Today was another field trip day and I will have another one tomorrow too! Today we visited the Sultans Palace (Kraton) and the Water Palace (Taman Sari). They both had beautiful architecture and sultry history. However, they were overrun with tourists and we were herded around by a tour guide, which was not ideal (for me, I'm sure it was for them).
Surprisingly I had more fun before and after the guided tours. First we went to the 'back yard' of the Kraton where there are two very old Banyan trees. There's a myth that if you can walk through the trees from one side of the field to the other, blindfolded, you will have a good luck and a good heart and all the other good things in life. Also, the Sultan will accept you as his wife.
So we slapped a blindfold on our driver (in the green shirt in the picture) and sent him to try it out. He gave it a shot twice with full confidence but didn't make it through either time. Which is exactly why I did not try it out. It was very amusing watching him try though. There were boys playing a soccer game that he had to walk straight through. They were taking advantage of the fact that he was blindfolded and lost no time mocking him and making faces at him. Jerks.
We walked through some neighborhoods after the tours, which were mostly alleys. Something I love about Yogyakarta is all the beautiful and talented graffiti that the city is painted in. It's everywhere you look and while there is a good share of terrible work, there is an equal amount of photo worthy art.
The other thing I love about Yogyakarta is the sky. It is so dramatic. It changes so rapidly and is so intense. When we were at Taman Sari the sun came out for 30 seconds and the sky was a brilliant blue. Before at the Kraton it was incredibly stormy. Then this evening, like every evening, the entire sky turned a pastel shade of pink with bright yellow clouds. It feels like Indonesia is closer to the sky then the states. I could stare at it all day. Maybe I will start a weather blog?
I also found my least favorite thing about Yogyakarta today. We had some time to kill after the tours so my teacher asked if I wanted to go to a traditional pesar (market), of course I said 'YES'. But when we got there I realized that it wasn't a food market. It was an animal market.
While at the animal market, my heart got shattered, crushed, and pounded into dust. It was an unneccesary reminder of why I have been working at the animal shelter. There were thousands of animals, mostly cats, dogs, and rabbits, all stuffed into tiny, dirty cages. I was really disappointed to see these house pets stuffed into tiny cages in poor health. Then, I saw the rest of the animals. The list runs the gamut of Noah's Ark. Bats, hamsters, guinea pigs, hedgehogs, lizards, snakes, komodo dragons, song birds, fish, turtles, monkeys, and chickens.
I had never seen anything so real or cruel before sitting right in front of me. The worst part about all of it is that no one can save those animals. If you buy one of them, they're just going to keep breeding momma dog that they have in the small cage on the other side of the room to replace the one you just took home.
A crushing reality. Having lived in the states my whole life has definitely padded my view of the world. I am very happy I am here. While it has been hard sometimes and will continue to present challenging situations, I know it will make me stronger and more aware.
It has also made me decide that everybody needs to do these two things in order to be a well rounded human (feel free to add to the list):
1. Work in a restaurant
2. Live in a third world country
On a lighter note! I have 4 days left in Yogyakarta! I really like my teachers, all the fried food, all the sugar, and the abundance of things to laugh at. But, oh man, am I ever ready to get out of the city!
2 days left of language class also. It's crunch time!
Surprisingly I had more fun before and after the guided tours. First we went to the 'back yard' of the Kraton where there are two very old Banyan trees. There's a myth that if you can walk through the trees from one side of the field to the other, blindfolded, you will have a good luck and a good heart and all the other good things in life. Also, the Sultan will accept you as his wife.
So we slapped a blindfold on our driver (in the green shirt in the picture) and sent him to try it out. He gave it a shot twice with full confidence but didn't make it through either time. Which is exactly why I did not try it out. It was very amusing watching him try though. There were boys playing a soccer game that he had to walk straight through. They were taking advantage of the fact that he was blindfolded and lost no time mocking him and making faces at him. Jerks.
We walked through some neighborhoods after the tours, which were mostly alleys. Something I love about Yogyakarta is all the beautiful and talented graffiti that the city is painted in. It's everywhere you look and while there is a good share of terrible work, there is an equal amount of photo worthy art.
The other thing I love about Yogyakarta is the sky. It is so dramatic. It changes so rapidly and is so intense. When we were at Taman Sari the sun came out for 30 seconds and the sky was a brilliant blue. Before at the Kraton it was incredibly stormy. Then this evening, like every evening, the entire sky turned a pastel shade of pink with bright yellow clouds. It feels like Indonesia is closer to the sky then the states. I could stare at it all day. Maybe I will start a weather blog?
I also found my least favorite thing about Yogyakarta today. We had some time to kill after the tours so my teacher asked if I wanted to go to a traditional pesar (market), of course I said 'YES'. But when we got there I realized that it wasn't a food market. It was an animal market.
While at the animal market, my heart got shattered, crushed, and pounded into dust. It was an unneccesary reminder of why I have been working at the animal shelter. There were thousands of animals, mostly cats, dogs, and rabbits, all stuffed into tiny, dirty cages. I was really disappointed to see these house pets stuffed into tiny cages in poor health. Then, I saw the rest of the animals. The list runs the gamut of Noah's Ark. Bats, hamsters, guinea pigs, hedgehogs, lizards, snakes, komodo dragons, song birds, fish, turtles, monkeys, and chickens.
I had never seen anything so real or cruel before sitting right in front of me. The worst part about all of it is that no one can save those animals. If you buy one of them, they're just going to keep breeding momma dog that they have in the small cage on the other side of the room to replace the one you just took home.
A crushing reality. Having lived in the states my whole life has definitely padded my view of the world. I am very happy I am here. While it has been hard sometimes and will continue to present challenging situations, I know it will make me stronger and more aware.
It has also made me decide that everybody needs to do these two things in order to be a well rounded human (feel free to add to the list):
1. Work in a restaurant
2. Live in a third world country
On a lighter note! I have 4 days left in Yogyakarta! I really like my teachers, all the fried food, all the sugar, and the abundance of things to laugh at. But, oh man, am I ever ready to get out of the city!
2 days left of language class also. It's crunch time!