Volcanoes, alcohol and cigarettes

I’m planning to start research in Padang in February, but my contact there just informed me that there may not be a Padang in February. He just returned and shared what is now common knowledge over there (reported on the local news as well): on December 23^rd, a 10 meter tsunami will hit the city (which lies at sea level, on the coast of Sumatra). Everybody knows this and everyone thinks he’s crazy not to believe it.

Tectonic activity is what makes this country what it is, literally. Indonesia is basically a ring of islands in a semi circle created along the borders of tectonic plates. The volcanic soil is also what makes this place so insanely fertile and gives Java, in particular, the capacity to sustain its huge population. Superstition – or what some might consider superstition – is also a defining feature of the place.

When I opened my local bank account, they handed me a list of numbers to choose from, just as they did when I bought my cell phone. This wasn’t aesthetic courtesy either; it was a very serious matter. I explained I don’t really care about the number - I’m foreign – and they just laughed. What an ignorant bule I am.

The current president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (“SBY”/ “Es-Be-Ye”), is actually in some political trouble over his apparent bad luck. His tenure has been marred by such a string of natural and human disasters that nothing short of a presidential-sized jinx can explain it: the tsunami, the earthquakes along the southern coast of Sumatra, the earthquake in Yogyakarta, the sinking of at least two ferries I can remember, air-accidents.... Even the revered Sultan of Yogya’s reputation has been somewhat tarnished by his failure to protect the city from nature.

A couple of years ago in Yogya I arrived in a Bahasa Indonesia class and found my young teacher horrified at my sight (in itself not surprising, I guess). How could I have worn a green t-shirt so nonchalantly? Don’t I have other t-shirts? Everyone knows the Queen of the South loves green. She’ll come and get me and my teacher with me. Never – ever – wear green to the beach. Better not to wear it too close to the coast either.

But bad luck, superstition, or tectonic realities don’t always affect policy. Apparently there are plans for a bridge across the Sunda Straits that separate Java from Sumatra, which would be - I think - the longest bridge in the world. The straits also happen to be where Anak Krakatoa lies (“child” of Krakatoa, the infamous volcano that erupted of the late 19th century and was felt as far as Australia). With all due respect to the Bay Bridge, this might not be the best location for a bridge that long.

“Minister says 24 Indonesian islands disappeared: report”

In other news, I received authorization to conduct research at the Indonesia Islamic University in Yogya. What was interesting is that I got it via text-message (the only way to get things done here) and that the text-message, from the rector of the university, was sent from Mecca, where he’s performing pilgrimage. I’m quite sure it’s my first sms from Mecca.

Eid mubbarak, merry Christmas and (belated) happy Hannukah.

--

“The Chinese phrase for 'research' sounds a lot like that for 'alcohol and cigarettes'… "yanjiu" is research in Chinese, while "yan" = cigarettes and "jiu" = alcohol, albeit in different tones.”
- Beijing-J, (why she thought of this now, in the context of my fieldwork, is beyond me)