Ulu Woh, Kanowit,Sarawak

Visit to Iban Long house in Ulu Woh, Kanowit

As an Iban growing up in town, I had very little knowledge of rural life. My first visit to my Iban relatives’ village in Ulu Woh changed my perceptions of life. And I will never forget that particular visit.

We took an express boat from Sibu to Ulu Woh in Kanowit. The ride in the 100 odd seating capacity fast bomb-looking boat took almost four hours. We passed thick green forest and some scattered riverine villages. The murky and yellowish Rejang River seemed to be teeming with crocodiles. Hidden logs made river traveling a little treacherous.

Upon arrival, we were given the Iban “appetizer” or home brewed rice wine called “tuak”. We sat down happily on the mat and talked about little things,making our relationship closer. Serving tuak is an act of respect for relatives and friends and even strangers. Old tuak can be as good as brandy. This little welcoming ceremony would take slightly more than two hours.

In the afternoon, I went for a swim in the huge river. While girls and women did their washing, including mine, boys and men enjoyed themselves in the water. Such riverside bathing may take hours. Sometimes it was an opportunity for young men to watch the young ladies they fancy. And before long, if arrangements could be made, a marriage would materialize.

I would not wait for evening to arrive as by then I was extremely hungry from the energetic swimming. Dinner was sumptuous. We were served the wonderful longhouse dishes of salted wild boar meat cooked in bamboo. At best salted wild boar is even better than German sausage meat. The second course was heavenly barbequed deer meat. When the third dish came out I could not believe that it was snake meat, sliced thinly and served in a wonderful onion and soy sauce. It was fit for a king. Then several vegetable dishes were served, namely salted tapioca leaves(daun ubi), salted mustard green (ensabi), jungle ferns,cucumber leaves, bitter cucumber leaves and the lovely orangey pumpkin cooked with dried fish.

For dessert we had three different sweet cakes called sarang semut, kueh acuan (moulded cookies) and roti sepit, which was actually love letters to the rest of the world. All these were downed with the help of “Cap Amoy” coffee which was really black and sweet. To the longhouse folks,this is the only coffee they know of. The hospitality of the Ibans has been well known. And as a young boy, I had an embarrassingly large number of helpings for all the dishes served. Our gracious hosts were amused and endeared by my cravings for traditional food.

Somehow, life in the village was so simple yet so rich. Coffee Bean, KFC, Sugar Bun and ATM machines seemed to be another life away. For just that little short time, I felt the presence and strength of my ancestors in my blood.

By Japri Lanyau,2007