Shu Woan's third phase In Expedition 09B - Part 3 of 3

“Rozi won’t be joining us here in Kg. Rugading. He has quit the expedition.” Fi broke the news to me.

I wasn’t upset at all. I only felt that it was his lost, he was one phase away from finishing. One phase away from being called a ‘venturer’.

Kg. Rugading is a deserted village. All the villagers that once reside here have migrated to the nearby Kg. Kinapulidan. Leaving their homes and their land behind. All because there is no water supply in Kg. Rugading. It has been 3 years. Nothing was done. There are only wooden houses yang hampir roboh and cows wondering around the village. And us living in a house that has an awesome view of Mount Kinabalu. Being the last phase, we had to complete whatever was left to do in the Gravity Water Feed System. Which include finishing the wall of the dam, laying out the pipes and water storage tanks, connecting the pipes and attaching taps. Generally easier than what I did in Batu Puteh.

Being the only HCV (host country venturer) around, and no other locals to interact with, I did not have problem ‘balancing my time’ between different groups of people. I did so much with this group that I’ve not done with my previous groups. Mafia after dinner. Mozzie net chats. Bedtime stories. Hide and seek in the dark. I was a carefree venturer.

In an earlier one-to-one session with Fi, I told her that I wanted to be ‘mentally challenged’ this phase. I wanted to feel that I could ‘rise to the occasion and overcome any obstacle’. How innocent of me. This challenge came gradually, before I realise, I was overwhelmed.

It all began with translating between Uncle Jamirin (the person in charge there) and the PMs after working hours (while everyone else were doing poi, abs session, writing in their diaries...). Then day leaders would ask me what were we to do for the day. What tools do we need to bring along? How many people would we need for a certain job? Is the ground leveled enough? Are the poles a bit too high? I have no freaking idea! I felt like I was the Phase Leader. It got to a stage where I was so pressured I just cried in my mozzie net. Most of the time, I carried on translating or answering just so that the job will get done. A few days towards the end I begin telling people that I am only a venturer, stop throwing me with questions I cannot answer. Things became better.

On the day of the opening ceremony of the Gravity Water Feed System, quite a few journalists turned up. I have no clue which newspaper were they from. Most All of them were only interested in getting interviews from my non-Malaysian group members. But some were so shy to even ask for their names that they enlisted my help to get their details. When the news came out the next day, almost everyone’s name was mentioned in at least one newspaper. Except mine. Celaka betul! Geramnya...

Shu Woan

Editor's Note: If you had missed out on Phase 1, read on here for Phase 2, read on here. Want to experience the amazing experience Shu Woan had in Borneo? Expedition Summer09 July is still open. Contact Expedition Officer now!