Beloved Yogyakarta
The most interesting city in Indonesia is Yogyakarta, the world's smallest metropolis. Everything is within easy reach. The charming old streets of the city centre, including cafes, galleries, and special shops, which sell special traditional things tempting the visitors.
Yogyakarta, the town where now I am living in, is truly an attractive town. It's so romantic, and cultured. Calm, and lovely.
It has beaches, and so many other places to visit.
Here, we can find many kinds of souvenir, and eat specific food. We'll eat them by sitting on the sidewalk without chair, and watch people pass by along Malioboro street.
At night we can go to alun-alun (town square), and drink wedang ronde - a kind of drink made from hot water, sugar, ginger with bread slices, peanuts, and rice flour balls in it-, while listening the singing-beggars (the street musician) sing. Even, we can ask them to sing us songs we want to listen. Isn't that interesting?
Furthermore, the glory of Yogyakarta Sultanate, which still exists in the heart of its people, brings another attraction to the visitors. The charismatic king, and the noble monarchy certainly raise curiosity for those who visit Yogyakarta.
There are still Kota Gede; where we can buy things made of silver, Borobudur temple; the largest Budhist temple in the world, Kaliurang; where we can spend the night in romantic silence, and drink teh poci - a specific traditional tea served in a pot made of clay-, Pujokusuman; where we can watch a kind of puppet show (wayang orang) that is presented in English all night long, Sasono Budoyo; a place where we can watch a shadow puppet show presented in Javanese, Ramayana Ballet Show; which is performed in Prambanan temple area, illuminated by a romantic, sentimental moonlight, and Parangtritis beach; a beach famous of its myth of a very beautiful, charming sorceress Queen of the South Sea kingdom (a supranatural kingdom).
Along the sea shore, we can also enjoy riding andong (a traditional horse-cart) and letting the sea breeze caress our mind.
There are still many beaches, where -maybe- we can enjoy our sunbath, because these beaches are not as crowded as Parangtritis beach.
There are so many good reasons to visit Yogyakarta, and just as many to come back over, and over again.
So many foreign visitors come to Yogyakarta, because of their interests in knowing about the way of Yogyakartanese live their lives their own ways, traditionally.
So, if you've decided to come, and spend your next holidays in my beloved Yogyakarta, it will be my pleasure to guide you around here.
I bet you'll never feel sorry for coming here.
Yogyakarta, July 1999
Claryssa Suci Puspa Dewi
The Most Suitable Profession for me
I am a graduate of English Education Sanata Dharma University
My translation work started when I was in the early semesters. My friend in my boarding house who happened to have an overload translation work asked me to help her. I did it very well and I felt that I like it. From that moment, I started to do few translation jobs, but I didn’t think of making it my profession.
During my college years, I had tried to apply as a part time teacher several times, but no institutions hired me. I had also tried to apply as an editor and a translator in a couple of book publishers, but to no avail. I wondered why, but I convinced myself that it’s their lost. However, I managed to become a writer of a student worksheet for a while, which gave me quite an experience.
In my senior years, I had thought of providing translation services to earn money. I surveyed some translation agencies around my campus, so that I knew the rate at that time. Then, I made my own brochure, copied it, and distributed the copies to canteens, copier service stores, parking officers, etc. It didn’t work very well, but a copy of it has given me translation jobs until today.
After I graduated, I realized that I was not suitable to be a teacher, so I tried some other jobs, such as becoming a book rental attendant, opening a canteen with a friend, and providing thesis consultation. The first two were not successful, and the last attracts some customers, but it requires too much effort and time not worth the fees. During my search for a suitable profession, translation jobs keep coming. Then, I decided that this is the most suitable profession for me.
I have worked hard to develop myself and enrich myself with knowledge, experience and networking from the internet. It was from the internet that I learned about Bahtera and became a member of it. There was a certain period of time that I was absent from Bahtera postings, and one day something urged me to look at them. There I found an invitation to a seminar “Bahtera Goes to Jogja.” I said, “This is it, this is my chance.” So, I attended this seminar with my friend, and we’ve learnt a lot more than we expected, including the fact that we were still underpaid. Thereafter, we try to increase our rate gradually, trying to accomplish more.
An article written by Sandra Dewi Wirawan, published in the first Bahtera book, “Tersesat Membawa Nikmat”.
The Sound and the Fury
The Sound and the Fury is a complicated work, but it is worth the time to understand. It is written with stream-of-consciousness technique in which the characters’ actual thought process in mind is put into words, and interior monologue technique in which the characters produce monologue of their thoughts. This novel has four narrators, separated into four sections, where each narrator has different thinking process. “The first two sections,” as said by Dixler in her book William Faulkners’ The Sound and the Fury, “employ stream-of-consciousness technique, the third section employs interior monologue technique, and the fourth section contains clear, descriptive writing by an omniscient narrator.” (1985: 33-35) The narration by four different narrators gives four different point of views and perspectives of the narrators.
An excerpt from Sandra Dewi Wirawan’s thesis, “The Psychological Disorder of the Central Characters in William Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury
