Just checking in.../So I hear there's 11 in. of snow back home...

It's been a while since I posted something. I think part of the reason that I have been posting so infrequently is the fact that when I sit down to update my blog I always have the urge to provide an epic story. And let's face it, as exciting (read: not all that exciting) as my life may be, events of epic proportion are few and far between especially since I seem to be fully (maybe an overstatement) adjusted here. So instead, I will focus on providing more frequent smaller posts that will act as reminders that I am still alive/expand your understanding of what life for me here is like.

I have not had to go to school for the past two weeks (and will not have to for the next two weeks as the students get a two week break before the next semester) since there are no classes and the students were engaged in end of semester testing. I did however opt to go to school three days during that period, twice to proctor exams and once to join my co-workers (idk- i felt that had to be italicized) on a visit to one of the teachers' house who just had a baby. On the other days during my "vacation" I went to Yogyakarta for a few days to meet up with some of the ETAs that were visiting from Sumatra and Sulawesi (two different islands). The rest of the time I spent in my apartment looking at the ceiling/watching movies that I've already watched. What?! It's a recession in Indo too! I am saving up for this upcoming week when my best friend from home visits for Christmas! Lola, who has been teaching for the past year and half in Korea on an independent contract, lands in Indonesia precisely at midnight on the 23rd and from then on I have an exciting week planned in Bali and Lombok...but to avoid ruining any surprises for her, I will wait until after the trip to provide an account of how I am celebrating Christmas this year :). Until then please enjoy some of these pictures from my visit to Yogya:

 One of the Hindu temples at Prambanan

Prambanan at sunset

That's me!

Graffiti in Yogya

Okay, I'll stop torturing you with pictures of paradise...now get back to shoveling the driveway! (sorry...that was mean)

Best,

Kal

Thanksgiving In Indo...better than you may think

While no Thanksgiving can compare to one shared with family, close friends, and my mother's delicious macaroni I'd be lying if I did not admit that this year's celebration came quite close. Sure, I didn't get to indulge in the traditional Thanksgiving spread followed by shopping until daybreak at the Williamsburg outlets this year but I did get to share it with many new friends...in Bali and Lombok :)

No later than the second after my last class ended on Wednesday last week I booked it to my house to change and pick up my bags for my five day Thanksgiving vacation. One five hour bus ride and a one hour flight later I arrived in Bali at 10:30 pm Wednesday night to meet about fifteen of my ETA friends for a night out. How do I describe Bali? Well, lets make it easy: The one thought that circulated through my mind the entire night is that this is not the Indonesia I know. This new Indonesia is a "westerner's" playground in the middle of Southeast Asia. Aussies, Europeans, and Americans filled the nightclubs, hotels, shops and restaurants. Bali is gorgeous and is full of so much fun that it is no wonder why so many foreigners flock to the island the minute they have time off.

On Thanksgiving day, I spent the day exploring the shops in Seminyak, Bali with friends, followed by lunch at a Chipotle-esque burrito restaurant, but naturally we ended up at Kuta Beach, the most popular beach in Bali. Later that night all of the ETAs that traveled to Bali (about 15) met for dinner at a nice restaurant for our own Thanksgiving dinner. While there was no turkey or stuffing there was steak and mashed potatoes which was fine by me! We tried to make the event as festive as possible. Fortunately to aid in the festivity Kelly's mother sent cute little pilgrim table figurines and leaf cutouts for a Thanksgiving garland. Not quite sure what a Thanksgiving garland is? Don't feel bad, I just found out myself...A Thanksgiving garland for those of you who are not hip to the latest in Thanksgiving traditions are construction paper cutouts of leaves in an assortment of fall colors (brown, red, yellow, green...you know, the color of leaves). Each person at the table is given one leaf and they have to write down what they are thankful for. My leaf said something along the lines of, "Although there are things I may complain about, I am really thankful for this wonderful opportunity of exploring a new country and getting to know so many new and interesting people, especially my new ETA friends" (note it was a little more eloquent than that). Ordinarily, once the leaves are complete the leaves are strung together and draped somewhere in the house. However, since we did not have a house at our disposal or string for that matter, we exchanged all of the leaves, stood up and read each others out loud. Some people cried. Mind you this is all happening in the middle of a busy restaurant. So Thanksgiving dinner was nice.

