I dream of Bali

Dit heb ik geschreven voor de website van Travel to Teach. Echt het allerlaatste verhaal! In het Engels.

How to describe my time in Bali? That’s a very easy question and it can be answered with only one word: Magnificent. It’s a bit of a cliché but in the back of my mind I hear Oliva Newton and John Travolta sing ‘I had.. the time of my liiiiiife, aaaand I never felt like this before’.

The reason I came to Bali, was because of the teacher training course that I’m currently trying to finish in Holland. My school offered a minor called ‘Working in developing countries’. I don’t exactly know why I chose Bali. I think it was an act of desperation at not having an internship three months before take of. I didn’t know anything about Bali, not even that it was part of Indonesia, which is kind of stupid, isn’t it? Pressing the ‘apply now’ button was probably the best act of desperation that exists.

I chose Travel to Teach, because this was the first journey on my own and I thought a safety net was a smart thing to have. And, as it turned out, it was. Getting stuck in the middle of the night, because of a flat tire, with only 5 youngsters to turn to, along with a big language barrier to make things even more crappier than it already was, is not the most pleasant thing you can get yourself into. A quick call to Henning and the problem was rapidly solved, by the waking up of a mechanic and a small amount of 50.000 RP (4 euro’s).

During the course in Holland I studied Bali and got to know the illiteracy rate (low), the amount of people suffering from poverty (mediocre) and the corruption rate (through the roof). I studied Bahasa Indonesia and got to taste the flavours of Indonesia my teacher set before me.

But, I couldn’t have prepared for what I felt when I stepped through the airport doors and saw my name (though misspelled) in the pick-up area. It was not only relief form finally being freed from the highly uncomfortable airplane chairs, bad airplane food and the smelly plastic surgeon who spend the whole 15 hours from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur working on his face transplant PowerPoint presentation. It was also a feeling of freedom, hospitality and of an adventure starting.

Tip #1: Be prepared for the warm, moist lick in the face you get when come from the plane. Walking feels a bit like doing jumping jacks in a sauna, but you’ll get used to it after a while.

It would take me several hours and a couple of megabytes to write down everything I have experienced, seen, felt, smelt, heard and tasted in the two and a half months I stayed in SMA2, Semarapura. I know it would, because I did spend hours and megabytes, writing everything down*.

I can, however, give you a summary. I hope my story will get many people to cross the line of doubt, because it is an absolute shame to miss the opportunity of experiencing Bali from the inside out, like I did.

The biggest fear I had, was that I would not be liked by the people from the organization. I was afraid I wouldn’t feel at home. Unnecessary as it turned out. Everybody was absolutely lovely. Both the 5 different housemates I met and Henning, Nathan and Komang, the staff of T2T felt like a family away from family. Also sharing a room, wasn’t a bad experience at all. The small, white house on the school grounds was a place that I called home very willingly in those two and a half months.
My first day (Jetlag!) included a language lesson, a trip through town, and dinner from the market, including Coca Cola in a plastic bag. The trip through town almost ended in disaster.

Tip #2: When you try to get of the back of either Nathan’s or Henning’s motorbike/ scooter/ mopad, mind the surfboard rack. I, lady that I am, got stuck and delicately ended up grabbing Nathan’s arm as if hanging on to a trapeze.

Teaching English was a fun and rewarding activity and an absolute heaven comparing it with Dutch children. How willing these kids were. Teaching alongside the regular teachers, resulted in an occasional lunch and a bit of freedom during the weeks after the midterms. I set up a Shakespeare (Siapa? Who?) programme and the pupils got to write their own love story.

The afternoon classes were a lot of fun, especially the juniors, who come and surprise you with undrainable enthusiasm, willingness and smart remarks. I even forgave them comparing me with both Leonardo di Caprio and Jusin Bieber, who, for all who lived under a rock in the past 25 years, are both BOYS!

Alongside the teaching, the school offered a lot more, such as yoga (ouch!), gamelan and dancing. The pupils are unusually well mannered and friendly and they scream ‘hello!’ everytime you walk by, even when you have to go back to the house after 2 min because you forgot something.

Tip #3: Take your camera with you at all times. To class, to town, or even when you are just taking a stroll. It’s a great way to get into contact with your pupils and the locals. They all love to pose and they are the most photogenic people in the world!

Tip #4: There’s a full moon ceremony in the temple of the school every month. This was one of the first things I did en it was a very interesting experience. Do join, if you’re willing to get up at 6.

Tip #5: If you plan to join a ceremony you should practise sitting on your knees on a hard surface. My legs got so terribly numb, that someone had to push me to get out of that position again. It’s very painful as well.

Tip #6: Your first purchase when you arrive in Bali should be a sarong and bring it with you at all times. Without you won’t be able to get in most of the temples and if you are, you are usually provided with cloths that make the hairs on the back of your next stand up.

