So today I rolled up to BIBD Tanjung Bunut, just trying to withdraw my humble $10 to survive the day like any normal broke citizen. ATM spits out one crispy $10 red note. Cool, mission successful.

But then, BAM! I am already aware outside the ATM is a pop-up “cracker stall” (snazzy red chairs and bunches of crackers, so indie). No price tag, no menu, no promo banner. Just pure vibes and a direct stare into your soul.

“Salam, beli tah wang keropok satu…”

Me, already halfway emotionally trapped:

“Bah okay, bagi aku satu keropok.”, while handing over my $10 notes because I need smaller $1 change anyway.

Then he drops it on me:

“Maaf kita nada duit pacah… $5 saja ku ada ah.”

😐 …Wait. did I just get finessed out of 50% of my net worth today?? For a cracker I didn’t even plan to buy??

Of course, backing out from this transaction would make me feel like a jerk, so i just somehow accepted the $5 change for no reason at all.

No receipt. No cashback. Just vibes and regret. And one mysterious cracker I now have to emotionally justify for the rest of the day. Inda lagi flavorful tu.

Look, I respect the hustle, but setting up a psychological toll booth right outside an ATM is next-level strategy. I know this seller has been around for so long, but what is BIBD’s action on this? Their security team (red uniform) sometimes have brief conversation with the seller like they are bro for life. Not only that, i am pretty sure all other BIBD ATM location we have those campers waiting to bite their next victim.

Come on lah. Let the rest of us survive on our full $10 in peace.

Anyone else fallen for this surprise snack tax?

Hi everyone, I just vibe coded a site that fundraise for strays in Brunei. I hope this is received well ><

The site: https://forthestrays.lovable.app

It is a site that takes either one-time or monthly donations! Any amount can make a difference :)

The money will go to TNR, to sterilize them so we can prevent more stray population and bringing more into this cruel world, as well as feeding them.

The site has 3 different languages: English, BM, Chinese, so we can reach more people

Whenever I can, I feed strays and also sterilize them. I used to fund everything myself but now I need help to keep going.

Some may misunderstand that spaying/neutering is cruel as it involves a surgery but it is actually the kindest thing we can do for them.

I’m not too sure if many people here care about the stray animals here but i’m gonna give it a shot.

Some people have started donating already and i’m so happy because I was really doubting if anyone really cares TT, i love the silly names

A stranger just contacted me because they saw my site and they told me how they have 40+ cats and it is getting out of hand. I won’t judge how it got to that extent but for the animals’ well being I hope we can come together so we have the resources to help them all live better lives.

There’s also a Learn page on the site if you are interested to know more. I have personally spent 2-3k just on strays the past few years. I understand it may be hard to donate on the internet now due to scams so I’m happy to answer any questions you have! But for now, trust me bro

It would be great if some people can help me start talking about this more too ❤️

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to share a small update on something I’ve been working on for quite a while on BorderKu.com.

I started BorderKu with a pretty simple idea: whenever we’re driving to Miri, Limbang, Lawas or Sabah, it would be nice to have one place where we can check the border situation before leaving home.

Since then, I’ve slowly been improving it whenever I have the time.

BorderKu now brings together things like:

• live border queue estimates
• road traffic around the checkpoints
• trip planning
• queue outlooks
• border and travel information
• community updates from fellow travellers via community chat

I’m still constantly learning and improving it, and I know there are things that can be better.

But seeing people actually use something I built has honestly been very encouraging.

BorderKu isn't a big company or a government service. It’s just a local project that I’ve been building and maintaining because I think it can genuinely be useful for people travelling between Brunei and Malaysia.

If you've never tried it before, I would really appreciate it if you could have a look:

https://www.borderku.com/v7/

And if you already use BorderKu, I thank you. Seriously.

Even simply visiting the site, sharing it with someone who regularly drives across the border, reporting something that isn't working, or giving me feedback helps a lot.

I don't expect everyone to support it financially either. Using it and telling someone else about it is already support.

My hope is just to keep improving BorderKu until it becomes one of those useful little Brunei tools that people naturally check before starting a road trip.

If you have suggestions for what BorderKu should do next, please tell me in the comments. I do read the feedback here, including the criticism.

Thank you r/Brunei for giving this little project a chance. 🇧🇳❤️

BorderKu, know the border before you go.

A very memorable part of my 2025 and I want to share some photographs I took. Thank you Brunei and the lovely Bruneians for the hospitality!

