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Kota Belud, 70 km
North East of the capital city Kota Kinabalu, is actually one of
Sabah's most scenic and culturally rich districts. Its captivating
beauty is immediately apparent after just a short drive into its
hinterland where the visitor can see the entire Western profile of
South East Asia's highest peak (Gunung Kinabalu - 4,101 m), soaring
majestically in the backdrop above lovely rice plains through which
the gorgeous Tampasuk River roars with rushing torrents of pristine
water fed by a huge mountain catchment area. Seawards, untouched
mangrove swamps spread widely across river mouths in thriving
wetlands where it is even possible to see some families of the rare
and bizarre, long nose Proboscis Monkeys in addition to a much
talked about natural bird sanctuary that teems with egrets,
especially in the evening when they come to roost. The fertile
alluvial soil washed down from Kinabalu and its hills to form vast
plains and a rich coastal fishing ground, that attracted vastly
divergent ethnic groups such as the famed horse loving Bajau who
reportedly came from Johore in the Malay Peninsula, the Irranun
believed to have come from Mindanao, on the Philippines and the
Obians, all of whom are Muslims, to the river mouths, and three
tribes of traditionally animist Dusuns, namely Dusun Tampasuk, Dusun
Tindal and Dusun Tabilung, who settled in the interior valleys and
hills, to share a district some 1,385 sq. km big. The culturally
discerning visitor will find Kota Belud's diversity in traditional
costumes, dances, music, ceremonies, talents, as reflected in their
usually hand-made products, a treasure and an encouraging support to
their belief in variety and to the preservation of cultural wealth
in the world, and that will keep Planet Earth interesting in an age
of hastening globalisation. For instance, while the Bajau men are
famous for their horsemanship to the extent that they have been
branded "Cowboys of the East", Bajau women are also well
known for their fine woven cloth called Dastar which is very
colourfully interwoven with red, yellow, green, orange, gold and
white thread into unique floral patterns. The best time to view Kota
Belud's striking cultural mix is the annual Grand Tamu Besar which
is scheduled usually in December, when all the tribes will come out
fully donned in their respective traditional costumes for a cultural
extravaganza. On that day, the Bajaus will come out in full force to
stage a grand parade of ponies in resplendant dresses and a spirited
display of their riding skills. Kota Belud is famous for its weekly
Sunday Tamu (rural trade fair) where items offered for sale range
from hill rice to water buffaloes. Market scene in
Kota Belud The Tamu has for centuries acted like a "common
market" between coastal Muslim groups who offered sea products
like salted fish and household goods like cloth in exchange for
jungle produce like herbs and bee wax from the farming and jungle
experts, the Dusuns. Such mutual benefits which they experienced
from each other over the decades explain the long standing harmony
and understanding among the tribes. (With thanks to Sabah Tourism Promotion Corporation) |
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