Understanding a Culture

What is culture?

The customs, traditions, beliefs, and values that a group of people share. It includes language, what they do, eat, make, believe and how they dress. Group that share these traits are called cultural group.

There a two elements of culture :

 a.    Material culture :  The things that culture have made. They have physical reality and you can touch them for sure. Example : totem, statue, temple

b.    Non material culture :  Means the productions of collective human activity that have no physical reality (Abstract). Example : beliefs, customs, language, softskill, music, government.

What is social groups in culture?  
Social groups are small unit of a culture. They include groups such as the family, military, classes, religious and government.

So, what is your culture? No matter where you are from and from what your social groups is, it's better for us to understand other nations' culture and try to be open minded.

Laughing In a Haunted House

A haunted house is a house or other building often perceived as being inhabited by disembodied spirits of the deceased who may have been former residents or were familiar with the property.

Do you think that i visited a real haunted house? No! I visited the commercial one. It was on Jogja City Mall (JCM). I visited there with some of my friends (Kaskar, Hanik, Vico and Citra). Actually, Citra is really afraid of ghosts and creepy things. Hanik is afraid of Kuntilanak (Indonesian ghost girl). Why did Citra and Hanik still wanted to visit there? Because they were so curious. They wanted me to accompany them because they thought that I’m the brave one.

When we got there, I was excited and really curious. We bought some tickets and then waited for our turn to entered the commercial haunted house. We walked in a straight line form.

This is our line up :
1.    Me
2.    Hanik
3.    Kaskar
4.    Citra
5.    Vico
6.    A couple ( I didn’t know their name)

It meant I led their way, it was an honor for me to led them. Citra seemed so frustrated, she actually didn’t want to enter the haunted house and I was laughing so hard while saw her face. I’m so sorry Citra!

It was time for our turn. Inside of the haunted house was so dark and there was so many creepy sounds. You know what? Every we entered the rooms I said, “ Annyeong Haseyo” (Korean word that means “hello” in English) and I almost laughed in every creepy situation, when I saw the ghosts , and when I heard ghosts’ voice, and when  I heard all of my friends screamed. You think that I’m crazy? Maybe yes!

Finally we got out from the haunted house. All of my friends were sweating and tired, while I was laughing so hard. I thought it was fun. I asked Citra, “are you afraid of ghosts inside of the haunted house?”. She answered, “No! Because I closed my eyes while we were in the haunted house".

The lessons from my experience is if you were afraid of something (ghosts or some things) you have to challenge yourself to face your phobia(s) so you won’t be afraid of your phobia(s), but if you’re not brave enough do not force yourself to do so.

*source(s) : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haunted_house

Watching a Special Puppet Show

Puppet is an artificial figure representing a human being or an animal, manipulated by the hand, rods, wires, etc., as on a miniature stage. In Javanese, puppet called Wayang (Krama Javanese: Ringgit) is a Javanese word for a theatrical performance with puppets or human dancers. When the term is used to refer to kinds of puppet theater, sometimes the puppet itself is referred to as Wayang. Performances of shadow puppet theater are accompanied by a gamelan orchestra in Java, and by gender Wayang in Bali.

UNESCO designated Wayang Kulit, a shadow puppet theater and the best known of the Indonesian wayang, as a Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity on 7 November 2003. In return for the acknowledgment, UNESCO required Indonesians to preserve their heritage.

On Saturday, 20th February 2016. I watched a Puppet show, but this is different with a Puppet Show as usual. I watched a Puppet show with spontaneous translation in four languages (Indonesian, Arabic, French, and English) in PKKH (Pusat Kebudayaan Koesnadi Hardja Soemantri), so I think it is so special for me. English translation is provided by Mrs. Kitsie Emerson from Michigan, US.

The puppet show began at 07.00 p.m and ended at 12.00 a.m. The puppeteer’s name is Mr. Eddy Pur Subaryanto (An English lecturer at Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM). The tittle of puppet show was,”Dasamuka Lena”. The Story was about Ramayana epic

These were the rundown of the puppet show :

      1.      Opening
      2.      Opening speech by F.I.B ‘s Dean
      3.      Short public lecture by Mrs. Kitsie Emerson about  
               Puppet’s spontaneous translation
      4.      An Award given to Mrs. Kitsie Emerson
      5.      Puppet Show

I really enjoyed the Puppet Show because it was an amazing puppet show I’ve ever seen and there was free meals too for the audiences. I watched the puppet show with all of my classmates. It is good for us to know our cultures before we want to know other nations’ cultures

*Source(s) :  http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/puppet
                      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayang

An English Conversation : How to Make an Appointment

Everyday and every time we have something or anything important and we have to discuss it our friends or our family etc, so we need to meet him/her/them for discuss it, but first of all we have to make an appointment with him/her/them.

Here is the example conversation on how to make an appointment :

B : (On the phone) Yes, I saw EXO on Mnet yesterday and I was so shock at that time, and.......

A : Good morning Rima!  Are you in the middle of something? I am sorry to interrupt you, but i have something to say about our final exam.

B : Ok, wait (On the phone) Hey jenny, i’ll call you later. I want to discuss something with my friend, see you! Oh good morning Sasha! Uhm, yes I actually in the middle of something, but it’s alright. Just tell me what happen about our final exam.

