PPLP Wisuda XXVI (2011)

No special occasion would be complete without several of these

On Thursday 25^th August, 2011, the Dhyana Pura college held the Wisuda for PPLP students receiving certificates and diplomas across a range of hospitality and tourism study areas.  Apart from the change of venue, it was very much like Wisuda XXV.  That’s a simple observation, not a criticism.  I enjoyed the Wisuda last year, so for me "familiarity" was welcome, and a reminder of last year’s event with its familiar activities.  Besides, most of the students only have a single Wisuda ceremony and celebration, so for them it will always be unique. 

Ika holding the memento each student receives at the Yudisium

Fabbi checks that the Director has the correct trophy

If you recall my blog of last year, or check it in the Archives (at right of screen entry of 29/8/11) you will notice that this blog, like the Wisuda itself, is just like last year! To repeat last year’s note, the end of course awards procedure is a 2 stage process. The first stage -  Yudisium - is an in house, no frills occasion for the students only (and volunteer teachers!). That was held last Tuesday (23/8/11). The successful students are congratulated by the director and 3 vice-directors, and they receive a personalised memento of their time at the college. They hear a range of formal speeches, and presentations by 3 recruiting agents. 

Students hold their trophies and listen to speeches

Two days later is the Wisuda, a more formal, more colourful affair to which family members are invited.  The boys wear formal college uniform with blazer, but the girls come splendidly attired in national costume, and with hair specially coiffed and held in place by beautiful jewellery.  Student welcomers and helpers are dressed formally in traditional costume and look very beautiful (or handsome) and colourful.

The girls arrived at 5 to begin dressing and applying makeup
(that's me in the mirror - just to prove I was really there)

Kawi and Ika welcome guests to the occasion

Ayu, Juni and Putri dressed in formal costume look very
different to the shy young students I recall from last year.

I Made Mudayasa, student and member of the college
housekeeping team, with Ika before the presentations

I was graciously included with dignitaries and VIPs and entered to take a place at the front of the auditorium (the convention room of the Patra Hotel at Tuban).  The gamelan band played a vigorous welcome, the dancers performed graciously as before, and the ceremony began. 

Dhyana Pura dancers at the start of the event

The "Wibusani" gamelan band members
watch and keep time with the dancers

Soon after the guests, students and families were welcomed the presentations began.  Director Joko presented 220 students with certificates and diplomas.  Amongst that number were 2 members of the college housekeeping staff whom I see regularly, and several students I worked with last year.  It was a pleasure to see them achieve success in their studies.

Mr Eko and Bu Widya manage the student movement to the stage

Ni Luh Putu Wiranti, college housekeeping team
 member, proudly displays her certificate.

Arista, one of my English students,
prepares medals for presentation

The most successful students in their courses were acknowledged and for me it was a delight to share the occasion with Cherista (“Cherish”) Lanjani, one of the students I spoke with in the first days of her new course last year.  In common with the STIM students who graduated from their degree course 2 weeks ago, there were oaths of allegiance, and the singing of the school hymn. 

Top student Cherish leads students in the Oath of Allegiance

Top students and prize winners receive recognition from the audience

Many college occasions end with a lucky draw or door prize, and I “won” a surprise parcel which turned out to be a clock with the face displaying the college name and logo.  Good, I need a clock, but it will be tricky to pack.

Yeni and Eko (Mr Personality) manage the "door prize" draws

An enjoyable buffet in the dining room beside the beautiful pool with sea views followed the formal event.  Just as at the STIM Wisuda luncheon, “English bread and butter pudding” was on the desserts table.  It’s one of my favourites from way, way back.

Another Wisuda.  New places, new faces, but pleasingly much the same as last year – the way I liked it.  Congratulations and thanks to students and staff, helpers, and all who welcomed me to their celebration

Paul in Bali

More photos can be seen in my Web Album "PPLP Wisuda".  You can access them via the blog entry:  "Photo Gallery - PPLP Wisuda XXVI" in the Archive section of this Blog page.
-or-
Click the link
https://picasaweb.google.com/110038041647560744460/PPLPWisudaXXVI#
to enter the Web Album to view the pictures.  Please note that the last image is a
LARGE movie file, so do not attempt to view this across a slow network connection.

