Discover the Best Places And Destinations of Brunei Darussalam

Brunei Darussalam is a South East Asian country among the islands if Borneo. This country is packed with numerous attractions which tourists would surely love. Perfect for people who have an immense passion for museums and beaches; in line with its historic and cultural beauty, Brunei is truly a place everyone would love.

Here are some of Brunei Darussalam’s must-see destinations:

The Royal Regalia Museum

Located at the center of Brunei’s capital, built in 1992, in honor of the 25th anniversary of the country’s Majesty, this museum holds the collections of artifacts of the country’s royal family. The museum also displays the sultan’s jeweled crowns which are being used during coronation ceremonies, together with the royal chariots and the copy of the sultan’s throne with its armory in gold and silver. This museum also exhibits Brunei’s constitutional history. The Royal Regalia Museum reveals the whole feature of Brunei; from its history, to the country’s cultural, political and royal aspects. This is a one-stop Brunei Darussalam location, which will guide you to the entire Brunei country.

The Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque

Definitely a must-see place in Brunei with its remarkable beauty; considered as one of the most rewarding architectural success. With its striking view along the Brunei River in Kampong Ayer, Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque is indeed a splendor, Brunei is really proud of. During the night, the mosque’s view becomes more spectacular with its lights, illuminating the sky’s evening glow. This place is absolutely a satisfying place to visit in Brunei.

The Istana Nurul Iman

Located along the banks of the Brunei River, Istana Nurul Iman is just a few miles outside the center of the city. The formal residence of Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah; considered as the world’s largest residential palace. A 2,152,782 square feet fortress with a total of 1,788 rooms, the palace is open for the public during the annual Hari Raya Aidilfitri, an Islamic celebration. Visitors enjoy compliments such as foods, plus a package of money given to the young children. A trip to a palace would certainly amaze everyone; so if you visit Brunei Darussalam, don’t miss this chance to explore the Istana Nurul Iman, the largest palace in the world.

Bandar Seri Begawan

Bandar Seri Begawan is the capital of Brunei and one of the most visited places in the country. Thousands of travelers from around the word visit here to see Brunei’s capital; where the heart of Brunei Darussalam is. This is where the famous Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque is located. Here, you can experience the true Brunei culture. A trip to the Brunei Darussalam wouldn’t be complete without a visit to its city capital.

These are just few of the must-see places you can visit in Brunei Darussalam. Feel free to explore and discover other beautiful places of this captivating country.

Review of Transnational America – Contours of Modern US Culture

Transnational America: Contours of Modern US Culture is an editorial book including 13 essays by different individuals plus a completely illustrated one named photo essay in the work, edited by Russell Duncan and Clara Juncker. Museum Tusculanum Press has published it in 276 pages paperback with ISBN 8772899581 on 2004 in Copenhagen.

Contributors in this one volume editorial are experts in various disciplines mostly English Literature and American Studies.

The work categorized in 5 major categories: 1- Visions and Revisions 2- Secrets and Lies 3- Photo Essay 4- New People 5- New Places, which each one subcategorizes to a few essays.

This book has a pro-American structure, and tries to introduce America as a transpattern and even an Archetype which all other nations and states must follow from its nation-state pattern. Many countries are consciously or unconsciously go after it, and its taste and scent can be sensed in rest of the world. That’s why it’s called Transnational America.

In fact editors believe in an alliteration of Trans in everything related to America as it’s depicted in editors’ introduction:

“A transatlantic voyage can discover a new continent or start new lives, and a transcontinental exploration can give rise to Manifest Destiny. Pioneers can transverse frontiers to build a nation. To transmigrate is to travel through one country on the way to a more permanent resting place. Slaves are transported; immigrants make transitions; people are transformed. Transactions are necessary to property acquisition. Translators mediate among languages. Hopes are transmitted; communities are transplanted; nations are transfigured. Media producers transcribe programs for broadcast. Employees are transferred to regional for international offices.”

It can be said -In deed- the book tries to normalize the trans-Naturalization concept.

“The editors commissioned articles that explain the contours of the ‘glocal’ (global and local) and ‘intermestic’ (international and domestic) tendencies involved in transnational America.” The language of the work is not too complicated but to some extent sophisticated, editors intend to deliver their minds by coining new words using blending method which can be a sign and metaphor of interdisciplinary approach of the book per se.

“They address the complex issues of globalization, American mythology, Christian proselytizing, modern slavery, conspiracy theory, apocalyptic terrorism, Vietnam stories, international feminism, changing gender roles, resurgent regionalism, Hillary Clinton, Muhammad Ali, Latinos, and the changing definitions of place-be they in Hungary, Nigeria, Estonia, the American South or Canadian cities. As the word enters America, so America enters the world, unfettered by territorial boundaries, and experiencing ambivalent reactions of acceptance and resistance.”

