Bule in Bule’s Country

We put name tag and met with the groups. We were (Indonesian team) in one group with French, Russia and Australia, and our tutor from Germany. As I can see around and on the lists the Asia continents are only from South Korea, India, China and Indonesia.

I pitied myself how our great great great grandmother could chose Indonesia as they’re hometown. We’re easily recognized here!! Short,black hair, brown skin,black eyes. So pity,what genes it is, people around me was like as you can see in the Hollywood movies.

We’re in the middle of bule. But now,we’re bule in bule’s country.

As I wondered around, I heard myself called

“Ririn!!!”  that sound not from Joice, Alfona, Lidya or Tata (The only Indonesian Team)

I looked at her whose called my name, that look that exactly look like mine (Short, black hair, brown skin,black eyes)

“Orang Indonesia ya rin?” She greeted me. See- I’m easily recognized here :D

“Iyaa.hahaha kok tauu” Replied me as surprised

“Iya, keliatan lah terus lo namanya Ririn (pointed to my name tag) Gw juga liat di list kalo ada orang Indonesia, mana lagi orang Indonesia nya?”

“Oooh, gitu. Lah ini sebelah gw juga orang Indonesia.hahaha” (Joice, Alfona and Lidya have Chinese blood, but Tata idk why she couldnt recognized her)

“Lo orang Indonesia juga, exchange juga?” As I curious about her

“Iya, tapi gw complicated.haha. Gw kuliah di Turki, terus ikut exchange ini, jadinya gw ditulisnya dari Turki”

I dont know why, but the first time I saw her, I knew that we could be friend easily.

As we chatted, the photographer wanted to took a picture of whole Exchange Students Falls 2012

And...as night goes on

It was my first party there. You can easily find me the “indonesian look” still handing the coat.

I didn’t know there was a locker room to put the coat. Hell, how could I know! In indonesia , we already came with backless, tank top, shorts, and mostly of the fancy clubs are in the malls. In here malls are closed at 6 pm. Well, so it must be in the seperate building, and the weather outside was like 18 degree at night. You could “masuk angin-as I say it” if wearing the party clothes without coat.

The interesting thing that I found that we didn’t have to wear formal clothes to party, yeayyyy!!! We can use sneakers, jeans, shirt. If you see me on that pict, I used white shirt,legging and wedges. That’s enough :D

There are some clubs that has rules we should wearing formal, no sneakers, no cap, etc etc.. 

But for now, the schedule was on club seven. Schedule? Yesss, it was on orientation schedule!!!

So different but yet so close

After lunched and had a shower and another quick nap again.haha. We decided to look around this city, since it was still 4pm, and the sky at 8 pm was still shining. Another 'wow', compared to Indonesia, the sun goes down at 6pm, and that wasn't the only difference ;)

The traffic lights near my apartment, NO CAR!!! Mosly bikes!!

and special red light for bike

City Center area, the red street is for bike or scooters, 

while the walkers are happy enough with black street

hi, madame!

just wondering if there is a woman using the beautiful hat and cute dress in Jakarta street

you will hear "Neng..neng mau kemana?"

In the sidewalk of city center, found the sculpture that really 'south east asian'

more modern sculpture

look alike - ketika kegalauan melanda

break for a while, when headed home

really relaxing!

passed my university for a half year :")

IMY

I miss you
I miss you when you texted me "what are you doing tonight"
I miss you when we walked home at 3 or 4 in the morning
I miss when you always try to pick me up when i said "I can't see" because i'm too short
I miss you when we chat until midnight on facebook
I miss your silly dance
I miss your gluhwein
I miss when you kept saying that you want to visit me in indonesia
But i hate the time difference
I hate the distance
I hate that I don't know rather you miss me or forget about me.

Hi Europe, ups.. I mean Netherlands :)

Visa, Baggage and Camera. Modal2 yang dibawa untuk merantau

The first time I arrived in Schipol Airport, Amsterdam. I already felt the big gap between Asia and Europe, seeing people with coloured eyes, hair,skin. Speaking with dutch, english, french, spanish, and another languages that I didn’t know what was that. So diverse, I felt like being in the part of Hollywood movie. In the busiest airport in the world, I had lost and seperated with others but then I met them again.heheh :P

Even when I took cart for my baggage, I was fucking confused, because the cart just stuck at the place, but when I looked around, I realized that you should push the handle in the cart so it can goes. Hmm, interesting, so the handle it’s like a brake for cart, it won’t be going anywhere if there’s no people who push it

