I Wish I Could Eat That Turkey

First of all, I am getting very, VERY excited to come home for Christmas! The holiday spirit, at least commercially in the nearby mall and stores, is in full swing. They don’t have Thanksgiving to act as a buffer before all of the Christmas madness, so there was a huge cone-shaped decoration built in the outdoor area of the mall and decorated as a Christmas tree over a week ago. Last night, when I was grocery shopping, I noticed an aisle full of ornaments and toys for sale. Did I mention that there is also Christmas music playing inside and outside of the mall? It made me happy to sit outside, eating dinner on Wednesday night, listening to Whitney Houston confess that all she wants for Christmas is me ☺ Anyway, I’m sure I’ll be getting sick of it at some point, but for now, I am enjoying it.

 I know it’s Thanksgiving Day (at least it was as I wrote this), so I just wanted to let everyone know how thankful I am. I am on the amazing adventure, on the other side of the world. There are times in the day when I get this surreal feeling about where I am in my life and what I am doing, and I almost have to pinch myself, just as a reminder that it’s real. I am teaching. I am Indonesia. I can’t believe the opportunity I have as I am learning how to be a better teacher (well, let’s be honest, I’m learning everything about teaching and then some, this being my first year and all, learning a new curriculum and, not to mention, all of the cultural differences). I am also meeting a ton of new people, learning school and life lessons from my new friends and colleagues and simply enjoying life. Yes, there are days when I miss home, family and friends, but luckily for me I have a phone with capabilities to text internationally to other ‘smart’ phones, and Facebook is always there for me with all of the really important details of my friends’ lives.

 Okay, I know you’re all dying to know what I have been up to since Thailand. ☺

 1. I opened a bank account. That means no more white envelopes of cash sitting in my apartment…darn.

 2. My school had an Open House event, which I wasn’t a part of due to a Maths Professional Development seminar I am a part of. From what I observed though, with preparations and such, is that it’s quite different than what I am used to. Typically, in the States, an Open House is a chance for a teacher to show-off the classroom, and students bring their parents to meet their teachers. Well, at my school it is more of a way to show off the school and all of its’ accomplishments in order to recruit more students, since it’s a private school. That was definitely a different set of expectations than I was used to.

 3. I took a long weekend vacation to a place near Jakarta called the Thousand Islands. To the north of Jakarta, there are a couple hundred islands (I know, the name is a lie) where locals go to get away from the city. A small group of us decided that we needed a break from the city, too, so we booked a trip to one of the islands furthest away from Jakarta. We took a taxi to Ancol, which is where the port is, early Friday morning (this was back at the end of October when we had no school on a Friday for the Islamic holiday of Hari Raya Idul Adha). It was a 2-hour speed-boat ride to the island in a nice yacht. We had no idea what to expect, but we got away from the city, that was apparent. We were on Tidung Island, and we had paid for our 2-day/1-night accommodations before we left the port. Included, for around $90 USD, was a room for the six of us, and all of our meals. There were no hotels or restaurants on this island, because it is not classified as a ‘resort’ island. During one of the previously mentioned meals, which usually consisted of a homemade rice or noodle concoction, we decided that it was good that we had waited until this far into our stay to come out and stay on a secluded island, otherwise we would not have eaten or enjoyed the food. Anyways, we rode bicycles around the island and found an empty beach where we swam around the coral and laid around for a few hours on Friday. We made it back to our home stay for a late lunch/early dinner and were informed that we were being taken snorkeling. I knew it had been included in the price, so I was more than happy to break up the lazing around with something active. We took a boat out around some of the other nearby islands. It was my first time snorkeling, and I had a blast. It is amazing what is happening under the water and how far away action can be seen, especially near the bottom! The next morning, we were kicked out of our room by 9:30, so we took our stuff and found cover from the massive storm rolling in. Nicole and I took refuge under the roof of another home stay and wrote in our journals as it rained for over an hour. It was definitely the first taste of the rainy season we had seen, and it did not disappoint. It was an intense downpour for most of the time, but I didn’t mind since I had nowhere to be. We found out later that day that the rest of the group had ducked inside a local family’s house and proceeded to entertain the children by playing games with them and attempted translated conversations in Indonesian using a phrasebook. That was the extent of our short trip. A nice little vacation from the city, and no flight or long travel required.

 4. Singapore! I know I mentioned Singapore early in my stay in Indonesia (the country I traveled to for one day while my visa was being processed, so I could come back into the country and legally work). Well, Danna, Nicole and I decided to take a Singaporean teacher, Mildred, up on her offer to tag along on her trip home. So, two weeks ago, we flew out after school on Friday and got into Singapore after midnight (the flight is less than two hours, but you do jump ahead one hour going there). We stayed at her parent’s house, and they were very hospitable. Mildred’s mom cooked us local carrot cake for breakfast (not what you’re thinking like in the States…it was a steamed flour mixture with veggies and eggs, but it was actually quite delicious). Then, Mildred showed us the basics of using the MRT (subway system), so we went off to explore the Botanical Gardens. We wandered around for a couple of hours before we heard threatening rumbles of thunder. Also, I found some beautiful green, open space where I would love to play Frisbee (maybe this weekend when I’m there again). We decided to head over to the area of the city/country/island (yes, it is all of those simultaneously) called Chinatown. There had been some gifts we wanted to buy the last time we were there. We wandered around shopping for the next few hours until Mildred met up with us again. She took us out to dinner at the Hawker Center where we ate a local dish Chicken Rice and washed it down with Sugar Cane drink. We headed over to the area called Marina Bay Sands.

