Reporting from South East Asia

Many of you have been asking me when I would update my blog, so fear not, the blog is back in action :). Since my last post I have now been to Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand, and now I am back in Malaysia about to head off for the Pacific leg of my tour of AP.

Ni hao mah... Arewah-lah
First off was my visit to Malaysia, which after a comfortable bus ride, I was greeted to the sight of the KL Towers. A beautiful way to arrive to KL. Many of you may be look at the title of this part and wonder what on earth am I talking about... Ni hao mah... Arewah-lah????? One of the most interesting things that I encountered in Malaysia was the three distinct ethnic groups of Chinese, Indians and Malays, which make up the bulk of Malaysia's population. Each group brings its own unique culture which adds to the diversity and richness of Malaysia. I was in Malaysia over celebrations for Hari Raya and Deepavali, which also gave me the awesome opportunity to be invited to open homes, where we were invited to one Malay home and one Indian home, and treated to different foods, music, conversations, etc.

I remember distinctly the conversation with the mother at the Malay house we visited. The family was so kind to invite complete strangers to their house, as in our group of 5, only 2 actually knew members of the family. Despite this we were greeted with such hospitality, and after lunch talked about Malaysian society, ranging from Idol competitions to the blend of cultures in Malaysia. The mother shared about her younger days where schools were very multi-cultural and the Indian, Chinese and Malay students would interact, share food, etc during lunch times. One of her worries, and something I have also read about I a recent article in Time, is that these societies are becoming increasingly polarised (Time quoted stats on how the number of Chinese youth being sent to predominant Malay schools which used to be high has been dropping for years). If such polarisation were to continue it would be such a shame for Malaysia, as from only my brief experience there, it was the blend of those cultures that truly makes Malaysia a special part of Asia. What I enjoyed though was my time with AIESEC in Malaysia, and seeing the catalyst that organisations like AIESEC can provide to bring together people from these cultures within Malaysia itself.

I enjoyed the late night living, the mamak-ing (eating out, mainly from stalls) late in the evening, only to find out that you can go mamak-ing practically 24 hours a day! I also got a chance to experience a different side of Asia thanks to the Kazakh trainees, who feed me with Camel and Horse milk (I prefered the Horse but most prefer the Camel).

Traffic, spirits and VIP treatment in the Philippines
I left Malaysia for the Philippines, and flew in to an obscure airport in the middle of nowhere in what is Clark Airport. Like the budget airlines in Europe, Air Asia tends to fly to obscure locations where you have to then travel further to your final destination, but the plus side is 20 euros between KL and Manila (or should I say just outside of Manila) is not bad at all.
Manila is a very very busy city, and so far from all the cities I have traveled to so far, they have the most talkative taxi drivers. As you sit in what is some of the worst traffic jams I have ever seen, it helps to be able to talk to the driver and to have them so happy to share their perspectives on life, politics, religion, sport, etc. The taxi driver who drove me to the airport for my departure was the most talkative of all. We talked about the crippling effects of corruption, the current government, tips and tricks for surviving Manila traffic, and we even hummed along to some songs and he sang a few lines (although after Mindy's previous post on her blog with my singing I decided it was best for me to stick to humming).

Manila was hot! It took me some time to adjust to the heat, which I found much harder to bare than any other country I have traveled to so far. I breathed a sigh of relief everytime I walked into Air Conditioning (which is thankfully everywhere). One of the things I was started to observe was that the Philippines was all about western style fast food and malls, until I got the opportunity on my last night to visit Tabbee's (the MCP) home, and try Philippine style snacks and talk have a very spooky yet intriguing conversation about the belief in the spirit world, such as ghosts, elementals and dwarves.

On the other side of my Philippines experience I got some VIP treatment on Saturday night, visiting some night clubs and going to the VIP places thanks to my fellow MC party-goers. I called it a night early however, as I don't think that I have what it takes to survive the Manila night life. The one thing I really do want to do is go back to the Philippines later on in life to see more of the country outside of Manila. It was a Philippines alumni I was talking to who sparked my memories from Japan, when he said "Manila is not the Philippines. Manila has a culture and way of life to its own". That made me remember my experience of traveling to three different regions in Japan, and the realisation that how often, not just in AIESEC but in general as well, we define a country by what happens within its major city rather than taking the time to appreciate the country as a whole.

