Thursday 14th November 199610.30 hrs
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Letter from Indonesia |
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I have now had 6 of the most wonderful weeks of my life and, more to the point , am finally in a position to appreciate them properly and share them with you.............Basically the homesickness has gone (although I fear the peanut butter and chocolate cravings are here to stay!) Indonesia houses two types of beauty- both of which captivate me constantly. The beauty created by endless lush,green paddy fields,towering coconut trees,white sand, palm fringed windswept beaches and smoking volcanoes to me come second to the wonderous beauty provided simply by the people. What has hit me the most is that amidst what Westerners would definitely class as extreme poverty and corruption, the most amazing generosity and friendship exists. I am, on a surface level ,always being chatted to , asked my name or being greeted by crowds of adorable children shouting "hello Miss Nicky" whenever I arrive anywhere near home. However it goes much deeper. An unwritten rule of Indonesian culture decrees that whenever you invite anyone to go anywhere with you- whether it's to the hauntingly beautiful Hindu temples at Prambanan or the Sultan's Kraton (Palace) here in Yogya you pay for everything. I know here that should I even mention to the girls in the boarding house ,who are fast becoming friends, that I could not eat with them because I did not have enough money ,they would automatically pay for me and never expect a penny back (even though it's just my horrendous budgeting that creates these situations- they doubtlessly have less than I do even on my £58 a month wage). The Indonesian hospitality appears to be never ending. Charley ( the other girl on the same project) and I had a long weekend away whilst our semester-one classes were on "Ospeck" -Fresher's week- pretty ironic seeing as we aren't even there ourselves yet! We travelled to Java's answer to Bali -Pangandaran. As well as snorkelling along the luminous coral reefs with beautiful tropical fish, trekking through the jungle, being accosted by monkeys,witnessing some of the most unbelievable views across the Indian Ocean and travelling to beaches where the waves must go on for ever, we came home with six addresses ,memories of delicious food, a Sundanese dance festival and a fishing trip all of which we were treated to for no reason other than smiling. A family even invited us, and every other passerby, to join their cliff top picnic of barbecued fish simply since we were there. To begin with I thought that this treatment was only because of my white skin and novelty appeal ( and I swear if I am stopped in the street again and asked to pose like a pet monkey in another photograph so I can be shown as a "Western friend" I will SCREAM!) But it is now obvious that it is just the way of life here. An Indonesian friend told me that he thinks the differences between British and Indonesian people are greater than those between the languages. I tend to agree - a what's mine is yours outlook reigns supreme everywhere. Every concert or gathering you go to free food is provided. You are considered more polite if you finish everything someone offers than if you leave it. The entire social structure here reflects this attitude. The whole of Yogya is divided into village -like communities who help each other out whenever they can. Even the abominable cost of hospital treatment can be bypassed (for some,by no means for all) as the community will all give money to help pay. It is unquestionably this generosity more than the poverty that has struck me as the most fundamental cultural difference. However recently I have become aware of the political and religious undertones which go , rather creepily ,unmentioned by most here. I have to wear - at least whilst living and working within a community in Yogya- long skirts and shirts which cover my shoulders. This is because I am a woman in a Muslim country. There are 6 zillion other things to say about life here. So here goes...... Everyone is always trying to sell you something and the streets can only be described as alive. Coconut trees wave at you as you pass, as do the becak ( a large tricycle with a brightly coloured passenger carriage attached..very strenuous to pedal) drivers . Cockroaches continue to plague my bedroom and despite my highly lethal spray which is wonderful at burning holes in the lino ,I still wake in fear of finding another one crawling up my leg. The food is amazing and I only stop eating it when the money decrees that I must! The system here is very different as since not everyone has electricity, and certainly not access to a stove, those that do, cook very cheap meals and sell them to everyone else. Our street alone has at least 20 warings where you can buy food and it is actually cheaper to eat out every night than in. Nasi guereng (fried rice) mie dyam (chicken,noodles and spinach) sate sticks and sambal(chilli sauce) will be sorely missed once I come back to Scotland. My only real endurance concerning nutrition so far occured at the teacher's meeting - another example of Indonesian generosity, and they literally are endless- where all the 'lecturers'(like me ha! ha!) are invited to sit Javanese style on mats at some one's house and eat constantly ( well I could hardly join in the conversation!) Teaching goes on as ever and mid term exams start tomorrow. Another typical Indonesian habit is the inability to care about time. "Jamkaret" (rubber time) governs everything, major relaxation.... By this principle I was given 3 days notice of the exams and a day after that was told what I should have been teaching for a month prior to this! It has also taken 4 hard weeks to locate the key to our cupboard in the staff room. At any rate my classes can speak a little more English ( with decidedly Scottish accents) and my confidence is increasing daily. For me it is a vast achievement that I do not (a) constantly stress and (b) feel the need to apologise every time the class do not understand me. So I know it's worth it. Elsewhere my Scottish dance classes (in preparation for the Jakarta highland gathering!) are in severe danger of starting next week. I learn Gamelan (Indonesian percussion) silversmithing, kung fu and guitar (soon to start) during the week not to mention our Friday running trips to the outdoor swimming pools and Maliobero Market where dried fish, baskets of mangoes and batik dresses can be found virtually at the same stall. The weekends are just complete culture trips to moonlit ballets,ancient temples,the old water palace and THE BEACH! Life is amazing and I don't think I'll ever want to come home- and isn't that impressive after only 6 weeks! So sorry for the delay in correspondence but I have finally got it together and in the most mellow,relaxed and friendly country in the world can you blame me? Life is not perfect but as near to it as I have ever been(mostly?!) and even the waterfall down the steps in our boarding house and the puddles in my room during the monsoon season are laughable now! As they say here "tidak masala" no worries. I find it hard to stop smiling.........
Nicola Smith
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