The picture above is a new area built up recently with an upscale mall and neat architecture. The crazy building in the background is a casino in the basement, mall above, and the towers are apartments (the crazy thing sitting across on top is apparently a pool and restaurant, but we couldn't actually go up there to check it out).

 We walked past the Merlion, the national symbol/monument of Singapore. We ended the evening by watching the nightly laser show at the water’s edge. It was a great, short artistic video displayed onto a stream of water acting as a screen, and we thoroughly enjoyed it. Sunday morning, we overslept (oops), so we only had about one hour at Sentosa beach, but it was glorious. We had not had time on the beach like that since Bali. The Singapore sun was super intense, and luckily we did not get rained on or too sunburnt. I am glad that Mildred invited us along, and I hope I can return her the favour one day when she comes to visit near my home.

Bangkok in Thailand

21 October 2012 Sorry, once again, about the long time since my last blog post. Since my last post, I’ve been busy trekking through Thailand, celebrating Children’s Day, participating in a Singapore Math Academy, and, oh yeah, that thing called teaching. First, I’ll start with the highlights from my last school break. Our first term was done at the end of September; therefore we got an entire week break before the start of Term 2. What’s a girl to do, but go with three friends on a trip to Thailand…obviously! For those of you who don’t know where that is, basically it’s a country almost entirely land-locked, situated north of Indonesia, south of China, and west of Vietnam and Laos. An interesting fact that I learned is it’s the only country in Southeast Asia that has never been colonised by European powers. We started off our trip by flying into the capital city of Bangkok. We spent the first day walking around to some of the sights in the city, including The Grand Palace, where the royal families used to live, to the famous Reclining Buddha statue, which is about 150 feet long by 50 feet high! We took a ride on a traditional boat admiring some sights and the Chao Phraya River, which happens to run through the city. There is also a Floating Market, but we didn’t go to it. After our exploring for the day, we decided to get in a tuk-tuk (a small, open-air taxi) and check out Khaosan Road. This is a famous attraction we saw in the guidebook, “lined by budget accommodation, shops and bars catering to tourists”, as described by Wikipedia. I had a delicious dinner of Pad Thai noodles. I had Pad THAI noodles in THAI land. Pretty awesome, huh? Spoiler alert, at the end of our trip I learned how to cook previously mentioned noodles, and they turned out to be delicious. Anyways, on with the evening, because it got quite shady, when Kristina convinced Nicole and I to head over to the Patpong area with her. I won’t go into many details, except to tell you that Bangkok is a well-known major destination in the sex industry. Let’s just say that as we walked down the street market, there were “shows” being offered to us as we passed the bars along the street. Don’t worry, we did NOT go in, and I plan to never see that kind of a show…ever!

