My Closing Words...

And so it is, the end of this second trip on this side of the world. Before I get into my closing words, a quick note about where I've been...

Kuala Lumpur

In approaching this skyline by taxi at night, it suddenly sank deep in my stomach that this was my final destination. "Kuala Lumpur means I'm going home." - all good things must come to an end... I also felt such a shock that I was in Kuala Lumpur. I never thought it was a destination I would make in my lifetime...

This city has surprised me so much in how easily I can see myself living here. It feels like a city, it is clean, but still has that indescribable grittiness that is so identifiably "southeast asia". In my two days here, I spent my time exploring neighborhoods, trying out more local food, ogling at the amazing twin towers that KL is famous for, and took a day trip to visit the Batu Caves. I didn't take many pictures while here, but pictures are unnecessary to say how much I would consider a city like this one as a future home one day were I to change international schools for work. I am currently at the airport now while typing this, with 24 hours left before I walk through my front door...

Batu Cave entrance 

My Closing Words

I remember that I drafted my first "Closing Words" from 4 years ago several days before my actual departure. This time, I haven't had a chance to think about it until now in the airport. I've reread my first Closing Words multiple times and reflected on how much of it still applies and how much of it is completely different now. I have felt so rejuvenated after this trip in a way that I cannot explain, but am forever thankful for. My thoughts won't be as organized or as clear as I am typing this on my cell phone, I may rewrite it later, so here is a stream of consciousness for now...

What has stayed the same is the incredible benefit of traveling solo. How waking up every day not knowing what will happen, who you will meet or what you will do still excites you and gives you life. How dangers at every turn make your body vibrate with survival. Spontaneity and openness have stayed the same. The beauty of letting go has stayed the same but taken on more meaning, and ease. Every day is Saturday.

But what I feel more inclined to talk about is the change. Change that I expected, and change that I did not see coming. One change is that this is not my first time backpacking, so there are fewer "firsts" to be felt, and less intense emotions to process. I've felt a difference in my preparation, in my vigilance and my openness to unfamiliarity. I was more realistic this time around, more careful. I am so much more calm and under control. I let go of expectations, remembering what my friend 4 years ago said about the element of surprise.

There has also been a change in exploring these new southeast asia countries - Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia have all had such a different feel to them than Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia. It's made me appreciate every single country individually and onl makes me want to return to continue exploring the rest one day.

Another change is my ability to feel completely comfortable in going for days alone. I was so eager the first time to constantly make friends and discover parts of my personality I didn't know existed, but I know very well who I am now. I became more comfortable and OK with the possibility of making no friends at all. I became interested in befriending more locals than actual backpackers. I did things for me first, I put my priorities first and my ideas first, rather than adjusting my agenda to be with others. For the first time, I felt so much happier doing things on my own with no need for company. And when I was lucky enough to make new friends without looking for them, it made it that much better.

But one of the greatest changes in this trip is the new relationship I've had to explore and embrace with my father. He is not here this time, to write me one of the most special messages I've ever received like the one he left in my first "closing words." He is not here to pick me up from the airport and greet me with open arms like he did 4 years ago. He is not at home, thinking of me with his computer's desktop background changed to a backdrop of my current country so he would feel closer to me during my travels.

Instead, it's been a trip where he was in my back pocket, on my shoulder, in my mind and sprinkled across the cities through his numbers 4, 1 and 2 that I saw so often. His spirit was with me during the most beautiful moments, the funniest of moments, the most challenging of moments. He was there in spirit to be proud of me, to tell me that he sees what I see, that he feels what I feel. His smile filled my imagination and his he visited me in my dreams twice with such profound symbolism. Not a day went by where I didnt think of him. Yet also this time, the few tears I've shed were more of pure unconditional love rather than immense grief. It's been a new relationship where I feel as though he experienced this adventure with me far more viscerally than my first trip.

Beyond papa not being here anymore, his death has also equipped me with a different strength this trip. I was afraid to go on this trip initially, thinking that I was no longer the bubbly person filled with life and happiness that I was 4 years ago, even though I began that first trip brokenhearted (romantically). I began this trip brokenheartedly too in a sense, resuming a southeast asia trip without a father who followed it so closely and cheered me on the first time around. Because of grief, and because of this being the second time I've left to backpack southeast asia, it's made this trip easier, more positive, more enjoyable...

