Cerebral Palsy Patient in Bunawan, Agusan del Sur needs help

A daughter of farmers who could only do so much, this 24 year old girl from Purok 2, San Marcos, Bunawan, Agusan del Sur needs attention. She contracted Cerebral Palsy 2 years ago and a friend's recent visit to Agusan, the family and concerned locals asked if we can help them source a wheelchair for the girl. Yet, we are not sure if she can use one. We have consulted a Cerebral Palsy NGO to check this, but still awaiting answer. Meanwhile, we also thought it's probably better to get her checked by a doctor as well, and take recommendations.

Right now, we are looking for anyone who can probably help us get her to and know a doctor nearby. 

Please let us know if you have any referral. 

update 01 December 2015
After some consultation with a few doctor friends, it seems a bed is more of what she needs rather than a wheelchair. Meantime, after some questions raised to some of her caretakers, it seems she has not been properly screened by a medical professional.

At the moment, we are trying to source a bed for her from local manufacturers, and if anyone knows a furniture shop with something similar to the picture below, please let me know.

Also, i am trying to see if any nurse or physical therapist around can visit her to check. We will appreciate volunteers, but if needed to be paid, let me know. If needed, as per recommendation from the nurse, we can arrange to bring her to a specialist.

picture taken online from a search of reclinable beds

Update January 22, 2016.
There was a friend from UAE who read the post and have pledged for the bed. We have been aiming to get it to her by christmas, but unfortunately, we were unable to find someone residing in the area to help us out. Then, we decided to advance the mattress and some clothes which we were able to deliver before new year.

As of this day though, brgy councilor from the area has helped source the bed and awaiting advice for the delivery. 

update as of January 29, 2016
the bed frame was finally delivered and exactly as requested. Thanks to the brgy Councilor Analyn who has helped us find a maker who would both custom make and deliver the bed. It was a lot of posting, a lot of chat to a lot of people, before finally getting to what we wanted for Rosemarie.

Again, thanks to the friend in Dubai, Mam Rowena Bulaon,a nd Councilor Analyn for all the help.

A daughter of farmers who could only do so much, this 24 year old girl from Purok 2, San Marcos, Bunawan, Agusan del Sur needs attention. She contracted Cerebral Palsy 2 years ago and a friend's recent visit to Agusan, the family and concerned locals asked if we can help them source a wheelchair for the girl. Yet, we are not sure if she can use one. We have consulted a Cerebral Palsy NGO to check this, but still awaiting answer. Meanwhile, we also thought it's probably better to get her checked by a doctor as well, and take recommendations.

Right now, we are looking for anyone who can probably help us get her to and know a doctor nearby. 

Please let us know if you have any referral. 

update 01 December 2015
After some consultation with a few doctor friends, it seems a bed is more of what she needs rather than a wheelchair. Meantime, after some questions raised to some of her caretakers, it seems she has not been properly screened by a medical professional.

At the moment, we are trying to source a bed for her from local manufacturers, and if anyone knows a furniture shop with something similar to the picture below, please let me know.

Also, i am trying to see if any nurse or physical therapist around can visit her to check. We will appreciate volunteers, but if needed to be paid, let me know. If needed, as per recommendation from the nurse, we can arrange to bring her to a specialist.

picture taken online from a search of reclinable beds

Update January 22, 2016.
There was a friend from UAE who read the post and have pledged for the bed. We have been aiming to get it to her by christmas, but unfortunately, we were unable to find someone residing in the area to help us out. Then, we decided to advance the mattress and some clothes which we were able to deliver before new year.

As of this day though, brgy councilor from the area has helped source the bed and awaiting advice for the delivery. 

update as of January 29, 2016
the bed frame was finally delivered and exactly as requested. Thanks to the brgy Councilor Analyn who has helped us find a maker who would both custom make and deliver the bed. It was a lot of posting, a lot of chat to a lot of people, before finally getting to what we wanted for Rosemarie.

Again, thanks to the friend in Dubai, Mam Rowena Bulaon,a nd Councilor Analyn for all the help.

