What does the Local Guides program mean to a person living in Malaysia? - Zen Tan
Hey everyone, my name is Zen Tan and I am currently living in an island in Malaysia, called Penang Island. I hope everyone is doing well & staying healthy in this period of time where the outbreak of Corona Virus is quite serious around the world. As a Malaysian, we are currently imposed with a latest government order on movement restriction to control on this pandemic. In other words, besides those who works in essential services, people who work in non-essential services is compulsory to work from home to reduce the face to face interaction and the further spread of this Covid-19.
As part of this movement, we are required to stay at home for 14 days from 18th March - 31st March. After a few days staying at home, I realised something important that I always take for granted, which is the freedom to move around. As a person who likes to roam around, this movement restriction make me feel uncomfortable and uneasy. However, thinking in a bigger picture, in order to reduce the spread of Covid-19, we have to cooperate with our government and be patient for this short period of time.
Back then when I am still a kid, my parents used to bring me to travel around. After when I grown up, I realised that I like to explore new places. I have been traveling to various countries like Singapore, Thailand, China, Taiwan, Korea, Japan and Sri Lanka. I felt that I am quite lucky because I have exposed myself to many different cultures around the world and I had also learnt to respect the differences in other’s cultures. From what I observed after travelling around, I realised that food is one of the main element to represent a culture of a country.
I live in a multiracial country called Malaysia and there are 3 main races (Malay, Chinese & Indian) living peacefully and harmony in this country. In terms of cultural richness, I feel that Malaysia is one of the best country to express this term. We have different foods from different races and all of them taste really great. (ps. some of them are really spicy!!).
As a Malaysian for 26 years, I know a number of places that provide delicious foods. With Local Guides program, I am able to share the location and the food that I felt that it is delicious. I realised that there are still many places which provide good food are not well known by many people. With this Local Guides program, I am able to share all these places with my personal point of view to the people around the world. This Local Guide program is an opportunity for me to promote local businesses and at the same time interact with other people that are interested. Local Guide program also provides a platform for us to make new friends, exchange our culture and most importantly, bridging the gap between people. This is what the Local Guides program meant to me.
For me, Connect Live 2020 is a great opportunity for me to meet local guides around the world. This is an event that we learn to appreciate the differences between each and other and to share the beauty of our own country to others. I hope that I was selected to attend this event. Can’t wait to see you all at Connect Live 2020! See you all there!
Check out the pictures of foods that can be found in Malaysia below:
