I'm here!! We have all arrived safely at UKM after a VERY long flight, exhausted and very sweaty but delighted to be here! After leaving 45 mins late, the flight left and we settled in for the 13 hour flight. Air Asia is fairly budget so no in flight entertainment unless you pay so it was books, magazines and sparkling conversation all the way. Sleep eluded me but this meant I was awake to see the sun come up over the clouds turning the horizon and the whole sky orange; an absolutely magical sight. Getting off the plane, we were hit by a blast of hot air and made our way through passport control, baggage reclaim etc and were met by a man and a big bus from the university. The drive to the university was uneventful, the landscape fairly similar to England except the palm trees!!
The university where we are staying is very different to any accommodation in the UK, there are no showers and the rooms are stiflingly hot, we have wireless however which is great! Water from the taps is not clean to drink so we have to pay for drinking water which is about 3p a bottle! The customs are strictly observed and we have been instructed to take off our shoes before we enter any room and not go into the boys rooms and visa versa (There are signs by the entrance to the hostels saying 'no girls/boys beyond this point'!). On my programme there are 4 girls and 1 boy and no communal area so we are spending a lot of time in each others rooms but this means James is in his room alone a lot which is not great for him!
There are two cafes on campus otherwise you have to get a taxi into town, all shops are open until 10pm so there is talk of heading to a mall later! We have made friends with the Malaysians in the room next door so we are heading for dinner with them in an hour.
The program doesn't start until Monday so I think we will spend tomorrow exploring Kuala Lumpur but for today it is a relaxing evening acclimatising to the heat and catching up on sleep!!
Saturday, 26 June 2010
Wednesday, 23 June 2010
All the goodbyes...
This has been a busy week of goodbyes and leaving. I have had so much fun seeing friends (esp. EOYS) and family but also I also had the hassle and stress of packing up my house to move out, packing for South Africa, packing for storage for a year and packing for Malaysia! It's been quite a mission! it's been lovely having Mimi staying to help pack up the house, went rowing on the Wey and saw a preview of the new Karate Kid with Terry; both of which were hilarious, lunch out by the lake with Katy and a long walk to a coffee shop which turned out to be closed with Emily; a few film nights and a LOT of cleaning in the house and hours of sorting out final bills etc!
I was also working full time in Channies and did a couple of venue assistant shifts to prepare for the End Of Year Shows which were amazing! Friday was hectic with the football and then Jaguar Skills in Rubix (phenomenal DJ) and then the lake party which went on until 7.30am and then straight to work to open up Chancellors for the day. Was great fun and totally worth the exhaustion later that day. I couldn't have asked for a better job than working in Channies and Rubix and will really miss the staff who have become close friends through many adventures and nights out.
On Tuesday, my family came and picked up my stuff which filled the people carrier and the huge roofbox and then we headed into London to watch Surrey play Hampshire at the Oval. I supported Surrey as it is my adoptive home and we won which was awesome and as an extra boost to the day I passed Lambit Opik in the street on the way home! Today I am back on the Isle of Wight sorting out malaria tablets, flight tickets and money exchanges amongst other things on a giant to-do list which doesn't seem to be diminishing! I just need to get all this boring necessary stuff done and then I fly out!! This amazing tennis match between Mahut and Isner which has just hit 58-58 in the 5th set!
I have been sorting out final details for my time in SA and came across intern testimonies from the CTRC where I will be working and one had made contacts within the UN during her time with the CTRC and had been offered a full time job with the UN once she finished. It's got me dreaming!!
Packing up my life in Guildford was sad, saying goodbye to everyone for the year that I'm away was worse but the worst was saying goodbye to people at uni who graduate this year or next who I may not see again ever. If you are in the latter category, thank you for being part of my life and making my time here what it is, God bless with all future endeavours!!
This time in 2 days I will be on a flight to Malaysia!!
I was also working full time in Channies and did a couple of venue assistant shifts to prepare for the End Of Year Shows which were amazing! Friday was hectic with the football and then Jaguar Skills in Rubix (phenomenal DJ) and then the lake party which went on until 7.30am and then straight to work to open up Chancellors for the day. Was great fun and totally worth the exhaustion later that day. I couldn't have asked for a better job than working in Channies and Rubix and will really miss the staff who have become close friends through many adventures and nights out.