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Surfing in Pantai Air Manis (beach) in Padang, West Sumatra, Indonesia

There are a few places available for surfers in Padang, but if you are a traveller, you’re probably heading to Pantai Air Manis (about 10Kms south of the city).

There are several ways to get to pantai air manis. See this post for details.

Entry to Air Manis is 5,000 rupiahs (pls don’t forget to ask for ticket upon payment just to be sure that the money goes to the local community indeed). For those coming with a motorbike, they charge an additional 5,000 rupiahs for parking irregardless of where you park inside the beach.

At the beach there are several warungs that serve food (same usual food as in the streets: nasi, mie goreng, etc) at prices just about the city prices. I normally stay at Ade’s Guest House (3^rd to the right from the entry in Malinkundang; contact no is +62 821 70017779; pls tell him you got the number from Ian, the Filipino).

Surfboard rental is 20,000 rupiahs per day. Most of the surfboards on rental are fish boards. For beginners, I’ve only seen, so far, probably only 3 long boards total in the whole beach; 2 soft tops and 1 hard top (and hardly functional too because of too much cracks).

There are also rooms on rental at P140,000 inclusive of breakfast at Ade’s guest house. Room is ok for the price.

I rarely see instructors at the beach. Besides, just keep calm and attempt to talk to the local players, and they will be willing to show you the do’s and don’ts. Just be patient with the communication though as they rarely speak english. Always end every statement with a smile.

Best time to surf is in the morning, and then from 3pm to sun down (usually 6pm). If possible, visit on weekdays, and avoid weekends especially on sundays. I would say half of the population of padang might be in this beach on this day, half of which are probably taking endless selfies, and young boys aged 5 driving 4x4s ATVs on their own. 

There are a few places available for surfers in Padang, but if you are a traveller, you’re probably heading to Pantai Air Manis (about 10Kms south of the city).

There are several ways to get to pantai air manis. See this post for details.

Entry to Air Manis is 5,000 rupiahs (pls don’t forget to ask for ticket upon payment just to be sure that the money goes to the local community indeed). For those coming with a motorbike, they charge an additional 5,000 rupiahs for parking irregardless of where you park inside the beach.

At the beach there are several warungs that serve food (same usual food as in the streets: nasi, mie goreng, etc) at prices just about the city prices. I normally stay at Ade’s Guest House (3^rd to the right from the entry in Malinkundang; contact no is +62 821 70017779; pls tell him you got the number from Ian, the Filipino).

Surfboard rental is 20,000 rupiahs per day. Most of the surfboards on rental are fish boards. For beginners, I’ve only seen, so far, probably only 3 long boards total in the whole beach; 2 soft tops and 1 hard top (and hardly functional too because of too much cracks).

There are also rooms on rental at P140,000 inclusive of breakfast at Ade’s guest house. Room is ok for the price.

I rarely see instructors at the beach. Besides, just keep calm and attempt to talk to the local players, and they will be willing to show you the do’s and don’ts. Just be patient with the communication though as they rarely speak english. Always end every statement with a smile.

Best time to surf is in the morning, and then from 3pm to sun down (usually 6pm). If possible, visit on weekdays, and avoid weekends especially on sundays. I would say half of the population of padang might be in this beach on this day, half of which are probably taking endless selfies, and young boys aged 5 driving 4x4s ATVs on their own. 

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How to go to Pantai Air Manis (surf beach) in Padang, West Sumatra,Indonesia

Most of the travellers I see in the beach have gone through a taxi, and as most local around have a motorbike and would most likely go to the beach with their family on a private transport, it is rare to find people who knows exactly how to commute to pantai air manis.

Nevertheless, if travelling with around 4 or more people, it might be worth it to take a cab instead to Air Manis. The rate should be between 50-60,000 rupiah though most cabs would normally ask a contract for 100,000 rupiahs. Should you decide to travel by cab indeed, take the Blue Bird taxi and get the driver to agree on meter. Then again, keep your eyes on the meter as there was also an instance where the driver himself offered the meter, but along the way, on the steep slopes, reset his meter and was asking for 100,000 when we arrived. We gave him 70K and just left.

