February Favorites

While January felt like the longest month ever, February has flown by, and I’m really enjoying service as I get more into the swing of things here. Here’s some (favorite) things that happened this month...

...I got a massage

I started the month feeling a little under the weather, with what I think was a combination of sleep deprivation, allergies, an ear infection, and maybe even a sinus infection. I’ve had some trouble sleeping at site, and usually will wake up a few times throughout the night. Not ideal. I had my first sick day while in Lengkong, and was thoroughly cared for. When there’s trouble, Indonesians usually come to the rescue with food and support, and while my sick self wanted to be left alone to catch up on sleep, I woke up to a text from my counterpart saying, “I’m at your house right now, Miss.” Later that night, feeling better than earlier that morning, my ibu popped into my room asking how I was. I explained I was better, then she asked if I had ever had a massage. Following my response, she quickly muttered something in Indonesian, said, “try, yeah??” and ten minutes later, I was greeted by a small, elderly woman who spoke only Javanese. I then had a two hour massage on the floor of my house. That little woman was powerful, and I had bruises for the rest of the week, but as my ibu explained, it did make me feel a lot better. (I had some antibiotics as well.)

...I drove 3 hours to go to the beach

Java is an island. But, it’s a big island. My site is essentially smack in the middle of it, between the Java sea to the north and Indian Ocean to the south. Java is home to some of the most incredible beaches, and after explaining my NY home’s proximity to the beach, people have been insisting on taking me there. So far, I’ve been three times. There’s plans to go again next week too. But mind you, the beach is not close. It typically takes three hours from my house without traffic. As far as efficiency goes, I would say a day trip isn’t worth it. But last week, we drove to the beach, only to be there for one hour. Then we got back in the car and drove home. For Indonesians, it’s more about the journey than the destination I suppose.

...I went to Surabaya

For our first three months at site, PCVs are under a travel ban that limits our time outside of site to only two nights per month. This means that December, January, and February have had diligently planned weekend trips where I’ve met up with nearby friends. December was Pacitan, January I returned to Kediri, and this month I met with my two good friends, Chelsea and Sarah, in Surabaya. Surabaya is the second largest city in Indonesia, and the capital of East Java. It’s big! And crowded! But there’s some comforts of home there, like AC, hot showers, full length mirrors, American chains, and beer. Surabaya is not like my site in many, many ways, and it almost felt like another wave of culture shock had hit me while there. We ate pancakes with maple syrup, McDonalds breakfast, and pizza. We ate with knives! People spoke English, and when we were seen, we immediately were spoken to in English. Starbucks was had. I bought a shirt at H&M. I also saw wealth there that I had never seen in this country before. The one mall we went to, called Tunjungan Plaza, was massive.

But overall, it was an amazing time spent with friends, where we were able to have fun and talk in person. I’m excited to head back to the city next month for some more fun.

...I played more basketball...

and it’s now my preferred choice for workouts here.

...I got a package

Nothing excites me more than things that are out of the ordinary, which usually is when I get a package. Like, I literally scream for joy in the teacher’s room when someone comes in with something addressed to me. This time, my mom sent me some seasoning, and Starbucks instant coffee, which literally has saved my life here, along with a few other things. Coffee machines aren’t a thing, and as I’ve explained, the coffee here is usually instant, and leads you to swallow whole coffee grounds at the end of the cup. Not ideal, but with the many, many packs of coffee that were sent to me, I can enjoy a delicious cup of coffee every couple of days (I’m trying to ration it out so I don’t go through it too quickly!)

...I continued learning Bahasa Indonesia

I started Indonesian tutoring with Hima, my CL from Kediri, earlier in January and it’s been going well! We switch between meeting in Kertosono, the town closest to me, and Kediri. To get to Kertosono, I have to bike about 13 kilometers (about 6 miles) one way. For Kediri, I have to be driven to the bus stop and take about an hour long bus ride. I’m enjoying my time learning more of the language, but our sessions usually end up with us gossiping in Indonesian. More about Hima in a later post.

...I got more used to teaching

While teaching this semester has been a long process of trial and error, I’m getting much more used to it. I’m learning more about productive ways to communicate and lesson plan with my three counterparts, each of whom has unique teaching styles and different personality… quirks. This month, I’ve taught my 11th graders conditional sentences, which I didn’t realize theres many types of. My 10th graders have learned narrative text, present tense, and future tense. I’m trying my best to keep students engaged and interested, which is a challenge for my two classes that are at the end of the day. This semester is a learning period, in order to see what works and what doesn't. I’ve also noticed my level of communication has changed with my counterparts, and the New Yorker in me and trying hard not to be too direct with what’s on my mind and with what bothers me, given the culture of Indonesia. It’s so damn hard though sometimes.

...I messed up, but it was funny

Last week, I went on a bit of spiel in class. Here, in many instances, boys and girls are not treated equally. This couldn’t be clearer than in class. There is no assigned seating, and the boys are often cornered in the back in groups. While the girls (usually) pay attention and answer questions, the boys talk, walk out of the classroom, play on their phones and blatantly don’t give a crap. This has been one of the hardest things to deal with, especially as a teacher, because I feel disrespected. So, I went on a little bit of a rant in front of my students after giving an activity and noticing that not one boy had done it after thirty minutes. I started by explaining that for me, my expectations for boys and girls are the same. If there’s a game, the boys AND the girls play. If there’s an activity, BOTH girls and boys do it. When I talk, you're quiet and you listen: boys AND girls. This was done in English. Then, using my hands to demonstrate the level of expectations of boys and girls, I meant to say the Indonesian word for girls and guys, which are “cewek” and “cowok”. However, instead of saying “cowok”, I said “cewok”, which is Javanese for shit. So, I said that there are girls, and there is shit. Which seemed fitting, given the circumstance.

Also, March 1st is the anniversary of Peace Corps! Here’s a bingo card that went around the PCV community, along with the satirical one made by an unaffiliated Peace Corps meme account. Have a great week!