Traditional Indonesian cuisine Week 3!

It's already our third week into our cultural classes and we made another delicious meal today: Nasi Goreng! (Fried Rice Jawa) It was pretty time consuming and took a lot of work especially when you can't use a blender or food processor, but it was definitely a great learning experience. We used a mortar and pestle to blend all of the spices together which was a great way to blend all of the flavors we were using for the rice. We also made rice cakes by steaming them and coloring different portions so we could have multiple layers of colors for the cakes. We also designed our plates beautifully like you would do at a restaurant and made tomato swans. I'm excited for week 4!

#DutakesINDO Radio Interview at RRI Pro 2

I got interviewed on the radio today! One of the other fellows from USINDO, Megan, actually is an intern for the radio station RRI Pro 2 and asked to interview me for her English segment that she helps co-host and it was a blast. We talked about my internship at Rifka Annisa and what I like about Jogjakarta. We also discussed the many different ethnicities that I have and some callers even asked me questions about my internship with National Geographic. I didn't know what to expect about being on the radio, but it was so much fun and felt like a normal conversation just with music in between. ^.^

#DutakesINDO #USINDOSS2016 Field trip Dua

Today we had an amazing second field trip to:

(1) Pondok Pesantren Pabelan/Pabelan Islamic Boarding School

(2) Vihara Buddha Mendut/Mendut Buddhist Monastery &

(3) Candi Borobudur/Borobudur Temple

Some of us walking around the campus

 It was a relaxing day visiting a Buddhist monastery and Borobudur temple, an Islamic school and some beautiful restaurants along the away. We started our day at the Islamic boarding school and it was a great way to learn the traditional activities that students would participate in and the history of the one of the many pesantrens here in Yogyakarta. After a little tour around the campus we headed to a beautiful outdoor restaurant (Rumah makan bu empat) that was surrounded by water and had large huts you could eat under. The food was enak sekali (very delicious), especially the fish. From there we headed to the buddhist monastery and it was so beautiful walking around and learning about the various temples and statues and their meanings. Even the positions of the hands and legs had specific meanings. We learned a lot of about what monks do and the many duties that they have. It was a very eye opening experience and I can't wait to visit more monasteries in the future. After that its actually started raining pretty hard and when we arrived to Candi Borobudur we weren't able to go outside until about half an hour and once it stopped raining we headed to the entrance of the temple. The walkway alone was so beautiful with the different types of plants and trees surrounding it. Once you get to the temple you can see multiple levels you can climb with stairs on each side. The walls of the temple had beautiful detailed carvings, called relief panels, telling many stories. The temple is decorated with over 2,600 relief panels and has over 500 buddha statues. The central dome is surrounded by 72 buddha statues that are seated inside a stupa that you can see through. A stupa is a mound-like structure that has contains relics. It was amazing walking around each level and seeing the beautiful relief panels and the entire landscape of what surrounds this temple. I couldn't stop taking pictures. 

Mas Andhi

Adit :)

Entrance to Candi Borobudur

smile :)

Having too much fun.

Traditional Indonesian cuisine and special lecture Week 2

So today we made some delicious food once again and it was another unforgettable experience. We cooked come satay ayam (grilled chicken), pumpkin cake and delicious sauteed vegetables with a hot lemongrass tea. It was long process to cook the chicken, but it was a great experience learning it the traditional way. We actually used a fan, hot coals and two metal bars to cook the skewers with. We also made small pumpkin cakes by steaming them. It was also a long process, but totally worth it in the end.

Today we also had our second special lecture with a professor for University of Gadja Mada and we learned a lot about Indonesia and the many religions that it has. It was an interesting discussion being able to get more in depth about how more than 80 percent of the population in Jawa is Muslim. It is also very interesting that the Indonesian government's stance on religion is that it recognizes six official religions only which are Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Hinduism, Buddhism and Confucianism. 

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Traditional Indonesian Cuisine

Today we had our first cultural class and for the USINDO program each of us are required to learn a cultural part of the Indonesia and we were able to choose to between 5 different classes: Batik, Martial Arts, Cooking, Gamelan and Dancing. I chose cooking and i'm so glad I did. One of my friends, Allie also chose cooking and we had an amazing time cooking nasih putih, tempe goreng, soto (soup) and this delicious hot ginger tea that I can't remember the name of. It took about two hours and it was totally worth the wait. Learning how to cook Indonesian food traditionally is something I know I will always cherish. Everything was enak sekali. (very delicious).

