Brunei Clock Tower

This black and white photo is currently being sold for about US$775 together with two other photographs and two other postcards on ebay. I am not sure whether this is worth that amount of money but you are most welcome to bid on them.This photograph shows the clock tower and I would presume the photo was taken in the early 1960s. You can still see the old police station and the old police

Old Borneo Map

I was spring cleaning my study yesterday and in one of the envelopes that I nearly threw away was this map of Borneo. I must have ordered this quite a while ago and have never got round to framing this. I don't know how old this map is but judging by the data should be around 100 years old at least.The boundaries are not marked so that means Rajah Brooke have not arrived yet to take over Sarawak

Smallest Frogs in the World

[photo from National Geographic website]The scientists found this somewhere on Borneo Island. I can only say, WOW. According to National Geographic:One of the smallest frogs in the world, the species was spotted inside and around pitcher plants in Malaysian rain forests on the island of Borneo (map), which is divided among Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia.The new species was announced Wednesday,

Seeking Forgiveness

[This was my article published last Monday on Brunei Times.]THE GOLDEN LEGACYSeeking Forgiveness During Eid FitrRamadan is the Muslims’ month of fasting. It is a time for Muslims to learn to be patient, to be humble and to understand more about spirituality. Ramadan is also an auspicious month. It is during Ramadan that the Al-Mighty first revealed the first verses of the Quran to Prophet

Kampong Ayer 1970s

For most Bruneians, Kampong Ayer is something which has always been there. We do not realise how time passes by.This is a postcard of Kampong Ayer produced by a Singapore company and sold here about 40 years ago. Compare this scene with those of today, you can't see much difference. The boats are already fast as you can see.For those living or who once lived there, can your recognise where this

Seria 1980s

Sometime last year, I wanted to buy this postcard but I lost it on ebay. I didn't realise there was another buyer equally determined trying to get this postcard. When it came again recently, I was determined to get it. However, it was quite a painless task as I managed to acquire it for a song.This is Seria or rather this was Seria in the 1980s. This is taken from the angle of the coastal area.

First Malay Secondary School

While going through the old Hari Raya cards, I found a couple of cards with reference to SMMP and the school's motto EXCELSIOR.The card above with the school badge, I found very familiar. I remembered seeing this school badge and the school motto. It took me quite a while when I realised it belong to today's Maktab Sains. I did not go to Maktab Sains, so the badge was not as familiar as I am sure

Old Brunei Hari Raya Cards

My article today published in The Brunei Times is about old Hari Raya cards used by Bruneians in the 1960s and early 1970s. If you want to read the article, you can buy the paper today. I will publish it in this blog sometime this week.In the meantime, the old Hari Raya cards in Brunei looked like these:

SOAS Mosque on Vietnam stamps

I managed to acquire these stamps recently from a Vietnamese stamp dealer. I did not get these when I was in Vietnam but I saw the stamps on ebay and I was quite intrigued. I have a number of stamps issued by other countries which depicted Brunei's scenes but I have never seen this one before.The stamps were supposedly issued in 1993 and with a face value of 8000 dong which is roughly equal to

Sarawak Museum Journal

One of the visits I had to visit was the Sarawak Museum when I was in Kuching. I have to admit despite my aversion to things Brooke, the Sarawak Museum is a must visit. I did not have the time to go into the museum but only to see if I can buy the Sarawak Museum Journal.For those who are interested, the Sarawak Museum Old Building was built in 1891 and was extended to its present form in 1911.

Sungkai Buffet

Only Cuboiart can come up with the appropriate cartoon this time of the year. I have not been keeping up with his genius drawing lately and I was happy to see a few new cartoons which he has just drawn and published in the Borneo Bulletin lately.This one is a killer. Every Ramadan, comes the Sungkai Buffet. I was told at certain places, there are so many people that the food had to be topped up.

Kuching, First Impressions

According to my father, I had been to Kuching once. At least to Kuching Airport. In the 1960s, my mother and I used to go 'balik kampong' every year or so. My mother is from Johor, so balik kampong was back to her hometown in Batu Pahat. I am the eldest son, so I am the one who frequently went back with her. In those days, the only way to go to Singapore (then take the taxi to go to Johor) was to

Sultan Tengah, the first and only Sarawak Sultan

Someone asked me why have I not blogged for quite a while. The easy answer is it is the fasting month - terawih prayers and all that plus the need to go to sleep early to wake up early for sahur. In addition to that over the last two weeks I was away in Kuching to accompany my minister to attend the 10th Meeting of the Sub-Regional Ministerial Steering Committee on Transboundary Haze Pollution

The Early Brunei Conquests

[Note: I wrote this when I was attending the ASEAN Senior Environmental Officials Meeting in Hanoi last week. I brought one book with me as a reference but luckily there was enough references on the net. It was published in The Brunei Times on 9th August 2010.]THE GOLDEN LEGACYThe Early Brunei ConquestsA.E. Lawrence writing in the first edition of the Sarawak Museum Journal of 1911 in an article