Another One?

According to CNN.com just now, a 6.1 earthquake hit Western Indonesia on the island of Sumatra.

I'm ok! Didn't feel a thing! No worries!

'Aceh World'

Some entrepreneurial Acehnese started an English weekly newspaper. Typically I don't pay much attention to it, but a copy landed on my desk today so I was forced to read it during downtime this afternoon.

This story grabbed my interest in this week's 'Aceh World':

"Italian National Arrested for Adultery"

...An Italian, 30 years of age, who works with an international humanitarian organization in Aceh was arrested by the local sharia police for committing adultery with his translator, an Acehnese woman...The local sharia police received an anonymous text message about the whereabout of the pair...The sharia police broke down the front door and caught them red-handed...The Italian was also caught in possession of dried ganja leaves and alcoholic drinks. The suspect will be charged with the crime of possession of narcotics with a maximum penalty of 10 years prison time. The woman suspect will be charged with a violation of the sharia law for committing adultery.

They were caught red-handed! I wonder what that means...

'Aceh World' is like the Hello! and People and National Enquire for Banda! Maybe I should get a subscription.

Lake Toba

From Medan to Tebingtinggi to Pematangsiantar and then onto Parapat at the shore of Lake Toba. We drove and drove. First through the non-descriptive urban sprawl of Medan, then past Bridgestone rubber tree plantations and terraced rice paddies. Slowly mosques became churches and we knew we had entered Batak country. The famed Lake Toba lies in the middle of this mystical land. The Lake itself was created some 75,000 years ago after a massive volcanic explosion that was supposedly exponentially more powerful than Krakatoa and Vesuvius. Water filled the collapsed caldera and created the serene 400-square mile lake. Fast forward a few thousand years, as the fault line beneath Toba shifted, another volcano grew and soon enough, it peaked through the water and formed the island of Samosir in the giant lake.

Legend has it that no Westerner laid eyes on Toba until 1863 - at least none who survived the experience. The daunting mountains and the fearsome reputation of the Batak people whose homelands surround the lake - the original ''headhunters of Sumatra'' - had for centuries worked to discourage upcountry wayfaring. The Batak I encountered on my trip were more than friendly. They approached with smiles at the dock wanting to practice their English. They showcased their strong traditions of singing and guitar playing on ferry rides. They returned our request with smiles when asked if we could take photos of their traditional houses with boat-shaped roofs.

On Sunday morning, as we drove through the green plateaus of Samosir, we passed women in their Sunday best clutching bibles and slowly making their way to service. We heard hymns and songs escaping from country churches that dot the expansive landscape. We saw shirtless young boys playing soccer lakeside.

Only too soon did Sunday afternoon approach and it was time to get in the car and drive and drive again. We left behind the lake, the island, the churches, the cool breeze and descended back to where we came from.

On the road from Medan to Lake Toba. What's wrong with this picture???

Lake Toba before sunrise...yes I woke up at 5:45 to take pictures!

Ferry pulling up to Tumok on Samosir Island

Details on a Batak house

Nature

Traditional Batak house

House

Horas! = Hello!

Soccer on Samosir (Island), Toba (Lake) and Sumatra (Island) in the background.

Going to church

Being serenaded by 2 Batak boys on the ferry

A Happenin' Place

Mega tsunami in Aceh...
Bombs in Kuta...
Mud slides in Sulawesi...
Earthquake in Yogya...
Tsunami in Pangandaran...
Bird flu...all over

Thanks for those who were concerned about me. The tsunami hit near the recent Yogya earthquake. Same fault line but different island.

Mangosteens

It's not a cross between a mango and Bruce Springsteen.

Kingdom: Planta
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Malpighiales
Family: Clusiaceae
Genus: Garcinia

Mangosteens are in season at the moment and I'm completely smitten with these beautiful fruits. The purplish outer shell is rather hard. But don't be fooled as they're easily opened after a couple of pokes with your fingernail, or a butter knife - if you're civilized. Inside, a milky white fruit, shaped a peeled mandarin orange is engulfed in a deep wine colored spongy layer waiting to be devoured.

Mangosteens are rarely found in the US because they can only be grown in the tropics and are illegal to import without fumigation due to fears that they harbor the Asian fruit fly.

We went to one of our villages in Leupung district, about 30 minutes south of Banda Aceh. There was a fruit orchard full of ripen mangosteens, rambutans (furry red fruits that taste like lychees) and durians (stinky spiky things). The villagers knew that I liked mangosteens and picked like 20 of them off the tree. I ate most of them there and carried back enough for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

I ate all these, plus more!

