April was a pretty special month for me as my parents came out to Malaysia to visit me. It had been 8 months since I waved goodbye to them at the airport so it was so nice to see their smiling faces again, you don't realise how much you miss someone until you're reunited. One of the best things about my parents' visit was when I got to show them the amazing school I have been living and working at for the past 8 months. All the students were so excited to meet them and I'm sure they felt like celebrities, just as we did in our first few weeks here. Everyone is so interested in you and waves at you from across the halls. I even took them into my form 1 class where we were doing an interview project so I made them interview my parents' and they came up with some very interesting questions. It was extremely strange to have these two parts of my life collide but it was great for them to see exactly what I'm doing in Malaysia for themselves and experience what my life is like here.
Dad on Mersing beach
Fave Girls
With 1 Bima
After a few days in Mersing I went off on holiday with my parents for a week. Firstly, I took the ferry from Mersing jetty to a small island off the coast of Johor where we were staying at a resort. This was extremely beautiful: clear blue water, white sandy beaches and a treetop villa. We stayed here for 3 days relaxing in the Malaysian heat and swimming in the warm sea. The best part about this trip was witnessing a baby turtle hatching and then being released into the wild. It was so cool to see the work the turtle sanctuary was doing on the island and after speaking to the coordinator there we may be planning a school trip to the sanctuary with some of our students!
Island Paradise
Swimming in the sea
Dad and I
The beautiful Batu Batu resort on Tengah Island
Baby turtle just hatched
After a few days on Tengah Island we hopped on a bus to Singapore. This was a much different experience to the last time I went to Singapore as I swapped the dingy dorm bed in a hostel for a luxury double bed in the infamous Marina Bay Sands hotel. I will never get over the stark difference between Singapore and Malaysia even though only a bridge separates the two. We had a good time browsing (not buying!) in the luxury shops, went for a Singapore sling at Raffles hotel, bought souvenirs in Chinatown and took full advantage of the amazing underground Metro system. However undoubtedly my favourite part of the Singapore trip was getting to swim in one of the highest infinity pools in the world- on the 57th floor of our hotel. It had breathtaking views and was definitely a tick off my bucket list!
Our Hotel
Chinatown, Singapore
What a view
The infinity pool of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel
After Singapore we hopped on another bus to Melaka, Malaysia. I had heard a lot about Melaka and had wanted to visit for a long time so it was nice to finally get to see what all the fuss is about. Melaka is a UNESCO world heritage city, deservedly so, and still holds many Portuguese, Dutch and British influences in the town. Melaka is filled with lots of beautiful artwork lining the walls and intricate buildings lining the streets and is not a site to be missed when in Malaysia. We went on a cute river cruise when we were there and I even won a competition in the Hard Rock Cafe. All in all it was a cute little city and I would definitely visit again.
Cute little church in Melaka
Melaka river cruise
The best breakfast at the Daily Fix cafe, Melaka
Street art in Melaka
Finally we headed to KL where it was time to say goodbye- again! However it was not as sad as I will be seeing them a lot sooner this time and I'll be home before they know it. I had the best holiday with my family and it was so good to be able to show and share with them everything I love about my second home, Malaysia.
Mum and I
Squad Goals
Last night in KL
Eventually, after my bus to Mersing broke down twice, 7 and a half hours later I was reunited with Sophie and Hollie and got back into the swing of things. I can't tell you how many interviews I have done in the past few weeks from form ones but it has been fun to interact with them, such cuties. We have also been taking Saturday slots with students from the other schools in Mersing to help with their English. It's always nice to meet new faces and people in the community and help even more people. We try and make these slots a bit more fun than normal classroom activities, since it's a Saturday after all, and they seemed to enjoy so that's always good!
Slots with SMK Mersing
Form 1 Cuties
Last weekend we ventured to MRSM JB for ' SUZONS'- a staff sports competition. We initially thought we were going to play netball but in the end our team didn't need us so we were just cheerleaders all weekend. It was nice to see other volunteers again and also was a good bonding experience for us with the staff at our school, many of whom we don't get to speak to much. Lots of laughs were had and Mersing did surprisingly well getting the 3rd highest total number of points out of the 16 schools that were there!
Mersing Squad at SUZONS
Malays killin' badminton
Netball team
I can't believe how fast time is going and that I only have 14 weeks left in Malaysia!! It always makes me sad thinking about leaving so I'm just going to focus on all the exciting things we have planned for our last few weeks here.
I will definitely miss sunsets on the beach...
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