I spent part of my morning at work having a discussion with a couple of Indonesians about hunting in the US.I was trying to explain to one in simple English and charades that I like the sneaking part of the hunt, like hiding behind trees or crawling on the ground.And he said, “Oh!Like Rambo?”After I finished wetting myself from my hysterical laughing, I said, “Yes.Just like Rambo, except with no face paint.”I think I have found myself a new nickname. -- Cherine
Christmas Season in Papua
It is now a week before Christmas.I have to say that it definitely does not feel like it is anywhere near Christmas with our 65-70 degree days, and being surrounded by rain forest, but I get reminded of the season at the grocery store, where Christmas carols play over the speaker system.But for the most part, it is a very quiet Christmas here.There are no malls with crowded stores, and many people who work here are on vacation elsewhere (including our maid – YIKES!).And I have no last-minute Christmas shopping to do…because I can’t...unless anyone wants instant rice noodles.Anyone?I can bring some back in January if you do.Just let me know.-- Cherine
Dec 23
We went to the lowlands yesterday to relax. Some of the flowers were in full bloom.
Then we went into Timika with some friends and visited a seafood restaurant. We had fish, squid and shrimp, all freshly caught that day and cooked in a kitchen that consisted of a wood-fired grill and three fire-heated woks. Yum! And in usual Indonesian fashion, there was no air-conditioning, doors, or windows...but little lizards were running across the floor and walls for our entertainment.
And we purchased some Papuan weapons of war....I tried to look fierce, but couldn't stop laughing.
Dec 24
Merry Christmas to all those who are sitting in the cold and snow. Our forecast is for a crisp 53 degrees Fahrenheit. We may have to actually wear socks.
December 25
Merry Christmas from Papua!
We had Christmas dinner with our Australian neighbors, and invited a few other poor souls who were "orphaned" here, including Americans, Canadians and a South African. It was a very wordly Christmas gathering. It worked out well to have two kitchens close to each other cooking together, and we accomplished a huge feast including turkey, ham, pork roast, stuffing, potatoes and baby peas. I also made fudge, old fashioned sugar cookies and kringla. Yes, I actually made it! Afterall, it just isn't Christmas without kringla, even if they weren't quite as pretty as Grandpa P's (they still tasted good!).
And I have plenty of leftover "ugly" ones for Eric and I to eat for breakfast for the next couple of weeks. Hee hee! All in all, it was a very successful Christmas dinner, and we all enjoyed having a group of people to share it with so that no one was left feeling homesick.
Merry Christmas from us! And our Australian neighbors, AJ and Amanda
Reflecting Upon an Amazing Year
Cherine:
I can only hope that our friends and families can understand how incredible the year 2007 has been for us.I never thought I would live anywhere outside of the US, and never imagined even really wanting to do so until the opportunity arrived to live in Indonesia.It was a once in a lifetime chance to do something I had never dreamed of doing.I’m very glad I have taken that chance.As I was thinking about all that has happened this year, it seems to have flown by, almost as if we just moved into our new apartment a few weeks ago.For myself, I can honestly say I have learned a great deal and I hope that I will continue to do so in 2008.
Speaking a new language and living in a different culture top the list of things I’ve learned this year.But above all, I have learned that we Americans don’t know how good we’ve got it.I’ve seen people washing clothes in swamps, ladies walking barefoot through the jungle, and have talked with people who are only concerned about where they will find their next meal.
But I have also shared genuine smiles with people who have nothing but the clothes they are wearing, shaken hands with a chief of a Papuan tribe and have been able to see a part of the world where tourist visas do not exist.While I miss Monday Night Football, pepperoni pizza, paved roads, good coffee, fresh milk, my dogs (now called “The Neville’s dogs”), and shopping for anything I could possibly think of wanting, I am grateful for this experience.And yes, I miss my family, too, but because you are only a phone call or e-mail away it makes it seem like I’m not half-way around the world from you.
By far, I am looking back on 2007 as a life-changing experience.After all, it’s not every day that a South Dakotan can say they “like seafood”.By the way, squid is one of my favorites.And I challenge everyone in my family to try a new food in 2008 that they never would have tried before now.J
Eric:
At the beginning of the year, I tried to imagine what it would be like to give up my life as I knew it and move halfway across the world.No matter how much imagining beforehand, it is quite an eye-opener to actually do it and live the experience.
At first, it seemed like we were giving up a lot:
We sold our house we spent so much time and effort remodeling into the perfect house for us, we finally finished all of the work the same day we left the county.
We sold all of our vehicles, one of which I have owned since I was 16.
We gave our dogs up to a loving family in Idaho
Our freedom to go wherever we want, whenever we want
Etc…etc… etc…
Upon arrival, things were quite an eye opener, despite all of the “preview information” given to us by people living here.Some eye-openers:
This is one of the rainiest places on earth.It rains heavily, nearly every day.
The mountains are extremely steep here, the average slope of the mountains is over 45 degrees.Every bit of flat land here has been carved out of the hillside or filled in.The highest peak between the Himalayas and the Andes can be viewed on the drive to work in the morning.
This place is very, very busy.There are nearly 20,000 people working directly or indirectly for the mine.Around 250,000 tons of copper/gold ore are produced every day from the area.The pace of the job is nearly frantic.
There are people living here that come directly from stone age cultures.Some of them (after some training of course) are operating multi-million dollar pieces of equipment.Most have never been off the island (Papua), and can’t even fathom big cities with miles and miles of “concrete jungle”.
Some things that I have learned or have seen from a different view:
As Cherine has said, we have come across people whose biggest concern in life is where their next meal will come from.Somehow what Brittney or Paris is doing really doesn’t seem that important, and neither does the latest fashion.People in this situation don’t really do much planning or take much thought for the future, because it is so hard to meet the needs of the present.
The flip side?The people here seem very satisfied with what they have, and they don’t have much.This is somewhat of a lesson to me, coming from a very consumer-crazy country.Perhaps we all could get by with, and be just as happy with less….I think so.The grocery store in our hometown of Big Timber (population of 5,000) is twice as big as the grocery store that serves over 10,000 people here.Yea, there are things we miss and wish we could get, but we have gotten used to it, and have learned to do more with less.
I have taken many things for granted as an American.Chief among them is the fact that the persons entrusted with upholding the law and protect the people cannot easily twist the law for their own personal benefit. Accountability – or the expectation thereof is something that does not exist everywhere.
Attitudes toward life, and death are much different here.At the risk of sounding culturally biased, it appears as though life has less value here than what I am used to.Something that I will need to investigate in the next year.
I was made the sickest I have been in a long time by a mere mosquito bite.I was made well by a few days in the hospital and some simple medications.I have learned that this illness called malaria is very preventable, very treatable, yet kills well over 1 million people every year.Most of the native people who live here in the lowlands have had malaria.If you really want to do something that makes a difference, donating to charities that provide mosquito nets to poor countries will do much more than donating to AIDS charities.Sorry if this offends you, but prevention and cure to malaria is known, and it is relatively inexpensive, and it kills many, many more people every year than AIDS.For some reason, you don’t see any Hollywood actors taking up the malaria cause, but you hear plenty about AIDS.That doesn’t make much sense, but I guess not everything in this world does.
Anyhow, I am definitely a better person now than I was before I came here.Something about living in a completely different culture that allows one to understand that not everyone views everything the same way, and that isn’t always bad.I have also seen people that have much, much less than I do, and who are just as happy as I am.The materialism that is part of my culture is not completely necessary.I have also realized there are privileges that I and all other Americans have, that sometimes I take for granted, such as good healthcare, freedom of movement, opportunities to change one’s life etc….
