Community Diary - Part 3

As the community has grown bigger, there were more activities, events and small gatherings have taken place. It did not matter who took part and who did not, every moment worth to be remembered and well appreciated as it showed the generosity of your contribution. Thank you!

 

The Birth and The Farewell

Welcome baby Alessia Bianca Zein!

On Thursday, October 23, 2014, we received a great news about the birth of Alessia Bianca Zein. She is the first child of Joni Zein and Erna Mariana, she is also the first baby who was born within the family of Indonesian Community in Tuscany. We all excited when we heard about Erna's pregnancy and were glad to welcome baby Ale, felt like we have our own niece. 

Festival del Cinema d'Indonesia_Le Murate

Since the first time we arrived in Florence, I've been thinking of how to promote Indonesia. Unlike in the Netherlands where number of Indonesians are large, Indonesians are only about 200 to 250 people in Italy. Once I attended a simple Indonesian bazaar organized by a cultural foundation founded by an Indonesian friend who lives in Rotterdam to celebrate Indonesian independence day and to promote Indonesian culture. Two foundations were involved in organizing the whole event which took place in a good size of a hall for about 250 people in Rotterdam. It was a family bazaar with a bit of Dutch 'gezelligheid', the bazaar inspired me to have the same event in Florence. Unlike in Netherlands, however, as I went around and gathered information, I found more obstacles and more challenges to do so.

However, when we came back from our summer holiday last year. I heard from Malina, that she and her husband have organized a festival of Indonesian Cinema in Florence in continuation with the one they held in Pietrasanta. The organization was done by Malina and her husband, an Italian lawyer, the poster was designed by Erlinda, an Indonesian student who studied design in Florence. I was so excited about this event, finally, we had this opportunity to make Indonesia more recognized and pop-up in Italy. Thank you to Jacopo and Malina for their hard-work and the Ambassador of Indonesia for Vatican City for their supports in making the Festival of Indonesian Film a successful event. 

Summer BBQ Parties - We Love Food, Fun and Friendship

Sate ayam, nasi pecel....we were so excited when we heard that David would bring pecel, Yawa would make sate ayam complete with spicy peanut sauce, Joni and Erna came with juicy Singapore pork dumplings.  Indonesian Singaporean bbq, again at the house of Yawa and Cyril because they have a nice yard with roof where we can sit outside overlook a stunning view of Florence. Thanks to both Cyril and Yawa who generously open their house for us.

Community Diary - Part 2

Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into friend.

~cf. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Friendship is always a sweet responsibility, never an opportunity.

~cf.Khalil Gibran

Sometimes being a friend means mastering the art of timing. There is a time for silence. A time to let go and allow people to hurl themselves into their own destiny. And a time to prepare to pick up the pieces when it's all over.

~cf.Octavia Butler

Community Diary - Part 1

Our Tuscany's Indonesian community have grown bigger, as many more Indonesians were added to the group. Although the definition of community is a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common. One thing in common is that we are all Indonesians, but I am glad to see how everyone is willing for a new friendship and to experience how this friendship has grown and is still growing between us.

We met up for big meals sometime, but we often met up more in small groups, even if it is just for a cup of coffee and dolce or just for a morning walk in a park together. I am so thankful knowing how everyone is willing to open their house, to share what they have, to help each other.

Between Lunch Buffet and Balinesia

I locked my bike at the piazza Largo Pietro Annigoni, then headed to Pingusto, the all you can eat buffet restaurant and our meeting point. Everyone were there already, that was a special lunch gathering to facilitate all of us so we can meet Dina. She lives in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, but was in Florence at that time as she came with her husband who works for GE and had his business trip at GE office in Florence. Beside Dina, Erna Vin Eka Putri was there too. January 15, 2014, was an official day of my first time meeting with Dina and Erna. We have two Ernas in the community now!

The Large Group Meeting and Apericena at Moyo

It was winter December 2013, we had this chat through Facebook, it was Fifi who came up with an idea to have a meeting with all members of the community. At that time I remembered, she has added David into the group. We agreed to have a dinner together and the easiest way we could think of was to meet up for la apericena somewhere at the city center.

The crowded Moyo - Bar & Lounge at Via dei Benci, 23r, Florence. Image courtesy of partyearth.com

I suggested Moyo Bar for some reasons. First, it located in the Santa Croce neighborhood, where there was an annual German market. The idea was to visit the German market together after the dinner, just to be able to spend more times together and to get to know each other better in the fresh outdoor air. Second, apericena would cost everyone a price of one glass of drink, and thirdly, I've been there once, it was spacious enough for a meeting place of 20 people and the food was alright.  

FlashBack2 - From Florence to Tuscany

The Best is Yet to Come - More Friends Were Added to ICiT

Things went so quick more than I expected, it was great to befriend with Fifi. She is a lovely enthusiastic woman, a very friendly lady with a lot of energy. She is very independent and energetic, I felt pumped when I got around her. I admired her energy! The night later she added many of her Indonesian friends into the group, and suddenly….from 6 the number has increased to 20 members!  Amazing!

A Big Lunch, New Friends and the Donkeys

It has been a while since the last time we met up together. Everyone was busy with different activities and many people traveled during the summer holiday from June to August. We still stayed in touch and as soon as we found out that many have come back from the holiday, we decided to quickly have a small gathering before the cold season start. 

A Fun Day with Nunuk and Ami

Piazza Santa Maria Novella was not so crowded that day. Days have turned a bit more chill and a little colder as it was already mid of autumn. I rode my bike as usual and was a little late, so I was in a hurry to meet her. I thought I better find her first before I park my bike. I easily spotted her sitting on one of  benches there. Her exotic look seemed even better in her greenish apparels. Her Indonesian face stood up to me among Italians who were there.  It was Nunuk, I waived at her and came closer toward her and she waived back with her beautiful big smile, a very charming lady.

