Blogs from Sumatra, Indonesia, Asia - page 55

I'm heading to Sabang for New Year's weekend. It's an island about 40 minutes away by ferry where they don't really enforce Sharia (Islamic) law. There's no running water and generator-only electricity, but there IS: beer, parties on the beach and diving/snorkeling around the amazing coral reefs. I've been there once before so i put some pics up to give you a sneak peek. I'm glad to be leaving Banda for this holiday weekend. A letter was issued to all aid agencies here this afternoon from the Head of Islamic Sharia office in Banda Aceh. Here's an excerpt: "Head of Islamic Sharia office in Banda Aceh, Natsir Ilyas, emphasized that his area must be cleared from trumpet sounds on New Year’s Eve and prohibited international NGO staff from having night parties. It is suggested that Banda ... read more

OK, so it’s been a while since I made a Blog entry, what can I say I’ve been busy, it is the silly season after all. So I may as well get straight to the point: Christmas Day. Now I’d presumed that being overseas in foreign lands, Christmas would be a rather subdued affair. I was wrong. I thought that I was on top of things in October when I brought my family Christmas presents in Malaysia and posted them home. I had no idea how busy I was going to be! Little did I know that Christmas would turn into a full scale Logistical Operation! Nick planned a full Christmas dinner for the Expats at IRC and a few hangers on. I offered to help, and between running around buying vegetables, wine glasses and everything ... read more

I'm in a work meeting right, but the presentation is entirely in Indonesian, so I don't feel too bad about doing other, ahem, work. I have been trying to learn the language and I actually feel like I'm making quite a lot of progress in the 7 weeks I've been here. It's not a difficult language - there are no verb tenses or conjugations, so pronouns (he, she) and time-sensitive words (yesterday, tomorrow) are crucial. After all those years in NY, it's fun to be the foreigner for once. I get to mispronounce things in a cute way, smile and elicit sympathetic laughs from the native speakers. Our meeting is being held in the kitchen because it is actually our only indoor meeting room. Most meetings are held outside but it is threatening to rain today. ... read more

After arriving in Indonesia I stayed a night in Padang to adept a bit to all the new things. Here I first had what is known in all Indonesia as 'Padang Food', in many places the only food. And I was not to happy with it. Being hot to very spicy and ready made in the morning it is than left for presentation (roting...) in the restaurant window. I did never get ill seriously from it, but certainly my stomach didn't enjoy it too much. A very distinctive and beautiful arcitectural highlight is the Minangkabau roof. Many commercial and official buildings in Padang and the surounding region feature its pointing corners. The Minangkabau are an ethnic group that live in west Sumatra.... read more

My birthday (3rd of December for those who missed it!!!) was so legendary, that it warrants 2 blog entries. During the day I received the welcome phone calls from friends and family. It was really special to hear from home. Then I went to the beach with 4 local staff from work, 2 tunas ($11) and a BBQ. It was great to spend a day on the beach; I really love to swim in the sea. It was also cool to hang out with some Indonesian people, to remind me of where I was actually spending my birthday. However going to the beach was also a reason of why I was here. The area is still devastated by the tsunami. Hills stripped bare up to the water mark of the wave, People living in tents. Look ... read more