Indonesia: Jogjakarta

Okay this is my last post about Indonesia.  I promise!  There was just so much to see so I wanted to put up as many photos as possible.  After about a week and a half in Bali, I left the island and headed back to Java.  The easiest way to travel back to Java is by plane.  Of course I decided to do a 24-hour adventure that included a bus, a ferry and two trains to get to my next destination: Jogjakarta.

My lovely bus leaving Bali at 2:00 in the afternoon.  Public transportation is VERY prompt in Indonesia, something which surprised me.  Needless to say, I am not used to that in Botswana.

Boarding the ferry that took our bus from Bali to Java

I decided to be a Chinese tourist on the ferry.  The main entertainment was a little tv that played very loud karaoke.  I thought it was hilarious.  Behind us are all of these karaoke cd and tape covers.

This is Sanet, my friend that I met on the overnight train in Java.  She was so sweet!  I still talk with her on facebook every couple of weeks.  I don't have a photo of it, but she gave me a cute pair of heels!  How nice is that?!  She is one of the most genuine, beautiful people I have ever met.

'Nuff said.  I was in HEAVEN to see one of these at the train station.  Unfortunately, no bagels.  But coffee and donuts? Awesome.

After all that traveling, I arrived in Jogjakarta.  I decided to go to Jogja as my major stop in Java because it was said to be interesting.  It had a lot of cool cultural things in the city.  Outside of the city was a large Buddhist temple, Borobudur, that I really wanted to see.  I met up with a girl named Dorotha at the hostel and spent my two days in Jogja traveling around with her.

The first night in Jogja.  Dorotha and I went to Malioboro, the main street in Jogja.  There were artisans selling everything on the street--tourist souvenirs, clothes, sweets, fruit.  It was quite a scene.

The next day we went to Borobudur.  It is a site to behold.  Borobudur is the largest Buddhist temple in the world!  Construction started in the 8th century AD.  A couple centuries later, the temple was abandoned because of volcanic eruptions.  So it was completely covered with volcanic ash and not rediscovered until the 1800s by the British.  Now it is a World Heritage Site.

When you enter a Buddhist temple, you are supposed to walk around the whole thing three times clockwise before you can enter it.  This practice is called circumambulation.  Borobudur has even different layers, all covered with reliefs of Hindu and Buddhist stories, like the ones pictured above.  They are beautiful.

View from Borobudur, Buddhist statue on the left in the dark

I find this absolutely hilarious.  If you see on the left side of the picture, it says "NO SITTING."  If you all don't know, Buddha is famous for just that...sitting.  That is the purpose of Buddhism.  In meditation, you sit in order to center yourself and reach enlightenment.  I thought it was so funny that there was a sign saying not to sit in a Buddhist temple.

Later that day, Dorotha and I explored the cultural sites within Jogja.

This is the Sultan's palace, called the Kraton.  The Sultan is still an important person in Indonesia, but doesn't hold the political power if I remember correctly.  Different parts of Indonesia had sultans.  So this is the palace of the Jogjakarta Sultan in particular.  They have traditional dances at the Kraton usually.  Unfortunately we weren't able to see one because they don't do them during the holy month of Ramadhan.

Inside the Kraton.  The colors and columns are beautiful.  They represent different aspects of Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam.

BEST mode of transportation in Jogja.  These things are so much fun!

Dorotha and I inside one of those little man-peddled carts

Then we went to this beautiful Batik art place.  Batik is a Javanese tapestry.  It can be worn as a sarong or put on the wall as art.

Here are women making Batik.  They use hot wax of different colors on other cotton or silk.  It dries and then they peel it off to reveal unbelievable designs.  They range in price from $15 to hundreds.

A look within the Batik shop

After a couple days, I left Jogjakarta.  It was a really nice ending to my Indonesian trip.