There are also angkots (tiny public bus) from the city center (a terminal behind the old Balai Kota in Pasar Raya). These angkots are numbered 402 and goes on the following schedule:

Monday to Thursday, Saturday and Sunday: 6:30am, 8:00am, 9:00am, and 1:30pm. During fridays: 7:30, 9:30 and 1:30. There are also occasions when there is an additional angkot after this time, though rarely.

The fare from Pasar Raya to Pantai Air Manis is only 6,000 rupiah. There are 2 gates, but the driver will most likely drop you to the Malinkundang gate which is the entry to the surf shops.

In case you can’t make it to this schedule, you may take a blue angkot from Pasar Raya (in front of the old Balai Kota) and ask to be dropped in Mata Air. Fare to this junction is 4,000 rupiahs. From the junction, there will be Ojeks (motor taxis) to Pantai Air Manis. Fare in the Ojek is 15,000 rupiahs (don’t be fooled into paying 20,000). The road to the beach is pretty steep so keep your baggage minimal.

You may contact the ff Ojek driver in any case: 0853 42648402 (hardly speak english); Taufik (0819 4777 2336) a young kid (probably speak a few drops of english) who often takes me back to Mata Air. Once you are ready to leave the beach, give them a call so they can pick you up from your location. In case you look for an Ojek outside, it could be a challenge after 5pm, if not that they ask double. Taufik agrees on 15,000 to Mata Air. From Mata Air, same thing, there will be blue angkots that go back to Pasar Raya.

There are times when at 5pm, i catch an angkot back to Pasar Raya but this is rare. Besides, this time is the peak of the wave, so most likely, you will end up taking the Ojek. There is also an access from the Sitti Nurbaya bridge, but this is an extremely narrow, and even steeper road.

see here for other info about surfing in Pantai Air Manis

Most of the travellers I see in the beach have gone through a taxi, and as most local around have a motorbike and would most likely go to the beach with their family on a private transport, it is rare to find people who knows exactly how to commute to pantai air manis.

Nevertheless, if travelling with around 4 or more people, it might be worth it to take a cab instead to Air Manis. The rate should be between 50-60,000 rupiah though most cabs would normally ask a contract for 100,000 rupiahs. Should you decide to travel by cab indeed, take the Blue Bird taxi and get the driver to agree on meter. Then again, keep your eyes on the meter as there was also an instance where the driver himself offered the meter, but along the way, on the steep slopes, reset his meter and was asking for 100,000 when we arrived. We gave him 70K and just left.

There are also angkots (tiny public bus) from the city center (a terminal behind the old Balai Kota in Pasar Raya). These angkots are numbered 402 and goes on the following schedule:

Monday to Thursday, Saturday and Sunday: 6:30am, 8:00am, 9:00am, and 1:30pm. During fridays: 7:30, 9:30 and 1:30. There are also occasions when there is an additional angkot after this time, though rarely.

The fare from Pasar Raya to Pantai Air Manis is only 6,000 rupiah. There are 2 gates, but the driver will most likely drop you to the Malinkundang gate which is the entry to the surf shops.

In case you can’t make it to this schedule, you may take a blue angkot from Pasar Raya (in front of the old Balai Kota) and ask to be dropped in Mata Air. Fare to this junction is 4,000 rupiahs. From the junction, there will be Ojeks (motor taxis) to Pantai Air Manis. Fare in the Ojek is 15,000 rupiahs (don’t be fooled into paying 20,000). The road to the beach is pretty steep so keep your baggage minimal.

You may contact the ff Ojek driver in any case: 0853 42648402 (hardly speak english); Taufik (0819 4777 2336) a young kid (probably speak a few drops of english) who often takes me back to Mata Air. Once you are ready to leave the beach, give them a call so they can pick you up from your location. In case you look for an Ojek outside, it could be a challenge after 5pm, if not that they ask double. Taufik agrees on 15,000 to Mata Air. From Mata Air, same thing, there will be blue angkots that go back to Pasar Raya.

There are times when at 5pm, i catch an angkot back to Pasar Raya but this is rare. Besides, this time is the peak of the wave, so most likely, you will end up taking the Ojek. There is also an access from the Sitti Nurbaya bridge, but this is an extremely narrow, and even steeper road.

see here for other info about surfing in Pantai Air Manis

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A day for the Panti Asuhan Muhammadiya in Padang, Indonesia

From the funds we gathered out of the ice cream sales, the next was to do the feeding activity.

