.........scratch, scratch scratch.... (the background music is some jazz compilation or easy listening, price tagged and constantly played commodity) ….scratch scratch scratch…..…
the recent, if not soon repeated mosquito bite is the only present reminder of the adventurous experience I endured or threw myself into over the Chinese new year…
right now I’m again surrounded by the world of teaching and school life- marking, teaching, students voices running in my head after hours, early starts, late finishes …
but all of this said amongst the occasional roller coaster highs and sudden lows is the fact that I’m enjoying the ride, and hey,… I get paid to be on this rollercoaster and am not paying. I chose to buckle up and take the lows with the highs, the extreme with the mundane. Any other teacher or person who works with young people will appreciate fully however changing, dynamic and interactive working in such an environment is. Oh the pain of even imagining stacking shelves all my life!!!! ……
back to that mosquito bite… or should I say three now: I’m sitting in Starbucks after school. A quick tidy of the classroom, pack the mac up, turn the lights of, sign out, jump on an Ojeck (motor bike taxi) and a minute or two later I’m at the mall using the wireless internet in the Starbucks. Every time I come here I’m sure I’ve heard the name Starbucks before? There must be another one somewhere in the world?). Well over the Chinese New Year I went to the National Park on the tip of Java and then across to an Island renown among surfers for having some very fast, shallow, hollow, reef breaks= excellent/world class/ barrelling waves..
One problem- it is the wet season, and my desire and hope overcame my reasoned decision that it would be best to wait till the dry season to take the 4 hour boat ride (after a five hour car drive) to get to this famed Island .
The result- a very windy, stormy and crazy boat trip in a small fishing boat (without a compass) that went spinning round in circles with a grinning skipper who was grinning for the fact that if we survived, and regardless of the quality of waves we caught he would earn a months salary for a three day boat trip.
But- we did find a sheltered spot with off shore winds and clean waves- not the ones we dreamed of, but I’m spoilt now for waves… compared to a two hour drive to Croyde bay to find a sea packed with Exeter students, surfing 2ft slop… I should still be very happy… -
That all said, one palm point and the famous right hander that Timmy Turner so perfectly pulls a picture perfect lay-back stall in will remain un-surfed for me until the dry season- rock on May/June 2008!!!!!
We escaped the Island that we were staying after the first night in fear that the looming weather front would totally close in and leave us stranded for days till it passed as the seas became un-navigable. This decision made we endured a forty-five minute squall in blinding conditions to get back to the Island of Java and hid in the shelter of small Island Bay- Beautiful beyond description, perfect white sand beach, dear that walked through the pastures undaunted by human presence and monkeys that saw every one of our belongings as a steal-able and coveted possession.
For the next two days we lived off pop mie, bananas and instant coffee. Surfed the main land little known breaks, snorkelled and went fishing. …..
‘Oh my candle burns at both ends……….. but it give such lovely light’
School tomorrow, Surfing Sumatra come March…..
(click the link on the right hand side if you are interested in seeing my photos)
(I will be visiting Family and Friends in England from the 6th-20th July)
Tuesday, 19 February 2008
Thursday, 27 December 2007
Christmas Holidays in Australia
23rd December 2007
A particular feeling comes from knowing, that ‘school is out’. You lie in bed with no desperate need to get up and grade papers, rush to school or worry about the next Monday. Holidays are bliss when well deserved. Every second is really cherished.
I am a week into the Christmas holidays; sitting at a bench in the morning sun I have time to update this blog. I have three weeks holiday in Australia, travelling around with three friends from Cornwall.
We have recently found an apartment for over the Christmas week, incredibly last minute and incredibly cheap. We have made a base in Forster, a small town that lies on the tongue of an estuary that spills the Great Lakes into the Pacific Ocean.
We spent last week travelling from Sydney up the coastline of New South Wales. It was a week with no real time constraints and no other real goals than to kick back, surf and work out where the nearest pie shop was and what, our resident chef in transit, Ishmael, was to cook us each evening.
The first week we camped in Forster, surfing the excellent wedge of a beach break and spending hours trawling through the Salvation Army Op Shop. Amongst chatting to local surfers and the pretty girl at the pie shop we found a potential job for Ishmael in a small tapas bar, no promises, just a suggestion that they may need him after Christmas. With that we planned to return but sort to continue our travels north to Port Macquarie.