A : Mrs. Erlin gave us an assignment about roleplay and we must work on pair for Speaking 1 final exam and the deadline is at Monday 21th, December. I assume that you dont remember about it, right?

B : Oh My God, I almost forgot about it. I’m sorry

A: No problem. We must finish that assignment quickly. You know, we have so many assignments, right?

B : Yes, we have so many assignments. Lets finish that assignment now!

A : Now? I’m not ready yet. I’m going to shopping with my friends. I saw a beautiful pink veil in Ambarukmo Plaza and I really want to buy it.

B : Shopping? I really want to go shopping too. But I prefer watch a movie in cinema than going shopping.

A : Okay. Lets back to our main topic. So, when we will discuss and finish that assignment together?

B : Let’s see, this week I’m so busy.

A : I’m busy too, how about next week?

B : Next week I’m free on Thursday and Sunday. How about you?

A : Next week I’m only free on Sunday. Aha! Lets discuss and finish that assignment on Sunday. Do you agree?

B : I absolutely agree. Where and what time?

A : How about UGM’s Main library and at 1 p.m?

B : What? What makes you choose UGM’s main library? Is there any specific reasons?

A : Uhm, UGM’s main library is a suitable place for us to discuss and finish this assignment because it has 4G LTE speed Wifi and the place isnt too noisy. We can use the wifi for searching about the material.

B : But I think we will disturb other visitors who read a book there.

A : Calm down, we will be just in UGM’s main library terrace not inside of the building.

B : That sounds great! But I dont know where UGM’s main library is. Can you tell me?

A : From SV campus, Go to UGM boulevard. Then, you will see Grha Sabha Pramana. UGM’s main library is in the nothern side of Grha Sabha Pramana. Do you understand?

B : Yes, I understand. So we will in UGM’s main library next week on Sunday at 1 p.m, right?

A : Yes, you’re right! See you there!

B : See you !

I hope it can improve and enrich your dictionary!

Tips for Learning and Improving English

English skills can always be improved. There are many ways and tips for learning English. These are five English tips that are often taught to the foreign language speakers coming into English.

These tips not only help learn English, but they are also tips on improving English skills. 

1.) Read a book, newspaper or journal in English that is just above your current level of reading with a dictionary. This will help to learn new vocabulary words in a fun way. This is also a great tip for improving English in a technical field. Even by spending a mere 15 minutes a day, your skills can improve drastically.

2.) Listen to speeches or watch movies or documentaries in areas you aren't familiar with are fun tips on improving English. This activity will help improve listening and vocabulary at the same time. At first you can use subtitles, then turn the subtitles off when the listening part of this activity becomes easier.

3.) Learning grammar is an essential tool for English. Knowing English grammar inside and out is one of the top tips on learning English. This should be tackled at the same time as both reading and listening exercises so that you understand how the sentence is constructed, and can manipulate it later to suit your needs.

4.) Keeping a diary allows you to utilize all of your English skills that you've been practicing with reading, listening and grammar. As a bonus, you can go back over your entries and grade yourself, noting where you can improve more. This is one of the greatest tips on improving English at any stage of learning the language.

5.) When you feel you are ready, go for total immersion. This means surrounding yourself by English speakers. Of all English tips, this one will test all of your skills. 

Learning English is hard, but I hope with these tips on learning English, you will get better.

 *source(s) : http://www.5minuteenglish.com/learn-english-tips.htm

Visiting UGM's Language Training Center

Language Training Centre (PPB) was established by the University of Gadjah Mada (UGM) in 1971. In view of the importance of foreign languages ​​in the scope of work and academic career development , and professional people of Indonesia. Language Training Centre (PPB) was established by Soeroso H. Prawirohardjo (UGM’s Rector on 1968 -1973 period) when he launched one project to remember the importance of mastering foreign language for academic and professional careers’ of Indonesian society.

I and my friend named Hanik visited UGM’s Language Training Center for the second time on Thursday, 18 February 2016. The first time when we visited there was 5 months ago and PPB was closed because we didn’t know PBB’s working hours. The reason we visited PPB is we want to know how to join TOEFL Preparation Course. I and Hanik decided walk from our college to PPB because PPB isn’t far from our college. When we got there, we immediately went to the Costumer Service and we started to ask him some questions. Unfortunately, I and Hanik forgot to ask his name.

This is exactly what we ask to him :
1. Is there any TOEFL Preparation Course in this month?

    Yes, around March 2016 until April 2016.

2. How much we will pay if we join this course?  

   1.900.000 rupiahs. In the end of the courses there will be a TOEFL test and you will get a certificate.

3. When do we can register to this course?   

    You can register to this courses before the course will be started in March.

4. What time and day we take this course?  

    Every Monday to Friday. At 7 p.m to 9 p.m

5. Is there any other Language course?

    There isn’t other language courses for now, just TOEFL Preparation course

Later on, we decided to look around PPB building and after that we went home. It was a good experience I think and I can get some new information about UGM’s Language Training Center.


*Source(s) : http://ppb.ugm.ac.id/statis-3-sejarah.html