2008 Senior Trip: Malaysia
Each time the subject of my age comes up, people appear to be surprised at just how old I am. Students, teachers, and local Chinese people often guess that I am in my mid to late twenties. So when I mention that I am actually thirty-seven, going on thirty-eight, it is not uncommon for people to shake their heads and ask again, "How old?" I take it as a compliment that I look younger (or maybe just act younger. . . , or maybe just act immature) than I am. After three knee surgeries, I certainly do not feel young when it comes to activity. Even so, I do not feel old.
However, this summer will be twenty years since I graduated from high school, and with that anniversary on the horizon, our seniors invited me to join them on their Senior Trip to Malyasia.
My own graduating class never went on a senior trip. I suppose some of that had to do with the fact that it is difficult to make arrangements for 160 students. However, when I look back at it, my class would have been hard pressed to actually create a trip on which all 160 students would have wanted to go. Therefore, like last year's Junior-Senior Banquet, I finally went on a senior trip, but with a much smaller, more intimate group--eight students and two staff chaperones.
The nature of travel (not just senior trips) includes waiting. We waited at the airport in Kunming for the departure of our flight to Kuala Lampur (KL). We waited at KL International Airport for enough taxis to transport all of us and our luggage to the Pudu bus station. We waited at the Pudu bus station for the 23.30h bus to Penang (a six hour bus ride north). We waited at the Georgetown bus station on Penang (an island) for enough taxis to take us to our guest house near the beach. In the above photo, Rosemary stands in the sweltering heat of the Pudu bus station as Miss Laporte purchases our bus tickets. We were actually standing next to a Dunkin Donuts and the wonderful smells were killing me. However, once we had our tickets in hand, we exited the station to spend our three hour wait for the next bus elsewhere.
Much like waiting, travel is often filled with firsts as well. During our three hours in KL waiting for our bus, we walked to a nearby A&W to eat a little something. While we enjoyed our curly-fries and hamburgers, we found our that Wai Leuk had never tasted root beer before. Being scientific and a lover of history (his mother is a history teacher at our school), he enjoyed hearing the history and brewing process behind root beer. While he appeared to be a bit skeptical about his first sip, the rest of the trip was spent finding small shops that sold A&W root beer in cans. Our whole group (especially the guys) loved the root beer so much--and it cost so little in Malaysia--that at least two or three people drank it for both lunch and dinner, and in between.
Baba Guest House, our accomodations during our stay on Penang, sat about 30 meters from the ocean (depending on the tide). So we spent much of our time on the beach. Early-morning and late-evening walks along the beach, jet-skiing sessions, beach soccer, sunning, and general lounging kept us busy most of the time. A short walk took us to the local night market where we found inexpensive treasures to remind us of our time on the island. And while the weather was very hot and humid, the conditions encouraged taking things slow and simply enjoying the warm beauty of this tropical paradise.
Along with trips into Georgetown, a visit to a local chocolate factory, time at the Georgetown Historical Museum, a walk through a spice garden, a ride up a cog-rail train to view the island from above, and our time on the beach, we also learned how batiks are made. The entire process is long and involves wax to control where the various dyes are applied--much like tie-dying. In this photo, the man is using a steel "iron" to apply the darker color blue to this light-blue batik. In some ways, the process appeared to be rather precise, but because of the wax, which does not allow the color to exceed its boundaries, the process also seems a bit simple. Once all the colors have been applied--some batiks we saw had at least seven colors--the entire cloth is washed in boiling water to separate the wax from the material. Where the wax was remains white. The entire process reminded me of my time screen printing shirts at Rocky Mountain Images in Whitefish.
Much like Wai Leuk's first, I also encountered my own first. On our last day on Penang, I experienced by first taste of an "ABC special." For those of you who have spent time in the Phillipines or another southeast asian country, you may recognize this cold treat by another name. This desert consists primarily of shaved ice. However, over the top of this mountain of frozen water is poured a sweet syrup, red beans, and corn. On top of all this is a small scoop of vanilla ice cream. I know, that does not sound all that appetizing, but surprisingly enough, it tastes pretty good. Corn ice cream is sold in China and red paste is often used in desert-like treats in Kunming, so I was a little prepared for the overall flavor. It will never take the place of chocolate, but I enjoyed the two bites that Afiqah (our Malyasian senior) offered me.
