Monday, September 23, 2013

life in a month

This post is very long overdue and I have a lot to catch up on, but yesterday marked my one month anniversary of landing in Indonesia. It's a pretty crazy feeling knowing that I have been here for a month, in ways its felt both so much longer and so much shorter than a month. This has been the craziest and most incredible month of my life. Every day is really just another new adventure in this country that I am slowly learning more and more about. I thought I would do a quick summary of what I have been doing with myself this month. Enjoy!

During the past 30 days in Indonesia I have...
  • survived 95 degree weather wearing jeans
  • ridden on the back of a motorcycle to school everyday
  • not had starbucks, or bagels, or used hot water, or taken a bath (bucket showers all the way)
  • listened to the call to prayer
  • ate food so spicy I want to cry
  • Ate enough nasi goreng (fried rice) to feed a family of four for a good year
  • worn a school uniform (3 actually)
  • eaten plenty of Indomie (ramen)
  • gone to the American embassy
  • performed the cupid shuffle/macarena/hoedown throwdown in front of the American ambassador
  • met AFSers from Japan, Belgium, Finland, Panama, Argentina, Mexico, France, Thailand, Switzerland, and the Netherlands (probably more)
  • spoken Javanese, Sundanese, Indonesian, Spanish, and some Finnish
  • survived 26 hours of flying
  • sat eight rows ahead of Bon Jovi on a plane to Canada
  • listened to plenty of American music (Macklemore)
  • become a school celebrity
  • gained 60 twitter followers in a week
  • eaten plenty of tropical fruit
  • taken selfies in class with my friends
  • gained a new nickname (Sarahbule)
  • posed in pictures with complete strangers
  • been interviewed twice
  • watched plenty of "friends" with Indonesian subtitles
...and so much more. Hopefully this gave some insight into what the past 30 days in Indonesia have been like without me going on for too long. Indonesia has truly changed my life in ways I had never expected. Everyday I learn more about my own capabilities and this incredible country. Little everyday accomplishments become big scale victories when added up. Like being able to speak Indonesian to my friends at school, and understanding when they respond. And being able to order food in public places in Indonesian, surprising both the food vendor and myself in what I can say in a foreign language, a language most of my friends back home don't know exists. 

The one month mark is an interesting one to hit. One month is a long time to spend in a foreign country when you're 16. A long time. I'm spending ten months here, which still blows my mind everyday. Throughout this month Indonesia has slowly become my home. My neighborhood is beginning to feel familiar and my school is beginning to feel familiar as well. Everyday when I leave school, I really feel like I am coming home, not just to the house I'm living in. Of course one month is not enough to completely adapt to a new environment, and I continue to adapt everyday, but it's enough time to slowly begin to piece your new life together. 





So here is one more list, this time of my favorite things in Indonesia:

  • the taste of freshly cooked nasi (rice)
  • the palm trees everywhere
  • the fact that food costs maybe 50 cents
  • mango and other tropical fruit
  • taking an ojek (motorcycle taxi) to school
  • nasi goreng 
  • my school and amazing classmates
  • the heat (it's a love/hate relationship)
  • cicaks everywhere (geckoes)
  • bucket showers
  • listening to the call to prayer
  • the city of Jakarta
 More pictures to come soon!



No comments:

Post a Comment