ONE MONTH. Holy cow, I am not even going to try to hide my shock. I can't believe how fast time has gone by! One month in Indonesia...wowza. Well considering that I have now spent ONE MONTH here, I feel that I owe you (my loyal readers) some stories, and because I have been here for a while now, I should be able to find a few.
On my second day in Indonesia, my sister Diah took me and her cousin to Pontai Losari. Pontai Losari is the center of town (center of activities, center of food stores...it is just the center of everything pretty much) that people gather at, mainly on Sundays and Mondays. We went there just to walk the streets, Sunday morning is a no-car time so it is easier to walk around., and the crowds in the streets where about the size of the State Fair crowds. SO MANY PEOPLE. While walking, I saw some dyed chicks (like, their feathers were dyed different colors, it was very strange), some hollowed-out crows (not sure of what purpose they have), and some giant snakes! Diah told me to take a picture next to the snake and I could have fainted. For those who don't know, I am DEATHLY afraid of snakes (even the little gardner ones you find in your yard) and taking a picture with a snake...has never been a desire of mine to say the least. But here I am, because I am an exchange student, living life YOLO style.
A few days later, ibu (mother) and I traveled to immigration to finalize my passport and all. I was happy because it meant skipping school, school is rather boring since I don't understand anything the teacher says. While at immigration, I got to meet my the other exchange students! There is Lucas from Brazil, Fernanda from Mexico, Alina from Russia and Kelsey from Wisconsin, USA (so I guess I am not the only exotic American here, bummer). After immigration Lucas, Fernanda, Alina and I went to a softball game but we only stayed long enough for the opening "show". It was so cool because there were these guys who would bounce a ball using only their feet or arms, and they would pass it to another guy AND THEN to make it really impressive, they would climb onto each other's shoulders and continue to pass the ball back and forth. Trust me when I say it was impressive. There were also dancers, marching bands, and the different teams from Malaysia, Thailand, etc.
How about a school story? Kay, so most of my teachers are either kind to me or just ignore me but there is one teacher who scares the living daylights out of me. He shall remain nameless (mainly because I do not know his name), but he is my Indonesian teacher. Every time I have his class he just looks at me. Then when the class is working, he will come over to my desk and look at me more, and then pick up my notebook and say something in Indonesian and then laugh (so I doodle a lot, I don't think it is *that* funny). Needless to say, I am very glad I don't have that class everyday. Also one of the days, there was an election for the student body president (I think). We all had to vote and my entire class kept telling me "Vote for one!" or "No way! Do two!" etc. and it reminded me of when Farquad has to choice a princess in Shrek. So, to not let anyone down, I did a write-in: I vote for Kate Holman the American. I, however, have not been told if I won or not so I am assuming I was the only one to write in my name.
A few nights ago, in my room I found a lizard. Since then, I have noticed that they are literally (and I mean literally) everywhere. I am learning to sleep with one eye open. Just kidding, but I am thoroughly freaked out by them (what if they decide to snuggle up in my bed while I am sleeping?!) which everyone seems to think is funny. My ibu jokes around and will point at the wall and say "Cicak!" just to see me whip around and yell "WHERE?!". Everyone here is so used to them that it isn't a problem to have the crawling around the house, in fact there is a children's song about them: Cicak cicak di dinding... (Lizard lizard in the wall, there is more but I forget the rest). But they eat misquitos so I guess they aren't all that bad.
Muay Thai! So since I have been here, I have been attending muay thai classes with my friends after school three days a week. It is basically kick boxing but with a few differences. I could not feel less athletic than I do in this class but it is fun and the trainers are nice to me. I am not sure what else to say about muay thai other than that I hope to come back to America super buff!
Just the other day I had my first motorcycle ride. Here, motorcycling is infinitely more dangerous and scary since the driving itself is more scary. However, I imagined that for my first motorcycle ride, I would be clothed to perfection while clinging to an attractive guy as we sped through the streets of Makassar, maybe some catchy music in the back round too. This is not how it went down. Instead, I was wearing my school uniform (not all that flattering really), clinging to my friend Mardha as we made our way to an ice cream store, all the while I hung on for dear life. It did end up being a fun ride despite my initial fear.
Well I'd say that is enough stories for now. I hope I have thoroughly entertained you all with the tales of my travels. Life in Indonesia really is wonderful when you have awesome friends and a great family like I do, I couldn't ask for more!
Until next time,
your wandering Holman
