this post is not about malaysia.

so, this blog is most definitely, first and foremost, about my adventures and time spent living in malaysia. that being said, part of living in malaysia is missing out on some pretty big and sentimental things at home. for example, this weekend my dear 30-year-old brother (and that’s to the DAY, people – his birthday is today!) and his sweet-as-pie young lady got married. i could write a book on that topic alone, but, to keep it brief (and because i’ve got other things to talk about), i’ll just say i’m incredibly happy for them. happy he gets to start a new adventure in life with someone genuinely kind and caring, happy our grandparents were able to be there with him, happy two of our four amazing aunts were able to be there with him, and most importantly – happy that my parents were able to be there with him. health-wise, things are not the best at home, and sometimes i’d really rather be there, but my mom continuously reminds me that my place right now is here, in malaysia. a bittersweet realization, but at the same time, it’s comforting. i have really supportive parents.

all of that gushy stuff out of the way, there IS something else happening in america this weekend that i would give my right foot to be at. well, maybe not my right FOOT, considering the topic to follow, but my right something.

in 2010, i decided to start running. i hated running. all throughout my school years, never once did i run a proper mile. physical fitness tests were my least favorite thing, for the mile alone. i just hated it. it continued into college. my dear best friend had to drag me to the gym or the running trail, and i never went happily. fortunately, she was patient enough with me to let me be a grouch about it.

so, in 2010, as a result of i don’t know what – probably a mixture of a major boy issue and needing better ways to release frustration, boredom, and a little bit of wanting to begin a healthier lifestyle - i started running. admittedly, my first 5k was a paws4people 5k (that which i previously spoke about months ago on this blog) – and it was bad. i’ll blame it all on WYATT and his unfortunate bathroom break at the beginning of the race until my last breath, but i MAY have had my own contribution to my slow time. still, it was a start. and when you start something poorly, the only direction to go is up (or down, in the case of run times).

i have no shame in admitting my disney obsession. i’ve traveled all over the world, and still my #1 vacation spot is disney world. so, when i discovered that i could combine disney and my new hobby of running, of COURSE i wasted to time in signing up for my very first half marathon – the 2011 Disney Princess Half Marathon. i had no idea what i was doing, but i was gonna do it. and much to my surprise, my darling 29-year-old (wink, wink) aunt wanted to do it with me! we picked out separate training plans and set in for several months of winter training. i want to say we signed up in about august or september, and the race is held in february. cold runs awaited us!

we did it, and it was done, and we were so ecstatic, we wanted to do it again. when i initially had orders for malaysia, i was supposed to move the weekend of the 2012 race. pixie dust was sprinkled upon me, and i had reason to push back my moving date two weeks – perfect! i was then able to sign up for 2012 and start training again. and then we did that one, and it was done, and we were ecstatic. it’s really an accomplishment. it may not feel like it’s that special when you’re around thousands of people who just accomplished the same thing as you – but then when you’re alone and realize what you’ve just done and what that means to YOURSELF, it’s an accomplishment.

so, if you’re still with me after all of that, this weekend is the 5th anniversary of the WDW Princess Half Marathon. it’s supposed to be amazing and special. how can it be amazing and special if I’M not there?? just kidding. but it is a bit of a bummer – this is another one of those moments that i have to sit down and re-accept that i made the choice to be here, and that includes missing out on some opportunities and fun times in america. the many opportunities i’ve had here and the places i’ve been since moving here have definitely made it crazy amounts of worth it, but that doesn’t mean you can’t miss what you are missing. the PHM trips not only served as running accomplishments, but also some pretty valuable time spent with two of my aunts, one of my cousins, and my sister and nephew.

i actually signed up for a half marathon here, in penang, last fall, but never went through with it. running in malaysia is hard. running outside is nearly impossible due to the heat, humidity, exhaust from cars and busses, etc, and yet that’s my favorite place to run. i can do about 3-4 miles on a treadmill before i become bored to tears. running in the KLCC park is also only good for 3-4 miles, any longer and you’re just running circles. circles are annoying. added to that, i lacked time to actually dedicate to training because i was trying to spend as much time as possible with that boy before he had to leave here.

boyfriend distraction gone, and plenty of free time, i’ve signed up for another half marathon in phuket in june. i’m pretty excited for this one. i’m about 1/3 of the way through training already. i’m forcing myself to do the treadmill runs, and only doing the long runs outside, and so far it’s all good. i’m crossing my fingers that everything will work out for this one and i’ll be able to make it. even if i just go up friday and come back right after the race on sunday, it’s worth it! and hey, maybe without character stops every .5 miles or so, i’ll be able to get a REAL half marathon time!! my time in 2011 was just over three hours, and my time in 2012 was just under three hours. kind of amazing for the 2012 one, considering that i don’t think i did any runs over five miles in the months leading up to it – life was way too busy then.

