Front of a Longhouse

The Ibans lived in long houses. If you imagine each longhouse as a loaf of bread, each family's apartment was a slice. The wealthier families had thicker slices, and used more expensive building materials, but every apartment had the same length and height. The interesting thing about the longhouses, to me, was the ruai (RUE-eye), the central hallway, which was open. Each family builds and maintains their own section of the ruai, but they allow others to use it within reason. For example, when it is raining, the kids can have 40-yard dashes indoors.