When I Fight Authority, Authority Alway Wins

Well I guess ole John Mellencamp never lived in Southeast Asia, or he didn't have $2.50 to his name. I turns out that all it takes to bribe a cop for not having a license.

Life is a Carnival

My first week here, on my first trip to the night market to get dinner I commented that "life is a carnival". Walking through the street I was immediately taken to the South Carolina State Fair. It genuinely feels like a carnival here. Balloons, music, live animal smells, fried food... you get the idea. Dun (french guy) didn't get my reference to The Band or a carnival and instead he kinda gave me a blank stare. So I dropped it and moved on to listening to him complain about wine or cheese or something like that. Anyway, moving forward six months, this weekend Gianyar had a carnival. No change. The "carnival" was basically moving everything from the night market street and moving it two blocks over to the soccer field. Still nobody picked up on it trick the place was packed with at least five times as many people as normal, for the exact same thing. Needless to say I drank the cool-aid, ate some pop-corn and hopped on the merry-go-round.

Agung

Last weekend I hiked Gunung Agung with some friends of mine, conveniently, both named Chris. (The picture here is from the summit, looking southeast towards the Lombok and the Gili's). The volcano crater is 10308 feet above sea and you start the climb around 300 feet. It turns out that it gets really cloudy at the peak so your have to get there early in the morning to get a good view, and since the last 3 hours of the hike is a 45˚ + incline with nothing but loose rocks and strong winds camping doesn't make much sense. The hike takes about 6-7 hours there and about 5 to get back. So with a little bit of simple math we figured that we should start around midnight. The hike was pretty tiring and combined with no sleep and hiking in the dark made it quite a challenge but the views from the top made it all worth it. We got there minutes before the sun rose (causing a bit of a mad scramble up the last bit to make sure we didn't miss it). The picture below is looking down on the top of Gunung Batar, which, around 30,000 years ago was the tallest mountain in Bali until a massive eruption of lava and ash emptied the magma chamber beneath the volcano so rapidly that the top of the volcano collapsed into itself. Imagine watching some video of that! 

For more, better quality pictures check out facebook, it just didn't make sense to post them twice.

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Who knew the Esso club had gone international? The sweet tea wasn't quite up to par but I'm not complaining.

Shades of Bali

I've been trying to think of a way to describe of what life looks like in Bali. It's turned out to be more difficult than I imagined because Bali is an island of extremes and contradictions. 

Probably any images you can conjure up are accurate depictions of one part of the island and then completely wrong if you go a mile down the road. For instance, a few minutes from my house there are two multi-million dollar mansions set in a rice field surrounded by farmers who barely make enough to survive. Then there is Kuta, an Australian party town that puts TJ or Cancun to shame, compared with Ubud, a quiet tourist town where people go to "find themselves" or learn about traditional

 Balinese culture. Then there are beautiful mountains and pristine beaches next to piles of trash that make the city of Shanghai seem environmentally responsible. Also, it's a hindu island inside the largest Muslim country in the world. So you have people who follow rigid Islamic law surrounded by people who practice a form of hinduism where anything goes as long as you don't harm others. So here are a few pictures from around Bali that will hopefully do a better job of explaining Bali than I can....

 

 

mountains of north Bali

 

sunset at Kuta

my 7th graders

the teachers lounge

some of my 4th and 5th graders

view from my roof

the guys dorms

Kuta

traditional market

cremation ceremony

cliffs at Ulu Watu

Shameless Name dropping...

So this update, about a month overdue, is a bit long but I'll try to fill you in on what's going one here. First for those of you that don't know, I've finished my volunteering and decided to stay (somewhat indefinitely) and work for the organization that I volunteered with. However, do to visa issues the project coordinator had to go home until August so I'm trying to run things until he gets back. It was a bit hectic over the first few weeks but now I'm beginning to figure things out and everything is returning to normal. 

Also in other news Indonesia is experiencing the swell of the season. It's been around 2-3 times overhead with occasional quadruple overhead sets rolling in. It's been incredible and has kept up like this for over a week now and will go at least until the weekend. This means two things, first the surf has been unreal, second, everyone and their mother has come to Indonesia to surf. It's been pretty crazy to look down a line up and see the likes of Mick Fanning (former ASW world Champ)  Pepen Hindrix (the first ISC winner) or David Rasta. So apologies for the blatant name dropping, I'm just kinda I wide-eyed east coast kid out there and I still have to pinch myself when I see guys like that in the water.

