John Boyd Macdonald
John Boyd Macdonald
Last week, accompanied by our wonderful Dayak guide Dodi (and ’trainee’ guide Jonathan) we travelled up to see the longhouse (betang) at a little village called Tumbang Gagu, right up in the headwaters of the Sampit (or Mentaya) River. They don’t get a…
The southern half of the huge island of Borneo is dissected by a series of parallel rivers running from the mountains in the middle of the island to the Java Sea at the south. Almost all of the settlements (cities,…
Some kinds of light are just made for photography. The time before and just after sunset often gets called ‘the magic hour’ because of the lovely warm angled light and rich colours that you often get when the sun is…
We were delighted when Sally came to visit last month. The three of us (plus our guide Indra and driver Pak Wondo) headed off on a three-day trip to the Dayak village of Tumbang Manggu, about four hours drive to the north-west…
The ‘traditional’ institution of marriage is very much alive and well in Indonesia. Wedding receptions are big happy noisy colourful affairs with crowds and amplified music spilling out onto the street, so it’s impossible to miss them. When we were returning…
Over the New Year holidays we went to the neighbouring province of South Kalimantan (Kalimantan Selatan, or ‘KalSel’) to do some walking in the Meratus Mountains near the town of Loksado. It’s about nine hours drive from here, but we…
Just two days after our November visit to Tewang Rangkang to help with the communal Dayak rice planting, our friend Lelie’s grandmother (Nenek) passed away at her home in the village, after suffering a stroke. The family decided to hold the full Tiwah funeral…
Some of you asked to know more about YUM (the ‘Yayasan Usaha Mulia’), which is the Indonesian charitable foundation that I am working for here. Here is an article I wrote for publication in the Jakarta Globe about the work…