Brunei | Masjid Omar Ali Saifuddien

Masjid Omar Ali Saifuddien, or the Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque, named after the 28th Sultan of Brunei Darussalam, HM Sultan Haji Sir Muda Omar Ali Safuddien Sa'adul Khairi Waddien.

Built in the early 1950's, one of the most oldest, if not the oldest, mosque in Brunei.

This is also one of the most photographed structures in Brunei, coming to Brunei without seeing or having a photo of the mosque can be considered as incomplete, as it is situated at the very heart of the capital of Brunei, Bandar Seri Begawan.

Masjid Omar Ali Saifuddien, was built within the vicinity of Kampung Ayer (Water Village), whereby, during that era, more than 50,000 people were still living in Kampung Ayer hence the location.

With a classic Islamic architectural design, dome made of gold plated mosaic, marble flooring, hand-made stained glass windows, handcrafted carpets and minaret of over 50m in height, it is indeed a magnificient piece of structure, and considered among one of the most magnificient in Asia, if not the World.

The mosque is also surrounded by a lagoon, but there are water outlet flowing to and from the Kedayan River.

In the middle of the lagoon, one cannot miss to see a concrete ship which resemble a "Royal Vehicle" during the 16 century. This concrete ship was once used for the competition of the recital of the holy Al-Quran.

The main hall of the mosque can accomodate about 3,000 worshipper at one time, but I still remember the time back in the early 1980's or even before that perhaps, when the water villages were still heavily populated, and especially during festive seasons e.g. Hari Raya Aidil Fitri (Eid Mubarak), people will throng the mosque in thousands, where the main road behind the mosque was covered with praying mat, and those praying on the grass under the trees can consider themselves "fortunate" ;).... and during these times, the number can easily be more than double of that above.

BTW, some tips for those who wanted to visit the mosque:
1. Shoes/slippers/sandal or any footwear are not allowed inside the mosque, please leave your footwear outside the mosque (there are special areas allocated for storing the footwear)

2. Wear decent clothing which covers your body and down till your knee. Shorts, mini skirts are not allowed. (But If I am not mistaken, robes are available at the mosque if one need them)

3. Please do not disturb any worshipper who are in their prayers, unless they say hi to you first. :).

4. Smile and not to worry, visitors are welcome anytime, except during prayer times, (Please consult the tour guide, or the mosque notice board, or the mosque personnel regarding the permissible time)

Well, I guess with that, I will leave you with some images of the mosque from various angle and different time of the day. ;)






... solitude....

.. ablution area...

... the "concrete ship" ...

... the golden domes...

... reflection....

... at nite ....

...view from the nearby shopping complex... and in the foreground The Beatles wannabe.. crossing the road... Abbey Road... naaaaah... they are just crossing the Bandar Road......

eeerrr.. speaking of road crossing ..... so why did the chicken cross the road? (Highlight below for the answer)
Granny : "In my day, we didn't ask why the chicken crossed the road. Someone told us that the chicken had crossed the road, and that was good enough for us."


... another different mosque at the other side of the river...