I just have to pin this on the top of the post because i suddenly looked effortlessly kurus in this photo. I am way fatter irl but this photo is a blessing. Give a girl the right jeans and she can conquer the world (with her photos). Hehe. This was at Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque.
Top left to bottom right: Istana Nurul Iman, Pasar Pelbagai Barangan Gadong, Kampong Ayer, Jerudong Crystal Arch.
Brunei was actually never really in our
go-to list but since our Wan Cik (wife to Tok Cik, my late grandmother's
younger brother) is from Brunei and she needs to go back to her
hometown to renew her passport, license and everything. So we
decided to tag along this time. Kak Lin and Wan Cik flew to Brunei on the
20th August but since my mom wants us to celebrate Aidiladha at home
first, so we went to Brunei on the 2nd Aidiladha which on the 23rd
August until the 25th.
The
usual intention was to blog about my experience but since they
are some of friends asking about the itinerary, budgets and stuff, so
here are the details.
Our
return tickets were around RM750+ per person (Royal Brunei and MAS).
We converted a total of RM1800 for both of us which we got $602 ($301
for each of us). This amount was enough to pay the hotel, to buy our
foods, souvenirs, this and that. We stayed at Kiulap Plaza Hotel that
cost us $160 for two nights. We didn't spent any on transportation since
Kak Lin was the one who took us places for free and fed us with factoids. Thank you Kak Lin! Hehe. So the itinerary:
Day 1:
Went to eat Roti Kahwin at Chop Jing Chew, Gadong
Sightseeing at Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque
Visiting Wan Cik's sister at Kampong Ayer
Dinner at a restaurant near the hotel
Pasar Pelbagai Barangan Gadong for street foods and local fruits
Hua Ho Supermarket (next to the hotel) to buy chocolates, groceries that we can't get in Malaysia
Day 2:
Breakfast at the hotel
Thien Thien Restaurant, Gadong for Kolo Mee and Chicken Rice
Went to souvenir shop at Gadong
Sightseeing at Hutan Bukit Syahbandar, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Jerudong Park and Istana Nurul Iman
Boat riding at Kampong Ayer, Sungai Kebun
Centrepoint Mall, Gadong to shop
Dim Sum at Gadong Properties Centre
Had our ambuyat dinner at Restoran Aminah Arif, Serusop
Day 3:
Breakfast at the hotel
Nasi Katok $1
Back to Malaysia
Overall, Brunei is not at all
impressive at the first sight especially for us, Malaysians. It is not
an exciting country to travel and does not try to be one. For such a
loaded country, Brunei does not boast its wealth. Unlike Malaysia,
Brunei does not have skyscrapers at all. Since it is a dry country, so
alcohol is illegal to sell in Brunei (including cigarettes if i'm not
mistaken). All shops, restaurants, supermarkets and etc are closed from
12pm to 2pm on Friday for Friday prayers. Most of their drinks cost less
than $2 and most of their foods cost around $2 to $5. Nasi Katok is only $1 and we can get Nasi Katok literally everywhere in Brunei! Pasar Pelbagai Barangan Gadong
was definitely my cup of tea. Most of the foods are only $1 there. The
cars would automatically slow down and stop for pedestrians to cross
the street which is rarity in our country.
And Brunei petrol price was only $0.33 to $0.50 per litre. Crazy!
Though
the pace is slow and Brunei may not have much to offer on paper since i
believe that Brunei is not dependent on tourism yet, i still find
Brunei as an interesting place to visit and wander. Not because of the
tourist attractions but the culture. Maybe because i am myself a
chilled out kinda person, so yeah.
Thank you Kak Lin and Wan Cik for everything in Brunei. Till
then.
