An update from the team after their remote community service project in Sarawak
It has been a long and eventful week for all the travellers of Team A!
On Monday morning we had an early start to get everything packed and ready for Long Latei. The trip there was quite amazing in itself. We travelled on two boats and a car to reach the village. The group found the boats to be an experience as we were allowed to ride (safely) on top of them. Later that night we arrived in Long Latei where most of the village were waiting to catch a glimpse of the group before tea time. Most of the kids were very shy however the adults made sure we were quite welcome with a good feed and a place to sleep.
The next morning we had a debriefing from our guides Henry, Samcia and Satang after breakfast (noodles and fried rice). They explained what was culturally acceptable and also explained about the various features of the household. This included how to use the squat toilet and tub 'shower'! It was then time to get to work! We wandered down to the pre-school and began our first task which was to clean up around the pre-school. We also painted and mosquito-proofed the building. During our work we had various breaks in which we discovered the beautiful river in the village! The group swam, dived and played in the beautiful water. We were all very tired however were proud of the days work.
The second day was similar to the first. Todays task was to paint the ceiling of the pre-school and also the outside. We went to the river again (which was quickly becoming the groups favourite spot) to cool off. Whilst we were there we were amazed to see young boys swinging off trees into the water and climbing higher and higher each time. It got to a point where they were dropping from nearly 20m making the groups extremely tense each time they jumped.That afternoon the kids played a game of soccer and volleyball which eventually escalated into a mud fight. Finally to get all the mud off with we got a chance to play with them in the water where there was a lot of splashing and fun. At night time, after our showers we once again played with the kids by running around, tickling, taking photos and playing marathon sessions of 'duck, duck, goose'.
Day three was just as eventful as the previous days. By now we were really starting to feel accepted into the village as the children gave us a hand with the project. They painted the outside with some of the girls as other stabalised the inside of the pre-school. In the afternoon a few girls organised water bombs which the group and the children thoroughly enjoyed. In the afternoon we set to work for the final time by picking up rubbish from all around the village with the help of the children. We all went home that day thinking about how we were not going to want to leave Long Latei.
Our last day in Long Latei was truly memorable. We had breakfast before heading to a local waterfall. The trip there was quite challenging as there were many hills that needed to be climbed to reach our destination. Once we reach the waterfall though it was absolutely beautiful. The top of a waterfall extended into a river that ran through a rainforest which we tredged through until we reached a second waterfall. The group just could not help ourselves and swam underneath it. It was great as we were able to go under far enough under to reach a little ledge on the other side. After a little while we wandered back up to the river to find that the ladies from the village had prepared lunch at the base of the waterfall. The walk back was quite eventful as it bagan to rain causing the path to become very slipery. There were quite a few spectacular falls but everyone eventually made it safely back to house. With a free afternoon we decided to pack and play with all our friends. That night the village put on a a goodbye performance and ceremoney which involved speeches and their traditional dances! We were absolutely amazed however were horrified when we were asked to dance! Our final day could not have been more fun!
We left today with many tearful farewells as we said goodbye to our friends that we had made. The trip back to Miri was quite long and we were all very grateful to get out of the car after 6 hours. We went back to the Highland hotel and after dinner wandered around the markets occasionally buying souvineers for friends and family members. We are all very tired but extremely grateful for the time we spent in Long Latei and connot wait for more fun in Kota Kinabalu.
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