Archive for the ‘Language and Culture Learning’ Category

« Older Entries

A Day at the Races

Thursday, August 6th, 2009

In addition to my good looks, it appears my poor son has also inherited my athleticism. That being the case, I still entered him into some of the neighborhood contests that were held here in honor of the 64th anniversary of Indonesian independence (you’re right, we were a few weeks early, the actual holiday isn’t until 17 August). Unlike the “coconut shell shoe on a string race”, the “drop a pencil in a bottle game”, the “water bag pinata”, and various other feats of coordination and speed, I assumed that G would at least stand a chance at the “kerupuk eating contest”. Apparently, though, hands free eating is just not one of his strong suits.

kerupuk

We consoled ourselves that none of the other contenders in his weight class got off more than a bite during the 10 minute contest either. In the end, he was cheered by the whole neighborhood and got to eat his kerupuk later anyway. I really think G enjoyed losing just as much winning. So there’s another trait I lent him. I love you son!

Michael

 

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Indonesia, Language and Culture Learning | 1 Comment »

Teaching English (while learning Indonesian)

Monday, June 1st, 2009
G thinks learning English is #1 (or he missed when he was picking his nose)

G thinks learning English is #1 (or he missed when he was picking his nose)

About two months ago we agreed to “teach” English to the teenagers at our church. In reality all we offer is the chance to listen to and interact with native English speakers. The teens have all taken several years of English in school, but as far as I understand, all of that has been taught by non-native English speakers, and practiced with friends who are non-native English speakers. They have lots of technical knowledge, but aren’t comfortable speaking. Since we only meet two times a month, it in reality is mostly a chance for us to interact with them. Last Sunday we got together at our house. Michael taught for an hour and a half using a Bible Story from a kids book and expounding on it. I think it went really well. Afterwards the sixteen of us ate spaghetti and french bread (such an American meal, kidding), and hung out. Spaghetti is a strange thing for Indonesians so I hope they liked it. I forgot to have some rice too. I imagine they all went out and had rice after eating at our house.

mmm spaghetti (why didn't I just make nasi goreng??)

mmm spaghetti (why didn't I just make nasi goreng??)

On a side note: if you can’t figure out what is wrong with our walls, it’s not a special technique. It’s simply the affect painting in rainy season. Moisture is seeping through the new paint and literally pushing it off the walls. It’s really too bad. I’m waiting for it to dry up so we can sand it and try repainting, but it rained heavily for 18 hours straight today  so I’m not sure it will ever dry up.

 Side note number two. Please pray for all of the kids that we are meeting with. They each have their own worries and concerns. But I pray that they will impact our world, starting with Indonesia, for the Lord. I pray that our small contribution in their lives can help them reach beyond themselves and impact others. Wouldn’t it be amazing if each one of them had a heart to reach others–the impact would be huge. Thanks for your prayers.

Tags: , ,
Posted in Language and Culture Learning | No Comments »

medicine on our new side of the world

Sunday, May 10th, 2009

Last week G was crabby, quite crabby. He would whine and cry and not want to sleep. I think our house helpers got tired of it, or of seeing him in misery, so they suggested that I take him to go get a massage. So I thought why not try another Indonesian experience. My friends take their kids if they have been falling a lot, or if they are cranky. So we hopped on our motorbike and followed our helper to an unassuming little place. Inside were several Batik throws, and an old mat. With trepidation I gave G to the masseuse, and she mixed some beras kencur powder with water to rub on G. He hated it and bawled and fought and struggled. Michael says we will never do it again. But (possibly coincedentally) G is now doing a lot better.

i wish he had enjoyed it some
i wish he had enjoyed it some

I’ve also of and on felt under the weather. So people tell me that I probably have masuk angin (wind entered). Which seems to be a catch all disease. But the most common symptoms are bloating and gas (sorry fair reader). It’s thought to be caused by sitting under a fan, or in front of an open door when there is wind, or if a kid sits in the front of a motorcycle. Another treatment besides Jamu is to whistle (I’m not making this up). In fact Christians, well educated Doctorate types, also believe in Masuk Angin. I guess it’s a little bit like American’s belief of how the common cold is caused… So the treatment is some more beras kuncur powder mixed into a drink called jamu.

G has small bites all over his arms, and a rash all around his neck. So I’ve been taking our neighbors advice and rubbing Minyak Kayu Putih (Melaleuca Oil, apparently a cousin of Tea Tree Oil) all over him, his matress is going to get “sunned,” and he gets powdered after his bath, which is often three times a day because we take lots of baths around here now that it is hot. Maybe I should try beras kuncur.

