Why aren't I in the field yet?

This is a question I have been asking myself daily since I arrived 5 days ago. The answer is, as it seems to be most of the time, beaurocracy.

Don't get me wrong - yes, it is incredibly important to ensure that the right people are coming into the forest with the right intentions and permits. But before I entirely excuse what I've been through the past few days, let me explain using an incredibly brief list of the steps we (myself and Shu, the PhD student I am assisting) have taken to be granted access to the protected area:

1. Obtain access license for the forest, and pick up in an office closes for lunch at an unknown time every day
2. Find a magistrate in the city hall and take an official oath
3. Obtain appropriate visa paperwork from the immigration office in KK
4. Fill out paperwork, despite not being able to read Malay
5. Meet up with a local collaborator who vouches for you to go into the field "under their supervision" (this is largely a decorum role, although we are lucky to have a collaborator who seems genuinely interested in our project, despite his forgetting about our appointment)
6. Have a guarantor declare that you are definitely going to be in the country
7. Apply for a professional pass
8. Buy an official governmental stamp and use this as a bond that you will behave yourself under the guidelines of the visa
9. Obtain a letter of support from the Forestry Department*

* This is where Shu and I are stuck. After getting to the immigration office at 7:30am to be first in line yesterday, we were greeted with a "You don't have a complete application yet".

So we are waiting. It is still unclear when the Forestry department will forward us their letter of support, so we are in a bit of limbo right now.

On the plus side, I've had some time to explore Kota Kinabalu! The city is pretty fantastic, especially at night. Just this evening I took the time to wander around a few night markets, picking up local sweets and fruits that I haven't had since last time I was here. Full disclosure: I am currently salivating over a pile of rambutan. It's not attractive.

That being said, I am antsy to get out into the jungle. As much as I've enjoyed the 2 extra days to explore, I'm simply not a city person. Especially when that city's main attractions are lying in the sun or going on an expensive day trip out to the "pristine jungle" just outside the city limits. Pristine...pfffft! Give me a week and I'll show you pristine!!!

Although cabin fever has begun to set in, I'm taking advantage of the break to eat. So much.

See, Malaysia is a very interesting country, culturally speaking. Due to pre-WW2 colonialism, it has major Chinese and Indian populations living alongside the pre-colonial Muslim communities and the even-pre-colonial-er Dusun (although they are typically more rural). This means that you can get Malay food, Chinese food, Indian food, and Western food (yey tourists) on the same city block. If I had four stomachs, it wouldn't be enough. Not only that, but the fruits...oh my goodness. Mangosteen, rambutan, mango, durian, kesusu...

Sorry to anyone who was expecting actual ecological content on this blog. Apparently it will always be a food blog in disguise!