Dayak longhouse complete with satellite dish

Bambang, our driver, arrives nice and early and we go through what we would like to do today. He has no English so we write things down and we think we have a plan.

First stop Kobus, which is an orangutan sanctuary that we didn't in fact want to go to but luckily it's shut for tourists today. We are hoping to see them in the wild and have read mixed reviews on the sanctuaries so don't want to go without looking into it first.

We are heading to Bukit Kelam next - a large rocky hill that is pretty impressive. There is a shrine called Gua Maria at the base which we visit first. There are loads of churches here which has surprised us and as you walk up to the shrine there are many statues telling the story of the crucifixion. After a short drive we reach the a place where you can climb Bukit Kelam using steps and ladders. We head off although it's already nearly 11 o'clock and its one of the hottest days we've had here so far with unrelenting sun and humidity.

The first part of the climb is relatively shaded but as we reach the tree tops its becomes less so and is pretty unbearable. We struggle on up some quite tricky rocky terrain and up some steep ladders. We reach a clearing with good views and decide we'd be silly to continue in the midday sun. It's a shame but it's just too hot and quite a tricky climb so we head down again.

After another drive we reach the village of Ensaid Panjang which is a Dayak village with a longhouse still in use. Although the Dayaks are largely modern these days there are one or two of these longhouses still being lived in in this area which is why we came. It's quite amazing - about 30-50m long and as you go inside there is a long passageway going all the way through. On one side there are doors leading to family homes and on the other a communal area where ladies sit and weave and children play. There aren't many people around at this time of day but the kids show us round a little, one of them in particular, a little boy named Sepi, takes a particular like to Andy clinging onto his leg and following him around giggling. It's a shame we're not going to get to stay overnight as it would have been really interesting to see how the Dayak people live and spend their evening but we have to go as we've booked a night bus back to Pontianak. It's been a nice day ... not the same as having a local guide but at least we've seen what we came for.

We arrive back in Sintang with a few hours to kill until our bus goes. We're hot and sticky and its still really humid until sundown at about 6pm. We have dinner and buy snacks for the journey and are happy to get onto our air conditioned super executive bus. The seats recline and have foot rests that lift up so it seems comfortable enough ... shame the roads are so bad but off we go. We're due into Pontianak at 5am tomorrow so let's hope we get a few hours sleep.