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Tea and sweets at a warrior's house

A Warrior’s House
One of the highlights of our trip to Brunei was having tea at a warrior’s house on the Brunei River. It is a house on stilts. I was very curious what these houses were like inside. Thankfully we had the chance to discover this with our afternoon sightseeing tour.

It was quite a challenge to get off the boat and climb up the narrow wooden stairs to the large porch of the house. I did so holding on to the steps with my hands for extra caution as I was afraid of falling into the waters below. Inside the house we sat in the spacious and tidy living room. We were allowed to take photos so I can show you this warrior’s house.

Who are these warriors of Brunei? These are the men who formed part of the King’s military regimen or the King’s Guards. In the 16th century, they were often sent to fight outside of the sultanate and reported to the local chiefs. The Royal Brunei Armed Forces became the official military unit of Brunei after its independence from the British in 1984. 

Notice the photos of the King and Queen of Brunei on the left. The three men who are wearing their toga (graduation attire) are family members who have received their university degree. Education is free in Brunei and students are allowed to choose their university, including those located outside the country. Brunei is one of the richest countries in the world primarily due to its crude oil and natural gas exports. Aside from free education, housing is also free or subsidized by the government.

Snacks with tea
We were served a variety of snacks with our tea. There were cookies, cakes chips, candy, and two local sweets. The banana wrapped rice roll is called pulut panggang or rempah udang and the crispy roll is called fried popiah, similar to a spring roll. I have included links to recipes for both below. 
Recipe for pulut panggang:  https://whattocooktoday.com/pulut-panggang.html
Fried popiah: https://www.rotinrice.com/fried-popiah-spring-rolls/

Stilt houses on the river
Some of the family members brought us the snacks for our tea. They didn’t sit with us. They were all gathered outside on the porch to celebrate the national holiday. Several members of the family had arrived to spend the afternoon with their parents. When we were done, we had the chance to meet and chat with the family who were warm and welcoming and spoke English. It was nice to see them preparing for that evening’s dinner. What was interesting was I recognized one of the vegetables and asked for its name. It has the same name as its Filipino counterpart. That was good to know.

If you would like to learn more about Brunei, you may read my post about it here: 
https://www.travelswithcharie.com/2024/04/highlights-of-bandar-seri-begawan.html

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*****

Images by TravelswithCharie 



 

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Location: Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei

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