4/3/2013
Day 1 of the Big Trip
After staying up until 2am and submitting my RYE journal to
www.ryeflorida.org. I finally went to bed. I woke up finished getting ready for
Bali and then my driver took me to the airport. Because Leti, Bridget and I
were all on the same ticket I had to wait for them so that I could check in. I
was very early (actually the exact time Rotary told me that we needed to be at
the airport). I had to wait 30 minutes for Leti and when Bridget still didn't
show up I texted her and asked where she was. She told me that Mas Indra (head
of Rotary Youth Exchange in Indonesia) told her that Pa Wasito (another head
Rotarian) told him that the flight was delayed and was not going to leave until
2 hours after the scheduled time. I looked at the monitor with all the flight
times and it still said that the flight would be leaving on time so I told her
to hurry up and get to the airport. Leti and I talked and waited for Bridget
and Ibu Melly (Bridget was at Melly's house and Melly needed to give me my monthly
allowance). When they finally arrived we all checked in and got our boarding
passes. Bridget was right, the flight had been delayed 2 hours, even thou it
was not on any of the 'information' screens. Typical Indonesia. We waited and
talked. The whole time I was wondering how nice a couple extra hours of sleep
would have been. When it finally came time to board the plane we said bye to
Ibu Melly and went through security to the gate. (Security in Indonesian
airports is a phrase that should not be taken too seriously). When we got to
the gate we were greeted with a surprise. 3 of our Rotary friends from Medan
were on the same plane. They flew from Medan to Bandung and then with us from
Bandung to Bali. The flight was fine and very uneventful. Except for the fact
that a week later on the exact same flight, Lion Air from Bandung to Bali, the
plane ended up landing in the ocean. No one died but still, it was kind of
scary that if we had left a week later we would have been in the water. We
landed in Bali and were greeted by another exchange student and a travel
service that took us to the hotel. We were staying in Kuta, which is a very
famous beach in Bali. We had free time for a couple of hours and I caught up
with all of the exchange students, there were 24 of us on the trip plus 2
chaperons from Rotary. We went to dinner at an Indonesian restaurant where they
played the Angklung and other traditional instruments for us. The performance
was fine, nothing too special but the company was great. We had fried chicken,
rice and Tempe for dinner. I do not know how Indonesian people never get tired
of cold rice that tastes like rocks and unsalted Tempe and mediocre fried
chicken. Dinner was disappointing but, that is to be expected with Rotary.
After we finished eating our two chaperons talked to us about the trip. They
gave us itineraries and money. The money was for 13 meals that we would not eat
with Rotary and that we must buy ourselves. They gave us 50,000 Rp (~5 dollars)
per meal. When they first gave me the money I was sure that I would have extra because,
food in Bandung is so cheap that unless I went to a very, very nice restaurant,
5 dollars was more than enough. I was wrong, food in Bali and the other places
we traveled was twice as expensive and I had to dip into my own money much more
than I thought I would have to. While we were talking something happened that
would never, in a million years, be expectable in America (or most countries in
the world, after the reactions of the other exchange students). Mas Indra
asked, at the dinner table, with everyone there... "Who is menstruating?"
This was followed with shock and anger from all of the female exchange
students. They explained that we were going to Komodo island and that
menstruating women were not allowed because the Komodo Dragons can smell the
blood and they are more likely to attack. After we finished talking we went
back to the hotel, socialized some more and then went to sleep.
4/4/2013
Day 2 of the Big Trip
Apparently, Rotary thinks that all of the exchange students are
little princesses and that we need an hour to get ready, then 30 minutes to eat
breakfast and then we need to wait at the airport for an hour. First real day
on the trip and the scheduling was already annoying me. But, at least we were
all ready and on time. We got on a plane that was smaller than any other plane
I have been on. We left all of our luggage at our hotel and only brought
supplies for two days and one night. We arrived in West Flores, which is a
small island near Komodo island. We went from the plane to the bus to a boat. I
got put on the smaller boat with less people on it and Mas Indra. It was about
a 2 hour boat ride but it was nice outside and we had all put on sunscreen (especially
those people who also went to Belitung and learned that the sun is a terrible
thing). I brought Uno cards and we played while waiting to get to Komodo
island. I never knew that Uno had so many different rules. Every person has
their own way to play and while we were playing we mixed all of the rules. In
Indonesian rules you can block a plus 2 or plus 4 card by playing your own plus
card and it the pot keeps adding up with more and more people blocking. The
first person who cannot block must pick up all of the card. Because we were
playing with 8 people it was no uncommon to be forced to picked up 14 cards if
you couldn't block. Another rule is that if you have multiple colors of one
number you can put them all down together. It was so much fun to play Uno with
so many different rules. We stopped for lunch at an island about half-way to
our destination. We changed into our bathing suits, swam around. One of the
boys brought a tennis ball and we tossed it around for a while. I was doing
really well until I went to throw the ball to Luke and it hit Oguzhan of in the
head (about 10 feet in front my original target).Nice, Alaina. After swimming
and eating we got back on the boats and finished the trip to Komodo. We arrived
in Komodo and it was so hot. Indonesia is normally hot, but this was just
cruel. We walked to base camp and met our guides. Komodo island is a national
park in Indonesia. All of the Komodo Dragons are free and can move around
however they please. The guides do not feed the Dragons, so they still hunt.
