Miss Pinky Binky: Kampong Ayer

The highlight of our 2nd day in BSB was our trip to the water village, or what they call Kampong Ayer. I'm really amazed with how the people in this community live. Unlike in our country where we have people who reside "sa ilalim ng tulay" or river banks illegally, the Kampong Ayer is a legal community. This community is actually supported by their government and has been said to have existed for more than a thousand years. According to our guide, the community is comprised of around 25,000 people. In this community alone, aside from the clustered villages, there are 13 schools (both private and public), there are gasoline stations, there's also a police station, a fire station, mosques, clinics, etc. So basically, this community can stand on its own. They can also cross from one village to another through bridges or boats. But people who live here don't only stay in the water given that their basic needs are readily available here. They can easily cross from their community to the mainland through water taxis. Most of the people who live in the water village actually work in mainland Brunei. And since they can't take their cars to where they actually live, they just park their cars near the water taxi stations.

Behind me, is the water village.