Fragment of Memories.

This January, the rain has been painting my days in a wet and grimy mood. The cool air, the strong breeze, the white, muted skies and the sudden flourish of water that pours in the afternoon somehow reminds of Melbourne.

I spent six years of my life there, and I finally came back to Indonesia six years ago. And yet, sometimes I’m reminded of it in ways that I don’t think are possible.

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Perahu Kertas

I haven’t read such a good novel in a long time and I’m definitely sure this is it. Surprisingly enough, I’ve never read Dee Lestari’s previous novels, and I’m really amazed by her talent in writing because Perahu Kertas is unputdownable as it makes me laugh, cry and feel inspired.

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The Confession of a Teacher

I always get nervous on the first day of teaching a new class.

I don’t always know what I talk about. I just look like I do.

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Bule Aja Doyan!

If you’ve seen the latest coffee ad from Torabika, you’d know the tagline being said by Luna Maya at the end.

The ad starts off with Luna Maya sipping a cup of Torabika coffee, and then all of a sudden a Caucasian man comes up in the background, sips the coffee as well and shows genuine delight that he likes the coffee. The ad ends with Luna Maya saying the tagline which is the very title of this post, which means something like, “See, even foreigners like it!”

The term bule itself refers to Caucasian foreigners or westerners, and it can be derrogative or right down offensive to some of them. For most of Indonesian people, the term bule simply refers to the look of these people. But sometimes, it can mean so much more than just the looks.

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The Dogs at Work

Being a female teacher is difficult.

No, no. Let me rephrase that. Being a female teacher is challenging. It is. Especially when you teach adult students in which about 99.99% percent of them are males in their early (and sometimes late) twenties.

Most of the time, the students are surprised to find out that I’m in my late twenties as well. I am indeed currently the youngest teacher at work, and that fact alone can make seem somewhat unconvincing – as a teacher and as a person they’re supposed to look up to.

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