Job seeking IS really an adventure

Well, i haven't posted anything for almost a month. The reason is... i'm having another adventure which is... job seeking! Yay!

I'm a workaholic, and seriously think that career is part of my identity. Actually, being jobless really scares me to death. To do something means self actualization for me. It makes me smarter, wiser, stronger. And to stay at home, doing almost nothing, really drives me nuts.

But thanks God... i only experience the process for one month after my arrival :)
(if it take more than that, probably i'll have nerve breakdown :p)

My internship ended on November 14th, and exactly on that day, still in Beijing, i received an e-mail from detik.com told me that i'm invited for an interview on Monday, November 16th.

I was so happy. So, there i went. I passed the user interview, had my first psycho-test, then had my medical check up and HRD interview. I'll start my first job on Monday, December 21st 2009... wish me luck, everyone! ^_^

I'll be the Community Development Officer, so i guess i'll learn a lot from it. More adventures to experience... yay! i'll seriously do my best on this...

Anyway, i'll keep my promise. I'll write more about China. I'm preparing the writings offline since i'm using my parents internet connection now, and they have the quota for this.

I'm also trying to send my report about Beijing to a girl magazine, so hopefully they haven't had the report about this before and they'll publish my report! (finger crossed) Wish me luck again!

Finally, home...

Yep! my internship lasted on the 14th of November 2009
It was kinda sad that i have to go home and leave my friends, school, students... really, what an experience! after two months, everything there started to feel like home for me,, hehe.

I went to the airport with airport shuttle bus (ji zhang ba shi). I recommend this bus, since it's pretty comfortable (kayak prima jasa gt deh), heads straight to the airport in 45 minutes, and only costs you for 16Y. Like this! ^_^

Thanks a lot to Mr. Wang who had taken us to the shuttle bus at 5am in the morning. You're just the best Wang Lao Shi! :D

I arrived in the airport (terminal 2 for Malaysia Airlines) then checked in. For your information, there's no airport tax charged in Beijing International Airport. Huh, i shouldn't have prepared money for that. I could have used the money to buy some other things for me >:D hehehehh

Anyway, i arrived in Jakarta at 7pm. I miss Indonesia! I miss my family! I miss my boyfriend n friends! But i also already miss my friends in Beijing, huhu :(

Now that my internship is over, and one of my biggest dream has fulfilled, i need to say thanks to some people...

My parents... who always support and trust my dream, no matter how crazy and impossible it looks like, the opportunities come because they say "yes" to all my plans! :D

My lil' sista... who helped me with some stuffs while i'm in Beijing, and who always be a good "trash bin" hahahahh

My trainee friends... thanx for the great friendship and memories. You all are so inspiring! i learned a lot from you guys!

AIESEC Indonesia... Jennilie Orlanda, Marlissa Dessy, Yuniandri Ikramina, all OGX team and other guys for the help and support until "match" SPIRIT!

AIESEC UIBE... thanx for the help and service while we're in Beijing :)

Beijing no.9 High School, Mr. Wang, all the teachers, fabulous students... for the hospitality, help, learning, and all the stuffs that make the internship worth it

All my friends, thanx for all the support and prayer ;D

M. Surya Prasetyo, for always be my best friend and for teaching me to be unselfish, xoxo

I still have some stuffs that i want to share about my internship in Beijing, China. I'll post them after this post. Sorry for the lateness and all the disorganized stuff, but i hope you'll enjoy them! ;D

Cheers!

I Eat Donkey!

Well, i didn't really plan to. But that day, Martyna and I missed the lunch due to sleepover. After the English Club, we went to a small restaurant near our school, because previously we saw some of our students eat there.

We wanted to eat noodles, and it turned out that the restaurant served noodles. It's my habit in China to always ask the waiter before i order;
"Zhi shi shenme rou?" (what meat is this?) since i don't eat pork

The waiter told me something, and pointed to this picture that was hung on the wall:

(he says, "my meat is the tastiest!")

...
Yep, it was a Donkey Meat Restaurant

I expected beef, chicken, or something basic like that, but i was also curious how donkey would taste like. It was only 6Y so, we ordered 2 bowls of spicy donkey noodles.