This summer, it will be twenty years since my own graduation from Elkhorn High School in Elkhorn, Nebraska. I probably will not be around for a class reunion, but this senior trip easily makes up for that. In twenty years I will be fifty-eight, and this senior class will be preparing for their own remembrance of twenty years earlier. And while they may forget Mr. Franks, I will not soon forget my trip to Malaysia, its firsts and its waiting.
However, this summer will be twenty years since I graduated from high school, and with that anniversary on the horizon, our seniors invited me to join them on their Senior Trip to Malyasia.
My own graduating class never went on a senior trip. I suppose some of that had to do with the fact that it is difficult to make arrangements for 160 students. However, when I look back at it, my class would have been hard pressed to actually create a trip on which all 160 students would have wanted to go. Therefore, like last year's Junior-Senior Banquet, I finally went on a senior trip, but with a much smaller, more intimate group--eight students and two staff chaperones.
The nature of travel (not just senior trips) includes waiting. We waited at the airport in Kunming for the departure of our flight to Kuala Lampur (KL). We waited at KL International Airport for enough taxis to transport all of us and our luggage to the Pudu bus station. We waited at the Pudu bus station for the 23.30h bus to Penang (a six hour bus ride north). We waited at the Georgetown bus station on Penang (an island) for enough taxis to take us to our guest house near the beach. In the above photo, Rosemary stands in the sweltering heat of the Pudu bus station as Miss Laporte purchases our bus tickets. We were actually standing next to a Dunkin Donuts and the wonderful smells were killing me. However, once we had our tickets in hand, we exited the station to spend our three hour wait for the next bus elsewhere.
Much like waiting, travel is often filled with firsts as well. During our three hours in KL waiting for our bus, we walked to a nearby A&W to eat a little something. While we enjoyed our curly-fries and hamburgers, we found our that Wai Leuk had never tasted root beer before. Being scientific and a lover of history (his mother is a history teacher at our school), he enjoyed hearing the history and brewing process behind root beer. While he appeared to be a bit skeptical about his first sip, the rest of the trip was spent finding small shops that sold A&W root beer in cans. Our whole group (especially the guys) loved the root beer so much--and it cost so little in Malaysia--that at least two or three people drank it for both lunch and dinner, and in between.
Baba Guest House, our accomodations during our stay on Penang, sat about 30 meters from the ocean (depending on the tide). So we spent much of our time on the beach. Early-morning and late-evening walks along the beach, jet-skiing sessions, beach soccer, sunning, and general lounging kept us busy most of the time. A short walk took us to the local night market where we found inexpensive treasures to remind us of our time on the island. And while the weather was very hot and humid, the conditions encouraged taking things slow and simply enjoying the warm beauty of this tropical paradise.
Along with trips into Georgetown, a visit to a local chocolate factory, time at the Georgetown Historical Museum, a walk through a spice garden, a ride up a cog-rail train to view the island from above, and our time on the beach, we also learned how batiks are made. The entire process is long and involves wax to control where the various dyes are applied--much like tie-dying. In this photo, the man is using a steel "iron" to apply the darker color blue to this light-blue batik. In some ways, the process appeared to be rather precise, but because of the wax, which does not allow the color to exceed its boundaries, the process also seems a bit simple. Once all the colors have been applied--some batiks we saw had at least seven colors--the entire cloth is washed in boiling water to separate the wax from the material. Where the wax was remains white. The entire process reminded me of my time screen printing shirts at Rocky Mountain Images in Whitefish.
Much like Wai Leuk's first, I also encountered my own first. On our last day on Penang, I experienced by first taste of an "ABC special." For those of you who have spent time in the Phillipines or another southeast asian country, you may recognize this cold treat by another name. This desert consists primarily of shaved ice. However, over the top of this mountain of frozen water is poured a sweet syrup, red beans, and corn. On top of all this is a small scoop of vanilla ice cream. I know, that does not sound all that appetizing, but surprisingly enough, it tastes pretty good. Corn ice cream is sold in China and red paste is often used in desert-like treats in Kunming, so I was a little prepared for the overall flavor. It will never take the place of chocolate, but I enjoyed the two bites that Afiqah (our Malyasian senior) offered me.This summer, it will be twenty years since my own graduation from Elkhorn High School in Elkhorn, Nebraska. I probably will not be around for a class reunion, but this senior trip easily makes up for that. In twenty years I will be fifty-eight, and this senior class will be preparing for their own remembrance of twenty years earlier. And while they may forget Mr. Franks, I will not soon forget my trip to Malaysia, its firsts and its waiting.
posted by Roland at 6:56 AM
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