I could live here...

Welp, this past week was little busy, but it was a goodin'!

First off... I'm turning into a Malay person.  And by that I mean I'm developing good sleeping habits which are nonexistent...hence it is 2:30AM and I'm starting my blog post.  When we first arrived, I noticed that the Malay people never seem to sleep...and now that's ME.  At 11:00 PM, they will be eating dinner, at 1:00AM they will be playing drums or dancing outside our window, and recently I've noticed they play volleyball and ping pong and handball and a ton of other sports at least till midnight.  Not only are they extremely active (which explains their perfect figures), but they are the most down to earth kind of people I have ever met.  Whenever I am feeling down or stressed, all I have to do is find me a Malay person because just being around them for a little while is all I need to make me feel better.  They are thoughtful, caring, and just so real compared to most Americans! (Sorry blog readers from home, but it's true!)  They never seem to be judging others or act like someone they aren't.  Even when they are eating snacks, they constantly are offering some to share and come on Americans from home, when you have one Reese's to eat, are you really going to give it away?  I know I wouldn't!  Or my Mama! ;)  Then they always smile at me, wave at me, make me feel welcome wherever I am, and ask me if I'm ok...  At first when they would ask, "Sarah, are you ok?", I would say, "Yeah, I'm fine!”, and on the inside I would be worrying and thinking, "Do I look like something is wrong?"  But I have come to realize that's their way of saying the normal greeting of, "Hey, how are you?"  I feel so mean, selfish, and unfriendly compared to the Malays and that is one my top goals now... to bring home the Malaysian personality and well-being (and I'm not just saying this because my new Malay friends may read my blog). I'm serious!  

Something that is still being portrayed as the same ole' me from home though is my indecisiveness.  Last Friday afternoon, I could not decide what to do to save my life.  I could either get all my work done because the weekend was going to be packed, go to a Malaysian dance performance, or go explore some little waterfalls in the jungle behind campus with some Malay friends.  Those that know me well know I took forever to decide, but I eventually decided to just go to the waterfalls.  It was very peaceful and relaxing to just listen to the water flow and cool off our feet in the water.  

After being in the jungle for a couple hours and on our way back, I realized if I ran back I could still make it to the dance performance.  So I ran home, showered, got dressed, and...missed the 6:00 bus to the meeting spot, where I was supposed to be at 6:00.  And it started pouring rain. AND I was wearing white pants.  One of those moments when it's so not funny, that it's funny. (Anna, that's a better example than the funeral one, right? HAH!)  However, I talked to Rachel who had invited me and she said they would wait for me, which they did and I'm so happy they did because the dance performance was so cool.  The other dance performance I went to was true traditional Malay dancing, however this was about as contemporary and one of kind dancing as it could get.  There was crawling and yelling and hissing and jumping, and so many props were used including babies, benches, balls, and boys (I had to add an extra "b" word).  One part was a guy and one of those huge exercise balls.  He pretty much laid across the ball doing weird, but cool things with his hands and body and would randomly jump across the room like a frog.  Which must have been what he was trying for because they had a "princess" come out and kiss him on the cheek!  So artsy and creative I must say.

Saturday, Erin, Carson, and I went trekking/hiking/camping in the jungle to find an even bigger waterfall.  After hiking for a few hours and hearing thunder in the distance, we decided to set up camp before the rain and darkness caught us. We slept in our hammocks along a stream, and woke up to butterflies EVERYWHERE.  I wished I could have gotten a picture of one, but they were the biggest butterflies I had ever seen!  There were also some lovely ants that decided to build their “home” in and around my shoes all night long.  The next morning, we continued our trek to find the waterfall.  This trek was not an easy one, that’s for sure!  From picking leeches off, getting scratched by bushes, bit by mosquitos, hearing wild hogs, seeing monkeys in the trees, seeing a HUGE snake, AND seeing tiger prints, this trek was quite different than what I have done in the past.  I have never gone off trails, especially in the jungle, and I don’t really plan to again in the future.  As we were walking, Carson said, “Sarah, how do you like this kind of backpacking?”  I didn’t want to complain so I just said (with a smile), “I like other things better.”  In the end though, it was worth it because we came upon a big waterfall.  Carson climbed all the way to the top, Erin got about half way and fell down, and of course I fell down the first little incline.  This was one of those moments when you’re falling and there’s nothing you can do about it except pray the landing is soft.  Thankfully mine was, and the only injury was a just a bruised pinky toe that got caught on a rock.  Side story:  While trekking, this was my first experience with leeches!  They were so disgusting and even though it didn’t hurt when they sucked on you, you had to pry them off with sticks and rocks and once you get them off, you continuously drip blood.  Erin got one on her stomach, and I got to enjoy dreaming of leeches all over her stomach and that we had to cut her open to detach them from her veins.  Sorry if that was too vulgar. Hehe.

After the exciting weekend, I found my new favorite hobby here at UPSI.  And that is playing/practicing with the UPSI futsal team (all girls)! When I’m at Queen’s, one of my favorite things to do at soccer practice is play futsal, but it usually lasts for no more than an hour, and we don’t always do it.  However, this is 3 hours of playing 2 or 3 days a week!  And I LOVE it!  I love the game and my teammates here who remind me of my team back home.  They are welcoming and loud and funny and we all have something in  common. 

