I had done my undergraduate work in Chinese Literature at the University of Indonesia. And when a Fulbright grant in 1972 made it possible for me to study for a masters degree at Cornell University, I was naturally delighted. My special field of interest at that time was modern Chinese literature, I ultimately finished that program in 1975, then returned to Indonesia with a far broader perspective in mt discipline and a whole new understanding and appreciation of the American academic system.

Of course, back in the early Seventies, the whole business of Chinese studies was in a rather tenuous position here for a number of reasons. As it turned out, I was one of the first Indonesian in that field sent abroad for graduate work in the U.S. Naturally, working in the Asian Studies Department at Cornell was a real eye-opener for me. It really broadened my perspective. I also took courses in Chinese government and  politics — and even had an opportunity to study Cantonese. That’s proven to be especially valuable.

Cornell seemed to be, at that time, just about the leading university in the U.S. for Asian studies. There weren’t many Indonesian students in Ithaca back then. But I really felt right at home anyway because there were a whole lot of grad students from other countries passionately interested in Indonesia and eager to practice their Indonesian with me. Actually, that was a bit of a problem, since I’d been hoping to practice my English on them!

I suspect that current Indonesian Fulbrighters studying in the U.S. have a far easier time adjusting than we did in those days. Today, for example, Indonesia is full of supermarkets and nice shopping centers. Those kind of place are now quite familiar to us. But in the early Seventies, so much of that was unfamiliar to us here in Indonesia.

For the past three years, I’ve been Head of the Chinese Studies Program at U.I. I’ve also been writing regular columns for TEMPO on various Asian topics. Even with my demanding new job, I certainly hope that I can still find time to write occasionally on subjects like these for various publications.