We gather around a vast kitchen table, sipping whiskey in fluorescent light as a generator rumbles outside. We plan the next day’s trek through the Kelabit highlands of Borneo, where Sylvester and his reticent friend Tony will guide us.
“No, no that’s OK.” We just want to see the jungle, far from the well-trod path.
The next morning, Tony shows up with a rifle and seven dogs.
“So we’re going hunting?” Jerry asks.
“Maybe,” Sylvester says.
And off we go, first rising through a plain of ferns and pitcher plants, then descending into jungle where the bushwhacking starts. Six inches of sucking mud amid creeping ferns, pointy branches, stabbing prongs, slashing vines, thirsting leeches. I pause, at times, to snatch a few moments among the giants around me. I observe the thicket of forest that swaddles me, and I have no, absolutely no, idea where I am or where we came from. These guides are indispensable to me; I at their mercy.
And yet Tony leads without ado, slashing at unwanted intruders in our path, making his way as though he knew by heart every mud patch, every tree, every bloodsucker in this jungle. How does a human being gain such keen awareness of his environment? (How does a population lose it?)
Tony’s dogs are kind and gentle beings. They follow us, then sprint ahead to lead, then back again to monitor our progress, sniffing us, making sure each of us finds the right way. They, as we, suffer the forest wrath with leeches between their toes and buzzing insects on their backs. The trail smells of wet dog and sweaty dog, and no doubt us.
We reach a bridge, a rickety log that breaks beneath a dog. He topples into the water, emerging sodden but voiceless, and continues up the trail apace.
There is a squealing ahead and suddenly Tony is gone, sprinting through the jungle. The dogs have cornered a wild boar and a few minutes later we find Tony on the hillside, hands upon a panting pig, bloody from a dog’s nip. The boar struggles and stands to fight, but the animal is no match for Tony and his helpers.
“You are very lucky,” Sylvester tells us. We have caught a pig, and we shall take it back alive.
“Alive?”
“Yes, because we don’t have the time.” The entire day has passed. Darkness draws near; no room to butcher here.
The pig blinks its eyes and breathes heavily on the ground as the two men tie its legs and stuff it into the expandable rattan backpack on Tony’s shoulders. I look at the pig, it looks at me, and I grow misty-eyed. But why? It’s a pig. I eat meat. This is how it works.
When it’s cinched inside the basket, Tony wraps the nose and face tightly. The pig closes its eyes and Tony hoists the load upon his back.
“Heavy?” We ask.
“Not heavy,” Tony says. Tony is a man of few words but sturdy muscles.
We follow this man and boar back to the village, stopping a few minutes on the high banks of a small stream. Tony and Sylvester build another bridge, with planks and a railing. We continue on through creeping nightfall and ever more mud.
In darkness, we return. As I shower–cold water from a bucket–I smell burning hair, a familiar Asian scent, and I know the pig is no longer alive. When I have dressed, I enter the house of Walter, Tony’s brother. Walter sits on a four-inch stool beside the fire with a pig leg and a quarter of its side. Piece by piece, he puts it into the fire to singe the hair and skin. Then he takes a cleaver to the hot flesh, shaving bristly hair onto cardboard spread across the floor. While he works, he talks of guiding, how to be a good guide; He says you must acquaint the tourists with the jungle, show them how to survive and what to eat and drink.
The pig is bloody, its inner workings visible. It all hangs out on Walter’s floor. There’s no separation here between animal and dinner on the plate. When Walter is through with the cleansing, he puts the leg in the sink and douses it.
“What do you do with the pig?” I ask.
“Cook it.”
“How do you cook it?”
“Fry it.” At times, Walter has no more words than Tony.
“The whole thing?”
“Yeah. And then we can take the bones for soup.” He asks if I want to eat the meat fried with black soya. It’s how they usually do it. Or else with curry. But tonight he has no curry.
Soya is just fine, I tell Walter. I get up close and look at the glistening red meat, just moments ago a pig in a basket. Walter sets it on a cutting board and slices the skin. He sections the meat, and blood runs everywhere. I can see the tautness of muscle in its leg.
I felt sorry for that pig, but my feelings were inconsistent. I’ve eaten pork all my life. We had a pig roast at our wedding. And this pig led a completely natural existence in the jungle until its last three terrifying hours of life. How does that compare to America with factory-farmed pigs, raised in snug little cubicles, no room to roam, fattened to blue-ribbon proportions? I remember visiting the state fair as a child, looking at all those pigs displayed, awaiting judgment, just to be sold and butchered. Pigs weighing half a ton. I never felt much in the way of remorse–they were pigs after all, and I was a girl growing up in Wisconsin. But I think about them now; their cages no more inhumane than the basket in which our dinner was brought to its death.
