Not busy, then really busy

The perils of a blog - there’s either nothing going on, so no reason to write a new post, or too much going on, so no time to write up a coherent account. Since my last post, after I had just started work in Jeneponto, I’ve felt considerable frustration involved with not understanding either the language or work culture - this is a wholly typical experience for new volunteers - I think the VSO staff would be surprised if it didn’t happen at some point. Mine may have just occurred earlier, since it’s unclear that they actually need my expertise at the forestry office. A meeting was necessary with VSO, me and my work partner to set up some guidelines which may help to establish some concrete work goals, but it’s a wait & see situation which may very well change where or with whom I am working in the next 6 months. 

An additional frustration was not having a refrigerator, which meant I couldn’t keep food in my house without armies of ants invading, and I still hadn’t gotten my motorbike. Those problems are now solved, although the bike must go in for maintenance before I can start riding & gaining some level of comfort with the roads & traffic.

November 15 was Muslim New Year, and kicked off a four-day weekend, so Rita, one of my co-workers, invited me to go to Selayar Island for a visit - no problem with accommodation - her brother lives there. After a long bus ride, and an equally long ferry ride, we arrived after dark. On Friday & Saturday we attended a couple of “Save the Turtles” events which her brother’s diving club was sponsoring, went snorkeling, took a boat to see some mangroves & swim at a couple of deserted beaches. We got back around 3 pm on Sunday, giving me time to wash my clothes and pack for Bali - Monday I flew into Denpasar for the week-long work partners’ meetings & annual volunteer’s conference. Now, as of the 24th November, I’ve spent fewer nights sleeping in my house, than in other locations in Sulawesi & now Bali, since I first arrived at my work placement. That will change over the next two months. 

The volunteer’s conference has been absolutely invaluable - there are a total of 14 international volunteers in Indonesia right now, 6 from Kenya, 7 Canadian, & 1 American. I was in a batch of 4 new arrivals, so have now benefited from the shared experiences of the other 10, who have been here from 7 months to 3 years. Four of them are leaving for home in the next 2 months, but we were able to chat, find out from them what worked, what failed miserably, why some were leaving early & why two had decided to extend their periods of service. We also met 4 Indonesian volunteers who had completed contracts in Tadjikistan, Burma, Bangladesh & Guyana. And of course, some beer was consumed, some dancing occurred & a couple of competitive games of pool took place. Mike, the VSO Country Director, & I won one of these by a slim one-ball margin.

So, conference over, Noelle, Margaret & I left for a mini-vacation weekend to Ubud, a lovely touristy town about an hour’s drive north of Denpasar. Temples, rice paddies, lots of beautiful shops & a traditional market, so this might be the place to pick up some colourful sarongs or silver jewelry. After the weekend, a bit more travel is scheduled - a day trip to Singapore to renew my visa that allows me to work in Indonesia. Home to Jeneponto next Wednesday (sigh, back to the grind).

A day in pictures

The government forestry office (Dinas) in Jeneponto.

Today my work partner Pak Mahmud and I attended a meeting of a foresters group about a half hour's drive from Jeneponto. Our first stop was at an open air market for supplies, and to get quotes on a refrigerator and fan for me.

Shoe sellers at the open air market

The appliance store with good prices on fridges.

Huge volcanic boulders, incredibly rocky ground, and of course, lots of trees.

The local foresters group. The meeting was either about the Social Forestry Network, an organization to which all ASEAN countries belong, or the current market value of mahogany, or both. I'm catching about one word in 5 or 6, and trying hard.

The meeting was followed by lunch at Pak Mahmud's inlaws' house.

And finally, these ladies are regular visitors to my house in the afternoon. They are both artists (I have a stack of drawings to stick to the wall when I get some scotch tape) and fashion critics (apparently my hiking boots are "boy's shoes" - fair enough).

First day in Jeneponto

Yesterday, I flew from Denpasar to Makassar with Iryanti (from the Jeneponto forestry office) and Indah (from an NGO that partners with VSO), who shepherded me like I was a toddler. Once in Makassar, we met up with Noelle (another VSO volunteer), 2 staff members from FIC (the NGO Linda & Noelle work for) & Pak Mahmud, my workplace partner. The flight left late, & we arrived close to two o’clock. Went to a restaurant downtown for fish, rice & soup, and then was informed that Mahmud’s vehicle needed to be taken in for servicing (or to have something fixed - don’t really know which). So Linda & Noelle hosted me for the afternoon. Noelle showed me her house, which is spacious, with a front courtyard, tucked into a street of similar houses. Tons of kids - several of whom came to ask Noelle when their next English lesson would be.  

