WiFi and miscellany, including an apple harvest.

WiFi.  We're back in Malang, in the big city, where there is fairly reliable free WiFi at the university.  Without further ado, I post glimpses of what I've been up to in the last two weeks.

Riding angkots.  An angkot is a doorless minivan; an inexpensive, popular and ubiquitous means of transport.

This is our Cultural Facilitator, Mas (Brother/Mr.) Dimas.  Below are Richie and Shane.  Drew is kicking it in the back with some kids (boyscouts to boot) who were already in the angkot when we got on.  Note the graffiti inside; not every angkot is tricked out like that.  This one was definitely a party in a van.

Batu town center.  This is Batu town center (alun-alun).  Yes, it has a ferris wheel, giant fruit, and giant bunnies year-round.  The green apple is the public WC facility.  It is rather clean; one visit is Rp 1,000.  Have I mentioned my village in Batu, is famous for its apples?  More on that below.  

Apple Harvest.  And then I got hyphy at my Kakek's (grandfather's) apple orchard two weekends ago.  Kota Batu is famed for its apples, hence there are apples apples everywhere.  My family harvested their Apel Menalagi, a local varietal, to be sold to by vendors, who then sell them across Jawa, including Surabaya and  maybe even Jakarta.  At the end of one day, the yield was around 7 TONS OF APPLES!!!  

It was a family, close friends, and neighbors affair.  My Ibu (mother), my Ibu's Ibu, and Nenek (grandmother) kept asking me every 5 minutes whether I needed a break, and to go sit in the hut to rest.  They were intensely worried that the labor was too much.  I got really good at declining politely.  At the end of the day, I learned the Javanese word for strong, "rosoh."  Actually, the person who is rosoh is Nenek.  She is over 80 years old, but she was out there all day, picking and lugging bushels of apples in extreme heat.  Nenek is my personal hero and all-around bad-ass. Have I told you she brings me fresh-cut flowers from her garden every Monday?  She's AWESOME.