Prepping the food  

Allie and I  

The delicious food we made  

#DutakesIndo Our first field trip

When you live in Yogyakarta the main form of transportation is naik motor (riding a motorcycle). So, when you're trying to get anywhere for hiking or the beach it averages to 1 to 2 hours away by car or maybe a little faster by motorcycle. What's really amazing is that you can rent a driver for almost the entire day for about 600.000-700.000 IDR ($44-$52). I'm just guesstimating, but it is very affordable especially with a big group like ours for USINDO. For our first field trip, there were about 25 of us so we took two vans and our first stop was Makam Raja-Raja Imogiri, Yogyakarta (Royal Cemetery Complex). This cemetery is sacred because kings and the royal family of the Sultanate of Mataram (Kingdom of Islam in Java) are buried here.

When we arrived we had to go up about a little over 400 steps. It was pretty hard especially because of the humidity, but we all managed. By the time we got to the main entrance I was sweating so much. Everyone said it looked like I just took a shower. It's probably going to take me a while to acclimate to this weather. Anyways, before you enter the main area of the cemetery you must wear traditional Javanese clothing. We (the women) went into a small room to change into our batik where these other women would put on the clothing for us. The batik felt so light and comfortable and walking barefoot into the main area was great. Besides the heat it was an amazing cultural experience. 

After about an hour we headed to eat at Rumah Makan Gudeg Yu Djum Wonosari, a traditional Javanese cuisine restaurant. It was really good, especially the chicken. Two hours later we arrived at Pantai Nglambor (Nglambor beach), a relatively new beach in the area with nice rocks to climb and lots of space to stand in the water. I suggest you bring some water shoes though because that coral cut me up pretty bad. The tide comes in pretty early so we had to leave after a couple of hours. I honestly could not stop looking at the sky and I just wanted to lay in the water forever. Two hours later we arrived to a beautiful family style meal at Rumah Makan Handayani (Handayani Restaurant). It was a beautiful day and weekend and I'm so grateful for USINDO for planning this trip for us. Here are some pictures of our adventure. 

#DutakesIndo Learning Gamelan

Today we learned how to play the Gamelan! Gamelan is the traditional ensemble music of Java and Bali in Indonesia that are made up of mostly percussion instruments. It is an integral part of Indonesian culture. What I learned was that when you want to play a certain instrument in the orchestra you must hit the next key as you hold the key you hit before it. We had so much fun playing together and it was amazing learning about another beautiful part of Indonesian culture here in Yogyajakarta, Indonesia. 

Universitas Sanata Dharma Campus Dua

These last three days have been pretty amazing being able to learn Bahasa Indonesia, so I just wanted to introduce to you all the university I am attending for the time being here where I am taking my intensive language course for Bahasa Indonesian. It's been really fun learning in small classes with only three people and the instructors here are so patient, understanding and helpful. Universitas Sanata Dharma is a private research university that has 11,000 students and 5 campuses. It has a multitude of majors that are offered from english education to mechanical engineering.

Front of the university.

Part of the entrance to the university.

Middle of the campus.

#DutakesIndo Day 5 & 6

So for the last two days we (as in our USINDO 2016 group) have been busy either exploring Yogyakarta or learning Bahasa Indonesia and attending networking events for USINDO. Yesterday we had our first official day on campus at Sanata Dharma (USD) and got to meet everyone that was either teaching us or was a part of the group that was involved in putting the collaboration of USINDO and USD together for us. They gave us some Indonesian snacks to munch during break and throughout the day we went through tutorials of the cultural classes we get to choose from to do for the next five weeks.

There's gamelan (music), dancing, martial arts, cooking and batik (clothing). We had a lot of fun going through each one and learning about the Indonesian culture because of each tutorial. We didn't do gamelan yet because that's for Wednesday on the schedule. I had lunch at a "warang", which is a spot where a bunch of different food vendors are there outside. I actually got sick right after eating there and will definitely not be coming back. 

