The names of the people in the photos are me (Antoinette Mpawenayo), my host grandma in Philly (Popo) and my roommate (Courtney Templeton). The two photos are important to me because they show an amazing relationship that Popo and I have. At the beginning of the SST experience in Philly,…
As the saying goes it’s always sunny in Philadelphia, however, that doesn’t mean it’s not cold. So, here we are another frigid day, but sunny, in downtown Philadelphia. Now, you may be wondering from the photos why we are gardening in the middle of Winter. During our time here in…
This is a photo of Ben and I with our host parents Pak David and Ibu Eva at the 17 anniversary of PPC (Philadelphia Praise Center). On this day we attended church with our host parents to celebrate the 17th anniversary and to celebrate pak David and ibu Eva…
This a photo of my host family I was staying with for the previous 5 weeks. From left to right is Oliver (the baby), Kevin, Sandy, Trey (my roommate), Joy and I. Although I do not have a picture from the night I will be talking about, these five…
One of the highlights of my SST experience was celebrating Chinese new year with my host family. This was my first time celebrating Chinese New Year, and I didn’t know quite what to expect. Pastor Aldo had mentioned when we arrived in Philly that Popo – our host Grandma –…
In Philly, I stayed with Hendy and Marina and their three kids Judah (middle) , Levi (left), and Asher (right). Staying with Indonesian host families was a great opportunity to practice our bahasa and learn more about Indonesian culture before heading to Indonesia. This photo in particular was taken…
This initially started off with my host mom, Sandy, asking one evening if my classmate, Brady, and I are going to be busy the following Monday night. I had to regretfully remind her that we were going to have class. I wasn’t sure exactly what we were going to be…
During weekly lectures with guest speakers, we learned a lot about how the Indonesian immigrant community supports each other. One of those ways is through food. Sharing meals brings people together and fosters a sense of culture through the traditional Indonesian meals. Throughout our time in Philly, I think we…
One theme that I have been thinking about following our time in Philadelphia is unity and diversity. The Indonesian community in Philadelphia is incredibly diverse. It is composed of individuals from a broad range of locations and islands, which also means that the foods they eat and the language they…
About halfway through our time in Philly, in the third week of February, Modero Dance Company began their weekly Balinese Dance classes open to the public. Sinta is the woman who teaches this and a variety of other dance classes in the evenings, along with her work as a leader…
