Idul Fitri & Aceh

Looked like the same ship I road last year - maybe it was :)

Last year I joined my friend and his family in the city of Medan, North Sumatra for Idul Firtri following Ramahdan, the month of fasting.  Knowing I only had a few months left in Indonesia, I took the chance to join them again when they invited me to return for this year's celebration!  Riding the overcrowded ship was not as shocking this year, but brought more opportunities to visit with other Indonesians traveling home to celebrate with their families.

This was my view for the majority of the trip.  
I slept on the deck where I could have more fresh air
and stretch out my legs a little more at night.

Getting off at the port in Medan!

Food!  Following the end of the fast there's lots of eating, which means lots of cooking!  (R) My friend's mother prepares rendang (beef simmered in coconut milk), a traditional dish - maybe like turkey at Thanksgiving.  (Above)  My friend's grandmother cleans up a few fresh chickens that we'll eat sometime during the week.

It happened to be one of the cousin's birthday, so she treated us to a delicious meal at the mall.  Lots of fun to catch up with the cousins that I got to know the year before and only got to see a few other times during the past year.
In Indonesia the birthday person treats family and friends to a meal, too bad I left just before my birthday.  :)
Here we broke the last fast together, which means tomorrow starts Idul Fitri!

After morning prayers on the day of Idul Fitri, the family gathers to ask
forgiveness of one another for the past year's faults.  It's an emotional
time but one that seems to bring peace and a feeling of renewal.
We all wore white to match as a family.  

Idul Fitri lasts two days, but the festivities can carry
on starting a week before and/or after with the main
activity being Silaturahmi.  People visit their family
and friends to extend their greetings, ask forgiveness,
and catch up.  There's lots of eating and so many
people to meet.  This might be my favorite part of Idul
Fitri.  (Left & Above) Traveling & visiting family!

We even traveled up the east coast of North Sumatra
to the province of Aceh.  One of the in-laws to
the family had grown up here, so we visited his
mother and step-mother and family of almost all his
12 siblings!  (Above) In more of a village setting, the
family quickly went to work cutting coconuts from
their backyard and draining the juices for us to enjoy!

Visiting so many family members after not having seen them for so long means a meal at each place - in our case that meant two lunches.  (Above)  We enjoyed one meal of rice, fish, shrimp, vegetable greens, and an assortment of sweet snacks.  I am wearing a traditional Muslim hat, although often made of black velvet, the white style I'm wearing here is also common.  (Above right)  We stopped to snap a photo with a portion of the large extended family.

Aceh was known for its freedom movement and resulting violence through the 90s until the 2004 tsunami made it known around the world when 250,000 died .  (Above)  As we drove along the east coast highway, which was likely the pathway for much relief in the years following the tsunami, we reached the city of Lhokseumawe which was hit by the tsunami, although to a lesser extent than other parts of northern and western Aceh.  (Above)  The city can be seen in the distance with new housing built for tsunami victims in the forefront, noticeably far from the ocean.

These family members were able to share their personal stories with me about how they drove from their homes in Medan to take supplies to those in Aceh following the tsunami and how difficult it was to search for their family members amongst the thousands of corpses, only to finally receive news many days or weeks later of some surviving and others taken in the tragedy.  (Above)  We enjoyed a morning on the beach and swam in the Andaman Sea.

Aceh's main economies are oil and mining, ag, and fisheries.  (Left & Above)  We were able to witness this fishing technique of dropping a net offshore by boat and then seeing the fishermen gradually pull in the net from the beach.  A small crowd gathered to see their catch of mainly small fish, but also a net full of variety.

Aceh is a strongly Islamic province, with 98% of the
population being Muslim.  During our drive along
the eastern coast, the only religious buildings we
saw were the numerous mosques; some beautiful and
large (above), several being built (Right), and others
simple yet powerful (Below).

Telunas Beach - Island Resort

 After accompanying the group of K-Staters around the island of Java for 1.5 months, I wasn't finished traveling in my final months in Indonesia.  A few friends that I had contacts with started a eco-tourist business on the island of Batam several years ago.  The destination is a wonderful place to rest and relax with no distractions and little entertainment.  They host many couples, families, and partner with school groups from around Southeast Asia to do community development projects on the islands that surround their resort.  I enjoyed one night at the resort, but mainly enjoyed the boat rides to get a look at the surrounding area and people.  www.telunasbeach.com

Home to 17,000+ islands, Indonesia has beautiful beaches and tropical paradises throughout the archipelago. 

The only way to get to this island resort is by boat!

The main economics in the area is fishing and many of the employees at the resort come from families of fishermen.  (Above is a fishing boat)  But a bird's nest soup, famous amongst many Chinese, has driven a growing market for swallow's birds nests in the area.  The building pictured left is full of holes for the swallows to fly into and make their nests.  Many of these can be found on one of the main island cities.

The ropes course is probably more fun with a group
of friends, but I hopped on anyway!  See what I
mean, no distractions and lots of quiet!

The dining and lounging area provide for a peaceful setting to enjoy your Western food.  It was the first time I'd had spaghetti and meat balls with onion rings, and the first time I'd eaten either one for over a year!  

