Photo below perhaps is Miri most important historical monument -- the Grand Old Lady on Canadian Hill. Malaysia's first inland oil drilling platform. Struck oil on 22/12/1910. Next to it is a Petroleum Museum which I suspect might qualify as first unmanned museum because I can walked in and out without seeing a single soul.
Continue my journey by car to enter Brunei, an oil rich country. People are generally content here as oil pays for everything:- free healthcare, education, no income tax, interest-free housing loans, cheap cars and cheap fuel. Heaven on earth? Not for drunkard, because it's alcohol free.
Brunei Oil town - Seria
What to see?
Below is an arch symbolises the flow of crude oil from beneath the earth to the surface. This was build while achieved production of billionth barrel on 18/7/1991. Also featured below is Oil and Gas discovery centre. That basically is it for place of attractions for this Seria town, are you overwhelmed?
There are very few cities that you could do justice to in one day, am I lucky to find one? Now entering Bandar Sri Begawan. As a tourist, landmarks that will catch my eyes were mosque and another mosque, with glistering golden domes, there are saying all that glitters is not golds but this is real gold don't play-play.
Arguably, Empire Hotel and country club might be the only attraction in Brunei, this overlooking south china sea seven star resort hotel is extravagant, constructed with finest Italian marble, Baccarat, Murano glass, Swarovski crystals and also lot of gold around.
You will feel like reading a wrong blog if you didn't see me writing about food. Here present to you Lemongrass Thai restaurant, offer quite authentic Thai food, be it pad thai, my favorite thai fish cake(Tod Man Pla) or tom yum kum, the taste absolutely not 'yumkum' at all.
It might sound strange to sample Thai food at Brunei, but no one can fault us because can hardly identify what can consider as authentic local food, however chance upon one meal call Ambuyat, give it a try, it looks like glue, smell like glue and taste like glue, so I suspect in other country they may use it as glue.
Don't be despair though, this I-Lotus restaurant can be your savior if you miss Chinese food or Dim sum. The quality is definitely above average.
Courtesy from Toyota's showroom, fulfilling their CSR? Nonetheless add some color to the night during festival time for this otherwise mundane capital city.
After completed touring all this places. Ready for a chicken run? :)
