Blog 5 - The Farm

The bus ride the next day to the farm was uneventful. Towns were few and far between as we raced along long stretches of three laned Toll roads. At each intersection, toll gates were swiped with the same sort of prepaid ticket that I had used on the MRT in Singapore. It seems that this card can be used for just about everything to do with transport.

So far I had seen them used on buses, town trains, the mono-rail and now even road payments were made at the Tolls swipe stations for each car, lorry and bus.

I arrived in Mentakab (a stop just before Lachang) purposely early having been informed the night before through the various e-mails with Simheswara that Gopesa, the Farm manager, would be coming into town that day for supplies at 2pm.

 Once he had finished his shopping he would be able to give me a lift back to the farm. By arriving at mid-day I had a good two hours to explore and pick up a few supplies myself.

Having walked along the two roads that made up the town, I had lunch at an All Veg Restaurant not far from where the bus had dropped me off for the huge sum of 5Rms.

 I wrote some notes onto my note book and attracted a lot of interest from the waiters and other clients.

Where was I from they asked, could I find them work in the UK, would I be a sponsor for them? The next half hour passed in a blur before I excused myself and headed to the pick up point.

Malaysian time is a bit like Island time and at 3pm I got the phone call to ask where I was, I passed the phone to the lady next to me allowing her to explain the finer details of where we were and five minutes later I was sitting in a pick-up truck with three others heading to the farm.

Before coming to Malaysia I had updated my Workaway profile and had received an invitation from Simheswara to work on their farm in exchange for free food and accommodation. Having been a Host with John and Sanne at the Workshop I was curious to see what it was like from a volunteers point of view. The Farm I had since discovered was run by the Hare Krsna Organisation and as a rather lapsed Devotee for the past few years I was also looking forward to some association and wonderful prasadam food!!

Two years ago the Devotees had the chance to lease four hundred acres of government owned land after the two Chinese ladies who were renting it had planted crops that had failed. They has also been swindled by their workers and had been forced to give the place up.

The farm had reverted back to semi jungle as time had passed, surrounding the few buildings with an impassable mass of vegetation. In the past two years the fifty Malay and Tibetan workers and devotees had not only cleared and replanted but were now working toward making the farm self sufficient.

Cows grazed between star-fruit trees, jack-fruit trees were being harvested regularly as were guavas.

A tapioca crisp factory had been built as well as some elderly rest-bite accommodation, the guest accommodation I was staying in and other supportive buildings.

The long road leading to the Krsna farm, along with some others farms in the area, had been tarmaced the week before. I was the first volunteer to ride on the new road Gopesa proudly announced as we raced across its smooth surface.

Rain began to fall softly as we passed through the farm gates and onto the dirt road leading in. I had brought rain with me, they said smiling. I asked if this was good,

“Oh yes” they beamed. The rains, apparently, were very late that year and the ground was bone dry. Without rain the trees and ground was suffering

I was the only volunteer at the farm for the moment but another girl was due the next morning. Today was a rest day I was informed, I was to relax and make myself at home.

The accommodation was wonderful. Four large rooms around a central meeting area that contained a fridge, spare bedding, towels, basic food supplies, plates and bowls. A large table stood at the other end of the room surrounded by book shelves filled to overflowing with books about Krsna.

Outside one of the side doors was a water purifier that also supplied chilled or hot water, there was even a washing machine!

Although everything was in order it was also covered by a thin veil of red dust that had blown in from the tracks and fields outside. Today would be a cleaning day I decided and set about scrubbing every surface of my room as well as organising a system within the kitchen and spare bedding area.

By 7pm it was dark outside but apart from the elderly gentleman in a wheel chair who occupied the room next to mine, I had seen no one.

I was also hungry! Outside the rains had stopped and a chorus of frogs and toads now filled the night air competing with the other insects of the night for pride of place in the evening orchestral performance. I walked slowly down the slope to what looked like a kitchen area, noticing as I did that the frogs became silent as I approached, only to break into song again once I passed.

