A big leap

 So, it has been 2,5months since my last post and i feel very disappointed of myself. 

Well i do have a very strong reason why i have been away for sooo long feeling like it has been an eternity.

So if you have been following my instagram , you might already know the whole reason because i've been documenting my trip there. Well whoops there you go, i've been on a trip. 

It's not that 1 kind of a vacation trip, it's a mission trip. A trip in the battle ground. A trip that brought the name of our country, Indonesia.

So to be clear, me and my team have been a representative of Indonesia, presenting Indonesia's culture, worldwide.

 I haven't made it loud and clear before in this blog, because i planned to create an awesome story from the documentations of this mission. I was sure i am going to come back with a priceless story to tell, but more than that, a new point of view that i would love to share. In this case, i did. 

  

"I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him." -Abraham Lincoln

I was on a cultural mission to the United States of America with my team, Komunitas Tari FISIP Universitas Indonesia for nearly 5 weeks (this explains my long absence) bringing in Indonesia's traditional dances (over 14 different dances) and music. 

What did we do? Well it is implicitly explained in the word "cultural mission" itself. Simply, we presented Indonesia's unique & diverse culture to the world. Specifically, we want Indonesia to be seen as a country that is rich, rich with its cultures. Too bad it isn't something that the world is aware of. The world knows Indonesia as the 4th most populated country in the world, and also one of the most corrupted country (from my 5 weeks stay in the USA, most civil people knows Indonesia as this). Oh and for Bali. But were they aware that Indonesia is actually culturally diverse & rich? Well that was the mission. To open the eyes of the world, to something that people might not see somewhere else outside Indonesia. The cultures belong to us, and it is one of our belongings that we should be most proud of. Make sure that the world admits it as we do too.

 And i'm pretty sure that there is this 1 thing that u miss from this blog. The fashion posts! 

I think i'll be enjoying more neutral looks since i've been drowned in so many colors and patterns and bling blings for the past 5 weeks due to the beautiful traditional Indonesian costumes & make up i've been putting on. But i don't assure that it is me if i'm going too neutral, i need a small doze of spirit in it. That's why i added some metallic accessories (still with a neutral tone)!

The metallic accents did make this look looks more alive, and catchy. But i planned to get you all jealous in a short moment....

I am not a jeans type of person anymore, because i find it more comfortable & in style with trousers, and trousers became my everyday best friend in college. I don't know what kind of magic thingy it does, but no matter how lazy you tend to dress up, you will never look undressed with trousers. That is my main reason why i love wearing trousers to college. I do have a lot in patterns and colors because all you need to pair with it is a plain blouse or t-shirt, but i also didn't forget to stock ones with neutral colors to match it up with something more eye shocking.

Anyway, here's the part where i'm going to get you all jealous. So apparently i'm wearing my best buy items. This satchel mini bag, was founded in a thrift store called Savers in Salt Lake City, Utah for only... $4. The gold belt & statement bracelet was from a big sale in H&M, the belt costs me $7 from the original price $18, while the bracelet only costs me $1.5. Finally, the white trousers was randomly bought at Pasar Senen. I just love getting great deals :)

So Los Angeles and New York was one of our destination in the trip, and what makes summer & USA a great combination is its crazy summer sale! You just couldn't believe how low the prizes were... But no i didn't shop like there was no tomorrow because apparently i had some trouble with my baggage being overweight and the fact that i have to pay <$80 if it did got overweight. So, i shopped what needed to be shopped.

What became so amazing is that it feels like i got new eyes, new thoughts, and a new self somehow from this whole thing. I feel more respect to everything going on. USA is nothing close to Indonesia, from its people, its political system, its laws, its cultures, and its believes. So it was like filling in something that used to be a hole in myself. My thoughts became wiser, my point of view became wider, and it just awakens me somehow in some parts of myself. New ideas were coming and new plans were listed. 

With all its negativity, it takes a big leap to love & be proud of this country. U might have to dig deeper to find the gold, that valuable "moment" that can make a turn back and make us love this country more than ever. Eventually, I found that gold. We are culturally rich, admitted by the world. I have never experienced such moment where a bunch of crowd who are not quite aware of our country's existence, stood on their feet with their hands clapping and their mouth whistling to a performance originally created from Indonesia. 

Vintage top // H&M gold belt & statement bracelet // Thrifted trousers // Mossimo satchel bag // DnC mary jane shoes

at the Indonesian Embassy, Washington DC, USA

It's quite impossible for me to tell the whole story in 1 post, because it just isn't enough. So i planned to divide it into some parts later on. The photos are scattered everywhere in so many cameras so probably it'll take me a while to collect them all, but i promise to share the completest version here. Since this became a life journal & somehow a portfolio for myself, i do want to share all of my moments here, for me someday to look back and be grateful for the life i have. 

For a quick view, the trip was divided into 4 places that we went. LA, Utah, Washington DC, then NY (from the west to the east coast) for 5 weeks. The cultural festival itself was held in the state of Utah for around 3,5 weeks in 3 cities; Springville, Bountiful, and Salt Lake City. New places, new stories. Do wait for the stories! ;)