Kampung Bound - Part 2

THE ANXIOUS WAIT (Kampung Bound Part 1 is below)

5-18-2008

So we are packed, cleaned up, and ready to go. We are just waiting for our landlord to do a quick walk through and give us a green light and we will be officially done with Kuala Lumpur. Its crazy! I am a mixed up mess of anxiety, excitement, fear, and anticipation.

I think the kampung is going to be great, like a long extended vacation. No more chasing down people for interviews, long days traipsing all over the city, crowded trains and streets, bleeding money every time we leave the house, just fresh air and lots of time to read and relax. Really it sounds ideal. Nothing to do but rest and enjoy ourselves. Yet, I am scared. I can't help but wonder - what if they don't like us, what if it is incredibly awkward, what if we can't communicate because our broken Malay is more than simply broken, and worst of all, what if we end up talking to no one but each other. None of these things are truly awful. In fact, we are very accustomed to feeling awkward and misunderstood so much so that neither one of us bothers trying to explain anything anymore - oh, you are a student from Jordan married to a local Malay guy, well, no not exactly, your from Jordan, yes? yes, yes sure I am, I am from Jordan married a local guy study chemistry, whatever you say mister. Considering also that we happen to prefer each other's company to just about anyone else's, the worst situation won't even be a bad thing. Still I don't know what to expect and that does worry me.

Everything is set though. I called my friends in the village yesterday and they said they are 'ready and waiting for our arrival'. Wonder what that means - is the house full of furniture, cleaned, are they going to have a feast planned for the day of our arrival, or are they just hanging out as they always do ready for us to join them? Man, I really do not like all the unknowns. It will be so nice to settle in their tomorrow and start to get a sense of what the next two months have in store for us.

Truth be told, the thing that Ben and I are probably most excited about is the fact that this is our first step on the road home. Its hard to believe but we will be heading back to the US in a little over 2 months and everyday we get more excited at the thought of it. Its funny how homesickness appears just when the reality of going home becomes tangible. I remember being tortured my last two weeks in Mongolia by thoughts of home, even as I had a great time traveling across the country. I have a feeling the next two months will be the same.

We will definitely try to keep you posted on all the ups and downs. According to our friends, there are actually 12 computers with internet at the local library but Ben and I are not counting on it. Given our experience with the internet at the National University and the National Library, where getting online is a rare occurrence, we have decided not to get our hopes up. On the other hand, this is Malaysia so it would make complete sense that a library in a small village in the middle of nowhere has a super fast and reliable internet connection, while their 'premier' institutions can't manage to stay online for more than five minutes a day. If the local library proves to be a no go, we are not far from a pretty big town where there are plenty of internet cafes. So worse case scenario we will be checking in a few times a month.

Until then, take care and enjoy the spring weather for us.