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But along the shores of the endless, snaking rivers that carve through
the steamy rain forests of Borneo, tribal peoples have been living this
way - by choice - for thousands of years. Crime is practically unheard
of in these communities, along with divorce, child-abuse, and most of the
other social diseases the rest of the world resigns itself to every day.
These communities are called longhouses, and cultural tradition holds that
anyone who visits them is welcome to stay as long as they like. For many,
a visit to a longhouse offers not only a roof in the wilds of Borneo's
fantastic rain forest, but a glimpse into a way of life that is in many
ways an enviable model for communal living. Few people leave a longhouse
without being impressed by how smoothly its residents get along, how well-behaved
its children are, and the generosity of their hosts.
The most accessible longhouses belong to Sarawak's Iban tribe (also
called the Sea Dyaks) and are situated off the Skrang, Lemanak, Batang
Ai and Rejang River areas. Because of Borneo's impenetrable rain-forest,
getting to them almost inevitably involves a river ride in a long, pencil-thin
boat called a perahu - the workhorse of the Sarawakian waterways. It is
one of the most pleasureable forms of travel anywhere. These craft snake
briskly along the rivers, hypnotizing their riders with their droning engines
while they pass beneath huge, prehistoric-looking elipinat trees whose
roots cling to the river's edge like giant fists. Just when you think the
dreamlike scrolling of the forest wall will last forever, you turn one
of the endless, looping bends in the river, and suddenly a longhouse appears,
as if out of nowhere.
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