New Food Friday...Sate Kelinci

Continuing on in my journey with the different sates, I FINALLY tried Sate Kelinci(Rabbit). There are only a few spots you can find it around here and the place that is more well known for it is in Batu(right next to Malang). I've been talking about going for weeks(maybe months haha) and a couple weeks ago, timing finally worked out and I went with a couple of friends.
My friend, Widya, invited us to come eat at her home. Her dad knew a great place to buy it(sometimes the sellers mix the meat with chicken so it's cheaper). It was a win-win situation...I got to eat sate kelinci and visit Widya in Batu, too!
The rabbit was delicious!! I mean, compared to the last sate I couldn't even stomach to try, anything would taste good. But, sate kelinci was really good!!

The sate came with the usual peanut sauce and with "lontong" which is rice cooked in a banana leaf and comes in roll. And of course, with fresh sambal(hot sauce) too. mmmmmmm 

Me with the sate...doing the typical "peace sign" pose often seen in this country. Don't judge :)

Gotong Royong

Along with learning the language here, there has been so much in regard to Indonesian culture to learn about. One recent phrase I learned that's used when talking about their culture of helping others is called "gotong royong." Gotong royong describes the process when a whole kampung(neighborhood) comes together and helps to fix or build something in the neighborhood(road, house, mosque, etc.). The fact that they have a phrase for this shows how much "community" is such a big part of their culture and lives. Indonesians don't just live communally and help when they can, they go out of their way to help those in need. It's been humbling to experience and be on the receiving end of that, but has also opened my eyes to see Acts 2:44-45 lived out--living communally and giving to those in need. And the thing is, they don't do it grudgingly...they love doing things together and helping!
This past week I experienced yet another example of how a community comes together to help. I went to Bromo for my friend, Nana's, sister's wedding. It was quite the event that lasted a couple days. I actually didn't get to attend the actual wedding, but went for a reception the day before. I got to see the "behind-the-scenes" look of all that goes on before the wedding and I was amazed.  Neighbors, friends and family from their desa(village) and the surrounding desas came to help cook and prepare all things days before the actual wedding. Below are a few pictures from my trip to Nana's house for the wedding, although pictures can't really do it justice. It was a beautiful set up. I wish I could've stayed for the whole thing!

They completely transformed the front, inside and backyard of their house and the 2 houses next to them. This is the backyard where they all cooked and prepared food days before the wedding. There was so much going on! 

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There was probably about 100 women helping in the back cooking together.

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It's not a very clear picture, but I had to take a shot of the head of this guy just hanging out in the back. Yikes...

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There were 2 fire pits like this they built in the back.

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The teachers from KPN I went to Bromo with, Kristina and her mom and dad. Such a sweet family...love them!

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This is where the bride & groom would sit with both sets of parents on either side.

This is a photo borrowed from Nana, but I wanted to include a pic of the bride & groom. Congrats Meri!

New Food Friday...Sate Kupang

Recently my blog updates have been far and few, especially the New Food Fridays. I'm sorry for the neglect in posting! It doesn't mean I haven't tried new food, I just don't feel comfortable whipping out my camera when someone offers me food that I've never tried before :) Or knowing I'd probably get a backlash from people after I was offered a certain food that most people would have as a pet and call him "Fido". I've been having my share of new foods for sure.
Well this week i wanted to continue on in the "sates". I was driving down the road yesterday and past a cart that said "Sate Kupang." I had no idea what that meant or was...all I knew is that I had never tried it before. I ordered 1 portion dibungkus(to go) and brought it to my friend's house. When I opened it, the smell hit me before anything else. It was some kind of sea creature. I have to say...I failed this week. I couldn't get past the smell and ended up not eating it. Since no one was offering it to me, I wasn't obligated to taste it, right? Well, there was another person at the house who liked it, so he ate it. He saved me!


So, come to find out, Sate Kupang is made of kerang(oysters), which is not a big deal...I've definitely eaten them before in something that a family made for me once here. But, the catcher was the juice that was served with it(seen in the bag). It was a mix of chili, oyster juice and these little tiny things that looked like eyeballs. I still don't know what they are.

This is a close up of the "juice." It's supposed to be poured into the bowl and eaten with "lontong" or packed rice and the oysters.

Sorry I failed this week's new food friday. I guess it will still remain a new food for me....forever.

Happy Birthday To Me :)

Even though it was a week ago, I wanted to post some pics from my birthday. To most people 26 isn't a big birthday year, but for me, I realized that I'm now closer to 30 than I am 20...yikes! It's also a big year for me because I spent it in another country, my first year living in Indonesia. I experienced many things that were out of the ordinary and new experiences for me on my actual birthday and made the day really special!
Well, Malang(the city I live in) was kind enough to host a 10k and marathon on my birthday. I've done a few races before, but this was unlike any other race I've ever done. For example:


 Even though the Start Time of the race was 5:30am and we all lined up for it, it didn't actually start until 6:30am(Indonesians like to call it "rubber time" since it's flexible to say the least)

There was an entire performance before the race began of traditional dancing and "gamelan"(the traditional music here).