Later that night, we head to Tony’s yard, behind Walter’s house. Several village men and hunting dogs have gathered around the fire, as ribs and backfat sizzle on the grill. Tony plays a cassette tape on his little boombox. It’s a mix of old hits: “Knights in White Satin,” “More Than Words,” “Eye of the Tiger.” He bought the tape in Miri, a town four hours by foot and one hour by plane from this barbecue in the jungle.
I’ll admit that pic of the pig in the basket brought tears to my eyes. But you’re right (and I knew it even as I was tearing up) – I eat pork, pork is pig, and this is how it is. We had a chance to go on a wild boar hunt on Sumatra, but declined. After we got home we decided we’ll go back and take our hosts up on it.
A wonderful piece of writing!
Sounds like an exciting adventure for a pork dinner! Are wild pigs native to Borneo? If they aren’t maybe you can feel better about removing one.
By the way, Happy Birthday Karen! What was the special for your B-day dinner?
Happy B-day Karen! So that makes it another anniversary of your 29th birthday right?
Hope th pig tastes good. It’s fair week here and I am looking at cows and pigs and thinking th asmae about the life and death of the food I eat. Think I’ll be having tomatoes, feta cheese, basalmic vinagrette and basil for dinner. Nice pics by Jerry..
When I was younger and studying in a Catholic boarding school in Singapore, occasionally the nuns would be given a whole pig. The sisters would butcher the meat near the laundry area- I suppose because it has a lot of space and is close to the taps- but the incongruity of the scene, nuns in grey habits wielding sharp knives and distributing bloody hunks of fresh meat in matter of fact fashion, still stays fresh in my memory.
BTW, drop by here by way of Chez Pim’s recommendation.
A wonderful and honest piece. I couldn’t ask for anything more from this story. Great photos too. Your guides look very serious. Were there any light hearted moments or times when you all laughed together?
Tony isn’t a laugher. He’s very shy and quiet. But Sylvester is quite jovial and there were plenty of light-hearted and interesting moments — when the dog fell into the water, when we drank water from bamboo, when we discovered dozens of furry fist-sized spiders hanging from the rafters of a small camp house where we ate lunch. And of course, at the barbecue afterward when all the guys sat around eating pork, listening to Eye of the Tiger, expounding on the wonders of American music.
Talking about raising pigs and so… you might have already heard about spanish ham. In Spain there is a large culture of dry cured ham. The best of Spain’s ham comes from iberian race hogs that are raised in the wild, in south-western Spain special habitats called “dehesas”. There they feed mostly of acorns and grasses. The curing and drying process usually takes at least 24 months. In Spain, this kind of ham is regardaded as one of our culinary treasures. Of course, these delicacies come at a price…
[...] Remember the pig chase? If you’ve been a reader here for a while, you may recall the story of a wild-boar hunt in the Kelabit Highlands of Sarawak. This wasn’t the entire story. What I didn’t tell you at the time was the reason that prompted our presence in these forests: ancient burial sites. Dozens of megaliths, burial jars and other archaeological treasures are scattered throughout the Kelabit jungles. These sites have never been studied by archaeologists (yet), and the Kelabit people are struggling to save a heritage they know little about. Many of these highland forests are slated for logging. Locals worry they may lose the keys to their past. [...]
I am one of the largest ethnic group originally from Borneo island(Kuching) currently in Switzerland studying international tourism and events.Fyi,my boyfriend is half-Kelabit.it’s surprising to me that i happen to stumble upon the word “Kelabit highland” which is Bario in this blog.what a small world indeed.anyways,the pig is called “Labo baka” in Kelabit meaning wildboar.It is one of the most important meal to them.I wish i can visit Bario when i get back home.I really appreciate your writing.it’s AWESOME.
Thanks, Jean! I hope to return to Borneo, particularly the Kelabit Highlands, sometime soon. We found Bario and the surrounding area entirely fascinating… and beautiful.
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Welcome to my ramblings on food, drink, travel, politics, history and all the other avenues that converge in life. I’m a journalist, author and media trainer; and for five years I was Gourmet's Asia correspondent until the magazine's recent closure. I’m a bit obsessive in the kitchen. Much like my mother, I start thinking about dinner well before breakfast….