so, in sum, this is another weekend where i kind of wish i were not here. another weekend where i remind myself this was completely my choice, and it was a choice made with the knowledge that i’d sacrifice some things. from the deeply important, such as my brother’s wedding, to the silly, such as a disney race, i can’t run back to america for everything. at least i know when i return to america for “good,” i have a boyfriend in close proximity to disneyland that i can experience all of THEIR runDisney races as well!!

but really – wouldn’t you miss a run through here? happy weekend ☺

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cat city, aka kuching!

part three of kuching! after our jungle adventure, we had just over 24 hours to spend in kuching. here are some thoughts about the city:



in bahasa, "kuching" means cat. so, the city is filled with cats, both real and statues. pictured above is THE "kuching cat," welcoming you into the city. he was decked out for chinese new year!



the fact that we visited a highly-populated chinese city over chinese new year would prove to be problematic. the city was pretty much shut down. it wasn't until tuesday morning that we started to see some of the shops open up. still, we found ways to keep occupied. we ventured through some of the opened shops, which had lots of firecrackers and little chinese new year necessities. we walked down to the waterfront both in the evening and the morning. the waterfront was CUTE!



kuching has defended itself from many invaders. we didn't get a full story on the little fort, but it was pretty cool.



we took a boat ride on the river, which let us see just what life on the river is like! much different from america. everything looked a bit run down. i guess that's the same as america, it's just a different standard of "run down."





the little chinatown area was kind of odd, since the chinese population's influence is seen throughout the city. still, it was cute. and featured a very old temple.



kuching was interesting. definitely done in a weekend, as i'm not sure even if everything was opened up there'd be much we could do. there's a sarawak cultural village which everyone said was interesting, but we never made it out to see if it was open. we had a very relaxed pace, and it was much needed after the jungle time. i'd say this was another successful adventure! it was also by far my CHEAPEST trip. the jungle trek was the most expensive at about $100. i maybe spent about another $100 in taxi fare, food, hostel in kuching, and souvenirs. not bad at all. the airfare wasn't the best, as it was a quickly planned trip so we didn't get any special deals, but it still wasn't bad.

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semenggoh!

okay. gracious. i don't even know how to start this.

in fourth grade, we had a project where we had to make our favorite animal, using a shoebox as the base. for starters, i am not a crafty person. at all. and this was extremely apparent in fourth grade. that being said, i persevered and created a beautiful little orangutan. i wish my mom took pictures of it. i say beautiful, and i really mean "a box of fuzz."

orangutans have always been my favorite. they're just. so. adorable. i admire the way they bend and move and pick things up with whatever limb is closest - be it their feet or hands. SO OBVIOUSLY, when making my decision to accept a move to kuala lumpur, the fact that i would be one south china sea hop away from orangutans in their natural habitat was HIGH on the list.

semenggoh wildlife centre is one such place where conservation efforts are in place to keep the orangutans in their natural habitat. and, being that it was on the way between our longhouse and kuching, of COURSE we made the stop. we arrived right at the feeding time of 3:00, and all of the orangutans were out.



see the little piece of coconut gripped in this little one's foot? amazing.



this was 32-year-old mr. ritchie. named after a local reporter. he's a bit temperamental. in fact, at one point, when he was tired of eating here, he walked to the pathway which we were on. we were all then cornered into an area while he decided where he wanted to go. luckily, he wanted to go out on the path somewhere else, and not in the opposite direction toward us, as we had nowhere to hide from a moody orangutan!



so pensive.



such an interesting social interaction we saw, as well. this little one was clearly trying to sneak some food from behind mr. ritchie's back. apparently even the orangutans try to steer clear of him!



i just think they're beautiful



i believe this is at the point where we were walking back to the parking lot, and a group of people were stopped on the path. i asked meagan, "what are we stopping for?" only to have an american girl quickly retort "um, the orangutan above us." doh.



they're just graceful!



so fuzzy.



mr. ritchie thanks you for not smoking.



and i thought zip-lining while being hooked up was scary!



semenggoh is a pretty amazing place. we didn't explore any other parts of it, as we pretty strictly wanted to see the orangutans, but i believe they have a nature walk as well that is nice to see.

if i do nothing else while in malaysia, i'd consider it complete. i saw orangutans in their natural habitat. check.

