Sarawak

• Language:
• Best Season: March to August and October - November.
• Weather: 23°C during the early hours of the morning to 32°C during the day

Places to See Around

Betong Town The Grand Old Lady - Well No. 1 Semonggok Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre CHINESE MUSEUM Bala-Hala Forest Swan Monument Civic Centre Museum Bukit Mas Piyamit Tunnel Lin's Swan Garden Cat Statues Buak Buak!! Matang Wildlife Centre and Kubah National Park The Largest Mail Box Hawaii Beach Miri Heritage Centre Tua Pek Kong Temple Sarawak Cultural Village 1 Winter Flower Garden Fish market

Sarawak Info

Emergency Number

Police: 999

Ambulance: 999

Fire: 994

Sarawak-the largest state of Malaysia-is better known as the land of fabled White Rajahs, the hornbill and the orangutan. Located on the northwestern shore of the island of Borneo, Sarawak is a preferred tourist destination for those seeking culture, nature and adventure tourism. The rainforests of Sarawak are home to the richest and most diverse ecosystem of the world. The rich flora and fauna include the world's largest flower Rafflesia, squirrels and snakes that fly, plants that eat insects and various other species of plants and insects that are yet to be discovered.

Due to its location along the ancient trade routes of the China Sea, Sarawak was a center for trade for merchants from China, India and Arabia. Chinese coins and Han pottery found at the mouth of the Sarawak River show that Chinese traders had been on Sarawak from as early as the 7th century. Besides trade, immigrants came to Sarawak to take advantage of its abundant natural resources, which included gold, antimony, timber, and the famous Sarawak black and white pepper.

Sarawak later fell under the control of Sumatra's powerful Srivijayan Empire, which reached its height in the 11th and 12th centuries. Many Sumatran Malays settled in Borneo during this time. About a century later, Srivijaya Empire crumbled under the attacks of the Hindu-Javanese kingdom of Majapahit, and this period left a considerable number of Indian remains in Sarawak. The Majapahit Empire fell in the early 15th century, just as Islam, which was introduced by Muslim traders, was gaining a foothold in the coastal areas of Borneo. Sarawak then came under the control of the Malay Sultanate of Brunei

In 1839, when Sarawak was rebelling against the Brunei Sultanate, an English adventurer named James Brooke arrived and volunteered to quell the revolt. Brooke was successful, and as a reward the Pengiran Mahkota of Brunei made Brooke the Rajah of Sarawak in 1841. James was succeeded by his nephew Charles Brooke in 1868, who in turn was succeeded by his eldest son Charles Vyner in 1917.

During the Second World War Sarawak was occupied by Japanese forces, but it was subsequently ceded to Britain after the war and became a British Crown Colony. Sarawak joined Malaysia in 1963 and today observes a democratic system of government.