Crash of AirAsia flight 8501...

My only knowledge about Indonesia before I came to college, broadly speaking, was just that it was the largest Muslim country in the world (Pakistan, the country where I belong to, being the second largest). Additionally, there were certain aspects of Pakistan-Indonesia foreign relations which I had a general idea of, such as the fact that Muhammad Ali Jinnah had asked the Pakistani Army to support Indonesia’s struggle against the Dutch rule back in 1947. Given this limited awareness about the country, I’m thankful to public speaking (British Parliamentary style debates and Model UN) as well as courses concerning Economics which gave me a decent insight regarding some specifics of the country.

Before I even got to know about NYASB service trip to Indonesia, I had some general understanding of Indonesia, specially regarding Economics. I knew, for example, that they currently face problems of rapidly rising population (they currently rank 4^th in the world in terms of population) and that they were prone to certain environmental challenges which were bringing up the concern for sustainability. Issues such as rapid industrialization, large-scale deforestation as well as over-exploitation of marine resources together bring the welfare of future generations in Indonesia under question.

A very significant issue (perhaps not very related to our service trip, nevertheless enough to grab my attention) was the recent crash of AirAsia flight 8501. As investigations followed, a team of United Nations auditors visited Jakarta in May to rate the country’s aviation safety. They came to a troubling conclusion: Indonesia was well below the global average in every category, and scored just 61 percent in airworthiness. Arnold Barnett, a statistician at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who specializes in airline safety, said that the death rate in airplane crashes over the past decade in Indonesia was one per million passengers who boarded. That rate is 25 times the rate in the United States. Scared?

Albeit, I’m very glad I got such an opportunity to offer service at a place which currently direly needs it. The aspect of sustainability appeals to me most because I believe in long-term and lasting change. I highly look forward to working with a highly talented team that we have and I’m confident that given this zeal, the efforts will not be in vain. With the hope that this whole experience leaves Bayat as a better, more able community and us (as global citizens) well-informed about such international issues, I can only say: bring it on! 

Living in Harmony with Nature: What Ecotourism can mean for the people of Bayat

    One of elements that drew me to this service-learning trip was the theme of environmental awareness that was mentioned several times during the application process. For me, the most rewarding aspect of this trip would be promoting the combination of environmental sustainability with cultural tourism, something the Klaten region can truly benefit from. What could be better than helping the residents of the Bayat district cultivate sustainable living habits? Not only would this provide long-term employment to the people, but it would also preserve the invaluable environmental treasures that the region has been blessed with. 

   The idea of eco-tourism gained immense support in Indonesia in 2011, when the country’s Culture and Tourism Ministry decided to promote environment-friendly adventure and cultural tourism in the country. The aim was to attract environmentally conscious tourists (eco-tourists), rather than resort vacationers. This was because eco-tourists help to generate higher profits while their activities have a significantly lower environmental impact.

   Although it is not realistic to expect to make a great impact in the little time we will have in the region, I firmly believe that planting the seed of awareness, especially among the younger residents of Bayat, can produce great results in the near future. The coming weeks will decide exactly how we can go forth and succeed in this endeavor.

Ted Mosby: Architect

While the reference for the title has been derived from How I Met Your Mother, I have indeed, for as long as I can remember, been fascinated by architecture - to the point I even thought of pursuing it as a major. Going over the itinerary that has been provided, what stuck out the most to me was our visit to Prambanan. Online sources have told me that Candi Prambanan is an ancient Hindu temple located in Central Java. UNESCO named the complex a World Heritage Site in 1991. The temple has seen some damage due to the Java Earthquake of 2006 but reconstruction has been in place since then. The architecture of Prambanan is really beautiful and the building itself invokes you to self contemplate. Looking at the temple at first glance, you think that it's Cambodia's Angkor Wat but the similarity is only because both the structures are based on Dravidian architecture. The temple will also provide really good B-roll for the people in the Media Department, and being a media student, the temple obviously piqued my interest due to the architecture and the shots that I could get.

While further reading up on Prambanan, a site mentioned that there are often school children who have been brought to practice their English with foreign tourists. Coming from a Cultural and Linguistic member of the team, I found this extremely interesting! I believe that visiting Prambanan will be a memorable experience for all us NYASB-ers. Prambanan carries a vast history of Indonesia and the cultural connotations that Prambanan holds are quite extensive.

Last Spring, I travelled to Beijing and as part of our service in the SLT, we taught English to kids in China. I can't wait for this years Not Your Average Spring Break to start and explore the similarities and differences of children around the world.

On a different, slightly morbid and dark (but interesting!) note, there is a tradition that if you visit Candi Prambanan with your 'significant other', you will be broken up within a year.