The group I ran with(see below) were about the only foreigners in the race. This is a picture that sums up my life here...stick out much? :)



Part of the group I ran with(there were 3 others not in the pic)

After the race, we were flagged down by the officials(because we were white) and were given a gift bag and had our pictures taken, like we were important or something--even though we all finished far from anything impressive. I thought these 2 guys were worthy of acknowledgement...in their 70's and still running strong!!

Needless to say, we did make the newspaper the next day! I think it will always be hard for me to understand why we get so much attention and why they make such a big deal of being a bule(white person)

One big difference in birthday traditions culture wise is the person who pays. In the States the birthday person never pays; usually they are treated by friends or family. Here it's the complete opposite. If the birthday person plans a gathering or outing, they are expected to pay for everyone who comes. Well, I sure am glad I learned that one early on in language class...that could have been a really awkward experience come my birthday outing! I took out some of my kostmates(those who were around) to a cafe nearby.

Then, a total surprise...they took me to a karaoke lounge. Karaoke is HUGE here. Indonesians love to sing, and for good reason--they're so musically talented!! It was a blast and a great way to end my birthday. I'm so thankful for the friends God has blessed me with here and am looking forward to and am very expectant for the next year.

Decorating with the Ballet Class!

About a month ago, the Empowerment Center(where I teach ballet class) moved buildings. In the new place, there's a whole room just for our ballet class! Over the past weeks, the employees there have been working hard to fix it up, paint the walls, and get everything set up. When we walked into the ballet room last week I decided it looked a little empty. So this week all the girls came early and we made decorations for the walls to make the room look a little more "balletish". We were there for almost 3 hours and they worked so hard making pictures, bows, designs, etc.

They all worked so hard and did such a great job!

Mary & Lisa even came to help out! The girls loved Mary...hopefully next time she comes, we'll actually do some dancing!

Me with some of the girls in front of some of their masterpiece...a few of them already had to go home.

Kindergarten Field Trip

I've been helping out in a Pre-K and Kingergarten class at a local school here that was started by an American family here. It's been such a great opportunity to get involved with Pre-K, see how they've run the school, learn from the teachers there, and get to interact and help with the students.
They invited me to come along on a field trip yesterday, which is really rare for kids to have here. I have to admit, I didn't understand what the teacher said when I asked where they were going, so I just nodded and pretended like I knew what she said...I wanted to go anyway as an outing with the kids. The funny part is, we went to Dunkin Donuts and then the fire station. You would think that I would have understood "Dunkin Donuts!" :) The kids started out at Dunkin Donuts and the manager there showed them how donuts are made and let each of them decorate their own donut. None of them had ever been to a Dunkin Donuts, so it was a big treat. They had a blast there!

The kiddos...there are 3 classes in the school that went. I had a hard time getting their attention for the pic, if you couldn't tell :)

The manager went through all the ingredients and the kids got to help him make to the dough.

And then each kid got to come up and cut out a donut...I tried to get the little boy, Jojo's expression. He had a smile from ear to ear the whole time. It was so cute!!

A couple of the girls waiting to leave with me

Walking to the fire station. I had to get a pic of them walking together...they were so cute!

The kids got a whole presentation from the firemen about their job and what they did.

And then they all got to come up and try on some of the equipment

The firmen even turned on the firehose for them and let them all come up and hold it up. Poor little Latif in front looks like he's holding on for dear life haha

And then, their favorite part...riding on the fire truck! This is a pic of all the kids and staff and the school. It's a wonderful school and outreach to the community and I've loved being able to get involved there and learn from the staff there.

New Food Friday--Sate Babi

There's only a few more types of sate left for me to try, and I have to admit, I'm saving the one I'm most scared of trying for last...I have to work myself up for it. This week, by the recommendation of my friend, Vikki, I tried Sate Babi(no not baby...it's Indonesian for pig!). I had no idea they would have that, because Muslims are not allowed to eat pork, but there are a few places around that make it. It was delicious and a huge treat since I never eat pork here! Definitely up there on my list :)

The sate had a really sweet taste to it...it was delish! Oh, and just a little side note about the picture. The green container is a roll of toilet paper...which they consider "napkins." They usually have rolls of toilet paper used for napkins at restaurants or at sinks to dry your hands.

Dinner with friends! Vikki and Pete and their 2 kids, Noah and Livy. You can't see Noah's face, because he was doing his "cheese" face...the only thing is he turns his head away from the camera :) He's so cute! Thanks for introducing me to sate babi, guys!