About 10 minutes later, the donkey noodles came. Ta- daaaaaa!!

(huge portion of spicy donkey noodles)

Donkey meat was kinda red, not as delicate as beef, but for my surprise, it tasted okay. It didn't have special smell like sheep meat, so i enjoyed it quite much. I'll think twice to eat it one more time. I just think that donkey is too cute to be eaten. It reminds me to Pinokio, hehehe.

There's a lot of Donkey Restaurant in Beijing. They sell all part of Donkey; meat, inside organs, until eye balls and donkey's "special treasure". This "special treasure" would cost you about 200Y per dish.

(tetep diabisin, laper sih waktu itu ;p)

Temple of Heaven (Tian Tan)

Temple of Heaven is one of the most beautiful place i've visited in Beijing. I went there in 23rd September 2009, when it was still sunny and warm in Beijing. Temple of Heaven located in Chongwen District, and you need to take subway line 5 to Tiantandongmen station.

You need to pay 35Y to get it, and too bad they don't have discount for foreign students. But it was worth it. Temple of Heaven is a really beautiful place, built in a really huge area, and well preserved. Also, it's one of the most important temple in Beijing, and was inscribed as UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998.


I'll give you more scientific way to explain Temple of Heaven, taken from Wikipedia:

The temple complex was constructed from 1406 to 1420 during the reign of the Yongle Emperor, who was also responsible for the construction of the Forbidden City in Beijing. The complex was extended and renamed Temple of Heaven during the reign of the Jiajing Emperor in the 16th century. The Jiajing Emperor also built three other prominent temples in Beijing, the Temple of Sun in the east (日坛), the Temple of Earth in the north (地坛), and the Temple of Moon in the west (月坛). The Temple of Heaven was renovated in the 18th century under the Qianlong Emperor.

In 1914, Yuan Shih-kai, then President of the Republic of China, performed a Ming prayer ceremony at the temple, as part of an effort to have himself declared Emperor of China.

The Temple grounds covers 2.73 km² of parkland, and comprises three main groups of constructions, all built according to strict philosophical requirements:

• The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests (祈年殿) is a magnificent triple-gabled circular building, 32 metres in diameter and 38 metres tall, built on three levels of marble stone base, where the Emperor prayed for good harvests. The building is completely wooden, with no nails.

• The Imperial Vault of Heaven (皇穹宇) is a single-gabled circular building, built on a single level of marble stone base. It is located south of the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests and resembles it, but is smaller. It is surrounded by a smooth circular wall, the Echo Wall, that can transmit sounds over large distances. The Imperial Vault is connected to the Hall of Prayer by the Vermilion Steps Bridge, a 360 meter long raised walkway that slowly ascends from the Vault to the Hall of Prayer.

• The Circular Mound Altar (圜丘坛) is the altar proper, located south of the Imperial Vault of Heaven. It is an empty circular platform on three levels of marble stones, where the Emperor prayed for favorable weather. It was built in 1530 by the Jiajing Emperor and rebuilt in 1740.

Ow yep, you're not allowed to get into the temples, because those considered sacred places. They put a barrier in front of the door of the temple and place some guards there. You can take picture from the opened door, and this is how it's inside the temple;


There are also some interesting things in the temple, such as;

• The 70 year old door. This door was built for Qian Long Emperor whose health was falling when he reached the age of 70 year old in 1779. The door was made to make him able to reach the ceremony hall easily. Qian Long ordered only his successor who has reached the age of 70 can use this door. But no Emperor after him reach the age.
  

• Firewood stove. They burned the firewood to worship the heaven during the ancient ceremony.

And many more! haha,, ;D

Seems like Temple of Heaven is a popular place for old people in Beijing. Because i saw a lot of them, did various activities here, like karaoke, play traditional music instrument, exercising, create calligraphy, etc.




You need the whole day to explore Temple of Heaven, and i suggest that you come in a really sunny day, since this temple will show it's most beauty that time. There was a huge area of park with old trees, and it's a really nice place to just sit and relax.


