Category Archives: Asia

Things to Do in Malaysia

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So we’ve talked about what to eat in Malaysia in our previous post, but Malaysia is more than just amazing food! We have beautiful islands, mountains and so much more to offer!

Explore/ Visit Islands

  • When I say I was shocked when I see clear blue ocean water I wasn’t joking. I always thought you can only see such clean and blue ocean water in the Maldives or Hawaii, but I was wrong! I went to Redang Island with my friends and was absolutely blown away by the view and the crystal clear water!
  • Redang Island is one of the biggest Islands in Malaysia and is also part of the “coral triangle” between the Philippines, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. This makes it the perfect location for snorkeling as you can see up to 80% of the various marine species in the world! If you are more adventurous, take advantage of the scuba diving courses as Redang Island offers over 20 different dive sites including ship wrecks and more! There are other recreational activities that you can do too, such as Turtle watching, boat chartering, sand volleyball etc.
  • I’d suggest finding an all-inclusive resort so you do not have to worry about finding places to eat as most accommodations are resort-based and the restaurant options are limited.
  • Other Island options: Langkawi Island, Perhentian Island, Tioman Island

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Food you NEED to Try in Malaysia

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By Cassidy Ng 

Malaysia is a small country sandwiched between Thailand and Singapore and is full of diversity, various cultures, languages and not to mention, the FOOD! We have 3 different main races – Malay, Chinese and Indian. As a Malaysian student studying abroad, the things I miss most about home is, well, obviously my family and the FOOD! If I get a dollar every time I say food when people ask me about Malaysia, I would be a billionaire by now. So here we are, starting our Malaysia To-Do list with FOOD!

  1. Malay
    Gosh, where do I even start? There are so many options! As we have 3 different races in Malaysia, we get to try each culture’s food! Starting with our National dish – Nasi Lemak! You have to try this when you are there because you didn’t travel to Malaysia if you didn’t try it out! Nasi Lemak is a Malay cuisine – rice cooked with coconut milk, served with ‘sambal’, toasted peanuts, cucumber and fried anchovies, egg and is fully customizable. Some people like to add curry or fried chicken, squid sambal, or beef rendang onto it to add more flavors. My personal favorite is with the squid sambal, it’s a little spicy so I like to eat them with the rice to reduce the kick haha

    Nasi Lemak


    Best Place to get Nasi Lemak:     Village Park Restaurant
    What to Order: Nasi Lemak with Fried chicken
    Malaysians rave about this restaurant and there is always a crowd during lunch/ dinner time so go early before their fried chicken is out!

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HMoob (Hmong) around the World Part 3: Lost in Malaysia

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HMoob (Hmong) around the World Part 3: Lost in Malaysia

By: Kevin Phoojywg Xiong

Kevin in Vientiane, Laos (Winter Break 2018)

Hi! My name is Kevin Phoojywg Xiong and I went on the Laos, Thailand, Malaysia (LTM) Winter Break 2018 study abroad program. Every year, I would be encouraged to go by friends who had gone before. In 2018, it was my 4th year at SCSU and I felt it was my time. Some main reasons I wanted to participate on the LTM experience was because I had grown to love making curry and this was an opportunity to eat authentic curry in other countries. Also, my parents and grandparents were born in Laos and Thailand. Although times have changed, I was interested in speaking with other Hmong kids my age who grew up in a different culture, and who were born in another country.

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HMoob (Hmong) around the World Part 2: Testing Boundaries

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By: Larsa Yang (Class of 2016 & 2019) and James Yang (Class of 2020)

Korea University, South Korea, Fall 2019 (James Yang – Left) and Akita International University, Japan, Fall 2017 (Larsa Yang – right)

Larsa’s Story:

Hey, my name is Larsa and I studied abroad in Japan for a full year and participated on the short-term program to Laos, Thailand and Malaysia. I wanted to study abroad because I was really tired of the everyday life in Minnesota. Minnesota is cool, but I think there are so many other things you can learn by learning from others outside of Minnesota and even the US. Study abroad encouraged me to think culturally about a lot of things that would’ve never occurred to me if I never traveled abroad. I purposefully took a leave of absence from my graduate program to study in Japan as an undergrad. Do I regret it? Not at all, I loved my experience. If anything I wanted to push myself to become a better person, and that’s exactly what happened. I wouldn’t trade it for anything else.

