Belated Bandung Business . . . and Pleasure

The question is, 100% of what?

Assiduous followers of this web log, you don’t exist.  However, if you did exist, I would apologize.  I would vow never to let my posts be so far and few between, again.  Also, I would conditionally promise to buy all of you an imaginary Squeeze-It to quench your hypothetical thirst and love of ‘80s and ‘90s kitsch.

On a more (indeed, utterly) serious note, I vow never to call my web-log a “blog.”  Do you call your country a . . . tree?  That one is for you, Mom.  Enough small talk, it’s time to play catch up on this mother (that one was not for you, Mom).

From the hotel.  Goodbye, Jakarta!

A lot has happened since I was in Jakarta.  The forty three other ETAs and I completed our three week training in Bandung (the Paris of Java), we tearfully spread across the archipelago (this is a map of all ETA placements in Indonesia for 2010), and we have been at our placements for two weeks.  Put in such brief summary, this all sounds pretty unexciting.  My 10^th grade English teacher, and Anne Lamott in Bird by Bird, both told me “show, don’t tell.”  However, I prefer the advice of my Kindergarten teacher, who liberally advocated both showing and telling.  So, the rest of this post, and the next several posts, will be a show and tell about my time in and around Bandung (the Paris of Java).

Upon arriving in Bandung, we were greeted by dancing and lemonade.  

 

Oh, to be a finely crafted and honed instrument, courtesy of the State Department. 

Imagine forty four Jason Bourne/James Bond (styled like Connery, but with some Brosnan lilts and Daniel Craig underpinnings) types tearing around Indonesia, driving all manner of terrestrial and aquatic vehicles, and seducing  everything  animate . . . and inanimate.  Now, firmly but politely dismiss that thought, as it comes nowhere close to reality.  Instead, imagine forty four decently cerebral human beings, forty three of whom had back-stories that are all individually fascinating, and one of whom commonly goes by initials and sweats his body weight everyday in Indonesia.  Yep, there you go.  That’s more like it.

Bandung at sunset.

 

Our training in Bandung (the Paris of Java) consisted of teaching and language lessons.  The teaching lessons focused on the development of lesson planning and implementation.  The language classes focused on the most basic and essential information and was called “Survival Indonesian.”  It seems effective, in that I am still alive two weeks into my placement where my Bahasa Indonesia skills are tested everyday.  However, “I desperately need to use the bathroom, right now,” “where can a guy get a Bintang [local Indonesian beer] around here,” and “I will seduce either your friend or your cockatoo” were not covered.  I suppose in writing the language lessons focused on basic and essential information.  Fortunately for you, I have included them below.

      Saya dengan seger harus mengunakan kamar kecil.

     

      Di mana laki-laki bisa minum Bintang di sini?

      Saya akan merayu temanmu atau kakatuamu.  (Note: this sentence assumes you are on informal terms with whom you are speaking.  I don’t think this is a stretch, as nobody would consider seducing the cockatoo of a stranger).

       Use these whenever necessity dictates.  I hope they are correct.  The consequences are dire.

Poolside at the Sheraton in Bandung

These classes, which in retrospect were very helpful, lasted from eight to four thirty, Monday through Friday.  We had ample snacks provided, unlimited coffee, and a comfortable break schedule.  All in all, it was a very positive experience.  Oh, and we stayed in a beautiful hotel, as the State Department is obligated to use a certain caliber hotel for any government related hosting.  The Sheraton in Bandung (the Paris of Java) came complete with all the amenities I assumed my stint in Indonesia would have: an oasis like pool, a hot tub, a steam room, a sauna, a workout room, unbelievably delicious dining, and spacious rooms.  In a lot of ways, this training it reminded me of TFA Institute, except for the, you know, everything.

Although the majority of our time in Bandung (the Paris of Java) was spent in training, the city was interesting, vibrant, and very temperate for Indonesia.  The time I spent outside of training was mainly centered in the area around our hotel, though my fellow ETAs and I did manage several excursions. The following posts will be a few anecdotes from those experiences.

 

 NOTE: A few pictures of the picture included here are courtesy of Ms. Kelsey Ritzel, photographer extraordinaire and founding member of Kelompok Burung Kakatua [kakatua!].