Back in Banda

There was a hubbub at the library when we arrived this morning. The day before we did an intensive review of the building and how the new furniture and layout was working and what was needed.

When we arrived about 9:00 it seemed there were dozens of guys around. Wooden tables were being taken out and different furniture was being brought in. All the old furniture was in the backyard. The library got some cool new tables on wheels that are kind of like portable computer training tables. So we got right in there, moving tables around and rearranging things so that the main floor was a lot roomier and more inviting with the new furniture.

The upper room, which is the youth area, has a couple of work tables and some shelving. We have learned a few procurement lessons. It turns out that we got about half the shelving that we wanted because of the differences in standard sizing, the fact that there are multiple people involved in the purchasing process and the reality that we were half a world away. If nothing else, librarians are resourceful and know how to come up with creative solutions to stretch a rupiah. We have got a plan in place and we will be able to accommodate the collection with some old shelving. We went to the stationery store and we have a few bins now to help out with the children’s materials.

In case we haven’t mentioned, the Canadian ambassador to Indonesia is going to be coming to visit the library, about two weeks after we leave, to handover the bookmobile and to visit the library. This, as you can imagine, is a massive deal for the community and the library. So we have been doing a lot of talking and coaching about what might be said in the speech…."the key messages". We did a whole review of performance measures. So we are very sad not to be there for the special day, apparently all the VIPs at the event are going to get garlands of flowers. We will be there in spirit.

We headed back to Banda for the weekend. Katherine was delighted to have conquered the bank machine. Last weekend it rejected both of her bank cards and we tried two ATMs. This time it worked like a charm so we celebrated with three Heineken’s a piece.

We ate, we swam and then we lounged around the lobby. Our favourite staff person Rommel was on duty and he insisted we watch a big anniversary celebration on TV. We never did figure out what the anniversary was, but it gave us a chance to see all the different cultural groups of Indonesia and the costuming and dance. Right from Sumatera to Papua. And we were most delighted to see the clapping dance, performed by 600 Acehenese dancers. This was particularly exciting because we had heard about this dance as it was depicted on the new mural in the children’s section of the library. We have also heard that they plan to have the clapping dance performed for the ambassador’s visit. We are just such lucky ducks.

We are off to the beach tomorrow, which should be pretty cool. All the other FCM volunteers have gone to the beach and have told us great things about it. We will be staying at Freddies’ in Sabang. More on that in the next post.

Mountain stop

Today we journeyed into the wilds with the bookmobile. We left Sigl and drove perhaps two hours along a mountainous road, heavy on switchbacks to a subdistrict that was pretty remote. It hasn't been a bookmobile stop for over 6 years as it required the bookmobile to travel through a GAM conflict zone. The stop was in the village of Tangse and we stopped first at the Subdistrict leaders office. After the meeting was done we ducked through the trees and under the prickly flower bush to the elementary school where the bookmobile had stopped. The second stop was at a high school just down from the market and across the street from a pretty large mosque.

So, well the only to describe it is -it was a mob scene. First the kids were crazy to get a book to look at and then when they saw the white ladies, all hell broke loose. We were swarmed in a nice a way, although Dawna reports a couple of pinches on the nether quarters. We've been told that perhaps they have never seen any white people (boolies) before.

The leader of the subdistrict talked with us about the effect of the period of conflict and how disruptive it was on the population and their livelihood. He reported to us more than 70% of the population were living below the poverty level. It was evident in the children - many with very bad teeth, worn clothing and shoes with holes. Everyone was in uniform and presentable for school, mind you.

Community members were also visiting at the high school stop. Since the library hasn't been there in recent years everyone needs first fill out the registration form, so there was much disappointment when the books had to be handed back and everyone realized they would need to wait for next month before the borrowing could start.

The library introduced new stops after we went over scheduling options and talked about using the current bookmobile to the fullest. We said they would need to do that before they would be eligible to get a second van. They wrote a business proposal about their plan and the new bookmobile was approved. It has taken them a while to get it started but the new schedule is slowly being implemented and the 2nd bookmobile is expected mid June. So now after the CALGAP purchasing is complete they will have another slightly larger bookmobile van and the Province is also giving them something smaller more like a standard sized van. So between these different vehicles they should be able to get to all 21 subdistricts - perhaps for the first time ever. It looks to Dawna and I like the Pidie library might need more books if there is the same level of demand at other newly introduced stops.

There is a lot of excitement about the results with the bookmobile- it is just a huge need and the children especially are thirsting for books and knowledge. We travelled today with our consultant, translator and the head of the library Mr. Mukhtar and the sub head Ibu Nufrida and I think everyone was moved with the power of the service and response. The heads of the library were even nervous and apologetic beforehand thinking that since this was the first time for the stops it might not draw many people. So wow!

On the way back we stopped for lunch by the riverside at a cantina (probably goes by another name here in Indo). It was kind of fun - Mr. Mukhtar didn't think the food was coming fast enough so he started cooking. He's a hands on kind of guy. In fact, when the bill was being tallied Mr. Mukhtar took the calculator from the proprietor in order to check the math. He is a former headmaster. Dawna and I picked up the tab - $8 for 11 people. It was a deal.