I never thought anything would ever beat my first trip 4 years ago. But this one matches it, and might even be better. My first trip was filled with a roller coaster of emotions where I had felt every emotion more intensely than ever before. This time, all I could feel was peace, acceptance, and lots of love in all forms - the greatest one being self love. This is not something I could say after that first trip. And that was exactly why - that was the first trip. The first time. Any first time, your mind is so busy making meaning to things. This trip, I was able to apply everything I had learned the first time and mold them into a better, more profound understanding of myself and this side of the world.

No doubt that backpacking solo is rejuvenating; it is completely healing for the heart, the mind and the soul. I left for this trip fully broken in many ways, with a light in me that was put out long ago that now for the first time feels like it can be reignited. It is incredible how healing a trip like this can be in our life journeys. So here I find myself replenished with a new energy, a new peace, and a new smile. And I am grateful.

Cheers to the newly found peace, the acceptance, the openness, the independence, the vigilance, and the resilience. Cheers to yet another amazing journey to remind myself that we are our own soothe-sayers, that we are our own way out of the most challenging of times, and that the best is still yet to come.

Until next time,

Celine

Welcome to Malaysia

The past week I have made it to the final country of this trip, Malaysia. It has surprised me so much in the best way. People don't often mention Malaysia as an absolute must, but I am so happy that I did, because for the first time this trip I actually had a moment of thinking, "I "think I could live here."

Penang

Penang is probably one of my favorite places I've visited so far this whole trip. It is a fairly large island off the west coast of the Malaysian peninsula and is pretty developed - I stayed in a neighborhood called Georgetown which is definitely a place I found myself not wanting to leave. The greatest standouts of this place were the amazing arts and the food. Oh my god the food...

Street Art

The street art in Penang is some of the most amazing street art I have ever seen. I was also lucky enough to arrive in Penang, Malaysia during the month of the Georgetown Arts Festival where there just so happens to be tons of art exhibitions sprinkled across the entire area. I spent two of my three days here doing exactly that - going on a scavenger hunt to find the best of the best street art. It disappoints me that something like this will never be found in New York City, a city that was once so lively with art in every neighborhood but that is now rapidly turning into characterless glass high rises. It's inspired me to do some sort of mural art with my own students...

Georgetown Arts Festival & Museums

This was amazing - I couldn't believe how lucky I was to have made it into Penang, Malaysia when this Festival started. There were so many incredible art exhibitions and it took an entire day for me to travel to every restaurant, shop and cafe to visit all of the different types of local art exhibitions attached to them. Two standouts were photography showcasing "Penang: Then and Now" and mixed media paintings of Humans vs. Animals - one in particular that was so gripping to me in its symbolism - I related to it so much with a similar painting I had done about grief.

Titled "Dragging Past"

Another exciting aspect about Penang is all of the different museums that there are. I couldn't even make it to all of them. There was one that was so ridiculous though - very touristy but so funny and absurd that I had to try it. It was called the Upside Down Museum (very literally, entering a house where every room is completely upside down...). One that I really enjoyed though was the camera museum. I instantly thought of papa. As soon as I walked in I thought, "Wow papa, look at all of these! Lead me to your favorites..." I had truly wished he was there with me to tell me all about his favorites, which ones were the best, and which ones he wished he had... I could not stop thinking about him.

Being a tourist... You wouldn't believe the poses they told us to try and do

China Jetties

I also visited a very cool Jetty Village that dates back to the early 19th century - all houses on wooden stilts above the water. But my god it smelled terrible. The whole place smelled of rotting satay fish balls. I couldn't stand it my body was reluctant to breathe in - I hurried further into the village until I found myself at this spot where the smell changed to garlic being skinned. Every single local I passed was taking turns doing this, with giant bamboo bins carrying hundreds of garlic cloves. There was so much garlic being cut everywhere that my eyes watered just passing by.

walking through the jetties...

THE FOOD

Penang had, hands down, some of the best food I have ever eaten in my life. To even say that some of the food I had on the street in a nightmarket was exquisite might still be an understatement. There was one night where I went to a chinese street market and found a stand making wonton soup - it was the best wonton soup I have ever had. Minutes later I found a pork bun I really wanted to try at another stand - that was the best pork bun I have ever had. Then I thought, how could I not try for some dessert as well. I gave myself low expectations, thinking that 3/3 meals being absolutely superb would be too unlikely. I went to a place that made one of my favorite chinese desserts of all time (the boiled dough balls filled with black sesame) and they made it with a ginger broth - THAT was also the best of that dessert I have ever had. I couldn't believe it. I was on a food high the rest of my time in Penang...

