Freshman year student experience in Yogyakarta

It's always good to be back to your home (passport) country, especially after a good 13 years of living outside of it. I have never really been that keen on moving back to Indonesia, not that I am ashamed of coming from this country or anything, but rather I have never really see Indonesia as a geographical place I would like to live in, not in the near future at least. But life being life as it is, surprised me. I think this previous year is a great example of how things do not always go as planned, and I guess it's okay. I think I have handled it quite well. I mean it could be worse right? One thing from this experience that I learned is never ever ever over-plan certain things, because trust me, it will definitely not go as planned. Not even a single section of your plan. 

Living in Yogyakarta have been an eye-opening experience for me. Being the hub for artsy and historical sites of Indonesia, I think it is a good start to living in an Indonesian city; for someone who have been abroad for too long as well as being a first year student. But it is also a place where you can be  easily dragged to the tourist-y type of lifestyle where all you can think about is having relaxed and chilled holiday, as opposed to studying. Although, locals are relatively nice, and the level of generosity will change depending on the areas that you will be living/visiting in. 

My favourite spot in Yogyakarta (hands down!) by far is located down in the southern part of the city, perhaps roughly about 10 km away from my campus area. The area is called Prawirotaman, and it consisted of several different eateries or restaurants that serves organic, local as well as Western foods. Basically it's my cup of tea. It's a good place to go if you are trying to get outside the hustle&bustle of university life, as the environment is slightly different. The area would usually be surrounded by a lot of tourists, mainly backpackers and usually the shop vendors would assume that you too are a tourist. That was the case for me, until I visited this one particular bakery/restaurant called ViaVia almost at least twice a week whether it would be before class or after my class. The lady would greet me in such friendly manner: "Oh hey! You again! Do you live here?" and then there's me responding to that: "Yes, I do, I'm a student here".

One major downside to the city of Yogyakarta is the access to public transportation. Public transportation besides taxis and motorbike taxis are pretty much non existent. There's a regular bus service called TransJogja, which is supposedly, a bus service that takes you around the different parts of the city. However, they are very unreliable and there seem to be no fixed schedule i.e. when will it arrive at this area, when does it stop servicing. From mine and my friend's experience riding TransJogja, when it gets above 8 pm, bus services does not cater for those living in the northern part of the city, hence, we could not make it home causing us to opt for a taxi in the end. But, bus fares are ridiculously cheap, and payment methods would be made easier if you have a TapCash (under BNI bank) card or Flazz (under BCA bank) card. In addition, it would be very easy and handy for you to travel around the city if you have access to a motorbike (as it can get you out of traffic jams easily!). Although, during rainy seasons which runs from October till... whenever the rain decides to stop, access to cars would be even more practical. I personally have a car of my own to get around with,  which is a preference of my mother, who is unrealistically scared for my safety around the city. 

In terms of campus life, if I have to be completely honest, I'm not a part of many besides attending my compulsory lectures. I made a decision with myself due to several personal factors to not become a member or involved in any organisations that are available or strongly affiliated with my university. So if one was to ask about the experience there: I'm sorry I cannot give any, I guess my opinion would be entirely biased as I have no experiences at all.

That's all from me for now.

ps: I'm currently back in Qatar. Have a good summer break everyone.