Our ride to Nanga simpa took several pitstops. We started in Lundu and stayed overnight in Kuching. Then drove about three hours to Seri Aman where we stayed overnight. Another one and a half hours to reach Batang Ai dam in lubok Antu. That was the easy part . We need to ride a long boat to reach the long house in Nanga Simpa. It was my first time to ride this long boat for one and a half hours. Yep that was the exact time I was there in the middle of the boat sitting cross legged and wondering why I agreed to do this. I gripped the side panel like my life depends on it—- well it was true. My mind went into an overdrive thinking a thousand ways I could die here.
The boat hummed and grummed trying to push us through the calm water. The weather was nice with sun streaming overhead and light breeze sometimes greeted my stoned face. I was stilled frozen since stepping on the boat.Once in a while I tried to breathe slowly so as not to rock the boat. The ride was long and at some point you feel like being transported to another world. The sunshine suddenly disappeared and we rode into a jungle; like a scary episode of the Amazon jungle from National Geographic. Still on the water but this time we were on the shallow river. The twists and turns made my stomach grumbled. When is this gonna end? I peeked into my watch and we had another half an hour.Oh no! the fear was unimaginable but I told myself this will be over soon and everything gonna be alright.
I closed my eyes and listened to the humming of the engine working hard to keep us afloat. By now my ass started to hum along vibrating mercilessly. Is this the experience that I was looking for? Maybe but this shocking boat ride seems a bit on edge. Well maybe I am not used to riding a boat for hours. These people seem to depend on this; so it should be okay. I was not convinced and hoping for it to end soon. Finally, we reached a small jetty and the stairs led to a few houses on the riverbank.
The dogs greeted us with a long howl and broke the silence of the forest. That was not good it annoyed me. We were given a room and rested as lunch was prepared.
After lunch we were on the boat again to see a waterfall. Well it’s just half an hour from here don’t worry. Yeah ! right the adventure continues. After a few gruelling turns to manoeuvre the shallow water and rapids, we were there. standing majestically at the corner of the hill, the waterfall seems mystical. Serene. The incessant falls added sound to the silence of the forest .The water was cold and soon a victorious emotion suddenly surged. I was confused as why this feels like a victory. Maybe the beauty of the forest started to overwhelm me. Not always we have the whole waterfall to ourselves—- that was a special gift.
We moved on to head back and halfway we stopped to hike the way back to the long house. It was okay as Daniel, the guide, will be with us. He is an Iban lad in his 20s and moved expertly in the forest. After 20 minutes we were husshed down as Daniel spotted an Orangutan. Wow! I’ve never expected this but to come across the orangutan in the wild is something magical. He was alone up on the tree picking some fruits. It just took my breath away . In a very weird way, I started to discover the beauty of this place. The miracles at my own backyard.
I have never encountered with the Iban people. Only saw them from afar on TV or at cultural events. But yesterday for a brief 24-hour period have been part of them. We went to visit the longhouse and met the headman. It was quiet and the residents went about doing their own chores within the long and open corridors. What I saw was their struggle to preserve the old values and belief while keeping up with the reality of today. And today, life is hard and expensive.
I tried to make conservation and suddenly the story of his life has made me to stay and listened.Maybe it was a bit hard to approach but once you break the ice; they were friendly and fun to be with. The tattooes and that hairstyles were enough to scare me off but being there just gave me the chance to see beyond that. Like most of us, the urge to see outside world was their dream too and many had ventured far away with oil and gas company or some shipping lines. In the end they came back to the forest where they belong. It is a great privilige , I think, to have a sense of belonging with this forest. In the morning, the stillness of the forest traps your emotions and calms you mystically. Positive vibes were in the atmosphere and I was lucky to feel it even in that brief time.
It was an interesting experience to know them and remove the scary-iban-head-hunters perception from my mind. It was embedded for so long as for me to believe they now have vanished and disappeared from the jungle. Apparently, they are here struggling to make a living like many of us.
It was time to leave and as much as I felt the joy to finally escape from this strange place; a strain of sadness trailed behind. Now I have a few friends there that I know their names and their stories. I left my friends in the forest waiting for another strange tourist to come and listen to their stories again. But at least they feel safe in the forest and enjoy the goodness of nature. I said goodbye to Daniel and Jon as I stepped on the solid ground. It was the end of a dream and for a few days still thinking to comprehend this whole episode of my life…was it real or just an illusion?
