Bright Lights Muslim City

Today was my first day in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.

In the morning, Fye, my Indonesian buddy, met me around 11 o'clock and then Ayu and Nana ( the country coordinators for AUA) came around 11:15. The three of us went to the campus for lunch because Nana was organizing an event called European week at Universitas Gadjah Mada. It was my first time trying Indonesian food. The food was really good.  I had a type of Indonesian sweet and sour soup, rice, fried chicken, vegetables, noodles and fruits. After having lunch, Fye showed me around the campus. The classrooms are moderately sized, they have little cafeterias everywhere and the people all looked really happy! The only problem was that it was excruciatingly hot...

During the afternoon Fye took me around the city in her car. There are motorcycles EVERYWHERE. On our brief tour I saw: the Sultan's palace, the local markets, malls and cheap places to get food.  Fye also showed me a field that had two trees. According to superstition, if you walk straight between the two with your eyes closed, your wish will come true.  Before dropping me back to the house we stopped by the field on campus because her friends were playing dodgeball. I met her friends and they seemed really nice and outgoing. I told her to invite me if they ever go out during the weekends since I want to make more Indonesian friends! 

Dinner was AMAZING since there was live music and the food was delicious. 

Overall, I had a good first day in Indonesia; the day was full but I had time some time for myself as well. During my downtime I realized that I really like the sound of the Adzan . I can hear it from my window because the campus Mosque is close to my house. It makes me feel serene and peaceful since it reminds me of Zanzibar. I can't wait to see what tomorrow will bring!