Kembali ke Indonesia (Returning to Indonesia)
After leaving Manila, next stop was Indonesia. Personally one of the most exciting visits for me considering that I used to live in Jakarta for 6 years. Returning to Soekarno-Hatta International Airport was like a blast from the past. In a lot of ways it looks exactly like it did to me when I was 9 years old first moving to Indonesia :). I then became very excited on the drive to the MC house as I came within 15 minutes of my old place in Tebet (district within Jakarta). Seeing all landmarks again brought me back to my times in Indonesia. Like any blast from the past it also made me realise how much things have changed in my own life. In my wildest dreams I dont think I would have ever thought I would be returning to Jakarta as a director of asia pacific for an international organisation :).

One thing that definately stays the same though is that you cannot beat Nasi Goreng Ayam (chicken fried rice) from Indonesia. Eating it again was heaven. No matter how much European countries may try and make the same, they just cant do it. I reckon it must be the spices used that makes the big difference. And it was absolutely fantastic practicing my Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian language) again. We had a lot of fun in the office literally translating Indonesian sayings into English to create a language of our own. Some of my favourites include No What-What, translated from Tidak Apa-apa which is used for No problem or do not worry, and Accept Give, translated from Terima Kasih which is used for Thank You.

I stayed in the MC house during my stay in Indonesia, which was awesome! It was great hanging out with the team, who for Damy and Ewa, were adjusting to life in Jakarta, while I was reconnecting with the same. We shared many a bus ride together, and I actually think I took more buses in my country visit than I did for my whole six years living in Jakarta. What I found intriguing was that in the traffic jams, singers/buskers would leap onto the bus to play a song and then collect money before heading on their way. Convenient way to capture a captive audience when you are stuck on a bus in traffic. One group even brought on drums and a guitar onto the bus to sing their song! For all the buses I took, I also took a familar form of transport, the Bajaj. Quite like a rickshaw that many of you may be used to, my face lit up like I was a small boy again as I took my familar form of transportation.

I loved being back in Jakarta, and know that sometime I will be back for sure. Life keeps on bringing me back to Jakarta in one way or another. Although I was thoroughly enjoying my reconnection with the past, the MC team helped keep me in the present with a schedule packed with meetings, and I got the thrill of using a little bit of Bahasa in a meeting. When talking about how I could understand some Indonesia in a ER meeting I got to say "Tetapi Bahasa aku tidak bagus" which means "But my Indonesia isn't that good" :P.

Getting my hands dirty in Bangkok
So after Indonesia it was on to my next stop in South East Asia, Thailand. But on the way I had a five hour transit in Singapore where I finally got the chance to use my complimentary invitation to the Qantas Club. 5 hours of luxury followed with free food, drinks, internet, newspapers, magazines, and the place was empty for most of it except for me. Sitting there in the lazy boy chair I realised why being a frequet flyer is so good! Hopefully that free membership isn't too far away :).

After being well fed and a quick flight I was arriving in the fantastic new airport in Bangkok. By far this must be the most impressive airport that I have visited so far! Just opened a month ago you could hardly notice that this is a country which experience a coup a couple of months ago. Infact it was hard to notice that a coup had happened at all from an outsiders point of view, with only the occassional joke about democracy and a consitution day holiday next month when there is no constitution. What is immediately obvious however is the deep respect that people have for the King (the longest serving monarch in the world I have heard). Flags with the symbol of the king and his picture are everywhere as it is his 60th year of succession to the throne, and I hear next year will be another year of celebration as he celebrates his 80th birthday. We went to the cinema to watch a movie, and before the film they play a clip in honour of the King where everyone stands up in respect. And on Mondays people wear yellow shirts as yellow is the colour of thr King. It was espicially intriguing to see that the people of Thailand pay such respect to their monarchy.

So many of you may be wondering what I mean by getting my hands dirty in Bangkok right? Well for the first time for a while I got involved in directly recruiting members :). Thailand is running recruitment at the moment, so I got to speak at an information session and even hand out flyers and talk to people at their lunch break at one of the Universities. It was fun getting a taste of grass roots activity like recruitment again! Lets hope I didn't scare anyone off now, hahaha...

I had a blast with Rob, Rina and Pui. It was great to see the fantastic job they are doing with AIESEC in Thailand. Watch out as the results from this country come through over the coming months. I have no doubt that this time is turning around AIESEC Thailand with everyday that passes!

And now heading off to the Pacific
Its hard to believe, but after around three weeks I have visits all of South East Asia! And now I am in Malaysia, catching up on emails :), as I prepare for my journey south. First stop Australia and then off to New Zealand, before I head over to the Indian Subcontinent area. So stayed tuned for more news from me and take care everyone!