The resort design is the same used by the locals that
have lived on these islands for hundreds of years.
Normally built above the water on long stilts with
walkways connecting the rooms.

  

While the resort was nice for an evening, I enjoyed more the time watching my friends' kids and connecting with my only Indonesian friend I knew while a student at Kansas State.

Samuel and I hadn't seen one another for at least 3 years!  Fun to re-connect and talk about K-State football!

Summer with Friends

This summer brought interactions with lots of friends - old & new.  I especially enjoyed joining 3 friends from Kansas State University as they came to learn about and experience Indonesia!  Here's a look at our summer! 

Me, Kevin, Katie, and Elyssa
Kevin and I came together to Indonesia in the summer of 2009,
but this was the first time for Katie and Elyssa.

 Madiun, East Java
 -They had Indonesian lessons, and I was pushed in my Indonesian during translation
-Living with an Indonesian host family was probably the highlight of the trip as these three have the opportunity to draw close and get real life encounters with their extremely hospital host family.
-Visiting Indonesian schools to exchange culture and encourage the students in their English language learning

Here the girls are learning to dance while I give a try at
singing a song in their local language, Javanese.
Photos are probably better than videos in this case :)

-Interactions with they young and old throughout our time in Madiun.  Below visiting a kindergarten and getting to know one of my neighbors during our stay.

-While we were challenged mentally to learn Indonesian, study culture, and build relationships, probably the certainly the most physically demanding part of our trip was climbing Mount Lawu (10,712 ft).

 Pangalengan, West Java
-The second part of our trip we joined a group of 40+ Indonesian high school students for Summer English
-We stayed at Mount Malabar for 9 days
-There we taught English, learned about the local culture, and had lots of fun!
-The first few days included living with an Indonesian host family in the village area and joining the people in their work in the tea plantation (difficult work with long walks, cold mornings, and hot afternoons)

-The second part of Summer English we were camping and continuing to enjoy interactions with the local villagers as we camped on their soccer field.

-Remember this is Mount Malabar, so we got to learn survive the cold nights in the tents.  

-Below, we got to learn aerobics with the local women as we joined for Sunday afternoon exercise

 -The last portion of Summer English concluded by living in cottages on Mount Malabar, while not much warmer than the tents, they were much more comfortable ;)
-We also took a trip to a local lake and finished by spending a day in the city of Bandung.

Bandung, West Java

-After Summer English, our group of four continued our journey in the city of Bandung by connecting with college students who showed us more of the culture and local sites

-Below, we watched a show of the local dance and music -angklong at Saung Angklung Udjo

 -Visiting Tangkuban Perahu, a dormant volcano north of Bandung, was a fun site and trip with new friends
-And how about a trip to the zoo, riding elephants isn't something you often get a chance to do in Kansas!

-Helping out at a local orphanage also proved to be a highlight and another opportunity to learn what life is like for another group of people in Indonesia

-These friends made our time in Bandung happen as they opened up their homes to us, took us on tours of their campus, watched a choir performance, ate some of the local cuisine, and enjoyed many other interactions.

Thanks to all for enriching our trip with your friendships and generous giving of effort, time, and warm hospitality!

Village Wedding

Since living in Indonesia, I've enjoyed attending a few weddings in the city of Bandung in West Java, but this last April I had the privilege to attend a village wedding in Kediri in East Java where I've been working.  There was quite a difference in traditions, but the fun and joy in celebration was still a constant!

Day 1 - The first event was a bit more formal than the
rest as it was the signing of the official wedding
documents (Right).  From left to right: Man/Official
running the ceremony, sister of the bride, bride, father
of the bride, groom, uncle of the groom.  Pictured
above is part of the bride price paid by the groom and
his family for the bride.

Another adventure on Gang Mangga!  After the first wedding
ceremony (at the top) at the bride's parents' house, we returned to the groom's parents' house.  There men of the community gathered for a meal, prayer, and speaker.

The night of Day 1 included a Wayang Kulit show
starting in the evening around 10 or 11pm and
finishing early the next morning at 3 or 4 am.  Wayang
Kulit has a deep part in Indonesian culture (see my
previous blog post here)

Day 2 brought the more traditional Javanese wedding
ceremony!  The groom and his accompanying party
came to the bride's parents' house once again (Right).
The guests were seated, then the bride washed the
groom's feet with a mixture of meaningful ointments
and items (bowl pictured above).

(Right) The father of the bride leads the couple "down the aisle" with a
cloth wrapped around them.  (Above) The bride and groom center
(notice the groom's new outfit), parents of the bride left, and uncle and
aunt of the groom right.  Apparently it is not common for the groom's
parents to be in attendance.

 For a better look at the wedding scene check out this video!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJR7xVhTjds&feature=youtu.be

The third and final day was like the wedding reception, or you
could say - "Party Time!"  People gathered at the groom's parents'
house for a live band performance and more food!  The couple
(left) came together for the first time. (Above) Me sitting with the father of the groom and one of his nephews.  A fun and enjoyable experience!