Vintage!

 

Suffering internet withdrawal in the city

So, I’ve been having a serious Internet withdrawal. I’m writing this on an MS Word document to be transferred to Curiouser once the Internet man comes in on Tuesday. I guess Internet is one of those things we “take for granted.” Anyone living in Manhattan, though, will swear that having Internet is not only convenient but also essential.

On Friday, my family helped move me into our old apartment on Riverside Drive. This week, I’ll be on the summer job hunt. Then, my internship with The Laundress begins right after Memorial Day. The week after that, my friend Kristin who also goes to Cornell will move in with me. So many new experiences—living in the city, working, interning, living with a roommate… I’m a little nervous (I lied, a LOT nervous) and definitely brimming with excitement. Wish me luck!

Along with all this, I’m also discovering how much financial responsibility I’m starting to hold. My bank account is depressingly meager… And I have the guilty conscience to explain it. I love how, despite my dwindling savings, I am purchasing a $600 sofa with matching armchairs tomorrow…

That brings me to the subject of the apartment! You know, I love it to death. My grandfather lived in it years ago and passed it on to the family when he passed away. Since then, this place has been a reminder of history. The building used to be one of those 1920s glamorous hotels. It’s in the perfect location. Columbia is right down the street so we get all the student bookstores, cafes, farmer’s markets, and restaurants of Morningside heights. Remember the restaurant from Seinfeld? Right across the street from us. And the subway station is literally right outside. The one thing… history is… in essence old. The apartment is old and dusty. The building is forever in repair. But, It’s a good thing I like antiques…

Alright, I am getting into bed now. I’ll be online very soon I hope.

Random Thoughts

I officially have three days left in Malaysia... Three days! My five-week trip is coming to a close... and I can hardly believe how fast it's passed by. Upon reflecting, this experience has been nothing like what I had imagined back in the US. It's been a hundred times better and I'm leaving this place with so much more than I had expected. While here I've...

-Grown quite used to lizards crawling up and down the walls.
-Relearned how to use squatting toilets.
-Gotten over fear of taxis.
-Written practically a novel.
-Visited an island.
-Climbed a mountain.
-Gained new friends.
-Played with my cousins.
-Improved my Chinese... a little.
-Gotten shockingly darker.
-Had my fill of ice kachang, soybean milk, roti canai, and watermelon juice.
-Improved my technique of ignoring flirty locals.
-Wasted a lot of money.
-Assisted in a fashion photo shoot!
-Some more stuff I can't think of now....

I had more I wanted to say but I left my notebook at home. Shall bring it with me next time... So, what am I up to the next few days? Tonight, the extended family is coming over again for swimming and dinner. Maybe some time I'll write an entry introducing them to you... My cousins, Pui Pui, Sim Yee, Bong Bong, San San, Wun Wun, Siew Yee, Eva, Aimee, Ida, Ivy, pheuf... I think that's all of them. Yes, very interesting names. Then, out tonight for drinks with friends... sleeping over Mich's and I don't know what else! Flight early morning on Wednesday to Singapore... Few days at Sentosa Resort, then Friday evening... flight back to the States! Five more days... then college!

Are You Japanese?

It's the beginning of the third week of Malaysia. Time is really flying! I'm starting to miss home a little. I had a random craving for French fries while passing McDonald's the other day. Eeks.

Whenever I travel anywhere, I always get the, "Where are you from?" I have everyone guessing, "Korea? China? Japan?" Actually, a lot of people think I'm a Eurasian mix even though I do not think I look white at all. It's funny when I'm finally like, "The United States!" Wha... ?

I expected the same sort of deal when I came to KK. But as soon as I got here, I don't get the "Where are you from?" The question has now metamorphosed into "Are you Japanese?" I think at least five people have asked me that since I've been here-random people, too! The first person to comment was a cosmetics salesperson. She said I looked Japanese and my sister looked Korean. A day ago, a random person came up to me and asked, "Are you Japanese?" And before I could answer, she just said, "Say yes. Because I have a bet with that person." Looked over at a bunch of these tourists. So, I just said yes.

I would love to visit Japan. I wonder if real Japanese people would think I looked Japanese. I just watched Tokyo Drift the other day. I wonder what Japanese people think of that movie! Haha.

Kota Kinabalu

So, I can finally say that I'm in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia. A lot has happened since Singapore. Right now, I'm at the main shopping mall, Centrepoint... Rosa and I found the old internet cafe we used to go to and so I have 17 minutes left to describe all that has happened.

We arrived in KK Saturday afternoon. It felt soo weird to be back- it's like we never left at all... and at the same time, we were like complete foreigners. We used to go to Malaysia to see family every summer... but I haven't been back since I was a freshman. So, it was all the same.. yet very different! A lot of major development has happened. In the city, there are whole new shopping strips and tons of new stores.

My cousin Puay puay picked us up and brought us to our Grandma's appartment in nearby village, Mengataal. Stayed there for a few days. Sunday morning we went to Basal church for the chinese service... could barely understand it but I'm picking up the language again! It's so strange to hear so many languages all at once: malay, hindi, chinese, dialects of chinese, and of course, english. Everything feels so raw and underdeveloped... especially the village areas. But you can see the progress that has been made in just 3 years that I've been gone. It's insane.

THat night, I met my cousin, Sim Yee!! I was so excited to see her... out of all my cuosins I definitely feel most connected to her. We went to a christian choir concert... everything is really church related around here. It was interesting though.. saw an african american sing in chinese!

Today, we finally saw the condo my parents invested in almost 4 years ago! it was under construction as a part of these resort buildings, "Marina Court" that my family used to stay in. It's kinda pricey even though the exchange rate is cheap (1 US dollar = 3.5 malaysian RM). But anyone who knows my parents, also knows they are addicted to real estate. Not so much buying but window shopping. So, this place is kind of a big deal... saw it, today- looks amazing. It's right in KK city next to all the malls and has a view of swimming pool and the ocean.

Ate lunch today at one of the bazillion new restaurants nearby. The place inside is so beautiful. The walls are all gold with crystal chandeliers and mirrors everywhere. The tables are kind of too high tho. My familoy was starving so much that they bought nearly everything on the menu. I feel so full.

Anyhow, we've rented an appartment to stay at in Marina Court. So, we're moving out of my grandma's appartment tonight to stay there. My grandma is pretty awesome. She travels a lot and is going to Kuching for the week (in West Malaysia). I'm gonna try to get in touch with some of my old school friends (did I mention I went to boarding school in Malaysia before?)... it still feels so weird to be here!! But I adapt really fast.. a good and bad quality...

I have to say that I think I handled Jet lag pretty well... perfected the technique after all these years of traveling... here's the jist of it:

SLEEP as much as you can on the airplane. at the same time, drink as much water as you can!!
therefore, it forces you to only nap and not oversleep.. because you have to pee all the time. heh. moisturizing doesn't hurt either.

Anyways, I've also been writing a lot. I can only write on here once in a while when I find a computer and it's nowhere near enough... I can't even remember half the stuff I want to mention it's jumbled in my mind and I'm keepiig an eye on the timer. I'm keeping one of my travel logs again... tons of writing there and started color pencil drawings again... i should remember to bring it along with me next time so I can transfer some stuff online. I'll keep that in mind!

Okay, time is almost out. Miss all of you back at home!! -Chrysan