north of Kuching via this unusually S-shaped pedestrian bridge, resembling a Yin and Yang sign. We climbed several flights of stairs to the bridge deck then strolled, leisurely, across the bridge, stopping at the two resting places to enjoy the panoramic view over the river.
Although currently closed to tourists, we did have a view, while crossing the bridge, of The Astana, the official residence of the Governor of Sarawak, built in 18870 by the second White Rajah, Charles Brooke, as a wedding gift to his wife, as well as Fort Margherita, constructed in 1879 to guard the river against pirates. But the DUN State Legislative Assembly Building, which we had seen from afar our first night in Kuching, was the most impressive.  This nine-story high building is the venue for future Sarawak’s new state legislative assembly sittings.  Covering an area of 172 acres, the architecture of the new complex combines unique elements of Sarawak’s heritage…the distinctive “payung” (umbrella) roof is an iconic landmark for Sarawak… with state-of-the-art automation systems, multimedia communication facilities and environmentally friendly features.  Reinforced by nine gigantic pillars and numerous arches, the building reflects the sovereignty of the people’s power as well as the support of all the races in the state and has been described as one of the most beautiful buildings in Southeast Asia.
To be continued in the next Blog.

Comments

Joan Pastrick
2018-09-17

Very interesting. Did not see many Western tourists. Did you have the place to your selves. Very beautiful.

Tom Ohka
2018-09-17

Thank you for doing your travel log and adding the wonderful pictures. It is the next best thing to being there with you and Bill.

Amanda Frost
2018-09-17

Wish I were there too!

Susan Hess
2018-09-17

A pastel parking garage. A standout building. Love the gentle architecture.

2025-02-10

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