Farewell to Cilacap

Having been back in the comfort of the United States for one week now, it seems like our time in Cilacap was something that happened long ago! Here are the last batch of pictures from our time in Cilacap:

Mrs. Titi asked us to come take pictures at a studio in the center of town. They had us take the picture against a plain gray background, and then photo-shopped in some pretty awesome backgrounds, including the Eiffel tower!? I loved how Mrs. Titi had us go to this professional studio, then made the funniest faces and poses. Also, Landon and Mrs. Titi are making the same face in the picture above. The other children are Mrs. Titi's niece and nephew who live next door to her. Mr. Teguh is holding Landon, and is Mrs. Titi's husband. 

On our last full day in Cilacap, I took Landon down to Teluk Penyu beach to dig around in the sand, blow off some steam, and take some more pictures of boats. On our way there, we ran into two school PE classes playing in the field close to the beach. Of course, Landon joined in and became the center of attention. These kids were older so they could say simple sentences and ask simple questions, and so I had a large following as well who were asking me questions. They were cute as always, and after a good amount of time playing with all the kids, we moved on to the beach. 

Fishing boats and the island

Landon loves playing in the sand! At first he was playing trucks and then eventually made his way closer to the water. 

Right about the time we were getting ready to leave, a boat came up to the beach. The process of getting the boats up on the beach was very interesting so we watched the whole thing. First, they take the motor off and take it up the beach. Then they bring a piano moving type cart and roll the boat onto the mover. Then they wait for helpers to come help push the boat up the beach. I think the final count for helpers was six to get the boat to its resting place up the beach. 

The next morning, we flew out of Cilacap airport and said our final good byes. We had eaten dinner with Mrs. Titi and her husband and student on Thursday and said goodbye, but she came back to the hotel on Saturday to give Landon a final hug. She actually helped out a lot by playing with Landon for 20 minutes or so while Austin and I packed our final bags and got everything into the hotel car. She will be greatly missed!

Mrs. Titi saying goodbye

Another close friend was Azizah, an assistant marketing director for the hotel. Her English was really good- we could have conversations about a variety of topics, which was refreshing! She liked to play with Landon and bring him presents. She would call our room and ask for Landon to come down, then promptly excuse me to go back to my room and have some time for myself. It was a lifesaver on several occasions, and helped me to be able to pack so we could leave for Bali on time and at the last minute! She left us with parting gifts of batik shirts and snacks for Landon and Hotel Dafam Cilacap polos for Austin and I. 

Cilacap was a hard place to live for a variety of reasons. The hotel was not up to the standards that we are used to, it is stressful to constantly worry about food and water contamination, and there were very few people who spoke English well. I'm glad we had this experience and met Mrs. Titi and the friendly people at the hotel, but we are enjoying eating familiar foods and spending time in a house for now!