We were so beat at the end- bit of sun can really do a number on your wakefulness or sleepyness as the case may be. So it's 9:30 at night now and we are talking about calling it a day.

Seeing the NEW library

Yesterday we went to the library in the morning. Our official first visit was to be in the afternoon, but we got to Sigli earlier than anticipated and couldn't resist going over in the morning.

It is hard to describe the combined effect of the many changes that have happened since January. First of all, the outside of the library is a marvellous, eye catching bright lime green. (And we mean bright lime green). There is now a new sign identifying the library and welcoming people. Upon entering the library, the first thing you notice is how packed it is with people. AND there are people of all ages...the regular students, but also adults and children.

The new shelving is in place and the collection is starting to get organized by Dewey, not as before where it was filed by size. (They had always catalogued by Dewey but they shelved by size of book, with little nod to non-fiction, fiction or adult and children's collections.) The library now has an internet room, with public access internet stations. The 3 workstations have been available for a week now; already there are some people viewing inappropriate material....so we will work on drafting an internet use policy together. Net Nanny was installed yesterday.

Distinct spaces have been added for children and youth. Currently the youth area is housing a lot of the new equipment and furniture. The children's area was painted with a wonderful mural, depicting local cultural dances and the community. The mural couldn't be more appropriate.

Mr. Mukhtar's office has been upgraded with new furniture too. Hard to know how to react to it since it is very regal and puffy vinyl. It made Katherine think of 'Beauty and the Beast' and the dancing grandiose chairs. They seem happy with it. The famous washroom with the 'If you unplug, it will blow up.' sign has been upgraded too. No more sign.

The staff were so proud of the changes and eager to hear our responses. We just kept conveying to them how wonderful everything looked and we applied a new Bahasa Indonesian word...jelita which means beautiful.

We returned in the afternoon for a more formal visit and to set the stage for the rest of the mission. The big focus is on the preparations for the VIP visit with the Canadian ambassador at the end of June. We will also work on an Environment Day celebration that will be held while we are here. At first, the idea of a community based program was hard for them to figure out but once they got started talking they were very engaged. We brought over paints and prizes and will make a fun day of it.

Last night we had a wonderful meal, cooked by Daisy, Simon's wife. It was a feast of tuna and beef and our favourite Tom Yum soup. It was a nice meal to share with Darrell and Caroline on their last night in Sigli.

A little sidenote on Darrell: on Friday he had the misfortune of jamming his hand into his suitcase and rupturing the tendon in his finger. It now bends all by itself and looks kind of weird. He had to go to a clinic and then the UN Dr. in Banda. The clinic Dr. didn't have a splint so Darrell was able to use a wooden ice cream spoon to set his finger.

In Medan

Medan continues to challenge us. We are here for the most part of a day. Every time we visit we have our adventures with the folks at the airport. It is extremely hard to tell who is who and of course we landed with someone who seemed to get what we were saying but then delivered us to yet another sketchy hotel in Medan. For the curious read our earlier posts about the Darma Deli hotel experience from a couple of missions ago.

Anyway we perservered and did end up going to the place that FCM recommends which is really quite fine. The Grand Angkasa Hotel is pleasing to the eye and has a business center that has more than one computer, fast Internet and no sketchy fellows loitering (as we saw earlier this morning at the first hotel where we were dropped).

Anyway we are caught up on emails and just really waiting to get to Banda for some chillaxing (Dawna's official term).

We've had many conversations about the project as we get closer to the library and hear everything that has been happening. They have new computers and will have public access so there is lots of policy work still to be done. We guess it couldn't be helped, instead of book trucks the proverbial shopping cart has been purchased. For whatever reason, even with pictures, we just couldn't get it across that this was important library furniture. Of course they may have been jealous of the Banda Aceh library and their shopping carts, so if it was good enough for Banda why not Sigli. We are just rolling with it. (ha) The library will probably look great but crowded with all the new furniture and stuff. It can be quite hard to get the approvals to get rid of stuff so that could be our challenge for the mission.

The best thing we heard en route was that Sosi will be with us for translation and support. Sadly we will only have a couple of days with Iwan as he is needed in Aceh Jaya for another project. He has been getting all the computer stuff set up and that sounded like no mean feat.

Hong Kong again

A wonderful and uneventful flight - it was some kind of wonderful as we experienced the upgrade to business class for this superlong flight.

Things have changed and shopping in the Hong Kong airport is not the draw it once was.

We heard that things are going great guns at the Library in Pidie district. In the last week or so the staff have gone for 4 days computer training, received what is being called Brodart-like furniture and we will be bringing them 60 kilograms of books that are waiting in Banda Aceh.

We are en route to Singapore and will post more when we next get the chance.

Starting again - tons to do

Dawna and I leave on Thursday for the marathon trip to get to Banda Aceh. More news later when there is something to report.