What Moved Me in Malaysia
I could talk about so many different aspects of my trip to Malaysia. I could even give you a day by day schedule of what I did but the most impactful part of my trip was the people I met.
Going across the world to a remote island on your own is really scary in theory but coming here and meeting people from different parts of the world is so incredible and really eye opening. I was so used to being inside of my own little bubble in the United States, like I'm sure many Americans are, and I didn't fully understand how we really are all the same and there's not that many differences besides maybe language(which is usually not a problem because English is so widely spread) and small cultural differences, that can easily be adjusted. The mere fact that people from the states, Canada, UK, Malaysia, Belgium (to name a few) could come together and get along so well (or as the English would say "get on so well") and so smoothly is astonishing. The universal collectiveness of everyone outweighed any cultural or personality differences. One of my favorite realizations was everyone from around the world knew the same songs and could sing along and dance to the same music without issue.
I was so afraid to travel alone, but in reality I wasn't really alone once I stepped off the plane. It may have taken a moment to adjust and get comfortable with people but it's amazing how quickly such strong friendships can form in just a few weeks time. No topics were off limits and no offenses were taken, it was all just in good fun and good conversation about anything and everything.
There's nothing more surreal than sitting under the stars on the shoreline just chatting with people whom you'd never meet otherwise. It was a tiny little gathering of so many countries in such a happy and unified manner. The willingness to share stories, facts, and personal details of their lives and where they come from was astonishing and allowed me to learn about topics and ideas I never would have thought of. I learned so much more in just two weeks of being there than I ever have in a year of school by simply listening to discussions and banter on what the best and easiest manner of improving the reef systems and biodiversity was and the up and downsides of that plan of action.
It was so nice being able to go to a country 23 hours away and still connect with people on a fundamental level and understand them as a person and where they come from.
There were three people I really connected with that I plan on visiting on future travels. One was a girl from Vancouver, named Jess, with puppy dog eyes who has so much compassion and kindness in her heart it just radiated out of her entire being. A guy from the U.K., Nick, with a dry sense of humor and a need to always make sure "you okay?" when you don't walk past him or come to number 4 smiling, he had a true sense of caring for people and a genuine need to help with anything. Nick's partner, Robyn, who's knowledge of marine science shines and her stories about anything and everything really fill up a room and allow for conversation to carry on without an end. These are the kinds of people that I would be willing to stay on the island for without a doubt and who I would go out of my way to visit back in their hometowns. It's incredible what you can learn about the world and about yourself just through meeting a handful of people.
Just a few memories of these amazing people include debating if what we saw on the horizon was the moon or some weird light source from the nearby resort, singing along to songs in front of the campfire, getting all sorts of hand signals underwater for cool fish and not understanding any of them but acting enthusiastic, and doing Zumba on the beach. The comfort found in these people just within two weeks was incredible and so many fun memories were made.
Conservation work is so important and it was an incredible part of my trip but the most profound aspect has been the people I've met here and the bonds I've formed with like-minded people that I couldn't find anywhere else. I was extremely sad to be leaving but as someone once told me "it's always better to be leaving somewhere and be sad to be going than to get tired of a place and be dying to get out". I fully plan on keeping up with my friends across the world and hopefully joining up with them again.
Going across the world to a remote island on your own is really scary in theory but coming here and meeting people from different parts of the world is so incredible and really eye opening. I was so used to being inside of my own little bubble in the United States, like I'm sure many Americans are, and I didn't fully understand how we really are all the same and there's not that many differences besides maybe language(which is usually not a problem because English is so widely spread) and small cultural differences, that can easily be adjusted. The mere fact that people from the states, Canada, UK, Malaysia, Belgium (to name a few) could come together and get along so well (or as the English would say "get on so well") and so smoothly is astonishing. The universal collectiveness of everyone outweighed any cultural or personality differences. One of my favorite realizations was everyone from around the world knew the same songs and could sing along and dance to the same music without issue.
I was so afraid to travel alone, but in reality I wasn't really alone once I stepped off the plane. It may have taken a moment to adjust and get comfortable with people but it's amazing how quickly such strong friendships can form in just a few weeks time. No topics were off limits and no offenses were taken, it was all just in good fun and good conversation about anything and everything.
There's nothing more surreal than sitting under the stars on the shoreline just chatting with people whom you'd never meet otherwise. It was a tiny little gathering of so many countries in such a happy and unified manner. The willingness to share stories, facts, and personal details of their lives and where they come from was astonishing and allowed me to learn about topics and ideas I never would have thought of. I learned so much more in just two weeks of being there than I ever have in a year of school by simply listening to discussions and banter on what the best and easiest manner of improving the reef systems and biodiversity was and the up and downsides of that plan of action.
It was so nice being able to go to a country 23 hours away and still connect with people on a fundamental level and understand them as a person and where they come from.
There were three people I really connected with that I plan on visiting on future travels. One was a girl from Vancouver, named Jess, with puppy dog eyes who has so much compassion and kindness in her heart it just radiated out of her entire being. A guy from the U.K., Nick, with a dry sense of humor and a need to always make sure "you okay?" when you don't walk past him or come to number 4 smiling, he had a true sense of caring for people and a genuine need to help with anything. Nick's partner, Robyn, who's knowledge of marine science shines and her stories about anything and everything really fill up a room and allow for conversation to carry on without an end. These are the kinds of people that I would be willing to stay on the island for without a doubt and who I would go out of my way to visit back in their hometowns. It's incredible what you can learn about the world and about yourself just through meeting a handful of people.
Just a few memories of these amazing people include debating if what we saw on the horizon was the moon or some weird light source from the nearby resort, singing along to songs in front of the campfire, getting all sorts of hand signals underwater for cool fish and not understanding any of them but acting enthusiastic, and doing Zumba on the beach. The comfort found in these people just within two weeks was incredible and so many fun memories were made.
Conservation work is so important and it was an incredible part of my trip but the most profound aspect has been the people I've met here and the bonds I've formed with like-minded people that I couldn't find anywhere else. I was extremely sad to be leaving but as someone once told me "it's always better to be leaving somewhere and be sad to be going than to get tired of a place and be dying to get out". I fully plan on keeping up with my friends across the world and hopefully joining up with them again.