In my second week in Bali, the substitute headmaster invited us to come to his village to join a cremation ceremony. It may seem like a weird thing, to be invited to a cremation ceremony, but it is a festive happening. Tourist actually pay money to be able to join. It was one of the most bizarre and surreal things I saw in Bali. There were people laughing and dancing and there was music. Somewhere in the middle of the burning a man came walking by selling ice cream and water and treats were provided. The wind was blowing slightly the wrong way, so in no time everybody was covered in ashes. Behind me, the deceased’s grandchildren were playing gambling games.

Tip #6: When you get invited for a cremation do take pictures. You might feel highly uncomfortable, but it is a ceremony worth taking pictures of.

During the second week, Komang, one of the staff members, taught me how to drive a motorbike. I had never driven anything that moves without physical effort, so that was quite exciting. I felt like an adrenaline junky. But it was so worth it. Especially when you live in Semarapura: The nearest supermarket is a 25 min walk away… and that’s going downhill. Also I go to experience the friendliness of the people and the incredible lush landscape up close. You can’t always trust a Balinese to know the directions, even when they say they do. One guy told us we had to go to the left… while he was pointing to the right. They are very willing to help, they just do not like saying no.

Tip #7: Rent a scooter. Traffic might seem a bit dangerous when you see it from a car, but in fact Balinese are very considerate drivers. Don’t mind the honking. It’s just their way of saying hello, flirt, or pay their respect when they drive by a temple. It’s really worth it and not as scary as you think it might be. I can know: I’m a coward, and I survived without a scratch.

Bali is also very attractive, because it is very cheap. You can live for about 10 euro’s per week. Not that I did. The local stuff is very cheap, but the international stuff cost more. You can get Coca Cola, Fanta, Sprite, chocolate and for the Dutch among you: There’s even speculaas in the local supermarket and stroopwafels in Ubud.

Tip #8: If you get homesick very quickly, like me, Bali is a very good island to go to. In Ubud you can find restaurants that sell food from all over the world. There’s a Mc Donalds in Sanur, which is an hour by scooter. If you have a laptop, do take it with you, because the school has wireless Internet. It might be slow, but it is fast enough to contact family through Skype.

I started travelling and exploring the island from week 3. Fellow volunteers, my scooter and I explored all of the east and south coast and part of the inlands. There are plenty of places to go to, either touristy or not. We, the ‘Semarapure’ people, would often hook up with the ‘Ubud people’ and go on a trip together. We got to know each other quite well and we still have contact. Through the organization I’ve made friends with people from all over the world!

Tip #9: There’s a lot to do in your free time. You can go either far away, but there’s also plenty things to do close by. You can make hour trips, daytrips, weekend trips and week trips. Try to involve the other volunteers and ask the staff for tips.

I tried a couple of thing I never did before. Surfing, snorkelling and diving. It was really exciting, but I must admit: I absolutely stank at all three of them, but I think I get credits for trying.

Some people asked me whether I had a culture shock when I arrived in Bali. Of course, there’s stuff that’s new and odd, but the shock was way bigger when I came home. The Balinese are welcoming, relaxed and kind. I got home on Christmas day and I hated it. It was cold, the people were stressed out and they didn’t shout an overexcited ‘Hello’ anymore.

Tip #10: Stay as long as possible. You will start bonding with the locals after 4 weeks or so.

Tip #11: Do bring warm clothes and a jacket. After a month your body starts to adjust to the heat and at night and on the motorbike you might even get cold.

Tip #12: Leave your western mentality at home. It won’t do you any good. Yes, there are holes in the road. Yes, there is litter in the street. Yes, the Balinese clean their throat and spit on the floor. Yes, they will be late when you make an appointment. It has no effect to complain or be angry about it. Just keep your head up high. Look at the sky instead of the ground. Also, don’t count the time in minutes, but in hours. Better yet, do not mind time at all. The sun comes up at 6 and goes down at 6 all year round. Time is yours (except for school hours).

There’s a lot more to tell, such as visiting a authentic village and seeing a roosterfight, I was dressed up as a dancer, got a back cracking massage in one of the many spas, celebrated Thanksgiving with the other volunteers and pizza, got a monkey on my back, got a little tan on the beach, saw a tornado and met many, many people from countries all over the world, I got to play a gong, risked my life to get on a private beach, learned how to bargain in Bahasa Indonesia and much more. You won’t regret choosing Bali and Travel to Teach.

How am I doing now, people ask me. I´m homesick. Homesick for Bali. Even though I had to endure the disappointment of failing all possible water activities and getting robbed on the gili´s (my own stupid fault. I left my purse in a public bathroom), I returned home as a better person and it was, indeed, the time of my life. I dream of Bali and it won’t be long until I return to the island of the thousand temples.

*For the Dutch among you and more pictures: natalieblok.waarbenjij.nu. Also, If you have any questions, you can mail me: Natalie.blok@gmail.com