Today I went to the Hartono mall with some of my USINDO friends. I was told that this mall will be the biggest mall in Southeast Asia. After that, we went to a networking event for the possible internships that we will be working for. It was fun talking to all of the different non-profits and companies and discussing my experiences and their expectations. 

Amazing race adventures!

I didn't get to talk about it yesterday, but our USINDO group went on an awesome amazing race scavenger hunt all around Yogya and we learned a bit about the transjogja, which is the metro system here in the city. We went to Sanata Dharma, the university we'll be studying at and went to the museum and had some amazing food at an Indonesia restaurant, family style. We also practiced some traditional Indonesian dancing which was great, but tiring after a while. After that we went to the traditional market, which is pretty similar to Chinatown in Downtown LA. 

Took a horse carriage back home to the hotel. 

This is my awesome tutor, Lea.  

The traditional market! 

Delicious coconut drink with berry syrup.  

#DutakesIndo Day 4

I met my host family today! Ahhh! They're so amazing. So this morning we had our last breakfast together for orientation and we were all so anxious. Once we were all packed we met in our usual meeting room and they briefed us on what was going to happen when we met our families. The coordinators told us that we have to figure out who our families were based on a paper slip given to us with a few sentences about them. It was pretty nerve wracking and I had no idea what to expect. It said both the husband and wife are retired lecturers and one of the daughters is a professor at Sanata Dharma University, which is the university that I will be attending for my intensive language course for Bahasa Indonesia.

After a few minutes I saw an older couple sitting alone and I luckily found my host family right away! My Ibu (Mother) is named Rosa and she is a retired lecturer and so is my Bapak (father). They both have been married for over 30 years and their wedding anniversary is actually this week (So exciting I know). They come from a huge family similar to mine and they have two daughters, Anna and Mita. Mita is the daughter that teaches at my university and has a son named Alex who is four years old. He's pretty adorable. I honestly am so grateful for my new family and for the amazing program. I can't wait for what's to come i the next few months. 

My host family, Ibu Rosa Dan Bapak Joni

USINDO 2016 friends

My new home!  

The beautiful garden in front of my house.  

#DutakesIndo Days 1- 3

So its been three days so far (including an entire day of traveling) Jet lag is too real right now. I fell asleep in one of the presentations because we had another amazing buffet at the hotel. I knocked out hard at 7 pm, woke up at 3 am and could not sleep at all. I'm here with my new roommate Michelle and she's pretty awesome. These last few days have been pretty tiring, but awesome. The moment we arrived in Jakarta I could feel the heat wave and smell of smoke in the air. I thought I would be prepared for this kind of weather, but I know it will take a few weeks to acclimate. I'm still editing videos for my vlogs to start everything going so there's at least some visuals for my experience here. Here are some photos to give an idea of what i've been seeing these last few days. :D 

Graduation

So it's official. I'm a graduate of California State University, Northridge and it feels unreal.  It honestly hasn't hit me yet even though I had to go through two graduation ceremonies. Being at CSUN has been such a phenomenal experience because of all of the involvement on campus and also because of the amazing people i've met. Walking across that stage has made me realize that there's no routine anymore, no running across campus to clock into my shift right after my class. No more going to the pub for some $4 chicken strips and fries or farmers markets in the middle of the day for some horchata, pupusas and corn in a cup. Its been an unbelievable college career and I wouldn't have wanted to spend my time any other way.

Working for student housing and the university student union has given me so many opportunities these last five years. I don't know where I would be right now without these two organizations. I've learned so much about diversity on the campus and understanding and respecting it to become a respectful human being. It may sound cheesy, but these jobs I had on campus educated me not just through work ethic, but common sense to be a better person to anyone no matter what. I have reflected on myself and learned about myself through others because of the experiences of working and getting involved on campus. Being a part of CSUN as a fellow student, mentor and employee has pushed me to do such much more in my life, to work harder, to always be positive and see the greatness in others. 

I just want to thank my family, friends, mentors and people i've worked with for all of their support throughout my college career. I don't know where I would be without my support systems. Whether it was a great job or even small conversation, these last six years have taught me and given me the strength to never limit myself or feel embarrassed about how long it will take to accomplish a goal. Every decision I have made has been worth every risk and unforgettable moment that I will cherish forever. 