Considering everyone’s availability, we have scheduled the outreach date to be 25 October. 

Days before the event, I have come back to the Orphanage to confirm our arrival on the 25^th, and this time they want us prepare for 60 people (as opposed to 35 which they have initially told us). Nevertheless, if we are cooking the food, then this number is achievable.

Everything in the preparation side went well, and we ran on schedule. We have prepared all the ingredients day before, and so, thanks to my peers too who I’ve invited to help out in the cooking, given that we had to cook 3 dishes for 60 people in 3 hours, we managed to get things done on time.

During the meal, we ate by hands in a boodle, and sat between then. 

We put a portion for Introduction to establish comfort and to be sure that the boys aren’t shy to play our games. For the games, the boys especially enjoyed the passing of the water balloon through fabric. We played with them too, and not just anchor the games. 

After finishing the games, we had a little snack. After which, we gave our final message and appreciation and left to give way for their afternoon prayer.

Thanks to my co-participants at the UNAND Dharmasiswa 2015-2016, Cicilia Elviani who has lend her time despite her overly busy schedule, as well as her house and utensils, and other friends who has pledged support for this outreach event. Many many thanks.

From the funds we gathered out of the ice cream sales, the next was to do the feeding activity.

Considering everyone’s availability, we have scheduled the outreach date to be 25 October. 

Days before the event, I have come back to the Orphanage to confirm our arrival on the 25^th, and this time they want us prepare for 60 people (as opposed to 35 which they have initially told us). Nevertheless, if we are cooking the food, then this number is achievable.

Everything in the preparation side went well, and we ran on schedule. We have prepared all the ingredients day before, and so, thanks to my peers too who I’ve invited to help out in the cooking, given that we had to cook 3 dishes for 60 people in 3 hours, we managed to get things done on time.

During the meal, we ate by hands in a boodle, and sat between then. 

We put a portion for Introduction to establish comfort and to be sure that the boys aren’t shy to play our games. For the games, the boys especially enjoyed the passing of the water balloon through fabric. We played with them too, and not just anchor the games. 

After finishing the games, we had a little snack. After which, we gave our final message and appreciation and left to give way for their afternoon prayer.

Thanks to my co-participants at the UNAND Dharmasiswa 2015-2016, Cicilia Elviani who has lend her time despite her overly busy schedule, as well as her house and utensils, and other friends who has pledged support for this outreach event. Many many thanks.

Read More »

Puncak Gagoan in Solok, West Sumatra

Upon reaching Solok, it was time to look for something to do, or somewhere to go (other than the Danao Kembar in Alahan Panjang which I have been too already). I just really wanted to see the city, but if there is some interesting place, then that could be a bonus.

I remembered there is this friend who showed me a picture of a nice cliff in Solok, and looking at instagram posts too for Solok, shows the same pic.

At night, while having nasi goreng in one of the warungs, some nice lady gave us information, and even called a friend who can help us go to the place. However, we did not really want to bother anyone, especially seemingly a guide, so I told my friend to just get the contact details and we will call him in case we need some directions.

Even more fortunately, this friend I am travelling with has a friend in the village where the cliff is. We stopped at their house, and took his motorbike to go with us.

It was a total of less than an hour drive from Solok Town Center, through a dirt road, and some broken concrete. The slopes were, just like most of them here in Sumatera Barat, steep, but nothing is steep and dangerous enough to an Indonesian driver.

The view would have been very stunning had there not been the haze from the burning forests on the other side of the Sumatra Island. At the spot are also warung vendors earning a living from the flocking visitors. Of course, there were those random people too with buckets asking for money along the way, and the parking guys which seems to the staple job around.

Some of the rocks are marked with red X to caution as they risk falling.

There don’t seem to be any angkot going inside, and the commuting option might only be via ojek from the highway. The road plies the perimeter of the singkarak lake, plus the mini rice terraces on the side.

