* for more logistical details about traveling to Flores check out this blog post. Blogging about 15 days in any place would be a difficult task. So my creative approach to this challenge is to retell my experience through 15 little anecdotes, which I will post over the next couple of weeks. The anecdotes will … Continue reading
Teacher Problem: Moderately liking a sugary pop song because your students overplay it…and then the next thing you know, you’re hoarding three entire Taylor Swift albums* and THEN, listening to these for your personal enjoyment and finding a song that actually relates to your life. The sum of my life as a PCV: “We’re happy, … Continue reading
November 15th marked the first day of the Islamic year: Muharram 1, 1434. To celebrate this, all the students and teachers from my school take a motorcycle drive around Bondowoso every year. As a Peace Corps volunteer, I am not allowed to ride a motorcycle (which is the reason why I was feeling left out … Continue reading
Seven months ago my life was a mess. I was selling furniture, giving away stuff, sorting through papers and clothes, all in preparation to move across the world. I slept in a half furnished room, in a nearly empty apartment. At the time, I was dismantling the life I had built, rolling it up into … Continue reading
During Idul Fitri, the biggest Islamic holiday of the year, I had way too much time to think about life and generally, I was having emotional overload with all the new experiences and information. I felt a lot of things that I couldn’t really blog about simply because it just wasn’t very clear. Now, after … Continue reading
Ramadan ended with the Idul Fitri holiday, which required me to accompany my host family to Jember and visit more than ten different houses of close family and friends. (Ten doesn’t sound like a lot, but trust me, it is.) In each of these houses I met more than 25 people, sometimes we went to … Continue reading
Back in training, I had the opportunity to attend many, many weddings. Based on this, my language instructor constantly joked about how much I like parties—which is true. Yet, an Indonesia wedding isn’t the type of event one imagines in the West. First of all, the actual wedding ceremony takes place at another time and … Continue reading
Though I’ve been a fasting wimp during Ramadhan—unlike many of my fellow PCVs—that does not exempt me from learning about Islam during this important month in my community. Last Sunday, August 5th, was the 17th day of the month of Ramadhan, which is the day known as Nozulul Qur’an. This is the day the Islamic … Continue reading
and definitely NEVER in the Peace Corps. Yay! No Friday classes! I definitely had to rearrange my teaching schedule for that one. Are you going to take a nap? Indonesians get up so early they usually must nap in the afternoon in order to survive the day. Ugh, I have to go to school on … Continue reading
1. I go many consecutive days without spending any money and I still live well, eat well and have fun. The bad part: Having to spend no money is a big indicator on how much there actually is to do in my very small town. 2. When I treat myself to something non-Indonesian, I go … Continue reading
I came to my new school right on the cusp of graduation and the graduation ceremony. Because my school is a madrasah all female students and teachers must wear a hijab as part of the uniform. As part of the “staff” it would be appropriate for me to wear a hijab also, but because I … Continue reading
(I am posting this from a beautiful hotel near the sea, where I am having a workshop with all of the teachers in my school and with the principle. Not what I had pictured when I joined the Peace Corps…and it’s not helping the “Beverly Hills” image I will describe…but it’s pretty awesome.) After ten … Continue reading
in the land of dragons 