"Just think of it as an adventure!"

In four days, I will be in Jakarta, Indonesia with other IREX Teachers for Global Classrooms (TGC) Fellows.  Our cohort of 14 teachers, from across the United States, has spent the last year preparing for this journey.  I can't believe it is FINALLY HERE! Our group will spend 3 weeks, working in various schools across Indonesia, exchanging our ideas, culture, and teaching experiences with Indonesian teachers and students.  By the end of 3 hard working weeks, I plan on taking a little R & R for a few days in Bali (my  Eat, Pray, Love obsession!) and the Gili Islands (I'm determined to get a photo on the swing in the middle of the ocean!) The preparation and planning for both parts of this trip has escalated into a frenzy these last few weeks, filled with appointments, vaccinations, and lots of shopping for necessities and gifts!  The photo below is my accumulated pile that I still need to figure out how to fit into 2- 45 lb. bags, with clothes!!

2017 TGC Indonesia Fellows at Global Education Symposium, Washington, D.C. (a few missing though!)

These are mostly gifts...still need to pack clothes! AHHH!

Some of the highlights I am looking forward to are working with our Indonesian host teacher, Umi Rakailah Safari in her community of Jember. (see map below)  As I communicated with Ibu Umi (Translation Mrs. Umi. This is how students address her. I'll be Ibu Wendy!) through email and FB messenger, I am excited for our agenda to come to fruition!  We will be visiting various agricultural plantations in her community, including coffee, cocoa, dragonfruit, and rubber.  All of these natural resources are a big part of the village and include surrounding areas of rice fields and mountains.  What's cool too- the cocoa and coffee plantations run on biofuel gas!  Obviously, this is pretty exciting to this science teacher and self-described naturalist/biologist! So, when choosing my individual guiding question for this experience, I wanted to focus on the diversity of the area and see how Indonesian's incorporate their natural environment into their education and daily lives. So the official research question on paper is "How do Indonesians incorporate sustainability practices of the natural environment into their education system and their daily lives?"  So interesting things like biofuel gas, exotic plants, and various animals (i.e. Indonesian elephants, komodo dragons, the cat that poops coffee beans, etc.)  will probably become a reoccurring theme of my posts.  (HEADS UP! I do not plan on researching the helicopter-size insects I'm expecting to see..like I'd rather die...and I'm already having nightmares of finding them in my room.) 

One more exciting field trip Ibu Umi is planning for us is to visit Mount Ijen to see the famous "Blue Fire"! Well, again that's the plan right now, but it requires a 2 am wake up and 3 hour hike up a mountain in the dark!  To quote Ibu Umi, "Be sure to bring hiking boots, a flashlight, and a mask. The sulphur smell is very strong!" :/  Ok, well..then...I hope this cowgirl can do it!  It's a active sulfur mine, so the smell of rotten eggs will be potent.  Plus, apparently the water runoff mixes in the lake, creating a pool of sulfuric acid! Awesome?!? Chem peeps- a pH of 0.5, according to this guy! WHAT?!?) These are a few things that you can look forward to hearing more about in the weeks to come!  So, as the title of this first post suggests...Let's think of this as an adventure - together!

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Author's Note: The title was inspired from the mantra of my mother, who passed away a year ago from breast cancer.  Her infamous words are ingrained in my psyche, unconsciously coming up with every new challenging situation. These words were once annoying, usually followed by repeated eye rolls from my sisters and I.  Right now, I know my mom would remind me of these words, as I prepare for this journey. I'm sure she'll  be showing up in spirit throughout this adventure!)