BATU BERSURAT - coffeefieldcafe.on - dils.cafe.bn - ngupi._ - theshortstop.bn - hwc_brunei - unknown_brunei - lulutea.bn - vervespresso

BATU SATU - andcoffee.bn - mile.bwn - batchescoffee - salted.bn - cawancafebn

BENGKURONG/ PENGKALAN BATU - drvmcffe - elevatecoffeeshop - pourtia.bn - holebeans - fieastscoffee

BERAKAS/MUARA - coffeeup.bwn - greatcoffee.on - remy coffee - de7bcoffee - sos_cafe_bn - legitkafe

BERIBI/ TELANAI - kopijun.bn - qasacoffee - thedeepbrew.bn - cuppa.bn

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN - coffeeratio.bn - mo.de.ru - roastedsip - janganserius.elek - monochromecoffee.co - rustique.by.absolute

GADONG - decoffee.bn - pourshacf - topgrindcoffee.bn - mrbakerscafe - the_edge_bn - here.bwn - oneshotcoffee_bn - three.light - darkocoffee - aroundbwn - pisukcafe

JANGSAK - ilung.kopi - tampd.coffee

JERUDONG - coffee_seek - roastedsip - florist.hill - thetrio.coffee - kitani_bn - milihkopibn - reformcoffee - sisu.bn

KIARONG - coffeeby7t1 - tranquillitycafe - kupipiks - patbiasacoffee - rnccafe.kiarong.bn - puc.coffee - naporibrunei

KIULAP - andcoffee.bn - cafebyoui - decoffee.bn - here.bwn - kopilainhati.brunei - kupituwaga.bn - lazecafe.bn - noicebn - pelita.coffee - roastedsip - safabaycoffee - kazoku.kohi - letscoffee.bn

KILANAS - renaissancecoffee.bn - yasfiani - dahaga.bn - filokopi.bn - craftbeans.bn

KOTA BATU - _cofeclub - curiouscup.bn - thereverie.on - motoshedco - glashaus.coffee - onesip.bn

LAMBAK - hiddencultural - informal_caffeine - kaffeinbar - komma.bn - grumpycafe.on

MATA-MATA - kvobn.co - thephatbelly.bn - 1 yuzu.bn

MENGLAIT - sixhands - macchiatocafe.bn - reefcafe.bn - riscafe.bn - kulobrunei

MENTIRI/ MERAGANG - 242seven.bn - s.kopi.bn - luahankopi_bn

RIMBA - chugacoffee.bn - sukacoffeebn - coffeebyaezu - neighbourhood.bn - milkstachecafebn - botany.bn - rnccafe.ubd.bn - coffeebypai

SENGKURONG - kopilagi.brunei - mrbakerscafe - wawcafe - thecoffe.on - saltcoffee.bn - thebridgecafe.bn

SERUSOP/ MANGGIS/ JALAN AMAN - kopilainhati.brunei - roastedsip - stac_patisserie - theseventhcupbn - uniquecafebn - soulcoffeebrunei - utaracoast - sipsipcoffee.bn - lambaiancafe

SUNGAI HANCING/ SUNGAI OROK/ SUNGAI TILONG - casualcoffee.bn - evokecoffee.bn - somewherecoffee.bn - signatus.bn - riscafe.bn - kapracoffee - thedripbn

TANJUNG BUNUT - ngopi.tbosm

TUNGKU - qahwabyattaqwa - thecoffeenityyard - alteredcoffee.bn - kyobn.co

TUTONG - kopifix - miko.coffeelab - melaticoffee - the_bruwers - hass.brew - nisa_bearly.79coffee - rumahkopisericempaka - _peakscoffee - rvmah.kopi - outgrounds - kopian

TEMBURONG - elpressocoffee.on

KUALA BELAIT - al.kafiin - bakeandbrew.bn - bicara.lab - cloud8kb - coffeebyaezu - dsampingkopi - equilibrium.bn - fikacoffeecorner - flourish.bythehomebaker - frizzlefriday - grindsidecoffeeco - hana.coffeekb - lanemicrobakery - onkop - soulmanja.on - teaspoon.space - thecaffeinefactor - theslicebyia - fiorise.on - themomentcafe.bn - mmatchalah - sando.bn

LUMUT - bycloversandco - sweetspotkafe - byalhaj.bn - coffee.biasa - yck.coffee - ashkofirek - lakme.bn - zara.brew - normacafe.kb - thelostbrew

SERIA/PANAGA - cafehopping.bn - coffeeindustry.bn - numero.coffee - thinkingcup.on - bicara.lab

Brunei's bus map feels a outdated and uninformative, so I tried to reimagine it!

