Independence Day - Part II
I am at Super Wonderful Fast Internet Cafe with a spacebar that works! This means... pictures! Since I'm working on that, there will be a little less time for detailed blog posts.
Sunday, August 20, 2006
This morning, Marc and I headed into Yogya on the motorbike to check out an event we'd heard about at the Sultan's Palace. There's some kind of tradition in August, where a large, long "tree" (some kind of pole, I'm not clear if it's a stripped coconut tree, a bamboo pole, or what) is planted into the group. Prizes are hung from the top (bikes, money, clothes, etc.), and the tree is greased. Then the men from the town race up the tree, trying to snag the goodies.
We'd heard about this bizarre event and wanted to stage a tree for Sawit, which apparently hasn't had one for a few years. We just found a tree a few days ago, and will be holding the event next Sunday. Late last night, we heard that 45 of these trees would be raised at the Sultan's Palace on Monday, and so in the name of research, we set out. Turns out that the trees were literally being raised today, but the event won't be until tomorrow morning. (Tomorrow is a holiday.) Should be crazy and fun.
Marc and I split up, and I wandered around along for a while. It was good to get alone time, as the lack of privacy has started to get to me, and I feel that you experience a place differently when you're on your own, as opposed to with a group. (Especially when that group is a bunch of Hands On volunteers, half of whom are wearing the same t-shirt.) I stumbled upon a large prayer service on the north side of the palace, which I watched for a bit. Is Monday Mohammed's birthday? Everyone was dressed in white, and the prayers echoed from the loudspeakers over the plaza.
Then I headed towards Malioboro, where I'd read in my Rough Guide there's a restaurant that serves pancakes. (*Sidenote: Whoa! I've been here for 3+ hours, so I get a free softdrink. That's fun! I chose tea.) While there, I started chatting with the staff about their grassroots earthquake aid efforts, the tree-climbing tradition, and a fishing contest that was apparently going on today. Apparently the community around the Jagalan River, which runs through the city, hosts the event. In the morning, they throw a bunch of catfish and eel into a section of the river. Then, they throw in some food, so that the fish are harder to catch. The contest lasts all afternoon, and the winners received prizes and cash. I thought it sounded fun, so I caught a becak (rickshaw) over to the river.
Boys here can be fairly cheeky and flirty (at school, the students called me "beautiful" and the boys asked for my phone number, then laughed when I misunderstood and wrote my age on the board), and the guys running scooter parking were the same. Maybe they thought it was weird that I wanted to watch fishing, but they joked around with me, and tried to warn me off the others. Boy 1, motioning to Boy 2 and Boy 3: "He's a pickpocket. He's a liar." Me: "So you're the honest one?" Boy 1: "I'm a coward."
I walked around for a bit, and while the crowds, colorful flags, and sense of occasion were fun, fundamentally this was a fishing contest, which, let's be honest, can be slow. Only two fish were caught while I walked around, and neither surpassed the current leader. I took some photos and got an email address of one of the event staff, so that I can email them.
Then I met up with Marc again, and here we are, three and a half hours later, sipping our free sodas at the internet cafe. Life is fun.
Saturday, August 19, 2006
I taught school again this morning...by myself. That was interesting. Funny how kids can seem so cute and fun when they're running around on the street, yet once they put on a school uniform and sit together in class, they're intimidating as hell.
I missed the bricks a little bit this week, so I worked Saturday afternoon. We cleared a small rubble pile from an old man's house, and then moved on to Ayu's house (the girl who I went into the city with, to help teach English). Their plan is to move the rubble from their old house to their new house, where they are leveling out the front lot, so we got to load up and then ride in the bed of Ayu's father's truck. I think this was my first time riding in the back of a truck.
The sight of a bunch of bulehs (foreigners) rattling down the road in the truck was quite amusing to the townspeople, who all pointed and laughed as we rolled by. The best part was when we rolled past the rice paddies, where a group of kids were playing soccer. They all stopped in their tracks and started pointing and yelling. Another group of kids started to run behind the truck, trying to jump in. I've never been a big truck person, but when you actually use a truck to lug stuff around, it's kind of fun.