Upon reaching Solok, it was time to look for something to do, or somewhere to go (other than the Danao Kembar in Alahan Panjang which I have been too already). I just really wanted to see the city, but if there is some interesting place, then that could be a bonus.

I remembered there is this friend who showed me a picture of a nice cliff in Solok, and looking at instagram posts too for Solok, shows the same pic.

At night, while having nasi goreng in one of the warungs, some nice lady gave us information, and even called a friend who can help us go to the place. However, we did not really want to bother anyone, especially seemingly a guide, so I told my friend to just get the contact details and we will call him in case we need some directions.

Even more fortunately, this friend I am travelling with has a friend in the village where the cliff is. We stopped at their house, and took his motorbike to go with us.

It was a total of less than an hour drive from Solok Town Center, through a dirt road, and some broken concrete. The slopes were, just like most of them here in Sumatera Barat, steep, but nothing is steep and dangerous enough to an Indonesian driver.

The view would have been very stunning had there not been the haze from the burning forests on the other side of the Sumatra Island. At the spot are also warung vendors earning a living from the flocking visitors. Of course, there were those random people too with buckets asking for money along the way, and the parking guys which seems to the staple job around.

Some of the rocks are marked with red X to caution as they risk falling.

There don’t seem to be any angkot going inside, and the commuting option might only be via ojek from the highway. The road plies the perimeter of the singkarak lake, plus the mini rice terraces on the side.

Read More »

Overnight camping in Pesisir Selatan, Sumatra Barat

Upon my arrival in Padang, and meeting some locals, I have been shown of this place where there was a cliff dive. Heights have always been in my bucket list, and this coming Wednesday holiday, we thought of camping overnight from our dismissal from class on tuesday.

It was already around 3pm when we left campus. It was a little bit of a buzzer beater plan and so the friend who was in charge of the transport had a bit of a challenge finding a good deal. Nevertheless, as we are travelling in a big group of 11 people, he managed to get us a van from campus to the jump off place for the same price of the bus travel from city center to the nearest highway. 

It was almost 6pm already when we reached the jump off as we had to stop once in a while to buy food and stocks. The boat readied was also relatively small so it had to be done in 2 groups. As with our previous travels in this region of sumatra barat, we were again dealt with unnecessary interrogation from officials. Nevertheless, we all got to the island at a little past 7pm.

There were no cottages especially for guests in the island, although there were some warungs that sold food in the morning. Thankfully, we had some place to prepare our food that night.

....sleep! other than the bonfire, nothing much in the story that night though as alcohol was so expensive.  Nevertheless, there were plenty of planktons at a corner of the island.

The morning came and after breakfast, we tried some of the rides. It was only $2 for a ride, which would have been about $7 in my country, so I thought about trying it. Yet, imagining how much fuel was burnt to shake my nerves for a few minutes (when there are in fact some others who can’t eat)... probably no more next time for me.

A little past lunch, we went to the most exciting part... the cliff dive.

There is no docking area in the rock island so the boat had to be tied onto the rocks. From there, using some rope, we needed to climb up. There were 5 of us who climbed the cliff, but only 4 jumped. For me though, i’d rather jump than do down again on that rope. It was such a bad fall though; I had to buy menthol plasters and balm rub for the night.

From that island, we docked on the nearby island to have some snacks. There were plenty of garbage too around, and rather than just sitting the whole time, we thought about collecting garbage too. There were several monkeys in that island too who shared a papaya with me. J

Expenses:

Van from Campus to Jump Off: 30,000.00 ppx

Boat to Island, hops, and Back: 700,000.00/11=~64,000 ppx

Entrance Fee to Island: 0.00

Flying Fish Ride in the island: 30,000.00 (package of 3 rides including donut and banana boat available for 75,000)

Van from Jump off to Campus: 30,000.00

Food Share: 21,000 (including some extra we paid to the boat owner for lending us utensils, stove, etc).

Total: 175,000.00

Upon my arrival in Padang, and meeting some locals, I have been shown of this place where there was a cliff dive. Heights have always been in my bucket list, and this coming Wednesday holiday, we thought of camping overnight from our dismissal from class on tuesday.

