Niah National Park

Early this morning we flew to Miri, where we then got in a truck and headed to Niah National Park.  We sent most of our stuff via cargo on ahead of us, because we would be backpacking it as lightly as possible for the next few days. 

I thought I'd check out the market in town and find some snacks.

Loofah, fruits, veggies and nuts...

....aaand grubs.  So Gross!

Aaaand the demonstration by our guide Aey.

Live grubs for sale.

The trek to our accommodation....

...which was in a small village at a longhouse with an Iban tribe family.

A longhouse is a terraced street of separate dwellings covered by one roof. A tuai rumah (headman) is the head of the longhouse. Every family has their own separate bilik (room). Communal activities are carried out on the ruai (verandah). Male visitors will spend a night on the verandah whereas female visitors are invited to stay in the bilik or room.In our case, the men and women stayed in separate bilik rooms. 

Here we are sharing a meal with our longhouse family.

Niah went up in 2010 to be a UNESCO site.  The problem is that their strict regulations basically state there there can be an houses in the park.  There are a few Iban families that have been there for a long time, so that won't likely change.

Opening of the Great Cave in limestone rock.  Tools, ceramics, glass beads, and jewelry have been found here dating back to the Paleolithic Era.  One of the most important finds was the oldest human remains found in SE Asia; a human skull dating back to 38,000BC.

photo courtesy of Nigel Kerby

At over 60m high and 250m wide, it is one of the world’s most spectacular cave entrances, leading to an even larger chamber within.

One of my favorite shots captured with my new camera.

More swiftlets in their nests.

Bats and swiflets

Little bat.

Centipede

Longhouses at sunset.

That evening, the longhouse family entertained us with some traditional music, dancing, and rice wine.

The warm up act.

The girl said her headdress was very heavy!

Our sleeping area for the night.

A hammerhead worm that we saw on the trail on our way out of the park.