Looking out of the train through Java on my way to Jakarta to fly back to Botswana

Indonesia: Bali Continued

My fifth day in Indonesia Rachel, Daniel (her boyfriend) and I went driving up the Bali countryside.  We stopped in a place called Tagellelang.  They have beautiful rice fields there.  We had tea and sat enjoying the view.

The three of us

More views of the Tagellelang rice fields.  They are a sight to behold.  And if you can see in this photo, the palm trees are HUGE!

That night, we went to a Mexican restaurant in this cute town called Ubud.  It was SO good!  I actually had cheese enchiladas, almost like I am used to them in the states.  I wanted to get a shirt with this saying on it but it didn't work out unfortunately.

This is an amazing local dessert, made with cheese.  Forget the name unfortunately.

The next day, I rented a car and a driver who took me to the northern part of the island.  The first major stop was this Hindu temple.

Inside the temple

This is a traditional toilet in Indonesia...you squat on the ground and use water to wash yourself as well as flush it down.

Then I went to Kintamani, which is famous for its two active volcanos and beautiful caldera.  I started to  experiment a bit with taking black and white photos.

More photos of Kintamani

Next, we returned to Ubud and I shopped at the traditional market.  You must haggle the price when purchasing anything.  But by this point, I knew what most things were worth and I had no problem paying a fair price.

They use Absolut vodka bottles to sell Petrol on the side of the road.  This is fabulous.

This is the view from a temple in Uluwatu
 

Rachel, her friends and I went to this place called Echo Beach and had seafood for dinner.  So yummy.  The view and the sunset were spectacular.

On one of my last days, we decided to go snorkeling.  The beach was BEAUTIFUL.  Unfortunately the winds were pretty brutal and the ocean was dragging us around so it was pretty tough to snorkel.  But I took underwater photos of fish anyway and had a great time.  

Eating sate lilit (fish sate) at the snorkeling beach

Bali was absolutely amazing.  I had a great time.  After Bali, I headed to Jogjakarta.  Photos from Jogja will be in the next post...

Bystander Intervention

On September 13th Botswana welcomed its new batch of trainees, aptly named Bots 13, who will hopefully all become volunteers after two months of training.  Like I did, they will spend that time in Kanye learning Setswana (or other local languages depending on their sites) and generally trying to figure out how to be a volunteer.  Most training sessions are co-facilitated by staff and volunteers.

On the 25th, Karla (a Bots 11) and I are talking with the trainees about how communication styles differ between Americans and Batswana.  Karla made a list of her observations, such as:

• Americans are more direct, whereas Batswana can say "yes" meaning that they agree, heard what you said and are not agreeing nor disagreeing, or disagree and are too polite to say so;
• Americans make eye contact and consider it impolite when others do not do so, whereas Batswana think eye contact is not polite especially when speaking to an elder;
• Americans are usually expressive in our emotions, showing how we feel, whereas Batswana are less likely to show emotion and seem much more subdued;
• Americans are usually more assertive than Batswana and are oftentimes perceived as aggressive or angry because of it;
• Americans tend to be uncomfortable in silences, whereas sitting in silence with people around you is normal in Botswana;
• Americans generally feel much more urgency about getting something done, whereas Batswana do not respect time as much, nor feel rushed to do things;
• Americans use curse words MUCH more than Batswana.

But today, I realized something as well.  I have spent much of my service trying to de-stress, become more Zen and lessen feelings of urgency in my life as they relate to everyday experience.  I have noticed these changes in myself.  Finding peace and balance in one's life is a goal worth striving for, but I realized that the feelings of stress and urgency are so important.  Batswana do feel stress, for sure.  And not everyone is the same.  But I have observed that stress here is rarely converted into constructive action.  It doesn't push one to get things done more quickly or efficiently.

