From Bali to Holland, with love
Rachel Greaves, Contributor, Kerobokan, Bali
One morning in October 2000, Jebeh Nyoman Yanti was walking along Sanur Beach, as she did every morning with her friends, looking for customers to attract to the market stalls.
Little did the 20-year-old Balinese beach vendor know that this would be the day that would change her life forever.
On the beach Jebeh met Tjeerd and Jenny Hoekstra, a middle- aged Dutch couple, enjoying their second holiday in Bali. Jebeh smiled at the visitors but didn't stop because she was on her way to get some breakfast.
Then something -- maybe "the gods" -- told her to go back and, sparked by an equally astonishing intuition, Tjeerd and Jenny decided to invite her to a restaurant.
Tjeerd's first question to Jebeh was, "What is your dream in life?" to which Jebeh replied, quite candidly, "I want to study". Tjeerd and his wife looked at one another and knew immediately that this was going to be a day that would also change their lives.
Over the remainder of their holiday, Tjeerd and Jenny befriended Jebeh. Struck by the Balinese girl's outgoing personality, intelligence and thirst for knowledge, they swapped addresses. When they returned to Holland they exchanged numerous letters in the post and arranged for Jebeh to telephone them, via collect calls, every month.
Long talks followed, despite the fact that Jebeh's English was limited. The couple returned to Bali in May 2001 bringing a second-hand laptop computer to encourage Jebeh to correspond with them by e-mail.
Educating Jebeh
It was surprise visit, but to their amazement Jebeh was waiting for them at their hotel with flowers, having dreamed the night before that they were coming. The goal of this holiday was to discuss the possibility of educating Jebeh in Holland; they had already made enquiries about a four-year hospitality management Bachelor program at CHN University, Leeuwarden, suitable for foreign students and held in English.
Tjeerd and Jenny had shown copies of Jebeh's school certificates to the principal and had been told she was almost certainly capable, but would need to pass the International English Language Test System (IELTS) test to be eligible.
Jebeh's parents were proud that these foreigners wanted to help and take care of their daughter. They survived on a meager income from their small warung, selling cigarettes, beer, soft drinks, cake and snacks.
They didn't even own a fridge and had to fetch blocks of ice by motorbike in order to keep the drinks cool: They certainly could not afford any education fees.
Meanwhile, to Tjeerd and Jenny, with no children of their own, the brave-spirited Jebeh was already beginning to feel like a daughter.
In January 2002, Tjeerd and Jenny paid for Jebeh to take a three-month English course in Bali with 18 other local students. In between her studies, Jebeh fulfilled her duties at home, waking at 6 a.m. to do her share of the housework, while at the same time maintaining her beach job and doing an evening stint at the warung; she still managed to come top of her class!
Two months later, she passed her IELTS test with sufficient marks to be accepted on a preparation course in Holland which, if successfully accomplished, would qualify her for university.
The arrangements were made and, in June 2002, Tjeerd flew back to Bali to collect Jebeh. He brought with him a videotape player for Jebeh's family, so that he could send them homemade tapes of her progress.
The Balinese family filled the table with food and made him very welcome, and then they all went to the airport to see Jebeh off to her new life. It was very emotional for everyone, but Tjeerd promised that he and Jenny would take Jebeh back to Bali every year for a holiday.
Adapting to the West
Although nervous, Jebeh was amazed by her first plane journey and the banner and balloon reception at Amsterdam. She now had two-and-a-half months to get used to life in the tiny twin- villages of Oppenhuizen & Uitwellingerga before beginning her course.
At first, she found the food very strange; she didn't like cheese and only enjoyed eating bread with chocolate.
Nevertheless, the plucky 22-year-old embraced her new challenges, and proved to be very good at adjusting to wearing shoes, drinking tapwater, riding a bicycle on the specially designed cycle paths and stopping at red traffic lights.
She was touched by how friendly everybody was in the village, and fascinated by the black-and-white dairy cows that were milked and fed by machines. She appreciated the dishwasher and relished hot baths.
Jebeh did her nine-month preparation course with 23 other foreigners; only five passed. Jebeh was the only one accepted for the International Hospitality Management course and won an award for being the best student.
Meanwhile, she had to adapt to her first cold winter: She learned to ice-skate on the frozen canal, went skiing in Austria, and enjoyed the warmth of a traditional wood-burning stove.
During Jebeh's first year of International Hospitality Management she passed all the modules and was the only one in her group to achieve the propedeuse (certificate for the foundation year).
Last October, she learned that she had earned a scholarship of 2000 euros. Only two students won this; Jebeh was the second-best of 900 international students. She can hardly believe that she is doing so well in a course that appears to be one of the finest of its kind in the world, studying subjects that include tourism, retail management and teacher training.
Helping those back home
Ever mindful of her roots, Jebeh has also been involved in fundraising efforts for the education of the children of a remote Balinese mountain village, Cegi. Ever since learning that Jebeh's father originated from this village, Tjeerd and Jenny have inspired their local community in Holland to raise over 25,000 euros for the East Bali Poverty Project.
The funds have been used to build two schools, and to sponsor the entire 2005 education program for Cegi. This also initiated an exchange program between the children of Cegi and the Dutch children of the Oppenhuizen & Uitwellingerga elementary school.
The youngsters exchange stories and drawings, and Jebeh translates their letters, thereby creating awareness about the simple and harsh lives of the Balinese mountain children.
Jebeh's Balinese smile cheers all of the customers at the sports complex where she works part-time. Her earnings have enabled her parents to complete their new house and she is paying for her younger brother's education.
She is fluent in English and Dutch, and speaks the Frisian dialect while regularly impressing her Dutch family and friends with sumptuous Balinese feasts.
Tjeerd and Jenny cannot now imagine life without her: She is so self assured, they say. Asking Jebeh what it feels like to have two families, she replies, "I've got a lot of love".
Sometimes she still gets scared that she might disappoint her new family, but Tjeerd smiles. "She could never disappoint us because we see just hardworking and ambitious she is. So far, there have never been any misunderstandings or disagreements; she brings so much joy and happiness to our house.
"If we had to do it all over again, with a snap of our fingers, we would."