Another new hobby that I hope to continue weekly is going kayaking.  Some guys Meredith and I met invited us to go in the lake behind campus, and goodness, it is just like our new friend said, “A time to release tension.”  The mountains stand directly behind us with the clouds going in and out, there’s a soft breeze, and the ONLY sounds are from paddling and when you’re still, a few birds in the distance.  While just sitting in the kayak, gazing at the mountains, it was the first time I thought to myself and truly felt, “I could live here forever.” Don't worry Mama, I'm still coming home!

After the kayaking, I met some of my futsal teammates and went to some type of ceremony. I’m still confused about what the ceremony was all about, but I didn’t care, because I loved the company of my new teammates.  I also left the ceremony early and met one of my classmates and new friends named Amera.  We walked through the market that was set up on campus, looking at all the traditional clothes and the beautiful pins, enjoying each other’s company.  This was one of those times when just being around a Malay person is all I needed, especially one like Amera.  She’s definitely one of the sweetest Malay friends I have here, and bought me a cute little key chain with my name on it. 

As far as classes are going, metal craft is by far my favorite.  I just finished one of my final projects!  We sketched a design, traced it onto copper, and embossed away! 

To treat ourselves during the week, the Americans and Koreans like to go to one of our favorite restaurants called The Blue Garden.  The owner/cook is SO nice and always gives us free samples of his dessert and bread.  Here are some pictures of us... 

Pina Colada! In Malaysia!

Me and Erin 

Me and Meredith

Opa and Clara

Denisse (Mexican) and Harold (Korean) could pass as siblings. HAH!!

Ko and I thought about bringing this kitten home to play with Lasak....

Tomorrow is our last day before mid-semester break (our SPRING BREAK!!), and we are going to Bali!!! For 10 daysss!  I’m so excited if you can’t tell… but I’m getting dive certified the first 4 days and then I’ll be relaxing on the beach, exploring the islands of Indonesia, and maybe even learning how to surf!  Please keep me in your prayers, as I’m sure this will be another exciting adventure.  I’ll definitely take lots of pictures!

Selamat Malam! (Goodnight!)

Cultural differences

Helllllo again.  :D

The last two weeks weren’t as eventful as those in the last post, but there were some cool moments.

Golfin’

A friend here at UPSI took Meredith and I to play golf one day, and this was fun for the first and only hole we got to play until it started to DOWNPOUR.  And when I say downpour, I mean downpour.   The thunder booms (I used that word especially for my ole’ high-school friends) were also the loudest I had ever heard.  We definitely were right smack in the middle of that storm!  After it passed, it was too late to go back on the course, so we just had some chipping and putting contests until the sun went completely down. 

A couple days later, our friend took us to a driving range.  Practice was quite needed, as my golf swing was a little rusty on the course.  After hitting who knows how many balls and getting blisters all over my hands, my night was suddenly made.  Our friend invited his friend to come meet us.  And his friend wasn’t just any guy. He was the number ONE golfer in Malaysia named Shaaban Hussein!  After taking us to dinner, I was so in awe, I didn’t even think to get a picture or autograph.  I joked later about bringing him home instead of a Malaysian doctor. ;) He also invited us to come watch him play in the Malaysian Open. Unfortunately, he missed the cut after the first two days and didn’t make it to the final round, which was the only day Meredith and I could go to.  Even though we didn’t have anyone to personally cheer on, we still enjoyed it. 

Since it was also a European Tour, I didn’t recognize many names except for Padraig Harrington, but I did do some research before we went.  One guy I just happened to read about was named Tommy Fleetwood who was from England, my age, and quite cute I must add (hehe).  I decided we could cheer him on once we got there.  Just as we arrived to the golf course, the horn went off for rain delay.  Perfect timing huh?  It was ok though as we killed the time by watching someone show off in their helicopter.  The helicopter flew around zooming up and down and over fairways.  It was a little nerve-racking.

After that excitement, there was a chipping contest that if you chipped three balls in a bucket, you won a car.  I tried it, and didn’t win.  But if I had rung the bucket, I was told I couldn’t win anyways because I wasn’t Malaysian.  Don’t I look Malaysian though?? ;) 

We also checked out the automatic driving range, which could bring the balls right back up to your mat. Coooolioooo.

After a little while, a couple of the golfers started warming up on the putting green and who would have thunk it??  My new man Tommy came walking out right beside me.  I immediately asked if I could have a picture with him, and he said yes.  Once play resumed, we watched a couple groups until the final group came in with the champion who was from Thailand.  

Taipang Zoo

With my Animal Physiology class, we went to Taipang Zoo.  It was a beautiful bus ride up through the mountains (at least the little bit I was awake for) to a zoo that had so many cool animals.  I got to feed the deer some plants a worker had just cut down from the trees.  I hope that was ok for them to eat… I also got to see hippos!! Whenever I have gone to my zoo back at home, I NEVER get to see the hippos because they are always underwater.  Some people may not get excited about that, but I sure was.  There were also monkeys everywhere again, which was funny because I couldn’t tell if they were escapees at first or just wild monkeys living at the zoo by choice (which they were). However, there was a different kind of monkey called a Gibbon monkey (part of the zoo) that made the coolest noises/hollers.   I thought about having a “hollering” contest, but I figured I didn’t need any more stares.

