Tasek Merimbun Heritage Park
Designation
ASEAN Heritage Parks
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Tasek Merimbun Heritage Park - The gateway to Brunei's past and culture |
| Every first of May, ethnic Dusuns gather in Tasek Merimbun to celebrate the annual Adau Gayoh festival, which marks the end of the padi harvesting season, and to express their gratitude for the good harvest. The festival brings together not only the Dusuns but other ethnic groups and people from all walks of life from the Tutong District to celebrate the spirit of unity. This gathering is also an opportunity to uphold the ethnic group's traditions and cultural identity (Brunei Times, 2009). Tasek Merimbun is indeed both a natural and cultural heritage of Brunei. Thus, it is now being referred to as the gateway to Brunei's past and culture. Tasek Merimbun is a wildlife sanctuary, conservation spot for flora and fauna, recreational center, and a venue for research and education. The wildlife sanctuary is the first site to be declared a national park, and the biggest wildlife sanctuary among three others in Brunei Darussalam: Pulau Berambang (721 hectares), Pulau Siarau (393 hectares), and Pulau Pilong Pilongan (two hectares). The 7,800-hectare Heritage Park is located about 32 kilometers south of the Tutong-Kuala Belait coastal highway on the west bank of Sungai Tutong in Mukim Rambai, Tutong District. The Park encloses catchments of small rivers feeding into the Tasek Merimbun Lake, Brunei's largest lake that is shaped almost like the letter S |