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"Along the river way, longhouses of the Ibans half hidden by jungle are a common sight. Shooting the dangerous rapids along the way is a daily affair for the Express drivers and for a tourist it may be an experience of a lifetime."
The Batang Rajang River is Malaysia’s longest and busiest water highway. Sibu, a town at the delta of the river, forms the gateway of the great Rajang River. Serving all the coastal towns and district are the local speedboats aptly called the Express, which roar upriver past rapids as well as Chinese settlements until the last outstation, Belaga.
Along the river way, longhouses of the Ibans half hidden by jungle are a common sight. Shooting the dangerous rapids along the way is a daily affair for the Express drivers and for a tourist it may be an experience of a lifetime.
The Ibans or formerly the Sea Dayaks who live along Batang Rajang form the largest indigenous group of Sarawak. They are famous for their communal lifestyle in the form of living in longhouses. A single longhouse can house as many as 20 to 50 families. They were once headhunters who roamed the Rajang River. This tribal lifestyle has long been modernised but the longhouses still remain.
Logging, a major source of income for Sarawak, is the main activity here. Ships filled with logs or pulling log rafts are a common sight.
Last viewed - March 19, 2010
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