Borneo Culture

From his hiding place in the Borneo jungle, Asmawi Ab watched as a band of headhunters caught his father, Palindo, 50 yards away. The elderly man fell to his knees and begged for mercy, but the Dayaks stabbed and killed him. The leader of the gang lifted the body by the hair and in one stroke of his long mandau knife lopped off the head. In triumph, he held it high and drank the dripping blood as his comrades let loose a terrifying victory cry.

From his hiding place in the Borneo jungle, Asmawi Ab watched as a band of headhunters caught his father, Palindo, 50 yards away. The elderly man fell to his knees and begged for mercy, but the Dayaks stabbed and killed him. The leader of the gang lifted the body by the hair and in one stroke of his long mandau knife lopped off the head. In triumph, he held it high and drank the dripping blood as his comrades let loose a terrifying victory cry.

Under the heading of life in the urban jungle, Eric Hansen recently joined the ranks of countless New Yorkers when he found he could not communicate with his cab driver. Hansen, fresh from a meeting about his new book, "Stranger in the Forest: On Foot Across Borneo" (Houghton Mifflin), was clutching one of his favorite photographs at the time. It depicted two men of the Penan nomadic group in Borneo's rain forest, both wearing loincloths and carrying huge hunting spears.

Under the heading of life in the urban jungle, Eric Hansen recently joined the ranks of countless New Yorkers when he found he could not communicate with his cab driver. Hansen, fresh from a meeting about his new book, "Stranger in the Forest: On Foot Across Borneo" (Houghton Mifflin), was clutching one of his favorite photographs at the time. It depicted two men of the Penan nomadic group in Borneo's rain forest, both wearing loincloths and carrying huge hunting spears.

Learn about pre-Columbian and Latin American art on a tour (Aug. 15 to 20) of Mexico City. Local guides will take guests on walking tours to the Zocalo, Mexico City's main square, to visit the murals of Diego Rivera and the Plaza of the Three Cultures. Travelers will ride to Teotihuacan and visit the archeological museum at the site. Guests will also visit the pyramid at Cuicuilco and take a boat ride at the Aztec Floating Gardens at Xochimilco.