The guides told us how dangerous the reptiles are and that in the last month 3
guides have died. Our guides were armed with large sticks (not exactly
comforting) and told us the they are not perfect are and that in the last month
3 guides have died. Our guides were armed with large sticks (not exactly
comforting) and told us the they are not perfect. We saw five or six Dragons in
base camp and they looked really big to me. Imagine facing down a seven foot
monster who's saliva has potent bacteria that will kill you if you do not get immediate
medical treatment. The guides said only the small or sick Komodo live near the
base and that the bigger ones live in the wild and get up to 10 feet. We had to
go on the shorter walk because it was already 4pm and the sun sets at 6
everyday. It would be incredibly dangerous to be out in the park at night. We
walked on a small trail. At one point we saw a cool looking caterpillar and the
guide instantly flicked it off the trail saying that the caterpillar was poisonous
and it could have killed one of us. As awesome as it would be to die via Komodo
dying by caterpillar is much less respectable. The guides stopped us after only
25 minutes and told us that we were looking at Komodo nests and that during
mating season the female Dragons go to the nests to lay their eggs and that
they are fiercely protective of the area and that they would attack. They also
told us that once the babies are born they must hide in the trees because the
moms and other Dragons will eat them. We saw a water buffaloes bathing on the
trail and some other cool wildlife but no more Komodo Dragons, Eventually, we
made our way back to the base camp and were forced to get back on the boat and
say goodbye to an amazing island. We were on the boat for the sunset and we
talked all the way back to Flores. I talked to Quentin. I didn't really know
him before and it was nice to talk to someone new. He is from Minnesota and
currently lives in Jakarta. One of the best things about exchange students is
that we never run out of things to talk about; politics, sports, our past, our
experience, our future, theoretical situations and anything else that might
spark our interest. Our possibilities seem so big and truly endless. We arrived
in Flores and I was sad that one adventure was already over. We checked into a
hotel and ate dinner provided by Rotary. I thought it was chewy and tasteless
but, whatever. There was an amazing pool and we played in it for hours. I
started a game of sharks and minnows and then we played Marco Polo and Chicken
fights. When people started getting tired we just talked and floated around.
Another amazing day in paradise.
4/5/2013
Day 3 of the Big Trip
We were allowed to sleep in until 7am. The breakfast as the hotel
was very good, and a good meal and sleep was defiantly nice. We left the hotel
at 8 and headed to the airport. I got in the first car to the airport and no
chaperones went with us so we ended up at the airport for 20 minutes with no
one, no tickets and no idea where we should be. Other kids finally showed up and
we waited outside the airport for an hour before we could go in. At some point
the Rotarians disappeared, I am not even sure that they came to the airport
until about 10 minutes before we were allowed inside. We boarded another small
plane and headed back to Bali. We were free during the afternoon so, I went
shopping with Bridget and the two French girls (Charlene and Elise). I bought
sunglasses that would have been nice for our boat ride the day before. We ate
lunch at a cafe that was across the street from our hotel. At 3pm we all got on
the bus again and headed to Uluwatu temple. It is a temple built in the 11th
century on the edge of a 300 feet cliff. Before we got off the bus we were
warned that the monkeys are aggressive and that they will try to take our stuff
so it is better to leave everything on the bus that we didn't need. The temple
was amazing, we were on top of a beautiful cliff and we could see the surf
below us hitting the rocks. I walked off with Sam, Oguzhan, Quentin and Tommy
(From Brazil lives in Jakarta) and we went to explore while everyone else was
busy taking pictures. The view was spectacular, the sheer size of the cliff was
stunning. At 5 we headed over to an amphitheatre where we were going to watch
the traditional Kecak dance with the sun setting in the background. We had
great front row seats and had a great view of the whole thing. The dance is
called Kecak because men sit in a circle and chant "cak-cak-cak"
sounds. The dance was super interesting, I wish I could have understood it more
but it was still really interesting. The sunset was too cloudy and it wasn't
the best I have seen but, I always love watching it anyway. The
"cak-cak-cak" noises were very unique and repetitive. I wouldn't have
bought a CD and listened to it all the time but it was something that I am sure
I could never find in the States. After the performance we took the bus to a
seaside restaurant and ate yummy seafood. I tried muscles for the first time.
We were visited by a band that played the Lazy Song, a Brazilian song and La
Cucaracha upon request. They were really funny and they actually sounded really
good. After we ate some of us walked on the beach. I felt like I was home in
Florida again, with a twist. I love walking on the beach at night and I used to
do it all the time in Ponte Vedra. More talking and more interesting topics. We
went back to the hotel and I went to sleep.