OH MY GODDDD the wonton soup!!

The following day I also checked out this dim sum place that wasn't even recommended in the guidebook. I definitely ordered enough for 4 people and overindulged, but it was so worth it. And again, I ordered one of my favorite dim sum dishes - turnip cake. This was the most amazing turnip cake I have EVER had!!!! Amazingly crispy on the outside, hot and softer on the inside. It was so amazing that it didn't even need and oyster sauce - it was that good all on its own.

OH MY GODDD the turnip cake!! Didn't even need oyster sauce!

delicious... Everything all together (it was a portion for probably 4 people) was $8 USD

I ended my time in Penang with a great group of people (the hostel I stayed at was absolutely amazing!!), and we always wound up ending the night at Reggae Mansion Bar. I kept in touch with several of these people. It is amazing to meet so many people from different parts of the world and hear their stories - what brought them here, where they are going to next, when it ends for them and why. Getting to know all of these travelers on such personal levels and spending so much time with them while doing adventurous exploring makes time run so fast. This particularly relates to my time in the Perhentian Islands. Took a very long night bus over to the east coast pier...

At Reggae Mansion Bar

Perhentian Islands (AKA. The Little Prince Island)

The days following Penang, I decided to go to a place that was recommended to me by many other travelers. The Perhentian Islands on the East coast of the Malaysian peninsula. The island I stayed at was Kecil, though I actually decided to personally call it the Little Prince island - in leading up to it on a bumpy speedboat at dawn, I couldn't help but look at its silhouette and only see the visual in The Little Prince where he describes what a snake would look like if he ate an elephant. That was the exact shape and form of the island when approaching it from afar...

half of our group arriving at dawn...

From Le Petit Prince, just for reference...

The three days spent here were filled with beautiful beach time, lounging, amazing snorkeling, and best of all, incredible company! The people who I befriended and spent time with on this island became an amazing group of friends for the next three days. We became a group of 10 made up of one Irish, one Scottish, two Americans, two Turks, and four Brits. I have never laughed harder, danced harder or felt such a great sense of camaraderie since my time in Pai, Thailand or in Bamboo Island, Cambodia those four years ago... this was the most solid group of my whole trip.

One of the days, we wound up going snorkeling and had a hilarious time trying to haggle the price for the 10 of us - through an intense arm-wrestling match with the local who would take us around! Sadly we didn't win so we had no discount. It was still amazing. We saw baby sharks(!!!), HUGE turtles (the biggest I have ever seen swimming along the shallow sea bed!), incredible fish and some gorgeous clams and coral, I could not stop taking pictures.

Can't see it very well but that is the giant turtle he's swimming to, with a stripe on its back. It was HUGE!

pretty spiral corals...

By the end of our snorkeling, there was a spur of the moment decision to do some cool stunts in the water where two of the guys would LAUNCH a girl into the water like a cannon. So every girl in our group had a go at it. It was such a fun moment!!!

I thought the evenings here would be quiet - but they were intense nights of wild music and fire shows that you simply could not look away from. There were even times where locals surrounded the dance floor with a ring of fire. This was crazy! Not as crazy as the fire shows I saw while in Thailand, but certainly not something I would expect on this tiny island... Ahh, two nights in a row here dancing and dancing until 3AM...

Where I Am Now

I have made it to my final destination, Kuala Lumpur. I actually like Kuala Lumpur much more than Singapore, and even more than Bangkok... This is yet another place where I can picture myself living comfortably. It's a lively city that still feels clean, but has so much that I love about southeast Asia with the street food and a strong appreciation for the arts that simply feels unmatched anywhere else in Asia. I don't want this trip to end, although I do feel as though this was exactly the soothing type of trip that I needed. For me, my soul, heart and mind. I will write one more (short) entry on the day that my flight takes off with my closing words...

Rainy Yogya, & Singapore!

Last week already feels like long ago - I stayed in Yogyakarta for a while but for various reasons. It rained so often here so a few times plans had to be pushed back or rescheduled for the following day. Instead the rain provided some less intense heat and some more opportunities to explore street food, cafes, a bit of University nightlife (there is a big school here), and some local delicacies...

