Finally here...

So tired but wanted to share with all that I have arrived in Jakarta, Indonesia safely. I will post more later.

Best,
Kal

Off to a Different World...

The title of this post comes from the last episode of one of my favorite shows, A Different World. At the end of the series finale, Whitley and Dwayne leave everyone they know and everything they own for a business opportunity in Japan. As Whitley is walking out of the door, she surveys her apartment one last time, sighs and says, "We're off to a Different World". While the sentiments aren't exactly the same, as I don't own a home or much for that matter, I still feel that I am leaving everyone that I love to embark on something new. And as exciting as that may be, I still have a very somber feeling about not being able to share everything that I experience with those whom I love deeply. While I will try my best to keep everyone updated via this blog, no blog can truly be a substitute for standing right there with me (no matter how good of a writer i may strive to be :). So to all my family and friends, I love you and will miss you and I'll see you soon.

Best,
Kalada

Where I'll be and what I'm doing

For those of you who don't already know (it should be very few) I am leaving for Indonesia on Friday morning (less than 48 hours from now!). For what you might ask? Well I received a grant to teach English as part of the Fulbright English Teaching Assistant program. The teaching contract is for 9 months however I intend to stay up to 2 months beyond the grant duration in order to see as much of SE Asia as I can. I also reaaaalllly want to go to Australia.

Upon arrival in Indonesia I will spend a little less than a week in Jakarta getting all of the necessary "official business" out of the way. After Jakarta I will be shipped off to Bandung with the rest of the ETAs (English Teaching Assistants) (there's about 30 of us) for Bahasa Indonesia lessons and teaching orientation. This portion of the trip will last for about 3 weeks. After Bandung I will be off to Kudus, a small town in Central Java where I will spend the following 8 months. The name of my school is SMK Muhammadiyah Kudus. As far as I have gathered the school is a computer science vocational pesantren (muslim boarding school).

Map of Indonesia:



Kudus is located in Central Java (the island where Jakarta is located). You won't find Kudus on most maps but the largest city closest to Kudus is Semarang (which is an hour west).

And here is a link to the desolate Wikipedia page for Kudus. I can only hope that this is not a harbinger of what lies ahead in my soon to be home :)

Best,
Kal

I am soooo nervous...ok thats a lie

As the time draws nearer for me to depart, I have been asked by many people the following questions, "Are you excited? Are you nervous?" And usually without much thought my response is: yes to the former and no to the latter of the questions. However, it is never that simple because for some reason the "no" more times than not leads to a follow up question inquiring why I am not nervous or at the very least leads to a quizzical facial expression. I haven't really thought too much about my response to this question until now. Am I weird for not being nervous? I mean, I should be nervous, shouldn't I? Afterall, I am moving half way across the world for almost an entire year to do something that I really have no experience doing. I don't know a lick of Bahasa Indonesia or Javanese and I anticipate living in a very rural part of Indonesia with virtually no foreigners around for miles. My three month stint (the longest I've been away from the U.S.) in Costa Rica couldn't really have prepared me for what I am about to endeavor. Life in CR was so comfortable. I really can't imagine Indonesia being anything like it. Who knows, maybe it just hasn't hit me yet. Maybe once I arrive in Jakarta I will start to second guess my decision. But as of today I am just excited...and not nervous.

It is now officially Tuesday. I leave on Friday morning. Ask me if I have packed one thing.