Reflections on an Island Paradise
I managed to get through 8 weeks on Hoga without writing one blog, so here is a little summary of my time J
Daily schedule would involve 2 or possibly 3 dives… I was normally on science dives, which basically meant supervising the students underwater, making sure everyone who was meant to be on the boat got on, and the same number of people got out of the water that went in… ensuring the boat left on time (easier said than done with certain science staff!), filling out all the paperwork and seeing that everyone followed OpWall rules. So Susie the Divemaster had to get a bit no nonsense!! Another fun part of the job… radio duty! Not every day but on a rota, we would have to sit by the radio in case of an emergency. Always a lot more fun when Ali came and played guitar…
I lived in the same little pink hut that I shared with Chrissie 3 years ago! Except I had it to myself this time – which was BLISS after sharing with 5 of us on Nias (sorry girls, I love you but… personal space!). And my own hammock J and my own bathroom!!! Overlooking the boat bay, and caught some gorgeous sunsets.
The welcome I received from my Indonesian friends was amazing. So humbling… I was hoping they would remember me but didn’t expect such excitement! I have had wonderful opportunities to deepen existing friendships and start new ones… spending time with the kitchen ladies especially, as previously most of my friends were guys. The generosity of the Indonesians is incredible… both in the way I never needed for anything, however small, and the way they opened up their hearts and lives to me. I felt so much more comfortable hanging out with the local staff than I ever did with the westerners…
Anna B was a saving grace… as was Bridget! I miss those girls!! It was interesting to observe the interaction between the Westerners and the Indonesians. It had clearly changed since the last time I was on Hoga. 3 years ago there were a couple of western staff who made an effort with the locals but generally the two groups were quite segregated. This year it was almost a popularity contest with some people… who is the most “in” with the local staff?!! I didn’t really like that attitude, it felt really fake and it frustrated me. However, I feel that my friendship was considered genuine. I spent a lot of time with Anna, which was very cool and I feel I have found a little sister there – someone who maintained my sanity on numerous occasions!
Right in the middle I had a period out of the water – very frustrating when you are living on an island totally focused on diving!! I came off a motorbike with a friend on our way to a BBQ on our day off – got a friction burn across my whole knee. Stubbornly continued to dive on it, and it got infected – gross!! Took a while to heal up – about 10 days, which is a long, long time on Hoga. While that was going on I also suffered from another bout of gastritis, which meant I was up for about 3 nights with stomach cramps, puking up bile. Wonderful fun. Thankfully there was a clinic and doctors on site… I had the joys of 2 injections in the bum which left me with a lovely bruise. The funniest thing was the contrast in western and Indonesian treatments. I will never forget Dr Tri’s insistence on my prescribed diet… “Rice, Susie! Have you eaten rice? Why not eating rice Susie?!” Didn’t you know – rice is the answer to all medical ills!!
Leaving Hoga was the most traumatic experience. Mostly because OpWall offered to extend my contract a further 2 weeks til the end of the season. I really didn’t feel ready to leave and so jumped at the chance… in the end though, I couldn’t change my flights because it was such short notice. I left the island planning to do the first leg of the journey in order to buy extra time for the change to be made but it didn’t happen. Excruciating, because I hadn’t said goodbye properly in my heart, and so I felt I had been wrenched out from the situation with no closure. Hard, hard, hard.
Annoyingly I lost my camera on the last day... so I have no pictures for you!!
Daily schedule would involve 2 or possibly 3 dives… I was normally on science dives, which basically meant supervising the students underwater, making sure everyone who was meant to be on the boat got on, and the same number of people got out of the water that went in… ensuring the boat left on time (easier said than done with certain science staff!), filling out all the paperwork and seeing that everyone followed OpWall rules. So Susie the Divemaster had to get a bit no nonsense!! Another fun part of the job… radio duty! Not every day but on a rota, we would have to sit by the radio in case of an emergency. Always a lot more fun when Ali came and played guitar…
I lived in the same little pink hut that I shared with Chrissie 3 years ago! Except I had it to myself this time – which was BLISS after sharing with 5 of us on Nias (sorry girls, I love you but… personal space!). And my own hammock J and my own bathroom!!! Overlooking the boat bay, and caught some gorgeous sunsets.
The welcome I received from my Indonesian friends was amazing. So humbling… I was hoping they would remember me but didn’t expect such excitement! I have had wonderful opportunities to deepen existing friendships and start new ones… spending time with the kitchen ladies especially, as previously most of my friends were guys. The generosity of the Indonesians is incredible… both in the way I never needed for anything, however small, and the way they opened up their hearts and lives to me. I felt so much more comfortable hanging out with the local staff than I ever did with the westerners…
Anna B was a saving grace… as was Bridget! I miss those girls!! It was interesting to observe the interaction between the Westerners and the Indonesians. It had clearly changed since the last time I was on Hoga. 3 years ago there were a couple of western staff who made an effort with the locals but generally the two groups were quite segregated. This year it was almost a popularity contest with some people… who is the most “in” with the local staff?!! I didn’t really like that attitude, it felt really fake and it frustrated me. However, I feel that my friendship was considered genuine. I spent a lot of time with Anna, which was very cool and I feel I have found a little sister there – someone who maintained my sanity on numerous occasions!
Right in the middle I had a period out of the water – very frustrating when you are living on an island totally focused on diving!! I came off a motorbike with a friend on our way to a BBQ on our day off – got a friction burn across my whole knee. Stubbornly continued to dive on it, and it got infected – gross!! Took a while to heal up – about 10 days, which is a long, long time on Hoga. While that was going on I also suffered from another bout of gastritis, which meant I was up for about 3 nights with stomach cramps, puking up bile. Wonderful fun. Thankfully there was a clinic and doctors on site… I had the joys of 2 injections in the bum which left me with a lovely bruise. The funniest thing was the contrast in western and Indonesian treatments. I will never forget Dr Tri’s insistence on my prescribed diet… “Rice, Susie! Have you eaten rice? Why not eating rice Susie?!” Didn’t you know – rice is the answer to all medical ills!!
Leaving Hoga was the most traumatic experience. Mostly because OpWall offered to extend my contract a further 2 weeks til the end of the season. I really didn’t feel ready to leave and so jumped at the chance… in the end though, I couldn’t change my flights because it was such short notice. I left the island planning to do the first leg of the journey in order to buy extra time for the change to be made but it didn’t happen. Excruciating, because I hadn’t said goodbye properly in my heart, and so I felt I had been wrenched out from the situation with no closure. Hard, hard, hard.
Annoyingly I lost my camera on the last day... so I have no pictures for you!!
posted by Susie at
4:13 AM
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