My Heart Will Go On

First (yes that is the title of this post) I need to explain a bit about Indonesian music. In one word, cheese, and the more the better, it's awful. Secondly, just about every Indonesian song finds it's roots in either Bob Marley or Celine Dion, they're kinda like the royal family of Indonesian music. Now, in English club last week we were talking about music that we like and what are our favorite songs where. Naturally, "my heart will go on" ranked at the top of their lists. Then somehow the conversation shifted to national anthems. The kids wanted me to sing mine so I told them that if they sang "My Heart Will Go On" then I would sing the "Star Spangled Banner" for them thinking that there was no way they would. Turns out that I was wrong and they called my bluff. So after listening to 15 high schoolers pour their hearts in to a stirring rendition of Celine I began the anthem. (as I side note, if you've never tried to sing it before, it's a really hard song to sing and apparently no matter where I start my range can't handle it). Anyway after that they taught me the Indonesian Anthem (Indonesia Raya) and then they chased it with anouther round of "My Heart Will Go On".

Cabe Merah

The other day I was hanging out with some of my Balinese friends after a basketball game and one of them brought out a bag of cabe merah (extremely hot chill peppers). For the record I've gotten pretty used to spicy foods here and my stomach can take a lot but these peppers were on a new level. I ate one and immediately started sweating. Of course they thought this was hilarious and started making fun of me. Somehow the situation quickly escalated and it became a contest to see who could eat the most. (I came in third with 15). That night my stomach was a little twisted up but after that I figured the worst was over. Wrong again. The next night after my digestive track had done its thing and the peppers were making their exit I immediately knew something was horribly wrong. It felt(burned) something like a volcano erupting or maybe more like a fire breathing dragon coming out of the other end. It was so bad that it left me searching frantically for a block of ice to sit on. Needless to say, I had more peppers the next day.

It's still rock 'n' roll to me

March is a big month for Bali. From around March 14th until March 26th (Nyepi Day, the climax of the celebrations and the start of the Balinese new year) just about all of Bali shuts down. Classes are canceled, work is put off, and there are loads of Balinese (Hindu) ceremonies. In Klung Kung they had a big ceremony that lasted three days and each night they had a fund-raiser/party after the ceremony. One of my Balinese friends invited us to come, and since it was three of the girls last night in Bali, we decided to check it out. They had a live band covering some English and Balinese songs which provided a really nice atmosphere. Then, due to a bit of miscommunication and my Balinese friends scheming I ended up on stage with the band. The first two songs were Balinese but pretty simple so I played a bit of lead guitar and then one of the guys knew "Freebird" so we rounded out the set with it and a Balinese rendition of "Don't Stop Believing" and a simple blues jam.

Galaxy

There's a basketball court at the town center in Gianyar and lately I've been playing some pick-up ball there. While I was playing the other day I met some college kids from Denpasar and they asked if I could play with them next Sunday. So as pulled up on my motor bike I saw a couple refs and two teams in full uniforms and a big crowd waiting for the game to start. So, naturally I assumed that something had been lost in translation (my bahasa still has a long way to go) and they just wanted me to watch their game. Nope. One of the guys walked over and handed me a Jersey and we started doing lay-up lines. The game was a blast and we pulled out a nail-biter with a few late baskets in the fourth quarter. We have a big game aganist klung kung next week so hopefully can get anouther mark in the win column.

Also, as I side note I've lost all respect for "big men" in basketball. As out of positon as it seemed for me, I played the 4 and 5 spot in the game and it's a joke, it's so easy to score and pick up rebounds and blocks.

The sea was angry that day my friend...

this is a quick two parter since I've been away from my computer for a while...

First, this week I'm living/teaching in a new city, Klung Kung. However, the city itself is not nearly as much fun as the name is to say. Yappenatim is closed for one week so I'm teaching at a government high school called SMU. It's I nice change of scenery but I miss the kids at Yappenatim, and after being gone for a week I've realized home much like home Gianyarhas begun to feel.

