In 1991 I moved to Jogjakarta, on the island of Java, Indonesia, for doctoral research, a lone, female grad student in an entirely different world wanting to learn about entirely different ways of speaking and being. I had to radically recreate myself through a new language, a new way of dressing, a new attitude, to … More Under A Burning Sun
It was already quite late on the last night of the fasting month of Ramadhan, 1993. I was sitting on the bottom bunk bed along side Sari and her youngest brother Atong. She had asked me to come and sit here because she had something to tell me. We were staring at the old ceramic … More Untold Stories
It’s time to think about what istimewa really means – before it’s too late.
… More KAMI JUGA WARGA JOGJA ISTIMEWA: ‘LONDHO’ MENGAMATI JOGJA
The Jakarta Post | Sun, 03/08/2009 8:54 AM | Headlines The ad grabbed my attention in a way almost none ever do here. The TV commercial told a fascinating story. It opened with a young boy and girl, both handsome, both in high school uniforms, but clearly poor, living in a slum area that … More By the way: If white is might, stop watching your TV!
Published in the Jakarta Post 16 & 23 January 2005 (keeping with the drug theme – I wrote this story based on actual experience in 2004….) by Laine Berman Darkness falls quickly in Indonesia. Crisp cerulean skies turn grey, then green. The green lingers for a bit, turns the color of aged bronze, then the … More Short Story: As Darkness Falls
Laine Berman 