Kang GURU Travels to Cilacap -2007

In late November, Maggie flew to Yogyakarta and then by road to Cilacap. Plans for her Kang Guru visit to Cilacap included meeting teachers, students and a radio station - another busy trip for Maggie. Maggie really enjoys traveling for Kang Guru - and why not!

It was another beautiful sunny day when I caught the plane to Yogyakarta in November as the first part of my trip to Cilacap. A lovely smooth flight with some stunning views of the mountains in East Java.

It’s always nice to see some smiling faces when arriving at an airport so I was very happy to be greeted by a friendly welcoming committee of Pak Arifan, Mbak Ani and Ibu Yayu who had all been up at about 3.00 am for the journey from Cilacap to Yogya and now were going back again. I had only done a one hour trip on the plane. With our capable driver Pak Dhodi, we set off for the 3 to 4 hour journey to Cilacap. What a lovely trip! It was really relaxing to see all the rice fields, horses and carts - dokars - and people going about their daily lives in the villages as we sped past. It all seemed so clean and free from the pollution of the big cities.

On arrival in Cilacap I was amazed at the really wide, clean streets and the lack of traffic. First up after settling in to the hotel, was a visit to Radio Bercahaya where DJ Biyan interviewed me as part of a one hour promo in an interactive show. This was to celebrate and to promote Radio Kang Guru starting broadcasting in Cilacap every Monday and Tuesday at 4.00pm. I have since heard from Pak Arifin that many students in Cilacap are now happily listening to Kang Guru at Radio Bercahaya. Well done Radio Bercahaya staff and Kang Guru Listeners!   Next we went to the Aula Akademi Kebidanan, the venue for the Kang Guru Teacher Workshop the following day. What a wonderful building ! It is relatively new and looked just perfect for the workshop. After checking the sound system, I was able to have my first taste of the Cilacap specialty mendoan- a delicious kind of fried battered tempe which is not overcooked. Yum!

On Tuesday, November 20 th, the Kang Guru teacher workshop was officially opened by the newly inaugurated Deputy Regent of Cilacap and I was introduced by the moderator, Pak Komarudin. Approximately 140 SMP and SMA teachers from Cilacap and surrounding areas took part in a lively workshop.I was pleasantly surprised to see someone wearing a Kang Guru Tshirt in the front row. This turned out to be Bharti , a ccompanied by her fellow Banyumas English Club members Karsiyah and Bambang. Following the workshop, about 50 SMP and SMA students from some local schools took part in some lively games and quizzes.

I was interested in the symbol of Cilacap a wijaya kusuma flower surrounded by two sharks. Apparently the wijaya kusuma is known as the flower of eternity and can only be found growing wild on the neighbouring island of Nusa Kembangan. It was this island which saved Cilacap from serious damage when the tsnunami hit Pandaraan in 2006.

The next day, on Wednesday, it was time to visit some local schools. First was SMA 1 Cilicap, with its immersion classes where everything is taught in English. This is in preparation for changing over to become an international school over a 5 year period beginning in 2008. I was also expertly interviewed by a team of reporters from the school magazine ‘Pijar Sensa’.

After that, it was off to SMP 1 Cilacap where Pak Turijan and Bu Ani teach. This beautiful building is the oldest school in Cilacap and certainly has a lovely atmosphere. I was also expertly interviewed by a team of reporters from the school magazine ‘Pijar Sensa’.

SLTPN 1 students with Maggie

This is also an International school with various immersion classes. SMP 5 was the next school on our agenda and what a lively English Club they have there.

The final school we visited was SMP 1 Jeruk Legi where Pak Arifin teaches. Although there were no sweet orange trees still in existence, the students were a delight. Then it was back to SMA 1 at the invitation of Bu Sugianti to attend the debating club meeting where the students discussed whether or not school uniforms should be compulsory.

I really wanted to see the beach before I left Cilacap, so Bu Sugianti and her fiancé kindly drove me to Teluk Penyu where we could see Nusa Kembangan really close. It seemed like a lovely beach with lots of interesting little warungs. I was interested to hear that the live cattle imported from Australia were unloaded at the port here. Early next morning I was picked up at 7.00am by Pak Dhodi again for the drive back to Yogya airport. A special thank you to the Committee and Pak Arifin, Pak Komarudin. Pak Turijan for all the help they gave me and making my trip to Cilacap such a pleasant one. A lovely relaxing ride back to Yogya followed by another smooth flight and I was back in Bali