Whew! We just returned to the hotel from a long couple of days! We are now in Kalimantan, the Indonesian section of Borneo. We wanted to see what the native Dayak culture was like so we found Tailah (a guide that was highly recommended in the Lonely Planet). He has set us up.

First, yesterday morning we drove 4 hours northeast to the jungle. We were dropped off at the side of the rode and began an arduous 4+ hour trek parallel to a river. He speaks pretty good English, so he pointed out lots of plants along the way and explained how the Dayak people use them daily. Peanuts, the cinnamon tree, rubber trees, ginseng, and cotton were a few. We stopped at many different villages during the hike, but when we arrived at the family's village we were sleeping in, it was the best greeting!

We had candy and toys for the little kids and Tailah insisted we buy some clove cigarettes for the elders of the tribe. Party! They loved us! I braided all of the little girls hair while Keva tried to beat the men at dominoes. And yep, we slept in a traditional Dayak longhouse...Not the 1,000 thread count sheets we have become accustomed to, to say the least. Will post some pics later to help describe the indescribable.

The next morning, we brushed our teeth in the river, and applied more deoderant in attempt to cover our "sweet smell." Then we set off on another jaunt through the dense forest. To end the trip, Tailah has a bamboo raft tailor made for us with a driver:) It was a beautiful adventure....90 degrees going down the crystal clear cool and cool river. UNTIL....Montezuma struck! Poor Keva kept wondering, "What in the heck did I eat?" We didn't see much wildlife but tomorrow we are on our way to see some.


Indonesia houses the only 2 places in the world where wild orang-utans live, on the islands of Sumatra and Borneo. The Tanjung National Park is also known for probiscus monkeys, macaws, and other Junglebook creatures. But to get there it will take 16 hours! YIKES! Selamat Malam!