Hello there! Three months in Samarinda- the time is a flyin.

The rains are now making their presence known quite regularly , temporally stranding people to shelter and convivial moments of chit chat, coffee drinking (Nescafe- all the good stuff is exported) and smoke or at least this is the pace of student life for some anyways. Smile.

Since my last correspondence, Ive been continuing the enriching, humbling, and at times admittedly discouraging process of learning a new language. Bridging the gap between the formal language we learn at University and the vernacular spoken language in the streets- a mlange of both informal bahasa Indonesia spoken by ordinary folk with a mixture of the many other languages spoken in Samarinda: Banjar, Dayak (many diallects), Kutai, Javanese, Bugis, and more- is enough to make your head spin but your heart soar

Along with the five other international students participating in the Darmasiswa scholarship program and two visiting students from Brunei (a tiny country located on the North Western tip of Borneo glued to Malaysia), I participated in an insightful field research course on tropical rainforest and marine diversity. Although we sat in on some interesting theoretical lectures at our university, the course granted us dear time in the field, exploring diverging environments- and all that inhabits them- with our senses and learning first hand from our reactions to them, alongside key human interactions of course... For those of you who are interested (and have not already read), Ive attached a copy (somewhat cheesy although for but for promotion purposes) of the course evaluation I was asked to write.

In my spare time Ive been drinking in the local music scene (finding this also to be a very helpful - and especially enjoyable- tool to better grasp the language); partaking in incessant but lovely ngrobol (hang out and chat with friends around tea or some other kind of drink); learning to cook various dishes and hopefully master a mean sambel (chili sauce that accompanies every meal) before I return to Canada as this was my entente with my Dad before I left; dance, yoga, walking around drinking it all in and jalan jalan (travel) around East and North Kalimantan. My sparker and I travelled to Java Island a month ago to Indonesias highly populated and equally extremely polluted capital- Jakarta. Later we escaped to the mountains of Bogor for some fresh, crisp air and beautiful scenery. I was lucky to also make it back to Java last week to visit a friend visiting from France in Yogyakarta, whose general ambiance was pleasantly different from the capital and nearby Merapi volcano stunning to walk around.

The tropical environment never ceases to beguile me all that it offers to the eye (and the stomach yummy plants) and how these resources are used and thought about by peopl e in their everyday I recently spent the day gardening, learning from a good friend to differentiate weeds from the new growth (not too different from Canada) and the poisonous caterpillars from the simply fuzzy ones. Also mowed the lawn with a machete, which FYI way more fun and much more efficient than a lawn mower

Anyways, before this already long winded petit mot stretches longer and you get masuk angin- a common ailment usually understood in local terms of wellbeing as having too much wind/air in your body making it tired and heavy- I would like to end on a thought from a dear friend in Canada: Learning a new language, not in a classroom, getting to know a people and their smiles and creases by living and working them, must give you such nourishm ent. This is my reality. I am rassasie, but always thirsty for a little more after a good humid snooze with the mosquitoes. Smile. Miss you all and hope you are well. Hati-hati ya (take good care), Kristen. PS. If anyone wants to visit, the trees are great for climbing and a pleasure to eat their fruits perched on a branch somewhere In the meantime, Happy Solstice, Christmas and New Year! Dsole encore pour la version franaise qui continue dexclure par son non occurrence Contente de donner des clarifications mes chers

Selemat Pagi di Samarinda dan hutan tropis ! (Good Morning from Samarinda and the tropical rainforest)

Apa kabar? What news, of Canada, or wherever you may find yourselves around the world? Here in Samarinda, East Kalimantan the people are very friendly and hospitable and I'm getting used to, once again, being a white foreigner (here bule) and all the attention that implies... My body is adapting to round two of summer (albeit a humid tropical rain forest version), new tastes and smells- some more pleasant than others- succulent tropical fruits making up for those of open sewers, burning garbage and the consistent cloud of pollution that hovers over Samarinda Yet, the jalan (roads) between neighbouring cities or villages that Ive been fortunate to visit (Balikpapan, Kota Bangun and Tenggarong) consist of dense rainforest, giving the passerby a taste of what it may have been- or is like- to live in the thick of the jungle. Many varying shades of green probe and soothe the eye, giving depth to the landscape which, unfortunately, also carries significant scars where forest is hacked in the name of resource. Kalimantan Timur (East), Indonesias second largest province is rich in natural resources; coal, oil, timber and other exotic forest products are readily extracted. Less than half the original rainforest remains, and this is in large part due to illegal logging. Mudah-mudahan- although one also commonly hears the Islamic version, Inshallah (God willing) - I will be participating in a ten day field course studying tropical rainforest and marine diversity.

Religion is extremely important to East Kalimantans (Kal-tim) inhabitants, (as in other parts of Indonesia) comprised of Dayak and Kutai indigenous peoples, Banjarese, Bugis, Javenese, Malay, and Chinese immigrants. Mesjid (Mosques), usually painted green, colour the cities and villages, and their presence is also marked by call to prayer broadcasted from their minarets

five times a day. Alongside Islam, Samarinda has minority Christian (Catholic and Protestant), Buddhist and perhaps Hindu populations.

Immersed in learning the language and subtle codes of a new culture, my eyes are busy-busy and brain filled with thoughts and wonderings. I am joined by five other international students (from Belgium, Japan, Polland and a fellow qubecois) at Universitas Muluwarman as a part of the Darmasiswa scholarship to learn bahasa (language) Indonesian and experience different ways of being in attempts to better understand Indonesian Culture. The exercise of learning a new language is rather humbling, becoming again like a child and learning how to speak learning to distinguish between the sounds of nga and nya is proving particularly difficult. In addition to our language classes at University, which are quite complimentary to life immersion in the streets, were learning traditional Dayak mentari (dance) and on Sundays partake in cultural outings to nearby villages.

Being the only six bul in town, we have many Indonesian friends and are learning a tremendous amount from these relationships- as we also benefiting from generous offerings of fruit and food, companionship, and of course the odd marriage proposal! Im loving the environement that feels very much like a live botanical garden and the many smiles and polite, kind gestures that great us in our everyday. This first month in Indonesia has flown by and I greatly look forward to the unfolding of the next five months.

Sampai jumpa lagi (until we meet again), Kristen. **A tout mes ami(es) au Qubec, en Canada, en France et ailleurs, avec qui je correspond en franais, je suis dsole pour ce letter en anglais. Le prochain sera bilingue !