On this blog, I have rarely expressed thanks for my more "American" qualities, especially the ability to be stressed.  Yet, I am thankful...grateful, really, that stress propels me to action rather than paralysis.  The other day, it was really windy in Shoshong.  A big tree with spikes ended up blowing down into my hair and right arm.  Not only did it hurt, but I was also afraid it wouldn't let me go without someone's help.  Two women were walking about 20 yards away.  I called out to them.  To be honest, I was screaming--not at them, but just in general.  And I yelled out, "Ke kopa thuso," I am asking for help.  They slowly walked toward me, didn't change the pace of their step nor express any concern.  Before they arrived, I managed to pull myself out of the tree.  I was fine--just some strands of hair gone and some pinpricks of blood on my arm.

I didn't feel upset that the women did not come more quickly to assist me.  I have found that bystander intervention is not very strong here in general.  And I am not the only volunteer to experience this.

We have nerves and feelings for a reason.  When we begin to feel stressed or nervous about something, it often signals to us that it is important.  What if the nurses in the hospital emergency rooms in the states never felt any sense of urgency?  Troubling thought.

I welcome the momentary stress that comes with a crisis.  I will run to help you because I care.  And I have glad that I have the ability to have that kind of emotional response.

Indonesia: Jakarta and Bali

In the last couple months, I have written about a few mini vacations I have taken...to Hukuntsi, Kang, etc.  In the beginning of August I went to Indonesia, but this was not a mini vacation.  I went there for about 2 and a half weeks.  The impetus to go was to visit a friend of mine from high school, Rachel.  Rachel has been living in Indonesia for about a year.  We haven't seen each other since the summer we graduated from college so a visit was long overdue.

Needless to say, I had an amazing time.  I spent time in Java and Bali.  On Java, I visited Jakarta (the capital) and Jogjakarta.  In both places, I stayed in hostels.  The majority of the trip was spent on Bali.  Rachel, her dad, her cousin and some Indonesian friends of theirs live in a beautiful house/condo on the southern part of the island of Bali.  Rachel is working at the Four Seasons hotel and her dad is running the International Christian Community (ICC) organization there.  Their house almost feels like unofficial ICC headquarters.  It was great meeting all of Rachel's new friends.  They are beautiful human beings.  When Rachel was at work, I even went out and had meals with them!  I got two massages, went snorkeling, swimming, shopping...ate great food.  I saw the sultan's palace in Jogjakarta, and volcanos and rice fields in Bali.  It was the perfect combination of R&R and sightseeing.  I returned to Shoshong refreshed and rejuvenated.



Around Jakarta - notice all of the motorcycles and mopeds.  They are EVERYWHERE.  Even babies and young kids ride on them behind parents.  There are a lot of accidents in Indonesia because of the way people drive these.  But they are also really efficient and easy to get around with.




I stayed at a hostel in Jakarta.  I ended up traveling around Jakarta with this guy named John who was staying in the same hostel.  It was nice to have a travel buddy.  This is one of our stops...the largest mosque in Jakarta.  Indonesia is a predominantly Muslim country.  We were there during the holy month of Ramadhan in which Muslims cannot eat or drink anything from sun up to sun down.  Not surprisingly, many came to the mosque to pray and sleep to get through the day.  Women and men are separated--women sitting on the far side, men on the near side in the photo.




I love seeing houses of worship, especially churches.  I find them really beautiful.  And I LOVE gift shops.  I go in them whenever I can.  This photo was taken at a church gift shop in Jakarta.  I found a book called "Princess Amelia."  Can you believe it?!  Best day ever!  Clearly I had to purchase it, especially since it cost me a whopping $1.




This is at a night market in Jakarta.  Somehow they were tattooing in the middle of a public square.  I am guessing they were using a generator but I found it really crazy haha.



This is my first photo of Bali.  My friend Rachel is on the left and Emma, one of Rachel's friends from Indonesia, is on the right.  We were going to this place called Krishna.  Krishna is one of the most important gods in Hinduism.  There are statues of her everywhere.  In this context, Krishna is the best souvenir shop in Bali.  In Indonesia, you have to bargain to buy almost anything.  It can be difficult to navigate for foreigners because we don't know the prices.  So it is really easy to rip us off.  Krishna has fixed prices so you can be sure you know what you are getting.  For some reason, they want to count the number of patrons they have.  So, without warning, a young woman comes up and puts a sticker on you.  Clearly a moment to remember.




