Malaysia 2010 from a student perspective

Twelve months ago I jumped at the opportunity of missing a week of school to go on a trip half way across the world, knowing that it would an amazing experience. I now know that I, and everybody else that went, underestimated how amazing it would be!

The trip was open to ‘gifted and talented’ students from a small consortium of schools in West Wiltshire. It was application by letter, persuading a panel of judges why they should pick each of us. After some careful consideration, it was narrowed down to the top sixteen who all attended the trip alongside mentors Tim Randle and Robyn Fryer, and Matravers staff members Sally Thorne and Chris Dark.

We departed from Clarendon School on Saturday the 20th of November to leave behind the freezing temperatures of England and spend some time in a considerably warmer environment. Our plane left Heathrow that night and eleven hours later, still wearing winter clothing, we were subjected to the unbearable heat and 80% humidity of Malaysia.

There was a slight hold up at Kuala Lumpur Airport as Mrs Thorne and myself stood in the wrong queue at passport control, and Mr Dark struggled to pass through the scanners without being searched by security. However we put these minor faults behind us and went to meet the Malaysian students that we’d be spending the next nine days with.

They kindly greeted us and led us outside to their school bus, which was not quite what I had in mind. It looked more like a VIP bus! Although it looked normal from the outside, the inside was finished with rich red carpets, varnished wood and cream leather seats.

Our amazement however was short lived when we set off. There seems to be no rules on the roads, whatsoever! The motorway was more like the dodgems at a fairground, and to make matters worse the bus seemed to have no top speed. It just got faster and faster! It soon picked up its nickname, ‘The Bus of Death.’

We arrived at the college (alive) to be greeted by the headmaster and a cultural dinner. Personally spicy food doesn’t appeal to my taste buds, however some liked it.

Following this we were shown to our apartments. Having only been in the country a few hours, the various insects that we’d met so far weren’t exactly going to be welcome where we were staying, so we were horrified to find a big gap under both doors. Nobody had lived in the apartments for six months, so it was crawling with unwanted wildlife.

Being typical members of the male species, we decided that we were too scared and decided to move all our beds together out in the hallway to protect each other. (We claimed that it was so we could be nearer to the air conditioning!)

The next morning was the first day of the conference. The theme, global issues, was well picked and relevant. The groups consisted of two English students and two Malaysian students. Each group was given a topic and three days to carry out research and complete a presentation.

That night, due to the delightful effects of jetlag, we all chose to go to bed early. We were however interrupted by a welcome party of Malaysian students who didn’t like this idea and came knocking on our door in order to get to know us a bit better. As tired and as rude as we may have seemed, they were all so friendly and made us all feel so welcome.

The following day was the trip to the Cameron Highlands. Our lack of sleep was no problem as everybody slept during the long drive. Eventually, after five and a half hours, the bus got as far as it could go on the windy roads. We climbed out and walked the remaining few kilometres up the hill to the Boh Tea Plantations. We toured the factory and nearly emptied the shop before heading to a local market for an hour.

The next evening brought to us an Indian tradition, Davali Night. Many of the Malaysian students performed some traditional Indian dances and they introduced us to Henna. Henna is a bit like a tattoo, but it comes off after two or three weeks. Traditionally people have flowers and patterns printed onto their hands (as Mr Dark did!) but us lads were having such a fun night that we decided to have the word ‘MUM’ in a heart instead. It took a lot of scrubbing to get that off…

Thursday led us on a trip to Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia. We spent some time in KLCC, a large shopping centre at the base of the famous Petronas towers. Following that we visited a traditional Islamic museum, which gave us an insight into the local culture. After a quick lunch stop at KFC and a heavy downpour, we headed to the roof of the new HSBC tower for a brief insight into what they do. HSBC sponsored the trip. There was time for a quick look around the central market before we headed back home for dinner.

Friday was presentation day. Each group presented what they had found out over the week and how they plan to resolve their issue. It was really interesting hearing the different views of the Malaysian students in contrast with our own. The presentations were judged by Mrs Thorne, Mr Dark, Tim and Robyn and every group was given constructive feedback.

Earlier in the week we were approached by some of the college lads who asked if we played basketball. Whatever our response was, they interpreted it as ‘we would like to play a game in front of the whole school on Friday’.

Now I don’t know how many of you know me, but I’m not built for sport. I don’t even know the rules of basketball yet I found myself playing against 18-20 year old men who train every day in the unbearable heat. As you could imagine, we didn’t do well. Personally, the enjoyment stopped immediately after we sang the national anthem.

But one good thing came out of all this – I can officially say that I made the starting team in sport! (Once)

That evening was the end of term meal. It was accompanied by many performances, one of which being a cultural performance from us. Oh dear! We just managed to scrape together a five minute tour of UK history, including stories such as Stonehenge, King Arthur and the Round Table and the 1966 world cup.

Saturday started with a bus journey to the coast and a ferry to Pangkor Island. We spent the day in and about the hotel, walking around the markets, the golden sandy beaches and admiring the clear blue sea. The temperature must have been in the low 40s when I received a text from my Dad telling me that there’s snow on our drive!

The following day we were taken in small pink taxis and dropped off at a jungle. Having not been told about the jungle walk, I found myself wearing flip flops. Not the greatest footwear for the day if I’m perfectly honest. It was worth the inconvenience because the jungle was amazing!

That night we returned to the mainland and were invited to a leaving party at the headmaster’s bungalow. This was really difficult for everybody because we’d made so many great friends and now had to say goodbye. That wasn’t the end of our friendships though, facebook’s brilliant!

We spent the final night in our apartments and left early the next morning. We were accompanied to the airport by the students that we’d been working with and saying the final goodbye was really difficult.

The trip was an amazing experience for both us and the Malaysian students. We had an insight into their culture and got to know some amazing people. Most of the students are applying for English universities next year (despite the fees!) so our friendships will no doubt continue into the future. I’d like to thank Mrs Thorne and Mr Dark for all their effort beforehand and during the trip, as everybody appreciated it.

Mr Dark only got searched twice on the way home…

Chris Joyce, Matravers