A large swell came through the last few days, now I thought that I'd ridden some descent sized wave before and that I was decent but these waves were on a completely different level. I estimated that they were around 15 feet and afterwards I talked to some local guys and then checked the report that night. Turns out they were around 4 meters. So being scared out of my mind and pissing my pants I paddled out. I dropped in a bit shallow on the first one I could just to build up a bit of confidence, then on the next one I went all out and dropped in just a tad bit to deep. I hit a chop on the drop in and lost it. For a minute or two I thought that I was never going to resurface (it felt something like hopping into a washing machine and setting it on spin cycle). After about 15 seconds of tumbling and bumping into the reef I finally popped up above the surface with nothing worse than a damaged pride. (After that I took it a bit slower and I was able to get a few waves, some of best I've ever had a chance to ride).

Yappenatim

Lest everyone think that I really don't do anything but surf and ride my moped around I figured I'd talk a bit about teaching. I do most of my teaching at a local orphanage called Yappenatim. I have two 7th grade and two 8th grade classes there. The kids are out of control but still a blast to be around. Because the level of English is so low we've worked mostly on basic topics ranging from basic vocabulary to forming simple questions. I usually teach from 8-12 and then try to hang out and play sports with the kids after class for a bit. I also teach twice a week at a government elementary school. The kids there are really cool and we spend most of the time playing games that keep them entertained and help build their English vocabulary.

Keramas

For those of you that don't know Keramas is a world famous break spot with a heavy, right-hand reef break (the picture is from a competition last season) on the East coast of Bali. Which, conveniently, is about 15 minutes from Gianyar (my house). Needless to say I've spent a good deal of time there since I've been in Bali. After a few early spills and tumbles I've begun to get settled in there and it feels a bit like home. Right now it's high season (the rainy season - till march) for the east coast of Bali and the waves have not disappointed. They're been averaging around 6 to 9 feet since I've been here (Keramas surf report). Once the seasons change some trips will be made to the west coast and hopefully I'll be able to get some nice left handers too.

Pride and Joy

Early on I decided to get a sepeda mobil (which is directly translated "motorcycle" but more correctly translated "moped"). Since then I've been cruising around the streets of Bali mostly listening to Journey. The traffic "laws" here have taken a bit of time to get used to, in fact, at first I didn't realize that they existed.  Imagine Shanghai's traffic without all of the order or maybe that old video game frogger meeting biker week at the beach. However, to my surprise, it turns out that there is a method to the madness here. Basically, you can boil it down to three basic "rules" that most people try to follow...

1. as a general rule you "try" to stay on the left side of the road
2. there is no such thing as having the right-of-way, every conflict is decided by a game of chicken
3. honking your horn and yelling really loud will solve most problems

The Rupiah

So as of today the exchange rate is $1 to 113750 rph. Unfortunately that doesn't mean that I'm now a millionaire (although my account looks pretty good when I go to the ATM for once) but it does mean that the money here is fairly worthless. In fact the smallest unit that they use is the 200 rph coin. It's so worthless that many times instead of giving it to you as change they'll give you candy instead. At first I thought that the casher was just being nice or ripping me off, but it turns out that just how they roll here, and I think I like it.

Bali Update

Despite my great concerns about becoming a "blogger" I figured this would be the best way to keep y'all updated on how things are going in Bali, Indonesia without having to send mass (and perhaps unwanted) emails. Also, feel free to let me know how you're doing as well, news from back home is always nice to get. Anyway, for those of you that may not know I'll be teaching English at several schools near Gianyar, Bali for 5 months. Gianyar is about an hour from the southern tip of Bali on the East Coast. I'm a few weeks behind getting this started so I'll try to quickly fill you in on what has happened so far. 

Over the first few weeks most of my time was consumed by teaching, learning how to teach, and trying to learn a bit of Indonesian. The teaching has gone well. I have ten classes and I get to teach each one twice a week. The teaching isn't quite what I expected and the level of English is very low but it's still be a blast and has been quite well. The kids are so much fun to be around and I've been trying to spend as much time with them outside of class as I can (playing soccer and takrow-a cross between volleyball and soccer). As for learning Indonesian I still have a long way to go but it's coming along ok.