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a trek in the jungle!

last weekend was chinese new year! as such, we had a four day weekend. meagan and i decided to hop over to sarawak to see what it had to offer. our plans were roughly sketched, but as it turned out, it all worked out pretty perfectly. i'll speak to kuching later, but first i want to talk about our time in the jungle!

we arrived in kuching on saturday evening, and were picked up sunday morning to head out to the jungle. we found a longhouse home stay online which offered one night stays, plus a trek in the jungle. it ended up definitely being an experience we'll probably never forget. onwards!

our trek was advertised as a three hour trek, ending at a three tier waterfall. we'd have lunch, play in the water, then head back. there was ALSO the option to go by car for most of the trek, and end with just a 20-30 minute walk to the waterfall. i wondered how that was possible, and later you'll see.



we saw plenty of fruits. first some durian (blegh), then starfruit.



the trek was extremely muddy. a lot of the places where steps had been set in place, we wiped them out. i wonder how often they have to go through and recreate the steps.



i only saw one little berry the whole trek! and the biggest bug we saw by far - this little THING. not sure what it is, but he was a big bug.



we were panting, sweaty, exhausted. there were three little stops along the trek up the hill. our guide promised after the third stop we just had one more mountain to climb, and it'd be almost finished. we were excited, the end was in sight! AND THEN. THE ROAD. like. where did it come from? as it turns out, we had to walk down the mountain on the road to get to the next path of jungle to get to the waterfall. and now i understand how they're able to shorten it for people who don't want to do a full trek. we felt cheated.



the clouds looked ominous, but they weren't terrible. we had a little bit of sprinkle-age on the way back, but that was it.



oddly enough, walking down a mountain you just climbed up is KILLER. you'd think it be a better feeling, but it was actually much worse.



and finally, the waterfall!



our guide got fast to work on our lunch, while we played in the water. apparently you can reach the second tier of the waterfall, and even the third if you're really adventurous. we just hung out at the bottom.



i was highly amused by these worker ants. they moved whole peanuts across sticks!! amazing.



finally, lunch was served. i don't like to complain here, but i had a big issue eating while in the jungle. mainly because they eat fish, lots of it, and cook everything in fishy sauce. along the way on our trek, our guide was picking out ferns that would later be used in our dinner. i was pretty excited to try the jungle fern, because it's what everyone talks about, but then it was cooked in fishy-ness, and thus, completely inedible to my sensitive little taste buds. i just couldn't do it. THIS lunch, at least had some chicken, but of course, on the bone. i ate around it as best i could. i think i did a pretty good job. still, not to complain, i was prepared for this to be the eating situation. that's why i packed my own snacks =)



i never knew what pineapples grew on!



the longhouse had tons of kittens and baby dogs all over the place. interestingly enough, each had their own "side" of the longhouse. cats vs. dogs lives on in the jungle.



bamboo is widely used around the longhouse area - the most noticeable part is as the floorboards in the main walking area. it's the responsibility of the associated house (i.e., your home is in front of that walking area) to replace the bamboo as it becomes weak with age. they replace it about once a year. that's a lot of bamboo!



on the left is pineapple in its baby form!! it's just growing. the same with the bananas.



the longhouse had a showroom of what a longhouse looked like in older village times. essentially, your home was one large room, with a high ceiling. a storage area was built towards the front, above the kitchen. they built it above the kitchen, since the smoke from the kitchen would cure the wood and thus make the storage area more sturdy. facts! we went up to the storage area - full of huge round bins where they'd store rice. it was pretty amazing.



i had almost no mosquito bites throughout the entire stay. why? apparently chickens keep mosquitoes at bay!! secondly, the longhouse also had a showroom for the ceremony room. YES, the headhunter legend is true of this region of the world. those are real skulls, which our particular longhouse village kept throughout the years. headhunting was common even as recently as the world wars, we were told. not today, though. we kept our heads.



one of the bathrooms in the longhouse had a resident Charlotte. aside from this picture, i avoided THAT. we ended our stay with some fresh coconut. we drank the juice, carved the fruits for later, and enjoyed our little snack before our next adventure in sarawak!

so, all in all, the trek was worth it. i've been on trips to plushier parts of the world where people have complained, and in witnessing that i vowed to never be one of those people. nothing you visit is ever going to be like the comfort of your own home, there will always be some fault. and, admittedly, there were quite a few faults in this, but we kept our attitudes optimistic and eager to keep taking on the adventure. it also helped we had a lot of nap breaks. it was interesting to see a culture so completely separated from our own. i think we take for granted today all the things we buy and use without thinking of how it came to us. i think we assume workers are living the same standards of life that we are. but here, we learned, they are not. and yet, they are not in want of anything more. they have what they need, and that's a good life. it makes you appreciate what you have that much more. and ALSO, the trek we took to the waterfall just for fun? that trek is taken by workers to get to a farm to harvest their rice. in old times (not sure about today), they'd do that trek every day. we were wiped out after just one. so, would i stay another night in the longhouse? probably not. would i bring someone to visit during the daytime? probably yes. it's just a very interesting place.

what's next? only my favorite ever. the happiest part of this trip for me!

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