We were picked by the representative from The Hague University, Mr Len & Mr Barry. They said we were going to Den Haag by train and will meet Cynthia & Amber (Dutch girls, whose been to my uni for exchange before) Once again, I prepared for taking the 30 kg’s of my baggage and 5 kg’s of my gym’s bag to go to the train station. Hufhhhtt. And for how many times I felt amazed in less than a day...for go to the station we just go downstairs by lift, and here you go, you were in the train station :’’’’)

Barry said, “If you think Netherlands is Europe, you get it wrong, Europe is so diverse, so different for each country”. We got into the the train, in the journey I saw the land with cows, felt so peaceful. High tecnology country but still maintain their nature.

Looking tired in Den Haag HS with Mr Len

In Den Haag, we met Cynthia & Amber in Den Haag HS (Holland Spoor), they kissed us at cheeks 3 times,yes 3 times, in here they do it 3 times instead of twice like in Indonesia :D

Amber (left) & Cynthia (right)

The university is right behind of Holand Spoor, so tempted to visit the new uni for a half year, but we should go to DUWO first, to get the key from our apartments. They gave us map, alien map about our apartment,goshh i’m so blind at direction!!!

Anyway, we lived seperately, but me & Joice lived in one building but different room. Cynthia & Amber help Alfona, she got the farthest place, so she had to take tram from here!

Me, Joice, and Lidya were starting our first adventure in Den Haag, not even until an hour....we lost.

So Lost....

We lived in Asstraat, asked the local people about it, and no one knew. (until months, we knew that we pronounced it wrong, it should be like “ash-strhaat’ instead of “astrat”)

We walked until we met with Chinese girl, I asked her

“Hi, do you know where Astrat (wrong pronounced) is?”

She replied, “Yes..I know”

TERIMA KASIH YA TUHAN

“Eh, dia tau dia tauuu” I almost yelled with happiness to Joice & Lidya

“It’s right there.” Pointed to the next block.

“Aaaaahh, thank you so much”

“Do you want me to take you there, because I live there.”

With excitement I said “Wow, really?? Me and my friend (pointed at joice) will live there as well, which number are you”

“Really ? I live in 37” She replied

“37!!!! I also will live in 37!!!” I almost yelled

“Aaaah, so you’re my roomate”

And that’s how I met with my first roomate J

My bed, still didn't know how to put the bed cover thingy

Stil empty

After put my luggage and took a quick 1 hour nap, we had lunch near uni with Mr Len, Mr Barry, Cynthia, Amber, and the exchange girls

The waiters are so handsome and beautiful with blonde or brown hair and coloured eyes, I was being served with buleeeee!!! I felt like inversed, which one is the guests and the waiters  :P

 I ordered chicken noodle, with the expectation of mie ayam until when it arrived it was like strange noodle with salad

Chicken noodle and salad, my first meal in Europe :)

-tips: if you’re an asian,never order asian food in dutch restaurant ( well, it’s not a smart tips anyway,  just simple stupidity that I did :P )

They sell kip bali (Bali’s chicken) in here as well! But see the ‘useful’ tips before :P

When I back to my room, I said to my roomate

“Thanks for saving me, I should buy you a drink sometimes”

Which is sadly never been happened, I still owe her a drink!!!

A Short Story before Arrived in Europe

Things to do before I get old : Travel around the world   Checked :)

That's what I wrote less than a year ago. Less than a year. And It already half come true.

Fucking damnn, even  I dont beleive it myself. what can I say is you never know what the future will goes,all you can do is to make it happen. 

It was my first time going abroad alone, the last time I went abroad was to China and Hongkong and it was 9 years ago, even myself didn't remember clearly.

So, here I am, I'm writing again my excitement 9 months ago.

If people would feel sad or fear of staying more than 10.000 km from home. I was fucking not, I was thinking, it was the perfect time to stay away from the drama and routine, but i would miss mum&dad somehow, but as long as skype exist, it wasn't a big problem.

When I transited in Kuala Lumpur, even myself already felt the difference from Jakarta. I had to change plane, with train, hell! train inside of the airport??? Damn cool *norak

Before I begin all of the excitements thing, I have a little story up in the air, dunno why I write it, let's hope the guy in this story won't read it :P

In the plane,I met a guy who kind a cute that was sitting beside me, I didn't know, if he's Indonesian or Malaysian since we were in Malaysia, and it's difficult to differentiate between Indonesian and Malaysian.

