They were talking as if conflict was just a regular Tuesday and casualties as if it was just another Monday.
From a few thousands feet above the ground I ruminate the thoughts as to what did I get myself into?
While I grew up in between cultures, not knowing who truly I am, which culture I belong to, and had difficulties explaining my roots, exposing myself to another culture still felt like a challenge on its own. I am a chameleon though, I try to blend in,learn the tongue and it never actually takes me long to fit in. But this time, I had my fair share of worries.
How different would the culture be from mine?
The Journey East, is a comeback from me traveling again with my family to learn the ins and outs of this country. I am not sure what I could expect but for now, I am just happily tagging along, fixing documents or things that need to be fixed.
I mean, others for example travel by staying in a hostel, helping out or have some other means to earn their keep. Well, this time I had the chance to buy my family and learn the wisdom needed to run whatever business this family had.
This time, I am tagging along to a place that’s unique, exotic and beyond words. This place is one of the most beautiful places on earth, boasting its lush rainforests, scenic beaches and even its culture that roots thousands of years ago. Its people? They’re so ethnically diverse that it’s a wet dream for ethnographers to actually study in this region. To be honest, had it not been because of my family, I would never in my wildest dream fly to this part. It’s expensive, long flights and for someone like me? I’d rather fly to Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and even Europe.
In this region, I wonder what I’d see and learn. Maybe this is a form of hopelessness once again that I just said yes to whatever adventure is in front of me? But God knows. I survived Laos, another small landlocked country, doing the land border crossing, not speaking a tongue, and ended up loving it.
Though, inside the flight, I learned some interesting trivia, from a worker that worked in the “jungle”. They have groups who shall not be named and they are always being pointed to as the “troublemakers” for wanting independence.
This region is known for its conflict, turbulence, and its own people feel extremely dissatisfied with the people from the main island like Java, where a lot of their resources are used to build the Java and make it more prosperous while this easternmost part of the country is still left behind.
Is it exciting? Yes, maybe. There’s only 2 pins in Worldmappin about it too and from the looks of it, I’ll be adding more places there, some interesting maybe some aren't.
As with anxiety, I am just going to wing it and pray. At least one thing I know, in this region, I could fit in. They believe the same thing I do and that’s another common point that I could blend in.
Now, as the plane flies away, maybe tomorrow my anxiety will fade once I really learned what I needed to do and observe my surroundings. I hope it won’t be quite a culture shock for me.
Stay tuned from more.
Makassar, Indonesia.