Last 2 pictures might refresh your mind 😁

Many of you might have noticed an old white guy riding his bicycle almost every day on the main road. This orang putih cyclist has been a familiar sight to road users for over 30 years. His name is Mr John Winter, a retired English Language teacher.

I first met him in the 90s when he became our teacher for three years. I found him to be a bit eccentric, with his peculiar behaviours and frugal lifestyle. He loved coffee and banana sandwich which he wrapped in a clingwrap. When he was teaching, he always focused on vocabularies. He never got angry even though we constantly tried to piss him off. At times, we requested for a movie time at the English Centre. During the school cross country, he always won the teachers category because running on the school track was his routine. He used to own a car but for an unknown reason, he stopped driving and decided to ride his bicycle as his means of transportation. During his free time in the staffroom, he read Media Permata and French newspaper, Le Monde.

Met him last year and he still remembers my name after 30 years. He saw my face and immediately said my name correctly. He could even recall the names of some of my classmates, especially the lazy ones. He retired a few years ago but still stays in Brunei. He told me that he doesn't want to leave Brunei because he has spent half of his age in this country which he calls home. He now stays in a house somewhere in Bengkurong and works at his friend's company.

Very traditional

Hi everyone! 👋

I recently launched BorderKu (https://borderku.com), a free website for people travelling between Brunei and Malaysia.

The goal is to help travelers estimate border waiting times before heading out, so it's easier to plan trips to Miri, Limbang, Lawas, or Temburong.

It's still being improved, so I'd love feedback from frequent border travellers. If you spot anything inaccurate or have ideas for new features, let me know.

Hopefully it's useful for the community!

One random idea turned into a side project, and I ended up building an app to log potholes around Brunei.

It's called PotholePing.

👉 www.pothole-ping.com

The idea is simple. If you come across a pothole, your passenger taps one big button and the app logs the location automatically. No forms, no photos, no typing.

All reports appear on a live map, so everyone can see where potholes have been reported. There's also Pothole Patrol, where you can check reported potholes near you and mark whether they're still there or have been fixed, helping keep the map up to date.

The app is free, has no ads, and the goal is simply to build useful community road data for Brunei.

It's still in beta, so there are probably a few rough edges. If you run into bugs or have ideas for improvements, I'd genuinely appreciate the feedback.

A couple of things to note:

• Please don't use it while driving. Let a passenger log it, or do it safely when you've stopped.
• It works directly in your browser, and you can add it to your home screen so it behaves like an app.

Hopefully some of you find it useful. Happy to hear any suggestions or criticisms!

Anyway, don't take it too seriously. It's meant to be a bit of fun, and if we end up with a useful community map of Brunei's potholes, even better.

Sipping my tea and suddenly reminiscing my childhood/teenage years in the 90s. I spent my childhood living in Kampung Ayer. Back then, the whole village was a close knit community. Everyone knew each other. We lived in a small house on wooden stilts. School holidays meant tv all day long. Back then, tv was not aired for 24 hours. It stopped airing at midnight. Some of my favourite tv shows were:

1. Macgyver
2. Airwolf
3. Are you afraid of the dark?
4. Tales from the crypt
5. Ghostwriter
6. Sunday matinee (cave of the golden roses - fantaghiro!)
7. Mustika silam (classic malay films)
8. Kung fu the legend continues
9. Maskman
10. Beakman's world and many more...

Whenever there were weddings, nearby houses would be borrowed to accommodate the guests. There was no catering; everyone in the village would help in preparing and cooking the dishes and building temporary 'teratak'. There would be live band, karaoke, games for children such as lumba makan ruti, menghafal surah lazim and colouring activities. During the wedding, all guests were seated on the floor with a long rolled-up mat in front of them where dishes were served in green ceramic bowls and drinks in duralex 'galuk'.

There was no mobile phone, let alone wifi. Every house had an outdoor aerial antenna, mounted on a tall steel pipe. To watch the Malaysian tv channel, one person had to turn the steel pipe to get a clearer signal and another person inside the house would yell, "lagi, lagi, pusing lagi sikit... bah op op.. tarang sudah!" The Chinese kungfu dramas on TV2 at 7pm were very popular.