It’s really hard to label it as unique, but undoubtedly it’s a great work for those who are new comers in Americaology and Globalizationology. Popular culture is smelled in the whole; examples, similes and metaphors to different Hollywood motion pictures give a subtle abstract interactive mood to work.

Nonetheless it has a unique part, and it’s the photo essay. 14 Dazzling photos which may represents 14 essays of the work. A well expert eye obviously can find a lot and even more in each; ‘Naturalization’, ‘Mc Donaldization’, American Surreallization, Presidential ExceptionalizationAmerican jigsawization, Phallicist Feminization, Negro-Islam Americanization, Economical Novelization, Mexico-America Hybridization, Amerinadaization, un-American assimilation; are probable conceptualized nominations which I dare to put on them, and of course all are coined by me save in quotation marks. I really recommend everyone who is interested in book and is in lack of time for whole reading even though skipping the rest live a quarter with this photo essay which has a encyclopedic essence.

As it is asserted in the book for American Understanding various notions and concepts must be taken into account; ‘nationalism’, ‘racism’, ‘manhood’, ‘Christianity’, ‘globalization’, ‘immigration’, ‘classic-democratic roots’, ‘militarism’, ‘technology’, ‘advertising banners’, ‘youth’, ‘future’, ‘progress’ and ‘frontier’ are issues which are reviewed in this work, so paves the way for American Understanding. But some other points are neglected in this work if so they are being concerned as modern US culture elements too; Hip Hop music, same sex marriage, new concept of Stew as successor of Melting Pot, Voluntarism, Democratization of the World and pre-emption. Nevertheless it enlightens new horizons in watching America as an insider even out of it.

Extreme Adventures – Queensland

“Would you like to book an Air Safari? We fly over Aoraki Mount Cook and the Fox Glacier – it’s a wonderful view. Oh you would rather jump out? How about the skydive option from 15,000 ft? Too straight-forward? How about paragliding, or hand-gliding, jet boating or whitewater rafting? Or take a aerial ride in a stunt plane, jump off a bridge on a bungy rope or try the Shotover Canyon Swing?”.

I am speaking to Diane, a helpful counter rep at ‘The Terminal’: A one-stop shop for all your adrenaline needs nestled in quiet Queenstown. In case you were wondering, the Canyon Swing is ‘the world’s highest swing’ – launching you from a cliff face into a 200 meter arc, accelerating you to 150kph, and then back again. This is one of the more recent inventions in Queenstown, where you have the option of being launched in one of ten different methods, from “The Cutaway”, “Elvis Cutaway” and “Indian Rope Trick” to “Gimp Boy Goes to Hollywood”, and where each method is rated from “Scary” (One underpants rating) to “Very, very, very scary” (Five underpants rating).

After much deliberation I decide to opt for Asia Pacific’s highest bungy jump, the 440 feet high Nevis Highwire Bungy. Unlike the original 140 feet Kawarau Bridge bungy over Kawarau river, or the 335 feet Pipeline bungy over Shotover river, the Nevis Bungy isn’t attached to a bridge. Instead, AJ Hackett Bungy invested NZ$2 million in a tailor-made, purpose built, fully protected “Jump Pod”, dangling by high-tension wires over the Nevis Gorge (and when I say ‘fully protected’, I don’t mean you, I mean the pod – it has 30 different patents. Presumably so that if you find a gorge as deep as Nevis on your travels you will think twice before strapping wires to the side and building a similar pod to jump out of, for fear of being sued in the event you survive the fall).

I’m here on the invitation of a great group of New Zealand Entrepreneurs who have taken time out from their schedule to show me a piece of New Zealand. Greame Fowler is a well-known property investor, and author of the best-selling book “NZ Real Estate Investor’s Secrets”, Kevin Heppleston is an award-winning business coach with Action International, based in Wellington, Gill Daldin and Lisa McCarthy are both franchise owners of an Australian appliance rental business, Mr Rentals. All are making the most of the fact that, as well as having the highest percent of entrepreneurs of any country in Asia Pacific, New Zealand also has some of the most stunning spots to take a break from all that entrepreneurial activity.

Queenstown, nestled on the Southern tip of New Zealand’s South Island, promotes itself as “The World’s Adventure Capital”. How did it find this niche? The town grew out of the gold rush at Shotover River in the 1860’s. Surrounded by awe-inspiring mountain, it became a summer tourist spot after the gold was exhausted. It took a century before anyone was attracted to Queenstown in the winters, when the Mount Cook Group turned Coronet Peak into a ski field in the 1960’s, turning the area into a year-round destination which in turn attracted more hotels, shops and restaurants.

