Malaysia!

Earlier this year, I won a trip to Malaysia (cool, huh?) and went away with a couple of other students for eleven days. I have to say that it was an experience of a lifetime.

My friend (one of the students who went on the trip) said this about it: (my comments are in blue)

Once the thrilled students stepped foot on Malaysian soil, they were immediately greeted by the warm 30 degree weather, a well earned break from the frigid subzero climate of Canada at the time. They were able to experience an incomprehensible spectrum of experiences from traditional to modern. For a few days, the participants found themselves navigating the labyrinth of bustling streets of the capital city Kuala Lumpur. This city has more bombardier rapid transit trains than Toronto, some which are even driverless. Here the students experienced places ranging from historical sites to houses of worship of several religions.

[We had to transfer at Taipei, and you could just feel the humidity and warmth of the air. Coolest thing about their transit is the section that's in the air.]

One evening, students were aggressively bargaining with street vendors in Petaling Street, a famed market in the city’s Chinatown. Another evening they were exploring the several floors full of brand named stores ranging from Gucci to Adidas at the Suria KLCC, a grand shopping complex at the foot of the majestic Patronus Twin Towers lit up in full glory beneath the night skies.

[I bought a shirt at Petaling St. for 20 ringgits, and then found the same shirt at the KLCC for a couple hundred.]

The students braved some 272 steps to reach the Batu Caves on the outskirts of the city. These caves are a Hindu pilgrimage site with ornate carvings and a population of friendly local monkeys who enjoy munching on food thrown by visitors.

[I fed a monkey an orange! I'm not so sure now that it was so wise - considering it was a wild monkey and it was hanging off my arm. But still very cool!

There's my monkey.]

The Canadian students also had the opportunity to tour a local Malaysian school and learn about local students of their age.

[That's a small sentence to sum up a big experience. They put on special performances and had special food prepared for us at the school. Their cooking classes are like the ones you read about in mangas - where each student has a little desk and has the opportunity to make stuff.]

Since the experience was government funded, students enjoyed a private bus as well as enthusiastic tour guides. The lavish and colourful bus was decorated with intricate patterns and glossy curtains. Thanks to this bus, the students were able to get out of the big city and head elsewhere. One morning students found themselves eating a decorative seafood lunch at the Putrajaya Seafood Restaurant, which is essentially a hut floating alongside a lakefront with dazzling views of the house of the Prime Minister, the 116 metre minaret of the Putra Mosque, and other architectural marvels within the administrative capital of Putrajaya. That very evening they devoured dinner sitting down on the floor and using nothing but their right hands to go through large portions of rice, vegetables, and meat plated on banana leaves and all grown in their very own backyards. They were now at the Kampung Dorani Homestay, a traditional Kampung village that offers foreign visitors a taste of traditional life.

[Yeah - the bus was pretty awesome. But on the topic of food - we were served really well. The restaurant he's describing there floats on a lake and has the most amazing view ever.

This (the pic) is what we could see.

The Homestay is my fav. part of the whole trip - as you will see later.]

At the homestay, the students experienced the true Malaysia. There were vibrant green rice paddies as far as the eye could see dotted with Kampungs, traditional colourful wooden Malaysian homes on stilts. In pairs, the students spent two nights with foster families, immersed in their gracious hospitality and the Malay language. Some of the families spoke little English. Students also experienced several traditional activities including eel fishing in the rice paddies, batik painting, and bahulu “kite” making. They also went to a colourful traditional Malaysian wedding, local food processing industries, and even on a river cruise to watch a rare sight of thousands of synchronized flashing fireflies.

[This is the only line that most of us learned on the two hour trip to the countryside. “Di Mana Saya Pergi Tandas?” The line literally translates to “Where I go washroom?” The picture below was taken by another friend on one of the mornings.

The homestay experience took my breath away. We split off into pairs and had our own "family". My partner and I ended up with a family that lived in the cutest house ever! They had a coconut tree in the front of their driveway and their house was painted in yellows, oranges, greens and blues. Our room was richly decorated (with a wedding-style bed - hahahaha) and had windows that overlooked the red flower bushes.