It seems like out trip to Prambanan, will be quite interesting. It might be made even more interesting if we're chased by demonic monkeys throughout the temple - yes, this was indeed a reference to Temple Run.

Okay it took me way too long to figure out how to post on this blog

Without further ado, my blog post!

Hey everyone!

One of my favorite things about traveling to a new country is the fact that I get a chance to stand at a completely different vantage point than I’ve ever stood at before. Even if it’s just a trip to Lebanon to visit my grandmother, each trip is a chance to comprehend the world from a new perspective.

That got mushy real fast.

There are a lot of reasons I am looking forward to NYASB.

1.     It’s not average. I’ve had an anything-but-average college experience studying in Qatar. I am equally glad that my spring break will hopefully be the same.

2.     I’ll be traveling with an awesome group of people. I am super excited to get to know everyone as we all embark on this collective adventure.

3.     This is my first eco-tourism themed trip.

4.     This is my first trip to Indonesia.

5.     I have absolutely no idea what to expect, and that’s what I am looking forward to most. Surprise and adventure are a tad exhilarating J

The other day, my family and I were watching an episode of Anthony Bourdain’s travel show, Parts Unknown. It was an episode on Myanmar, and toward the end, he had this very poignant monologue about the results of tourism on a country. I know our mission is partly to create some sort of eco-tourism plan but I think we also need to be mindful of what tourism brings to a country, both the good and the ugly.

What type of tourists do we hope to attract in our plan? This question should be at the forefront of our minds when creating this travel plan. A family trying to teach their children lessons about the environment is going to treat the country much differently than a single adult with a strictly environmental mission.

Indonesia - a land of diversity

Whenever I think of Indonesia, the first thing that comes to mind is diversity. This is a country that has been shaped by years of interactions with the sea-faring world, and thus it has absorbed some interesting characteristics that cannot be found anywhere in the world.

But first, a word about the geography of Indonesia. It is an archipelago consisting of thousands of islands and 34 provinces. Yup, you read it right, thousands of islands. And within all these islands, there are noticeable differences with regards to language, culture and society. For example, in the 'mainstream' Indonesia, you could be enjoying a relaxing holiday on the beaches of Java but if you venture to the Special Autonomous Regions of Indonesia, you can find them being governed by historic royal lineages among other very exciting features of the Regions. This is what revs me up about Indonesia, a chance to witness all this diversity in action.

Similarly, the ethnic makeup of Indonesia is also very exciting. You can find ethnic Chinese, Indians, Javanese and many others all sharing the same land. As explained previously, this has happened as a result of interactions with the wider world as a result of maritime trade. A good example would be the case of Muslims in Indonesia. Islam came to Indonesia through spice traders, and today Indonesia boasts the largest Muslim population in the entire world! This shows that Indonesia is a land that accepts, assimilates and makes the guests one of their own. Happy to be going there in a few weeks!

Impacting Exchange

Howdy, fellow NYASBers!

My favorite part about this service-learning trip is all of the opportunities we will experience. Since we will be holding workshops for local students in the mornings and for the local community in the early afternoons as well as visiting beautiful sites in Central Java in the afternoons/evenings, the exchange of knowledge promises to be invaluable. The balance between serving the community and learning about it at the same time will be incredible. I am most excited about playing with the children, learning from the adults, and living in their community for a week. While we plan to offer what we can to help, we will in turn learn more from them. In the gorgeous scenery, both our team and the friends we meet there will strive to positively impact each other. It will truly be a cross-cultural exchange.

World's most expensive shit EVER!

So while I was reading about Indonesia, out of curiosity and in search of interesting material to include in this blog, I read about the World's most expensive coffee which is produced in Indonesia. Before you start imagining about its exceptional taste or natural rarity, here is the gross reality for you. It is a by-product of an animal's feces! Yes as gross as it may sound, it is literally the most expensive shit ever. A cup of this coffee known as kopi Luwak is sold for $80 in London. Basically, beans of coffee berries are fed to Asian Palm Civets - a small cat-like creature found mostly in Indonesia, which undergo some chemical reactions in this animal's stomach and are excreted out in its feces without their usual bitterness. The world is full of strange and amazing things!
On a more serious note after reading about Indonesia, I feel grateful for being blessed with this opportunity of travelling to a country that is the definition of diversity. From biodiversity to ethnic diversity it offers variety in all forms and I believe that no place can offer us such a learning experience as Indonesia promises to. Also, I think that Indonesia is a largely neglected country considering what it has to offer. At least I was totally unaware of most of the interesting facts that Bilal told through the trivia or I read on internet. Although it sounds pretty generic, one of our goals can be about focusing on how to advertise all the amazing stuff Indonesia has in store, especially in terms of Eco-tourism.