While Thanksgiving in Bali was great, the best was yet to come. The following morning, five of us (Courtney, Kelly, Carrie, Emma, and myself) woke up at 6 a.m. to catch a boat to heaven on Earth, Gili Trawangan, an island off the coast of Lombok (the island across from Bali). We spent three days on this beautiful small island where cars and motorbikes are banned. South Bali was a bit of an overload of non-stop bulé* action with obnoxious tourists and crowded and dirty beaches. Gili T is the antithesis to Bali, a little known serene oasis with a very laid back environment. I loved everything about my Gili T experience; the crystal blue water that contained the most beautiful hues of blue imaginable, the fresh seafood caught daily and laid out for your choosing, the gorgeous coral reefs and tropical fish and sea turtles that I saw up close while snorkeling, the picturesque mountain landscape of the surrounding islands, and the cozy and cheap(!) cottage we stayed in. I enjoyed Gili T so much that I had no choice but to extend my trip by one day since I did not have to be in school until Tuesday. Gili T was the best vacation ever and was just what I needed to recoup for school. Peep the pictures below:

 

 

 

 

 

Even amidst the wonderful distractions, I have to admit that Thanksgiving this year was a bit somber. The truth is nothing can really compare to sharing the holiday with friends and family that you love. Fortunately, even though I was far from home this Thanksgiving, my parents and grandmother, made me feel a little closer to home with the great packages I received from them a little before the holiday. The four boxes were replete with all of the essentials. I was aptly reminded that no matter where life takes me I will always have the wonderful family that God has blessed me with and for that I am truly thankful :)

Best,
Kal

*Bulé is Indonesian for Aussie/European/American...kind of like the term gringo is to Latin American countries

Do you remember...

This past week was probably the best teaching week so far! I taught my students about using the past tense with one of my all-time favorite songs, Remember the Time by Michael Jackson. After nine classes of playing the song back to back I know the song now, just as well as I did when I was a little boy.

Each class I would start off with a basic lesson of key words that are commonly followed by the past tense like: yesterday, last week, last month, last year, two months ago and so on. To provide context for the song to follow, I taught them about the use of the phrase, "I remember when..." or "Remember the time..." as well as "I/We used to..." These were all phrases that are used in the song and provided a nice transition (there had to be an academic component as much as I just wanted to listen to the song!)

After I passed out the worksheet of the lyrics with all the verbs in the past tense missing, I asked the students, "Do you know Michael Jackson?" Already anticipating the response, the students answered with a resounding, "YES!" All the while looking at me as if I had committed a crime by asking them such an asinine question. Their facial expressions came as no surprise, since the students have mentioned Michael Jackson's name on numerous occasions since my arrival and in many of my classes, we used Michael Jackson as the topic of discussion (the students had to describe and draw the physical features of the most famous person they know).

After we completed the worksheet together, I played the song for them. Watching the students bob their heads as they tried to follow the lyrics on the page made me smile and I couldn't resist asking them to sing along. This was quite the task as only a couple of my classes were able to sing along to the end. In some classes I didn't even attempt to ask them to sing as I knew it would be almost impossible. BUT there was one thing that I knew could not be thwarted by the language barrier and transcended all cultures....the moonwalk. Yep, I got all of my classes to get up out of their seats and moonwalk down the aisle...this wasn't as easy as I hoped since many of them were crippled by bashfulness but once "Mr. Kalada" did it, the students couldn't resist. See for yourself below...







Best,
Kal

Happy Birthday Brandon!

Wow, I can't believe my brother, Brandon, is getting so old. Today, November 7th marks his 20th Birthday! My little brother is not a teenager anymore! Most of you should know Brandon but for those of you who do not he is a Junior, Biochemistry major, at the University of Maryland Baltimore County. Among his many accomplishments (which are almost too long to list) he is the current president of the Gospel Choir. I continually find myself amazed by what he has achieved and just when I think he has reached the pinnacle, he outdoes his self even more. I am so proud of the young man that he has become and look forward to seeing what is next on the horizon for him.

So Brandon, in lieu of a card this year, this is for you. I love you and miss you very much! Enjoy your day!

¡Feliz Cumplé! or as we say in Indonesia:



That's "Selamat Ulang Tahun" not "Tamales Gnalu Nuhat"...oops!

I am a teacher.

I speak the title of this blog entry with a certain aplomb that I never expected to have during this experience. Sure, I signed up to be an English teacher but in actuality I have no formal training in teaching, in fact I never had a serious desire to become a teacher professionally beyond this, yet here I am in Indonesia and I...am a teacher...

Every morning (for the past four weeks that is) I wake up at 5:30 a.m. I hit the snooze button at least three times, getting me up on average at about 6 a.m. every morning. I mosey out of bed still asleep and walk to my ant infested bathroom. I clear the ants away from the listerine bottle on the sink and look in the mirror. "Why me?!" I ask as I clear the sleep from my eye, still drowsy and wanting nothing more than to go back to bed. I look at the bathtub and consider heavily whether I have the energy to lift my legs over its side to take a shower (breathe easy- the decision is usually yes).  After I have washed up and am instantly (only slightly) more energized, I proceed to get dressed. Once I'm dressed (as of the past week as i've just received it) in my new mustard yellow or seaweed green teacher's uniform, I gather my things, head out the door and proceed down the steps of my apartment. Almost ritually, once I've reached the second level of steps before the bottom I turn right back around, run up the steps, unlock my door and turn off the air conditioner in my apartment (because if I don't my landlord will).  Once I've checked my pockets front and back as to not have to heave myself back up the stairs again, I leave for the last time out the door. I'm usually met downstairs with warm salutations from the maternity ward's staff countered by the bemused stares of pregnant women and their husbands (i live in a maternity ward...not joking) alike as I walk out of the front door and head down the dusty road to the main thoroughfare.

