Mongkos Bidayuh Longhouse & Semenggoh 2D1N
Description
TOUR INFORMATION :
Day 1 Kuching – Semenggoh – Mongkos Longhouse (L/D)
0800 hours pick up from hotel and depart for Semenggoh Wildlife Centre, located 24 kilometers from the center of Kuching. This orangutan rehabilitation center trains orphaned or rescued orangutans how to survive in the wild. Over 20 orangutans live in forests within the nature reserve and often return to the center at feeding times. Upon arrival, head to the briefing area. After a brief talk from the rangers, take a short walk along a trail to the feeding area to watch the orangutans come down from the trees for a free meal.
Depart Semenggoh 1030 hours (approx.) and continue by road to Mongkos Bidayuh village which is located near the Sarawak-Kalimantan border, 103 kilometers from Kuching. Pass pepper gardens, rice fields and typical scenes of rural Sarawak. Arrive at Mongkos around 1200 hours. Mongkos is a thriving rural community and home to one of the few remaining traditional Bidayuh longhouses in Sarawak. The Bidayuh or Land Dayak are the second largest Dayak tribe in Sarawak. Traditionally they lived in longhouses but nowadays most Bidayuh settlements consist of individual houses rather than longhouses.
Upon arrival, check in to your room in the village guesthouse-cum-homestay building or room in one of the village houses. Then enjoy a Bidayuh-style lunch. After lunch visits the 24-door traditional longhouse which is made of wood and bamboo and was built in the 1950s. Walk around the longhouse and learn about its history, including stories from the ‘Confrontation’, the undeclared war between Malaysia and Indonesia that ran from 1962-1966. See the bullet holes in the wooden walls of the longhouse, the result of an Indonesian attack on Mongkos during the Confrontation. Then take a stroll around the village, meet local villagers and learn about the Bidayuh way of life. The rest of the day is at your own leisure to relax, wander around the village or have a swim in the river. Around 1900 hours enjoy a Bidayuh-style dinner served in the homestay restaurant. Overnight in Mongkos homestay accommodation.
Day 2 Mongkos Village – Kuching (B/L)
0800 hours – enjoy breakfast and a cup of local coffee in the homestay restaurant. After breakfast depart on a guided walk along village trails and past farmland to reach a riverside picnic spot. Many of the residents of Mongkos are farmers. Rice, pepper, rubber, oil palm, rambutan, mango, bananas, jackfruit, durian and a range of local vegetables are all grown in the small farms that surround the village. See local fruits and vegetables and cash crops such as pepper and cocoa (the exact crops will depend on the season). Arrive at the picnic area located near a small waterfall. Relax or have a swim in the cool waters before enjoying a local-style lunch of bamboo chicken, rice and jungle ferns. (Note: in the event of heavy rain, lunch will be taken at the homestay restaurant in the village instead of near the waterfall). After lunch walks back to the village. Check out of your room and say goodbye to your hosts. Depart Mongkos around 1500 hours and arrive back at your hotel in Kuching around 1700 hours.
INCLUDES
Tour & transfer, meals (B=breakfast, L=lunch, D=dinner), 1 night stay at Mongkos Homestay, English speaking guide.