Internationalmatt's Blog

This blog is about my international friends and their inspiring stories

Malaysia Night 2012 – Delicious Food and Teh Tarik

One aspect of experiencing other cultures that I enjoy is tasting their food. One afternoon during one of my trips to Romania my group wanted to go to McDonald’s for lunch, which I did not want to do because I can always have junk food anytime. When I spend time with another culture, I want to experience their food. It helps me to learn about their culture and allows me to experience new taste sensations. The food at Malaysia night was tasty, but not as spicy as I thought it might be.  They may have toned it down for the Americans :)

My friend Tu from Vietnam volunteered in the buffet line

For our dinner we had a buffet line and could choose from colored rice, fried chicken, stir fry, and other delicious items. The only thing I did not try was the roasted coconut. I sat at a table with people I had not met before, but had the chance to meet two young men from China who are working on their Master’s Degrees in Actuarial Science. I did sneak back for seconds, but there was only some sweet and sour chicken left, which of course is Americanized Chinese food :)

At the end of the evening they served all of the guests Teh Tarik which is a tea made with tea, sweeten condensed milk, and a little salt. It was a night of good food, a humorous musical, good music, and information about Malaysia. If I have a chance in the future, I will visit Malaysia. I will for sure go back to Malaysia Night next year.

April 4, 2012 Posted by | Experiences of international friends, food, International Friendships, international students, Internationals, Malaysia | Leave a Comment

Malaysia Night at UNL- A Talented Singer and Musicians

During our enjoyable evening at Malaysia Night there was a poignant moment when a music trio performed for us. It was music in simplistic beauty. Two young women played acoustic guitars and another young woman sang beautifully for us. I feel bad that the program did not list their names, so I can give due credit to them, nevertheless, I want to share with you about that moment.

The first song was one dedicated to her mom. I am certain if her mother is able to see the recording, she will be touched deeply. The song was sung in Malay with English translation on the screen. Personally, I enjoy listening to music sung in other languages. It adds to the beauty of the moment for me. The singer has a wonderful voice and it was a joy to listen to her.

The second song they performed was a contemporary Chinese song. The young people from China that I was sitting with recognized the song right away. I thought about how impressive it is that a young woman could sing in Malay and Chinese and can study at UNL in English. She is obviously a talented young woman.

What impressed me about their performance is the fact that they are not professionals, but they performed so well. It was a special moment in the midst of a fun-filled evening. I wonder if they will be famous musicians in Malaysia someday :)

April 2, 2012 Posted by | Experiences of international friends, International Friendships, international students, Internationals, Malaysia | Leave a Comment

Malaysia Night at UNL 2012- Teh Tarik A Magical Musical

I went to a festive event at UNL last night. I always enjoy going to Malaysia Night at UNL. This one was special and stood out to me as far as the entertainment was concerned. They had a humorous musical with a story about the Queen of Magika being frozen to a door which was the entrance to Reality Land. The two main characters set out on an amusing journey to collect the ingredients needed to make their special tea, Teh Tarik. Once they had the Teh Tarik they were able to give it to the Queen and she was freed.

Woven into the musical were introductions to Malaysia and the three cultures that combine to make Malaysia the special country that it is. Malaysia has three distinct groups that live together as one country. The groups are of Malay, Chinese and India descent. I especially enjoyed the dance number which displayed all three distinct cultures.

One number that was also fun was when the duo went to Borneo to obtain the magic teabag. The ruler of Borneo asked them to get the feather off a bird in exchange for the tea. The bird dance was lively and watching the duo try to get a feather was amusing.

In the end the duo was able to get all of the ingredients and save the Queen of Magika. The musical was entertaining and I appreciated the fact that it was performed by students at UNL. It was not a professional theater group, which made it much more fun for me. It was hilarious how they worked various aspects of student life into the musical such a an iKnow device which was a spoof of an iPhone.

I had a great time and look forward to future Malaysia Nights. One of these years I will have to go visit Malaysia and see some of the culture there for myself, but for now I will enjoy Malaysia Night each year :)

April 1, 2012 Posted by | Experiences of international friends, International Friendships, international students, Internationals, Malaysia | Leave a Comment

Malaysia Night at UNL- Mystique the Musical Comedy

Malaysia Night began with the drum performance which was a interesting peek into traditional Malaysian Culture. The performers drummed while also doing a dance performance.

