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Other entries in Bandar Seri Begawan

Happy Birthday, Semoga Allah Melanjutkan Usia...

...Kebawah Duli Yang Maha Mulia Paduka Seri Baginda Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaulah Sultan Dan Yang Di-Pertuan Negara Brunei Darussalam!

Also known as the Sultan of Brunei; today is his 58th birthday. We got up in time to be at the parade ground for his arrival at 8:30. It was already about 30 degrees, and there was a crowd of hundreds outside the gates. Fortunately, Matt could see over everyone's heads, and even Cat could crane her neck over most of them. There were military vehicles and artillery all over the streets, and a couple of hundred soldiers and sailors standing at attention on the field. We kind of wanted to find out how the average Bruneian felt about the Sultan (he's an unelected ruler who pretty much does whatever he wants with the country's money), but we couldn't figure out a way to ask people without them becoming offended and possibly reporting us to some kind of secret service that would have us dragged before His Majesty and shot for spreading sedition. Or something.

Anyway, to a 21-gun salute from the artillery that scared the life out of Cat (it was LOUD!), the Sultan showed up right on time, in a closed car with tinted windows going really fast (not so much as a wave to his faithful subjects). He walked around the parade ground to inspect the troops, with a lackey holding an umbrella over him the whole time to protect him from the sun, while a military band inexplicably played "Skye Boat Song". Then the Glorious Leader (this is really what they call him!) retreated to his own personal section of the grandstand, and the soldiers marched around for his amusement while the band played "Happy Birthday". Then the Sultan sped off the same way he'd arrived, and the soldiers went back to standing at attention.

We spent the rest of the morning hiding from the oppressive heat in our hotel room, and the afternoon trying to muster the energy to walk around Kampung Ayer, but it was just too hot to leave the shade. While we were heading back to the hotel from lunch, though, a group of three locals indicated that they wanted to get a picture of themselves with us (well, mostly Matt, we think). We let them take a few shots, and they thanked us profusely before wandering off, grinning.

We had been told that there were fireworks that night, but nobody could tell us what time. The desk people at the hotel thought "later, after dinner, maybe 9?", the tourist information guy thought 10, and the police said 10:30. We went to the night markets (the Sultan's birthday is the start of a month-long food and crafts bazarre) for dinner, then wandered around looking for someone official-looking until we got back to the parade ground. It was covered with screaming, running children, as it had been converted into some kind of carnival. There were balls everywhere, slides, food stalls, and a bouncy mosque (like a bouncy castle). We watched this for a while, then at about 10 there seemed to be some kind of signal understood by everyone except us, because everyone dropped what they were doing and headed for the waterfront. We figured it must be fireworks time, so we followed. We were pretty far away from the palace, where the fireworks were to be let off from, so we hired a boat to take us closer. After a pretty scary boat trip (going really fast up a crowded river with the driver holding a flashlight to light the way), we pulled in to a harbour just as the fireworks started going off right above us. It was an impressive show, about as big as the fireworks on Parliament Hill on Canada Day, and all for one person. It's good to be the Sultan.

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