Check out some of Larsa’s education abroad photos:

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HMoob (Hmong) around the World Part 1: A Whole New Perspective

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HMoob (Hmong) around the World Part 1: A Whole New Perspective

By: Kameiko Vue (Class of 2020) and Tonny Yang (Class of 2017 & 2019)

Kameiko Vue in Vientiane, Laos (left) & Tonny Yang in Penang, Malaysia (right)

Kameiko’s Story

I took part in the South East Asia (SEA) study abroad program in the winter of 2017-2018. This study abroad trip included going to Laos, Thailand and Malaysia. I wanted to be a part of this trip because I wanted to explore the world and enrich myself in the culture, people and food. Because of this trip, I experienced riding on an airplane and traveling out of the country for the first time ever. Not to mention, I built ever lasting friendships with individuals that I will cherish forever.   

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HMoob (Hmong) around the World: Series Introduction

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HMoob (Hmong) around the World: Series Introduction

By: Sabrina Nkauj Nag Yang, Education Abroad Graduate Assistant

I began graduate school in the middle of a pandemic and saw the devastating effects COVID-19 wreaked upon the Hmong student population at St. Cloud State. COVID-19 has waged its wrath through many different aspects of normal everyday life. In this place, right here in the now, higher education has been greatly impacted.

Opportunities in higher education that were created to foster academic growth and leadership opportunities were cancelled. Departments, like Education Abroad, lost the opportunity to engage and interact with students. Students have lost their sense of belonging at universities due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they hardly know their professors, and they barely recognize various departments that can be utilized to support higher education success. This especially holds true for many of the Hmong students struggling to stay afloat in their undergraduate career.

HMoob (Hmong) around the World was brought to life to inspire, to ignite, and to reimagine the hope of education abroad opportunities for students in the near future. I hope you find courage, I hope you find strength, and I hope you study abroad. HMoob (Hmong) around the World will showcase a series of testimonials from HMoob alum who look like you, speak the same language as you, and may have experienced similar things as HMoob (Hmong) American college students. These are their education abroad stories.

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A Tea Lover’s Top 3 Teas from around the World

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A Tea Lover’s Top 3 Teas from around the World

By Rachael Gardner

The problem with coffee? It’s just not tea!

I know a lot of people are super into coffee. Coffee smells great, don’t get me wrong, but the taste and caffeine levels have never jived with me. My hot beverage consumption was pretty much limited to hot chocolate and apple cider until the fall of 2012. This thankfully changed through travel and exploration. As a part of my study abroad experience in Denmark, I traveled to the UK with two of my friends. It was on this trip that my love of tea was born. Not just the beverage itself, but the different cultural norms and values that come with tea.

A photo of me at my happiest – with a big cup of tea.

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A Guide to Asian Street Vendors

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By Lucas Clasen

When studying abroad, I always find street vendors and street markets to be a highlight of the trip. Street stores are a great way to eat and buy authentic local foods and products and are a fun way to entertain yourself for several hours. Since my study abroad experiences have been exclusive to Asia, I am sure that street vendors would be different in Africa or Europe, but my suggestions will hopefully help you navigate and enjoy street markets while studying abroad.

Street market in Hongdae, Seoul

I would first recommend that anyone travelling abroad take a day or two to explore local street markets, as they are usually cheap and can give a sense of how locals live day to day. Many street vendors will sell unique food items, like bugs and odd meats. I recommend getting out of your comfort zone and trying as many oddities as possible, as these will create good stories to share with family and friends and will give you new experiences that would have otherwise never been possible. For some good examples, in South Korea I recommend trying tteobokki (spicy rice cake), kimchi-pang (kimchi pork bun), San-nakji (live octopus), and Mandu (dumplings). In Thailand or Southeast Asia, try pad Thai, Guay Tiew Reua (noodle meat soup), Moo Ping (skewers), and of course Ma Laeng Tod (fried insects), a personal favorite of mine.

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Making it Work

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Making it Work

Written by: Pa Zong Moua

“No, I don’t have the money. No, it’s not time yet.” All I heard was excuses I made for myself to stay where I am comfortable.  I knew that graduation is around the corner and a long-term study abroad experience had been on my mind since the first year I entered Saint Cloud State University.

I chose South Korea because of the budget that I have. I have two other siblings that are also studying at SCSU, in total 4 kids in the family that are still depending on my parents’ help. My parents are by no means rich, they are minimum wage workers. They made it clear that I would need to save up for myself. South Korea was the final choice because of the Global Village Program. I get to study in a different country, mentor students learning English, receive a stipend and a free room. How sweet and awesome is that!

pz2

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Explore and Live Life

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Explore and Live Life

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By: Christina Eng

I attended the Laos Thailand and Malaysia study abroad program during the winter break of 2019. After hearing so many amazing stories from close friends at SCSU, I knew that I had to go. I was in my senior year. “Better late than never,” as quoted by Geoffrey Chaucer. We were there for almost three weeks, visiting all three countries from the busy Thailand city of Bangkok to the nice, relaxing streets of Vientiane, Laos.

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