MInggu Kelima

MADURA

Several weeks ago I left Java for the first time and travelled with my host family to Madura, a small island to the Northeast of Surabaya.  There I caught my first glimpse of the Java Sea out of the window of the car.  We were in Madura to experience the Karapan Sapi-the bull races that Madura is famous for. Special cows are specially bred, raised, and have a specific diet (including drinking a traditional beer) just to compete at this event.  Some of the cows are so beautiful they are not even raced; these cows are reserved for Sapi Sonok-which is kind of like a beauty pageant for bovines.The cows were a lovely dun-red color and in wonderful condition, but the people are what stands out in my mind. There were processions of Indonesians in traditional costume (striped red and white shirts-reminiscent of Halloween Pirate costumes for the men and colorful kebaya for the ladies) following proudly behind their cows.  After working on a farm and having lived side by side with cows my whole life; I hadn’t realized how much I missed well-fed, happy cows until that moment.  I walked up to one of the most beautiful and asked its keeper if I could pet it.  I did, then the man asked me to take a picture with it for publicity (because “you are beautiful bule).  Then he asked me to join his procession-and not really knowing what was going on, I agreed.  We followed the cows on their version of a catwalk through a stadium.  The other girl in the group was dancing, so I imitated her.  Everyone in the crowd was staring at me.  I became immensely conscious that it was about 100F outside and we were in the full sunlight, so I was probably sweating through my shirt.  Then I reminded myself: how many times do you get to dance with the cows in Madura? After the cow-walk I was brought to meet the owner and he made the other girl and I dance for a camera so we could be on Maduran TV. After we left the stadium we were met by a crowd of fans.  The other girl told me to keep dancing and so I did.  The men tried to give me money-and I refused because I was just dancing for the experience, not as a job.  But they kept saying “Ambil!  Ambil!” (“Take it!”) so I did-once it was explained that it is a cultural tradition give small money to lady dancers to show appreciation.  It was a little uncomfortable to dance a traditional dance that I’d never seen before with a hundred strangers pressing up against us in the heat, but it was a wild, fun, exotic experience that I’ll never forget.  And that’s what this whole exchange is about: stepping out of my comfort zone to experience this real, crazy culture from across the world.

The next day we attended Karapan Sapi.  The two bulls train throughout the year with their jockeys who seem to be all preteen boys.  The debate between Western and asli (native) culture can be witnessed at this event.  This is the last season of the bull races that I attended.  Because traditionally the bulls are whipped and wounded so that hot chiles can be applied to the sores to make them run faster.  This is animal abuse so the government is now controversially ending the practice.

My sapi-sapi.

In the afternoon I went to the went to the laut for my first time in Indonesia.  The sea temperature is like bath water.  It's incredibly salty and brownish with lots of trash-but I insisted on going in anyways.  It wasn't cool enough to be called refreshing, but it was still fantastic.  I kept thinking about the tiger sharks that are so common here.  Apparently they wash up on the beach and suffocate often.  The Indonesian people (as always) are sympathetic and charitable and when they find these beached sharks they give them water and try to push them back into the laut!

At around midnight we followed a local guide to Larangan Tokol Village where we saw an eternal flame.  The earth in the area catches on fire if you scratch it with a stick.  The flame burns even through rain.  The Larangan Tokol flames were surrounded by teenagers cooking corn on the cob and making tea.  I was concerned the whole time because I didn't understand (and still don't) where the fire was coming from and how it is sustained.  I was worried about a gas leak/potential explosion... But it must not be too volatile if it's a regular hangout.

Helping a Maduran boy with his English homework.