Photo Gallery - PPLP Wisuda XXVI

I have posted a small selection of photos taken at the Wisuda for the PPLP.  Text to accompany these photos will appear shortly.
Paul in Bali

Click this link to enter the gallery:
https://picasaweb.google.com/110038041647560744460/PPLPWisudaXXVI#

What's up? - kites, of course

What’s up?  Kites!

 Another week has passed, and I’ve been here 2 weeks already.  How time flies, and speaking of flying, I’d like to mention “kites”.  Many small novelty kites or replicas are produced for tourists, and children fly their small kites for fun, but I’m interested in the “real” kites.  Since I’ve been here my kite observations have been “up and down”, just like the kites.  Initially they were everywhere, and then one day last week many of the tethered kites came down when the winds changed (from mainly steady easterlies, to south-westerly and swinging around) and the weather looked a little wild – but it blew over and nothing came of it.  This morning I could see barely a dozen kites, and as the weather does not seem to have changed much in the past few days, I wondered why they had gone.   The skies certainly looked bare without them, but a few dozen were up in the air this afternoon.  At a distance they are hard to photograph as they are at the extreme range of my lens, and although from a distance they appear to be "fixed" in the sky, when observed through a telephoto lens they are swaying and tossing about all the time.

Kites soaring high above the new(ish) northern building
I think I need a bigger telephoto lens to capture them.
(Shhh! Don't tell my wife I said that!)

Some kites are flown manually, whilst others are launched on long lines and just stay up for days, for weeks, in the steady breezes which tend to be easterlies here in Dalung.  From the roof last weekend I started counting kites in the sector of the sky above the college’s northern building.  Big and small, near and far, there were over 100 in just that small sector of sky.  I  soon lost count – it was like trying to count the stars.

Not all kites stay up all the time, hovering above and around the perimeter of the fields, as a protective presence.  Some are launched for just a day’s flying for fun or in competition, and some come down at unexpected times.  If a line breaks, or the wind drops, the kite falls and rooftops, power lines, poles and trees contain the broken and weathered skeletons of kites up to a couple of metres long.  Several times last year I heard a loud clatters on the roof when kites came down during a storm or an unusual drop in the wind.


The most common shape for kites above the college grounds



I said “big” – but that is just by my own standards.  The “big” kites are real communal efforts.  The members of a “banjar” (a local village association) will build huge kites to fly in competition against those from other villages or suburbs.  The size is generally limited by available transport and the width of the roads and lanes leading to the flying grounds.  They may be 3 or 4 metres wide and several metres long, with tails many metres long.  A kite which won a competition at Sanur was reportedly about 200 metres long!  Traditional kites are typically shaped as a stylised fish, a bird, or “anything” (cars, motor cycles, animals, cartoon characters etc.  Traditional colours are red, white and black, or gold and yellow. 

Look - my window at the college!  The large kite is a couple of
hundred metres above (and beyond) the college buildings.

A kite soars above the roof of the new high school building.

The little kites are not much more than flimsy frames with a skin of recycled black plastic bags, but the big kites are complex things.  They are cleverly engineered and built by teams of many people.

 

As with many traditional activities, the origins are lost in time, but guide books tell us that the Hindu god Indra enjoyed flying kites when he took a break from the daily grind of supernatural activity.  He passed on this pastime to the local herdsmen who thus established the tradition.  Many Balinese activities are governed by the calendar (actually at least 3 calendars of varying cycles are used) and a local priest is consulted to determine the best day on which construction of a new kite should commence.  Traditionally most members of the Banjar would assist with construction, transport and launching of the kite and this was a source of pride and unity for the village.

 

Curved pieces of split bamboo are used to form the body of the kite.  The plastic or fabric skin is sewn onto the frame and long tails are attached, along with the stabilising lines.  Some kites have “hummers” attached and from far below you can hear them singing in the wind as they sway from side to side.   The completed kite is carried to the launch site in a long procession accompanied by priests and traditional bands.  I could here and just make out such a procession about 500 metres from the college last weekend.  In hilly locations the kite would be supported as the launchers ran with it down the sloping terraces to gain enough speed and lift to fly the kite.

