INDONESIA!

So I've had some problems with the organization, and I wasn't sure if I was going to stay.... but I've worked them out, and I am staying! (For the time being, at least). It has definitely been a bit of an emotional roller coaster though.

Prashant, Sara, and I went out on Tuesday night to explore some more of Jakarta's nightlife, and went to a hookah bar on the other side of town (we took buses, and it took AGES!) It was inside of a huge mall, and it seemed like half of the Jakarta population was there. I mean, for being a Tuesday night, this mall was teeming with people. The mall consisted primarily of coffee shops and restaurants, with comfy chairs and tables set up outside the restaurants to people-watch. AND we were super excited to see that there was a fashion show going on... a Muslim women fashion show! All the models were veiled and wore gowns that covered their arms and legs fully. But the gowns and veils, although modest, were brightly colored, and covered in sequins and sparkles, and they also wore super high heels and sported fancy little handbags. SO fashionable! 

Things back at the orphanage are all right. I do live in and run a household of teenagers (all but 1 are teen-aged) and I get all the attitude and behavioral problems that one would expect. The 2 15-year old boys are particularly difficult... staying out till 4am, not coming to the classes that Prashant and I hold daily for them (they instead go play guitar on buses to make some extra money), demanding pocket money whenever they want it, etc. I feel like such a parent! Only 2 of them are this way though. The other 4 children are incredibly respectful and obedient (I think religion plays a big role). 

Because Rini, our cook has been gone this week, Ayu the 14 year old has been cooking in her absence. To give her a break, Sara and I offered to make the evening meal. It was such a time-consuming process. We went to the market and went from stall to stall buying the various fruits and veggies we wanted (the language barrier made the situation quite funny) and then we spent the afternoon preparing the food. We made a coconut vegetable curry, some scrambled eggs, seasoned tofu, a fruit platter, and some fresh chili paste on the side (I sauteed the chili peppers and garlic and then mashed them together using a mortar and pestle... I've learned from watching Rini do it!) The coconut curry is fun to make too- basically we buy a whole coconut in the market, and the vendor puts it through a machine to shred it. At home, we soak the coconut flakes in water and then wring out the water... over and over and over again until  we have enough coconut water for the curry. I don't think I've ever thought about making coconut curry myself without using canned coconut milk! Cooking was such a cultural experience. With that said, I doubt I'll volunteer to make dinner again any time soon... ;-)

A huge part of my job is my online international tasks I am required to do everyday for 4 hours. They take up a lot of my time, and makes me feel like I have a normal (and mundane) office job. Basically, the organization doesn't have paid staff who sits at headquarters and does the administrative stuff. Instead, each volunteer is required to be on several different task teams and coordinate within their area of focus to keep the organization going. I am on 6 task teams: I help submit sponsor letters, coordinate travel plans with new volunteers, help recruit new volunteers though online media,  assign tasks to new volunteers, etc. Each department has their own email account and set of task instructions. The founder travels a lot to each of the orphanages, but she sees every email that is sent through the organization, all on her blackberry phone. She must spend her entire days on her phone, responding to emails! Last I heard she was in Kenya helping out with one of the Kenya center's famine feed programs, and even though she was in the middle of nowhere helping to feed nomadic tribal people she was still responding to my emails. It's a pretty crazy system, but it seems to work well. 

I'm off to bed... Love you all!