Rumah Agan Sungai Mador

This time, the 2nd group of students were posted to conduct their research at 2 long houses, Rumah Agan and Rumah Gerinang, located near Sungai Mador (Mador River) in the Bintangor District. Compared to the previous group, the location is a bit further, taking about 40 minutes to reach he long houses. The advantages of having a longhouse to conduct their research are the close proximity of the whole community (50 families + in a block of terrace house) and the feasibility to plan a one day intervention project, which consist of health education or health related activities for all the village folks.

Tuai Rumah Agan, Mr Agan

Tuai Rumah Gerinang (left most) with his longhouse committee members at Rumah Agan.

Both Rumah Agan and Gerinang are located about 4-5 kms from the main road, connected by a cement road allowing only one vehicle at a time to pass through. A local primary school (SK Sungai Mador) located at the junction greeted us upon entering the road. Both sides of the road are filled with secondary jungle and undergrowth interspersed with farmlands. The longhouse folks were in a relaxed mood when we arrived. My senior, gave a welcoming speech, explaining the purpose of the community sounding and introduced the students to the long house folks. The tuai Rumah (headman), Mr Agan, who is an ex teacher also introduced himself, his headman colleague, Mr Gerinang (from the neighbouring Rumah Gerinang) and committee members from both houses. Mr Agan mentioned that he was very grateful that a study will be conducted in his longhouse. It is afterall beneficial for the longhouse folks and they wouldn't be loosing anything. Like they say, it is a win win situation, for both the students and the community. Never had he such experience since the entry of Sarawak into Malaysia, he said. Our arrival was also somehow 'expected'. A few months back, the longhouse experience something rare. A deer came and 'lodge in' into the longhouse. It was not afraid and was not killed either. The deer was treated well, given food and it left after three nights stay. Coincidence? May be. But this coincidence happened only once, decades after the establishment of the longhouse. This was considered as a good omen and our arrival was somehow awaited since the incidence.

Some of the longhouse folks. The younger generation are either working in bigger town or still schooling, mainly boarding at the nearby SMK Maradong boarding school.

Students listening attentively. Notice the spacious ruai of the longhouse.

Locals from the rural areas are always friendly once you get to know them. Mrs Agan, a jovial person and always smiling ensures that the drinks (we had coffee) were served to all visitors to the longhouse. The students had decided to do a study on the knowledge and attitude on smoking habits of those 13 years old and above in both longhouses after both headmen had agreed that this was the current problem in the longhouses with many obstructive airway diseases, bronchial asthma exarcebation and indirectly a risk factor to cardiovascular diseases not to mention the hole-in-the-pocket complication to your pocket money.

A colleague with Mrs Agan.

In front of the modern Rumah Agan.

The longhouse, I must say, is not the typical traditional longhouse that most would have seen in travel brochures. The whole longhouse has been renovated (I later found out) a few years ago (and is still undergoing slow minor refurbishment here and there) with the old wooden walls been fortified with cements. The tuai rumah's ruai ( varendah) too is unique than the rest of the long house, with tile flooring slightly raised about 15 cm from the ordinary cement floor from the neighbouring 'pintu' (family house in the long house). Being the important man leading the whole longhouse and a small longhouse commitee, there is even an organization chart on the wall of his pintu. After sitting there for awhile, having drinking coffee, a diuretic, I need to be excused from the ongoing discussion to use the loo of the tuai rumah. I must say, I was really surprised with the level of cleanliness inside the house. It was really huge, wide, well-lighted, properly ventilated and even the toilet was exceptionally modern with flush and tiled floor. It was not foul smelling as there were no nearby poultry or pigsty or anything of such matter.

The day ended well, around 6:30 pm in the evening. The students were supposed to be meeting with the longhouse folks again the next day to discuss more important matters. Things gets more factual. The next day, my Iban colleague and I went together with the students as requested by them. Although ice were cracking, but it has not been broken, the main set back was language. Of the 16 group members, only 4 were Sarawakian and out of this 4, none were Iban. The national language were used in full force. The usage of English among the folks were very limited to the headman. Most of the time, the communication seems to be in a one way direction if english were used. In the end of the discussion, things starts to heat up causing the the ice to melt away. Not only we were served with hot beverage drink, the tuak came in play too.

Pre tuak discussion... all looking very serious.

and the tuak came... notice the glass bottle.

after a dose tuak, I can't even get them to be still to get a shot. It's all blurry.

The muslims, naturally, politely refused this. My part was given to another student who willfully accepted it. By the second cup, his face was beginning to turn red, a seemingly quiet and polite lad changed gradually to a more open for discussion and less inhibited person. As things goes, the night too ended well and in a joyous mood.

All in all hospitability was great. It was really an experience for the students and me albeit just the beginning of the posting. To the longhouse folks, thank you and may you be more prosperous in your endeavours ahead.