The Day We Met Fabulous Fifi

How We Met Fifi

After I and my husband came back from our summer holiday this year. One of our friends back home told me that she has a cousin who has been living in Florence like ‘forever’ and she wanted to introduce me to her. And that was exactly how I finally met more Indonesians who live not only in Florence but also outside of Florence. Through my friend I was then got connected with Fifi. I was really glad to see her enthusiasm about meeting more Indonesians in Florence. She was excited about introducing me to some more Indonesians she knew in and outside of Florence. Not so long after I’ve got to know Fifi on Facebook, we decided to meet up on October  17^th, 2013 for a lunch at a restaurant near her area.

Hoping for the Community to Grow

My Hope for IWiF

I remember once Caramia told me that there are more Indonesians in Florence, she saw some of them and was being told by one of them that KBRI (Indonesian Consulate) would be opened up a new office in Florence. I was excited for a while, but then I could not get any further information on this good news. Once I was in Rome for some reasons at the Indonesian Embassy in Rome. I specially asked the officer about this matter and he said, KBRI only opened at some spots within reaching distance of the areas. Since Tuscan region located near Milan, there was no way KBRI would open an office in Florence. Indonesians who live in Florence or Tuscan can go to Milan or Rome for immigration or visa services. Nice enough, the officer also gave me two mobile numbers of Indonesians who live in Florence. 

FlashBack1 - Indonesian Women in Florence

Indonesian Women in Florence, a community.

One thing about living in Florence is that most people I knew and got connected with are mostly visitors. They are only in Florence for some certain period of times and for different purposes, some for study, for work, for certain events and mostly came as tourists.   

The Night I Met Beautiful Barbara

How I Met Barbara

That evening I went by myself on an evening bike ride to Piazza Santa Maria Novella, it was hip on the piazza, a DJ played loud music, young people hanged around with bottles of Moretti in their hands. It was an intro and a counting down to the upcoming big event, an MTv Italy Award in Florence! So I stayed longer than I intended to, until dawn and the sky turned dark. The music got harder and more crowds joined in whilst shaking their bodies along with the music. I stood there among the crowd, was taking photo of the DJ and he seemed friendly. Youngsters starred at me, and I wondered why. I thought maybe it was strange that a “young” girl like me being there alone and did not even move by the music.

The 3rd Meeting of Indonesian Community in Florence

Introducing Jeanny.

I was thrilled when I received this email from Zyra a.k.a. Jeanny. She wrote me to express her interest to meet up with another Indonesian women in Florence. Later I found out she lives in Bari, from Florence it's way down South of Italy. Like myself, she was longing to be able to joke and chat in our own mother tongue language. So excited that she would find ways to go to Florence and meet us.

The 2nd Meeting of Indonesian Community In Florence

It's a beautiful sunny Saturday of January 26th, 2013. We decided to have this 2nd meeting on Saturday to accommodate our 2 new friends. As students, their weekdays occupied with schools, thus to have a meeting in the weekend was the best way to be able to have them joined. I met Mia, one of them about two weeks earlier in the church service that Sunday morning. I remember our Pastor greeted her at the entrance door as she entered. I heard she mentioned she came from America, but from her accent and when I took a glance on her face, I was somehow sure she is Indonesian, and I was right. So glad to finally have met another Indonesian in Florence. She is young, pretty and lively; so I wasn't surprised when she mentioned she's going to study fashion design in Florence. It suited her.

The 1st Meeting of Indonesian Community in Florence

It was Wednesday, December 19^th, 2012. Finally I met Yawa, it was also the second time I met Erna again.  Erna's husband, Joni, was contacted by Yawa through InterNations in Florence, a global community of expatriates.  From Joni, Yawa who was seeking for other Indonesian fellows in Florence, was informed about me and finally got in touch with me through Facebook. She has been living in Florence for more than a year with her husband, Cyril, when we met for the first time. We decided to have lunch together at Mario an Italian restaurant near Mercato Centrale.

I got there at 11.35 by bike. I saw both of them chat in front of Mario’s, I hurried to lock-up my bike to a pole nearby. Waved at one of them but they didn’t seem to notice. I walked toward them and greeted them. Erna, who I met about two months earlier greeted me first then I introduced myself to Yawa who was standing next to her.

Komunitas Indonesia di Florence

Apakah anda orang Indonesia yang sedang studi, bekerja, dan tinggal di Florence?

Apakah anda ingin dapat berkomunikasi, bercanda, berdiskusi, berinteraksi atau sekedar rumpi dengan sesama orang Indonesia dan dalam bahasa Indonesia di Florence?

Apakah anda tertantang untuk memperluas jaringan pertemanan anda dengan sesama orang Indonesia di Florence?

Apakah anda rindu berbagi pengalaman dengan, dan mendapat masukan-masukan dari sesama warga Indonesia di Florence?

Apakah anda tertarik untuk membangun sebuah komunitas orang Indonesia di Florence?

Jika anda menjawab ya atas seluruh pertanyaan diatas, anda orang yang tepat!

The First Indonesian I Met in Florence

How I met lovely Erna 

I left home early morning, hop on my bike to get to the Questura (Immigration) office. I had an appointment at 9am with Ulrike to get my Permesso di Soggiorno. I got there on time and found her sitting on one of the bench. The Questura was crowded as usual. We talked to kill time, about her dogs, about her house, about her work, about her daughter. She spoke English, very friendly, very talkative and loud. I could feel some eyes turning to us when she was talking.