4/6/2013
Day 4 of the Big Trip
Wake up at 4am. At 5am drive to the airport, flight departs at 6:20
(the airport is only 15 minutes away from the hotel). Why did we wake up at 4
am?!? We also got a "breakfast box" for breakfast. In Indonesia this
means that we got a box of vile pastries filled with nasty jams and mystery meats
or other 'food' products that we probably made the night before and had been
sitting out for hours. I know I wasn't the only one who just took the water
bottle out and then threw out the rest of the food in the box (complete crap
for Rotary to count this as a meal). We got on another airplane and headed to
Lombok. We arrived in Lombok and loaded onto another bus. Everyone was
exhausted and most of us slept through the bus ride. First, we went to a beach
and were able to walk around on the bizarre sands. I have been on many beaches
and I have never seen sand like this. It was small balls that tickled like
crazy and sunk six inches every time I tried to step. It didn't stick together
like sand and it was super cool. We took lots of pictures and I was sad when we
had to move on. We arrived at a traditional village and watched as they
performed for us. They played music, danced and even fought. My favorite was
the stick fighting. There were two men each armed with a crude shield and a
long stick. The guide told us in a competition is held every year and all the
men in the area compete to know who is the strongest and the bravest. During
the competition the ends of the fighting sticks are coated in asphalt and glass
and other harmful materials. The fight we watched was much less intense and the
men were holding back and not trying to actually hit each other. It looked like
a dance with the musical whap of the stick on the shield. There was also a
crazy man with paint on his face that did a comedic routine for us. Quentin
remarked that the man "had one of the greatest jobs in the world" I
countered that "He doesn't have a great dental plan but, what can you do
no job is perfect." (the man's teeth were rotting out of his mouth, like
most Indonesians). After the performances we walked around the village, which
became an obvious tourist trap. Everyone was selling bracelets and sarongs
(Material that can be used as a skirt or a cover or anything else you can think
of). The village is famous for its unusual floors. The floors are made out of
cow dung and are actually "cleaned" with cow poop. The theory is that
the dung keeps away mosquitoes. The problem is that it attracts flies. We went
into one of the houses and were able to look around. It was tiny and hot. The
downstairs was a entry way that had stairs up the second level, it was
impossible to stand up because the ceiling was so low. The upstairs was even
more hot because, it did not have any windows. The room, maybe 5ft by 8ft was
the bedroom for the parents, the children and the kitchen. There aren't any
windows because kidnapping is a problem in the society and everyone is afraid
that their children will be stolen. When we were done in the village we all
loaded back onto the bus. We were supposed to do more things but we were all so
tired that we went to our hotel. I felt sick so I ended up sleeping all day. I
was coughing so hard I couldn't breathe, I had a minor fever and I was very
dizzy. The room had a tub so I took a long, hot bath to try to combat the
illness. Bridget was my roommate and she was also feeling tired so she stayed
in with me most of the day. One of the huge landmarks as an exchange student is
having your first dream in your host language and I have yet to dream in
Indonesian. Rotary Florida blew up this dream in my mind and some days I feel
like a failure because I am not dreaming in Indonesian. Anyway, while I was in
my feverish sleep Bridget swears that I spoke in Indonesian in my sleep. All I
said was "Sudah" or "Done/finished" but I spoke in
Indonesian in my sleep! That has to be better than some stupid dream (I still
want one). I went to dinner with Bridget, ate tons of pasta and then went to
bed early. Almost everyone else was playing all afternoon and night.
4/7/2013
Day 5 of the Big Trip
We didn't have to get up insanely early today and we enjoyed
breakfast at the hotel. After breakfast we packed up our stuff and got back on
the bus. The bus drove us to a Harbor where we caught a boat to Gili Sudak. The
schedule said we would be able to see colorful coral reefs and exotic fish in
the reefs around Gili Sudak. All of the area around our small island was dead.
I only saw a few small fish and everything was grey. After the amazing reefs I
have seen in Indonesia this one was somewhat disappointing. It was still nice
to swim in the water and relax with the other exchange students. After we
finished looking around the island we took the boat to a slightly larger island
where we ate lunch. Seafood again. Nasty, Chewy Seafood again served with rice
and unsalted tempe. Yum (*sarcasm- in case you didn't pick up my subtlety). We
took the boat back to the mainland and then stopped at two different villages
on our way home. One focused on weaving, a lady taught me how to use their loom
and I was able to do a couple of lines in the fabric. The lady then undid all
of my work when I stood up. The projects were amazing, some of the fabrics took
3 or 4 months for one woman to finish. I cannot imagine having the patience and
focus to be able to complete one. The second village did pottery. This was much
less exciting but, still cool. It is amazing to see what people can accomplish
after years of practice and hard work. After our tours were done we went back
to the hotel. I was still sick and feeling terrible. All of the exchange
students ate dinner together at a restaurant close to the hotel. Dinner was a
nightmare. It took twenty minutes to seat everyone another half hour to order,
then it started raining and we had to move again. The food was good and it came
pretty fast. The bill was the major problem. Exchange students are cheap and
some have no qualms about letting others pay for them. People paid for their
dinner but they did not pay for the tax and service charge and some did not
even pay for their drinks. A couple people paid much more than they needed to
and most walked out without paying enough. You think that people would be more
considerate, but they are not. After dinner, Bridget and I watched the boys try
to play Monopoly for a few minutes and then went to bed. Since I have been
sick, I have not slept through the whole night, I keep coughing and waking
myself up. I have taking medicine from the convenience store and I own every
kind of cough drop the store was selling.
4/8/2013
Day 6 of the Big Trip
Woke up and ate breakfast at the hotel again. We got on another boat
and rode to Gili Trawagan. I had my suitcase and it was very strange to load
and unload my suitcase on the beach and then carry it through the sand. We went
to another beach where we could go snorkeling again. I sat on the beach and
spent time with the other kids. Sid went snorkeling and she saw a sea turtle,
so cool! Lunch was nasty, thanks Rotary. I honestly do not know how they always
find nasty food, it is a talent. Most of the places we went on this trip are
tourist destinations and it is hard to find terrible food, thank goodness for Rotary.
