Finding the grocery store

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Hello All,

I am settling into life in Bontang. I know where to buy my groceries, how to work my washing machine, and where to find drinking water at school. As in orientation, my days start at 6am. School begins at 7, and many students are there until 5 or 6 in the evening. My days end anywhere from noon to 5pm.

At school, I have been introducing myself to classes and observing lessons. Students have asked me about everything from my opinions on global warming and the upcoming presidential election to my favorite Indonesian food and impressions of Indonesia. The other American in my town got asked what she thought the first time she tried rice. That is, the student did not know we have rice in the US!

What we consider personal questions in the States are fair game - students commonly ask if I am married and if I have a boyfriend. When I respond “no,” they begin making jokes about me dating students and other teachers. While this would be considered inappropriate in America, the teachers seem un-phased and laugh with the students. We were told in orientation that these are common questions in Indonesian culture; Indonesians seem to talk about marriage and dating like we talk about the weather. As such, I have joined in the laughter.

Many students have also asked me why I chose to come to Indonesia. I have responded that I wanted to learn more about Islam and Indonesian culture. Several of the staff, after hearing I am interested in learning about Islam, have been happy to answer my questions and share information with me about their religion. I have learned head-covering for women is their personal choice, Muslims are never/rarely required to attend mosque, and many consider their faith to be as much cultural and familial as spiritual. Muslims are, however, supposed to pray five times a day. They are summoned to pray by a call-to-prayer that mosques broadcast over loudspeakers. The first call is around 4 in the morning; the last around 7 at night. The call is gorgeous - it consists of a person singing passages from the Koran. Around noon, many teachers stop by the prayer area in the teacher’s lounge to say their midday prayer. I have to say, I admire the discipline many people have to stop and pray on such a regular basis.

This past weekend, I spent a morning walking around Bontang. I walked along one of Bontang’s major roads, a divided highway with 1-2 lanes of traffic in each direction. Both sides of the road are lined with shops selling packaged food, fruit, electronics, clothing, and a variety of other items. The shops vary from temporary structures selling fried treats to enclosed, air-conditioned shops with set prices. The majority of the stores are in-between these two: permanent, open-air shops set a dozen or so feet back from the road.

The sidewalks are a bit hazardous and rarely used. I walked over strewn crab legs, jumped over puddles, and ducked under trees whose branches were no more than 4ft off the ground. As I walked by the shops, I got a mixture of “Bule!,” “Hello Mr.,” “Hello Ms.,” and “How are you?".

Near the end of my walk, a couple of English teachers stopped me to say hello. I then ate lunch with them at their family’s warung (food stall), and they invited me to their house. While this would be sketchy in the US, such invitations are common in Indonesia. Overall, such friendliness has greatly eased my transition to life here. At the most basic level, it is Indonesians who have helped me find the grocery store, use my washing machine, and get drinking water at school.

Until next time,

Kerry

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Comments

[kay]

write more please
love to read more about bontang,, have u come across any other 'bules' yet??