Ships past Kampong Ayer

I was passing by Kampong Ayer the other day and I remembered when I was a small boy, there used to be ships passing by the Kampong Ayer houses. That was when the Bandar Wharf is being used as the main port for Brunei. But in those days what looked like big ships were actually relatively small ships. Bigger ships could not make it into the Brunei river, dropping anchor at Sapo Point and having tugboats bring their cargo in.

When HMS Britannia bringing Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip, the ship dropped anchor at Dato Gandhi because that was about the deepest part of the river that the ship can go into. You can still see the place and many who do not know the history would be wondering why there is a nice roof covered wharf by the riverside at Kampong Dato Gandhi.

When the Muara Deep Sea Water Port (it was originally called Deep Sea Water Port or Pelabuhan Air Dalam Muara, today it is only known as Muara Port) opened in 1970, the Brunei Wharf Port was used for local ships only. But by now, the only big ships passing by is the large barges carrying gravel to the landing sites at Kampong Medewa. This too will be gone soon when the landing site will be moved elsewhere.

This postcard is what it must have looked like in those days when big ships passed through Kampong Ayer.

Comments

View from NY said…
Dear BR, Having been a keen follower for your blog and a fan of old photographs and stories about our beloved Brunei, I would like to salute you!! You are truly an asset to Brunei and to future generations. Through your love of history BR can potentially teach more about Brunei to more people thn any history teacher. So appreciation is due where it is well-earned and deserved.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009 11:28:00 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Brunei Royal Wedding 2015: Profile of Royal Bride Dayangku Raabi'atul Adawiyyah

Image
DAYANGKU RAABI'ATUL ADAWIYYAH BINTI PENGIRAN HAJI BOLKIAH Yang Mulia Dayangku Raabi'atul `Adawiyyah binti Pengiran Haji Bolkiah was born on the 27th October 1992. She is the second child of Pengiran Haji Bolkiah bin Pengiran Haji Jaluddin bin Pengiran Haji Tajuddin with Pengiran Hajah Noor'aismah binti Pengiran Haji Ismail bin Pengiran Haji Tengah. Her eldest brother, Awangku Abd. 'Aziz Hafizuddin bin Pengiran Haji Bolkiah, works at the Royal Brunei Airlines. Her other siblings are Awangku Mohd Ainul Yaqien; Dayangku Noor Batuul 'Afiqah; Dayangku Izzatul `Afifah; Dayangku Duratul Majeedah; Dayangku Nur Hidayatul Maheerah; Awangku Mohd Zainul ‘Ariffin; Awangku Mohd Irfan Hakeem; and Awangku Mohd Izzul Yamin @ Abdul Razeeq. (Note: Direct descendants of the Brunei Sultans carry the hereditary title of Pengiran. However as children and young adults, they are normally styled Awangku (for male) and Dayangku (for female) until they marry, when the title conver
Read more

Family Titles in Brunei

Image
On my recent blog on Brunei's Time Line , one commentator got carried away and she started to talk about events in the past before moving on to nicknames. I enjoyed what she wrote and I offered for her to write a whole blog about it and I will put it up. But up to now, I have not received anything from her. So, Hajah Yati, if you are reading, my offer still stands. And for the rest of you readers out there, if you don't have your own blogsite, I am most ready to offer my site for the occassional blogs that you want to write - just make sure the blogs are Brunei related. You can set up your own blogsite once you feel comfortable. As someone later on commented, it will be nice to read someone else's blogs too on this website. At least on this one, you get an instant 300+ readers a day. So, please, my e-mail is admin@bruneiresources.com. Do write. I don't have much on nicknames to write on as suggested by Hajah Yati. I remembered when I was at school (primary), I have fri
Read more

Pulau Cermin - Brunei's Historic Island

Image
Since I was already on the water visiting the Jong Batu at one end of the Brunei River, I thought I might as well go to the other end and visit the other historical site of Brunei, Pulau Cermin. Pulau Cermin as many Brunei historians know it is the site of the temporary palace of Sultan Abdul Hakkul Mubin, the 13th Sultan of Brunei and is the site of the only civil war in Brunei History. Sultan Abdul Hakkul Mubin took the throne after assasinating Sultan Muhammad Ali. It was quite a bloody time in Brunei history and I remembered one classic book written by Yura Halim entitled "Mahkota Berdarah" regarding the episode. Pulau Cermin - view from the River In a nutshell, Sultan Abdul Hakkul Mubin was the Bendahara when his son was killed by the son of Sultan Muhammad Ali. He requested that his son's death be avenged but Sultan Muhammad Ali denied him. So Bendahara Abdul Mubin went amok killing a few people at the palace and with his followers took the Sultan and killed him (No
Read more