It was a much bigger town, which similar to Forster, was placed on the tip of an estuary. With the name of a certain beach in mind we found the nearest campsite, all of us without hesitancy settling on a small cabin after our rather rough sleeps in the tent. The breach break there did not live up to our expectations, the wind was off shore the three nights we stayed there but the combination of the wrong tides and overly subtle banks resulted in a rather weak wave. It did provide us with some fun sessions in the water but nothing epic, nothing indo, nothing to scribble pictures of or write home about to fellow British surfers. It was a rather average wave at best.
We received a phone call explaining that Ishmael had a shift at the Tapas bar the next night so we made our way south again to Forster, which led to us getting our apartment.
27th December 2007
Well the last couple of days have been fantastic. Christmas eve we all rushed round buying each other presents from the charity shops and bargain bins before having a fun surf. Christmas day, the four of us gave each other our carefully selected bargains, Ish cooked a great roast and then we all went surfing. The water was really empty and lush. There were so many dolphins playing amongst the waves, beautiful. I will never for get one left hander I dropped into, I was finishing a bottom turn when I looked into the shoulder of the wave to see a dolphin sharing my wave, weaving under my surfboard, pure magic.
Since Christmas day we have just chilled out watched films, taken our inflatable boat out on the estuary ( a present to eddy from Ish and I) and tried to perfect our aussie accents, ay!
A particular feeling comes from knowing, that ‘school is out’. You lie in bed with no desperate need to get up and grade papers, rush to school or worry about the next Monday. Holidays are bliss when well deserved. Every second is really cherished.
I am a week into the Christmas holidays; sitting at a bench in the morning sun I have time to update this blog. I have three weeks holiday in Australia, travelling around with three friends from Cornwall.
We have recently found an apartment for over the Christmas week, incredibly last minute and incredibly cheap. We have made a base in Forster, a small town that lies on the tongue of an estuary that spills the Great Lakes into the Pacific Ocean.
We spent last week travelling from Sydney up the coastline of New South Wales. It was a week with no real time constraints and no other real goals than to kick back, surf and work out where the nearest pie shop was and what, our resident chef in transit, Ishmael, was to cook us each evening.
The first week we camped in Forster, surfing the excellent wedge of a beach break and spending hours trawling through the Salvation Army Op Shop. Amongst chatting to local surfers and the pretty girl at the pie shop we found a potential job for Ishmael in a small tapas bar, no promises, just a suggestion that they may need him after Christmas. With that we planned to return but sort to continue our travels north to Port Macquarie.
It was a much bigger town, which similar to Forster, was placed on the tip of an estuary. With the name of a certain beach in mind we found the nearest campsite, all of us without hesitancy settling on a small cabin after our rather rough sleeps in the tent. The breach break there did not live up to our expectations, the wind was off shore the three nights we stayed there but the combination of the wrong tides and overly subtle banks resulted in a rather weak wave. It did provide us with some fun sessions in the water but nothing epic, nothing indo, nothing to scribble pictures of or write home about to fellow British surfers. It was a rather average wave at best.
We received a phone call explaining that Ishmael had a shift at the Tapas bar the next night so we made our way south again to Forster, which led to us getting our apartment.
27th December 2007
Well the last couple of days have been fantastic. Christmas eve we all rushed round buying each other presents from the charity shops and bargain bins before having a fun surf. Christmas day, the four of us gave each other our carefully selected bargains, Ish cooked a great roast and then we all went surfing. The water was really empty and lush. There were so many dolphins playing amongst the waves, beautiful. I will never for get one left hander I dropped into, I was finishing a bottom turn when I looked into the shoulder of the wave to see a dolphin sharing my wave, weaving under my surfboard, pure magic.
Since Christmas day we have just chilled out watched films, taken our inflatable boat out on the estuary ( a present to eddy from Ish and I) and tried to perfect our aussie accents, ay!
Tuesday, 4 December 2007
So I’ve been thinking a lot about wealth, poverty, the increasing gap between the two and the relationship between them. Trying to see both sides I wrote a poem based on my observations of living here, a wealthy suburb enfolded by poverty. There’s no wrong side, we are all in the same boat. We are all, without him, in a state of poverty.