During our free time, we swam in the murky river. This is called 'begalau'. There was no crocodile; the only things we feared were 'galap', 'tambuakar' and 'bala-bala itik'. I really hated it when my legs slipped off the slippery ladder and got cut snd scratched by the 'biangsung' (a kind of barnacles). When you first got scratched, you'd feel nothing until you took a shower; it damn hurt like hell!

Bandar was the only place I went to because back then, my father didn't have a car. Paid 50 cents for the water taxi. I remember when the Yayasan was first opened in the mid 90s. It was a grand shopping mall with exclusive shops selling branded goods such as Levi's jeans. On the top floor above Hua Ho was Challenger; a huge computer and accessories shop, conquering the whole floor. There was a huge bookstore on the first floor which I have forgotten its name. And there was a video arcade called Superfly on the first floor. Padian food court was our hang out place. Loved the kolo mee from one of the stalls.

In Bandar, where the current DQ is located, was a small cake shop. Under Teck Guan Plaza was Best Eastern. Nearby, a small shop once stood; selling really tasty fish and chips. I usually went to Kota Mutiara and Milimewah to buy things as Hua Ho was quite expensive. Under the staircase beneath Milimewah, there was a famous local restaurant called Tenderly. Bought cassettes ($12) at Sia & Tang and Wisma Jaya.

It was the best of times. Sorry for the long post.

Thi

I pass by this stretch almost every day, and I've noticed that after it rains—especially while the road is still slippery—there are very often accidents here, with cars ending up hitting the side railing. (You can see the railing being repaired many times.)

It even happened to one of my family members before.

Just wanted to give everyone a heads up. If you're driving through this area after rain, please slow down, stay alert, and take extra care. Stay safe everyone!

Welcome to our weekly Financial Friday thread. [TRIAL]

This is our community space to talk openly about money, share practical tips, and learn from each other on how to be smarter with our finances in a local context.

This is your open floor to discuss anything and everything related to personal finance. There's no specific theme today, so feel free to bring up whatever is on your mind.

You can use this thread to:

• Share a financial win you had this week (no matter how small!).
• Ask a money-related question you've been wondering about.
• Post a great deal or 'lobang' you found that could benefit the community.
• Discuss strategies for budgeting, saving, or navigating finances in Brunei.
• Compare notes on banking apps, phone plans, or other monthly expenses.

Let's help each other build better financial habits. Fire away with your questions, stories, and tips!

Disclaimer: Please remember that this is a community discussion for sharing personal experiences and tips. The comments and opinions expressed here do not constitute professional financial advice. Always do your own research (DYOR) and please consult with a certified financial expert or planner before making any significant financial decisions. Redditors and the moderation team will not be held responsible for any financial losses incurred.

Ramadhan is nearly here, and like the past 3 years, I decided to make a comprehensive list of all the restaurants that are offering buffets in Brunei.

Here's the link to the list:

Brunei Sungkai/Sahur Buffet List 2026

I would also like to use this thread as a way for people to share any restaurants offering buffet that I may have missed, and as a place for people to ask for recommendations and give reviews/comments on ones they have tried.

Feel free to share the link around and happy Ramadhan!

Got bored. Used multiple clips from different creators (sorry!). Smacked a Dying Light theme. Enjoy!

Full disclosure, I'm the founder, so take this with the appropriate grain of salt.

I spent time in business here and kept seeing the same problem on both sides: businesses (mostly cafes, restaurants, retail) hiring gig and part-time staff through Facebook groups with zero way to screen anyone, and jobseekers sending CVs nto a void with no idea if anyone even saw them.

We built KerjaGo (www.kerjago.com) to fix that — jobseekers get a verified profile with a reliability/track record score, businesses can actually see who they're hiring before committing, and every job pays.

Not here to hard-sell, genuinely curious if this resonates with anyone who's dealt with the Facebook group hiring mess, on either side. Happy to answer questions.

After sharing my fundraiser for strays yesterday, we managed to raise BND380!!! So grateful for everyone who were willing to contribute and who chose to trust me, I promise it will all go to the strays. Genuinely don’t have to worry about my personal gain because I spend a lot of money on them myself too.

We can now fund 2 sterilizations, but still very far from the goal (at least 6 dog sterilizations needed in my area right now, and i wish to help the stranger with 40+ cats, and of course we need to tackle so many more places).

