Naming my blog posts is not my strong point, so rather than sitting here for ten minutes trying to think of a name like I normally do, I've decided that the first thing that jumps to mind is the title. And what an honest title it is!
Last night was indeed badminton and a birthday party. Our kind new Indonesian friends picked us up and dropped us off again this week, which is SO appreciated as I rely entirely upon other people for transportation once it gets dark out. I've mentioned it before, and I'll mention it again; My biggest frustration here by FAR is the lack of independence. I come from a family that has encouraged independence in me right from when my parents let me bike to my cousins' house at the age of five. I've grown up in the same area from the day I was born, so I've taken for granted how easy life is when your surroundings are familiar (and are also in your native tongue), making it much easier to gain independence. When I turned sixteen, I was lucky enough to have a vehicle to drive, and since then, I have gallivanted off here and there without needing to do anything more than call home if I intend to stay longer than originally planned. Here, not only do I not have a vehicle (which has resulted in my needing to ask for rides everywhere again, something that I cringe at doing every single time), but I cannot even stay out after dark if there is no way home other than the bike. I HAVE found some upsides to this: I get to spend time with my awesome little host brothers, who, surprisingly, get cuter and cuter every day! I also get to bed nice and early and get a full nine- NINE- hours every night, which really does feel good (mom! I'm starting to ENJOY sleep! Would have been nice if that kicked in 21 years ago, eh?). I also fully acknowledge that the lack of independence is the result both of an unfamiliar environment which will become more familiar as I make the effort to explore it, and from MCC's need and desire to keep me safe, which is more important to me than my independence anyways. Anyways, moving forward... I climbed upon Mona's motor bike, being careful to avoid the exhaust pipe this week (my Indonesian tattoo is still a very tender reminder of the pain those things can cause), and off we went to badminton. I discovered that, when compared to Indonesian badminton players, I am actually horrible at the game. Those girls actually make a birdie an object to be feared! It was loads of fun anyways, though, and it ended with a birthday cake and celebration for Via, one of the girls I have met here.
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| My Indonesian tattoo, pre-blister phase! |
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| A rare glimpse of some badminton action... It was mostly my partner scoring us the points! |
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| Happy Birthday, Via!! |
This morning was pancakes and devotions at Major and Karen's house. It requires an early wake-up (we had to be at their house at 6:45 AM), but it's worth it. The whole day just starts out on the right foot when we get to be together as a group, enjoying delicious food and time to be with God as a group. The downside is that our excessively full bellies cause our desire to learn to take a nosedive, and poor Mas Putut has to work extra hard to motivate us. He is up for the challenge though, and today he decided we would learn how to bargain! It's a wee bit difficult to do when our vocabulary doesn't contain numbers in the thousands (a real shame, because pretty much all the money amounts we deal with are in thousands), and when we don't know what a fair price is, but out we went to the fruit stall anyways, and Rikki and I were able to negotiate a deal that got us 1 kilo of mangoes for rp. 6, 500 (about 75 cents). Our adventure did not stop there! We also hit up the market, the "mall", the grocery story, and a "rumah makan" (restaurant) for lunch. Something else that I've mentioned before but feel the need to qualify again, is that it is in fact more economical to eat out (at non-Western restaurants) than it is to cook yourself, which is why we go out for food as often as we do. It also makes more sense considering that houses are not air conditioned, and it gets really hot in a house when you try to cook there. I've discovered that even Indonesian families here tend to pick up food from a warung before or after work, rather than cook it themselves. Something that I've noticed in restaurants here is that the restaurant will have many calendars posted on their walls. I learned that the calendars are from friends or business partners, and are actually a status symbol; the more calendars you have, the more connections you have! What a unique way to show the world how popular you are!
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| So many calendars! These people must be VERY popular! |
This week is jam-packed with adventure, culminating with a weekend trip to Solo, a city an hour away from here. We're going there to visit more MCC workers and see another part of Java, which will be really fun! Tonight is optional games night at Karen and Major's, and I'm excited for an evening at their place! It's always a good time with the Treadways.
Thanks for reading! Have a really awesome day, everyone!
Love,
Ellery
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