I tried to go shopping a little but all the products had to be shipped from
Bali to Gili so, everything was more expensive than I wanted to pay. We checked
into our hotel to find out that a better word for it would be resort. Each room
was 300 dollars a night. We only had 2 people in a room even thou there was
plenty of room for 4 people. Most people, including myself were mad that we
stayed at this resort. In America my family never stays at fancy hotels and we
always try to fit as many people in a room as possible. The Bali trip was very
expensive and I can only imagine how much money we could have saved if we
stayed somewhere else or at least put 4 people in a room. We could have spent
the money we saved on getting better food, or something else. After checking in
we all went swimming. For a really fancy resort, the water was cold and it was
sea water because they wanted less of an "environmental impact". We
swam a lot. One of the kids had challenged me to a race but we couldn't
organize it and there were too many people in the way. Sam didn't think I could
get to the other side of the pool underwater without breathing and without using
my arms. I did it easily, no one else who tried could make it. It started
raining really hard so we all hid near the in-pool bar because it had an
overhang that would protect us from the cold rain. Then the boys decided that
they wanted to play a game. Six of us stood in a circle with our hands laying
flat on top of our neighbor's hand. Then one person would slap the person whose
hand was on their other hand. If you talk or move your hand you are out of the
game and the circle closes in. I won the game, much to the surprise of the boys
playing. Maybe they went too easy on me in the beginning and found that their
hands hurt too bad to keep going. Then I played with just Luke and I lost
because my hand already hurt when we started. When I decided that I had swam
enough I got out of the pool and found that my towel had been completely soaked
in the rain. I ran back to my room (not indoor hallways like a normal hotel,
each room was a little house. Indonesians prefer the Bungalow system for
hotels). There were not any extra towels in the room so I called the front desk
and asked them to quickly bring me a towel. Thirty minutes later, I called
again because they hadn't come yet. Another twenty minutes later I was fuming
mad and I decide that if they were not at my room by the time I counted to
twenty I was going to call again and scream in English until I got a towel. The
towels made it seconds before I went bat crazy. I was then able to take a
shower that I had been waiting for. It was salt water and the bathroom is
outside. How and I expected to wash my hair properly with lukewarm salt water
outside. Needless to say I was not happy with the hotel. After my disappointing
shower I dried off with my new towel and got dressed. For dinner, I went with
some of the other exchange students again. The group was much smaller and we
were able to pay separately so, it worked out very well. I had pizza and it was
the best thing that happened all day, it was nice and hot and fresh. I was
sharing a room with Daisy (from Chicago, lives in Yogya) and she wanted to
party with the other kids so, I had the room to myself most of the night. I was
really sick all night. I watched TV, until I was able to fall asleep. At 3am I
woke up again coughing. It is never pleasant when you wake up unable to
breathe. I watch more TV because I couldn't go back to sleep. Doomsday Prepers was
on and it is very funny, watching people try to prepare for the end of the
world. Even thou I was in my room all night, I still did not get very much
sleep.
4/9/2013
Day 7 of the Big Trip
We didn't have to leave the island until two so I actually slept
until 9am. When I did wake up I could not speak at all. My voice had been cracking
all week but now it was gone. I ate breakfast with Oguzhan and Mas Indra. After
breakfast I went back to my room and packed up all of my stuff. When I was done
I saw Luke and I tried to get his attention, but I could barely croak out a whisper
so, I had to snap really load to get him to turn around. He then proceeded to
laugh at me for not being able to talk and invited me to walk with him and Oguzhan.
I walked with them for a while until I saw Elise and Charlene and I ditched the
boys for the French girls. I got fish therapy with them, the one where the
little fish clean your feet. It tickled, the fish get in-between your toes to
clean. It was fun and I liked trying it for the first time. Everyone had to
check out at noon and then we had one hour to eat lunch before we had to catch
the boat back to Bali. My voice still didn't want to participate and I didn't
care what everyone else wanted to do so, I ate lunch alone. There was a little
girl at the restaurant, the daughter of my waitress, and she smiled at me and I
made faces back. She was super cute and I took a picture with her. After lunch
I met back up with the other exchange students. We waited for our boat for a
long time before it finally came, when it did, everyone loaded on. At first, I
was sitting inside with everyone else, many other people there too but the AC
was too cold and I was feeling sick so I followed Sam and Tommy up to the roof
of the boat. The boat was already moving and we had to climb a latter on the
outside of the speed boat to get to the top (never ever in America). It was so
nice on the top of the boat. I talked to Sam and Tommy about school in
Indonesia and other things while we enjoyed the breeze. For whatever reason I
wanted to jump off the boat, I have wanted to jump off several high things in
the last week and I have no idea why. I am not the typical adrenaline junky. It
took almost two hours to get back to Bali. We exited the boat and got back on
another bus. It took another two or three hours to drive to our hotel in Kuta
beach.
