When I asked my tour guide, he noted that less than 30,000 people were living in the capital. Those people that I did see from my wandering around the city were working, praying at the mosques, shopping at the Tamu Kianggeh market, or boating around the water village.

When you enter this hall, you must remove your shoes, and stow your bag and camera with the ladies at the front desk before you can wander around this vault of treasures. Your first stop is a staged re-enactment of the Sultan’s coronation, complete with over 100 mannequins in costume and the royal carriage.

After you have picked your jaw up off the floor, you can take a look at the many, many, many priceless gifts given to the Sultan by world leaders on the occasions of his coronation, anniversaries, and birthdays on display in this sprawling complex. In case you were thinking of sending the Sultan, the man who has everything, a present, you should know that he already has a glass miniature replica of Mecca with emerald minarets, diamond studded daggers, 10 foot ivory elephant tusks courtesy of Thailand, and a soapstone walrus (really, Prime Minister of Canada? That’s what we sent him?). But don’t worry, it seems that anything gold or silver is a good idea, from plates to statues to miniature mosques.