I was so happy I ripped my pants.

Jack’s Coconut

So this weekend we went to Jepara so Emma could do some research. I also changed home-stays finally. Firstly, Jepara. It was a long trip and another scary car ride to Jepara. I just can’t get over how they drive here. Lanes and traffic laws be damned. However, we did make it there and back alive. Obviously. Jepara was fun. Emma, Jack, Taomo, and I went on this adventure. We first went to a masjid (Mosque) in Jepara where a saint Emma studies is supposedly buried. This particular saint, whose name always escapes me, has multiple grave sites. Each one of course claiming they have the real grave. So Emma, whose COTI paper is on this topic, wanted to interview the groundskeeper about people who worship there, the grave itself, and the story of this saint. Which she was able to do. Yay. I still am trying to set up my interview for my final paper. It has to be 10 pages. In Indonesian. I wrote it out in English first, just so my thoughts are clear because I’m not that good in Indonesian yet. It is 16 pages in English with 4 pages of citation. BAM. Now to translate it. Eek.
After the masjid we all hopped back in the car to eat lunch. I had Tom Kha Ga (Thai Soup) and it was super yummy. Then we went to the beach to hang out. We didn’t swim just because we had other things to do that day but it was nice to be by the beach and hang out. Jack even got a coconut to sip on and let us share.  It was also super yummy. I love coconut. I could eat it every day. This was also when I ripped my pants. We sat down on a bench to enjoy this coconut and when I stood up I ripped my pants on a nail. Right on the butt. Of course. Luckily for my my bag covered it for the rest of the day. Unlucky for me, these were my favorite pants. I didn’t bring many pants. Now I’m down a pair. Hopefully the pembantu, maid, at my new home-stay can fix it. I’m not that handy with a sewing kit and I doubt they’d let me try anyways. Besides the pants ripping the beach was ok. It is a bit of culture shock to see so much trash at the beach. In Hawaii that is about the worse thing you can do. Here it is normal, I guess… but it was nice to smell ocean air either way.

A Jepara Beach

Jack, Emma, and Taomo at the beach.

 After the beach we went back to Demak, a town we drove through on the way to Jepara and once a very famous kindgom in Javanese history. Look it up. We went to the Demak masjid for Emma to do more research. It was also just an interesting place to stop historically. The masjid is very old and said to house the body of the man who killed the saint Emma is studying (I think). It also housed the Sultan of the Demak empire. Very neat.

Second masjid of the day

Another interesting aspect of this masjid was the group of school children we saw. Apparently this group was on a state sponsored field trip learning how to properly worship at graves, which has a specific term that has escaped me. The kids were adorable and of course would not stop staring at us. One mother grabbed me and had me take a photo with her kids. She literally yelled “BULE” or “WHITE PERSON” and ran to grab her camera. This is something I have not gotten used to yet. It doesn’t bug me as much as it bugs others. It was interesting to see all these kids participating in something that in say Saudi Arabia would be looked down on. Another interesting aspect of Indonesian culture. Huzzah.

Adorable children.

Tomorrow we start week 5. How strange is that? And I get to wake up in a new home-stay. One that is already allowed me to have so much more freedom. I’m out and it is after nine. That is an amazing achievement. I’m also within walking distance from Frame. I can walk to and from internet. HOORAY! And now time to walk back since the rain has stopped and I’m hungry. See you all later.