Indian “Festival”

After the zoo, we came back to our dorm and got ready for an Indian “festival” we had planned to go to.  A friend from our class invited us, and said the informal part started at 9:30.  She also said there was going to be food, and dancing, and that we could wear our sarees we had bought.  I was SO excited to wear mine.  Since we were back by 7:30, we weren’t rushing by any means until our friend texted us at 7:45, saying we should meet her at the bus stop at 8:00. (What happened to Malay time?!?)  After a lot of communication errors to say the least, we finally found our friend.  I asked her if she could help me put my saree on, and she said her roommate would once we found a bathroom.   Now, when I bought the saree, the lady wrapped it all nicely around my clothes and tucked it here and there, and tied it here and there, and I looked like a real Indian women! (besides my eye and hair color)  Butttt, I guess that’s not the way you wear them in real life.  First reason why….we were almost to the bathroom and our friend said, “Do you have pins?”  I, knowing the lady didn’t use any pins when I tried it on, said no.  She just smiled and said, “That may be difficult, but we can try.”  Then we got in the bathroom, and she said, “Do you have the shirt to wear under it?”  I, wearing only a cami under my normal shirt, asked if that would just be ok.  She laughed again and said, “We can try it.”  Then as I am pulling the probably 6-yard long piece of silk cloth out of my bag, she says, “Where are the pants?”  At this point, I’m thinking how can a saree be one of the words that seems to have two meanings here?  Well, it doesn’t because my friend laughed AGAIN and said you get the piece of “cloth” I had bought tailored into an entire outfit.  Hahhh. Feeling so embarrassed and sad I couldn’t wear it, we all just laughed and headed to the “festival” anyways.  Late of course, we made it and it was NOT what I expected.  I felt like I was at convocation.  My fellow Queen’s friends know what that is….eeeekkk. Haha. Kidding.  But not really.  There were awards being given to professors, a bunch of speaking in Malay, clapping, photos, door prizes, etc. in an auditorium.  You can’t Indian dance in an auditorium!  I waited patiently however, and it got better.  There was a play with some Indian dancing and then some other students that sang and danced.  The audience didn’t get to participate, but maybe that was a good thing.  Y’all know my dancin’!  The voices and music and dancing was beautiful though, and even though I didn’t get to wear my saree, I enjoyed it in the end. 

Batik Class

Now, this class is supposed to be relaxing and easy…but it ain’t!  Haha.  Our first assignment was to “tie and dye”, which was fun.  Here’s a picture of my finished artwork. 

The next assignment is doing different Batik techniques.  Communication barriers have definitely stood strong in this class, as our teacher tells the Malay students the assignment in Malay and the Americans (3 of us) the assignment in English.  However, the Malays and Americans are being told two different things.  And that makes it even more difficult when a biology major is trying to get some help with her art…For example, I am stapling my cloth to a piece of wood and ask a classmate, “Is this enough fabric left hanging off the edge?”  It probably doesn’t make it any easier on myself either when I’m a perfectionist. (I get it from my Aunt Beth.)  My classmate takes it from me, and staples it all.  It was nice of her to try and help, but then it was too lose for me to draw out my lines with wax.  Sooo…I start to take every little staple out, and then the same girl comes again and takes it and re-staples it for me. In the middle, I say, “Very tight, very tight.”  But, once again, it’s too lose.  I hide from her the rest of the class. Hah.  I get some other students to help me staple it tightly, but then the staples start coming out of the wood.  Sooo… I have to get a new wooden frame and staple it AGAIN.  I was getting a weeee bit frustrated.  Luckily, two realllly sweet girls helped me and got me back on track.   Thank the LAWD for them!

 

Malay “Carnival”

With our two new friends from Batik class and some of their friends, we went to the Malay “carnival” that was going on on campus.  Now, when I hear carnival, I think ferris wheel, dunking booth, greasy food, and whatnot.  This carnival still had booths, but with clothes and food.  There was also a “cinema” going on, which our new friends invited us to go to with them.  This “cinema” ended up being a traditional Malay play.  Even though it was all in Malay (except for the plot written in English on a big screen), I couldn’t understand anything but still managed to laugh at the acting as it was definitely a comedy.  There were what we would call drag queens/men dressed as women, a princess, a prince, tribal people, and some guards.  I forgot my camera, but I stole this pic from someone else. Heh.  Rachel, another American who came last semester is in the middle, and our friend Sue from Turkey is all the way to the right.

It was a really fun night, and I was so happy to have made some new Malaysian friends.  Side note/story:  One of our new friends was so cute when she first met us.  You would have thought she was meeting Matthew McConaughey with his shirt off or something, as she couldn’t stop giggling and covering her face because she had never met an international student before.  Here’s a pic we got of all of us.