Selected writings:
Written at Bukit Inn- (24th November)
Turning on my computer I was confronted with a little calendar message that reminded that my ‘ Bali Weekend’ was ‘overdue by 13 hours’. Luckily I was reading it in Bali and I had stuck to my five-week escape plan. This was to work extremely hard at school, on both departments, Geography and Business, for five weeks, then take a weekend off to revisit friends I had made in the October break.
So here I am, the 24th November 2007, Bukit peninsula, Bali, Indonesia, South-East Asia. Having been living in Indonesia for over four months I a feel adequately prepared to write a little more about what life is like and what things are shaping up to be.
It has become routine waking up just after 5am each day, spending hours in front of 16-18 year old Chinese, Korean, Indonesian, American and Australian students, teaching on everything from Globalization (while its ever growing effects scream ‘see me???’ everywhere around us) and Poverty (the many voices pleading ‘feed me”) to the I want to get rich, need to be business educated. Lessons on Investment appraisal, stock control, Herzberg’s philosophies of movement and motivation…..
Written at Elevate Youth Centre- (25th November)
‘My hair is salty and my skin feels stretched from ear to ear. Having spent the morning scanning the horizon for coming waves I feel content to be tired. Surfed black rock, Nusa Dua with some of the boys- Jeremy, Made and Eddie. Waves were only waist high but the tide was dropping so we had fun as the waves became hollow. Jezzer got out early and perched himself on the old coral ledge overlooking the peak, all the locals and a bunch of global trotting Europeans scrambling for waves, he filmed some waves while I drifted into a much needed kip.’
Waiting in the airport on the way back to Jakarta (26th November)
These experiences are only a small number of wonders to grab hold of living in Indonesia, a country with so much diversity and beauty. Such words and experiences however must be placed alongside others such as pain, poverty and destruction. Indonesia daily aches and groans both physically and socially. In the short time alone that I have lived here there have been over ten minor earthquakes, seven of which were in one week. ‘Flooding’ appears as a regular on the front of the Jakarta Post as the wet season approaches West Java. While in the Sunda straight Krakatau has been putting on regular firework shows ( a month and a half after we visited it) and another pearl along the necklace, Mt Kelud, causes the government to evacuate locals with incentives such free movies and pop concerts.
It is a roller coaster ride.
Selected writings:
Written at Bukit Inn- (24th November)
Turning on my computer I was confronted with a little calendar message that reminded that my ‘ Bali Weekend’ was ‘overdue by 13 hours’. Luckily I was reading it in Bali and I had stuck to my five-week escape plan. This was to work extremely hard at school, on both departments, Geography and Business, for five weeks, then take a weekend off to revisit friends I had made in the October break.
So here I am, the 24th November 2007, Bukit peninsula, Bali, Indonesia, South-East Asia. Having been living in Indonesia for over four months I a feel adequately prepared to write a little more about what life is like and what things are shaping up to be.
It has become routine waking up just after 5am each day, spending hours in front of 16-18 year old Chinese, Korean, Indonesian, American and Australian students, teaching on everything from Globalization (while its ever growing effects scream ‘see me???’ everywhere around us) and Poverty (the many voices pleading ‘feed me”) to the I want to get rich, need to be business educated. Lessons on Investment appraisal, stock control, Herzberg’s philosophies of movement and motivation…..
Written at Elevate Youth Centre- (25th November)
‘My hair is salty and my skin feels stretched from ear to ear. Having spent the morning scanning the horizon for coming waves I feel content to be tired. Surfed black rock, Nusa Dua with some of the boys- Jeremy, Made and Eddie. Waves were only waist high but the tide was dropping so we had fun as the waves became hollow. Jezzer got out early and perched himself on the old coral ledge overlooking the peak, all the locals and a bunch of global trotting Europeans scrambling for waves, he filmed some waves while I drifted into a much needed kip.’
