Winding down

This week has been the first down week I've had since I've gotten here.  I didn't really do that much at all, so it was pretty restful. 
I was able to meet with Pak Marzi Afriko this week at the World Bank, and he gave me a lot of interesting information about my research topic as well as people to get in contact with.

One really cool thing - my friend Muhajjir knows a guy who collects old Islamic manuscripts, and he invited me over to his house to take a look at them.  Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my camera, but it was interesting looking at all of them!  The collector, Pak Tarmizi, has been collecting these manuscripts since 1994.  They're all Acehnese, Qur'ans, books, all types of things.  The best thing about visiting Tarmizi was that unlike other collectors, who don't let people touch the documents etc., he actually let me hold them and flip through the pages!  It was a very special experience.  

Next week,  I should be going to Lhokseumawe to visit with Pak Al Chaidar, another guy I met at the ARTI book launching last weekend.  He specializes in terrorism studies, so he should be especially interesting to speak with.  Afterwords, I have plans to visit a pesantren in that area - Pesantren Darul Mujahidin.  It's headed by a man named Pak Muslim Atthahiri, and it has been associated with the terrorist group FPI (Islamic Defenders Front, Front Pembela Islam).  Apparently, Jemmah Islamiyah also tried to associate with them, but they were rejected by the pesantren.  It will be interesting to find out why they didn't want to associate with JI, and what their current relationship with FPI is.

I really hope this goes through - I'm very excited to go, and it would be so disappointing if I didn't get to visit them.  I guess it's a good thing that this has been slow, especially considering that next week should be full of activities!

I've also gotten closer to the girls at the asrama.  I know I've said this before, but they really are freaking hilarious.  And because they've gotten to know me better, I think they feel more comfortable and open with me than they did initially.  I was hanging out with a couple of them after maghrib prayers one night, and the discussion turned to boys, and boyfriends.  I had asked them a couple weeks before if they had boyfriends (jokingly), and of course they giggled and said "of course not!".  This time though, they were telling me that yes, they have had boyfriends.  One of them was so funny - she said that she's had five before, and is currently in a relationship with two.  She said, "It is cheating, but it's only pacaran* and not marriage, so it's okay!"  I thought that was too funny.  They really cracked me up.

Last night, the power went off, so a group of us sat together in one of the girls' rooms around a candle.  We were able to talk history and politics.  Yesterday, the founder of the separatist rebel movement GAM (Free Aceh Movement) passed away, and there was a huge ceremony at Mesjid Raya.  We had a really interesting talk about that, because a couple of the girls went to the ceremony.  One girl, Lisa, said that Aceh was crying for him because of the sun shower that took place after he was buried.  There was also a minor earthquake.
This is the link on BBC about his passing - http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/asia_pacific/10225928.stm

Maybe I can ask some of the girls questions about my research topic, as it does focus on Acehnese society.  I'm sure that they'd have a lot of interesting things to say about it.

*pacaran - The term used for dating, or having a boyfriend/girlfriend.