Today was a pretty normal day in Palembang, but with a few added perks. I just got back from a trip to Bali and Flores with a some other lovely ETAs (I promise I'll post on that trip, along with my trip to Yogya back in October sometime soon!). It was a blast and I was a little bummed to be returning from the awesome adventure.
The morning started out rough, with motorcycle horns and roosters (plus the call to prayer) going non-stop from 5am until I got out of bed at 7am. I then went out looking for a Western Union (my new ATM card still hasn't arrived), and it wasn't as hot as I was expecting, and the trek wasn't as far as I was expecting. So things were looking good. Then the folks at the bank were very friendly, and the girl who helped me out wanted a photo afterwards, it was cute.
I stopped to get gado-gado at my favorite little corner stall, and had a nice chat with the ladies who work there. Then a guy walking by stopped to chat. He was nice, and it turns out he had studied in the US a few years ago, we chatted about Palembang and the US, and then he told me he owned all the little shops in the area, and that my gado-gado was free! Then he passed me a cold iced tea and told me that if I wanted help getting a bicycle or a motorbike, he'd be happy to help. I told him I didn't know how to drive a motorbike, then he pointed to his son and said he'd give me lessons if I wanted. It was great!
Then I went to school, and I was swarmed with love! The teachers told me how much they missed me, and how excited they were for our upcoming trip. Everyone was friendly and funny, and it made me happy to be back at school, which I wasn't expecting to feel. I learned more about our trip (I leave for Thailand, Singapore, and Malaysia with my school tomorrow, yippee!) and I started to look forward to the trip even more.
After school I took a nap and headed to the radio station. My Ibu offered my a motorcycle ride which was nice (and saved my time, money, and the sweaty discomfort of an angkot ride). At the station I got to see some of my absolute favorite people in Palembang, and catch up a little bit. I also did some voice over work for their upcoming New Year's Eve party. It's pretty cool to know my voice is going to be on the radio waves over here. One of the producers also asked if I could talk on the show tonight about my favorite/the best live show I've been to (Elton John/Billy Joel for sure). It's funny because they are so excited and grateful for the efforts, but it's seriously my pleasure, not everyone gets the chance to talk on air.
It has been a pretty low-key day, but it has just been the best of all my favorite things around town. I really needed this day to feel good about being in Palembang. I have an awesome opportunity to travel around Indonesia and SE Asia, and it's easy to enjoy yourself on vacations with friends, but it's something else to be comfortable and happy in the place you actually live doing your normal routine. And today was a nice do and see my favorite things around Palembang, and the things I can look forward to on a daily basis.
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