My fingers are still slightly red!

Export Quality Bags

The typical plastic bag in Aceh are these thin and wimpy black and pink striped bags. They're pretty inconsequential compared to their hardy and strong American cousins. However, the other day at Pante Pirak, affectionately referred to as PP, which is a local super market chain, I got this hardy and strong American-bound plastic bag with a dollar store graphic on the outside! The cashier didn't even have to double bag for my 4 large boxes of juice! The bag was meant for some dollar store chain in Texas!

The other night, cans of ginger ale arrived in this California-bound bag:



Thank you to Wooly for saving the bag for me! What a great present!!!

"The Development Set"

Excuse me, friends, I must catch my jet
I'm off to join the Development Set;
My bags are packed, and I've had all my shots
I have traveller's checks and pills for the trots!

The Development Set is bright and noble
Our thoughts are deep and our vision global;
Although we move with the better classes
Our thoughts are always with the masses.

In Sheraton Hotels in scattered nations
We damn multi-national corporations;
injustice seems easy to protest
In such seething hotbeds of social rest.

We discuss malnutrition over steaks
And plan hunger talks during coffee breaks.
Whether Asian floods or African drought,
We face each issue with open mouth.

We bring in consultants whose circumlocution
Raises difficulties for every solution --
Thus guaranteeing continued good eating
By showing the need for another meeting.

The language of the Development Set
Stretches the English alphabet;
We use swell words like "epigenetic"
"Micro", "macro", and "logarithmetic"

It pleasures us to be esoteric --
It's so intellectually atmospheric!
And although establishments may be unmoved,
Our vocabularies are much improved.

When the talk gets deep and you're feeling numb,
You can keep your shame to a minimum:
To show that you, too, are intelligent
Smugly ask, "Is it really development?"

Or say, "That's fine in practice, but don't you see:
It doesn't work out in theory!"
A few may find this incomprehensible,
But most will admire you as deep and sensible.

Development set homes are extremely chic,
Full of carvings, curios, and draped with batik.
Eye-level photographs subtly assure
That your host is at home with the great and the poor.

Enough of these verses - on with the mission!
Our task is as broad as the human condition!
Just pray god the biblical promise is true:
The poor ye shall always have with you.

Ross Coggins
"Adult Education and Development" September 1976

"Aaa-Weeh!"

That's how the people say A&W here.

A&W has arrived in Banda. My office is filled with these plastic cups they gave out on opening weekend.

The Mozza Burger = CRAP
Fish Sandwich = Not so bad but so tiny!
Chicken Strips = Looks can be deceiving
Rootbeer = Sweeter than I remembered
Curly Fries = Mmmmmmm, soo good

Happy Belated Fourth!

I was trying to remember what I did last year for the 4th of July. Can't really remember! I had to look back at the blog from last July and seemed like I was busy decorating my pad and dreaming about Salami (Cousin Will- where's the salami you promised?)

All the USAID folks went down to Medan for a party at the American Consulate, which meant 2 less Americans to party with on the Fourth. I also got this brilliant idea of trying to find fireworks in Banda. After checking out a couple of stores in the Chinese part of the town, I ended my search empty handed. No shooting illegal fireworks off of my roof this year. There needs to be an internet site that delivers fireworks to Banda - overnight service preferred.

It's safe to say I did not do anything Americana on the 4th of July. I had lasagna for lunch, watched non-Americans slug it out at Wimbledon and celebrated an Aussie's birthday.

Wait, I did eat some M&Ms. Does that count?!

"I'm Sick Today"

I don't remember if I've written about this.

Under Indonesian labor laws, when an employee is sick, s/he is entitled to take a sick day. But the number of sick days is unlimited - not like in the States where you accrue a certain number of sick days per month. However, the employee must have a doctors' note if s/he is sick for more than 2 days.

Sounds like a pretty good system, no?

NO!

I must say that the Indonesian workforce is not the most motivated workforce. With the predominant attitude that 'a half-ass job is a good enough job', some employees use unlimited sick days as an excuse to lounge at home.

Today is Monday July 3. Everyone gets tomorrow off because it's a US Embassy holiday. This morning, 5 staff from our Jakarta office called in sick, and another one from Banda called in sick. Hmm, interesting that all these people caught some kind of mystery illness over the weekend!