Yogyakarta - Bird Market

I mentioned it in brief in my previous blog entry, but as cool as it was to be there and see so many different things, it also made me really sad. These poor things are squished sometimes 50 at a time in the same cage. Where can they fly? How can they use their wings? Some of them had piercing looks - but also with a sadness in their eyes, I thought. They are almost all for sale but some are pets. Owls, pigeons, sparrows, geese, turkeys, parrots, chicks that were dyed different colors, BABY VULTURES... Some standouts included other animals - bats, civet cats, sea otters, puppies, kittens, snakes, maggots, crickets, hamsters, chipmunks.  and it reminded me very much of the Sunday market in Bangkok. It was all still an amazing sight though... I won't forget how striking their stares were.

Those were all still alive - different worms and maggots - and she would grab them with her bare hands, toss them into bags and weigh them (...)

Look at this bunny!!!! So fluffy he can't even see

Possibly related to grumpy cat

Prambanan Temple

I took a bus that cost me 25 cents to go more than an hour away to Prambanan Temple, which is a 9th century temple that reminded me very much of Angkor Wat but on a much smaller scale. It is the largest Hindu temple in Indonesia. It was pretty, but much of it was destroyed by earthquakes, too... Probably would have been more wowed had I seen this one first, then Angkor Wat... I didn't stay very long.

My fav pic of the place - just in time for the man to appear -
looking so small in this majestic structure

Becaks

Just a quick note on these - I wish we had these in New York. they are awesome! And the main mode of public transport here if not a motorbike or taxi. Some are on bicycles where the driver pedals, while others have an engine. I loved these things. They are also each decorated in different ways and are so cheap to travel around the city with.

Borobudur

This!! This was impressive. This is the largest Buddhist temple complex IN THE WORLD. And it is definitely as impressive as guidebooks describe. Seeing this at sunrise required getting up at 3AM to take a motorbike about 1+ hour away. There was a guy insisting that we catch sunrise on a hilltop instead, so we followed him far enough away that dawn suddenly began. Hot coffee and breakfast snacks awaited us at various stands along the uphill trail where we finally reached the top and enjoyed the view. Borobudur seemed so tiny though. It was also less breathtaking than the sunrise over Mount Bromo, but beautiful nonetheless. The mist is so other-worldly...

Borobudur to the right...

Afterwards I wanted to get in and actually visit the temple itself. You get a huge discount if you are a student, 50% off. Thankfully I had my Grad school ID on me but... THEY DIDN'T BELIEVE ME! Because it said "Teachers College" on it. This became a very frustrating, ten-minute battle with them that that is a school name. They said, "it says teacher." "Right, but it also says college, and Columbia University underneath..." This leads to a demand that I pull up the website and log into my student account and show them my student profile. To say that this stirs frustration would be an understatement. No one else had to prove they were a student - and even my expiration date was still valid... But then that's when one of them challenges me and says "exp. 2025, that's too long to be a student." Oh my god I wanted to pull my hair out. In the end though (after navigating 5 different pages and logging in, wasting so much time), they finally believed me.

The site itself is massive... and is definitely a workout to climb the steps. It was breathtaking, but there were way, way too many tourists. I actually am not sure how I got lucky enough to get such beautiful shots with nobody in them. But I think most of the time, those pictures require a lot of patience and waiting for the right moment. This complex is made of 6 layers, with the final 3 being circular like mandalas and surrounded by stupas - each stupa you could actually peer through a bit, and they all had a stone buddha sitting in each one. That was so cool! Some photos of this beautiful hilltop...

One of the views from the top - it was a 360 degree view everywhere 

From the base, making my way up to the top

I found the carvings to be absolutely beautiful and soooo detailed everywhere. Truly a work of art

The stoned ground was interesting too...each like strange Tetris pieces.
Makes you wonder how they assembled all of these together so perfectly.

Food delicacies?

Some days it rained so much that the only thing I could do was go and play some pool at a nearby cafe - and then at dinnertime try some local delicacies... Here in Yogyakarta you get to try cobra and even drink cobra's blood. So that's exactly what some people ordered while here, and I got to try a little bit. The cobra is also lit up in flames when it's presented. Cobra tastes a lot like eel but a bit chewier. Cobra's blood is interesting... It's meant for men to drink to make them and their hearts stronger - you also have the gross sack of bile floating in the drink which you have to swallow WHOLE first before drinking the blood (thankfully it's mixed with a bit of lemon and honey). But the bile sack grosses me out so much. I still tried the cobra's blood and it actually tasted like sweet syrup. YUM!

