Beyond Tongues, Toward Tangibility.

WORDS OF AFFIRMATION rang differently here, heard first in the warm welcomes at the doorway painted with Kalong motifs. They manifested in the laughter across the spacious kitchen – a signal of joy and safety – that encouraged me to linger and to blend in with the rhythm of their work. Curiosity was rewarded instead of tolerated. After I spent enough time hovering around meal-preps like an overenthusiastic goblin, they eventually began summoning me whenever something interesting was happening. One morning we joined the women packing rice into banana leaves – part of our lunch at the waterfall later – while they entertained us with impressive patience. I swear I caught Linda’s mum cutely stifled giggles at our odd fascination to their ordinary task.

ACTS OF SERVICE appeared mid-hike when Joanne’s shoe decided it no longer believed in structural integrity. At U’ong Bilong Waterfall, the guides came to the rescue by engineering a knot-work intricate enough to make scouts blush and question the legitimacy of their badges. She completed the rest of the hike that day with zero footwear issues. Back at Jevinda, shoes were offered without hesitation so she wouldn’t need to haphazardly replace it. (IMPORTANT! : ALWAYS check and test your gears before any excursions! ; ESPECIALLY if you only go annually)

The same attentiveness extended from the kitchen. Man Yong, who keeps a strict vegetarian diet, never once had to awkwardly ‘make do’. Separate dishes were made for her, at the conviction that feeding someone properly is a form of respect.

Later, exhaustion caught up with me so completely that I passed out waiting for our laundry cycle to finish (yes, they offer the use of washers!) I woke up to find my friends had already hung my clothes to dry. Nobody announced the gesture, and that was precisely why it mattered.

GIFTS, too, are rich in Ulu Baram, though rarely anything that could fit into a luggage. From the ancient canopies weaving shade across the trails while sunlight broke through in narrow gold seams, to roaring waterfalls offering themselves as ironic respite to the chaotic city life we temporarily left behind. (on that note, do properly seal your electronics. There’s a lot of river wading, and among us, the river-tax has claimed Michelle’s phone and my camera)

Offerings were also present in the freshly caught river fish that still tasted of the currents, in the foraged greens fragrant with wilderness, in the stories whispered from unfathomable depth, in the mythical hornbill presenting a glimpse to its wingspan.

The saying goes ‘Every Day is a Gift’ – and at Jevinda Village Stay, there is a particular wealth in the dew each morning, that asks nothing from you except your unhurried participation of the day.

QUALITY TIME operated differently there because Ulu Baram dismantles your city habits. The place has a way of slowing you down amidst adventures around epic silk veils. The rivers run with the patience of things that have prevailed long before we arrived. We sat together without converting the moment into productivity, lengthening into conversations without urgency, or simply just nursing a cuppa in silence. A couple of boys in our group even made naps into achievements. Wherever waterfall roars, they snore!

Another side effect was that it encouraged quality bonding. No pressure whatsoever to participate, but do linger at Burak Night, courtesy of Linda, Sylvester, and some dangerously persuasive homemade rice wine. It is an exercise of unguarding, where love stories surfaced and hidden talents emerged. Some entertaining videos may or may not have existed but in an act of collective mercy, they shall never see daylight.

You have to come experience it to rate its notoriety yourself!

Last but not least, PHYSICAL TOUCH was alive in the son offering his mother a steady hand down a steep descent before turning back to help everyone else. The village dog weaving affectionately around our legs during the village tour, tail wagging earnestly. Even the 4WD rides became absurdly fun – all of us getting violently tossed against one another, briefly rearranging our internal organs over gnarly terrains, while Sylvester and other drivers descended hills enthusiastically in free gear!

And then there was the touch of the land itself. The blessing of cold river water against sweaty skin, while the wind teased through damp clothes. Soft earth that holds your steps, vegetation that tickles to remind you to stay on path. Ulu Baram does not let you detach from your surroundings. It insists on contact.