I am so sad to have left Banda Aceh. To be honest, I was pretty apprehensive about going there. From all of the things I had read and all of the things people had said to me about how corrupt, devestated, and unstable the region is, I was quite nervous to go. However, I like to see things for myself and make my own conclusions so I decided to go regardless of all the hearsay. And as it turns out, at least from my experience this past week, all of the talk really is just talk. The people were some of the nicest I've encountered in all of my travels (perhaps to make up for Aceh's negative image), and the sights were truly breathtaking.
I had originally planned to go to Aceh for about a week and a half. However, after arriving in Jakarta my apprehension grew so I decided to only visit for a week. Now that my journey to the Island of Sumatra is over, I regret not staying longer. I already miss the students' smiling and curious faces, as well as the eager to help adults. This is the bittersweet part of traveling: making bonds with people who truly impact your life, but knowing that chances are you will never see them again.
From a research standpoint, Aceh was very interesting. I obviously went to Aceh because the province is under Shari'a Law, so I was expecting a huge contrast from Jakarta. However, more shocking to me was the fact that I really didn't feel much of a difference. I never saw any "Morality Police"- I did see some police officers but to my knowledge they weren't morality police, although the head police station looked to be about the size and stature of the White House so to say that police do not have a large force over the town would not be an accurate statement. Additionally, there are still a few women who don't wear the jilbab despite the law. The only differences from Jakarta that were outwardly noticable to me were the addition of little girls and babies wearing the jilbab (although they often try and remove it because they are so hot) as well as generally speaking more women in Aceh wear lose fitting clothes than in Jakarta, where it is common to see girls wearing jilbab but wearing very tight shirts and pants. I was very curious to see what the dress is like at the beach, so I was really excited when one of the girls I met took me and some friends to see the beach and get some lunch there. There weren't too many people swimming, but those who were were mostly men. The few women brave enough to face the waves were swimming in their clothes, and almost every one still had their jilbab on. I am enjoying seeing how the jilbab is incorporated into everyday life.
Wearing a jilbab has been an interesting experience for me as well. I wore one everyday while I was in Aceh, mostly out of respect and to avoid conflict, as well as to embody the culture. All of the girls at the boarding school repeatedly told me how beautiful I was with it, and the teachers joked that I looked like a Pakistani or Egyptian. It took a bit of getting used to , but in the end I didn't mind wearing it as much as I had anticipated. My biggest qualm, however, is that between wearing long skirts, long sleeve shirts, and a jilbab it gets VERY hot. I envy the men who are able to prance about in t-shirts here.
One last remark about Aceh: eventhough the tsunami was nearly five years ago, you can still strongly feel its everlasting presence on the people and the land. Some of the sights were truly amazing (in a drepressing sort of way) such as the 63 meter long barge that is now stranded 4 km inland. Every time somone toured me around town, they would constantly remark where the water had been up to (as high as 30 meters) as well as account personal stories.
I feel fortunate to have met so many amazing people in Banda Aceh, and I can only hope that one day some of them will make it to the US and I will be able to return the kindness, generousity and hospitality that they flooded me with.
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