Finding a new appreciation for "Paradise in Malaysia"

Aside from perhaps our first lazy weekend in Bali, we've always tried to experience the local culture, learn some history, and enjoy a little beach and relaxation time during our travels.  If you were to ask Jennifer or me to name a favorite destination, it would be quite difficult, but Batu Batu would be close to the top of both our lists.

This week, Jennifer and I both gained a much greater appreciation for the tiny island of Pulau Tengah, on which Batu Batu sits, and I felt compelled to share the story.

Pulau Tengah, Malaysia

It started when we were discussing one of Sophia's latest homework assignments..."identify and define several events that have caused humans to migrate."  This was a follow-up assignment to another from a week or so ago when she worked on tracing back the roots of her ancestors.  Thanks for the help on that one Grandmas and Grandpas!  Side note, turns out I'm a mix of Prussian, German, and Swiss, and some of Jennifer's relatives are also from somewhere in Eastern Europe / Russia.    Makes me wonder why we both hate snow so much??

Anyway - as if her assignment on "causes of human migration" wasn't enough to make me realize how much smarter she is than me, her first few answers regarding European migration to America for better opportunities, and her understanding of the Chernobyl and Fukushima disasters when we discussed them, made it crystal clear.

Borrowed Photo - Pulau Tengah 1970s
(Current "Long Beach" at Batu Batu ?)

As we discussed other potential causes for migration, I mentioned refugees, thinking mostly about the current situation in Syria.  Soon, however, we shifted gears and talked about the 100,000 or more refugees who were crammed onto the tiny island of Pulau Tengah for up to two years at a time as they fled Vietnam in the 1970s.

The fact that Sophia had been to the island, and we are visiting Vietnam in a few months, made the lesson that much more impactful and personal.  Once we found a few blogs and web pages built and maintained over the last few years by some of the refugees themselves, it became a special, emotional learning experience for all of us.

For anyone who read our original post on Batu Batu, you may recall the brief history of the island (Pulau Tengah) on which Batu Batu is located.  At only a mile wide and several miles off the coast of Malaysia, the island has been inhabited by only three known groups of people.  Vietnamese refugees in the 1970s and 1980s, the crew and cast of Expedition Robinson (Swedish version of Survivor) from 1998-2010, and currently, the staff and guests of the Batu Batu resort.

As we talked and read about the Vietnamese refugees on Pulau Tengah and other islands in the South China Sea, it really made our relaxing weekends of swimming, eating, and dock diving at Batu Batu seem quite trivial... let alone the filming of a reality show.

Several first hand accounts from refugees who successfully reached the islands, spoke of late night escapes from Vietnam on small, overcrowded "mock fishing boats", without any real sense of where they were headed.  Anywhere but there, was a better option for many, it seemed.

Borrowed Photo - Refugee Boats

For many, the success of getting past border patrols was just the beginning of a potentially hellish experience.  Many died at sea due to weather and exposure.  Others met even more sinister fates when they came across pirates or other vessels at sea, who took what they wanted (including women and children) and killed the remainder of the passengers on board.

For those who made it safely to one of many islands in the Gulf of Thailand and South China Sea, conditions weren't much better and in some case considerably worse.  As I read about several islands off the coast of Thailand, it was clear that death at sea might not have been such a bad end.  Needless to say, I didn't share the graphic nature of many of these stories with Sophia...at 10 years old, she's not quite ready for that learning experience yet.

For those who were fortunate enough to escape Vietnam, avoid the pirates, and bribe their way past patrols, reaching a UN refugee camp began the transition to a new life in Europe, Australia, or the US.  While not all survived long enough to reach their new life abroad, due to poor conditions and lengthy waits for approvals to enter a new host country, hundreds of thousands did.

By nearly all accounts I read regarding Pulau Tengah, life as a refugee at the UN camp on the island was significantly better than the alternatives in Thailand or at sea.  It obviously wasn't perfect, and a hugely different experience than anything I could ever imagine, but for many, it sounds as though they have very fond memories of what must have been a chaotic, exciting, and terrifying experience.

Comparing 1970s Photo vs. 2013

I won't try to relay the stories that we read, as I can't possibly do them justice, but if you are interested in learning more about the "boat people" who made Pulau Tengah and other islands home, I highly recommend taking a look at these two sites:

• Returning to Pulau Tengah
• refugeecamps.net/tengah.html

For anyone in Southeast Asia interested in visiting the Batu Batu resort, I hope the stories, photos and commentary makes your visit a little more interesting.  If nothing else, it will surely make you appreciate the beautiful experience that awaits you at Batu Batu.

For those too far away to make the weekend trip to this beautiful island, I hope the information provides some insight and perspective on just how lucky most of us are.

For us, learning the history of the island was both educational and humbling.  We realize how fortunate we are to enjoy this island, and are even more anxious to return to Batu Batu (in October) to learn more about the refugee camp and to see first hand some of the artifacts that remain behind, now 30+ years later.

Comparing 1970s photo vs. 2013
"Arrival Dock Comparison"

Comparing 1970s photo vs. 2013
(Current view is of Restaurant and Lobby at Batu Batu)

Comparing 1970s photo vs. 2013
(Current "Sunset Beach" at Batu Batu)