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August 8th, 2006 at 4:52 pm
I’ll admit that pic of the pig in the basket brought tears to my eyes. But you’re right (and I knew it even as I was tearing up) – I eat pork, pork is pig, and this is how it is. We had a chance to go on a wild boar hunt on Sumatra, but declined. After we got home we decided we’ll go back and take our hosts up on it.
A wonderful piece of writing!
August 8th, 2006 at 9:49 pm
Sounds like an exciting adventure for a pork dinner! Are wild pigs native to Borneo? If they aren’t maybe you can feel better about removing one.
By the way, Happy Birthday Karen! What was the special for your B-day dinner?
August 9th, 2006 at 7:05 am
Happy B-day Karen! So that makes it another anniversary of your 29th birthday right?
Hope th pig tastes good. It’s fair week here and I am looking at cows and pigs and thinking th asmae about the life and death of the food I eat. Think I’ll be having tomatoes, feta cheese, basalmic vinagrette and basil for dinner. Nice pics by Jerry..
August 9th, 2006 at 8:10 am
Thanks for the birthday wishes! I don’t feel as old as I am.
August 19th, 2006 at 11:59 pm
[...] “If you get lost in the jungle, you must find clean water from the bamboo,” our guide, Sylvester, tells us. [...]
September 1st, 2006 at 9:46 am
When I was younger and studying in a Catholic boarding school in Singapore, occasionally the nuns would be given a whole pig. The sisters would butcher the meat near the laundry area- I suppose because it has a lot of space and is close to the taps- but the incongruity of the scene, nuns in grey habits wielding sharp knives and distributing bloody hunks of fresh meat in matter of fact fashion, still stays fresh in my memory.
BTW, drop by here by way of Chez Pim’s recommendation.
September 8th, 2006 at 3:43 am
Came here via Chez Pim.
Beautiful piece.
September 14th, 2006 at 11:44 pm
A wonderful and honest piece. I couldn’t ask for anything more from this story. Great photos too. Your guides look very serious. Were there any light hearted moments or times when you all laughed together?
September 15th, 2006 at 9:32 am
Tony isn’t a laugher. He’s very shy and quiet. But Sylvester is quite jovial and there were plenty of light-hearted and interesting moments — when the dog fell into the water, when we drank water from bamboo, when we discovered dozens of furry fist-sized spiders hanging from the rafters of a small camp house where we ate lunch. And of course, at the barbecue afterward when all the guys sat around eating pork, listening to Eye of the Tiger, expounding on the wonders of American music.
February 26th, 2007 at 4:50 pm
Talking about raising pigs and so… you might have already heard about spanish ham. In Spain there is a large culture of dry cured ham. The best of Spain’s ham comes from iberian race hogs that are raised in the wild, in south-western Spain special habitats called “dehesas”. There they feed mostly of acorns and grasses. The curing and drying process usually takes at least 24 months. In Spain, this kind of ham is regardaded as one of our culinary treasures. Of course, these delicacies come at a price…
March 17th, 2007 at 10:34 pm
[...] Remember the pig chase? If you’ve been a reader here for a while, you may recall the story of a wild-boar hunt in the Kelabit Highlands of Sarawak. This wasn’t the entire story. What I didn’t tell you at the time was the reason that prompted our presence in these forests: ancient burial sites. Dozens of megaliths, burial jars and other archaeological treasures are scattered throughout the Kelabit jungles. These sites have never been studied by archaeologists (yet), and the Kelabit people are struggling to save a heritage they know little about. Many of these highland forests are slated for logging. Locals worry they may lose the keys to their past. [...]
September 4th, 2007 at 4:30 pm
In Spain, pigs Iberic pigs have a high value because they move a big market of Iberic products that are selled all around the world.
December 30th, 2007 at 6:02 pm
I am one of the largest ethnic group originally from Borneo island(Kuching) currently in Switzerland studying international tourism and events.Fyi,my boyfriend is half-Kelabit.it’s surprising to me that i happen to stumble upon the word “Kelabit highland” which is Bario in this blog.what a small world indeed.anyways,the pig is called “Labo baka” in Kelabit meaning wildboar.It is one of the most important meal to them.I wish i can visit Bario when i get back home.I really appreciate your writing.it’s AWESOME.
December 31st, 2007 at 11:58 am
Thanks, Jean! I hope to return to Borneo, particularly the Kelabit Highlands, sometime soon. We found Bario and the surrounding area entirely fascinating… and beautiful.