There were some souvenir shops inside the temple area, and i suggest not to buy the souvenirs there, because they're kinda overpriced. I will tell you in another post which places that you need to go to get good souvenirs.

So, i think, Temple of Heaven is a must-visited place. Make sure you go there if you visit Beijing! :D

Foods in Beijing

There are a lot of interesting Chinese foods that you must try in Beijing. Well, actually, China is a good place of culinary lover since Chinese foods are so famous world wide.

I'm soo picky about food. It's not that i only eat certain types of food, because i'm definitely eat everything, but i only consider few types of food to be called "delicious".

I tried quite various kinds of Chinese foods here, so i can give you some must-try foods in Beijing. I've been thinking seriously to make this list, since they should be really good ones. So, here are they; Bon apetite!

1. Hotpot. It's really popular in Beijing, especially in winter. The concept is that you put meats, vegetables, tofu, etc, into a big pot with a boiling seasoned water inside and gas stove underneath. The aim is to make the food always warm. Please put attention to only choose hotpot in a fancy restaurant :p, i don't mean to be lavish, but i've eaten hotpot in a small restaurant (cost 35Y per person, located in Shaoyaouju), and it was disgusting. The soup was tasteless, so were the meat, vegetables, and other stuff. The sauces tasted awful. But then, i went to a fancy hotpot restaurant (cost more than 300Y for 4 people, treated by Mr. Wang ;D) and it was amazing. They put a lot of delicious mushroom and herbs into the soup so it had rich flavor, and was really delicious. The meats and vegetables were fresh, the sauces were great. Plus, they served it with delicious dumplings, stuffed buns, soy milk, and durian cake as desert. It was just amazing (apalagi gratis, mak nyuuss!)
2. Roasted Duck. For sure... Beijing Duck is really famous, world wide. Actually, until this note is written, i haven't been tasted a Beijing Roasted duck heheheheu. Well, it's so expensive for me. The whole part of the duck may cost you 200- 300Y. But still, i put it on the list since it's really famous. You can find many roasted duck restaurant all around Beijing. Have a try!
3. Dumpling. Or jiao zi. If you manage to find good, fresh, dumpling, it would be heavenly! Moreover, dumpling is the traditional food of Chinese. They used to make it at home during some festivals. I had dumpling stuffed with duck meat in a duck restaurant near Temple of Heaven, and it was really good (it's good if it's still juicy inside). Dumplings are not expensive. I paid about 26Y for a portion of really good, fresh dumpling.
4. Caramelized Fruit. Probably, if i have a chance, i'll start to sell this in Jl. Dago hehehe. Caramelized fruit is my favorite snack. They put various fruits in a long stick, usually grapes, oranges, mulberry, banana, kiwi, strawberry, apple, but sometimes they also put cherry tomatoes. You can find it sold by sreet vendors all around Beijing for 2-4Y, yum!
5. Insects. Well, i mean, when and where again you will try barbequed insects? you can find it in Wangfujing Food Street. They sell scorpions, caterpillars, grasshoppers, and many more. The basic taste of the insects is crunchy, and a little bit juicy for scorpion. They might look disgusting, but they don't have really annoying taste, just give it a try! The price starts from 20Y per stick.

To try new foods is always a huge interesting part of traveling. Just free your self a little bit and let your appetite decide. The best cure for bad mood is tasty food. But also aware of food poisoning, make sure that you don't have any allergy of certain food and always bring medicine for stomachache and food poisoning with you.

Enjoy! :D

Beijing no.9 High School

ESD trainees were divided into several different schools in which they're gonna teach about Sustainable Development, and arrange some other activities.

Jarek, Viola and Nguyet were sent to Da Lian
Frank and Mira went to Xi'an
Carey went to Hadian (something) International School (aduh maap lupa, tar gw tanya lg >.<) Putu, Ky, Fani and Dom went to Camford Royal High School Slava, Martyna and Me went to Beijing no.9 High School I'm so proud with my school, i love it really much. First, because it was built in a really huge area (it might be weird, but i always like school with huge yards ;p), second, it has really cool facilities such as indoor-olympic-size swimming pool, acrobat class, indoor basketball courts (about 6), football yard, and so on, third, people are extremely nice here, especially Mr. Wang, our supervisor, they are so friendly and helpful, fourth, it's one of the best high school in Beijing with a lot of achievements.

