Bali Hai: Part Two of My Three Week Vacation

One of the most frequently asked questions I have encountered when talking to Indonesians about traveling is "have you been to Bali?"- even mentioning Bali in my classes inevitably brings up a chorus of "ooooohs." While no one I talked to had ever been to Bali themselves, they all insisted that it was a beautiful place, paradise even. It is with these high hopes and pictures of white sand beaches in my head that I boarded the ferry from Banuywangi to Bali. From the ferry we drove through picturesque rice fields backed by mountains; by crumbling Hindu temples; and along the coast where the ocean seemed to call my name. Driving into Ubud was like driving into a small artsy town on the east coast- not only was there was a Starbucks on the cute main street, but the place was crawling with bulehs (white people)! Starved from our trip we chose a restaurant for dinner and were greeted by a menu that contained not only salads but a variety of western food and alcohol- we could only hope that we had somehow taken the boat back to America. Our three days in Ubud were spent relaxing in Starbucks, spending way too much money at the bookstores which sold English books, learning about the rich Hindu culture of the area, and eating all of the cuisines we had missed so much. Even though we could have easily have stayed in Ubud we booked tickets to take us to Kuta where we would meet a group of friends to celebrate the new year. Unfortunately, somehow in the three days that we were there, none of us realized that there was an hour time difference, so we missed our bus (don't ask me how the three of us were granted Fulbrights). Luckily we were able to get on another bus about an hour later and make the two hour drive to Kuta.

While Ubud surprised us with it's charm and small town America feel, Kuta surprised us with shirtless Australians, crass souvenirs, pushy salespeople, and offers of ephedrine on the street. It reminded me of the Jersey shore during senior week. From that time on our group of three began expanding as more of our ETA friends made it to Kuta to ring in the New Year. We spent a lot of our time on the beach- which was sadly far from white sand- appreciating the fantastic restaurants and bars, and just enjoying each others company. New Year's Eve was a blast in one of the many clubs in downtown Kuta which turned into an ETA reunion as the night wore on. I was supposed to leave the next day to return to Pekanbaru, but due to a flight miscommunication I couldn't leave until Tuesday which I happily endured. All in all it was an excellent trip and I returned to Pekanbaru a little tanner, a little poorer, and a whole lot happier.

My Trip in Pictures

Please visit my Picassa web albums link to view all of the pictures from my vacation.

December and January

Trek Swim Climb: Part One of my Three Week Vacation

 My month long holiday has sadly come to an end, but oh! the places I've been! My travels began in the city of Medan which is about twelve hours north of Pekanbaru. Eric and I kicked off our trip with three days in the small village of Bukit Lawang, home to an orangutan conservatory in Gunug Leuser National Park. An all day trek with our guide Dharma was wildly successful and we not only encountered orangutans at the conservatory's feeding stations; but, we were chased through the jungle by an orangutan named Minah with a record for biting tourists. It was more than a bit disconcerting when Dharma, who has trekked the jungle for years and knows most of the orangutans, told us to run. Needless to say we did not hesitate. 

Our next stop was Lake Toba,  the largest volcanic crater lake in the world created by a super volcanic eruption. We stayed on Samosir Island which stands in the middle of Lake Toba and is about the size of Singapore. The relaxed island  attitude seemed to seep out of Samosir and we were surprised by the many signs advertising "magic mushrooms". We hiked to a gorgeous waterfall, rented a sweet pink motorbike and toured the many small villages on the island, swam in the lake, ate huge lake fish, and just relaxed in true island style. The last stop on our Sumatra tour was Berastagi, famous for its fruit market and the two volcanoes that shadow the small town.  We climbed Mt. Sibayak, the smaller of the two at 7, 257 feet. Although its last eruption was in 1881, the volcano still has many active steam vents and the smell of sulfur was over powering at times. Standing at the mouth of the volcano truly made me feel insignificant.

The crater of Mt. Sibayak

The next day we flew to Surabaya on the island of Java where we traveled to Malang, Eric's hometown, to spend a few days relaxing with some of our best friends. In Malang we added Polly and Brandon to our duo and together we spent Christmas on a bus (4 actually) bound for Banuywangi where we visited a National Park and ultimately boarded a ferry that would take us to Bali. Bali, however is a horse of a different color and therefore deserves its own post...

Tis the Season...?

Sitting in my living room in shorts and a T-shirt with the windows open trying to catch a breeze to cool my perspiring body was not the ideal setting for writing Christmas cards. There is a lot to be said for the lead up to Christmas to get you in the festive mood, and I have not had that preparation in the eternal summer that is Indonesia. I’m sure all of you at home hiding from the cold in the heated comfort of your homes are thinking “yea, whatever Kelsey, I would gladly take your 90 degree weather” and I have to say it’s pretty nice; but, honestly it just isn’t Christmas. So, since it doesn’t feel like the season to sing carols or decorate a tree or drink steaming hot chocolate while watching the Bel Air parade; tis the season to travel. Exams at SMK 1 begin this Friday, which means that my duties as an ETA are finished for the semester. The two weeks of exams coupled with the ten day semester break leaves me with about three weeks to do what I want, and I want to see the rest of this country. This Friday I will travel to Medan, a city in Sumatra just north of Pekanbaru, and I will spend nine days exploring that region including the Bukit Lawang Orangutan conservatory, and Lake Toba, the largest lake in Asia that is situated inside the crater of an ancient volcano. I will then travel to the island of Java and spend Christmas with some of my best friends; although I’m not sure if an actual plan for this leg of the trip has been secured. We will finish up our tour with a boat ride to Bali where we will meet up with even more ETA’s and spend New Years in style, American style at least. I am more than excited for my journey to begin, and I will try my hardest to update everyone while I am away. In the spirit of packing light I will not be taking my laptop, so if you don’t receive e mails for awhile please do not worry. I will have my cell phone so if anyone feels the need to check in with me you are more than welcome to call 62 0821 1036 2282. I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! XOXO

