Tsunami

Unitl reading my sister's comment, I had not heard about the earthquake and subsequent tsunami. It will be difficult to follow the news until I can get internet at home, and cable television (which carries English speaking news). Power outages are a daily occurence in Medan, they usually last about an hour. So, no, I didn't feel anything from the quake, although I expect that at some point I will. People say they happen quite frequently.

I met the Bahasa Indonesia teacher today. I have been doing my best to learn some of the language, but it will take some time. The landguage is a derivation of Malay and was chosen as the National language simply because it was the simplest language for non-speakers to learn. There is only one tense and changes in tense are indicated by context. She has offered to teach me, and like most Indonesians I've met, invited me to her place for dinner, and to her mother's where there is a large garden and many fruits, including oranges.

Everywhere there are Becak (probably misspelled, but pronounced Bay-cha) which are small motorbikes with a side carriage. They are the cheapest mode of transportation around Medan.

There is an Austrailian teacher named Anne who came here with her two children, her son is in one of my Geography classes. She's an experienced teacher and very helpful. On a side note, there is really no universal system of spelling in Indonesia. Sumatra can be spelled Sumatera and sometimes, Sumadera--all are pronounced the same. No more time for now. Regards.