Thoughts from Malcolm on his host community:

The first walk I took through my community was both eye opening and beautiful. We walked up a hill to the south most edge of our community. It smelled like dust and mangoes. At the top of the hill there was a bamboo hut that was half finished, rough and very muddy. It was a good representation of what I thought my home would be like before I arrived to my community.

After that brief walk, we hiked back to the northern most side of our community. I felt sweaty and tired because of the heat and the humidity. The view was amazing, I could see from the top of the mountains to the bottom of the waterfalls, things I never come into contact with at home. I was hotter than I had ever been in my life. I felt out of place in my community but at the same time I had a strange feeling of acceptance. Like I was support to be at the top of that hill listening to the chickens, dogs, and pigs right at that moment. In my home there are no chickens or pigs. Even hills are irregular. I smiled, looking across at the mountains. I was excited to learn about this new side of the world.