Enough about that excitement. Next, on the agenda: we took the overnight train north to a city called Chiang Mai. We had booked a trip to trek through the jungle and stay overnight in local villages, but we had a little time to spend in the city before leaving for the trek on Tuesday. As soon as we got settled into our hostel, we left for a temple that was a 40-minute ride outside the city, in the surrounding mountains. It was a beautiful setting with over 300 steps leading up the side of the mountain. Kristina and I took part in a ceremonial prayer walk around the Buddhist Pagoda where we gave a donation, took a flower and candle, then proceeded to walk around in a square four times, as we were advised to do by someone. During the walk, we were supposed to recite a prayer, conveniently available on a sheet of paper, written in Thai, of course, so that was not helpful. I prayed in my head as I walked anyway (not in Thai, sorry Buddha). When we got back to Chiang Mai, we ate dinner at a nearby restaurant that was recommended to us by the owner of our hostel. It was delicious, and just what we needed to have the energy to wander around the night market. There is a street that is lined on both sides with a ton of stalls selling souvenirs, backpacks (basically everything you might ever need). This street is just on the way to the buildings where the actual night market is housed, but we found some gifts we wanted to buy, so we decided that we would return to the market after our trekking trip in order to stock up on gifts. We also watched a free cultural performance on a small stage. It was a spotlight on about four different areas and dances around Thailand. Nicole decided to buy a nice, big backpack for her traveling adventures, present and future, and she got a great deal. We had a great idea, at that point in the night, that we would share one backpack for the trek. Little did we realize, that was not the smartest decision with all of the hiking that we would be doing. Anyways, more about that a little later. Tuesday morning, Nicole, Kristina and I were picked up by our guides in a covered pickup truck to begin our journey to the jungle. Unfortunately, Danna was still recovering from being sick the week before, so she decided hiking through the jungle probably wasn’t the best way to give her body what it needed to fully recover. We rode in the back of the truck for almost two hours up into the mountains with eleven people total, which made for a hot, cozy ride. We made it to our destination, which just happened to be elephant riding! It was kind of like riding a horse that took giant steps that almost knock you off its back. Luckily, we were sitting on a seat on top of the elephant, and there was a bar to hold us in. We had to work hard to stay in the seat at first, though, because the mix of sunscreen, bug spray, and sweat made for some slipping and sliding around the seat. The man who was sitting on the top of the elephant’s head/neck, I will refer to him as the ‘driver’, was just as cool as a cucumber as Kristina and I laughed and held on for dear life behind him. Our ride involved a walk down to a river, where the elephants drank and sprayed themselves, and us, with muddy water. At the end of the ride, we were fed a lunch of fried rice, and they offered to sell us a picture of our elephant ride in a frame that I assume is made out of elephant poop. It’s awesome, the picture and the frame, so I bought it! After the elephant riding, we began the hiking. The group of eleven plus two guides headed into the jungle, and we walked for almost two hours up into the mountains. Nicole and I were walking nearest to the first guide, who we affectionately refer to as ‘Oh My Buddha’ because that was his reaction to almost everything (get it? instead of saying ‘Oh My God’, he is Buddhist). Alright, time to finish up this story to get it posted to my blog, so I’ll make it short and sweet. It’s not going to sound nearly as exciting and exhausting with just my writing about it, but believe me, hiking through the jungle in Thailand is exactly both of those! We stayed in a local village high in the mountains in a bamboo on the first night. It was an amazing view from the deck of the hut (for lack of a better word). We showered, were fed dinner, and were entertained by our guide showing us tricks (with a piece of rope and cards) and singing along to the music on his phone. We awoke the next morning for a breakfast of toast and eggs to get us ready a day filled with hiking. Our group, along with a family of four from Australia, were the only ones staying on for another night, the rest of the group was heading back down the hill. Our day of hiking included three separate waterfalls, after which we ended up at a small collection of more bamboo huts where we stayed for the night. There were two local women already there who had come down from their hill village with supplies for us. We spent the evening talking with the Australian family, relaxing, making popcorn and fried potatoes over a bamboo fire (which we helped collect bamboo for) and, once again, listening to our guide sing along to his music. The experience of sleeping next to a river, listening to the sounds of nature lull me to sleep all while laying in a building made of bamboo was quite surreal, and I would love to fall asleep like that every night instead of hearing the traffic of Jakarta.

We made it back to Chiang Mai by early afternoon, ate dinner and headed back to the night market to make our souvenir purchases. We stopped by a bar to watch a cabaret show, which was pretty fun and interesting to watch (mostly because I felt super awkward…for those of you who don’t know, a cabaret is men dressing as women to put on a singing and dancing show). The next day we wandered around the city, checking out the temples. We got caught in a horrendous downpour at one point, but it’s not like we melted or anything. Our bus was scheduled to leave at 10 p.m., so we even had time to take part in a Thai Cooking class. We learned how to make a bunch of different delicious dishes, including Pad Thai and Banana spring rolls. First, we went to a traditional market and learned a few things about the local veggies and foods, then we took our fresh ingredients to the instructor’s house. There was a group of 12 of us, and we all had our own cooking station, apron and cookbook for future reference. We each got to cook everything as he instructed us, and then we had our entire meal at the end of the cooking. We each got to eat the same food we had just made, and I must say, it was scrumptious! Our bus came almost an hour late, and the ride was stinky and uncomfortable, but we made it back to Bangkok by Saturday morning in one piece. We took a taxi straight from the bus station to the airport and hung out for a couple of hours before we could check in for our flight. I was sad to come back to Jakarta, knowing that I would once again be breathing to smoggy air and getting stuck in terrible traffic jams. I was happy to think about starting new Maths units at school, though (yeah, I know I’m a dork because I actually like stuff like that). Quickly, since I mentioned it at the beginning of my post. I'm taking part in a Professional Development opportunity with one of the developers of the Singapore Mathematics Curriculum, after which I will have earned a certificate in the teaching of Singapore Math. Dr. Yeap is an amazing presenter, and as much as I love my Saturdays to relax, I don't mind giving up one Saturday a month for the chance to learn more and talk with other teachers about the Maths curriculum and how I can become better at using it to teach. Also, Children's Day was a big deal here. My school celebrated the day before Term 1 break, which meant we did nothing academically that day. The students didn't have to wear their uniforms, there was an extended assembly for student and teacher performances (I was the narrator for a Little Red Riding Hood story put on by the Maths Department) and each class had a class party (my class brought in food, played some games and had a mini dance party with Miss Nicole's 3rd grade class. We taught them the Cha Cha Slide and Cupid Shuffle). It was a successful day, and the kids competed in some group games with their houses before being dismissed early for the day.

That is all for now. I’ll start working on the next update, because it has practically been a month since we got back from Thailand. Remember to vote on Tuesday (don’t worry, I sent in my absentee ballot when I first got over here). Love always, That girl you know who is living and teaching in Indonesia