4/10/2013
Day 8 of the Big Trip
A few days ago we picked up a guide who made everyone mad. He talked
for hours and we all had to turn up our IPods to drown him out. He had an
annoying face and by the end of our time in Bali no one was sad to see him go. Today
he was being particularly annoying. I sat next to Quentin on the bus and we
listened to his music. Our first stop was at another traditional dance. We have
now seen several and they are starting to be less cool. The dance was a fight
between good and evil and it was impossible to follow. The good people were not
in white and the bad people were not in black, how are we supposed to know who
is who if it is not clear. The show was still nice (especially because the
guide wasn't talking). Then we loaded up on the bus again. We stopped at Kertha Gosha, a traditional court. One of the
rooms had pictures of punishment for sin. There were specific tortures for each
sin for example, if you did not nurse your children then you would be forced to
nurse snakes and other monsters in hell. The guide kept trying to move us along
and acted like a disgruntled babysitter. Then we got back on the bus and went
to another temple.. Ya!! Exchange students in Indonesia think of temples like I
am sure European exchange students think of churches. We go to too many and
they all blur together. For the next temple we went to (the "Mother Temple"
of Bali) we had to walk almost a kilometer uphill to get to more stairs to see
a boring temple. The most exciting part of the temple were the little girls
trying to sell things. Everywhere you go in Indonesia people try to sell you
things. These particular little girls were selling postcards and wanted us to
buy them. One of the girls attached Luke (8 year old, tiny, girl vs. 6foot 1 Alaskan guy). She told Luke that
he had to buy the postcards or she wouldn't move. He told her that he didn't
have money and that he couldn't buy them. She felt his pockets and told him
that she knows he had money. He stood there for a while not knowing what to do.
According to Luke, he picked her up to get her out of the way and then finally
broke down and bought the postcards. Another girl saw that this tactic worked
so she started crying and another American boy was tricked into buying the
cards. After seeing nothing worthwhile at the temple we walked another
kilometer down the hill. (Mas Indra and Pa Wasito took Motorcycles both ways-
typical Indonesians). We finally got to Ubud in the late afternoon. We checked
into the hotel and then went to dinner. I had potato and roast duck soup, it
was to die for.
4/11/2013
Day 9 of the Big Trip
Another temple, this one Goa Gajah (Elephant Cave). We also had to
walk down stairs for 10 minutes to get there. I am a firm believer that it is
much easier to go up first so you don't have to dread going back up the entire
way. There were sadly no elephants. There were some carvings that some king was
buried in and more stairs and puddles but, no elephants. There was also an area
that was a group of caves that are used for prayer and meditation. The caves we
only about 4 feet deep and had been carved out of the mountain, they were not
natural. We had to take our shoes off because it was a holy place, I do not
like walking barefoot outside with mud and spiders everywhere. Leti and I made
our way back up the stairs with lots of heavy breathing. When I got to the top
I coughed for almost 5 minutes (still battling a cold). One of the venders
looked genuinely concerned that I was going to die after I bought a drink from
her station. After that temple we drove to lunch. The restaurant had a great
view of a volcano and the surrounding land that was still black from the last
eruption. I could barely eat because I was so excited about what was coming
next, ELEPHANT SAFARI!!! We arrived at the park and I could barely hold still.
I shared and Elephant with Quentin and we rode an elephant for thirty minutes.
By far the coolest thing I have done in my entire life. I never wanted to
leave. The only downside to riding an elephant is that they are not exactly
steady walkers and Quentin and I were both Elephant sick (car sick but on an
elephant) before the ride was over. Before I continue I just want to take a
minute to say. I rode and elephant! I rode an elephant! I rode an elephant! Ha
all you haters who said I was crazy for going on exchange to Indonesia! I rode
an elephant! I am so cool!! Ya! OK, anyway, after our ride we watched an
elephant show. The elephants played basketball and soccer and painted and
walked a balance beam and did many other things that I didn't know elephants
could do. On our way out of the park we saw a wall of fame, so many celebrities
had been to the park including Julia Roberts (while she was shooting Eat, Pray,
Love), The Crocodile Hunter and many other famous people. We returned to Ubud
and our hotel. I had Indian food for dinner, the first time I had eaten Indian
food in Indonesia and, it was delicious. It was a great day! Elephants!!
4/12/2013
Day 10 of the Big Trip
This morning I needed to take a shower only to find a huge spider in
the bathroom. It was at least 6 inches across and it was running all over the
bathroom. If it stayed in one place I could have taken a shower but it was
moving too much so I went to Bridget's room and took a shower in their
bathroom. After cleaning up, I got my stuff ready and went down for breakfast
at the hotel. When everyone had eaten we took shuttles to the bus. The hotel
was out of the city and down a very small road that the bus could not use.
Everything we wanted to go to dinner or to the bus we had to take a shuttle.
*Funny - Yesterday while we were trying to go to the Indian restaurant we got
into a car because we thought it was a shuttle, it wasn't. the driver explained
that he did not work for the hotel and we quickly shut the door. Today we went
to learn about rice cultivation and traditional village life. The first thing
we did was go to the local school and interrupt a class. They sung for us and
we tried to sing for them. Every country was told to sing a song for the kids.
Despite the fact that there were more kids from America than any other country
on the trip, we did the worst job. We attempted YMCA and only sung "young
man... da da da .. Y.M.C.A..da..da..da " It was a little less than
spectacular. After humiliating ourselves in-front of the school children we
went across the street and saw more of village life. People taught us how to
weave leaves in fun, traditional patterns and we walked around the area. I saw
pigs for the first time since leaving America. Because most people in Bali are
Hindu, they eat pork and are allowed to have pig. Muslims are not allowed to
have pork or any contact with pigs and I have lived with Muslims all year.
