Day 1: The Adventure Begins

On the morning of 26 November 2018, the Moovement team gathered in Changi Airport and set off for Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Several hours later, we landed safely in the Yogyakarta Airport, eager to begin our adventure in this foreign land.

Our Team in Changi Airport

Thereafter, we arrived in Bina Putra Orphanage for our first meeting with the students. We organised several team games that helped us get to know each other better. However, when we tried to give instructions to the games, we often ran into a language barrier given our lack of knowledge and familiarity with each others’ spoken language. We had to rely on our translators, but because of the nature of the games, at least one side would not be able to understand what was happening.

However, when we all sat down to talk to the students, we found it easier to engage them despite the ever-present language barrier. The students were overwhelmingly warm, engaging us with welcoming smiles and enthusiasm. Some of them continued to teach us Bahasa Indonesia, while others talked amiably about their favourite songs.

We were then served a snack of boiled peanuts and crackers, where we bonded over the delicious food. One group even brought out a guitar and started to patiently teach us traditional Indonesian songs, despite our incompetence in pronouncing and remembering Bahasa Indonesia.

At the final segment of the programme, the students put on a performance of traditional Indonesian dance from the province of Flores and invited us to join in. We all danced together shamelessly and enjoyed ourselves thoroughly. We were reluctant to leave, but were keen on the upcoming days when we get to spend much more time with the students.

In the hotel, we considered what our personal objectives for our trip were, be it to get to know the entire team better or to develop one’s own character. Upon sharing, we realised that many of us had the common goal to serve the students and to learn from them.

Furthermore, we reflected on our day and found ourselves immensely grateful for various things, such as a safe flight, the provision of food, a kind and helpful tour guide and welcoming people in the orphanage.

“I was grateful that the students were so welcoming because it allowed everyone to have fun together!”

Samantha Kok, Treasurer of The Moovement

We also took this opportunity to gather and troubleshoot obstacles that had risen. We amended the programme for our games and English education according to the needs and facilities of the orphanage. This period of time was critical in teaching us to think on our feet for solutions to problems that we encountered and to be flexible when issues arose.

All in all, our first day in Yogyakarta was an unexpectedly fulfilling one. Our entire team is looking forward to the days to come and hope to meet our personal objectives for this trip as we had discussed earlier.