We are very much enjoying our last week in Malaysia. With our flights back to Holland booked for May 29th and another trip planned before then, there is not much time left.
Now the end is getting near, we’re starting to reflect on what we’ll miss here and look forward to what will come after this adventure.
THINGS WE WON’T MISS:
Cockroaches
Seriously, people treat them as if they’re flies here and no big deal, but I still can’t get over it. You see them e-v-e-r-y-where. Even in finer restaurants it’s not uncommon to find one under your table... or even on top of it! Varying from teeny tiny ones till huge ones. Ugh *shudders*. I must have seen hundreds of them since we moved here, but it still gets me every time I see one! The one I remember most vividly, was an 8cm cockroach on the wall of our bathroom... After much planning, Henk ended up heroically throwing a cup of water at it, causing it to fall on its back and with a well aimed smack it suffered “death by flip flop”.
The apartment
I kind of have a love/hate relationship with our apartment. I love the location and everything about it.... except that it is a studio! Two kids and no bedroom. What were we thinking?!? It’s certainly been a challenge, especially since the kids go to bed at 7 and Quinn’s such a light sleeper. But hey, we survived it and any place after this will feel luxurious if it has even a tiny bedroom.
Being different
It’s such a strange concept to us, being a minority. No matter where we go, you can never walk around anonymously. Especially with 2 white kids and one as blond as Lorelei is. All the attention is nice, but it can get tiring as well. Everybody’s always touching Quinn and Lorelei in the face and kissing them, etc. I’m sure they all mean well with their enthusiasm, but it’s not surprising Lorelei and Quinn are sick so often. One of the reasons I wouldn’t want to live here permanently is that I don’t want my children growing up in a place where they’ll always be treated differently.
The Muslim religion
Although Muslims don’t seem to have as strict a religion over here as elsewhere in the world, it is still very noticeable. Women are treated differently and although it’s more based on a feeling than actual incidents I still don’t feel quite comfortable here and I rarely venture out by myself. I dress more conservatively than I normally would in 35 degree surroundings, but still feel conspicuous. I look forward to having more freedom again when we’re in Holland.
Haggling
Haggling. I’m just not made for it. Give me a fixed price any day. I know some people love it and see it as a game, but I just feel uncomfortable, get caught up in the moment and in retrospect I always feel I’ve paid too much.
THINGS WE WILL MISS:
The Playschool
The local playschool we found for Lorelei and Quinn is an absolute gem. The teachers are so incredibly nice and both Lorelei and Quinn absolutely love it there. Lorelei learns so much, it’s amazing to hear the songs she comes home with and the letters she’s learning. Quinn is spoiled with attention and seems to be everyone’s favourite. We celebrated his 1st birthday at the school last month. I’d made (or put together) a huge cake in the shape of a number 1, consisting of cakes covered with icing and sweets. The children gathered around to sing Happy Birthday, in English and Malay, and feasted on the cake afterwards. You can see some video of it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJLLRV2UVfo (part 1) and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUhapEUO3nE (part 2).
The Food!
I will definitely miss our daily Roti Canai – the warm flaky pancake-type bread, served with different curry dips. We have it at least once a day at our favourite eatery downstairs in the mall. They know our order by heart: 6 Roti Canai (3 for Henk, 2 for me, 1 for Lorelei), 1 Coke and 1 Teh Ais (ice tea with sweetened condensed milk). If they’re out of Coke, the waiter, Quinn’s biggest fan, takes him in the stroller to get some cans of Coke at the supermarket next door. Do they find us strange, coming there every day, ordering the same thing? Probably. Do we care? Not at all. Even though Roti Canai is considered breakfast here, I could eat it any time of day.
Lorelei and Quinn have a warm lunch at school every day before we pick them up. Quinn loves the honey chicken noodles and Lorelei’s fave is fried rice. She was pointing at a roasted chicken in a book the other day and asked “What’s this?”. I said “Chicken” and then she said “Ah. From Chicken curry!”. That just goes to show how much they’ve adapted.
The food here is definitely leaner. Henk and I have both lost a few pounds by eating mainly local food. I am sure we’ll gain that right back again when we move to Holland and are faced with our regular temptations!
The adventure
Every day feels like we’re living the life. In a warm climate, on the other side of the world, with still so many new things to do and explore. This trip has definitely shaped us, probably learnt us to be even more close as a family and has also made us realise the world isn’t that big and everything’s within reach. I don’t think it has quieted our urge to travel, if anything our list of places to see is probably even longer. I definitely look forward to more travelling in the future, although it would be nice to do it from a home base, instead of upping and leaving everything behind again.
We finally entered stage 2 of the Canadian Immigration process and had medicals done on Friday. Unless it turns out we have a life threatening illness or a disease that’s a danger to Canadian citizens, things are looking pretty good. We’re still going ahead with our Holland plans and will be there at least until Christmas. Hopefully we should move to Canada some time early next year.
We’re heading to Cambodia on Monday, and then we travel back to Holland via Bangkok.
More pictures and travel stories to follow!
