My first impression of Borneo

I have been studying English to be a teacher in the London University for four year. The last year when I was graduated, the Dean of the University came and told us, that many countries where needing teachers as a volunteers. So I decided that I wanted to go to the South East Asia but the only place left was in Malaysia Borneo (Sabah).

He told me that the life there could be difficult but I told him that I was going. The week after this I search about Malaysia and put myself in contact with that school and the students and teachers sent me a card telling me that they were really happy about receiving me.

      Sabah is one of the 13 member states of Malaysia it is located on the northern portion of the island of Borneo. It is the second largest state in the country after Sarawak, which it borders on its southwest. It also shares a border with the province of East Kalimantan of Indonesia in the south. I will be teaching and helping in a village near by Borneo. 

      There are only 200 habitants in the village and only 40 are students and the rest are adults.

    

      When I told my parents that I was leaving to the South East Asia for a year, they were really upset and I was too. But I explain them what I was going to do and who I was really helping.

 I thought that those children and teenagers were waiting for me more than anything in the World. I was expecting a really poor village with nothing and only little things. I knew that in Borneo the landscape was beautiful and fully colors but I didn’t have a clear image of that in my head. I knew that I was going to miss my family and friends  but it was for a good reason that I was leaving London for the first time in my life.

Once I was about to land in Borneo I saw all that landscape and mountains but when I saw the color of the water I was more than amazed it was like a postal card.

The director of the school came to the airport and pick up me.

During the trip from the airport to the village, really a very long distance, I could apreciate a beautifull landscape at the rainforest fully of colors and animals as monkeys and birds.

 When I was finally in the village all the students were running and knocking on the window of the car. It was a really nice sensation that those children gave me, because they were happy that I was there and I was happy for them. They even receive me with a huge poster saying welcome to Borneo. I wasn't the unique teacher from oversea; they were teachers from Australia, Spain and from France.

The students showed me their classroom and the works that they have been doing, they also show me their pet it was a huge orangutan called Betsy she was 12 years old. At first I was a little bit scared that this huge monkey was around us but they explain me that she was very nice and polite to new people.

        At the beginning it was a little bit hard to teach these children because they were very nervous. But once I had time to knew them better, they started to be less active.

         The habitants were really nice to me they even invite me to have a dinner at their home without knowing me. They also gave me a little tour around Borneo's lakes it was really nice.

         We decided with my other teachers friends than this children needed to have more fun in the school and new ways to learn.                  

       We talked to the principal and explain her that these children were not learning because they didn’t like what we were teaching them. 

We told her that we were going to put new ways of teaching and she agreed. So we started new methods of learning with new activities, sports and other fun things.

My three-days excursion

After ten months in this project the principal of the school invited us to go on a three-day excursion around Borneo, we went to Mont Kinabalu, the Orangutans Park and we also went to Turtle Island.

Ver My three-day excursion in Borneo. en un mapa más grande

The end of my volunteering in Borneo

      After a whole year in a village near Borneo I achieve my mission as English volunteer. My students had learned very fast English and they knew how to speak. I was really happy that I came here to teach these children because they were really nice and interested for my work. I also like the work with my colleague we were really close and each weekend we went to the city to have dinner al together even the local’s teachers.                                                                      

      I learned many things from the people of the village, I learned there language, there culture, what they eat, there typical dances and the best food that they have. The food was excellent but very spicy and hot. One of the grandmothers of the children teaches me how to cook the typical plate. At beginning it was difficult for me to learn but then I learned how to do it.    

I also learn how to speak their language because we were obligated. The students use to call me “orang-orang Inggris” and I didn’t knew what it meant so I asked one day why they called me like that and they told me that it meant “the English men”  because it was the first time than they knew an English men.

This is where the village people use to do
 their celebrations.

The best experience than I had was the day that I learned how to dance, it was a really good experience and we all had a great time. The whole village was looking at me but also laughing because I didn’t know how to dance. At the end of my gap year, we did with the students a show in front of their parents and friends and they made me dance with them.

 Here we see the students drumming for the entrance of the dancers.

The entire year with these people was amazing, they had learned english and I also lernead many things as cooking, dancing and speak their native language. I will love to come back to visit them and stayed in contact with the principal of hte school and she told me that the students missed me a lot.

Here we are all together back from a football match with our students it was a really good day.