To my family and friends following my blog, I first say Ramadan Kareem. I hope you all have great month and missing everyone and everything about Ramadan back home so much! We are wrapping up our second week in Indonesia and today marks the start of Ramadan. Given the difficulty of promoting water filters during Ramadan because the majority of people are fasting in Java we have arrived in Bali, a majority Hindu island. We plan on spending the next few weeks throughout Bali working with resellers and meeting customers.
It is bittersweet leaving Java because I could really feel the Ramadan spirit as we left. Markets were extremely busy with people buying last minute goods for the month. Major city streets were filled with “Marhaban ya Ramadan” (Welcome Ramadan) posters and there were even special Pepsi, Dominos, and KFC ads catered to Ramadan iftars! From every majority Muslim country, I have traveled to I noticed how much Ramadan is commercialized and how much people are encouraged to spend even though the month is about piety and modesty.
We experienced such great hospitality and kindness while in Java. Everyone welcomed us into their homes, shared stories, and offered us tons of food. We were able to experience both sides of various cities in Java in terms of socioeconomic status. Indonesia is quickly growing and it is evident from the busy streets and cranes from construction. Even though Indonesia’s economy is growing, it still has problems with basic issues like clean water and garbage disposal. You can walk past huge skyscrapers here but then have a massive pile of trash right next to it.
Bali is a sharp contrast from the places we have been in Java. Even though its been one day, I have already seen more dogs here in Denpasar than all of the 6 cities we traveled in Java combined. There are also a lot less mosques here and and more Hindu temples. Around nearly every shop we traveled past, I noticed incense and offerings at the store front. There are also a greater number of western tourists throughout the city streets then we have seen in the other cities in Java. I am curious to learn more about Hinduism and its influence on Balinese culture during our stay here. since, personally, I know very little about Hinduism.
That’s all I have for now but I will definitely try to blog more frequently. Take care.
It has been one week in Indonesia thus far and I have already managed to travel to four cities, be on an Indonesian radio station, practice my motorbiking skills, see a volcano, navigate a train station in prime traffic hours, and have lunch right by waterfall. Along the way, I am also meeting such hardworking and encouraging people. My first week in Indonesia has been very jam packed but I am enjoying every minute of it. No one day has been like the other and as exhausting as that is, it has also been really exciting.
For those people following my blog from home who did not know I am currently working with Nazava Water Filters, a social enterprise which creates affordable and safe water filters for Indonesian households. Over the course of the next 8 weeks, myself and another fellow, Lisa, will be analyzing the enterprises marketing strategies and making recommendations based on research and observations we make in the field. We will also be conducting customer surveys to get more information about customer background and preferences. We hope to gather enough market research in order to create marketing tools for Nazava and a training manual for its reseller networks.
We began our work in Bandung, a city about 3 hours south of the capital Jakarta. We met with two Nazava resellers one in Bandung and the other in Sukabumi. We also polled customers of Nazava and nonusers using a mobile survey tool completely in Indonesian. While in Sukabumi, we worked with a reseller in a sales promotion meeting for members of the mosque after Friday prayers. The people who stayed behind for the Nazava presentation were very impressed by the product and I found the promotional activity to be very effective. I enjoyed the promotional event because there was a lot of back and forth with the customers and they were able to learn more about the product and gain trust for the brand. I am learning that trust is very crucial for sales within Indonesia.
Both of the resellers were from the Ahmadiyyah Muslim Community in Indonesia. As a Muslim myself, I knew very little about the Ahmadiyyah Muslim Community but I did hear that they were persecuted by mainstream Muslims. After doing some research, I learned that people from this community in Indonesia are often ostracized and harassed for their beliefs by some. The people from this community were all so kind to me and we especially happy to find out I was Muslim, some even asked to be pen pals. The people were all so peaceful and kind and I felt so sad thinking that they are mistreated for their beliefs by fellow Muslims when Islam emphasizes peace.
On our day off we went to Tangkuban Perahu, a volcano in Bandung. The drive up to the volcano was filled with traffic as many families were headed to the volcano since school holidays have just began. We finally went up to the volcano and it was amazing! The smells and all the mini shops leading up to the volcano are ingrained in my head. While at the volcano, it started to pour so we decided to head over to the hot springs. But of course when we got to the hot springs it was raining there as well so we jumped in. The hot springs and the pouring rain was a great combination and I felt so relaxed. After the hot springs we took a nice walk to a waterfall. Of course being the clumsy girl that I am, I took a nice tumble in the mud on our hike to the waterfall. While by the waterfall, we had some scenic views of tea plantations. To end our day off we went to Kampung Daun an amazing restaurant with traditional Sundanese food. I must say Indonesian food is absolutely amazing! The spices are very intense and unique.
Yesterday, we were in Cikarang meeting with another reseller and discussing outreach to local tv and radio stations for promotions. We met with representatives from the Annisa Radio station in Cikarang which reaches approximately 5 million people in the region. While at the radio station, we discussed western music and it turns out Miley Cyrus is really popular in Indonesia. The radio station staff were really welcoming and asked us to get on the air and introduce ourselves and why were in Indonesia. We ended up doing some impromptu promo for Nazava.
Today we are in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, and will be here for the next two days before traveling off to another neighboring city. Jakarta is a sharp contrast from Bandung, where we initially started. There are a lot more tourists in Jakarta and a lot less motor bikes! There are also more skyscrapers here and it feels more western.
I hope to post more regularly because its getting difficult keeping track of everything as every day we do something new and aren’t necessarily in an office all day long. But for now, I send you greetings from Jakarta!
Lisa and I at tea plantations in BandungWIth host Rendi Ananda of Annisa RadioTangkuban Perahu (Volcano in Bandung)