Posted in Culture Shock, G-man, Medicine | No Comments »

kepala pusing

Friday, May 1st, 2009

Sorry it has been so long since we have posted. Our internet is a fickle thing, on its best days.

On to other news. I think I once heard it said that learning a new langauge increases the gray matter in your brain, and boosts your brain power. Fantastic! In fact you all should try it. Sign up for a course, watch a foreign movie with the subtitles turned off, buy a language course on CD, eat food at an International restaurant and offer to help wash up with the bilingual staff (kidding), buy your groceries at a ethnic grocery, watch Dora the Explorer…I hate to break it to you though, it’s really hard or next to impossible, to learn good language without living among native speakers. So why don’t you move over here with us. It’s good for your brain.

 

Here’s a test that I took yesterday. If you are planning on coming to Indonesia, don’t cheat, it won’t do you much good anyways.

As for me though, I feel that I am getting stupider. I am forgetting how to spell English, but I’m not learning how to properly spell Indonesian. My sentence structures in both languages is getting all messed up (as you might be able to tell). My brain is aching from all of the exercise (kepala pusing).

So maybe you should just take up juggling. It also has brain benefits.

Posted in Language and Culture Learning | No Comments »

RAWA PENING

Wednesday, April 8th, 2009

There is a giant swamp (rawa) in the middle of central Java called Rawa Pening…if you want to know where such a land form might have come from, read on. Below is the legend of Baruklenting and the creation of Rawa Pening (it’s a bit of a mix between King Arthur and the Lochness Monster with an Indonesian twist)…

picture taken by John Hutteman
picture taken by John Hutteman

At one time, there was a place called Pening. Pening sat on the valley floor, surrounded by thick, and wild jungle. In those wild jungles lived many wild animals.

On a certain occasion, some children of Pening ventured into those jungles to play. When they had played their way deep into the forest, it started to rain. It rained, and rained! The kids—like most of us—did not want to get soaked that day. They searched for a shelter and discovered a cave nearby. With childish haste, they all ran and crammed into the cave. All but one little boy. He was the stinky kid. Fortunately for him, the other children just wouldn’t let him into the already crowded cave.

(more…)

Tags: ,
Posted in Indonesia, Language and Culture Learning | No Comments »

you are INVITED

Monday, March 2nd, 2009

Over the past week, our little neighborhood has kept very busy…in fact, the whole month of February has been crammed full of activity. One reason–that we’ve heard–is that no one was allowed to hold a group event all of the month before. Why? That we haven’t heard yet (or heard and just straight up didn’t understand).

Some of the gatherings that we’ve been invited to have been: weddings, circumcision parties, spiritist dances, funerals. To each one we received an invitation of one kind or another. The photo below is the invitation we received to the latest RT (neighborhood) men’s meeting. It was good that we got this one in time, because as you’ll notice (if you can read  Indonesian) this one was held at OUR HOUSE!

MEANING: the party is at MR. MICHAEL'S

MEANING: the party is at MR. MICHAEL'S

 So last Friday night, we borrowed 50 glasses, bought 50 boxed snacks, rolled out some grass mats in our hurriedly emptied garage, and hosted a bunch of guys from our RT for a few hours. Maybe the next time I’m chosen (a story in itself…ask me about it sometime) I’ll have a better grasp on what I should be doing. As it was, my guests were more than gracious with my many blunders.

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Indonesia, Language and Culture Learning | No Comments »

seperti katak dalam tempurung

Saturday, February 28th, 2009
grated coconut is much easier when it comes out of a bag

grated coconut is much easier when it comes out of a bag

“Seperti katak dalam tempurung”  or like a frog in a coconut shell was the saying of the day last week. The frog doesn’t know what is going on in the world  around him (katak tidak tahu ada apa di luar), he is caught up in his own little coconut shell world.  I thought it was pretty appropriate for my life right now–recently I have been very caught up in my little language learning neighborhood world. Which isn’t entirely bad, it’s what I am here for after all, and I want to have an impact on my neighbors. But it is easy for me to forget that life isn’t all language, daily details, and getting my house how I want it. It is also having a heart for the people here, in town, on the island of Java, the islands surrounding us, and the world, and for you my friends…

