Thursday, 20 April 2006 @ 5:35pm. I am so tired. Despite sleeping a record 10 hours last night (though it was interrupted several times by construction outside), I am really tired. This is the third day of being tired and I’m not sure what is wrong. I don’t have a fever nor do I feel sick to my stomach — thank goodness! My hunch is that I might have caught a bug from one or two folks at the Sunday brunch. They were feeling run down at the time and perhaps I was exposed to something? Or maybe it’s the hot sun, work, and/or just being overseas in general? In any case, this isn’t the way I thought I would be “celebrating” my third month of fieldwork…

Despite being tired, I managed to help out with a joint program sponsored by AMINEF, the Educational Advising Service, and American Corner (U.S. Embassy program) at the University of Indonesia last Monday afternoon. I gave a presentation on studying for a Masters or Ph.D. in the U.S. to interested undergraduate students. Though the audience could understand English, I was asked to speak in Indonesian at the last minute. I complied, but of course felt very malu (shy/embarrassed)! Tuesday and Wednesday I had interviews with some great women. They re-energized me intellectually. Now I just have to figure out how to answer some of the challenging questions and issues they brought up. :) I also had lunch yesterday with a fellow Fulbrighter who is visiting Jakarta briefly from Sumatra. I really enjoyed his Southern company and hospitality!

If you’re interested in reading other blogs that have Indonesian content or blogs by Indonesians, visit this central site. The blogs are in Indonesian, English & Indonesian, and English. Some of the photography blogs have amazing pictures (e.g., underwater sea life, cultural dances, and ordinary scenes of daily life).

Recent news:

* Around 20 Free Aceh Movement (GAM) leaders who have been living in exile overseas, mostly in Europe, have returned to Banda Aceh, Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam.

* Mount Merapi, about 30 km north of Yogyakarta, Central Java, may erupt any day now! I saw lava flow in February 2001 if I remember correctly, and though it was beautiful from afar, it was scary to think about all of the villagers at risk who needed to be evacuated. No fatalities were reported then, but Merapi has taken victims in previous years.

* Lia Eden is on trial in Jakarta for blasphemy. Lia is the leader of the Eden Community, a controversial religious minority group.