Rainforest Music Festival; Day 2

Day two, Saturday night at the Rainforest Music Festival and there's double the amount of people crowding the grounds. Before entering, Max, Edmund (a journalist from California) and myself head back to the Permai Rainforest Resort, slipping past the private-only sign, for a quick dip in the warm waters of the South China Sea. After all, how else are we suppose to write about a place if we can't experience it?

The tepid water is too warm for my liking - so warm it actually makes me slightly nauseous. But, the silky sand, absent of any weeds or rocks, extends for miles into the ocean. There's only a handful of people littering the shore including a modest Muslim family dressed head to toe in wet clothing making sandcastles and swimming. They can't possibly be comfortable, I think to myself. I lick my lips salty from the South China Sea and remember not to cast judgement.

The Permai Rainforest Resort about 45 minutes outside of Kuching includes 24 cabins that sleep 6 people each and several treehouses. It costs only 210 ringgett per night ($70) and includes breakfast.

To wash off the sticky sand we walk up a narrow winding path to a fresh water inlet called the jungle pool. Cool, refreshing water flows down from a large swath of mountains called the Santobong (Malay for coffee).

We take to the festival hungry for satay and Malay cuisine. Narrow wooden planks and tiny bridges circle a small lake dotted with longhouses, tall houses and hawker food stalls. It's still early and musicians are offering clinics on how to play their ethnic instruments. Max chows down on a fresh stalk of corn on the cob but bawks at the taste.

"Not as good as New England corn," he confesses.

We are parched and find a busy longhouse offering mats and pillows to sit down and enjoy a cocktail. Even in Borneo, mojitos are not cheap. We peel back our exhaustion from the midday sun and strike up a conversation with a family from the UK temporarily working in Singapore. We learn that the tiny island strickly forbids chewing gum and is hyper expensive.

A few stars are shining brightly while the tall limbs of bamboo trees and iron wood sway in the light breeze. Revelers pack the grounds like sardines. Security is tight with K9 units patrolling for illegal substances and roaming pumas. We watch as one of the handlers lets his German Sheppard sniff the woods in search of mischief. The night before the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and his wife, Jeanne Abdullah attended the show from the VIP area. It's the first time that a Prime Minister has ever seen the show.

After Tuku Kame (a local favorite) a Polish band called Beltaine gets my head and hands bouncing to the beat. Their energy, depth and texture is contagious and everyone starts clapping and waving their hands in unison. The 8 musicians on stage play acoustic, electric, bass, percussion, bagpipes, accordians, violins, fiddles, bongos, flutes, even spoons! It's one of the best performances I've ever seen made even more incredible by the sea of nationalities, Chinese, Indian, Australian, Kiwi, Malay, Japanese, etc. all speaking and singing in English, the universal language here that brings everyone together.