While we were eating Passion Fruit the village showed us another tradition,
cock fighting. No joke, we watched a cock fight on a Rotary trip. We were done
in the village so we were all issued rice hats and sticks and we walked to the
rice patties. We took turns plowing the field. We sat on the plow behind an ox
and churned mud. Then we planted stalks into a field that had already been
prepared. Most fields in America are not all mud, rice patties are flooded
regularly and the dirt is never kept dry. When we were covered in mud we rinsed
ourselves in the gutter water, which was completely clean compared to the
gutters in Bandung. We took a short walk to a coconut tree and we were
challenged to climb it. The farmers use rope on their feet to work their way up
the tree but none of us could do it. I put my feet in the rope and hugged the
tree and then realized that I would have to hop up the tree to move and decided
that I did not want to do it. Instead I tried a coca bean. It tastes nothing
like chocolate but it was interesting. We had coconut milk for a drink and then
we ate lunch. Again the food was lacking and I barely ate anything. For dessert
we had one tiny banana (about 3 inches long and very sweet) and a coconut snack
that was wrapped in a leaf. I really liked the coconut thing and Quentin gave
me his because he doesn't like coconut. Yasuko (from Japan, lives in Jakarta)
is one of the nicest, sweetest people that I have ever met. She offered me her
coconut thing and I took it and thanked her. When I opened to leaf I found the
banana. That little trickster! We said goodbye to all of the nice people that
had showed us their traditions and then got back on the bus. We drove to the
Bali Classic Culture Center. We watched another dance and then we chose two of
the available activities: egg painting, batik canvas, boomerang painting, mask
painting, rain-stick painting, wood carving, gamelan orchestra (traditional
music) and Balinese Dancing. I wanted mask painting and wood carving but wood
carving was canceled so I did batik canvas instead. There was no instruction,
it was just arts and crafts. My mask was fine but my batik was terrible. You
use hot wax to draw on a canvas. I didn't know that I needed to make a large
pattern because it would be hard to do small things and I made a mess of my
canvas. We watched yet another Balinese dance and this time they called up
people to dance with them and I had to dance in-front of the other exchange
students. I was incredible, never taken a lesson. We drove back to the hotel
and were free the rest of the night. After spending so much money on food in
the last couple of days, I ate Pop Mie for dinner. I played card with some
people but it wasn't that fun because the rules kept changing. The best part of
the night was when we sat in a circle and told a newly woken up Oguzhan to sit
in the middle of our circle. He was still mostly asleep and did not know what
was going on. We started chanting and making weird noises. Lots of fun to
pretend exorcise someone while they are half asleep. I went to bed soon
afterward.
4/13/2013
Day 11 of the Big Trip
The last several days the guide (still the one that makes everyone
angry) has decided that we need an hour and a half to get ready. This is
complete crap, it takes everyone 45 minutes max and that is when we are
checking out of the hotel and need to pack up. So we woke up too early and ate
breakfast and got on the bus. Today, we went water rafting! For those of you
who do not know, my family in America loves going water rafting and I have been
several times. We arrived at the office and we got our oars and lifejackets.
Then we walked down a mile of stairs. Some, less intelligent people asked if we
were going to have to walk up these same stairs when we finished, I told them
that unless the river was a circle that was not going to happen. We got to the
bottom and split into groups. I went with Cheyenne, Daisy and Sid. Daisy was
afraid that she was going to fall in and not be able to swim. Cheyenne and Sid
are both good lifeguards and I am a strong swimmer and all of us were looking
for a reason to jump out of the boat into the river. Daisy was fine. It was the
most unique water rafting I have ever done. Most guides avoid rocks, ours
played bumper raft with them and seemed to enjoy going down the river with no
direction. Sid and I were in the front row and we could not hear the guide's
instructions because he was not speaking loud enough and Daisy or Cheyenne had
to relay the instructions to us. I fell back on Daisy once and lost my oar
once. Not exactly professional but, I had fun (and I am pretty sure our guide
could have said the same thing). The river was beautiful. There were waterfalls
and greenery everywhere. At one spot in the river there were carvings in the
rock side and because we had seen so many temples we thought it was important.
The guide told us that the hotel above that spot had done it as advertisement.
Oh well, I liked it better as a temple. We were able to get out and swim in two
spots. The second of which was a large waterfall. We took turns standing under
it and taking pictures. I wish people could see how beautiful Indonesia really
is when you get out of the cities. I can never understand why most Indonesian
people prefer malls to hiking and exploring nature in their country. The more
time I spend in nature, the more I hate going back to the dirty cities. The
raft trip was about 2 hours long and we ate lunch at the buffet at the end of
the river. We did have to climb 10 minutes worth of stairs to get back up to
the road and I coughed uncontrollably for several minutes afterward. After
rafting we went to Ulun Danu temple. It was raining and cold and I had just
changed out of my wet suit into dry clothes. It was foggy too and we couldn't
really see it. When the fog did clear it was dissapoiniting and I think the
cliff-side temple was much better. We hurried back onto the bus and drove to
another place. It was a waterfall that we had to do about 1 kilometer of stairs
to get to. I passed and stayed in the bus. My ear had been hurting for several
days and I didn't want to make it worse. It was like my ear could not pop and
adjust to the pressure, and I was still fighting a nasty cough. The kids who
did walk to the waterfall said that it was not that amazing and it was fine to
miss. When we made it to our new hotel I swam for a little bit and then took a
shower and went to dinner. The dinner was at the hotel and it was actually
decent. I walked with the exchanges students a little and we spent several
hours on the beach just staring at the stars and talking. I mostly talked to
Sid and then talked a lot to Quentin and Leti. Went to bed at around 1am.
