YOU reach the Batang Ai long house, in the heart of Borneo, by boat across a shimmering lake. From its shores, the forested hills rise into the mists. Somewhere up there, orang-utans and gibbons swing from the branches, and forest dwellers hunt wild boar, plant paddy and gather the fruits of the forest.
This is where, 150 years ago, the Iban people crossed over the central mountains of Borneo into the headwaters of the River Lupar. They built their long houses - single wooden buildings containing a line of individual apartments opening onto a veranda - and head-hunted the other local tribes.
Now the Iban have built a new long house. But they won't be living in it. Unfortunately for romantics, it is a Hilton Longhouse. You can book from the Hilton Reservation Service in London. To get to "Borneo's number one nature retreat", just drive down the "scenic pan-Borneo ...
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