Bill Hamilton, a South Island country farmer, can be credited for introducing adventure tourism in the 1970’s. Here’s one version of how the story goes: While trying to invent a high powered water pump to drain water from his land, he created a turbine pump so powerful that when he turned it on: instead of water shooting through, the pump dislodged and end up shooting across the water. After a little lateral thinking, he forgot about the pump idea and built a speed boat around the turbine instead. The Jet Boat was born. Needing less than 3cm of water to maneuver in at high speeds, before long Shotover Jet was taking visitors on breath-taking rides through the spectacular canyons of Shotover River for $75 a pop.

Then, in 1988, AJ Hackett and Henry Van Asch (two speed skiers who had been inspired by a video documenting the attempts of members of the Oxford University Dangerous Sports Club to copy Vanuatu villagers’ ritual of jumping off man-made towers attached to vines) arrived in Queenstown having spent two years at the University of Auckland developing a special bungy cord to bungy jump from. Until then, the only other alternative were the vines that the Vanuatu locals used – not too reliable.

In June the previous year, AJ Hackett had used the cord they had developed for a high profile (and highly illegal) bungy jump from the Eiffel Tower. Now they were ready to go commercial, with a plan to offer jumps from Kawarau Bridge. Despite obvious skepticism from locals that people would be willing to pay to jump from a bridge, business boomed. Within a year, a second site was launched at Skippers Bridge and since then further sites – each one bigger and better – have continually launched with an estimated 350,000 jumpers in Queenstown to date. With each new option, business increased. When the Nevis bungy launched in 1999, demand was so high, the company made back its investment of $2M within ten months.

Adventure tourism took off in Queenstown in the 1990s, and year after year the adventure options have grown, with visitor numbers reaching 4.8 million by 2001 (compared to a resident population of 12,000), 5.5 million by 2005, and a projected 7 million visitors by 2010.

It seems, then, that I am in good company by choosing to bungy jump! After all, this is what people do in Queenstown, right? I hear that up to 100 people each day jump from the Nevis Highwire Bungy. A quick calculation reveals that, with off-days, that’s maybe 20,000 out of the five million Queenstown visitors each year. Only four people in every thousand decide to try it? What about the other nine hundred and ninety-six of them? Before leaving the Terminal with my ticket and T-Shirt, I look for reassurance from the others in the group. I ask them what it’s like to bungy jump. None of them have bungy-jumped before. None of them want to. Ever.

The humiliating possibility of being the laughing stock of the Jump Pod suddenly becomes a worse fate than ending up spread all over the canyon floor I ask for the release instructions again and would have written them down if I could. But before I know it I am on my feet, hearing the countdown, seeing myself jumping, remembering to scream on the way down as per my brother’s instructions (“It makes the video more dramatic”), watching the river accelerate towards me and then reverse back just as dramatically, and then triumphantly releasing myself from the bungy shackles.

Lisa’s husband, Austin, decides to jump with me and we hop on the bus. Leaving the sedate streets of Queenstown, we trekked for an hour over sheep country before reaching the ‘cable car’ that would take us out to the jump pod. The cable car is actually an open metal box with a grill floor, which can squeeze in six people at most. The long, wobbly journey out to the Jump Pod gives us time to reconsider – two of the earlier jumpers had already pulled out. I consider whether I am being brave or stupid or both. I decide both and it makes me feel a little better.

Austin goes first. He looks nervous, which makes me more nervous. It is a very long way down – a little like jumping off a 60 storey building. After being given instructions by the crew, Austin hobbles out to the end of the ‘gangplank’, 500 feet above rock level, and the countdown begins: “5..4..3..2..1”….. He is still standing there as if admiring the scenery. My heart goes in my mouth. Now what? One of the crew says “It’ll only get worse the longer you wait”. I remember being told that as a kid when I didn’t take my medicine. Is this what this is? They count down again, and this time he’s GONE! Just like that, out of sight, hurtling towards the rocks at 130 kph.

I don’t have time to reflect on his sudden disappearance as I’m up next. As I get the bungy strapped on, I hear a barrage of instructions come my way. As there is no easy access to the bottom of the gorge, we’re going to get winced back up afterwards and there is a simple (yet at the time impossibly complex) process for releasing your feet from the bungy on your second bounce so that you don’t get winced back up upside down. If you get it wrong, the consequence is that you will appear back in the Jump Pod upside-down, “…like a hooked fish, at which point we will all laugh at you.”

The adrenaline rush lasts for hours, and leaping off the mountain in a paraglider on our return to Queenstown feels like a country stroll in comparison. I can see why extreme adventure sports has become so addictive for so many, and why millions travel to the bottom of the earth to get high head-first. In Deepak Chopra’s words: “Living on the edge has become an obsession, and adrenaline junkies are more prevalent than heroin addicts ever could be.”

I’ll be coming back for my fix soon.

Belief, courage, action

-Roger Hamilton
Chairman
XL Results Foundation Pte Ltd
30 Robinson Road
#11-01 Robinson Towers
Tel: 65-63723383
Fax: 65-63231131
Website: resultsfoundation.com