SINGLE BUT LOOKING

This morning I was browsing The Borneo Post (local newspaper) and one topic came across my reading “Central region for eco-tourism”. In the article stated that central region of Sarawak (Sibu, Sarikei, Mukar and Kapit) had a lot to offer in term of eco-tourism product. But some of us wonder what exactly happen within this area. Every one reading this article must be eager to find out what is so attractive about this place. May be every one will start thinking everything will be something like they have in Sarawak Culture Village.

Center of Sarawak.

A few weeks earlier I get to talk with two “hot” tourist from UK. They ask me whether I still live in longhouse. I say I did and they are excited to hear that. But I said its not made out of wood anymore and they are shock to here that. They say they love to see all the wooden long longhouse. They love to experience staying in the longhouse if they get to but they are going to Bali the following days (Of course both of them will stay in the longhouse if they “experience” me). I was so happy to here that they are interested to our culture meanwhile our local friend say we are still left behind by the world. We don’t stay at the top of the tree and we never did that.

Who say we are left behind?!! We got ASTRO also ma.

Here are few thing that most of us may be don’t know. Have any of us ever encounter having “4X4 challenge” every time you go to your home sweet home? Have you ever imagine walking three to four hour before you reach your home? Have any of us ever wonder life without any proper water supply or pipe? These are a few basic question that need to be tackle before all of this Tourism thing can be happen. If you ever notice in any of “P. Ramli’s movie”, the road in Semenanjung Malaysia during that time is much better then ours in Sarawak this days. That movie is fifty plus years a go. Does this facilities did not important to our tourism? How do this tourist can access easily to this kind of place, to those long house?

“Every day is “4x4 challenge”.

I understand that the tourism board want us to maintain our village lifestyle. Yes it is an attraction for the foreigner and our local Malaysian who never experience it. But how long? And again as I have said before, all of the world are welcome to our longhouse. No one will cut your head off. No one will eat you alive. At least you will be cook for a while.

Old school long house.

In this days, all of us would not dare to live in a bamboo trunk house. Must be some of you say “Yes I can!!!Who say we cannot?!!”. I know you can for a few night only, but do you dare for the rest of your fucking life? Will you? Time change, as well as us. We need to make our settlement to be as comfortable as all people want. At least may be the government and the tourism board can provide us with all that hard wood used to decorate “your” fancy office for us to build better and more attractive longhouse. To make thing even worse, if we want to cut down trees to build better longhouse, you say we are illegal deforestation. We complain that there are illegal logging steeling our trees, “you” say “you” could not do anything, “gangster control ba”. I could not accept the fact that you are afraid of those “gangster”.

“Modern a bit longhouse”

Not that I want to blame anyone for this matter, what I want is someone should look into this matter. Those rural area are the most needed area that need someone to take care about. There area is the most important area for tourism. But some courage need to be done to “upgrade” this place to be “A Place Like No Other”.