Part of a convoy carrying kites to the launching field

Last Sunday on my way to church I saw convoys of trucks packed with men wearing “team shirts” holding the kites above them.  Motor cycles with similarly dressed men and boys escorted the trucks.  The photos are not as good as I would like as they were quickly snatched, sometimes from taxi.  The trucks appear without warning and often surrounded by traffic which gets in the way.  

Small vehicle carrying a modest kite to the launch field

Kites are dangerously carried on motor cycles – either by passenger, or even by the driver.  I saw a driver proceeding at a snail's pace (very rare for Bali!) because he and the passenger were holding a 2 metre tall kite upright and front-on to the direction of travel.  It was a dangerous way to travel.

A good gust and the kite gets away or the cycle falls over!

On Sunday afternoon I saw a group of boys carrying the kite along the laneway on the other side of the college fence.  As the gate was locked I scaled the fence (with some difficulty!) and followed them until I could get a photo – that’s why I try to always have a small camera with me, as I never know when something interesting will appear from nowhere.

Local boys with a small kite.  Many of this size kite are numbered,
presumably so the "pilot"(and judges during competitions) can
pick one kite from another of similar size, shape and colour.

Wikipedia has a small report on the Sanur Kite Festival (over before I arrived) and some links for wider reading.    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bali_Kite_Festival

Apart from kite observations the key events this week were the commencement of the new academic year and the “Wisuda” ceremony at which certificate and diploma students received their awards.  The Wisuda deserves its own report and photo gallery (to come soon).

Paul in Bali

PS - English is so confusing!  (but then we know that already)

I plan to walk to the nearby swimming pool on Saturday.  As I don't have a beach towel I decided to ask housekeeping staff for "another towel".  They said they would attend to it right away, but later when I returned to my room there was still just the one bath towel.  So I politely asked again for "another towel" and was told "But Mr Paul, we gave you another towel".  

True, they had given me "another" (i.e. different) towel, but I had wanted "another" (extra) towel.  I'd let my guard slip and not anticipated that confusing use of the same word for a request that had differing interpretations.  My "oops"!

The new high school building

Some things change ... some stay they same.  Some change, but retain their sameness.  It's like that here at Kampus Dhyana Pura, Dalung, Bali.  Whilst there have been many visible small changes, it still feels the same.  Even from the main road, the new High School building was a visible sign of external change as it stod out from its surrounds.

When I arrived at Dhyana Pura in July 2010 the preliminary work for the building was well under way.  My predecessors, Trevor and Maureen Miller, had described it and shown me pictures of the foundation and framework. 

Almost my first view of the building (31/7/10)

From the kitchen window I would follow the gradual progress, and mark the milestones such as the pouring of a new floor. When I left after 3 months the building had clearly advanced, but I expected it would be at least a year before it was ready.

Progress at 22/8/10

Each day I would check the progress.  When workmen finished the reinforcing steel work I knew that the concrete trucks would soon arrive.  At last the floor was poured and workmen could move up a stage.

The concrete floor is being poured (4/9/10)

Once the floor had cured the workmen rapidly prepared the frames and reinforcing for the next floor.  Unlike most of our multi-storey buildings which are built into the external steel frame, this building hoisted itself up floor by floor.  It gave me a different way to watch a building grow.  I was also continually amazed at the many ways in which bamboo could be used -- it is an amazingly strong and adaptable material.

The next level  goes up (11/10/10)

Work had largely finished on the next floor when I left.  I waited for the concrete pumping crane and tanker, but missed it.

This floor is ready for the concrete (26/10/10)

I hoped the floor would be poured and work would begin on the next level, but that did not happen. Here is my final view of the structure - just before leaving for the airport.

My final view as I left the college (31/10/10)

Roz Elkington kindly passed on to me the next photo which was taken in April 2011.  In less than 6 months there has been substantial progress on the building.

The view from the college gate (8/4/2011)

I was fortunate to capture a picture of the banner at the building site.  Soon after this it was smashed by trucks delivering materials.  I was curious to see if the real building resembled the architect's vision.  What do you think?

