Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Headhouse
Whereas the Iban traditionally hung hunted heads outside each family's
bilik
, the Biday-
uh grouped theirs together in the community's
panggah
or
baruk
(communal meeting
hall). The heads are no longer believed to protect the village - these days the people of
Annah Rais are almost all Anglican (the Bidayuh of Kalimantan are mainly Catholic) -
but about a dozen smoke-blackened human skulls still have pride of place in the head-
house, suspended over an 18th-century Dutch cannon. It is said that in some longhouses, a
few old people still remember the name of each of the heads.
NOTABLE BUILDING
Sleeping
Annah Rais is a peaceful, verdant spot to chill out. Half-a-dozen families run homestays
with shared bathrooms, either in one of the three longhouses or in an adjacent detached
house. Standard rates, agreed upon by the community, are RM98 per person for accom-
modation and delicious Bidayuh board, and RM298 per person - a bit much, perhaps - for
a package that includes activities such as trekking, rafting, fishing, (mock) blowgun hunt-
ing, soaking in a natural hot spring and a dance performance.
Emily & John Ahwang $$
( Emily 010-977 8114, John 016-855 2195;
http://22.com.my/homestay
)
Emily and
John, both of whom speak fluent English, love to welcome guests to their spotless, mod-
ern, two-storey home, built right into the longhouse.
HOMESTAY
Akam Ganja $$
( 010-984 3821; winniejagig@gmail.com)
It's a pleasure to be hosted by Akam, a re-
tired forestry official, and his wife Winnie, an English teacher, at their comfortable de-
tached house on the riverbank.
HOMESTAY
Getting There & Away
Annah Rais is about 40km south of Kuching. A taxi from Kuching costs RM80 one-way.
A variety of Kuching guesthouses and tour agencies offer four-hour tours to Annah
Rais (per person RM115, including Semenggoh Nature Reserve RM140).