Have you been caught up in your world? There are so many scary things happening right now; with so many changes happening in America, the economic crisis, and everything we have come to know and be comfortable with changing… But there is so much else out there, if we can open our hearts maybe everything will be a little less scary. Here are some cool things that are happening right now… 

Move In Day
Learning to Read
A Growing Church

On another note, we are starting to fit into our community by buying things as locally as possible…I’ve found a seamstress that is only a couple of yards from our house, we buy a lot of our groceries from many of the corner stores, our water and propane just down the street from us, etc. I like helping our neighbors…and we can wake up at 5 am, decide that we want coconut, and just walk around the corner…

Tags: ,
Posted in Culture Shock, Language and Culture Learning | No Comments »

back to school

Wednesday, February 18th, 2009

img_5095a2

Remember how you felt on your first day at a new school?

 

Monday morning at 8.00 am (8.00 pm Sunday for those in EST) we hop off our bicycles and start our first day of classes at the language school where we’ll study for the rest of the year. We’ve had so many first days that this should be routine. Instead we feel like we’re back in the 7th grade. Fortunately, the fears have matured from: What will the other kids think of my new haircut? I wonder if anyone else has this TrapperKeeper? Will this pimple disappear before tomorrow? Now I wonder: Will I forget the little bit of Indonesian that I already know? What if I get called on to pray? Do I have the right pronunciation on the final k, or will I sound funny every time I say it?

 

Yes, I realize that those are all pretty irrational. We do have some rational stressors, though. We have chosen to start the program in Unit 2 rather than Unit 1. That means that our language coaches will presume that have mastered all the material that we would have covered in that first unit. (I’m sure that we’ll find gaping holes!) And beside the daily grind of class, we’ll have the added stress of leaving Grey at home with our house helpers while we are away. We’ve been warming up to this big separation for the past month or so, and we are confident that they will do well without us. But that doesn’t make it easy, by any means! Even these things are actually quite small. But these little things may distract, discomfort, or even discourage us during these first days.

 

So, if you remember what it feels like to start a new school, what it feels like hit the ground running in a new direction, and what it feels like to be away from your family for the first time…you’ll know just how we feel Monday morning at 8.00 am. And if you know how we feel, you know that we will need your prayers.

 

At least I know there will be someone to play with at recess!

Michael

__________________________________________________________________

UPDATE: We are half way through our second week of school, and can honestly say that things are going well. Homework is never fun, but it isn’t too overwhelming yet. Our classmates are encouraging, even if we aren’t the coolest kids in school. And our teachers are really nice (I love a culture where they don’t want to shame you, so even criticism is delivered with a big smile).

 

 

But most importantly G is doing really well. The last two days he even said “bye mommy, bye daddy” and gave us great big kisses. It is such an encouragement to have him happy. Last week I would always leave with a heavy heart, but this week my days go by so much easier knowing that G is fine, and even having fun.

yes Michael is the only guy (except for the teacher)

yes Michael is the only guy (except for the teacher)

Tags:
Posted in Language and Culture Learning | No Comments »

gotta love the signage

Saturday, January 31st, 2009

Today we rode horses up to a Hindu temple complex (see our flickr photos) that was built in the 8th or 9th century, give or take a hundred years. It is amazing to stand by something that old. Unfortunately we didn’t seen this sign before heading up, because we climbed a balustrade or two and brought bag and fruits. But so did the lady selling drinks with names like Polcari Sweat and Mizone.

Even the most modern and beautiful stores will have interesting signs…I saw “Watch your step. Beware of the thumbling block” in a beautiful restaurant supply store. Maybe it’s just funny to me because I am so conscious of linguistic things. But it’s great to be able to have a good laugh every once and awhile, otherwise all of the changes and differences might make me cry.

restrictions, restrictions, restrictions

restrictions, restrictions, restrictions

 

On that note…please pray because we are starting formal class in a week. Michael and I have jumped into the second unit, so I am pretty nervous about being able to keep up with the class load.

Tags:
Posted in Culture Shock, Indonesia | No Comments »

life is sometimes like Hogan’s Heroes

Thursday, January 22nd, 2009

Several weeks ago Michael wrote an email about community financing (if you are interested in reading it, you can click on “read the rest of the article” below) that reminded us very much of this clip from Hogan’s Heroes…

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCnuK2ChYbk]  and here’s the shorter version of the clip 

(more…)

Tags: ,
Posted in Culture Shock, Indonesia | No Comments »

« Older Entries