I wrote this in my "journal":

The sweet aftertaste of the cold coconut juice we were greeted with lingered until we’d split up into pairs and left with the “Father” we were introduced to. Sitting on what would be Canada’s driver’s side of the car and driving on the other side of the road was a new experience for me. Our car speeded past stocked mango stands as we weaved through the small, close-knit community. The house we were brought to seemed to come right out of a storybook. The driveway was lined with bright green bushes overgrown with red flowers. A coconut tree stood high beside the house, weighed down by the clusters of coconuts that reached for the ground. The colour of the house was a bright yellow orange, highlighted by beautiful, flat paneled shutters. Looking out from the second story window into the endless blue sky and mango grooves, Malaysia never seemed more real.

It's impossible to express everything that happened there, but I'll describe what I believe were the two coolest things.

Kite making was absolutely amazing. It wasn't too difficult, and I was the first person to go out and fly my kite. The sky was endlessly blue - and the wind was just perfect. All the coconut trees were swaying a bit on the side of the road, and my kite just flew up into the air.

There were a few times when it got caught on some weird eddies and started twisting, but soon, it was up as high as it could go.

I can't describe that feeling - simply standing near a paddie field and watching a kite fly on forever.

(I had to magnify my camera like 12 times to take this picture. It flew up really high.)

The other experience was the rain. It rained a couple of times in the short time we were there. But it wasn't the wet and disgusting kind you get in the city. It was seeing nature in nature. I remember the couple of us kicking around a coconut (as a soccer ball) after a whole day of activities (such as eel-fishing), and just running around the area created by the house stilts. Next thing we knew - the sky had turned dark blue and large splatters of rain were dropping from the sky. Within moments, it just started pouring.

A section from my "journal" again:

The sun that’d bathed the world in such bright light hid its face behind the clouds. Within moments, buckets of rain poured down in torrents, cutting us away from the rest of the world, in a place where life could be simple and happy. Where stress could find no foothold in the confines of such tranquility. Where laughter trickled alongside the water.

And it was true. I had no worries, no unpleasant thoughts, and felt a certain kind of peacefulness that I haven't encountered since.

Though this is an old image of a more traditional house than the homestay headquarters (where everyone goes to for the activities), just imagine standing underneath the house and feeling the rain blow in. It's unforgettable.

And rainbows, amazingly, aren't a rare sight. You can see one almost after every rainfall. ]

~

Another day, the students found themselves within the historical city of Melaka along the Straits of Malacca, once a prominent Portuguese seaport for the great spice trades. Highlights from this town include its authentic cuisine influenced by a variety of cultures. Students enjoyed a Portuguese influenced dinner and a Nyonya lunch, which is a complex style of cuisine utilizing a variety of spices and is influenced by local migrants from China and India throughout the past few centuries who married into Malaysian families. One night, the students cruised around town in trishaws, three-wheeled cycles topped with colourful sheaths of a variety of artificial flowers and designs. These vehicles dazzled as they traversed the roads flashing with flashing bright lights ranging from green to orange while blasting out their loud radios. They squeezed through every street corner from the bright red lanterns and Chinese flavour of the Jhonker Street markets, to the colonial styled churches and elegant gardens of the Dutch square, and even down the pristine riverfront.

[Trishaw experience!

That's what a trishaw looks like.

We also ate at a very modern seafood restaurant where there was a live performer. The couple of us sang rowdy English songs at the "stage".... and took secret pictures of a goodlooking bartender.]

After nine days of the jam-packed Malaysian experience, the Canadian students headed on the nearly 30-hour journey home. Each one carried with them at least 300 Malaysian Ringgits ($100 Canadian) worth of Malaysian crafts, imitation brand-named clothing, souvenir key chains, and tea back to the land of hockey, Tim Horton’s and the CN Tower, which to the students was now dwarf in comparison to the Petronas Towers. It was a sad wave goodbye to the smiles and hospitality of the great Asian nation. This unbelievable experience has opened the world and all it has to offer to the students. Malaysia is a must-see for everyone!

[He didn't mention our night in Kuala Lumpur - when we went into the megamall at the bottom of the Petronas Towers and then hanged around the park that surrounded the city centre. KL is super green. They've got trees everywhere. When we were swimming on the outdoor ninth-floor swimming pool, they had trees dotting the border of the pool and tennis court.]

I had some serious issues with going back. I kind of didn't want to.

I'm def. going back to visit someday.

- Annie

Ps. And the 30 hour plane ride wasn't that bad. I watched at least three newly released movies and played tons of video games. Asian airlines are pretty cool.

Pps. One of my hotel rooms (We always had a good view):