The day had finally come. This was the main day of our trip. The day I look forward to every year. I was wide awake at 6.15 am and raring to go. I was so excited to be heading back to Bontihing. I pottered around packing, showering and getting everything I needed organised before heading down to the poolside restaurant for breakfast. I thought I would be the first one here and was surprised to find the rest of the group was almost finished. I decided on poached eggs and toast for breakfast with a fresh watermelon juice. With my excitement levels I wasn't that interested in eating so didn't finish it all. I headed back to my room and managed to get 2 guys who were cleaning the room next door to help me take my luggage to reception to meet up with everyone else. I settled my small bill for last night's drinks and checked out.
I had arranged for Made, Agus and Juni to pick us up at 8.30 am this morning and they were once again there on time and ready to go. With all the luggage loaded and everyone on board we were off and heading for Bontihing by about 8.45 am.
We arrived in Bontihing at about 9.30 am and just like all previous years we started the day with a stop in to see Made's parents. I first met his parents about 10 years ago and have seen them every year since. They have become like extended family to us and Mark, the girls and I have become like their extended family. Made's mum always gets so excited when she sees me and there are lots of hugs and chatter. She speaks very little English and I don't speak enough Indonesian to have a proper conversation with her so Made always acts as our interpreter and we get by. She spends hours cooking before hand when she knows I am coming and has a feast of treats and drinks on offer. Made's dad also gets excited when he knows I am coming and greets me with hugs and big smiles. This time it was sad to see he is not very well but despite that he still seems to be beaming when he sees me.
We waited here for about half an hour for the members of the Rotary Club of Bali Sanur to arrive but after a quick phone call to find out they were still a little while off we decided to head down the road to the village arena. It is only a short distance so we chose to walk down the main street of Bontihing to get there. As we got closer to the village arena we could hear the noise of the kids who were eagerly waiting for our arrival. We walked down the ramp into the grounds of the arena and as soon as they saw me all 450+ kids were clapping and cheering. There are usually about 650 kids but as it is the middle of their school holidays some are away working with their parents. This was the 7th Distribution Day being held in the village and with several other visits to the village prior to that the majority of them know who I am. They all get very excited for Distribution Day as they know exactly what is in store for the day.
We spent about half an hour getting settled, saying hello to the kids, taking photos, talking with the teachers and headmasters while waiting for the members of the Rotary Club of Bali Sanur to arrive with all the supplies for the day. The teachers got the kids all seated in school groups and then got them singing some local songs for us. I sat in amongst all the kids and tried to take part in what I could. It was fantastic listening to all the kids singing together. For the first timers it was all a bit overwhelming as despite what they see in photos, videos and are told about the day by those of us who have been, they can't truly appreciate it until they have been. As with the last couple of years the day then started off with a few of the kids, who were dressed up in all the traditional costume, doing a couple of dance performances for us. It is always so great watching them dance. The expressions on their little faces is priceless.
With the dancing finished it was then time for the welcome speeches from the Chief of the village, the members of both Rotary Clubs and the headmasters of each school before getting started with the tunnel ball competition. This is a game we have introduced to them and that we play every year. The kids love it and we usually have a couple of members of our group join one of the 4 teams as well. Each school (there are 4 schools) has a team of 10 people who compete. All 4 teams compete in the first round and then the winning 2 teams compete against each other and then the remaining 2 teams compete against each other. This then establishes which order the teams have finished in. In previous years the 4 teams have all lined up in the large pavilion with all of the remaining kids surrounding however it makes it really hard to get good photos and video so this year we had the remaining kids stand down on the ground to watch.
Once tunnel ball was over it was down on the ground for the tug of war competition. This is another game we have introduced to them that we play every year. The rounds are played in the same manner as the tunnel ball to determine each team's final ranking. The teams of 10 for each school are picked by the headmasters of each school. It is always amazing watching the determination and effort on all of their little faces and the excitement of all the other kids cheering them on. With the competitions completed and the final rankings determined it was then time to award the prizes to the nominated representative from each team. The prizes are usually stationery supplies pens, pencils etc that can be shared amongst the kids at each of the schools
With presentations done it was then time to hand out the school packs to each of the sponsored children. There are currently 65 kids sponsored with a view to eventually having every child in all 4 schools sponsored. Each sponsored child receives a back pack which contains a school uniform, sport uniform, scout uniform, hat, shoes, socks, exercise books, pens, pencils and all of the other stationery requirements for the school year. Over the years we have noticed that as the uniforms are grown out of they are then handed down to another child within the village so what started as very few being in uniform has now grown to the point that most of the kids are now proudly wearing their school uniform.
