Bario, Sarawak

Flight using MASwing twin otter engine from Miri to Bario can be exhilarating for me who never fly in a small plane before. There are direct flight to Bario from Miri or you can choose to fly to Marudi and then fly to Bario. Since I never been to Marudi before, I purposely took connecting flight to Marudi and then Bario.

The earliest flight to Marudi is at 8.50 am from Miri Airport. It took 20 minutes to Marudi. I have not quite settle in my seat when I heard the announcement that we already arrived at Marudi. One interesting fact about the twin otter flight is that you can sit wherever you want. My advise is to seat right behind the pilot because you take video of the plane taking off and the pilot in action. In fact if you brave enough to approach the pilot, you can even get to selfie with the pilot. The only thing is that you need to ignore the noise of the twin otter engine. The trick is to enjoy the panoramic view from your window.

Once you are at Marudi airport, make sure you have your drinking water with you. There is no food and drink kiosk at the airport. The problem is that the next flight to Bario is 40 minutes later. So if you need to take a drink, there are taxi outside the airport that can take you to the nearest shop and back to the airport with just RM10 fare. If you want to save the RM10, you can take a small run around 5 minutes to the sundry shop. I have no ample time to really explore Marudi town, but I come back some other time in the future.

The flight from Marudi to Bario will take another 40 minutes. As you approach the highland of Bario, you will practically flying within the clouds. Luckily when we arrived, the weather is good. I just cant imagine sitting in a twin otter during bad weather.

Suddenly behind the clouds, you can see one of the most beautiful sight in this world...the shangri-la of Borneo. Surrounded by mountains, you can see plots of paddy fields...and in case you do not know, Bario rice is one of the world best. From my window, I saw one big Cross on top of Prayer Mountain overlooking Bario town. 

The pilot expertly landed the twin otter and I officially step my feet at the "land of 1000 handshakes". The airport is slightly bigger than Marudi airport. I can start to feel the chilly air, even at 10.30 in the morning. So just carry your sweater with you from Marudi, because you going to need it the moment you arrive at Bario. 

I was greeted by Julian my caretaker at Bario. We then proceed to our homestay Rumah Panjang Asal Baraa Bario. It's the original long long house at Bario area. Ethnic Kelabit that inhibits Bario area is predominantly Christians. However, on my my way to the long house, I saw school children with hijab riding a bicycle. I was later told that there are few locals who had converted to Islam. This shows the diversity of religions here at Bario and they can live as one big happy community....something that even the sophisticated and modern city dwellers can learn.

I have been to long house  before but I never stay in one. I do not what to expect. The moment I stepped into the long house, I already felt like home. The ambience is nice, the room is cosy, relaxing recreational area, clean toilets. 

What actually caught my attention is the hospitality shown by the host and rest of the occupants of the long house. Unlike blogs that I read before, there are 24 hours electricity supply and my host, Auntie Rita serves delicious meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. 

Throughout my stay at Bario, Jacob the only son of Auntie Rita will take us around. His favourite spot, Prayer Mountain. 

In Bario, every where you look, you can see padi field and mountains. If you hike little bit like bukit Agan, you can see pineapple plantation. I don't have the opportunity to visit the strawberry farm adjacent to the long house...and yeah Bario rice and pineapple is one of the best in the world. 

I woke up from the sound of the Tubong echoing each inch of Bario. Tubong is a piece of hollow woods. Once you hit it, you create hollowing sounds. For devout Christian in Bario its time for morning prayer. I look up the time at my hand phone and it shows 5.30 in the morning. It's time for me to get up as well.

It's so calm in the morning. You can see fractions of the mountains hiding behind the clouds. I took the time to sit down next to the padi field and watch the sun rises through the clouds. It just me, the padi field, and the mountains (and a group dogs who had been watching me from afar thinking what the hell is this guy doing). 

Bario is the best place to get away from the rest of the world. The phone line and internet connection was so bad. If you need to be connected, you need to go to the town for 3G coverage. Somehow this is only for Celcom users...and all these subject to the weather.

The moment I stepped into the longhouse after my long morning walk, I smelled the aromatic nasi lemak cooked with Bario Rice. It's simple nasi lemak with just hard boiled eggs and sambal but it can easily made into my top 5 of best nasi lemak in my life. After 4-5 serving of nasi lemak, Auntie Rita took out the Bario Pineapple cleanly cut and chilled in the refrigerator for dessert. Since all foods in Bario are naturally cultivated without any fertiliser or pesticides, that means I am getting organic foods for all 4 days I'm in Bario. Imagine if you stay for a month or two..everyday organic food. 

Bario is a small place but you need to stay a little bit longer to really appreciate the beauty of this place. For me its a perfect getaway, no internet, no phone calls, no interruption. I just free my mind from my daily routine job and just enjoy the mountains, the food, the chilly air, the culture, and the warmth hospitality of its people. You just need to come here experience your self