June-July Miscellany

I haven't made any big trips in the past month or so (thus no new blog entry) but there are many small adventures that have come my way so, once again, I'll collect up a few photos and talk about some of the things I've been doing.


Walking around Sidoarjo

I still take walks almost every morning and I see many interesting things. Here's a sampling.
1. A small flower growing like a weed by the side of the road. Tropical countries are GREAT for having flowers all year round! I'm loving it.
2. I've learned that this raised shed for the sheep is probably to keep their feet clean so they don't get infections. I was quite puzzled when I first saw it!
3. Field workers harvesting rice
4. A parade of young people that we passed one morning. There were at least a dozen marching bands, etc. but I have no idea why - it wasn't a holiday that I'm aware.
5. A truck loaded with bamboo poles
6. A big fancy house, or perhaps a temple - I'm not sure.
7. Usually I walk with another teacher, Chris from Wales. Lately we've been joined often by a new teacher, John from Idaho who is also one of my housemates. Here are John and Chris on a typical edge-of-town pathway.
8. We often cross little bridges like this over streams or drainage ditches.
9. Part of a charming Chinese cemetary
10. Tree on my street with fruit
11. I was struck by whimsy at the swings in Alun Alun (city center park)
12. Orchid growing on a tree on my street - thanks, neighbors!
13. Kids playing on nearby soccer field (just ignore the sheep - they won't be in the way too much)
14. Burning garbage - no wonder the air is terrible!!!
15. A view of the mountains to the south
16. Alun alun is brightly lit and full of movement at night


Surabaya Zoo

My friend Nisa met me near the zoo and we went together. It's an older style zoo with lots of cages rather than 'habitat areas'. It's not terribly clean and some of the animals don't look very well-fed. But it does have some quite nice features like shady walkways, an area with stuffed animals native to Surabaya, a boat ride around some islands in the center where deer and monkeys live, and a nice observation tower to climb. I understand that it may be closed soon and another mall built there, which I think would be a shame. Surabaya has LOTS of malls and not much "green space".

Anyway, it was a fun day and I enjoyed seeing some animals I haven't seen in other zoos like komodo dragons. On our way out of the zoo, this guy pedalling a becak (pedicab) wanted us to take their picture. One of the girls was shy - very cute.


Pre-school Graduation

I met my friend Rena at her son's school one Sunday morning for their graduation ceremony. After the formal bestowing of certificates, each class did a performance. There was a lot of dancing and also some singing and reciting. The kids were darling, the costumes were great, and the performances were fun to watch. Eza was wearing blue - you can see him on the far right of the stage with his class, and sitting in the audience waiting for his turn with a big cheesy grin for the camera. And check out the ears on those silver and black elephant costumes!

After the performances, Rena introduced me to some friends and we all went to lunch together. Then we called Chris and John to see if they wanted to join us, picked them up, and went for a drive across Suramadu - the bridge between the islands of Java and Madura. It's only been open for about a year and is the longest bridge in Southeast Asia so people are excited and proud. We drove around Madura a little, had a light supper/snack, and then came back home. It was a nice day.