Balik Kampung: Malaysian Village Life

When most people think of Malaysia, they probably picture the iconic Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur.

KL is indeed a vibrant, sprawling capital city, home to about 25% of Malaysia’s 32 million people. Travel around the Klang Valley and you’ll encounter stadiums, skyscrapers, universities, and megamalls.

But there’s another side of Malaysia that most people don’t see: a vast rural expanse of small villages and large agriculture. Most of the country is green and hilly and covered in palm trees.

Many younger Malaysians have a foot in both worlds, growing up in a village before moving to the city for school or work. There’s a phrase here called “Balik Kampung” which means “going back to your hometown”. It’s a cultural phenomenon around the holidays when millions of Malaysians return to their rural roots.

Of course nobody has been doing much balik kampung lately. Thanks to this interminable pandemic, Malaysia has had strict bans on road trips and reunions. Fortunately, my wife and I were able to relocate last year before our daughter was born, and we’ve since gotten the full kampung experience.

I never really expected to stay here this long. We’ve been planning a move to the States, but an assortment of medical, immigration, and covid related issues keep pushing our departure date back and back and back.

In the meantime, we’re enjoying a slower pace of life, and getting a proper immersion into Malaysia’s kampung culture. Our village is not exactly tiny. There are hundreds of homes and thousands of people. But it is quite remote. Here we are on the map.

As you can see, there are only two roads in and out, and the entire area is surrounded by palm plantations and rubber trees.

We live in a very nice house that’s been renovated extensively over the years. 

Most kampung homes seem to start as modest wooden dwellings that expand over time. Sometimes you can see the progression through the home’s different sections.

We have all your modern amenities: WiFi, air conditioning, satellite TV. Though we don’t have trash service so we burn garbage in the backyard.

Our water is stored in a big tank on the roof, and all the sinks drain outside to these gutters that run down to the street.

Most of the neighborhoods I’ve encountered are lush and colorful, with beautiful gardens and homes carved right out of the jungle.

Tropical living affords all kinds of edible plants. In our yard alone we have coconuts, banana trees, limes, cashews, durian, rambutan, jambu, and more.

The hardest part for me living here has been the heat. Most days we hit a humid 90-plus (32 C) and it doesn’t cool down much at night. There’s a 3-4 hour window in the afternoon that is just sweltering. I’m always happy when it rains.

The best feature of our house is the big, open veranda and surrounding garden. It’s a nice place to enjoy a cup of coffee or an impromptu game of football.

I really love these bougainvillea trees that flower year round.

Another feature of Kampung living is the assorted wildlife. There are feral chickens EVERYWHERE. The roosters crow at all hours, which used to bother me but now I hardly notice.

These small lizards are also ubiquitous throughout Malaysia. They skitter along the walls and ceilings all over the house. They are harmless and quick to get out of your way, but they also make funny chirping sounds and poop on stuff.

Insects are a constant in the tropics, and pests like mosquitoes and ants are just something you learn to live with. We occasionally get more frightening intruders like centipedes and spiders.

There are more exotic animals as well. I’ve seen hornbills and monitor lizards and the occasional civet. There are monkeys in the area, but they mostly stick to the forests. I see them sometimes by the roadside along with wild hogs.

Adam has really taken to kampung life. He loves to romp around outside and I’m glad he’s getting to spend time with his Malay grandparents.

He even mixes it up with a group of neighborhood kids that come around now and then.

Of course, Leila is here too. She’s crawling now and tries desperately to keep up with her brother. I love watching her explore.

We have an interesting life here for sure. I’m definitely the only American in this Kampung, and probably the only white person for twenty miles. I’ve gotten used to being a novelty, and the locals have never been anything but friendly to me and my kids.

I am starting to get antsy about traveling back. I miss my mom and I long for American food. Life is easygoing here, but it’s blistering hot and kind of boring when we can’t travel around. I’ve tried to do a lot of writing and bonding with my kids. They have an interesting backstory now, and I’m forever changed by this experience.

When I do finally step back on American soil, I’ll try to bring the spirit of the kampung with me. There’s a big world out here with so much to see, but nothing ever quite compares to coming home.

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