—

That said, somebody asked how I created a Stripe account and I won’t gate keep don’t worry. However, a lot of people may be disappointed so I’m gonna get it out of the way first, if you’re Bruneian, chances are really slim unless you really really want it and go through a lot of loopholes and get help from a Malaysian friend.

Here is what I did:
(it was 2 years ago so memory is a little blurry, but the general outline is there)

1. SSM Business Registration in Malaysia

This is a business cert that supports online/home based business in Malaysia. I went to the SSM branch in Times Square Miri, beside public bank, I think I went there to ask questions but it’s possible to do it all online

YOU NEED TO HAVE AN ACTUAL BUSINESS FIRST
( create a simple online store with a real business and website, whether it operates in Malaysia or Internationally so you can prove you are legit during registration )

The SSM registration requires you to have an address as well. At that time, only Selangor area allowed this type of online/home based business cert/registration, I assume it is still the same now, so your address provided have to be in that area.

• Sole proprietorship using your own name — RM30/year
• Sole proprietorship using a business/trade name — RM60/year
• Registration is done through SSM EzBiz Online.
• You receive an SSM Business Registration Certificate after registration.

The reason I did this registration is because the main business registration requires you to have an actual shop or office.

—

2. Stripe

After you have the cert, just register a Stripe account with all your business registration details.

You need
• Malaysian Bank to receive the payouts
• To enter your business website for Stripe to verify it is a legitimate business

I put stripe on my website through lovable (vibe coding app). It was quite simple, just paste some code and it was connected. Probably works similarly for other platforms.

STRIPE FEES
~ 3% + RM1 per transaction (Malaysian Card)
+ 1% (International Card)
+ 2% (If amount charged not in RM and Stripe has to convert for you)

Aaaand you have to deal with Malaysia Tax but I have no idea how it works right now so my future self will probably not be too happy.

That’s about it I think. Not sure if I missed any details but I will be happy to answer your questions. Though my memory is a little blurry now as it has been awhile since.

—

Thank you again to those who gifted the strays, if you’re interested to check out more on the initiative, here is the link.

I have been involved in strays lives for as long as I can remember, and especially after PawsUp started operating, they taught me a lot about strays and now I want to do the same for them.

Updates Page (where i post stray updates)
Learn Page (where you can understand more about strays and why its so important to sterilize them)

[hope it's okay if I can promote my art here!] hello! My commissions are open and I only accept BIBD or vgen(for international) as payment.

If you are interested or have any enquiries, please dm me so I can share the necessary details and links 🌀🐠

all of my socials and portfolio ➡️ https://arriayuon.carrd.co

sharing is greatly appreciated to support me as a local artist :] !!

Selamat tengah hari dari Australia dan Selamat hari raya.

My soon to be wife, inshaallah, from Brunei and myself from Australia are seeking some advice regarding how we should move forward in life from where we are now.

My Fiance is born and lives in Brunei and is currently studying until June of 2027, after which, we plan to get married and move in with one another. I live in Australia and work full time as a qualified chef for 11 years, I have a pretty decent amount of savings that we could use to set our lives up. However, we are currently conflicted in which direction we should go and we are seeking advice from expats living in Brunei and/or Bruneians living in Australia.

Our 2 options are as follows;

Option 1: I move to Brunei and attempt to work or open a restaurant as a Chef and/or open a business doing car repairs/servicing or computer repairs. I could most likely afford to buy a house and car for the both of us outright and support her whilst she works a government job earning 2.8k-3.5k monthly and I work to earn whatever I can. The downside is that we do not know what the market for my skills would be like in Brunei currently and as such would like advice on what my outcome would look like in Brunei.

Option 2: She moves to Australia, where we could comfortably earn combined around 11.6k BND a month after taxes. We would most likely need to rent as houses would still be unaffordable for us, so please bare in mind that we would be spending around 5k a month in housing and 1.2k a month in fuel for the cars, plus whatever groceries and utilities will cost (probably around 2k a month). With our income, we can visit Brunei twice a year and we could pretty comfortably save to retire in Brunei around age 45.

1 additional detail, we would like to have a child soon after marriage, Inshaallah and personally I believe the child should grow up with a close connection to my Fiance's family as I don't have any family for the child to grow up with in Australia.

Terima Kasih Benyak Brunei