Great homestay experience

RAUB: For 21-year-old Vietnamese student Ho Nhat Nam, the two nights he spent at Kampung Sungai Pasu homestay was an unforgettable experience. “I enjoyed the hospitality provided by my foster parents. I felt like I was part of the family.

“Given a chance, I want to come back again,” said Ho, who was among 20 university students participating in a homestay programme here. The mass communications student comes from an urban area called Quang Ngai and has never experienced life in a rural community.

Light moment: Dr Ng meeting the participants of the homestay programme at Kampung Sungai Pasu.

Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen said homestay programmes are meant to make visitors experience life in a Malaysian village. “Many other countries also have homestay programmes. However, in Malaysia, visitors will be staying together with the home owners and are treated like family members. “They can dine with the owners or follow them to the orchards during fruit seasons,” said Dr Ng, who met the students at a Hari Raya Aidilfitri function held at the village on Saturday.

At a separate function in Raub yesterday, Dr Ng said Malaysians should learn from the Sikh community on how to be a united society. “I respect how the Sikh community are close-knit. You seldom hear Sikhs having social problems. Other races should learn from them,” said Dr Ng when she visited Gurdwara Sahib Raub.

Dr Ng, the Raub MP, also presented a cheque of RM10,000 to the temple’s committee for the upkeep of the 80-year-old Gurdwara. Dr Ng also visited three churches and several Hari Raya open houses in her constituency.

-thestar online.