I just realized that I've been to the airport in Jakarta almost every weekend since I've been in Indonesia. I haven't always been flying someplace (at the end of training I went to the airport just to wave off everybody else), but I am starting to think I know my way around the place. I also managed to learn an important lesson about not leaving cash in an unlocked suitcase (even if its pretty well buried under a lot of other things), which I probably should have known already.

All that aside, I'm looking forward to spending some time away from the airport. I was in Samarinda for less than a week when I flew to Singapore to get my work permit, and I only just got back yesterday.

The trip to Singapore was good, but brief. I basically only had one day there, and part of it was spent making shady deals outside a MacDonalds, handing over my passport and a wad of cash to a man named Wahab*. The rest of the day I spent wandering through the National Museum, relaxing in a park, and admiring the merlion statue. The real highlight was probably that my hotel (another beautiful room, thanks AMINEF!) was in Little India, so I managed to pack away a lot of delicious palak paneer.

So far Samarinda has been good to me. I have a little green house on a hill and wonderful neighbors on either side of it who feed me and allow me to practice my terrible Indonesian on them. My school seems like a pretty great place too. The teachers have all been very kind and welcoming. Every day they bring in new Indonesian foods, so I am eagerly learning all the different ways you can make tempeh really delicious and really bad for you.

I haven't started teaching yet, but I have been around to a lot of the classes, introducing myself and taking questions from the students. The students have been studying English since they started school, so they know a lot, but seem a bit shy to actually talk to me yet. That's understandable, as I am completely shy about languages as well, turns out you feel pretty silly when you confuse the words “cook” and “enter” all the time (masak and masuk) and accidentally call yellow rice “cat rice” (nasi kuning vs. nasi kucing).

Outside of school, my life remains pretty tame. I go to the gym, read, study Indonesian, kill the ants in my house, and hang out with my neighbors. I've been to 2 weddings, they were my very first day here, and the hoards of people, food, and sparkly dresses was overwhelming in a really great way. I am trying to find my way around the town, which has been difficult, I haven't found a good map yet, and for a long while I didn't know my own address (Kate, Mom, you may remember that forgetting my own address is not so uncommon for me). Speaking of addresses, if perchance any of my loyal readers were inclined to send me mail, they can send it to my school:

SMAN 1

Jl. Bhayangkara 54

Samarinda 75121

KALTIM – INDONESIA

Awesome care package ideas include: fresh veggies, stinky cheeses, and good wine!

For the most part, I really do have everything I need. I managed to find floss in Singapore, and I have some dear family members who might be shipping some coffee-making tools out this way soon...

So things are good. I am excited and nervous to start teaching soon. I am looking forward to making friends in my community. And I've been logging a lot or hours on the treadmill at the gym, in hopes of staving off all the makanan goreng (fried food).

*The permit process was actually completely legal. It just makes for a much better story if I describe the shadiness of it.