4/14/2013
Day 12 of the Big Trip
The wake-up call came at 5:30 and we were in the lobby by 6am. The
people who decided to wake up boarded traditional boats and rode off into the
bay to look for dolphins. The boats were very narrow, only a couple inches off
my hips and we all sat in a line. The sunrise was amazing, really spectacular.
There were a few clouds and the colors were great. Watching the sunrise is one
of my favorite things to do in Indonesia and this one was above ordinary. Our
boat man did not do a good job finding dolphins. We saw a couple but only for a
minute and after we rode around for an hour and a half. Our guide eventually
got bored and started fishing off the back of the boat before bringing us back
to the hotel. The other groups saw lots more dolphins, but at least we saw
dolphins so that is ok. We ate breakfast at the hotel, which was even better
than the dinner the night before. We then returned to our rooms packed up our
stuff and checked out of the hotel. We headed back for Kuta and it was a
several hour drive. Before we got too far from our starting hotel we stopped at
a traditional market with ingredients lists for Indonesian food we were
required to make. My group was Leti, Tommy, Oguzhan, Pauline (From France,
lives in Medan) and Renata Elmec (From Brazil, lives in Lampung). We decided we
wanted to make Nasi Goreng (Fried Rice) and Gado-Gado (Vegetables and peanut
sauce). We all walked around the market and bought everything that we needed
(except Pauline who didn't help at all). It took forever and we could not find
all of the ingredients that we wanted. When we made it back to the bus we
thought we were the last ones. Bridget's group was actually last and we had to
wait for them for a while before they returned. I had to hold our group's eggs
for at least an hour while we drove to the place we were going to cook the
food. We ended up at a hotel with a kitchen used to teach people how to cook Indonesian
food. They had all of the supplies there. Why did we have to buy the food if
they had everything? I guess I will never understand. We cooked out food,
meaning a chef told us exactly what to do and we followed his instructions.
When everyone was done and had put their food items on the table we ate food
that the hotel had prepared for us (meaning that no one ate the food we made-
wasting even more ingredients). Pa Wasito judged the dishes and we all (except
the team that won) agreed that he was not a fair judge. Our group won 3rd place
out of 4 teams. The team that won 2nd made Sate that was so tough and
overcooked no one could eat it. Bridget's team won because they had "good
teamwork". Well isn't that nice, one of their teammates didn't work
either, that is not good teamwork. The entire thing was messed up. When we got
back on the bus, I split up the money we didn't use for the food and our prize
money. Pauline did not get any money but everyone else got 100,000 Rp (10
dollars). We stopped at another temple on the way to Kuta. I got separated from
the group and got lost in the shopping stands, so I never actually saw the
temple. When we made it back to Kuta we were all tired. I walked with Bridget
because we wanted to go shopping. By the time we got back it was already late
and most of the shops were closed we did eat dinner at a good restaurant. I got
Mie Goreng (Fried Noodles) and Bridget ordered a combo plate with a burrito and
a taco. I didn't order Mexican because I have already been disappointed once
and I didn't want to have another bad meal. Bridget got so much food and it was
very good. Then we walked back to the hotel. I was locked out of my room for
more than an hour because Leti had the key. I talked to Luke and then Leti
finally showed up and let me into the room.
4/15/2013
Day 13 of the Big Trip
Breakfast at the hotel and then we took the bus to another boat. We
went on a day cruise. When we arrived at the dock we found out that it was a
Chinese cruise and that everyone, except us was Chinese and was speaking
Chinese. Before we got on the boat someone came around and asked if we got seasick
and offered us pills if we did. I did not take any of the "free
pills" from the Cruise line. I got on the boat and sat with some of the
other students where we were outside and in the breeze. I don't think that the
boat had a very good design. Everyone was getting sick on the other decks (we
were on the top). The workers were handing out vomit bags to everyone and
directing people to the bathroom. Luckily, I did not see or smell anything or
there would have been even more tossed cookies on the deck. Cheyenne and I went
to get juice so we went down two flights of stairs and each grabbed two glasses
of water. It was nearly impossible to get back up to our seats. I actually kept
most of my water in the glasses. Before the cruise Mas Indra called
"seasick" "sea drunk", this now made much more sense.
Cheyenne and I laughed as we drunkenly tried to get up two flights of stairs without
spilling our water. It took about 2 hours to get to our destination which was a
floating platoon in the ocean. The platoon was equipped with a slide into the
ocean, an area for snorkeling, unlimited banana boat rides and a buffet lunch.
We were told that we needed to eat as soon as the lunch opened or the
"Chinese Army" would swarm and it would take forever to get our food.
After eating I wanted to go down the slide. I went down first and Sid and Luke
followed me. I was watching them go down the slide and I didn't realize how
strong the tide was. Within a few seconds I was 20 yards away from the slide. I
got out of the water with my other friends and we got snorkeling gear. The water
was too deep and the current was too strong. We ended up off course and had to
try really hard to swim back. There was a floating marker (PVC pipe) about 15
yards from the deck (which was about 5 yards long). I decided that it would be
fun to fight against the current and swim to the floating PVC pipe. I made it
to the marker and was soon joined by Sid and Luke. Swimming back to the deck
was harder. Sid and I managed it easily. Luke wanted to go in a perfectly
straight line so he swam at a 45 degree angle to the current and it was the
slowest 15 yards I have ever seen. We swam to the marker again and back again.
