In our first week in Lombok in 2009 we headed off to meet around 30 Iraqi and Vietnamese refugee kids in Ampenan. They ranged in age from kindergarten tots through to teenagers who came together two or three times a week for English classes run by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).
Everyone in the younger students’ classroom for lunch
A mix of posters and toys from Indonesia and Australia
Our last stop for the visit, we arrived at Dasan Agung on a Sunday morning in 2009. Like most villages, Dasan Agung has a paud for young children to prepare them for primary school. As a more well off village the local community are able to support the paud and no longer need Annisa assistance.
Two young boys playing after packs were handed out
After an adventure-filled day wandering around the villages of Lombok we headed back to Koperasi Annisa’s office on an early Saturday evening in 2009 to meet with parents and children from Monjok. They had expected us back a lot earlier, so had all been sitting patiently for quite a while by the time we arrived!
Still full of energy and enthusiasm, the group of 24 children were happy to receive their packs and listen to animated discussions of who they were from and what to do with what was inside.
Late in the afternoon on a Saturday in 2009 we drove through growing puddles and muddy roads to make our way into the village of Kediri. Weaving our way between kids playing in the rain, we waited while mats were set up on the concrete floor inside. Once all was ready we bundled inside with mums and kids from the village.
Mums and kids enjoying the get-together
Heading into the rainy season on a Saturday morning in 2009, we reached our second group of villages for the day. Somewhere between the better off and more underprivileged villages we’d visited so far, in Dasan Tebu, Omba Rerut and Omba Desa we met a huge number of parents and children. Some were curious to see what was going on, others were trying to stay out of the rain, but all were enthusiastic!
