Shafreena (2301702c)- Trip to Yogyakarta Indonesia

1) Photo journal for 3 activities 

2) Ice-berg model 

3) A3 infographic on global mindset

 Experiential Learning

Activity 1 : Places around yogyakarta

This is our first visit to museumku gerabah! It looked ancient and had many clay and hand-made pottery crafts. The guide there also informed us that pottery classes were being held there for those who wanted to learn! It was mostly outdoors which was very hot but it was a fruitful experience to see many beautiful sculptures.

On the second day we went to the pine forest. It was really eye-catching and very fascinating as I have never seen that many tall pine trees before. There was also this game called scavenger hunt where my friends and I had to search for items to get prizes in the end. But sadly we could not find any as the other teams collected the items before us.

This was the highest peak of the pine forest where we could see the view of many mountains and some areas of yogyakarta. It is a great place for sightseeing! It was that beautiful. The floor was full of rocks and also shaped as hearts

After the trip to the pine forest, we went to learn some batik painting! We were split into small groups of 4 and each of the groups had an expert batik painter instructor who has been doing that for many years. We were asked to pick our designs and use hot wax to outline the designs. While I was doing my batik painting many of them said I was an expert as it looked good with minimal mistakes! I was proud of myself as it was my first time batik painting. I really enjoyed this activity as I got to hands-on experience on how it was like to paint and also brought back my painting home.

This was the final result of me and my friends' batik painting!

This was our trip to Kraton, also known as the yogya palace! Only a certain number of people were allowed in the palace at a time as it was on high security. We had to show our hand tags in order to enter the palace. It is a grand complex that was planned to reflect the javanese cosmos. In certain areas of the palace we were asked not to take pictures due to privacy.

This is the tamansari watercastle. It has a combination of eastern and western style building. This is the most famous place in Tamansari where it is the bathing and resting place of the Sultan and his Princesses.

This was our visit to the borobudur temple. It is 1246 years old! It was so huge and the scenery was so beautiful from above of the temple. We were only allowed to walk around for an hour which was quite short because there was just way too many places in the temple to explore.

 Activity 2: Food

This was out first meal in yogyakarta! There was rice, fried chicken, omelet, tofu and spicy sambal. That place is well known for its spicy sambal! It was a nice dish

During our free time to explore places near our hotel, my friend and I went to this chocolate restaurant. Their waffle was so crispy and went perfectly with the scoop of vanilla ice cream.

This was our farewell dinner buffet. There was mee goreng, rice, fried chicken bites, vegetables and chicken soup.

After the long and tiring walk in the pine forest, we had a buffet of rice, soup, sambal and chicken. Also iced tea!

This place where we went, the food was quite unique. As the satay was actually made from mushrooms! The sambal they gave us was extremely spicy that my friends started tearing up.

Activity 3 : Visit to University of Islam Indonesia (UII)

There was a cultural dance performance put up for us in the university. The dance was very elegant and impressive. I was fascinated by their talent! My friends and I talked about how we might even learn some dance steps later on by them!

The next activity we had in the university was learning their traditional games! The first game was cublak cublak suweng where we had to sing a song while playing the game. One person will bend down and we had to place our palms on the back of that person's back. Then while singing the song, we will place an item on one of the person's palm. Then after the song ends, the person has to get back up and guess who has the item! We also played 2 other games known as the bekel (like 5 stones) and Congklak (shown in the last picture)

The students in that university showed us the process of making scented candles and how to extract the oil from plants to obtain the smell of the candles. We also had hands-on experience on how to make the scented candle! In the end, each of us received a scented candle as a souvenier. 



  Ice-berg model 

1) Lifestyle - The lifestyle of Yogyakarta people was quite unique and traditional. The lifestyle of people there is influenced by traditional Javanese culture, but it also reflects modern urban living. The locals often actively participate in traditional ceremonies, dance and music performances. It is a major education hub in Indonesia with several universities and educational institutions. Students are often seen traveling back and forth which contributes to a dynamic and youthful atmosphere. Many locals wear batik clothing as the city is a hub for batik production. People often gather for community events, religious celebrations and cultural activities.

2) Cuisine and Tradition - Yogyakarta offers a diverse range of traditional Javanese and Indonesian cuisine. Local food include nasi kucing (small portions of rice with various side dishes), sambal, tea, sambal chicken. The main feature of Yogyakarta cuisine is fragrance. Almost all dishes are equipped with herbs and spices. Indonesians like sweet, hot and fried food. For tradition, the cultural heritage in Yogyakarta includes magnificent temples, various kinds of traditions and cultural events, traditional handcrafts and architecture and even traditional games! Traditional architecture can be vastly seen here as the buildings and heritage sites are built uniquely with rocks and designs.

3) Body language - People in Yogyakarta usually bow their heads down then they walk past anyone older than them. This is a sign of respect towards elders. Whenever eating, they will usually ask the person beside them if they would want some which is an act of kindness. People also usually do not stare at one another or make prolonged eye contact while talking to an elder as it is considered disrespectful and may be viewed as a challenge. For the first activity in the university we visited, the students made a PowerPoint slide and explained to us, how to greet and behave in public. Touching a person's head is considered a bad thing to do as they believe the head is where the spirit resides and is considered sacred. People also never point with their index finger, but instead use their thumb to point as it is more respectful.

4) Hospitality - People in yogyakarta are very friendly and greet us with a nod or welcome in indonesian. When the local people see us tourists, they approach us and be very friendly and welcoming. Even offer us some snacks, food or drink . Instead of treating us like outsiders, they treat each one of us like their own family which is very heartwarming.

5) Transport - There are many modes of transport in Yogyakarta. There is grab, bicycle rickshaw, motorbike rickshaw and even horse! Especially in the street called Malioboro (a major shopping street for tourists). It is a new experience as I have never taken any other mode of transport other than bus, train and car. I went on the horse carriage which was really a great feeling as we could see the places all around us while the wind was blowing in our faces. The horse carriage did not have to follow the traffic signals too. It can just cut the traffic and keep travelling, which saved us a lot of time!

A3 Inforgraph