My very own hashtag

"Having the opportunity to travel and learn about an entirely new place is something I have always wanted to do. I'm really excited to explore and meet new people in a city i've never been to."

This was the first part of my journal entry right before I left for my adventure in Washington, D.C. Oh how time has flown by so fast. It was really was an unforgettable experience. I met so many people, learned how to cook foods I never thought I could and most importantly learned a lot about myself. I can't believe I even made my own hashtag to have all of my friends and family reference me to. I believe it was a smart choice though. Even though living in the district was only for five months, it was one of the most memorable times of my life. 

Guess who's employed?

This is the first summer that I haven't worked since I was 17 and it feels really strange. I always like keeping busy and since I've been back from D.C. I feel this void where I would be doing something more productive with my life. I realized though that it is okay to take a break and time for yourself is always important. After weeks of searching, I'm really excited to say that I have a summer job now! Even though it technically is the end of summer. I am going to be a part of the a grand opening of a new REI store near my house. It is retail, but there are so many beautiful growing opportunities in this company of outdoor recreation. My first training is in a few weeks so i'm excited to share it with you. 

It's been a while

Its been over a week since i've been posting, but hey a girl can get busy in this beautiful city. ^.^ These passed few days have been pretty relaxing. I've just been helping out with this Network Alliance conference at NatGeo for teachers from around the country. Everyone is so nice and welcoming and its been a great networking opportunity for me. Yesterday I went out with an intern in the channel department that's different from the geography intern program i'm in. Her name is Elaine and she's got a lot of spunk. We have our funny conversations every now and then and we decided to go to H&M and Robek's [I found out we get a discount ;)] Twas' a fun week in the district.

Geography is life.

It was my first time at the hill (Capitol Hill that is, because EVERYONE refers it that way ^.^) today and what I found out to be a pretty liberating experience. Some of us interns were assigned to go to out of state legislators and meet with them. Our goal was to pass out maps and letters from the president of NatGeo showing the importance of geography literacy. We were trying to gain support from the congressman and senators. At first I thought, wait a second they're not teaching geography in school anymore? I found that pretty sad. How exactly do people know how to get anywhere without geography education. Why do you think we have maps or GPS? Just a random tangent I know.

A day of celebration!

So the dean from the School of Social Sciences, her assistant and the chair from the Geography department came to visit me at work today. EEK! They met with Paul (one of my supervisors) and David (THE supervisor). It was nice because they made me feel all special getting a tour and being complimented left and right about how confident I was there and how proud they were of me. 
Today was also the 10th year anniversary of the DC Scholars Program. EXCITING. David came with me. He was so hilarious we took the metro to the event and walked there together. I found out that he also hates the metro. It was a fun night. I didn't drink. Everyone found him super attractive which I thought was strange because he is my supervisor. We left somewhat early and I left with some friends to celebrate at Mad Hatter for Kyleighs 21st birthday. Ty took a few of us to this gay bar which was also a fun time. 

Spring 2015 CSU DC Scholars

Long distance

Long distance relationships can be pretty hard. Well, that's what i've been told. After a little over month here in the capital, James and I had our first fight. It's pretty ridiculous if you ask me, but things happen. Since i've been here I think i've texted people in California maybe twice a week. Its not on purpose I swear. I just get so busy and the only form of communication i've been using is Instagram or Twitter. I honestly don't even look at my phone that much. So I also haven't really been texting my own boyfriend, but hey we worked it out eventually. On the bright side I had my Nike Training Club workout today in Georgetown. It was awesome as usual. It felt kind of nice having a snack alone at Thunder bar for a bit before. All of the girls actually came this week to get their sweat on. It was AMAZING, but we kind of ruined it with Johnny Rockets after. Teehee.

Snow day

So in the East coast they have something called a snow day and it is the most awesome thing in the world. I experienced this for the first time today, and being from the West coast it felt pretty weird. I mean, it was great to just stay at home and make snowmen on the window sill and get paid for it. I had okonomiyaki for the first time courtesy of Yuri and her Japanese heritage. Delicious.