Hampir dua bulan! I thought I would start off by trying to impress you with my vast knowledge of the Bahasa Indonesian language, allow me to translate: Almost two months! Time sure flies when you're having fun, and this month of October was most definitely a fun one. In my last post I mentioned that I would be going to Malang for a rotary meeting and Bali for a mini holiday, so let me tell you about it!
BATU, MALANG
This trip was the first time that all the exchange students in our district got to meet each other so I think it is safe to say we were all pretty excited. Our trip was about 4 days long (we got there early on the 12th and left later in the afternoon on the 15th) though most of the days we were supposed to go to rotary meetings and some language lessons. However, when we weren't in meetings, loads of fun was taking place! One evening we all went down to the village to see a ritual/celebration/thing which consisted of traditional dancing and different performances. One of the performances made me cringe the whole time, it was so painful to watch. There were these shirtless men who would go up one by one to another man who would whack their backs with thorny sticks! And then they would lay down on the thorns and the man would put brick, blocks of cement or stone on their stomach and then break the brick/cement/stone with a hammer (so basically a man is taking a huge hammer to another man's gut). THEN they would put a cucumber on their stomach and with a giant knife they would slice the cucumber up...and when the cucumber was gone they would just hack away at the guy's stomach. That is when I stopped watching and hid behind my hands while shouting "OH MY GOSH AHHHHHHH". Another performance we saw had guys breathing fire, people in bull costumes and tiger costumes wandering around, and the elaborate use of whips.
On another evening, Fernanda and I decided to get some massages at the spa near our hotel. So we went down to the massage hut, were greeted by two ladies and signed up for two full body massages. What we didn't realize was that full body meant literal full body so both Fernanda and I were in for quite the surprise when the ladies started massaging our buttocks. Our beds were right next to each other and we couldn't help but laugh at the awkwardness of having someone else knead your hind-quarters. After our massages we had to quickly get back to the hotel in time for the talent show that the exchange students must put on. We were all a little timid and decided that we would all do the Macarena and then as the show went on we all tried to do a dance representing our country (Kelsey, Indira and I did the Cha Cha slide...no shame! Does America even have a dance to represent?). When the talent show was finished, we all went outside to a bonfire (yeah, a bonfire in Indonesia, needless to say it wasn't quite cold enough to need one in my opinion) and were told to gather around and close our eyes. Barbara then told us to imagine things like when we got our rotary letter, preparing for our exchange, saying goodbye to our parents, etc. At the end of it we all hugged each other, some misty eyed and others crying. When everyone was going for food to cook over the fire, Fernanda, Maria and I snuck away to the pool for a late night dip and it wasn't long before all the others joined us! So all in one night, we danced, we cried, we laughed and we had a really really really good time.
the rotary family ^
BANTAENG
After I got back from Malang, my ayah, ibu and I took a short trip to Bantaeng for a doctor's meeting. While I was there I got to meet up with Alina (her father is also a doctor) and we got to go to Bira beach together! This beach is so gorgeous because of its white sand and the color of the sand makes the water a bright turquoise color. We stayed at the beach for only a few hours but within that time I got a bad sun burn, and that was when the lobster joke was born. Alina and I said that I could start introducing myself like "Halo, nama saya Lobster. Saya dari di pantai." and now every time I get sun burnt, I say "Nama saya Lobster". And unfortunately, I have been getting sun burnt a lot.
BALI
So much happened in Bali that I am gonna have to break it down into days:
Day 1
Alright so the hotel we were staying in is called The Westin Nusa Dua and I strongly urge you all to search pictures of it online because it is sooooo fancy!! I felt so out of place there because it is so classy. When we walked in they greeted us by putting flowers in our hair and serving us refreshments as we waiting in line to check in. This hotel doesn't mess around. Anyways, on my first day in Bali we ate breakfast at the hotel AND THEY HAD BACON. I didn't even feel guilty, I just stocked up on it. So good. From there we went to my ayah's soccer game. The surgeons from each city form a team and then go head to head when they are all in Bali for the medical meetings. When that finished up, Diah took me to a beach, Tanjung Benoa, that had all different kinds of water activities and sports. I got to go tubing with Diah, jet skiing, parasailing and on a banana boat. I find it funny though, because one of the guys who was helping with the parasailing would ask me "Are you single?" and when I would say yes, he would grin and say "ME TOO". Then as I got hooked up to the parasail thing he said "Be careful honey!". The banana boat guy also asked if I was single and I replied yes again and he said that we should be together. I think I am going to start telling people I am married. From there Diah took me to Pantai Pandawa (Pantai = beach) so we could take pictures and then to Pantai Padang-Padang, which is also called the Julia Roberts Beach because the scene when Julia Roberts turns down an attractive guy's offer to go to the beach and go swimming in the movie Eat, Pray, Love takes place on this beach. Then we went to Pura Luhur Uluwatu which is basically a Hindu temple of worship and to be able to walk around you must wear a shawl thing as a skirt if you are wearing shorts or a short skirt. The temple itself was gorgeous but holy cow, it was hot outside which made walking around torture so we only stayed for a short while. Our next stop was Rock Bar which is a bar/cafe on the side of a cliff! So beautiful to see the ocean and the sun setting...just perfect. Our last destination of the day was Jimbaran for dinner, and they have tables set out in the sand on the beach so you can literally eat on the beach. It was so nice to see the ocean and the stars as we ate dinner.
Day 2
Bacon and pancakes for breakfast, what a wonderful way to start the day. Diah and I went to Waterbom which is a super famous water park in Bali (I suggest looking up pictures) and it was super fun. Then we went to Kuta beach and I got a manicure/pedicure, henna tattoo and a mini massage.I felt so tourist-y. Next we went to Tanah Lot which is another Hindu temple, except this one has the temples on their own elevated rock islands. It is difficult to explain and I hope to have pictures up soon to aid with my descriptions. Lastly we went to La Plancha, but only long enough to take some pictures.
Day 3
Today we went to Pasar Sukowati which is a street market and I got to see my sister be a pro bargainer. Way to go Diah! Then we went to Sukarno Centre which is a mini-museum about the first president of Indonesia, Sukarno. Afterwards we went to Tampak Siring, yet another Hindu temple, that had holy water and prayer places all over the place. Gorgeous, as expected. Our next stop was the MONKEY FOREST. I was super pumped for this one. It is basically a forest with a walk way and there are monkeys every where, either just laying on the ground or strutting around. I thought it was so cool to see the monkeys up close but I think Diah was pretty afraid of them because she stuck close to me when we would walk past them. After a while we left to go to the Antonio Blancho museum, he is an artist, and though I admire his talent, many of his painting were of naked women so I was a little uncomfy. I am not afraid of the human body! I just don't need to see it, that many times. Then I got to meet up with Will and Indira for dinner! Will is from Alaska and lives in Bali for his exchange and Indira went to America last year for her exchange and she also lives in Bali. I haven't seen them since orientation so I was really excited to hang out with them. We had a good time joking and laughing at dinner and I really hope to see them again soon (I think another trip to Bali is in order).
Well folks I think that is about all I have to say. Life is good in Indonesia and I honestly can't believe how fast time is moving. Seems like yesterday I arrived here, fresh and brand new, and now I have gotten so used to the Indonesian mannerisms they seem ordinary. I feel like quite the Indonesian :)
Until next time,
your wandering Holman
P.S. Enjoy these random pictures of me and the people that started out strangers but became my family.
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