Bulehs in Bunaken

If you asked me at this time last year what I would be doing for Thanksgiving in one year, I never in my wildest dreams would I have answered “oh, I’ll most likely be cooking Thanksgiving dinner in a kitchen on a remote island where I can hear the waves with a few good friends that I haven’t met yet;” however, that’s exactly what I was doing.  Thanksgiving morning instead of watching the Macy’s parade, nine of us boarded a boat with a dread-locked and tattooed Indonesian to travel to the Seabreeze resort on Bunaken Island.  The boat ride itself was fantastic with gorgeous mountain views and sea chantey sing alongs; but, it was made even more fantastic by the fact that as we got closer to shore we could look into the crystal blue water at coral reefs. We were greeted by Terry, the Australian owner of Seabreeze, and after settling into our family bungalow a few of us went to work cooking Thanksgiving dinner which was punctuated by swim breaks in the ocean that surged directly under our kitchen. Cooking dinner was a challenge in an Indonesian kitchen without an oven or large range; but, we pulled it together and the Ibu-Ibu who cook in the resort were gracious enough to cook our chickens over an open fire for us.  We shared our tradition with Terry and his family, the staff, and the one couple who were staying at the resort with us at the time. Since we were the only group staying at the Seabreeze for the remainder of our stay, we had the staff and their boats at our disposal. Friday morning began with an early morning dolphin tour where we literally saw hundreds of dolphins at play in the open ocean. The rest of our trip was just as amazing with snorkeling to see Discovery channel quality marine life and coral reefs and swimming in turquoise water; but, most of all just loving life and each other’s company, and not feeling like such a buleh.  It was difficult to return to the real world especially since everyone at my school is appalled by my tan (my Ibu asked me today when my skin would “go back to normal”). At any rate the memories made on this trip will be more than enough to hold me over until our next rendezvous which surprisingly begins next week. 

  

Rumah Saya Baru

Yes, this post is a little out of date- but then again, so is this entire blog…   

  It has been three weeks since I moved into my new house and I have to say that my school outdid itself once again in order to please the buleh.  My new house is quite literally new- I had to wait for the construction workers to finish it so that I could move in. Located in a neighborhood called Gobah, I am about 15 minutes away from my school which is no problem with my sweet new bicycle. I live in the end unit of a townhouse style condo complex- pink on the outside and sunny yellow inside; I have a front living room, bedroom, small kitchen, and bathroom all decked out in true Indonesian style. I not only have a flushing toilet and shower, but I also have big windows that I can open for sunlight and fresh air, a cute front porch, and rooftop access which I use to suntan (gasp!- how culturally inappropriate).  My neighbors next door and across the lane are really nice and have small children that I can play with- although we had to have a talk about their use of my outdoor faucet for child and dish washing, and my front porch as a community hang out.   Some university students live above me and we became fast friends on the day I moved in. They were waiting for me when I arrived with my boxes, and quickly stationed themselves inside to help me unpack. Since then I often hear them calling my name through my windows when I’m home, and I usually have the same reaction I do in America when the Jehovah’s witnesses come around.  All in all it has been a major improvement and in answer to my principal’s question of “Are you happy?”- Yes, I am. 

Blood, Guts, and Idul Adha

Yesterday was the Muslim holiday of Idul Adha, a celebration of the prophet Abraham.  According to the Al Quran, Abraham showed his obedience to Allah by offering to sacrifice his son after having a vision that he should do so. His son consented to be sacrificed; however, because both Abraham and his son were willing to show their obedience to Allah, his son was spared. On Idul Adha, Muslims celebrate by sacrificing cows and goats in remembrance of the sacrifice of Abraham’s son. The meat from the sacrifices is then distributed throughout the community. I stayed with my Ibu Yut to learn more about the holiday and to bear witness to this ceremony. The Mosque in Bu Yut’s community had acquired sixteen cows to be slaughtered. Yesterday the cows were delivered to the varying Mosques and the children enjoyed visiting them at each place. I tried to tell the cows to run in order to escape their cruel fate; but, I don’t think they understood my English.  Yesterday a tent had been set up outside of the Mosque with two holes dug beside it. Today the tent and surrounding area were filled with people who watched as each cow was led to his death. When I arrived one cow had already been sacrificed and his body had been laid only 10 feet from the crowd of people. His neck was a gaping wound and I could hear the rasping sound of his labored breath as he bled out onto the ground around him.  The next cow was unceremoniously led to an open space in the middle of the crowd. His legs were tied with rope and he was put on a large wooden pole so that he could be carried to the slaughtering hole. He was laid on his side with his head over the hole while the butcher used a large, extremely sharp knife to slice open his throat. He did not struggle, nor emit a noise as his bright blood gushed into the hole; but, his tail and body still shuddered with the last of his life. Witnessing one slaughter was more than enough to last me a lifetime and I returned to my Bu Yut’s house with tearful eyes and a nauseous stomach.  Even though compassion took hold of me, it is experiences like this that make me grateful for this opportunity to open my eyes to new cultures and religions.