As there are many rumbling tummies by now the lunches, milk, water, toothbrush and toothpaste are handed out to every single child. It is interesting to see that in most cases the kids do not actually eat the provided lunch as they take it home and share it with the entire family. The lunch provided is cooked by a group of 10 ladies in the village, overseen by Made's mum, and is a parcel of rice, pork and some spicy vegetables. Lunch is also provided to all the teachers, headmasters, staff and Chief of the village and the attending Rotarians from each club.
Now that everyone was recharged it was time for the kids to compete in my favourite game. It is called panjat pinang but I call it greasy pole as it is a bamboo trunk which is about 6 foot tall that has been greased up with pig fat with a ring around the top that prizes are tied to. The kids then have to work together as teams to get to the top and retrieve the prizes. This is a game that is traditionally played on Independence Day and as Distribution Day originally used to be held around this time it was introduced to me when we held our very first Distribution Day. Naturally it has just carried on every year as I love to watch the kids doing it and they love the challenge of reaching the prizes. The prizes that are hung from these are generally pencil boxes, a couple of envelopes with Rp10 000, balls and games which are shared amongst the members of the winning teams.
Sadly, with this game
completed it signified the end of another Distribution Day and time for the kids to go return to their homes. This is always my least favourite part of the day because it is such a
fantastic day and I come away with sore cheeks from smiling and laughing so hard all day. The kids all look forward to Distribution Day each year and it has become a major day of
their year as they have such a good time and get some treats along the way. If you would like to become involved and help us in reaching our target of having all 650 kids sponsored
have a look at our website for further information http://www.gawlerlightrotary.org.au/includes/EducSmiles.html
We are still in the process of making this year's short video and
loading that and all of the photos onto our website but they will be up very shortly. We also have a Facebook page, Educated Smiles Project, so find us there and share the link on
your page.
Just like every other year, with Distribution Day completed it was now time to meet with the village Chief, the headmasters and both Rotary clubs to discuss plans going forward and address any issues that may have arisen in order to ensure that everyone was happy with the project's progression. The big topic of discussion today was the fact the our club had raised the funds and had a Global Grant application through Rotary International approved to renovate an old building and provide a library for all 4 schools complete with 4 computers which will all have internet access. The library will be used by the school students during the day and after hours will become an eLearning centre for the adults of the village. This has been a dream since the very first few visits to the village and we are now only a matter of weeks before the renovations will commence.
We took a walk around the grounds of 2 of the schools and had a look at the site where the new library will be when completed. It was also noticeable that there is quite a bit of building work going on with renovations to existing class rooms and a new building being built. Through discussion with the village Chief and the members of the Rotary Club of Bali Sanur it was established that the Government has got wind of what we are doing and have done in the village and to save face they have built a basic library (no computers) on the grounds of the school furthest from the village arena, are in the process of building a second library on the grounds of one of the other schools, are renovating buildings and are setting up fresh water to the other half of the village that the current fresh water project does not service. It is wonderful to see that as a result of what the project has achieved for the village that it is finally influencing the Government to also step in improve things. Maybe between now and next year they will improve the roads leading into the village too.
By 3 pm we had finished all of our discussions, gleaned all the information we needed for future planning, had a quick stop in to say goodbye for another year to Made's parents and were on the road again for the long drive to Sanur. We travelled back via Kintamani so that the first timers could see the volcano and get a few photos and then a quick stop in Batuan so that a couple of the members could have a look at the kites and then we finally arrived in Sanur at about 6.30 pm.
In Sanur I had booked 3 villas (villas 2, 3 & 4) with Bali Sanur Beach Villas that were all next door to each other. We were met by Mohammed on arrival and shown to each of our villas and a quick explanation of how things worked and how to contact him if there was an issue and we were settling in. Once in Sanur it was now time for me to have a little bit of a break as the tour guide and let everyone do whatever they wanted except for a planned cooking class tomorrow morning. I was still available for information and suggestions if they needed but I was not taking a big group around. In villa 2 there was Steve M, Rob K and myself (I had the master suite), in villa 3 there was Rob E and his wife Sandy, Richard T and his daughter Bryony and in villa 4 there was Steve H, his wife Pauline, their adult daughter Katherine and Julien. I'm really not too sure what the rest of the group did most of the time so I can only talk about what I did and who I was with at the time. After a long day Steve M, Rob K and myself decided we would stay at the villa and order pizzas in for dinner and just relax and have a few drinks. Agus went to Hardys and got Steve M and Rob K a carton of bintang and I had my duty free Jim Beam and some coke already. It was a great way to spend our first night in the villas especially as it was the first time we had stayed in private villas as usually we just stay in budget hotel accommodation. Rob K headed off to bed at about 12.30 am from memory and Steve M and I didn't make it to our beds until 2 am. This would prove to not be a good idea for me tomorrow.
Click here to see some photos.