Saturday, March 13, 2004
High Society
Rubbing elbows
I went to a Fulbright Convention closing dinner last week, taking Kin with me as backup. The event was in a ballroom at a nice hotel. As the food was brought in, the lights were dimmed, candles lit up the platters brought to each table and a spotlight scanned the room. It was...well, high class.
To my right sat Ramli Ibrahim, a former Fulbrighter to the US (lecturing about shamanism). He is a dancer and owns a studio, which I intend to go to soon to see a performance. He said that he'd had some problems before with the Religious Council because he was a Muslim doing Hindu temple dances (some of which are outlawed in the two most conservative states in the east).
I also saw Mano Maniam, a man I had met at a Hari Raya party. It was only later that was told he had been in "Anna and the King" and is a local actor quite well-known. He's also the head of the Fulbright Alumni Association here in Malaysia. I spoke with him again that night and he invited Kin and I to a book opening a few days later.
Bridget came along, as she was in town again on her way to Australia. (The madness with all these links was also an idea stolen from her!) The book being released was called "Malaysian Flavours." It turns out it's a book written in English with short chapters about Malaysian culture and idiosyncracies (the mangling of the English language; the use of abbreviations like KL, PJ, KB, etc for cities or ABC for food; saying "lah" at the end of sentences; etc). Mano and some of his actor friends acted out some sketches of different points made in the book--very entertaining. I got the references and understood about half, so I guess I'll have to read the book to figure out the rest of it! The book itself isn't very well-written, but I decided it'd be good for future trips down memory lanes. On the wall of the restaurant where the event was held...was a picture of Ramli Ibrahim, the dancer I'd sat next to!
And, just last night, I was flipping channels and came upon a new sitcom that Mano is in!
Related because , though more outdated: Bridget and I went to a Gamelan concert at the Filharmonik (everything here is phonetic!). It was a great, great concert. Too bad Erika hadn't been here yet because she took a Gamelan music class this past fall. Gongs, chimes, sitar, guitar, finger cymbals, drums and fabulous vocalists. The group playing was called Rhythm in Bronze. I have to find out when they perform next!
Connecting
The 7th Annual UN Conference on Biological Diversity was held in KL about a month ago.
* I got an email notice from the NGO I volunteer with about a lecture...given by a Yale friend's father!
*I had been emailing organizations in Africa about doing some work with them next year. It turns out Lucy, a Kenyan woman who founded Indigenous Information Network, was coming to town for the conference. I arranged a meeting with her and walked away with an invitation to come volunteer, live in her house in Nairobi and after a month or so, go out to the rural area and live with the Maasai people!
Coincidences
This is starting to freak me out
There are many people I mean to email...last week I was finally motivated to get back into touch with a college classmate I haven't talked to since graduation almost two years ago. She was in my mind because she's Vietnamese American and had been back to visit for a summer and I'm going to Vietnam at the end of the month.
Weeeeeellllllllllll, so is she and another Yalie I know!
How weird is that?!
I already bought my ticket, but I'm doing some investigative work about cancelling it and getting a new one so that I can go to the Central Highlands where they'll be (one will be there doing research for work) for a few days, before meeting up with Keith (high school friend) in Saigon. (Then we're going to Cambodia overland and ending up in Bangkok for Thai New Year).
Crazy.
Rubbing elbows
I went to a Fulbright Convention closing dinner last week, taking Kin with me as backup. The event was in a ballroom at a nice hotel. As the food was brought in, the lights were dimmed, candles lit up the platters brought to each table and a spotlight scanned the room. It was...well, high class.
To my right sat Ramli Ibrahim, a former Fulbrighter to the US (lecturing about shamanism). He is a dancer and owns a studio, which I intend to go to soon to see a performance. He said that he'd had some problems before with the Religious Council because he was a Muslim doing Hindu temple dances (some of which are outlawed in the two most conservative states in the east).
I also saw Mano Maniam, a man I had met at a Hari Raya party. It was only later that was told he had been in "Anna and the King" and is a local actor quite well-known. He's also the head of the Fulbright Alumni Association here in Malaysia. I spoke with him again that night and he invited Kin and I to a book opening a few days later.
Bridget came along, as she was in town again on her way to Australia. (The madness with all these links was also an idea stolen from her!) The book being released was called "Malaysian Flavours." It turns out it's a book written in English with short chapters about Malaysian culture and idiosyncracies (the mangling of the English language; the use of abbreviations like KL, PJ, KB, etc for cities or ABC for food; saying "lah" at the end of sentences; etc). Mano and some of his actor friends acted out some sketches of different points made in the book--very entertaining. I got the references and understood about half, so I guess I'll have to read the book to figure out the rest of it! The book itself isn't very well-written, but I decided it'd be good for future trips down memory lanes. On the wall of the restaurant where the event was held...was a picture of Ramli Ibrahim, the dancer I'd sat next to!
And, just last night, I was flipping channels and came upon a new sitcom that Mano is in!
Related because , though more outdated: Bridget and I went to a Gamelan concert at the Filharmonik (everything here is phonetic!). It was a great, great concert. Too bad Erika hadn't been here yet because she took a Gamelan music class this past fall. Gongs, chimes, sitar, guitar, finger cymbals, drums and fabulous vocalists. The group playing was called Rhythm in Bronze. I have to find out when they perform next!
Connecting
The 7th Annual UN Conference on Biological Diversity was held in KL about a month ago.
* I got an email notice from the NGO I volunteer with about a lecture...given by a Yale friend's father!
*I had been emailing organizations in Africa about doing some work with them next year. It turns out Lucy, a Kenyan woman who founded Indigenous Information Network, was coming to town for the conference. I arranged a meeting with her and walked away with an invitation to come volunteer, live in her house in Nairobi and after a month or so, go out to the rural area and live with the Maasai people!
Coincidences
This is starting to freak me out
There are many people I mean to email...last week I was finally motivated to get back into touch with a college classmate I haven't talked to since graduation almost two years ago. She was in my mind because she's Vietnamese American and had been back to visit for a summer and I'm going to Vietnam at the end of the month.
Weeeeeellllllllllll, so is she and another Yalie I know!
How weird is that?!
I already bought my ticket, but I'm doing some investigative work about cancelling it and getting a new one so that I can go to the Central Highlands where they'll be (one will be there doing research for work) for a few days, before meeting up with Keith (high school friend) in Saigon. (Then we're going to Cambodia overland and ending up in Bangkok for Thai New Year).
Crazy.
