I can recollect the first time I ever thought of going off on my own... it was way back in high school. We had a guest English teacher, from Britain and he was telling us on how his daughter took a year off to go traveling... he coined it as taking a "leap year". The thought of taking a year off to go traveling never ever entered my mind till then... for me, it was a totally radical idea, and a very tempting one. However, after approaching my parents, they thought I was mad and massive fights started. The thought of taking a year off to just expand one's horizons whilst not being in a classroom isn't acceptable. You see, for a Chinese, every day (aside from weekends, public holidays and designated family vacations) not spent studying or working is deemed to be a waste. This is the traditional way of thinking.
So, I never got my leap year but the notion of taking off was deeply enrooted in the core of my soul. The idea of taking off alone was ever so much more appealing... the adventure of it all... the limitless boundaries of what I can do... the self discovery... the idea that no one will be responsible for me but me... independence. Ahhhh... I can almost taste it.
So what did I do? Well, in 1999, I took off. Yawp, I did. My relationship with this guy didn't work out... I hated my job and I thought... hey, if I don't do this now, when am I ever going to do it? So take off I did. I spent two months traveling through the north of Peninsula Malaysia. I started my trip with some friends who had a boat docked at the Perhentian Islands. They spent a few days there then took off back to Kuala Lumpur. Me, I stayed. The plan was to slowly make my way back down to Kuala Lumpur, in the space of a month. However, that didn't happen. As with all solo traveling, YOU are the boss... YOU make up your mind what to do. There is no itinerary, no plans and most importantly, no taking other people's plans into consideration.
I fell in love with the Perhentian Islands... and I was lucky. I met this wonderful man who owned this "resort" on the island. In exchange for food and accommodation, I helped him out e.g. washing dishes, waitressing, gardening etc. Thus, I managed to stretch my one month budget to last two months. From the start, I decided that this was going to be a strictly no frills, budget-type holiday. Armed with the Malaysian version of the Lonely Planet guide book, I carefully did my budgeting and allocated the necessary amount. Even though the work, at times was back breaking (carrying 60 litres of diesel up a hill does lead to back pains) I had my afternoons off which was great.
I made friends with many of the locals, one particular person, "Pak Su Ghani", commonly known as the Old Man From the Sea took a liking to me and basically taught me everything I needed to know about fishing, commandeering a small fishing boat and the sea. Despite a 15 year phobia of the water, I got my scuba diving license, I met heaps of people, both locals and foreigners (it was the holiday season in Europe) etc. Ever watched the movie "The Beach"? Well, I lived it. Pak Su Ghani didn't want to take any money from me for taking me me fishing,snorkelingg etc. So, I became a one person travel agent. I organised snorkeling and fishing trips and gave him all the money. He was ecstatic. As a personal thank you, I got my brother to get me every single P. Ramlee movie he could find and sent it down. P. Ramlee was a very famous actor. Pak Su was beyond words as he is a huge P. Ramlee fan.
As the locals living in Perhentian are mostly Muslims, they stay away from alcohol. However, as their guests were Westerners and liked alcohol... there was a market for alcohol. I used to smuggle crates of beer form the mainland in boxes labelled toilet paper or instant noodles. The boat operators were mainly Muslim and didn't like the idea of alcohol on their boats. But hey, what they didn't know didn't hurt them right? Trust me when I say that lifting a box filled with "toilet paper" and making that look light isn't an easy feat.
Once in a while, I would go back to the mainland to check my emails... and to find a job. I managed to negotiate a fairly attractive contract whilst in my bikini, lying on a hammock under coconut trees. On the mainland, I stayed at backpacker's inns... again meeting heaps of people. I travelled around, visiting all the museums and historical and touristy spots. I caught up on the Malaysian heritage and I got to know more about my country. For instance, in Kota Bahru, whilst doing some grocery shopping at a local supermarket, I mistakenly lined up at the "men's only" counter. Sure, I did get served but I was told not to do that anymore. They segregated the check out counters via gender. I had only read about stuff like this but not experienced it. Even though I was aware of it, I was shocked.
Whilst traveling around, I managed to get "special treatment". You see, it is common for foreigners, particularly Europeans to travel through Malaysia but not for a Malaysian, particularly a Malaysian female to do it, especially by herself. The local tour operators took a liking to me. At first glance, they thought that I might have been a Japanese tourist or something but when I started conversing to them in Malay, a lot of them were shocked and I got all the special tours and hidden extras, stuff which are not revealed to foreigners. It was a wonderful experience. Sure, I felt lonely on occasion and especially homesick, particularly when I came down with a bad case of food poisoning but hey, I rectified that. When you are traveling alone, you are forced to go up to strangers and get to know them. Despite popular belief, it isn't bad or humiliating to go up to a bunch of strangers and start talking to them. In fact, most of these people are just as glad to get to know you. A friendly smile and a "hello" works miracles.
Was I scared about traveling alone? To be quite honest, the answer is no. Sure, I did have a can of pepper spray but I never needed to use it. I think that it's all in the attitude. If you act scared, people will think that you are a good target... if you act like you are confident, that won't happen. The bullys or the potential rapists will stay away. These people are always looking for an easy target... just hold your head up high, don't slouch and walk as if you are the most confident person in the world. Of course, use your head... don't go walking in dark alleys by yourself.
Will I ever do it again? DEFINITELY!!! I was only sorry that my trip didn't last that long... unfortunately, the responsibilities of life back in the city came back to haunt me. I had to start work... that plus the monsoon season was starting... and I didn't want to be stuck on the island for months on end. As it was, I left at the begining of the season, when the waves were at least 4 feet tall... I made it back just in time apparently as I had gotten word that if I'd left a week later, I wouldn't have been able to make it back to the mainland intact.
After leaving the Perhentians, I resumed my original plan of slowly making my way back down. Unfortunately, I fell sick and managed to get a high fever. It was then that I realised that enough was enough and I splurged, taking the first plane home. Needless to say, my mum was shocked to see me... I went to her place of work to pick up the car to go to the doctors. I had such a healthy tan that according to her, I looked like a "Bangladeshi". I walked in, carrying my one duffel bag, hair bundled up in a baseball cap, dark as an Indian, a yellowish-once-white t-shirt, cut off shorts and scruffy beach sandles which had seen better days.
Despite my "primitive living arrangements", I had the freshest of food, plenty of fresh air and exercise. I came back tanned and heaps stronger, mentally and physically. I came back with the knowledge that "yes, I can survive on my own" and the confidence that can only be obtained when one is left to their own devices for a period of time. I came back with a head filled with Malaysian customs and a list of contact details for the many people that I had come to know. I came back with the knowledge, that hey, I don't need airconditioning, 24 hour electricity, hair dryers, makeup, TVs, huge wardrobe, clean toilets etc to be happy. I came back with a healthy respect and admiration for the environment, particularly sea life. Whilst two months is nothing compared to the months / years that others have spent traveling, I came back a different and happier person.
