Bandar Seri Begawan / Brunei

The name Brunei generally elicits a string of associations along the lines of "monarchy," "oil fields," "wealth," and "dazzling luxury". Sure enough, if you live here for a while, you can catch glimpses of these aspects of Brunei life.

Take cars, for example. The number of Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Lexus vehicles flooding the streets is such that you might think for a moment that you were in Ginza, Tokyo at night. Middle-class homes generally have two or three cars, one of which is sure to be a luxury car. The more affluent might have ten or more cars. When a ceremony for a royal family member is held at a luxury hotel, the number of super-luxury cars parked around the hotel is such that you'd think it was the venue of the Grammy Awards. It's a sight that's definitely worth seeing.

I occasionally witness a black Rolls-Royce carrying the Sultan passing at extremely high speed through town, proceeded and followed by a guard of about 20 white police motorcycles and cars (all BMWs!). The drivers of other cars are forced to pull over to the side of the road, told to "freeze" in the same way that drivers do in Japan when an ambulance passes and left in this state for an extended period of time, unable even to go to the bathroom. The prince's Porsche, driven by the prince himself, also passes through town sometimes, led by a police car.

Bruneians greet each other by first exchanging a very light handshake (more like a "hand touch"), and then putting their hand on their chest. At first, I was worried that people wipe their hands because they don't want to shake hands; but later I was relieved to learn that the lightness of the handshake represents "warmth" and the chest represents the "heart". In short, this greeting symbolizes "a 'heartful' warm welcome."

Brunei is a Muslim country, which means that while it's acceptable to drink alcohol purchased abroad in the privacy of your home, alcohol is not sold here, and cannot be drunk in public places. Needless to say, there are no bars and no karaoke; so my "after five" lifestyle consists of devoting myself to extremely healthy, liver-friendly activities like badminton, billiards, distance running, swimming, squash, and soccer.

If you ever feel like enjoying the passage of time in way that is impossible in Tokyo, say, by taking off your watch and gazing in tranquility at the sunset while relaxing on a hotel beach, you might want to consider a visit to Brunei.

The luxurious "Empire Hotel" A mosque that cost ¥500 million to build Petroleum refinery The incomparable Borneo sunset

Marubeni Group magazine "M-SPIRIT" VOL.23 (September, 2004)