Noelle & I walked to the FIC office to meet up with Indah and Didin, another staff member. After a tour of the office & some chat, we went to Didin’s house to wait for Mahmud - the car servicing was going to take 3 hours or longer. I met Didin’s parents, and we were given mixed veg for dinner. 

At about 7:30 pm, Mahmud, Iryanti & driver finally appeared & we were on the road to Jeneponto - can’t describe the trip - it was dark. Narrow roads, mostly paved, some roadwork, trucks, motos, etc. We arrived around 9:30 & I was shown my house - spacious, well furnished & very clean - but no fridge or stove, so that needs sorting out.  Having said all that, I’m probably going to need another place to live anyways - this one is within spitting distance of Pak Mahmud’s house and the office, & free wifi or not, it’s a bit too close for comfort. Also, Iryanti, his female office worker is my immediate neighbour - anxious to be very close friends, she wanted to hang around & chat last night to cement our new relationship. I’ll definitely need more personal space.

Good sleep, as I was provided with a fan.

I’ve decided that misunderstanding the language doesn’t have to be all bad. Got up early today, but ignored the first person arriving at my door, then washed, and relaxed a bit. Pak Mahmud then invited me down to his house for breakfast (yellow rice, cucumbers & tofu in sauce - pretty good) & then we went to the office. Met the head of the office, but forgot to call him Keureng (title of respect for a man of his “class”) & can’t remember his name either. But I don’t think I’ll have a close working relationship with him; as a forester, not to mention a foreigner, I’m a lower level employee. Also met the man responsible for some agricultural crops (coffee, coconut, etc) - I think he guides plantation establishment? Be interesting in a few months to find out if my preliminary guesses are right. No one speaks English here, barring a very few, and usually inappropriately-used words (much like my bahasa Indonesia).

Then, we were off to the police station to register my residency in Jeneponto, although I think we may have to go back because the head guy there was out of the office. We did speak to another man, so I’ll just wait & see if I end up there again. 

After that, we drove out of town on winding roads towards the hills in the distance, gaining some altitude. Houses line the roads shoulder-to-shoulder most of the way, so it’s difficult to say if we actually ended up in a different village. Farm fields stretch out behind the houses, a few trees (kapok, coconut & different fruit), tiered rice paddies on hillsides, and dirt-dry fields with sparse hay or grass. Goats, horses, water buffalos & a few cows graze. We stopped at the house of the head of the local agricultural group for a meeting which Pak Mahmud conducted, giving out information on an improved corn variety, “Pioneer”. I saw several large boxes with pictures of corn & Pioneer on them, so I assume that he had distributed the seed previously to the head. This morning they all met to learn why this variety might be better (improved yield, faster growth, resistant to diseases). Pak Mahmud seems to be a good speaker, they were listening with interest & agreeing with him, and I’m pretty sure he threw in a few jokes at my expense. Twelve men attended - P. Mahmud tells me that women don’t come to the meetings - he’s well aware they’re not treated equally & knows VSO promotes gender inclusion. But during the meeting, five women were sitting close by, listening and responding to P. Mahmud’s presentation. They know exactly what’s going on &, I think, are probably ‘more equal’ partners in the family farms than appearances suggest. 

On the way back, we stopped at a roadside warung for chicken soup & sticky rice. I find the portions here large, particularly since the heat kills appetite, but I ate an acceptable amount & explained “Saya makan sedikit, biasannya.” (I eat little, usually.)

After that, still only about noon, we stopped at an empty house to see if it might be suitable for my accommodations. Four bedroom house with 2 sitting rooms, kitchen & small bathroom - significantly more space than I need. Also, a large courtyard, half paved, half weeds (I immediately start imagining beautiful garden possibilities), area to park my motorcycle - it had everything! The asking price - almost twice as much as VSO allows for. So I tried to get the point across - no, I don’t need such a big house, and don’t want such an expensive one (“saya mau lebih kecil, lebih murah”), & apparently the owners dropped the price to 7 million rupiah a year (right on budget). Hmmm. Luckily, Noelle, Indah & Margaret (the other volunteer in the area) are coming up on Sunday to check on me, so I can get some translation for this house deal - I want to be sure that I'm not signing a lease I don't want.

Now, I’m relaxing at my temporary home while Friday prayers are going on. Don’t know if they expect me to do any more “work” today, I’m sure someone will knock on the door if they want me. Lying on the couch reading, several kids were peeking through the windows looking at the stranger. I was thinking about jumping out & yelling “booo”, or “aaarrgghh”, but thought better of it. Probably not the way to build bridges.

Stay tuned, pictures to follow in next blog.