mymemoirs: John Curtin Weekend 2012

Another year has passed, and this was the third time I followed John Curtin Weekend. Seriously, this is the best experience I had, and it was awesome! This longhouse, Rumah Linggi is quite far from town, around one hour of bus trip, and it's located around Bekenu area. Stunning landscape, I would say, with all the greens surround the longhouse, I am in heaven!

The moment we arrived, well of course, it was all the awkward moments. But eventually, the momentum went on. We were greeted with warm welcome from the residents, and they overflowed us with drinks and refreshments. They made sure that our cups were full always! After the session, the head of the trip, Jonathan, well Jonathan Guan, we have three Jonathans with us for the trip! He divided us to respective foster homes, and we lived in these homes for the rest of the trip. Me and Martin were divided into home number 38, and our foster parents are sweet and nice! After we settled down for a while, we were served with dinner. I have to admit, the dinner wasn't from the best cook, nor from the best materials, but certainly, it was packed with the warmth of the family, and the taste was so natural! But I didn't eat that much for the first meal.

After dinner, we gathered round at the verandah, and we introduced ourselves. Then, the real event started. It all began with the traditional dance, and everyone was given a chance to try. Well, they kept stuffing us with their homemade liquor, namely tuak, and langkau, which would send you dozing off. Even the heavy drinkers had problems dealing with these unknown-alcohol-level liquor, left alone those amateurs! Of course, I was one of them, I didn't get drunk, I was still with my sense, just that my head felt like cracking into half. Few of us were overwhelmed by the alcohol, vomited, and dropped on the floor. Chill guys, these are familiar scenes for JCW! For sure, it was a good night sleep!

The second day wasn't a packed day as well. We went around the village and cleared up trashes. There were educational modules for the children, but we weren't involved, at least physically. We did help out a bit. Then the morning was gone. In the afternoon, we were brought to their garden. It wasn't that big, but they planted peppers! Evening was awesome as well! Our foster brother brought us to the river to bathe! It's a fairly deep river, and certainly it was refreshing! Night time was another letting all out night! Peeps were drinking, and dancing the whole night. Everyone had gone crazy! Well, some of us were smart enough to avoid themselves to be pulled into the cyclone, and we gathered at one house, having a nice chat with the foster parents. We shared our experiences, chatted on random topics, and it was a long nice chat!

It was the last day, and everyone woke up late. Around 1 in the afternoon, we were brought to their palm oil farm, which was located quite a distance from their homes. We rode behind the pick ups, and it was fun!

Finally, it was time for home. Our foster parents gave Martin and me a hand woven straw mat each! It was touching, for the straw mat needs time to produce! I will certainly miss them, and I would certainly join Johm Curtin Weekend again!