Bandar Seri Begawan

Bandar Seri Begawan

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Bandar Seri Begawan is a national capital you’ve probably never heard of. The largest city in the small country of Brunei, the metropolitan area has less than 300,000 residents.

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One of the most interesting features of the city is Kampong Ayer (literally, water village), in which roughly 10% of Brunei’s populatlion lives, in a handmade village on stilts over Brunei River. It represents a completely different kind of urbanism- stilt buildings connected by timber plank walkways- interconnecting between houses, schools, mosques, restauraunts, and a hospital. Electrical and water lines hang alongside the timber walkways and people either walk or take canoe-like motorboat taxis. 

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Images by Jonathan Choe