Bali Java 2010


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December 12th 2010
Published: December 12th 2010
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Bali-Java 2010 Exchange
“Snatching Adventure from the Jaws of Disaster”
We missed the tsunami by a couple of days, but we were in Yogyakarta for the earthquake and the eruption of Mt. Merapi. In the 1880s they had a very large eruption of Mt. Merapi, the Indonesians took it as a sign that it was time for the Dutch to leave. The Dutch agreed, and left rather quickly. Our hearty band of Friendship Force Ambassadors saw the Mt. Merapi eruption as another opportunity for adventure traveling.
Between Oct. 26 and November 1, a mixed crew of American Ambassadors gathered in Ubud, Bali, to start our adventure. The travel agent informed our ED that she forgot to make hotel reservations on Oct. 20th. Fortunately, our Bali Guide, Made, flew into action and found us the perfect accommodations at SRI Bungalows. Over the next few days we were treated to the cremation of the Northern King (this happens every 10-15 years), an interview with the Princess Atun of Bali, wonderful cultural events and some of the best shopping and food available in all of Asia. The highlight of our time in Bali was a visit to Made’s family compound. It has been in the family for seven generations and features the family temple. Made’s village was described by Margaret Mead in the 1930s as having a very unique form of painting. Made’s father and uncle are both featured in Princess Atun’s Art Gallery. Made is a great artist and guide and played on the national volleyball team. Bali is truly a cultural feast. If the food is not spicy enough, the traffic will certainly spice your life.
Then we attempted to fly to Yogyakarta, which is only 12 miles from Mt. Merapi. The Yogya airport was closed because of the explosions on Mt. Merapi. We were able to secure a flight to Semarang after a day of haggling with Lion Air. Semarang was going to be our home stay location and is about 70 miles North of Yogya. While a couple of us rounded up 18M IDR for the plane fare, Ken Tran continued negotiations with Lion Air. We finally secured the 23 tickets, made arrangements for a hotel in Semarang, informed our hosts in Semarang and Yogyakarta and returned to Ubud for a good night’s sleep. The next day we arrived at the airport, checked in and were informed we were 250 Kilos overweight. Evidently, if you buy your tickets online, the weight limit is 25 Kilos per person but bought at the airport it drops to 15 K. Our negotiator, Ken Tran, pulled out all the stops including asking them to unload the plane so we could take our heavier baggage as carry on. We finally settled on an overweight charge of $23.00 and Lion Air was truly thankful to see our backside.
We were met by our Semarang hosts and stayed at a nice 5 star hotel. We did not come to Indonesia to stay at a nice hotel; we could do that in the US without the thirty-hour flight. Our Semarang hosts felt we should stay in Semarang and skip the visit to Yogyakarta. The Yogyakarta Club felt differently. Sure enough, a bus and a guide were at the door at 9 AM to take us to Yogya. On the way to Yogya we saw some of the worst of the Mt. Merapi damage and came within 5 K of the restricted area around Mt. Merapi. Thick volcanic ash covered everything, but the army and all the people were working to clear the road. We arrived at the Phoenix Hotel with our masks on and a deep appreciation for the skill of our bus driver. Our bus driver must have weighed all of 75 lbs, but could he pilot the bus through anything with an inch to spare on either side. Yogyakarta is the educational/cultural center of Java as well as the ancient capital. It is also home to Prambanan Temple (Hindu shrine built in the 10th century) and Borobudur (the largest single Buddhism shrine in the world).
After visiting the Sultan’s Palace and the Bird Market, we had an early Thanksgiving Day party for our friends from the Yogya and Solo clubs. It was a wonderful evening of singing, friendship and surprises. Dr. Adam (President of FF Yogya) and Arifin Mochtar (FFI Board member) entertained us with their wonderful singing. After some prompting, many others sang with the noticable absence of Americans. As it turned out, we only had one Ambassador who could sing, Ken Tran, and we had to import him from Vietnam. Proving once again, America’s strength is the emigrants we are able to attract.
The following day was a great treat as we visited some of the Merapi victims in a hospital. Even though the children were hurt, they all had big smiles. We then visited a Senior HS. Not only could the adults sing, so could the HS students. We were entertained by beautiful dancing girls and then a visit to the classrooms. We then went to a Jr. High and the kids were great. Have you ever heard rock and roll played on Gamelan instruments? That evening we visited the great Hindu Shrine, Prambanan Temple, built in the 10th century. We had supper at the Gazebo Restaurant and finally the beautiful Ramayana Ballet. That evening, President Obama arrived in Jakarta. We had brought 200 Obama campaign buttons, but with Obama spending part of his youth in Java, we could have used 2000 buttons.

The following day we were back on the bus to Semarang and drove through the awful ash fields. We went by Borobudur and could see the top of the temple but it was closed because of ash. In Semarang we were met by our hosts and settled in for our home stay. Semarang is much larger than the guide books lead you to believe. It has about 1.8 M people and is highly industrialized. The following morning we met the Mayor and went on a tour, which included a Batik exhibit and the history center. Again, we sponsored a party for our hosts and they could sing as well or better than our hosts in Yogya. Jim Collins was forced to sing and thoroughly embarrassed himself. The following morning we started the Batik class at Devi and Hertoto’s house. House is probably not the correct word; it was closer to a palace with lovely gardens and about 100 servants. We Americans may not have been able to sing, but with proper instruction we created some beautiful Batik. That afternoon and evening we had the “Mitoni Ceremony” for Devi’s daughter. The closest thing to Mitoni is a baby shower but much more formalized and spiritual in nature. This was not only beautiful but a real insight to the culture. The following day was time spent with our host families and touring the area around Semarang. Many of us went to a mountain retreat, which was restored by an Indonesian and her Australian husband. Some of the villas were over a hundred years old. We then went to a traditional Wayang Orang performance downtown. They were also having a Heavy Metal Concert next door and a Country Western performance on the other side. The following day, many of us went to a coffee plantation in the mountains and prepared for the departure party at Devi’s house. The going-away party was great fun with our hosts providing music. We tried printing off some songs but with our poor voice and no musical accomment we thoroughly embarrassed ourselves, much to the delight of our hosts.

The following morning we flew back to Bali. We got together for a last supper and it was truly bitter sweet. On an exchange you make great friends with your hosts, but you also create great friends with your fellow ambassadors, sometimes life-long friends. Together, we have “snatched adventure from the jaws of disaster”.

If you would like to contribute to a special Merapi victims fund set up by the Yogya FF Club, please send donations to: Friendship Force MN/TC, Merapi Victims Fund, Ken Scherber, Treasurer, 824 Parkview Ave., St. Paul, MN 55117-4049


Members of the Friendship Force MN/TC

Don & Betty Lemmon Minnesota
Beverly Sealy New York
Barbara Wallace Minnesota
Linda Holstrom Minnesota
Patt Farness Minnesota
Jim Collins Minnesota
Mary Anne Collins-Svoboda Wisconsin


Fellow FF Adventurers

Paul Martin Maryland
Carol & Patricia Hall Washington
Carol Glass Washington
Kay Frankenstein Washington
Larry & Jill Sellers Georgia
Andrea Bascon Illinois
Gloria Rigoni Illinois
Don & Gail Gillies California
Ken & Lan Tran California
Victor & Louse Iseli Ohio



Jim Collins December 2010


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21st January 2011

Nice trip
Next time take me along!

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