The Next Adventure

Well with less than two weeks to go before I set off for my second placement I have found time to set up my next blog. If you wish to follow time in Uganda please go to the following web address:-

 

http://ugandawithvso.blogspot.com/

Time to go home .. Time for reflection

20 May 2010

As I am about to exit Indonesia I though it was important to think about what I will miss and what I will gladly leave behind. Interestingly although I have been immensely happy here my list of things I will not miss had turned out to be quite a bit longer than the things I will miss.

Not Miss
Mandi – I do not mind the cold water but I miss standing under running water

Hand washing clothes

Oppressive humidity – far more disabling than the heat

Hello mister – the constant call as you walk down the street

The joint loosening roads

Six day week

Limited fruit

Screaming kids

Lack of discipline for children

Smoking in the office

Spitting – any where and everywhere and particularly prolific when people chew siri

Rubbish – so much food and water comes in plastic containers and people just discard them when the item is finished and it is not cleaned up so plastic waste is an increasing problem

The bed – I did eventually find where I could lye without having springs sticking into me!

Mosquitoes the high pitched whine and the itching after they bite.

The lack of post

Difficulty of internet connection Sambol – the hot accompaniment to all foods

Lack of meat and cheese – meat and particularly chicken was available but not in small enough quantities for one and generally very tough

Volume of music in bemos

Red tape

Lack of treatment options; particularly analgesia and anaesthesia in A&E

That once invited into the house people just browse your cupboards, fridge etc

The expectation of oleh-oleh – presents being brought back when ever you have left the island

Listric mati – regular power cuts
The animals leaving mess on my porch – I mop the porch morning, noon and night and still sometimes have to do it again
Jam karat – people come to a meeting when they feel like it not at the agreed time
Ants getting into all the food - just never seem to have enough plastic boxes and just because a packet is not open means the food is secure, a mouse will come and open it for the ants!
Rotten eggs – even from the best shops there will be an odd rotten egg in the tray
Electric shocks – go with over loaded sockets and poorly maintained wiring
Risk of seeing snakes in the house/garden
The assumption that I have lots of money because I am a Westerner

Will Miss

Squat toilet – just so much more comfortable to use

Gheckos
Heat

Colleagues – the staff at RSUD Baa have been so supportive Beauty of the island

Challenge of Bahasa Indonesia – it is so frustrating to have to go when my language skills mean I can chat for hours in small groups and am proficient at sms

Parties esp dancing

Tempe - a fermented soya bead cake; an excellent source of protein

Community spirit with neighbours – such a relaxed atmosphere with people wandering over to chat for a while then drifting off again

Sopi sessions – a
chance to drink and chat with a real cross section of men and towards the end women were joining to chat

Amount of free time I have – I have done so much craft work and read lots of books

Variety of fish

Friendliness of public transport

Nurses thirst for knowledge

Swimming in a warm sea

Markets – with fresh organic products

Fruit juices

Sun sets

Clearness of the night sky without light pollution – there are just so many stars up there!

Deserted white sand beaches

Challenge of riding the bike on unmade roads

Instant repairs – if the bike breaks down I know all I have to do is sit and wait for the next rider to come along and he will stop and get the bike going again – or sms a friend who will come and fix it.

There are still so many things that I did not find the time to write an entry on including:-

Food and eating places

My daily routine

Religion

Refuse disposal

Post office

Sunsets

Beaches

Animals and insects

Siri pina

Would I do it again – you bet I would; thanks to am amazingly tolerant husband 16 July should see me heading off to Uganda for a year. Details of my next blog will be posted shortly: watch this space!

Long ferry journey

14 – 16 May 2010

The earliest I could get a plane from Sumba was 21 May so I decided to take the ferry, so after 6 hours on a bus I arrived at the ferry terminal at 20:00. The first one to leave went to Aimere on Flores. I used my contacts from VSO to check if there was a flight from Ende within a couple of days of the ferry’s arrival. There was not so I decided to stay on the ferry as far as Kupang; a 36 hour journey; as there are several flights a day from Kupang to Bali.

As there had been no ferries for over a week this one was rather full and I was lucky to find enough floor space to put down the sleep mat I hired for the two nights. People were lying anywhere and everywhere – how they managed to get to some of the places I have no idea but I know it would not be allowed in the UK! Despite the discomfort and the high level of smoke pollution I had a great time on the trip.

Ikat

Ikat is a form of weaving where a resist dyeing process similar to tie-dying is used on either the warp or weft fibres prior to the weaving. It is the dyed threads that create the final pattern. Each of the regions of NTT have their own style of ikat. The colours and patterns make it possible to identify where a piece comes from. The women sit an weave whilst it is the men who trade the ikat. There are still a few weavers using natural dyes but now chemical dyes and synthetic threads are being used to make the cloth attractive to tourists.

Sumba

6 – 14 May 2010

I had a great time in East Sumba and had just started to explore West Sumba when I received an email from VSO offering me a second placement in Uganda starting 16 July. I therefore cut short my visit to Sumba to get home to see Steve. The countryside was far more rounded than the angular hills of Flores. Sumba has many traditional villages and I was invited to one Kampung Tarung as a friend. Like so many other events it meant that it was not really appropriate to be taking photographs. The traditional villages have large grave stones but even modern houses have huge ornate constructions over the family graves that have to be saved for and often mean the families develop large debts. I have shared transport with chickens, goats and pigs but this was the first time I had shared a bemo with a horse! I had been waiting on Sumba as I wanted to go to Sabu by ferry but the wind meant the waves were too high for the ferry to run - it will just have to wait until another visit.

Return to Rote

27 April – 4 May 2010

I decided to go back to Rote whilst I waited the decision on my visa extension. Chilpa had kindly offered to let me stay in her room in the nurses’ mess. I received such a warm welcome from everyone at the hospital and had such an amazing time in the mess. The nurses were so generous with their hospitality. I learnt a lot about Indonesian cooking not only in the mess but also at the house of Naema’s family. He father had died the day before I arrived back on Rote and I went with Chilpa and many other of the nurses on 28 April to help to prepare all the food before the funeral. A couple of cows and a goat had been killed and then boiled before then being cut up to be cooked in various dishes. Mass catering is relatively easy here. Several fires are lit around the grounds of the house and then large vats are put on the top. The meat was boiled in old oil cans.

Visa Extension

Since February this year it has been possible to extend the visa on arrival by a farther 30 days – but this means hanging around by an immigration office for up to a week. I had enquired about using an agent whilst in Bali but they wanted at least 800,000 Rp to do it – when the visa itself only costs 250,000 Rp. As I was keen to go back to Rote I decided that I would try to process the extension in Kupang. I again contacted an agent – I never got to find out how much he would have charged me as his KTP (identity card) had expired so he could not sponsor me. I therefore decided to do it myself and contacted a friend in Kupang to see if he would act as sponsor and he agreed – many thanks .Dominggus. I ended up paying 350,000 Rp and as I was not prepared to pay anymore for the administration of the sponsor letter had to wait a week instead of 3 days. Day 1 I had to fill in the application form and submit it with photographs and copies of my passport, visa and my sponsors KTP and a sponsor letter had to be produced. Then day 2 I had to return to pay the fee and then day 6 the passport complete with visa extension was ready for collection. As day 1 for me was a Friday this meant I had to hang around in Timor until Tuesday before I could go to Rote – I will know better next time. I was able to get another friend to collect the passport for me on the following Friday so did not have to rush back.