Stranger in a Strange Land

It took 3 flights, 1 missed connection, 5 movies, 6 meals and 21 hours to reach Borneo but I'm finally here and dead tired. Malaysia is exactly 12 hours ahead of New York so when it's midnight here it's only noon time in Albany. The 'ol internal clock is preciously tuned for eastern standard time so this might take a day or two to get used to.

Minutes after landing at Kuala Lumpur airport, a destiny in itself, it dons on me that my wardrobe is completely unacceptable. My new little sleeveless sun dress cut right above the knee screams Westerner and I'm feeling Islamic eyes casting disapproving glances. They're right, of course. I should have known that Malaysia is one of the few countries in the world where Christians, Muslims, Buddhists and Hindu's live peacefully side-by-side because of the mutual respect and tolerance each have for one and another's religion. I'll be stocking up on tudongs (headscarfs) and sarongs as soon as I hit the market stalls. That also means I'll be abstaining from alcohol unless I'm invited into a tribal longhouse for a token glass of tuak (rice wine). But more on longhouses and meeting with tuai rumahs (chiefs) next week.

On the last leg of the trip to Kuching, Borneo I grab the local Sun newspaper and sift through the crime briefs. "Man's appeal to reduce jail term for theft rejected," says one headline. A 31 year old man snatched a necklace from a woman on the streets of Georgetown and got 30 months behind bars for it. The Judge declared "You have to be responsible for your actions. You blame others when you should blame yourself for your weak self-control." Another article explains how a former welder and salesman were each sentenced to 14 years in jail and 10 strokes of the rotan (a whipping) by the High Courts for drug possession. The 42 and 26 year olds were guilty of possessing 11 grams of cannabis and 3 grams of Methamphetamines at an apartment in the city of Batu.

I'm guessing that strict Islamic enforcement measures and continuous coverage of the results deter crime and help make the country safer for all; but, still it shakes me to the core reading about petty offenses with such dire consequences.