It was already around 3pm when we left campus. It was a little bit of a buzzer beater plan and so the friend who was in charge of the transport had a bit of a challenge finding a good deal. Nevertheless, as we are travelling in a big group of 11 people, he managed to get us a van from campus to the jump off place for the same price of the bus travel from city center to the nearest highway. 

It was almost 6pm already when we reached the jump off as we had to stop once in a while to buy food and stocks. The boat readied was also relatively small so it had to be done in 2 groups. As with our previous travels in this region of sumatra barat, we were again dealt with unnecessary interrogation from officials. Nevertheless, we all got to the island at a little past 7pm.

There were no cottages especially for guests in the island, although there were some warungs that sold food in the morning. Thankfully, we had some place to prepare our food that night.

....sleep! other than the bonfire, nothing much in the story that night though as alcohol was so expensive.  Nevertheless, there were plenty of planktons at a corner of the island.

The morning came and after breakfast, we tried some of the rides. It was only $2 for a ride, which would have been about $7 in my country, so I thought about trying it. Yet, imagining how much fuel was burnt to shake my nerves for a few minutes (when there are in fact some others who can’t eat)... probably no more next time for me.

A little past lunch, we went to the most exciting part... the cliff dive.

There is no docking area in the rock island so the boat had to be tied onto the rocks. From there, using some rope, we needed to climb up. There were 5 of us who climbed the cliff, but only 4 jumped. For me though, i’d rather jump than do down again on that rope. It was such a bad fall though; I had to buy menthol plasters and balm rub for the night.

From that island, we docked on the nearby island to have some snacks. There were plenty of garbage too around, and rather than just sitting the whole time, we thought about collecting garbage too. There were several monkeys in that island too who shared a papaya with me. J

Expenses:

Van from Campus to Jump Off: 30,000.00 ppx

Boat to Island, hops, and Back: 700,000.00/11=~64,000 ppx

Entrance Fee to Island: 0.00

Flying Fish Ride in the island: 30,000.00 (package of 3 rides including donut and banana boat available for 75,000)

Van from Jump off to Campus: 30,000.00

Food Share: 21,000 (including some extra we paid to the boat owner for lending us utensils, stove, etc).

Total: 175,000.00

Read More »

Ice Cream sales fundraising in Andalas University

We, along with the other dharmasiswa (2015-2016) participants, planned to start this at lunchtime, but the ice cream arrived almost when the students are on their way back to their classes. I was getting worried if ever it will arrive; Then again, it was 300 ice creams, and with the local fascination for people with white skin, I was just so positive it will sell like pancakes; Though again, yes, it would have sold much more easily during the breaks.

We had the ice creams available at around 1, and from there, we went to our designated locations.

One big box went to the business center (University food court), another to the Library, and ours went to the Fakultas Teknik.

It was quite easy selling to Ibus (elderly staff of the university) especially knowing that it is for fund raising. Along with the ice creams, we handed out thank you cards with our contact numbers for those who would have pre-loved toys and clothes for the boys in the orphanage.

all ice cream sold in Fakultas Teknik in 2 hours

In no time, we were running out of ice creams. I have called the other groups, and they are almost closing the box. After 2 hours, we met back in the Business Center.

Approaching the table, a man, along with some others, and some Ibus from the warungs are with the other classmates and are looking for the person who started it all.
Just when i wanted to rest my throat, and legs, and shoulders, here I am over to an explanation.

Apparently, one warung have called local community officers and told them that some students have been selling ice creams and in the name of an orphanage (oh well....).
They have asked me where this orphanage is, and told them (and sketched) the location. I also showed them some pictures of the orphanage and some shots of the way to it. Then again, they don't completely understand what I am talking about, and so had a local friend translate for me. I gave them the number of the person I spoke to in the orphanage, and we called them.

Later, they advised us to seek a stamped letter from the institution on future projects.

Overall, we made 844,000 IDR in 2 hours which, not too much, but will be enough to feed the 25 boys for one sunday afternoon on 24th October.