Waiting in the airport on the way back to Jakarta (26th November)
These experiences are only a small number of wonders to grab hold of living in Indonesia, a country with so much diversity and beauty. Such words and experiences however must be placed alongside others such as pain, poverty and destruction. Indonesia daily aches and groans both physically and socially. In the short time alone that I have lived here there have been over ten minor earthquakes, seven of which were in one week. ‘Flooding’ appears as a regular on the front of the Jakarta Post as the wet season approaches West Java. While in the Sunda straight Krakatau has been putting on regular firework shows ( a month and a half after we visited it) and another pearl along the necklace, Mt Kelud, causes the government to evacuate locals with incentives such free movies and pop concerts.
It is a roller coaster ride.
Observations in a poetic form.
Dreamed up by the rich and producing a nightmare
there’s two sides to a coin.
Polished clean by some and spent by others
A wall, divides and segregates,
feeding envy, building jealousy.
A young boy peers over, tip-toeing on an empty crate of Coca Cola
He sees freedom, it cries ‘flee me’.
there’s two sides to a coin.
Polished clean by some and spent by others
A wall, divides and segregates,
feeding envy, building jealousy.
A young boy peers over, tip-toeing on an empty crate of Coca Cola
He sees freedom, it cries ‘flee me’.
Friday, 2 November 2007
Saturday and in school.
So the job demands quite a lot of your time, or most of it in term time. Then again I think that is probably the case with all jobs. It is just the rather heart breaking fact of life, growing up, no more university style days, planning your own schedule and leaving everything till the last minute.
Its now term two, after two weeks break we are back in school and time is rapidly escaping us all. We have six weeks of school till the Christmas holidays, all three weeks of which I will be spending in Eastern Australia.
I am beginning to knit myself out a little term time routine here, my favorite part of which is Saturday nights in the City. I have discovered that City's aren't all that bad, after my Londonphobia. There are some really great places to eat out and have a night in the City listening to live music and relaxing.
My classes are all going as well as they could be for a relatively new teacher on the block, lots always to do but looking at it positively.
The two week mid-semester break was awesome. As I posted last I flew directly to Bali with Jaydene and her boyfriend. Soon hooked up with the cs guys over there, really amazing youth centre, project and vision. Spent most my days waking up early, grabbing a early uncrowded surf : impossibles, balagan, ulu's, dreamland, canggu, greenball: there are so many amazing waves on the south of the Island and loads of uncrowded waves to the West and East. I sent some afternoons hanging out at Elavate, the youth centre and others getting a second surf, reading or driving round on a scooter.
Six days into the break I tagged along with the Elavate guys to help with a competition which was part of a series of grom (young surfers) comps. We traveled up the west coast of Bali were the competition and camp was held over the weekend. The swell arrived as expected and we all had heaps of fun. I really liked the feel of west Bali. Dark rich black sand beaches, rolling relict dunes covered in coconut plantations and rice fields that filled every available piece of land.
Eight days into the break I hooked up with Ish, Seth and Deshko- all from Porthtowan area and we went across to G-land, East Java. I really did not expect to visit this random place in the jungle, renowned for is world class waves so soon in my two year contract out here in Indo.
When I get the internet at home I will write more often.
Well God bless you all.
Sam
Tuesday, 2 October 2007
11 weeks
I have now been here for a while.
It's the holidays on Friday-
two weeks off.
Going to Bali with Jaydene and Matt,
planning on flying to Sumbawa for the middle six days:
surf lakey peak and hang out with Ish and Seth.
What is school like?
It's great.
Thoroughly enjoying building the Geography IB course-
piece by peice.
Teaching Business and Management and Theory of Knowledge has bought a new challenge to my early teaching career, which I love.
All the kids are awesome.
See the link to the school website if you just want to know the basics.
What do I miss in England?
My Family, especially having missed my bro's sixteenth birthday.
My friends.
The English breeze, not the rain.
My tweed jacket and old wool jumper:
getting them sent out here
so I will crank the air conditioning up and wear them all the same.
What about spiritual growth?
I feel I have been challenged and studied up on:
Freedom, Grace, Obedience and the source of all goodness.
So only small theological matters.
Click the link to my photos- will be adding them as life here goes on.
Love the adventure, Peace to everyone, Big shout to the 4C northernhay boys.
Sambo.
(Photo: me- bigin, Bali. Surfer: Unknown.)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)