A different kind of culture shock

I apologize for my long disappearance that started when I flew off to Ubud, Bali last week to attend the mid-year conference with the program I came to Indonesia with, Volunteers in Asia. We spent this week of conference discussing VIA as a program, the different posts we have at local Indonesian schools and NGOs, as well as the goals and objectives of our activities in Indonesia. For one thing it was a free ticket to Bali and a two-week vacation from work giving me a prime opportunity to explore another part of Indonesia. On the other hand it was a borderline shocking introduction into the touristy side of Indonesia. My friends and I who had spend the last five months in obscure towns around the archipelago were abruptly sucked into this international destination. From the point of view of the common middle aged Westerners and Australian beach seekers, Bali is a beautiful and easily affordable place. For my friends and I it was the first time we had eaten sandwiches and hamburgers in five months and we took half an hour to make these decisions as we drooled over the elaborate Western menus. Getting to see a glimpse of Balinese culture was an interesting contrast to Sumatra’s starker Muslim culture with traditional dances, Hindu ceremonies, temples set in luscious foliage, and backdrops of flawlessly stepped rice paddy fields.

At the conference’s conclusion Preethi flew in from Australia and we spent two days touring around with a couple of Balinese friends. I found this the most insightful introduction into the real Bali as they took us to local beaches, squeezed through the narrow alleyways of Javanese migrant slums, drank the local rice wine arak, and discussed Bali’s history, Hindu culture, and contemporary social issues. Everything was going wonderfully until we made the mistake of going to Kuta for a night; a tourist destination that has been devastated by its popularity and is now so trashy there is no hint of culture. Preethi and I immediately high-tailed it out of there and got on a boat headed for Lombok Island and then on to the tiny island Gili Air.

Only a few hours from Bali this island is its only little paradise with turquoise waters, a circumference that takes one and a half hours to traverse by foot and the peace and quiet that can’t be found in Jambi or Bali. After spending the fist day swimming, reading and relaxing, we started scuba diving today and got to see turtles, blue-spotted stingrays, an octopus, and many others just on the first dive. I think we are just going to pause and listen to the waves for a while.

Photos will be coming soon...