One of the richest royals in the world

Not many people know the small country Brunei. Better known is probably the Sultan, Hassanal Bolkiah, who rules the country and is one of the richest people on earth. His net worth is estimated at 20 billion $. His palace is considered the largest in the world, has 1788 rooms, five pools, 18 elevators, a garage for 110 cars and stables for 200 polo horses. The country has an immense wealth due to its enormous oil reserves and relative stability.

The Sultanate of Brunei is located on the island of Borneo and is surrounded by Malaysia. Between the 16th and 19th centuries, the territory covered a much larger area, almost the entire north coast of Borneo. The country is divided into two parts, separated by the Malaysian state of Sarawak. The eastern part of the country, in fact, consists almost entirely of rainforest.

A strict muslim country - sale of alcohol is forbidden

Brunei is the last remaining absolute monarchy in south east Asia as well as a strict Muslim country, the law of Sharia applies. The sale and consumption of alcohol is prohibited. Only foreigners are allowed to consume alcohol in their room if they have brought it with them beforehand.  Whoever throws garbage on the street has to pay a fine of more than 700 €. The possession of drugs leads to execution.

The country received negative media attention in 2019 as it introduced death by stoning for homosexuals. However, the country has maintained a moratorium on death sentences for decades, so that the punishment would never be carried out.

"Don't go to boring Brunei!"

"Brunei? What are you doing there? Everyone from my hostel who visited it found it super boring," replied the receptionist at my Malaysian hostel in Kota Kinabalu, when I told him about my plans to visit Brunei.

Fot that I also travel: to disprove or sometimes even to confirm certain conclusions. Everyone has his own experiences while travelling and often I experience places very differently than they are described to me (for better or worse).

9 hour boat journey to Brunei

From Kota Kinabalu it is recommended to go to Brunei by boat, because if you come by land you have to cross the Brunei-Malayan border several times and have your passport checked repeatedly because of unpleasant borderlines (as of march 2020 this is no longer true since a new bridge was built that connects the 2 parts of Brunei)

With a speedboat I first reached the Malaysian island of Labuan, where Bruneians in particular go bargain hunting for goods since it is duty free and offers alcohol. I myself only had a short stay here, left the Bruneian immigration behind me and entered my small boat to Brunei. On a small, old television set there was some cheap film from the 80s on which brutal gangsters shot each other down. My whole journey lasted 9 hours.

Awful public transport

Arriving in Brunei I had to find out where the bus to the center of the capital Bandar Seri Begawan leaves from. Not so easy, because the Bruneians don't really care about their public transport, it is mainly used by the less wealthy immigrants. The Bruneians themselves all own a car. No wonder the buses appear to be in a neglected state. There are only small minibuses, probably left over from the 70s or 80s. And if you want to use a bus after 6 pm, you're in trouble, because that's when the public transport is already stopped!

Getting welcomed by friendly Bruneians

As Brunei is a strict Muslim country, I expected to see many women in full burqa veils. Instead I saw very few of them, but the first Bruneian I met was an obviously gay man who wanted to do a selfie with me. Tourists are still a rarity in Brunei.

The bus took me to the center of the capital, from where I had to take another bus to my hostel. The Bruneians helped me very willingly. They were all super nice. In the afternoon I reached my hostel, the Ae Backpackers Hostel.

A Bruneian lady with a hijab was waiting for me eagerly and I was able to check into the super clean and modern hostel. She told me that I was the only guest in the hostel. Tourists actually only visit Brunei when the Sultan opens his palace to the public and this happens only 3 times a year.

Brunei - The Abode of Peace

Brunei Darussalam, the official name of the country, means "The Abode of Peace". And that's exactly how I felt when I took my first evening walk around my hostel. Brunei is definitely not a place for all-inclusive and party tourists, because you can't buy alcohol anywhere in the country, nor do you find bars or resorts.

I was overlooking a narrow river from a small bridge and could see a rowing team training for a competition. It was so relaxing to enjoy the quietness there. You could literally soak up the totally peaceful atmosphere into your mind.

After my dinner in a Chinese restaurant I went to bed early, because the next morning I wanted to see the city.