Have You Been to Long Pa’sia?

Guest Article Written by Griffin Kammerer Swarthmore College Since week one of school my students have been asking me a question, “Sir, have you been to Long Pa'sia yet?” Tragically, it would take me another seven months to finally reach the village and understand why they were so eager to ask me such a question. …

Let There Be Light

Guest Article written by Meghan Gunn Washington University in St. Louis On a July night somewhere in the Borneo jungle, I share a twin size mattress with two girls. They guess they are around 16, but age doesn’t seem to matter here and neither does time, the day’s progression still guided by the sun’s movements …

The View from Immersion

Guest article by Alena JaAgnes Scott College As I looked at my students bobbing on tip toes in the impossibly clear Sabah ocean, I could see their hesitation. I had cheered them on as they ran down the beach after their scuba instructors, for many their first time seeing the ocean, watched as their enthusiasm …

Over the Mountains and through the Woods

Guest article by Janna Babad State University of New York, Geneseo, NY If you live in Kota Belud, Sabah, there are a few unspoken things that everyone knows: that all one way streets turn into two way streets after sundown, that the G-Mart only sells Parmesan cheese on Mondays, so you better get there first, …

Into the Abstract

Guest Article by Joey Krenz  University of Minnesota, Twin Cities              When I applied for a Fulbright ETA grant in Malaysia, the last place I expected to be living was up in the mountains.  Fast-forward to January 2017 and I’m living in Ranau, a small town at the base of Mt. Kinabalu on the island …

Where the Doors Stay Open

Guest Article by Shayna CitrenbaumPomona College Raya (Eid al-Fitr) is like this: the eighth house of the day all in pink and the whole family matching, pink and shiny, my student with the kind eyes saying “pow pow” and me supplying the word “fireworks,” hearing tambah lagi tambah lagi and Meg's giggle over how much …