Friday, August 18, 2006
I spent an afternoon at the travel agent, and managed to get any of the changes I wanted to my itinerary. I want to extend my trip, venturing to Darwin, Australia for a visa run, then meeting up with my aunt in Bali, and then returning to Yogyakarta for a few more weeks of Hands On before continuing through Southeast Asia as previously planned. So many options! When will I be back in this side of the world? Probably not soon. So the logical plan is to max out this trip. Naturally.
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Independence Day! We couldn't get a good sense of what was going on, so a group of volunteers headed into town for a relatively un-patriotic activity: swimming! First I had to find a swimsuit though (I'm stupid for not packing one, I know,) which was an adventure in itself. The malls of Malioboro were my best bet, and it's not so much that they sell swimsuits, rather than ice-skating outfits, what with the lycra that goes from the neck to the knees, with full sleeves and a skirt to boot. Feeling like a bit of a hussy, I bought basically the most scandalous swimsuit there, which is a regular bikini with boy shorts. With butt-writing. I hate butt-writing. But it really was my only option.
We went swimming at the Yogyakarta Plaza Hotel, where for the equivalent of $3 US, you get access to the pool, fitness facilities, a towel, a free juice drink, and The Best Shower I've Ever Taken In My Life. Nice hot water, with wonderful pressure, and reasonable volume too. Mmm.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Jay and I taught English at the primary school in our village this morning. Jay has been going almost every day for the past few weeks; I am accompanying her so that I can start to do that class a few times a week. The actual school building was damaged in the earthquake, so classes are conducted under a large, open air tent, with all grade levels sharing the same space. It's noisy and a bit cramped, organized chaos at best. The school teaches levels 1 through 6, which approximate the same grades in American school. Levels 5 and 6 get their own small tent, and this is where I was today.
The Hands On volunteers have been using an ESL technique for English instruction, where they only use English, no Indonesian at all. People much more experienced than me have set this up, so I'll trust them, it's just frustrating to spend an hour in class when the kids so obviously don't understand what's going on. Do any of you have any tips for teaching English, classroom management, ESL techniques, or a sequence of concepts to present in class?
After a half day of manual work, I showered and got dressed for the neighborhood Independence Day Eve gatherings. Each RT in Sawit has their own gathering, and we've been invited to sit in and attend them. It's like Halloween!
First I attended the RT 5 gathering, across the street from where we live. All of the married men from the RT sat in a large circle, with only the women who helped to prepare the evening's feast present. The men read a government-prepared speech and recited a long, long, long prayer in Arabic. Even though I didn't understand the words, the low, even chanting is enough to transport your mental state.
A large dinner was served communally, and then the official program was over, with the men lingering to smoke and play cards. I helped the women with the dishes, and then moved on to RT 1.
I chose RT 1 because several jobs that I've worked on have been here, and I know that the RT chief recognizes me and would welcome me at their gathering. Again, the gathering was almost all men, and married men at that, but I was struck by the sense of togetherness and community that these men exuded. The Hands On volunteers, including us women, were invited to participate in all aspects of the ceremony. Not even the women from the village were present and participating. While some of the older men did look a bit uncomfortable, everyone was very gracious and polite towards us. It was a surreal moment.
It was interesting to note the difference in structure of this ceremony, from that of RT 5. While the men seated in a circle, the speech, and the prayer were similar, there was an icebreaker-type activity, the men ate individual boxed meals, there was a patriotic centerpiece constructed out of fruit, and some sort of gift-giving ceremony, which I didn't understand, but was interesting nonetheless. Because I would here "American" or "relawan" ("volunteer") and either Jay or myself would have to react quickly and get up to either give or receive a gift. I blew it and forgot to shake the guy's hand after giving him a gift, but at least everyone laughed. We were giving and getting packages wrapped in brown paper, and we were quite curious as to what it was. As we walked home at midnight (the latest I've stayed up in weeks), I joked "I bet it's a box of ramen."
Guess what it was.
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
I worked all day. Bricks bricks bricks.
