Damay


In the island part of Malaysia in the north of the island of Borneo is a picturesque village Damai, created to preserve the historical and cultural heritage of the ancient kingdom of Sarawak. This place is obliged to visit every tourist who wants to get acquainted with the culture and traditions of this region.

History of Dame

The Kingdom of Sarawak has always attracted its originality, rich natural resources and picturesque landscapes. Tourism in this part of Malaysia began to develop in the mid-1960s. But because of the large territory, high mountains and difficult jungles, not all tourists had the opportunity to appreciate the beauty of this land. It was then that the decision was made to create the ethnic village of Damai, or Sarawak Cultural Village, which became a kind of "model" of Sarawak.

During the construction of this museum, the traditional buildings of indigenous aborigines, as well as the peoples of Orang-Asli, iban and bidaiuh, were used in the open air. The solemn opening ceremony of the Damai village took place in mid-1989.

Sights of the village

For the construction of the "living museum" was allocated a territory of almost 7 hectares. At the moment, 150 people live in Damaya. Every day they arrange for tourists to represent, which include:

After the welcome events, you can go on a tour of the village of Damai. On its territory, residential houses were reconstructed, in which the ethnic peoples of Sarawak once lived. Here you can see:

In addition to residential buildings, in the open-air museum you can visit sites that played an important role in the life of the local population. One of them is the Penan Hut school, in which for centuries, the art of shooting was taught. There were prepared future hunters and gatherers - the main breadwinner tribes of forest nomads.

Another interesting object of Damaya is the Rainforest Music Museum. In it you can get acquainted with the collection of musical instruments, listen to performances of famous musicians.

In one of the buildings of the Damai village is the Persada Ilmu hall. It houses the training center, inside which the following facilities are equipped:

Anyone here can attend a lesson in dance and music. After that, you can go to the so-called Persada Alam waterfalls, where fashion shows, humorous shows and folk songs are arranged for visitors to Damai village.

How to get to Damaya?

The village is located in the north-west of the island of Borneo (Kalimantan), 500 meters from Santubong National Park. You can get to Damey by bus. It departs daily at 9:00 and 12:30 from the Holiday Inn Kuching and returns to the city at 13:45 and 17:30 respectively. You can also rent a car or taxi.

Tourists from Kuala Lumpur , who want to see the ethnic village of Damai with their own eyes, can use the flights of the airlines AirAsia, Malaysia Airlines and Malindo Air. They land at the international airport of Kuching , located about 30 km from the village. Here you can take a taxi or the aforementioned shuttle bus.