Before I swam back to the deck this time, I noticed another marker about 20
yards away (20yards directly in front of the slide). I let go of marker number 1
and tried to sprint against the current to get to marker 2. When I thought I
was half way there I looked up and realized that I hadn't moved at all in the
last 30 seconds of full sprint and stopping acted like opening a parachute and
I got thrown backwards. I had to try really hard to get back to marker number
1. Now that I knew it was difficult I wanted to get to the 2nd marker. I went
off the slide and sprinted to the marker. Everyone on the deck was watching and
cheered for me. I swam back to the deck and I repeated this again. I was having
so much fun swimming around. When I was satisfied that I had swam enough I got
out of the water and tanned for a little while. When we had to leave, I was
bouncing I was so happy with the cruise. Other people were sick and complaining
but I thought it was the best thing yet (other than riding the elephant of
course). I talked to Luke about books the whole way back. We got back to the harbor
at about 4pm to find a protest. Everything was in Chinese and I couldn't
understand anything. The only disappointing thing about the day was that I
could not understand any Chinese (Studied it for 3 and 1/2 years). We drove to
a popular oleh-oleh store (souvenirs you buy for your friends when you travel).
We all bought some stuff and then got back on the bus. Back at the hotel we were
free for the rest of the night. I went to a Brazilian restaurant with some of
the Brazilian kids, Elise, Charlene and Quentin. The food was amazing. I
learned to mix my beans and rice and was applauded by the Brazilians when I ate
it correctly. The meat was delicious and I ate much more than I should have.
After dinner I played cards late into the night with Sam, Tommy and Elise. We
had a great time just talking and playing. I eventually was forced to go to bed
because I was too tired to keep playing. It was a perfect day.
4/16/2013
Day 14 of the Big Trip
This morning we woke up and went to a beach resort about an hour
away. There we rode camels on the beach. So not only have I ridden an elephant
in a forest I have also ridden a camel on the beach. I am pretty awesome, you
can all be jealous. Camels are much weirder than we think they are. Their teeth
are all messed up and the make the funniest noises I have ever heard. I was in
the second group of people and I was shocked when the camel stood up, it was
much taller than I thought it was. The ride was only twenty minutes long but it
was defiantly worth the bus ride. I talked to my guide who told me about the
camels. They are from Australia (I didn't even know there were camels in
Australia) and they only have one hump instead of 2 (like the camels in the
Middle-East). Vinicius Figueiredo or Vinno for short (from Brazil, lives in
Makassar), was right behind me and I thought his camel was going to bite me.
When our ride was over we had to wait for another group and then we loaded back
on the bus. We went to lunch and then to more temples. Bridget and I went to
the bathroom before we left the restaurant and when we came out everyone was
gone. It took several phone calls and about 15 minutes before we found everyone
else. This was a modern temple and the statues were concrete, not even old or
impressive. We went to too many temples on this trip and I am sure they will
mush in my brain until I think I just went to one big mega temple with a
million stairs. After the temple, we went back to the hotel and had free time
during the afternoon. We all went to dinner together to a famous local
restaurant for our farewell dinner. None of us could believe the Big Trip was
already over, it also meant that our exchange was almost over. The food was really
good, for being with Rotary. We returned to the hotel and spent our last night
in freedom.
4/17/2013
Day 15 of the Big Trip
I woke up and ate breakfast early so that I could say goodbye to
everyone. My plane did not leave until the afternoon so I was free for a little
while longer. I bought some batik pants with Leti and she made me pay more than
I had to because she thinks I can't bargain for myself or speak Indonesian.
Bridget, Leti and I headed to the airport early and checked in our bags. After
we had our boarding passes we went to eat. I had a sandwich from Starbucks and
an ice from Burger King. The plane ride was fine and we got home safely.
Bridget and I were picked up by my driver and we took Bridget to Aunt Melly's
house. The Big Trip was over.
April 18th- May 4th
The days following the big trip. I was still sick and a week was
spent resting and packing all my stuff up. On the 24th I moved to the Said's
house, my 4th host family. On the 26th I went to school for the first time in a
month and a half. I had to go to the opening ceremony for the first time in
several months. I gave my friends stuff I had brought from Bali (spicy peanuts)
and extra pictures I had of my family (real family from America). On the 28th I went to Jakarta with my family. We
went to Taman Mini (small park) which is famous for its models of traditional
Indonesian houses. My host mom and dad were going to a convention for old
people, the translated name of the club is "growing old together". I
went to Taman Buruk (Bird Park) and saw lots of birds. on the 29th I had lunch
with Ibu Hetty, my 2nd host mom and I went to a Rotary meeting. On the 2nd of
May I gave a presentation for Leti's Rotary club and then went out to dinner
with Leti, Quentin and Renata Elmec. Nothing else very interesting has
happened. Sorry this took me forever to write and I know the writing is
terrible. I want to remind people to post or email me questions, if they have
any. My email is AlainaRRoberts@gmail.com. Thanks for reading!!
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