seven -- you like barack, but what are you CHANGING?

a view from the room in Bali

Okay. Wow. Last post was a book. See, it's so hard for me to write this fast in my journal, so I do prefer typing, will not lie. This is going to be a delayed post; I have go to dinner shortly and won't be able to finish before I leave. And I do have to come back to finish my internship application, ahhh! (Or maybe it isn't meant to be? I've discovered that in Bali, so many coincidences can occur in such a short time, things have to be fated.)

Many things happened today: finally learning about what we are doing here (important, right?), talking to a lady from a maternal health clinic NGO, eating more good food, and trooping to the Monkey Forest. I really want to focus on the first two things, since Jill in her blog really covers some of the interesting animal experiences of the day -- so I recommend you read that highly entertaining post. Basically, the monkeys in the park are not afraid of big groups and will take you on. Oh, they will.

one hour and a half later--

Ah, we went to the same place we had lunch today for dinn: Mangga Madu (Mango Honey). It was yummy, surprise surprise! Agustini and Bat Danu (got the spelling!) are really trying to take us to authentic places. I had Tuna kala something something for lunch and Mie Goreng (delish fried noodles) for dinner. Ordering the tuna for me was a big step since fish usually makes me nauseous. And really, as someone in the group put it, GIEU is all about experience overload punctuated by good food. No joke.

GIEU, for people who want to know why I am here, is called the Global Intercultural Experiences for Undergraduates. Every year, it has about 14 field sites in different countries to expose students to a new culture and bring that awareness back to campus. GIEU is a paid volunteer-internship which helps offset the cost of the trip and is plain awesome. Each field site is led by a prof and student fellow (someone who went before) and there is a sort theme to the site. We're going compile our experiences and interviews (the format of our own trip) into a blog. I think we'll start it once we go to Yogyakarta on the island of Java. We leave for Yogya tomorrow morning, reach in the afternoon, and spend our next two weeks there. I'm excited; our whole gang of 15-16 will take up the whole hotel.. and there is a swimming pool. GIEU takeover!

Ebu Jane (I think that was her name?), a fundraising director from the Bumi Sehat maternal health clinic, came to talk with us and arrange an opportunit once we return to Bali. They really emphasize breast-feeding and waiting to cut the umbilical cord (to allow blood flow). It subscribes to something called gentle birth. Bumi Sehat was started by Robin Lym, a midwife from the US who, upon coming to Bali, ended up having her child not in the hospital because there was really no one around to help her deliver. Having survived without losing much blood (a main cause of death for Balinese women delivering), Robin started being called to rurual areas to help deliver babies. It was transformed into this non-governmental, non-profit organization that gets funding from different Rotaries, Direct Relief, and other foreign donors.

EJ (to shorten it for typing) said that they have seen a correlation between nutrition and this mother mortality rate. In the 70's new generation rice (genetically modified stuff, apparently) was introduced and took off as a main export over the more nutritious indigeneous Balinese rice. This rice isn't very nutritious at all but is unfortunately very cheap and easy to get. Also, lot of Asians like that polished (white) rice over the red and brown rices. Bumi Sehat encourages diets of red rice (local stuff!), breast-feeding, red rice milk over the formula milk, and other stuff. They are staffed by a few doctors and many midwifes.

Interesting Things!

• According to EJ, corruption rampant in hospitals. Doctors mostly subscribe to the clamp and cut route and at the nudging of formula companies, order these poor families to put their baby on formula... which makes the baby sick (especially from China!) and go back to the doctor. Way to keep making money! Also, C-sections make more money soooo... natural births are kinda discouraged.
• They have had some luck with few select doctors with trying gentle births (i.e. water births, natural births, let the umbilical cord fall after 2-3 days). Well, they've had more success with doc's letting Bumi Sehat come in and discourage formula and encourage a healthy diet
• Can't pay the hospital or midwife? Can't leave hospital or you can't have your baby in some cases!
  
• Lotus birth: umbili. cord falls away naturally - the placenta is like kept in a bucket of water. EJ said this fits well in the Balinese culture where the placenta is buried outiside the front door as buryin your four spirit brothers (I think). Also, that's how you get birthday cake! Celebrating your placenta every year!
• Cool Indonesian Law: Companies must have breast feeding stations. Breast feeding is for sure allowed for six months and a bit into the future. Awesome. There is no resistance to breast feeding here. Wonder if the fact mostly women work adds to this...
• Bad Indonesian Law: Nat'l healthcare/poverty program for the poor nixed.

notable quotable: When people as me about poverty and the issue of maternal health, I say that the health of the woman affects the livelihood of the family, of the extended family, of the province, of the island, of the country.

Not going to lie, I went crazy with questions. I asked if there are efforts to change the curriculum for doctors - I mean, if you start the change bottom-up, especially if these are impressionable students, the doctors they turn into will also be better. And isn't that the main problem? Hospitals have doctors with the inappropriate mindset. Start re-educating them. I don't think she understood what I meant... saying, "Oh, changing national protocols is too difficult and not all students want to into OB/GYN as their specialty." Sigh.

They really admire Barack here - I mean, he did live in Indonesia in his childhood. The like the ideas of change... EJ even commented on that. On the same note, she said advocacy is not the way to attack the issue. Now that I don't understand. I know you have be careful in how you criticize the hospital system, but I don't understand how working with the system will change the system. Changing a few doctors at time isn't the solution. But then again, I'm just an overly impassioned college student writing about this...

Another question not properly answered. If you want people eat red rice, shouldn't the export ban be lifted? People abroad love the stuff. Right now it doesn't seem like there is an incentive to grow the rice (AKA MONEY), regardless of the fact people aren't fond of the taste here. And because not many people grow it, it's expensive even though it is nutritious. Anyway... that's my few thoughts on that.

When we return to Bali, we are going to Bumi Sehat to help with an english lesson for the staff and then check out some of the birthing and allopathic programs. Also, EJ really enlightened me to the connection between agriculture, the organic movement, and maternal health. She suggested an organic farm to visit so we are going to do that too! (Agustini has given Guste a homework list of stuff to take care of by the time we get back.)

Later in the day, our whole group went to the Monkey Forest, where there tons and bunches of Balinese macaques everywhere. NOT JOKING. Really. And as I mentioned earlier, they aren't afraid of humans. Even though we were in a huge group... After the monkey nearly jumped Stephen for the banana and Jill's spider-water bottle was taken, we were seriously on edge. Because Jill's blog post covers this part of the trip well, I'll just say it was cute to see this little dog in the woods literally play with a monkey. Also, the baby monkeys with their mommies was pretty dang adorable. We did look very touristy snapping pictures at monkeys as a whole mob. Too funny.

Anyway, I must finish this internship application and pack for Yogya. Peace out and much love.

Nina's Indonesian Vocab Grab Bag

• nasi: rice
• mie: noodles
• ayam: chicken
• kare: curry
• goreng: fried
• selamat detang: welcome (as in 'welcome to bali!')
• nama anda siapa?: what is your name?