That's the cobra's blood with lemon being squeezed into it a bit...
Cobra meat to the right, with blue fire...

The coastline (sand dunes)

Not far (about 1 hour south) from where I was staying, you could reach the beaches where there are also sand dunes. I was delaying this visit because they said that sand dunes are not impressive when it rains as it gets flattened with the downpour. I tried anyway... And also got to take a stab at sandboarding. It is a LOT harder than it looks, but it was still fun. Sunset was enjoyed on this last day here by visiting a nearby resort that had an infinity pool on a hilltop overlooking the beach and sunset. That was amazing!

I look ridiculous

Nightlife

The nightlife here was a big mixture of live music everywhere and then really intense nightclubs. One place "Lucifer" had frequent live reggae nights, and two nightclubs I wound up going to were "Liquid" and "Bosche" - My friend and I were the ONLY non-locals in the entire place when we went to Liquid - it made it so fun because the locals in there would notice us and dance alongside us. Way too much smoke though. Indonesians all smoke a full pack a day, outdoors and indoors, it seems. On our last night Bosche nightclub had a huge cover charge because there was a very famous indonesian band coming to play! What an experience that was. We got to hear all of their hits. And then there were the occasional "break" dancers, that would then distribute bags into the audience for donations.

SINGAPORE

I also went to Singapore this week!!! Spent 2-3 days here which I honestly felt was enough for what I wanted to see. I didn't have much interest in the big tourist attractions of botanical gardens and zoos - really I was there for the food. Overall, Singapore looks nothing like what I had pictured in my head. My first day there I befriended a few Europeans who were actually there to study or intern for 6-12 months, so we did some exploring together.

My first full day there I visited Little India, the Malay neighborhood, Marina Bay area (the only place that matches what I had envisioned Singapore to look like), and the Raffles Hotel to try their world-famous cocktail - the Singapore Sling.

Little India had amazing hawker stands - stall after stall of different types of Indian food. Really colorful neighborhood as well. Huge.

Little India Hawker Centre

There was also an amazing art installation near Little India that I completely adored, which was a park decorated with umbrella trees. The artist and conceptual art teacher in me swooned.

When I was at Marina Bay I ate inside the large shopping center at the foot of the big boat building where there were more upscale hawker food choices - this was the best food I had tried so far in Singapore. It had every single type of asian cuisine possible. The place was called Rasapura Masters.

THIS is how I pictured Singapore !!! The boat skyscraper to the left is where I had my last night out...

At one of the food stalls in Rasapura Masters 

A side note about the Raffles Hotel - this place is stunningly beautiful but also costs over $600 USD a night. No thank you. Likewise, the Singapore Sling that maman wanted me to try at their Long Bar cost me a whopping $36 Singapore Dollars ($26 USD). That is completely insane - I'll check that off the list and never again. It was an enjoyable cocktail though. Apparently, it was created in 1915 initially so that women of the time could be able to drink something alcoholic in public. A tradition at the raffles hotel which has been going for many decades as well is by throwing peanut shells on the floor.

The Singapore Sling

Tons of peanut shells on the floor

On my last day I also checked out Singapore's chinatown. It is huge!!! I went to try this "world renowned" chicken and rice from a stand at a hawker center that had a line going out and around the corner. It was the blandest chicken and rice I might have ever had... Was I in the right place? I was disappointed. In other news, this Chinatown boasted other interesting options...

"non merci"

I ended my quick visit in Singapore with a great night out at the top of that huge building with the boat lying across it - it was a huge bar and nightclub, with an infinity pool that overlooks the entire city skyline... Drinks were up the wazoo expensive again. I think we all paid something like $12 USD for small beers and $18 USD for simple mixed drinks. Get us out of here!

Where I am Now

Penang, Malaysia! I absolutely love it here. I will be staying 2 more nights here (have already stayed 1). This area might have the most amazing street art I've ever seen. The food here is already incredible, and the hostel I'm staying at is so much fun. I can feel my trip ending soon though, but I don't want to leave...