Kampong Ayer is made up of 28 water villages on both sides of the Sungai Brunei in Brunei. It is home to 20,000 residents. The houses are built on wooden, and more recently concrete, stilts. A boardwalk high above the water surface connects many of the houses. To see more of Kampong Ayer, hire a boat for about $20 US, to take you around. Almost anyone in the village can point you towards someone with a boat for hire.

While you’re in Bandar Seri Bagawan, the capital, be sure to check out the Royal Regalia Museum, which gives you a history of the Sultans of Brunei. Close by is the stunning Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque. On the way out of town stop by Jame’Asr Hassanil Bolkiah Mosque, the largest in the country. It’s not only enormous, but has got both an incredibly gorgeous interior and exterior. To see it at its best go for the evening prayer just before sunset to witness its four minarets glisten in the late-day sun.

Text and photos by Stephen Bugno

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