In the dining area I found thermal containers with rice, japaties and a wonderful stew. Plates were lined up in a draining rack that was next to three large sinks. I helped myself to food and sat down still wondering where everyone was.

By 9pm I was in bed, I still hadn't seen anyone but all the lights in the surrounding buildings had now gone off so I presumed it was an early to bed, early to rise sort of place. I hung the mozzie net I had found on top of the locker in my room over my bed and to the sound of rain and frogs was soon fast asleep.

I awoke to the sound of peoples voices and tractor wheels and quickly showered and dressed but by the time I got to the door the place was deserted again!

I swept the main area in front of the rooms, I did a spot of weeding to the garden outside and still no one came to tell me what the do.

At 10am the elderly gentleman came out of his room and instructed me to go to the dining area for breakfast.

It was still raining and the track outside had turned into thick mud that clung to my shoes as I walked. The air was still incredibly warm and although I was getting wet it was a refreshing sort of wetness that soon dried once I was under cover again.

Breakfast consisted of noodles and a dahl and was delicious. I washed my plate and put it away with the others before wandering into the only building that had noise coming from it – the kitchen!

Smiles abounded as the boy inside noticed me. “Good morning Mataji, Hare Krsna,” I replied in like and asked his name. “Ganesh,” he smiled.

He was the thinnest Ganesh I had ever seen and I told him so, he laughed and informed me that he worked out! I asked if I could help, maybe chop or wash.

At this poor Ganesh looked most concerned as if he was working out some inner conflict.

To say no would possibly upset the Mataji, but to say yes, what could he give me to do?

He reached some sort of decision, “Chop Chop?” he said tentatively, “Yes, Chop chop!” I firmly replied.

He relaxed and fetched a board and a knife plus a pile of greens from one of the fridges. “Chop chop,” he beamed.

I spent the next hour chop chopping as Krsna music filled the room from a phone in the corner.

After an hour he announced “Chop chop finish!”and I was left wondering what to do next.

“I come chop chop tomorrow?” I asked with hope,

“If you wish” he smiled back and with that glimmer of hope for some work I left the building to return to the rooms.

At mid day Simheswara arrived with Alex, a great girl from Leeds.

Following a brief introduction he informed us that today we could …...... umm …..... we could ….... he looked around as if something would give him inspiration.

“Maybe we could clean all the rooms?” I suggested.

“Yes, yes, wonderful idea!” and with that he was gone. I showed Alex around, told her as much as I had been able to sort out for myself and we set to work on the two spare rooms and main room. At the end of about two hours the place was gleaming ….. well gleaming in a sort of orangey way.

The water came from a natural lake that had been enlarged in the thick red clay that made up the farm. This water was then pumped to a reservoir on the hill, that in turn fed the rooms and farm by gravity.

There was a definite tinge of mud to the water coming out of the taps which was transferred into our cleaning, but we knew it was washed and that was good enough for us.

I even had blisters to prove it!!

Alex and I spent the rest of the afternoon resting, reading and looking out as rain continued to pour from the heavens. The rains may have been late by they had certainly arrived now!!

Red water raced down the hill outside the rooms turning the tack into a thick slick. When we saw the tractor struggle to reach the top of the hill, we knew we were talking serious mud.

As evening meal time approached we looked at our flip flops and the mud. This was not going to be a good mixture!

Two sets of welly boots lay abandoned on either side of the doorway.

We looked at them and then our flip flops, we looked at each other ...... we were the only people here, we reasoned, so, having emptied out the two toads we found lurking inside, we checked the sizes, a six and an eight, stuck in our feet and headed very slowly down the hill for supper.

Simheswara had mentioned that they held a morning program in the temple room at 5.30am and as I was determined to immerse myself back into the Krsna culture I had asked if I could join it.

Alex was happy to go to bed by 9 and so with a promise to try not to wake her when I got up in the morning we went to bed.

Day 2 had passed and I still felt I hadn't done any real work!!