I was sitting in the middle of 5 seats, and I decided to go to toilet,

"Sorry, can I pass? I wanna go to the toilet". I said to the cute guy.

He got up and made a way for me, and I realized he was following me to the toilet.

The toilet's door was closed, so I just standed still like a stupid, until he said, " toiletnya kosong kok", 

Gosh, he's Indonesian, but I must made the stupid first impression.

I replied " oh iya hehe makasi ya" dengan senyum2 bego.

I back to my sit and asked Lidya,since I wanted to watch movies but I didn't know how it worked. "Lid, cara pake remote nya gimana". Lidya said  "gak tau gw" and she back to her sleep. She was quite 'magical', I called her pelor 'nempel-molor'.

So i was trying  how this remote worked until he arrived. He must've seen me trying this fucking remote. I decided to ask him.

"Eh,sorry cara nyalain tv nya gimana ya?" Even though I knew I'll made the second stupid impression. And he explained well.

I watched 'the artist' (super cool movie), and as I saw him played games. Started to feel sleepy and still 6 hours until it arrived.

I slept.

3 hours before arrived,  I woke up , bored, and saw him munching peanuts, decided to asked him. 

"Kuliah di belanda juga?" I said

"Iya, gw di tilburg, lo dimana?"

"Gw di denhaag,tapi cuma exchange 6 bulan doang"

I love doing research before I go to anywhere, so I know what I'm going to say next.

"Ooh di tilburg, kenal *****a? "

"Oh iya kenal2, lo kenal juga?"

"Iya, dia senior gw waktu SMA"

"SMA lo dimana?" he asked

" Di labs****, lo dimana?"

"Gw di PL" 

ooohh...pantes macho (buahahaha I said it to myself)

We talked until the breakfast served.

We ate. We talked until the plane has arrived. People started to wear sweater or jacket. Gosh, I didn't know it'll be cold outside.

As the pilot said " we arrived in schipol airport, the temperature outside is 20 degree celsius, bla bla bla..." well, it's quite cold.

 The plane landed, and in minutes I'll took the first step in Europe. 

He saw his friend in front of us, and said to me "gw duluan ya"

That was the ending of it, we talked without knowing each other name :P

Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future

The quotes from Oscar Wilde, remind me of the big news that happening today.

Ustadz UJ (what's in english for priest in moslem?) has died today. 

Why everyone is so shocked? Everyone without exception will die, right?

Before I write this blog in the coffee shop, I passed karet bivak graveyard, the place where Ustadz UJ will be buried. People blocked the street that going through Karet Bivak graveyard, and it was so full of people that want to be there as the last time they see Ustadz UJ.

There are tons of lists why people like him. As me, I really appreciate him. Before became a religious people, he admitted that he was addicted to drugs, played with girls, etc. After finally, there was one moment, when he went to Mecca, that changed his live forever.

Nobody's perfect. As I said in the title "Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future"

Writing again

Senen kemaren, di kampus gw ada promo film yg diangkat dari buku ‘9 Summers 10 Autumns’, Mas Iwan penulisnya juga dateeenngg. Aaa seneng bgt bisa ngobrol bentar sama foto-foto. Intinya ini buku diangkat dari pengalaman hidup dia sendiri, dari anak supir angkot terus bisa jadi direktur Nielsen di New York. New York booookkkk!!!

Di akhir-akhir dia ngomong “I dont want to be left with nothing, with this book, my cousins will know about this story, and maybe this book will inspire another people and another anak supir angkot in anywhere” 

Disitu gw sadar, tulisan itu kekal abadi, orang-orang bakal tau kisah tentang kita, tanpa kita hadir disitu. Tulisan juga menginspirasi, menghibur, dan membawa kita ke ‘dunia lain’.

Udah lebih dari setengah tahun blog ini gak di-update, which is gw nyesel juga gak ngeupdate-update padahal di setengah tahun kemaren bisa gw bilang as the best 6 months in my life, I was chosen to became an exchange student to Den Haag, Holland, dan disini gw bakal ceritain pengalaman gw pertama kali keluar negeri tanpa keluarga, dan langsung ke Eropa pula, dan kalo diinget inget dalam hidup, gw paling suka meng-kontraskan hidup gw, kayak gw dinner di lantai paling tinggi di jakarta, besok siangnya gw makan warteg, naik mobil alphard sama temen, tapi tetep setia sama bis meromini.  Those simple things that I want to share :)

With Iwan Setyawan, The writer of "9 Summers 10 Autumns" & "Ibuk"