This is Sisi (left) and Jen (right).  They both live with Rachel and her dad in Bali.  Sisi is Indonesian and works for ICC.  Jen is Rachel's cousin.  She moved to Indonesia about a month ago to teach.  They live in a really modern condo.



Me at the beach in Bali!



On the way to the beach, there are many souvenir shops.  Most of them sold penis-shaped bottle openers of varying colors and sizes.  So bizarre.  I really wonder who buys them...




After the beach one day, I was wandering around and came upon this Balinese ceremony.  Each island in Indonesia has its own, unique culture that is different from Islam or Hinduism.  This is a Balinese ceremony.  They play beautiful music, pray, give offerings to the gods, have water and rice sprayed on them (for lack of a better term).  It was really interesting just coming upon this scene.  And there were so many of them.  I think I saw ceremonies forming almost everyday in different parts of the island.  It is an important part of culture there.




This is another photo from the ceremony.  These are young women dressed in traditional dance outfits.  Unfortunately I wasn't able to see the dancing, but I have heard that it is amazing.


I will put up more photos of Bali in the next post!

Botswana Hip Hop

Botswana is a really small country.  Less than 2 million people live here.  You know the ability to walk all around NYC and not see anyone you know?  Not possible in Botswana.  Even if you go to Gaborone, the capital, it's inevitable to run into people you know--or at least, people who know you by name even if you can't remember who they are.  Similarly, it's easy to walk through Gabs unaware that you are passing people who are radio personalities and locally famous.

Because I got to be friends with some of the people making music in Gabs, I was around for the making of a music video.  One of the up and coming groups is called Fancy Path Music Group.  A couple guys from FPMG, Motswaki Vic and Khwezi, collaborated with Nomadic, a rapper based out of Johannesburg, to record "For the Love (Motswako Music)."  Motswako is a genre of music--hip hop in Setswana, adding in other languages.  They usually mix English in with Setswana, but can also use Xhosa, Zulu, Kalanga, etc.  It's pretty cool stuff...and it's relatively new.  Rapping in Setswana makes the music accessible to most Batswana and brings it closer to home.  These artists are truly owning their art of hip hop in Botswana by making it personal, infusing their rhymes with metaphors in multiple languages.

The "For the Love" video is below.  And if you watch the whole thing through, you'll see me near the end!  :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z27Os6xXFVY

If you are interested in learning more about Botswana hip hop, you can check out FPMG on Facebook by searching for "FancyPath Music Group."  BATSOFE is another local group.  Those guys work with FPMG on a lot of tracks as well.  Their blog is batsofe.blogspot.com.

Understanding the music scene in Gaborone and getting to know new artists is not something I thought I would be doing during my service.  But it has been amazing.  Understanding youth culture makes me feel more like I have a life in Botswana.  It feels more real.  This isn't just Peace Corps service.  This isn't 2 years of going to the clinic, going to meetings and coming back to my house, biding my time until I can come back to the states.  I live in Botswana now.  Embracing that and making it my home by becoming close friends with locals has been one of the most fulfilling parts of service.

United States and Identity

Many of us [PCVs] have started thinking about what we may want to do after Peace Corps service.  We have exactly 9 months left in Botswana.  Sometimes it seems like a long time.  But lately, it seems incredibly short.  For those of us wanting to go to graduate school, we must think about taking entrance exams, writing essays and submitting applications.  At the time when our service is heating up and we may feel busier than before, our minds begin to take us away from Botswana.

For me, part of the question of “what’s next” isn’t just about what I will do.  It’s also about where I will live.  How do I feel about going back to the states?  I have been talking a bit with some of the volunteers who left Botswana in June.  Some have transitioned back really well, are happily reunited with family, friends and significant others.  Yet, some have really struggled to feel at home in what everyone else considers “home” for us.