Sunday, August 20, 2006
This morning, Marc and I headed into Yogya on the motorbike to check out an event we'd heard about at the Sultan's Palace. There's some kind of tradition in August, where a large, long "tree" (some kind of pole, I'm not clear if it's a stripped coconut tree, a bamboo pole, or what) is planted into the group. Prizes are hung from the top (bikes, money, clothes, etc.), and the tree is greased. Then the men from the town race up the tree, trying to snag the goodies.
We'd heard about this bizarre event and wanted to stage a tree for Sawit, which apparently hasn't had one for a few years. We just found a tree a few days ago, and will be holding the event next Sunday. Late last night, we heard that 45 of these trees would be raised at the Sultan's Palace on Monday, and so in the name of research, we set out. Turns out that the trees were literally being raised today, but the event won't be until tomorrow morning. (Tomorrow is a holiday.) Should be crazy and fun.
Marc and I split up, and I wandered around along for a while. It was good to get alone time, as the lack of privacy has started to get to me, and I feel that you experience a place differently when you're on your own, as opposed to with a group. (Especially when that group is a bunch of Hands On volunteers, half of whom are wearing the same t-shirt.) I stumbled upon a large prayer service on the north side of the palace, which I watched for a bit. Is Monday Mohammed's birthday? Everyone was dressed in white, and the prayers echoed from the loudspeakers over the plaza.
Then I headed towards Malioboro, where I'd read in my Rough Guide there's a restaurant that serves pancakes. (*Sidenote: Whoa! I've been here for 3+ hours, so I get a free softdrink. That's fun! I chose tea.) While there, I started chatting with the staff about their grassroots earthquake aid efforts, the tree-climbing tradition, and a fishing contest that was apparently going on today. Apparently the community around the Jagalan River, which runs through the city, hosts the event. In the morning, they throw a bunch of catfish and eel into a section of the river. Then, they throw in some food, so that the fish are harder to catch. The contest lasts all afternoon, and the winners received prizes and cash. I thought it sounded fun, so I caught a becak (rickshaw) over to the river.
Boys here can be fairly cheeky and flirty (at school, the students called me "beautiful" and the boys asked for my phone number, then laughed when I misunderstood and wrote my age on the board), and the guys running scooter parking were the same. Maybe they thought it was weird that I wanted to watch fishing, but they joked around with me, and tried to warn me off the others. Boy 1, motioning to Boy 2 and Boy 3: "He's a pickpocket. He's a liar." Me: "So you're the honest one?" Boy 1: "I'm a coward."
I walked around for a bit, and while the crowds, colorful flags, and sense of occasion were fun, fundamentally this was a fishing contest, which, let's be honest, can be slow. Only two fish were caught while I walked around, and neither surpassed the current leader. I took some photos and got an email address of one of the event staff, so that I can email them.
Then I met up with Marc again, and here we are, three and a half hours later, sipping our free sodas at the internet cafe. Life is fun.
Saturday, August 19, 2006
I taught school again this morning...by myself. That was interesting. Funny how kids can seem so cute and fun when they're running around on the street, yet once they put on a school uniform and sit together in class, they're intimidating as hell.
I missed the bricks a little bit this week, so I worked Saturday afternoon. We cleared a small rubble pile from an old man's house, and then moved on to Ayu's house (the girl who I went into the city with, to help teach English). Their plan is to move the rubble from their old house to their new house, where they are leveling out the front lot, so we got to load up and then ride in the bed of Ayu's father's truck. I think this was my first time riding in the back of a truck.
The sight of a bunch of bulehs (foreigners) rattling down the road in the truck was quite amusing to the townspeople, who all pointed and laughed as we rolled by. The best part was when we rolled past the rice paddies, where a group of kids were playing soccer. They all stopped in their tracks and started pointing and yelling. Another group of kids started to run behind the truck, trying to jump in. I've never been a big truck person, but when you actually use a truck to lug stuff around, it's kind of fun.
Friday, August 18, 2006
I spent an afternoon at the travel agent, and managed to get any of the changes I wanted to my itinerary. I want to extend my trip, venturing to Darwin, Australia for a visa run, then meeting up with my aunt in Bali, and then returning to Yogyakarta for a few more weeks of Hands On before continuing through Southeast Asia as previously planned. So many options! When will I be back in this side of the world? Probably not soon. So the logical plan is to max out this trip. Naturally.
