Week 1

  

I had to take two flights from Ho Chi Minh City to Jakarta and then from Jakarta to Semarang. I departed at 3 AM. This was my first time flying, so I was very excited. I arrived at Semarang airport around 6 PM.

Upon arrival, I was greeted by two friends, Linda and Innaky. On the way, the first noticeable difference I observed between my country and Indonesia was that cars drive on the left side of the road, unlike in my country.

They took us out to eat a dish called “Nasi Padang.” It included stewed beef, grilled and chopped green chili, jackfruit stew, and some kind of vegetable on the side. It was delicious, but I couldn’t finish it because I can’t handle spicy food.  

 

I was introduced to four girls from the Philippines. Oh, because of the long flight, I was quite tired, so I went back to my room to unpack and then took a nap. The room felt a bit hot, but it was an interesting experience.

     On the second day of arriving in Indonesia, I had a meeting with the management and instructors at UPGRIS University.

        I ate some small desserts, they were delicious and they tasted similar to some cakes in Vietnam. For example, "bánh chưng" and "bánh da lợn".

        I met my supervisor, who was a teacher with more than 10 years of teaching experience. On behalf of Dong Thap University, we sent some gifts to UPGRIS University such as a tea set and a logo of my school.

        On this second day, we were originally planned to be taken to buy a SIM card in the afternoon. But due to some problems, specifically my bank card and my friends could not withdraw, so I could not withdraw cash. Seeing the students here supporting me in every way, I was very happy but also a bit embarrassed.

        In the evening, my friends took me to eat grilled skewers. I made two new friends, Chris and her friend. They were very friendly and helped us buy a water bottle and a converter. I am very grateful to them. Day 2 was a pretty great day.

        Today, my supervisor, Pak Wawan, took me to the primary school that the school had designated. The school was called SD Supriyadi 02, where I was welcomed by Mr. Son, the principal of the school, and two teachers, Mr. Taupik and Ms. Candra.

        Everyone here is very friendly, especially the students. Just like in Vietnam, when students meet foreigners, they are not shy, but on the contrary, you can see that they are very excited. The children took the initiative to shake hands and greet them. The greeting ceremony here is very special, the children will put your right hand on your forehead and then kiss it.

    At noon, I was invited to a famous noodle dish in Semarang called “mie gacoan”. It tastes very similar to fried noodles in Vietnam and is not spicy. And here I met students from UPGRIS for an internship. They were very friendly and here I asked them about the dishes I ate on the day of meeting with the school leaders.

    After a day at school, I came back and my friends took me out to eat. I was a bit tired so I didn’t want to eat. Then I got to try a type of cake called “Kue Pangcong”, which is like steamed dough then put on a layer of chocolate and butter combined with banana. I bought a cup of milk tea here, the price of milk tea here is only about half of what it is in Vietnam, and it tastes great. That night, I also went to the supermarket with everyone to buy some personal items. 

Everything was fine, but I think I need to improve my listening and speaking skills more, because when communicating with Indonesian and Filipino friends, it is very difficult for me to understand what they want to say and for them to understand what I want to say.