Borneo!

So I took my first trip this weekend, and it was so woooonderful. My roommates and I traveled to a city called Kuching, which is in Sarawak in Eastern Malaysia (otherwise known as the northern part of the island of Borneo)...for a world music festival at the Sarawak Cultural Village. I didn't have superhigh expectations for an artificially constructed "cultural" village showcasing different types of traditional longhouses from the histories of native Bornean tribes, but they were quite nice. The town of Kuching is quite historic and very well-kept (also a wee bit touristy, but Kuching is so charming that it's not too bothersome). Btw, Kuching means 'cat' in Bahasa Malay (or Melayu), so there's a giant statue of a cat which I didn't get to see, but it gives you an idea of how chill and playful this part of Borneo is...

So this music festivasl was literally in the rainforest--wodnerful, beautiful, insanely gorgeous greenness--which was definitely welcome after three weeks in Penang. I honestly think that the hardest transition for me thus far has been the move into a much larger, much more polluted city... I found a really beautiful beach about half a mile from my apartment complex, but sadly, it was only a 'hypothetical' beautiful because I would swear that every piece of rubbish ever dumped into the ocean is currently washed up on that beautiful bit of sand. I was quite disappointed, especially as I spent a good chunk of time and energy running there (much further than half a mile) because I had to follow certain multi-lane highways for abit so I could cross. On my stupid scale, that was really stupid (running alongside a highway)...but I can be stupider--as I will describe soon.

So we stayed in a nice backpacker's hostel (oh wait, those don't really exist...let's call it adequate)...oh! and on the plane ride out to Kuching from KL, I met a book buddy who could talk about philosophy and culture and people-watching...he is originally from Kuching but living in KL so perhaps I will be able to meet up with him and find books in KL. The music was phenomenal--I wanted to take all of it home iwth me, but somehow I was scared that it would lose its magic in the white-tiled confines of my bedroom, or in whatever nasty apartment I end up in when I get back to the States. Maybe, though, someday, I'll end up acquiring it. The first night was pretty tiring, as we'd been awake since 6am (bus to KL from Penang is 4 hours, then two transfers to the airport, then the flight--bleechhh) so we stayed at the concert than crawled home. The second day was soo much fun: we wandered around in the morning and early afternoon, and sadly missed the first workshop I'd wanted to attend (the foremost expert in Indian Classical Dance talking about its aesthetics and principles) but caught the end of the second (Wagakki in the rain forest--Tranditional Japanese music in the rainforest). We then snuck onto the resort beach by the Holiday Inn and ohmygod...I couldn't stop taking pictures. I twas definitely the beach that I've been waiting to see, and I was actually content to just sit there for a whole 2 hours (that's about the length of a movie--for those of you who have seen me fail to make it through an entire movie!!) Fran convinced Emily and I (well, he didn't have to convince me) to swim in our clothes because the way was so beautiful so we seriously just jumped right in (Fran in some tighty whiteys which was interesting when he wanted to get out) and myself and Emily in all of our clothes (which took ~36 hours to dry, or several eternities--your pick) and just floated in the glorious water forever. Then we headed back to the festival, ate some marvelous food (incidentally, my dinner in Kuching on Fri. night was the best I've had in Malaysia: shrimp in oyster sauce and something else (???) and baby ferns stir fried with bean sprouts, baby pea sprouts, and garlic and ginger), and danced like crazy. We also managed to meet up with some excahnge students from our university, so we got to hang out with them, and met some wonderful Iban boys who were so young and adorable (well, 19-21) with bookbags full of beer that they insisted we drink, and for once it was Malaysian guys not thinking that Emily and I are prostitutes (yes, it happens, even when I'm wearing my f-ing granny outfits...thanks Hollywood) and just being friendly. They also shared some homemade rice wine with us (wayyy differnt from sake, Japanese rice wine...sweeter, kinder, very soft, but really fucking potent--I think >15% alcohol?) Then we got back to Kuching and were forced to go to bed because all the bars closed on us:(

Sunday was interesting...no time for breakfast, hauling ass to get to the airport on time, couldn't figure out where to check in, finally got some skank-ass rice and beans and egg at a really stupid place, slept like a baby in the airplane, a 1.5 hour cab ride from the airport to the train station, and of course I left my purse (with wallet, passport, my life) in the cab, we missed what we thought might be the last bus to Penang, and I thought I'd lost my passport (keep in mind that my work visa is still not finished--think Paperwork out the wazoo), and waiting in a police station because I lost Fran and Emily in the crowd (Pudu Raya bus station is HELL on EARTH). Mr. Cop insists that he can't do anything without the taxi cab #, and I am frantically searching for Fran and Emily, and finally I go back to the policeman and break open a can of whoop-ass on him and tell him what he is about to do (thankfully, he complies, like a nice smart man faced with a hysterical American who's just misplaced her life belongings). Then I find Fran and Emily and we know the cab number, and end up getting on a bus to Penang without my purse, but having contacted the appropriate authorities and leaving our phone number, and so having done the most that was possible. We get back to Penang, exhausted beyond belief, and Emily has a voice mail that they have my purse, and miraculously everything is inside: money, credit cards, and passport. Even more miraculously, the customer service man on the phone understands me when I ask if the company can mail it to Penang (!!!)... often, though they speak "English", Malaysians are not really speaking 'English' which makes life a wee bit difficult at times. I think I'm dealing with it alright; the fact that everyone here eats ALL THE DAMN TIME really makes up for it. It's glorious to be surrounded by people as hungry as me=) (Laura, the answer to your question about me eating is that I'm doing it very well... I'm not altogether sure how I'm not turning into a barrel, since I have been eating anextraordinary quantity of fried/oily/greasy foods, but I won't question. Although I am having crazy & weird cravings: blueberries in the mornings, Pellegrino throughout the day, RED WINE every night, and after nights of heavy drinking: Zingerman's bread.)

Tchau Bellas...leave me lots of love or email me already! I'm working on postcards--apologies for being a slowpoke.

<3 Mibi

Jeremy Polio--what is your new address?