(front side of Beijing no.9 High School)

Built in 1946, Beijing no.9 High School is a key high school as well as exemplary high school in Beijing. Covering an area of 57.000 square meters and floor space of 30.000 square meters, Beijing no.9 High School is well designed with an attractive layout and possesses the advanced teaching facilities. It consists of a teaching building, a lab building, a library, a gymnasium, two dining halls as well as a standard playground with 400m racetracks, which provide modern learning environments for the students here. 70% of the teachers in the school hold a Master's degree. In the aspect of students, large quantities of students are admitted to the key universities every year and the admission rate of the graduates maintains the level of 100%.

(classrooms building)

(the students)

Concept
The school is always for the development of students and teachers, trying to promote democracy and always put people's right in the first place.

Objectives
We are trying our best to build the school to be renowned one domestically and abroad with high quality and specialty

Goal
We are educating our students to be physically and psychologically healthy, helping them master special skills and ability so that they can develop in an all around way.

(The library)

(the dorm)

The gymnasium has all kinds of advanced equipment. The library can hold 500 people, where students can search and read on line. In addition, all the classrooms are equipped with such fasilities as a liquid crystal display projector, a computer connected to internet, and so on. The dorminotories are tidy and bright, each of which has an air conditioner.

(the gymnasium)

(indoor swimming pool)

(sport yard)

(Text taken from Promotion Book of Beijing no.9 High School)

(Me and the school sport yard)

60th Anniversary of Chinese Republic

Umm,, i'm sorry, i should've written about this huge event earlier.

But anyway, i'm such a lucky person to be in Beijing and witness this anniversary. It was held in the 1st of October 2009, and they've prepared this celebration since months before. They need a lot of time, because this celebration is a way for Chinese people to give the proof to their elder people that China has grown into a huge country. Also, because this celebration included the army forces, artists (singers, dancers, acrobatic players, martial art players, etc), athletes, important people from the government (including China President, Hu Jin Tao, himself).

(Chinese flags were everywhere)

As we all know, Beijing was the host of Olympic Games 2008. It was huge, rite? and for Chinese people, this 60th celebration is even more important than the Olympic Games. Because, it's about their country, their pride, achievements, and identity. They were really devoted for this event. Since September 2009, i've seen a lot of Chinese people, young and old, wearing red cloth in their sleeves, helped to maintain the security. They are the Chinese Volunteer, and yep, they're not paid for this. They were just proud to do this for their country. For this case, i have to say that i admire their nationalism and loyalty to their country.

(They secured and sterilized the roads)

Day October 1st 2009, they had a celebration in Tian'anmen Square. The army forces marched and there were internal events for the govermental and military officers. They closed many subway stations and big roads around Tian'anmen, since they needed to move big equipments for the big celebration party in Tian'anmen at night.

The night celebration was closed for public. Only important people from the government, army, education institution, former soldiers, teacher and some other (lucky) representatives can join the celebration. It was broadcasted widely on TV, so most Chinese people stayed at home with their family and watched TV. The celebration was totally awesome. You can see here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xOxGc0Ye7mw

But i didn't want to stay at home and watch TV! they had fireworks party, for God sake! and it was the biggest fireworks party in China history, and the biggest in the world at the moment. Since i'm soooooo into fireworks, i managed to go out at night with Putu, Ky, Martyna and Coby to see the fireworks. We found a pretty good place near Beijing Railway Station where a lot of people also gathered to watch the fireworks.

(Ky, me and Putu watched the fireworks)

It was great to be the witness of something historical. The fireworks were great, Chinese people really had invented some cool shaped fireworks. I saw some shapes that i never seen before. I just love fireworks a ton! I also felt the excitement of people. They were shouting something like, "Great man Mao!", they were really appreciate their hero and always remember him.

(the situation in which we watched the fireworks)

Here are some fireworks that i saw (pictures taken by Martyna):