Post coming later about the outreach.

meeting after the sales about the food and activities we are doing on the agreed date, 24th October

We, along with the other dharmasiswa (2015-2016) participants, planned to start this at lunchtime, but the ice cream arrived almost when the students are on their way back to their classes. I was getting worried if ever it will arrive; Then again, it was 300 ice creams, and with the local fascination for people with white skin, I was just so positive it will sell like pancakes; Though again, yes, it would have sold much more easily during the breaks.

We had the ice creams available at around 1, and from there, we went to our designated locations.

One big box went to the business center (University food court), another to the Library, and ours went to the Fakultas Teknik.

It was quite easy selling to Ibus (elderly staff of the university) especially knowing that it is for fund raising. Along with the ice creams, we handed out thank you cards with our contact numbers for those who would have pre-loved toys and clothes for the boys in the orphanage.

all ice cream sold in Fakultas Teknik in 2 hours

In no time, we were running out of ice creams. I have called the other groups, and they are almost closing the box. After 2 hours, we met back in the Business Center.

Approaching the table, a man, along with some others, and some Ibus from the warungs are with the other classmates and are looking for the person who started it all.
Just when i wanted to rest my throat, and legs, and shoulders, here I am over to an explanation.

Apparently, one warung have called local community officers and told them that some students have been selling ice creams and in the name of an orphanage (oh well....).
They have asked me where this orphanage is, and told them (and sketched) the location. I also showed them some pictures of the orphanage and some shots of the way to it. Then again, they don't completely understand what I am talking about, and so had a local friend translate for me. I gave them the number of the person I spoke to in the orphanage, and we called them.

Later, they advised us to seek a stamped letter from the institution on future projects.

Overall, we made 844,000 IDR in 2 hours which, not too much, but will be enough to feed the 25 boys for one sunday afternoon on 24th October.

Post coming later about the outreach.

meeting after the sales about the food and activities we are doing on the agreed date, 24th October

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Fundraising for Panti Asuhan Muhammadiya in Pasar Baru, Padang, Indonesia

Going to Indonesia was not just learning bahasa Indonesia, travelling the country to a wider extent, understanding its people and culture, but also do the same things I have started doing back in my home country.

As soon as I got to Padang, I have been on the lookout for cause oriented groups which I could join, and perhaps cooperate with for community development projects. Meantime, I have not found the appropriate group just yet, so along with my other classmates in the scholarship program, we decided to start a small one on our own.

I have been asking some new acquiantances here to help me get to the orphanages (Panti Asuhan) and thankfully, a Padang Couchsurfer helped me get to one.

Two days ago, we visited the Panti Asuhan Muhammadiya in Pasar Baru, which is just a few kilometers off campus. The center has 25 boys, aged 9 to 17, who were turned over to the center even from other provinces of their parents or relatives. A few are complete orphans, while some were from single parents or underserved families.

This coming tuesday we will be selling ice cream in campus (Andalas University) to fund a feeding and activity on the 24th October in Panti Asuhan Muhammadiyah.

If any reader in Padang is interested in handing out pre-loved items for the boys, Hubungi: 0813 1860 0294.


read here for article for the actual fundraising project.

Going to Indonesia was not just learning bahasa Indonesia, travelling the country to a wider extent, understanding its people and culture, but also do the same things I have started doing back in my home country.

As soon as I got to Padang, I have been on the lookout for cause oriented groups which I could join, and perhaps cooperate with for community development projects. Meantime, I have not found the appropriate group just yet, so along with my other classmates in the scholarship program, we decided to start a small one on our own.

I have been asking some new acquiantances here to help me get to the orphanages (Panti Asuhan) and thankfully, a Padang Couchsurfer helped me get to one.

Two days ago, we visited the Panti Asuhan Muhammadiya in Pasar Baru, which is just a few kilometers off campus. The center has 25 boys, aged 9 to 17, who were turned over to the center even from other provinces of their parents or relatives. A few are complete orphans, while some were from single parents or underserved families.

This coming tuesday we will be selling ice cream in campus (Andalas University) to fund a feeding and activity on the 24th October in Panti Asuhan Muhammadiyah.

If any reader in Padang is interested in handing out pre-loved items for the boys, Hubungi: 0813 1860 0294.


read here for article for the actual fundraising project.

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