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Independence Day! We couldn't get a good sense of what was going on, so a group of volunteers headed into town for a relatively un-patriotic activity: swimming! First I had to find a swimsuit though (I'm stupid for not packing one, I know,) which was an adventure in itself. The malls of Malioboro were my best bet, and it's not so much that they sell swimsuits, rather than ice-skating outfits, what with the lycra that goes from the neck to the knees, with full sleeves and a skirt to boot. Feeling like a bit of a hussy, I bought basically the most scandalous swimsuit there, which is a regular bikini with boy shorts. With butt-writing. I hate butt-writing. But it really was my only option.
We went swimming at the Yogyakarta Plaza Hotel, where for the equivalent of $3 US, you get access to the pool, fitness facilities, a towel, a free juice drink, and The Best Shower I've Ever Taken In My Life. Nice hot water, with wonderful pressure, and reasonable volume too. Mmm.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Jay and I taught English at the primary school in our village this morning. Jay has been going almost every day for the past few weeks; I am accompanying her so that I can start to do that class a few times a week. The actual school building was damaged in the earthquake, so classes are conducted under a large, open air tent, with all grade levels sharing the same space. It's noisy and a bit cramped, organized chaos at best. The school teaches levels 1 through 6, which approximate the same grades in American school. Levels 5 and 6 get their own small tent, and this is where I was today.
The Hands On volunteers have been using an ESL technique for English instruction, where they only use English, no Indonesian at all. People much more experienced than me have set this up, so I'll trust them, it's just frustrating to spend an hour in class when the kids so obviously don't understand what's going on. Do any of you have any tips for teaching English, classroom management, ESL techniques, or a sequence of concepts to present in class?
After a half day of manual work, I showered and got dressed for the neighborhood Independence Day Eve gatherings. Each RT in Sawit has their own gathering, and we've been invited to sit in and attend them. It's like Halloween!
First I attended the RT 5 gathering, across the street from where we live. All of the married men from the RT sat in a large circle, with only the women who helped to prepare the evening's feast present. The men read a government-prepared speech and recited a long, long, long prayer in Arabic. Even though I didn't understand the words, the low, even chanting is enough to transport your mental state.
A large dinner was served communally, and then the official program was over, with the men lingering to smoke and play cards. I helped the women with the dishes, and then moved on to RT 1.
I chose RT 1 because several jobs that I've worked on have been here, and I know that the RT chief recognizes me and would welcome me at their gathering. Again, the gathering was almost all men, and married men at that, but I was struck by the sense of togetherness and community that these men exuded. The Hands On volunteers, including us women, were invited to participate in all aspects of the ceremony. Not even the women from the village were present and participating. While some of the older men did look a bit uncomfortable, everyone was very gracious and polite towards us. It was a surreal moment.
It was interesting to note the difference in structure of this ceremony, from that of RT 5. While the men seated in a circle, the speech, and the prayer were similar, there was an icebreaker-type activity, the men ate individual boxed meals, there was a patriotic centerpiece constructed out of fruit, and some sort of gift-giving ceremony, which I didn't understand, but was interesting nonetheless. Because I would here "American" or "relawan" ("volunteer") and either Jay or myself would have to react quickly and get up to either give or receive a gift. I blew it and forgot to shake the guy's hand after giving him a gift, but at least everyone laughed. We were giving and getting packages wrapped in brown paper, and we were quite curious as to what it was. As we walked home at midnight (the latest I've stayed up in weeks), I joked "I bet it's a box of ramen."
Guess what it was.
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
I worked all day. Bricks bricks bricks.
posted by Stefanie at 3:33 AM
1 Comments:
awesome pics Stef. looks like you're having a great time.
funny about the english signs on the taipei airport tram, (I know i'm way behind on my reading =P)...since the subway system does a pretty good job with the English signs and announcements.
I'm in Taipei now. Let me know if your plans for Taipei are still a go =]
Post a Comment
<< Home