During the month of December, schools in Indonesia become consumed with end of semester testing. This leaves ETAs with the choice of connection to other communities outside of their host schools, traveling to another part of Indonesia to learn more about the diversity of the country, or simply relaxing and taking time to reflect before the new semester begins. Some ETAs put their time management skills to use and made time for all three. The December edition of the ETA Monthly Highlights reflects these stories. Read them below.
Many thanks to all of the ETAs for their wonderful stories and photos.
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Two Worlds Collide
On December 5, ETA Shannon Pinzon introduced her mother, Mireya, to two very important women at her school, Bu Budi, one of her co-teachers and Bu Jumiati, one of the vice-principals at her school with whom Shannon has formed deep relationships with over these past five months. For most of the day, as they all took a.. Read More.
Worlds Collide in Temanggung
Embarking on a Fulbright grant means finding new ways to celebrate the holidays for many ETAs. Fortunately, home did not feel too far away for ETA Emma Muth, whose mother was able to visit for New Year’s. Emma and her mother celebrated with a visit to a tea plantation, a waterfall hike, and martabak with.. Read More.
Exploring New Islands
During December, ETA Lucy Srour was lucky to be able to travel and see other islands of Indonesia! In the middle of December, Lucy left Sangatta Utara in East Kalimantan and headed south to the island of Lombok. There she met up with other ETAs to climb Mt. Rinjani together. Mt Rinjani is an active.. Read More.
Celebrating The End of The Semester & Bodybuilding Out of The Void
Before school closed for the holiday break, ETA Daniel Knoll, invited his English For Communication club out to KFC for lunch. KFC seems to be a desirable place for lunch as many of the students were excited to hear this offer, and while KFC is an American chain restaurant, the menu seldom resembles the comfort.. Read More.
Sunrise
Early mornings are nothing new for ETA Gabriel “Gabe” Umland, who regularly wakes up at 5:00 am at his site to beat the daily Surabaya heat. However, the month of December featured some particularly early mornings as he found himself waking up for sunrises all across Indonesia. This month Gabe’s alarm went off at 1:00.. Read More.
ETA Connections
In December ETA Blake Lapin had the opportunity to travel around Indonesia. On a trip to Jogjakarta, he met with former ETA Daniel Owen. They sat in Dan’s sitting room and ate almonds and dried apricots while drinking hot tea. Dan was an ETA in 2008 and taught in South Kalimantan. One reason why the.. Read More.