People say that home is where the heart is.  For those of us that are in our twenties, Peace Corps may be the first significant thing we did after college.  Although American values shaped us as we grew up, life feels much broader than that now.  When I left for Peace Corps, I was happy to get away from the hustle and bustle of life in the states, and how seriously people took politics and other social issues.  After four years of Brown and a nonstop year of thesis writing, sleep deprivation and over-caffeinating, I was ready for a break.

But instead of feeling ready to get back into that world, I have no desire to.  I enjoy discussions about international affairs and human rights issues are still important for sure.  Yet, I find myself not taking it all too seriously.  And I constantly wonder, what is the big deal?  What is everyone getting so worked up about?  I could say that not having running water for weeks or seeing the way people live puts things into perspective.  But it’s bigger than that.  It’s not just my view of the world or of the United States that has changed.  I am different.  I view things differently.  I value my human relationships more than anything else.  I no longer want to work in a fast-paced, demanding job.  I want to support people; I want to do what I can.  But I know where that begins and where it ends.  I will never again kill myself to get something in on time or skip a meal because I have to work.  Nothing seems that serious to me anymore.

One returned volunteer was telling me that she felt like a foreigner in her own country.  I anticipate feeling similarly.  I did feel that way when I first returned for a few weeks back in February.  People say that you reintegrate, get used to it again.  I am sure that I will.  But for now, Botswana is home.  And in some ways, I think it always will be, even if I no longer live here.

How We View Africa

I just came back from an amazing vacation visiting a good friend of mine in Indonesia.  I spent a day in Jakarta, the capital, a week and a half in Bali and another couple days in Jogjakarta.  I stayed with my friend in Bali and slept in hostels in Jakarta and Jogjakarta.  Hostels are interesting places.  Inevitably, you run into characters from all walks of life.  Many are backpackers treking through the region.  Some are just having short vacations.  Hostels oftentimes organize tours to cultural places that would be difficult to get to otherwise.

On Tuesday, August 14th, I went to Borobudur, a Buddhist temple built in the 9th century (photos to come in other posts).  A van took us from the hostel.  On the way back, one of my fellow travelers and I began talking about our travels and my PC service.  He was from the Netherlands.

At one point, he made a comment to me assuming that policemen and women in Botswana are corrupt.  When I informed him that they are actually pretty good in that category, he was surprised.  He said something like, "Well, when I think about Africa, I think about war and poverty so corruption naturally goes along with that."  I smiled and responded, "Yeah.  That is the problem with our [western] reporting about Africa.  Not all of Africa is the same thing."

I know I should expect this, but it still surprises me.  Not all Westerners think of Africa in this way.  Not all Americans think of Africa in this way.  Yet, it is a trend I see time and time again.  And when I say I am working in HIV/AIDS in Botswana, people say, "Oh yeah, there is a lot of that there, huh?"  Although the HIV prevalence rate in Botswana is rather high compared to other countries in the world, that does not tell begin to tell the real story.  But I know that the more I try to describe the nuances and the beauty that I see here, most people will never get beyond their view of Africa as a war-torn, AIDS-infested continent full of suffering victims.

The victims are there, for sure...as they are everywhere.  But so are the heroes and the intellectuals and the people who would NEVER accept being thought of as a victim.  There are people who care more and work harder and love life more than most people I have met in the states.

We [Americans] get annoyed when people talk about the states in one way.  How many times have you found yourself trying to explain the difference between Texas and New England, California and Indiana?  We are so diverse.  Why do we think that other countries are less so?  Someone may get murdered in New York City one Friday night.  And that story should be told.  But so should the one about the spelling bee and the talent show in the high school ten blocks over.  Africa is no different.

Here is a great article about journalism in Africa and how we can better our perspective and our reporting for a more holistic view of what Africa is really like.  Check it out!