Description :
Borneo life to the fullest
“A true adventure through the wild rivers and forest of Borneo in search ancestral village”
Borneo is the third-largest island in the world and the largest island in Asia. This island is divided among three countries: Malaysia and Brunei in the north, and Indonesia to the south. The provinces of Indonesia in Borneo is East Kalimantan (Samarinda), South Kalimantan (Banjarmasin), West Kalimantan (Pontianak), North Kalimantan (Tanjung Selor) and Central Kalimantan (Palangkaraya).
A great network of rivers flows through this huge island. Beginning in the mountainous interior near the shared border with Malaysia, they flow hundreds of kilometres before emptying into the Java Sea. Many of these rivers, including the Kayan, Bahau, Mahakam, Barito, Seruyan and Kapuas, contain rapids and can be very dangerous to navigate. There are no dams in Kalimantan, although some have been proposed recently.
As well as Kalimantan is thought to contain the oldest rainforests on the planet, however, the island has lost half of its original forest cover since the 1950s. This has caused huge disruption in the lives of the original inhabitants and wildlife. Through better education and understanding there is hope that the original forest such as Long Sa’an will be returned to the Dayak Tribes.
About Dayak Tribes, there are more than 70 different Dayak Tribes in Kalimantan, speaking a multitude of languages. In the late 1950s an Australoid skull was found in Borneo, which is believed to be 35.000 years old. The Dayaks prefer to live in the forest and river village, and some still live a nomadic lifestyle.
Dayak women tend to age gracefully in comparison, their paler skin and ider oriental features often lending a faint glassy sheen to open faces. Perhaps a life in this remote jungle, though impossibly hard, is sweeter than that on the coast where one is forced to complete. The silent and ageless matriarch, wear ears looped in the traditional style and tattoos encircling wrists and ankles which, to initiated, denote status and lineage. Around her feet a trio of hunting the dirt.
About the skulls, the most likely explanation seems to be that the skulls indeed belonged to unfortunate Dayaks caught up in the old tradition of ritual headhunting, though how and why they have found their way here and to which tribe they belonged remains a mystery. Until recent time headhunting was central to the spiritual and social web that bound the tribes together and gave meaning to their hard lives. Heads taken by fiery wielding Dayak men from their enemies provided the spiritual power essential to the properity of a village, ensuring successful crops, health and wellbeing for the village, along with status and probably a choice of wife for the valiant warrior.
Heads were also required for all manner of ceremonies including wedding, funerals and the dedication of new longhouses and the skulls were hung like clusters of coconuts in the longhouse as a reminder of the strength and courage of the tribe. A head hunting raid was a well-organised affair in which all members of the village took par. the warriors were armed with mandau, similar to parang but designed for warfare and decorated with magical carved bine hilts, tufts of hair and the claws and teeth of the sun bear and the clouded leopard, all which was designed to afford the warrior spiritual aid and protection.
Also famous of Dayak is Long Ears. Only a few still use this tradition such as Dayak Kenyah, Dayak Kenyah,Dayak Bahau,Dayak Penan,Dayak Kelabit,Dayak Sa'ban,Dayak Kayaan, Dayak Taman dan Dayak Punan. Long ears tradition were elongated by piercing at an early age and brass weights ear rings are put on for the sole reason of elongating the ear lobes. It was suppose to signify beauty for the wearer and men and women can be found to have elongated ear lobes. Maybe men’s grooming did not start with the modern age after all Elongated ear lobes also signify status. The longer it is the more significant that person is to the tribe. Perhaps the length is due to age as the ears can only be elongated over time. Another people say also that this tradition show about identity of nobles.
Besides that, Kalimantan has also many national park to conservation such as Betung Kerihun, Bukit Baka Bukit Raya, Danau Sentarum, Gunung Palung, Kayan Mentaran, Kutai, Sabangau, Tanjung Putting and many more. Danau Sentarum National Park is Ramsar site, has a long history of human settlement. Up to some 200 years ago, the area was inhabited by various ethnic group visiting the lake in the dry season to fish and return to their village afterward. Danau sentarum also plays an important role in settlement along the Kapuas River. Four main cities, Putussibau, Sintang, Sanggau and the provincial capital depend strongly on the lakes as the heart of water system in upper West Kalimantan. During the wet season, the excess water is collected in the lakes, thus preventing flooding to downstream regions. In the dry season, that water is distributed to provide for people along Kapuas River.
Tanjung Puting National Park is World Network of Biosphere Reserves. The park is famous for its orangutan conservation, which is Orangutans is endemic fauna that you can just found in Borneo. Located in the southeast part of West Kotawaringin Regency in the Indonesian province of Central Kalimantan. There are 3 spots to rehabilitation of orangutans such as Tanjung Harapan, Pondok Tanggui and Camp Leakey. Nowadays, Tanjung Puting National Park is a popular ecotourism destination, offering multi-day boat tours to view wildlife and visit the research centers.
Almost from Kalimantan you can do the adventure attraction such trek up the hill, you can see the stunning landscape of the park on the background, bird watching and animal observing, easily accessed by a boardwalk that goes halfway around the hill, getting the beautiful scenary around the hill, explore the surrounding waterways and local longboat and many more activities you can do it in Borneo its depends you.
Don't cross your mind that having trip to Borneo just trip full of culture, there is most beautiful beach in Kalimantan with pure water and diving completely. It's in Derawan Island. Located in in East Kalimantan, exactly Berau district . In recent years this place popular as one of the excellent vacation of exotic beach in Indonesia. The beauty of Derawan Islands that you can enjoy such as; diving and snorkeling, with secluded white sand beaches, clear blue water and some coconut trees providing some shade. The archipelago consists of 31 small islands of which only 4 islands are accessible: Derawan Islands, Maratua Island, Sangalaki and Kakaban Island. And you should know that in 2005, this archipelago was nominated as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
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Tags :
#Dayak #Borneo #Longears #Derawan #Island #HeartofBorneo #NationalPark #orangUtan #Proboscismonkey #TanjungPuting #DanauSantarum #Kalimantan #People #Indigenous #MAratua #Environment #Conservation #Rivers #Headhunting #Head #Ancestral #Women #Tradition #culture #Nature #Wildness #Reverse #WorldHeritage #Craft #Living
