Kaul Festival

Kaul festival or "Kaul" as it is known by the local was and still is the most important event in the life of a Melanau. This ancient festival was carried out to mark the beginning of a Melanau calender and the ceremony to appease the spirits or "ipok" of the seas, the land and sky.

Kaul was celebrated in the most revered and spiritual manner with certain strict rules to observe. In the past kaul would be celebrated at the end of February but now kaul is celebrated by the Melanau in the third week of April, anually.

During the occasion all villagers would congregate on the beach at Mukah river mouth, bringing traditional food, snacks and mouthwatering savouries. Mukah town and the surrounding villages would be pratically deserted. All sorts of traditional games also would be played with the demonstration of martial arts like mengalai and "silat".

The festival would start with offerings of traditional food in a special offering basket or "seraheng" which would be placed on the beach at a chosen site near the river mouth. If there were leftovers it would also be left near the seraheng site.

The highlight of the festival would be swinging and chanting on the twenty-foot high giant swing called "tibou".

Present day , Melanau have converted to either Muslim or Christian and kaul is more of a social-cultural gathering than anything else. Now it is an occasion to revive the cultural awareness among the younger generations of Melanau as well as promoting KAUL FESTIVAL as one of Sarawak tourist attraction.

Chinese New Year

KUCHING: Chinese New Year falls on two different dates, depending on which calendar is used.

Based on the ‘Solar’ calendar, today is the beginning of spring (‘Li Chun’), meaning it is the beginning of the New Year.

But the Chinese celebrate Chinese New Year on Feb 10 this year because they follow the ‘Lunar’ calendar.

In China, people eat ‘chun-bing’ (spring biscuit) on this day while farmers often celebrate with special events in the village, including worships and offerings to the gods. These ceremonies are held with the hope for a blissful and prosperous New Year.

‘Li chun’ is frequently mentioned in Chinese literature, and its most famous reference is a poem by poet Du Fu titled ‘Lichun’.  It describes the custom of eating ‘chun-bing’

Gawai Dayak

Celebrated all over Sarawak in Borneo, your best bet for seeing Gawai Dayak festivities is near the capital of Kuching. The Sarawak Cultural Village - the same venue used annually for the Rainforest Music Festival - is a popular and convenient place for tourists to learn more about indigenous culture. Kuching typically holds a celebration on May 31 at the Civic Centre which includes dinner, dancing, and even a beauty pageant.

Do not expect to arrive on May 31 to join the Gawai Dayak celebration; Kuching is busier than ever with parades and demonstrations along the waterfront that begin a week prior to Gawai Dayak.

Another option for the more adventurous is to make your way up the river from Sibu to the small village of Kapit and arrange for a visit to a local family's traditional longhouse.

There is a push within the Dayak community to unify the celebration, however for now Gawai Dayak remains mostly incongruous with each longhouse holding separate events and itineraries. Do not expect any less from the festival - as many as 30 families can occupy a single longhouse!

Chinese

Chinese pioneers first came to Sarawak as traders and explorers in the 6th century. Today, they make up 24% of the population of Sarawak and consist of communities built from the economic migrants of the 19th and early 20th centuries. They are classified as a non-Bumiputera ethnic group, despite bearing the largest contribution and hardship towards the development of Sarawak since the early 19th century.

The Sarawak Chinese belong to a wide range of dialect groups, the most significant being Foochow, Hakka, Hokkien, Teochew, Hainanese, and Puxian Min. The Chinese maintain their ethnic heritage and culture and celebrate all the major cultural festivals, most notably the Chinese New Year and the Hungry Ghost Festival. The Sarawak Chinese are predominantly Buddhists.



Ethnic Chinese in Sarawak were encouraged to settle because of their commercial and business acumen. The biggest dialect group is the Hokkien; many originated from Jinmen and Taiwan, Republic of China and Xiamen in China. The Hakka and Cantonese represent a minority of the Chinese population. Despite their small numbers, the Hokkien have a considerable presence in Sarawak's private and business sector, providing commercial and entrepreneurial expertise and often operating joint business ventures with Malaysian Chinese entreprises.

Orang Ulu

Orang Ulu is an ethnic group in Sarawak. The various Orang Ulu ethnics together make up roughly 6% of Sarawak's population. The phrase Orang Ulu means upriver people and is a term used to collectively describe the numerous tribes that live upriver in Sarawak's vast interior. Such groups include the major Kenyah and Kayan people, and the smaller neighbouring groups of the Kajang, Kejaman, Punan, Ukit, and Penan. Nowadays, the definition also includes the down-river tribes of the Lun Bawang, Lun Dayeh, "mean upriver" or "far upstream", Berawan, Saban as well as the plateau-dwelling Kelabits. Orang Ulu is a term coined officially by the government to identify several ethnics and sub-ethnics who live mostly at the upriver and uphill areas of Sarawak. Most of them live in the district of Baram,Miri Belaga, Limbang, and Lawas.

A vast majority of the Orang Ulu tribe are Christians but traditional religions are still practised in some areas.Some of the major tribes making up the Orang Ulu group include:

1. Kenyah 2.Kayan 3. Lun Bawang 4. Kelabit 5. Penan 6. Bisaya

Iban

The Ibans comprise the largest percentage (almost 30%) of Sarawak's population. Iban is native to Sarawak and Sarawak has the highest number of Ibans in Borneo. 

The large majority of Ibans practise Christianity. However, like most other ethnic groups in Sarawak, they still observe many of their traditional rituals and beliefs. Sarawak celebrates colourful festivals such as the Gawai Dayak (harvest festival), Gawai Kenyalang (hornbill, or the god of war festival), penuaian padi and Gawai Antu (festival of the dead).

Wild Fern Leaf (Midin)

Midin The locals greatly indulge in jungle fern such as the midin (quite similar to pucuk paku that is popular in the Peninsular). Midin is much sought after for its crisp texture and great taste. Midin is usually served in two equally delicious ways - fried with either garlic or belacan

It’s a 4 story walk to the top where you are seated in an open area that is quite cooling at night. You will also see an array of restaurants and cafes that all sell seafood. The best restaurant according to my Sarawakian friend is the stall called ABC Seafood. The ABC Restaurant and in fact most of the stalls there serve Halal food. ABC Seafood Restaurant in particular have obtained a official Halal Certificate so you’ll see a nice mixture of crowd, a true meaning of 1Malaysia.

I recommend that you be at the Top Spot Seafood Food Court before 7pm to start ordering. After 8pm, you’ll see this whole place flooded with the locals and also foreign guest. They are open from 4pm till late, depending on the crowd and are open every single day (closed on alternate Mondays). Since they are above a parking lot, you’ll have no problem looking for a place for your car. If you’re at one of the hotels in Town, I’ll suggest that you just walk there.