During dinner we were entertained by a music group which played some good tunes. Sounded like some cool jazz music. One of the women in the audience gave the singer a flower.

The entertainment for the rest of evening was a musical comedy about two young Americans starting a date in a restaurant and meeting a host who ends up giving them a tour of Malaysia to teach them about the country and culture. There were miss steps along the way which were amusing. The host had locked his mischievious counterpart behind a door and the young woman opened the door she was warned not to open which led to obstacles along the way. The young couple made it back to the restaurant eventually and in the end the host and his counterpart reconciled. All through the adventure we learned more about Malaysia.

March 11, 2010 Posted by | Cutural Celebrations, International Friendships, Internationals, Malaysia | Leave a Comment

Malaysia Night at UNL premiered possible future Bollywood stars :)

I was impressed by the talent of the people who danced the various dances at Malaysia Night. I enjoyed the Malay dances and the Tamil Dances. They are high energy and lively. Think of an old Elvis Presley  only with more colorful clothing and dancing that is more energetic. The people who performed are also full time students, so they do not have a  lot of time to practice, which makes their performances even more impressive. I thought some of the dancers could go on to become Bollywood Stars.

Laviania danced with enthusiasm and joy. She smiled the whole time and had great energy.

Laviania in the middle

Hardik was really into the dance. He had very high energy and it was obvious he had a blast on stage.

Hardik left front

Laviania and Hardik both might have a future in Bollywood, Malay or Tamil movies. I look forward to Malaysia Night next year.

March 10, 2010 Posted by | Cutural Celebrations, international fashion and crafts, Internationals, Malaysia | 1 Comment

Malaysia Night at UNL- Lively Dancing

One aspect of Malaysia Night that I looked forward to was the music and dancing. Last year it was my favorite part and this year it was once again lively and entertaining. In Malaysia they have the Malay people but also people whose ancestors came from India and people whose ancestors came from China, so there are different dance and  music styles.

In one of the dance performances three young women danced a Chinese Style dance. It was fun and interesting to watch. I am always amazed by people who can do movements like the ones in their dance. I am lucky to not bump into things in real life, so I know there is no way I could do what they did. Their dance was artistic.

The India style dance was lively. I thought a few of the dancers could be in a Bollywood movie. Bollywood music is full of energy and so much fun to watch. When I watch that kind of performance, it makes me wish I could do it, but then reality sets in and I know there is absolutely no way I could. It is a blast to watch though.

The night was awesome and I plan to go again next year. I have this image in my mind of me going to Malaysia and people dancing everywhere, but I know that is not the case. I do however have the impression that life in Malaysia is fascinating.

March 7, 2010 Posted by | Cutural Celebrations, international fashion and crafts, International Friendships, Malaysia | Leave a Comment

Malaysia Night at UNL- Good Food, Good Fun and Good Friends

Malaysia Night is a time I was looking forward because of my experience with it last year. It was a blast last year and it was a lot of fun this year too. I sat at a table with my friend Yoshio from Japan, a man from Haiti, a woman from Malaysia, a woman from Thailand and a young American couple. The food was delicious and my favorite was the Yellow Chicken Curry. They introduced dinner time in a fun way by having people wearing fruit costumes walk in and up to the stage.

The entertainment began with a Malaysian drum performance which I thoroughly enjoyed. They played the drums while also performing a dance routine. Playing drums and doing a dance movement at the same time is something I could never do, so I appreciate anyone who can.

For me one of the highlight of evenings like Malaysia Night is they give me an opportunity to see some friends,  some I see a lot, and some that I do not see often. It is great to catch up with them a little.

me with my old friend Yoshio from Japan

Malaysia Night was a fun filled evening and I plan to go again next year. It also made me wish I could go to Malaysia someday to experience their culture in person.

March 7, 2010 Posted by | Cutural Celebrations, International Friendships, Internationals, Malaysia | 2 Comments

   

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