The architect's vision (31/7/10)

The vision realised (14/8/2011)

The new building looks very elegant, yet is simple and in keeping with the local style.  On the front fence is the sign announcing the courses available for study.  The building still carried some of the banners and decorations from the opening just a few days before I arrived.

The new study programs

The high school operates 6 days a week, so I was able to enter it on a Saturday. 

The building has 4 floors and a "basement" - the "ground floor" is actually up the steps so "basement" is partly above the external ground level. 

Students informally making music at the entrance (13/8/11)

The foyer and reception area (13/8/11)

Although the structure is complete and the building is largely operational, some work continues on surrounds and the internal fit-out. The computer and language laboratories were not yet in use.

A teacher checking new computers
in the student pool (13/8/11)

The language laboratory will mainly be used for teaching English, but other languages can be taught just by chnanging the programs.

The brand new language laboratory  (13/8/11)

As high school students move from their existing classrooms into the impressive new building they will free up space for expansion of the new university courses.

The new building catches the late afternoon sun, as seen
from the vantage point at the kitchen window (11/8/11)

Paul in Bali

Wisuda VII - STIM Graduation, 2011

Balinese style message of congratulations

One of the first "big events" in College life for me last year was the graduation of the students  from STIM (Sekolah Tinggi Ilmu Manajemen – literal translation is something like “Higher (tertiary) school of management knowledge (science)”), the degree granting component of the college.   This year graduation day (the “Wisuda”) was held just 2 days after my arrival so I was fortunate to have arrived in time for the event this year.   Cars loaded with staff and choir members set off from Dhyana Pura at 7 am for the long drive south to the Patra Bali Hotel, close to the airport.



Dancers prepare for their performances

 We arrived to see final preparations in full swing.   Musicians were unloading instruments from the back of a truck and were carefully moving large gamelan instruments such as gongs and metal keyed xylophones into the auditorium.   Dancers were adjusting their costumes and applying makeup, and students were dressing in traditional costume to be part of the welcoming party.   My own graduation many years ago seems rather plain and simple in comparison with this colourful ceremony.   It was a great pleasure to speak with the excited new graduates, some of whom I had met informally last year, even though most of my classes were with new students.

Students in traditional dress welcome guests

Welcoming the guests

In my day the academic procession entered the hall to the sound of trumpets.  Here the entry was announced by the sounding of conch shell horns and the rapping of a ceremonial decorated staff.  Then costumed students led in the procession of Senate members, graduating students and official guests.  

The ceremonial entry of the academic procession

 The troupe of traditional dancers performed to the fascinating and exotic sound (to me) of the gamelan orchestra.Official speeches and presentations are much the same everywhere, but one aspect of the awarding of graduates is a little different.  The students were gown and a 5 pointed “mortar board” style hat, from the top of which hangs a braided tassel.  It hangs over the edge of the hat and dangles down the left side of the student’s face.When receiving their degrees, students face the Director who congratulates them and moves the tassel so that it hangs on the right side of the face, thus marking the transition from undergraduate to graduate.

The college choir

The choir sang several times; the dancers performed again; prizes were awarded to the top students; and the graduates pledged the allegiance as good citizens and alumni.

The musicians relax between performances

At the end of the proceedings there occurred a significant event for the life of the college.   A ministry official presented Dr Mastra, chairman of the Foundation governing the college, with the charter bestowing University status on the college.  Dr Mastra then presented this to the new director, Dr I Made Nyandra. It was a big moment and the culmination of many years of hope, planning and prayers.   The college started as a training program associated with the sister body, the Dhyana Pura Resort Hotel, and grew into a dedicated vocational college and now a University (which also has certificate, diploma and high school vocational streams).

Dr Mastra receives the new University's charter

Staff and student comperes

After the ceremony ended students and graduates took photos and were photographed in many combinations.  Then all moved to the dining rooms for a fine buffet with an unexpected dessert – bread and butter pudding, a childhood favourite.

Happy new graduates

It was a long, crowded and slow drive back to College and the end of another Graduation Day.


Paul in Bali

For more images, see photo gallery:  https://picasaweb.google.com/110038041647560744460/STIMGraduation#