Once at the street, I am met with more gawking from the people in town, who I'm sure have never seen a person quite like me. Usually, I take the stares in stride (I mean I am a foreigner) but some mornings (only one or two thus far) I take the incessant staring personally and find myself with a not so pleasant look on my face. Its not the staring that bothers me, it is the constant reminder that I am in fact an outsider, that I am alone an ocean and half away from home. By the time I am on the angkot on my way to school, the frustrations subside...until I arrive at my destination and the angkot driver tries to overcharge me because its clear that I am not from around here. Fortunately, I know enough Indonesian to elude his scheme and give him the 2,000 rupiah that I owe.

Rattled from the unpleasant encounter I once again find myself walking on a dusty path this time 200 yards away from school. As I'm walking, many thoughts wander through my mind: what lessons I'll teach for the day, how dirty my shoes are getting from the dusty road, how hot the beaming sun is, do I have any extracurriculars after school today? All of these thoughts help me to become mentally prepared to start my day at SMK Muhammadiyah Kudus. However, usually before I am really fully prepared I approach the front gate of my school, take a deep breathe and head in. At this point a change in current is felt. I hear the excitement in the voices of students as they yell, "Hey Mister!", (for many of them this is the extent of their English) and I respond, "Good Morning, How are you?", and the transition begins. The hard exterior formed by the lingering frustrations of the morning start to chip away, one student at a time. The excitement of the students instantly change my disposition and any worries that I had are left at the gate. I am happy again :).

Fast forward to the classroom. I love to teach! I have so much fun. Most of the time I am making a fool of myself, trying to get my point across by frantically gesturing or flailing my limbs, acting out a wide range of emotions or using my limited Indonesian vocabulary (the last is usually met with hysterical laughter). Miraculously the students understand and whether it is a lesson about introducing oneself, describing physical appearance, or expressing emotions I find some way to make it fun for both the students and myself. The best feeling in the classroom is witnessing the confidence level of students rise from the beginning of the class to the end. Routinely at the beginning of class, I have to beg for just the slightest whisper of an answer from students but invariably by the end of each class, the students are yelling confidently in English. Even more of a rush is felt when I can see that the students are learning, from something that I have taught them no less!

It is at the end of every class, after the students have enthusiastically yelled, "Bye Mr. Kalada!", and after I am exhausted from my latest performance in the classroom that I find myself in a daze of wonderment...I think to myself and smile...I am a teacher.

Best,
Kalada

A Bit of a Whirlwind...please forgive me

First, I must apologize for the lack of posts lately. I was expecting that I would have internet access regularly in my new apartment in Kudus, however I was grossly in err.  I won't go into much detail about my apartment yet because without visuals, I don't know if I could do the "experience" justice.  Instead, this post is really just to reassure you all that I am indeed still alive.  In fact, until I received a phone call from my dad last week checking on my whereabouts, I was ignorant to the fact that there had been an earthquake in my new country. 

Fortunately, I was not affected by the earthquake as it occurred on a different island than mine.  Unfortunately however, the lack of internet and cable in my apartment has kept me inexcusably uninformed.  In my defense, due to the whirlwind of a week that I just endured, I had no time to visit an internet cafe much less even find a newspaper.  Anyway, this is all to say that I am still alive and if you'd like proof just look below... 

That's me holding today's newspaper in a wi-fi equipped coffee shop in Semarang, Central Java.

I hope to provide a detailed account of my first week within the next few days with many pictures.  Until then, you'll sadly have to be appeased by my smiling face ;)

Best,

Kal

Angkot Confessions

On Sunday a group of us set off on a trip to Kawah Putih (White Crater).  Little did we know that it would be a three hour trip. Making matters even more interesting was the fact that we used an Angkot (see earlier blog for more info) to get there.  Piled in the Angkot were Jenny, Dylan, Dani, Mike, Thom, Kelly, Carrie, Erica, Courtney, Lolly, and myself.  The Angkot, which is principally a public form of transport servicing local destinations, was commandeered by our group for a bargained price of 300,000 Rp (approx. $30) for the day's trip.  Enjoy the pictures below documenting our journey (note most of the photos were taken through the open door of a moving Angkot):

Family of four on a motor bike...take special note of the baby in front

 

From right to left: Mike, Thom, Kelly, Carrie

Gas station attendant

A bit more sensible ;)

Rice paddies and mountains

Unofficial greeter at Kawah Putih

We're here!

 

 

 

Oops! We walked in on a wedding photo shoot ;)

Grilled corn on the cob!

3,000 Rp...best 30 cents i've spent!

Hot springs resort...the water was boiling...but it felt so good!

Dinner on the way back from a road stall: Goat satay with peanut sauce, vegetable fritter, white rice...this whole meal cost less than $2.00

Best,

Kal