On Tuesday, my family came and picked up my stuff which filled the people carrier and the huge roofbox and then we headed into London to watch Surrey play Hampshire at the Oval. I supported Surrey as it is my adoptive home and we won which was awesome and as an extra boost to the day I passed Lambit Opik in the street on the way home! Today I am back on the Isle of Wight sorting out malaria tablets, flight tickets and money exchanges amongst other things on a giant to-do list which doesn't seem to be diminishing! I just need to get all this boring necessary stuff done and then I fly out!! This amazing tennis match between Mahut and Isner which has just hit 58-58 in the 5th set!
I have been sorting out final details for my time in SA and came across intern testimonies from the CTRC where I will be working and one had made contacts within the UN during her time with the CTRC and had been offered a full time job with the UN once she finished. It's got me dreaming!!
Packing up my life in Guildford was sad, saying goodbye to everyone for the year that I'm away was worse but the worst was saying goodbye to people at uni who graduate this year or next who I may not see again ever. If you are in the latter category, thank you for being part of my life and making my time here what it is, God bless with all future endeavours!!
This time in 2 days I will be on a flight to Malaysia!!
Monday, 14 June 2010
Me before I go!
In 11 days I will be on a plane to Malaysia.
Its crazy exciting but also scary, saddening and emotional. My life in Guildford is brilliant. I have a great university and university life and friends, a fun job (most of the time); an amazing church family and a city that is modern, picturesque and lively. As I pack up my life here I realise how happy I am and how much I will miss my home here. Church yesterday and the Glee finale tonight showed me how precious and deep my friendships are and how connected I am to this place.
So anyway, this last week I am trying to see everyone I love and say goodbye, train for the Mount Kinabalu climb in Malaysia, tie up all loose ends with the house, placement enrolment etc and enjoy England, Guildford and the little things here that I will miss when I go away.
On June 25th, I start my research placement in Malaysia which sees me spent two weeks at the university of Kebangsaan learning about the local cultures, history, tradition and politics and then its onto field trips to study and learn about the aboriginal community, the Orang Asli. Field trips include climbing the 4000 foot Mount Kinabalu, a sunset cruise along a crocodile river and going into Borneo. At the end I have to give a presentation to the university!
I will fly back to England for a couple of days after Malaysia then fly out to Cape Town to start my job in the CTRC for the rest of the year! So that's it. It's going to be a phenomenal year and I am so excited to see what God has in store, nothing is totally clear which means I often feel like I'm about to jump out of a plane and I wonder if the parachute will open but that makes it all the more exhilarating!
Will give you more info, stories and photos etc as I go along! Last few days and I am making the most of it!
Its crazy exciting but also scary, saddening and emotional. My life in Guildford is brilliant. I have a great university and university life and friends, a fun job (most of the time); an amazing church family and a city that is modern, picturesque and lively. As I pack up my life here I realise how happy I am and how much I will miss my home here. Church yesterday and the Glee finale tonight showed me how precious and deep my friendships are and how connected I am to this place.
So anyway, this last week I am trying to see everyone I love and say goodbye, train for the Mount Kinabalu climb in Malaysia, tie up all loose ends with the house, placement enrolment etc and enjoy England, Guildford and the little things here that I will miss when I go away.
On June 25th, I start my research placement in Malaysia which sees me spent two weeks at the university of Kebangsaan learning about the local cultures, history, tradition and politics and then its onto field trips to study and learn about the aboriginal community, the Orang Asli. Field trips include climbing the 4000 foot Mount Kinabalu, a sunset cruise along a crocodile river and going into Borneo. At the end I have to give a presentation to the university!
I will fly back to England for a couple of days after Malaysia then fly out to Cape Town to start my job in the CTRC for the rest of the year! So that's it. It's going to be a phenomenal year and I am so excited to see what God has in store, nothing is totally clear which means I often feel like I'm about to jump out of a plane and I wonder if the parachute will open but that makes it all the more exhilarating!
Will give you more info, stories and photos etc as I go along! Last few days and I am making the most of it!
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