Sorry it has taken so long to give you all the update on Star Teen 2008. I know you are all at the edges of your seats. Well, despite the very horrible weather that Howie and I both thought would certainly ruin everything, the event was quite a hit and a lot of fun, even for us managing editors.
As it turned out, the event was much more made for TV than we realized. The studio where it was being taped was really small, so the off-air show proved to be quite an event. They created this “festival” kind of scene (think summer rock concert for teens) with a few booths, some local bands and dance troops and clowns, men on stilts and circus freaks walking around. It was a little odd, but there was a decent turn out. The highlight for me was the 10 meter wall that our design guy made with a life-size photo of each of the contestants, posing of course. All these teens and parents were running up to the wall and taking their pictures with their favorite. It was funny to watch.
Howie and I spent most of the pre-show in the VVIP tent, hanging out with parents and siblings of the finalists and advertising clients. Not a bad gig – the food was yummy and the company was not so bad either. It was great to see all the nervous families, so excited for their kids.
The show itself was 2 hours and the focus was much more on the bands and “stars” than it was on the Star Teens, which might have been for the best. They did their little catwalk thing, danced, changed outfits a couple times and even answered a couple questions from the judges, but it was the crowd that made the show. There were maybe 100 seats for the studio audience and in MTV style they packed the floor of the room with teens, who all had signs for their favorites and were cheering loudly. There were definitely some crowd favorites and the signs these guys made were pretty impressive.
In the end, Nirwan, a somewhat alternative looking guy with a socialite mother and a sinetron (soap opera) sibling won for the guys and a cute girl names Felicia won for the girls. It might have been rigged, but you did not hear it from me.
The good news is that by some miracle I got my computer back with only about 12 hours of complete panic and hysterics and Rp. 100.000 (about 10 bucks). I am also officially healthy again and while it was painful, the November issues made it to print on time.
Well, we were skeptical and expectations were very low, but we could not have ended up with a better holiday. 
In the blazing sun, groups of 10 men mine for diamonds and gold. They find about one good diamond a month and the proceeds are split between them. It is hard to explain how hot it is and how hopeless this job seemed to us. There were just piles and piles of rocks and guys sitting in pits of water sifting through them. It seems like even finding one a month is a stretch. Shockingly only one guy tried to sell us some clearly fake gems and when we turned him down he was still incredibly friendly and seemed not to mind at all.
The next morning bright and early (5 AM) we headed out to the famous floating markets, which were incredible. For those of you who have been to Thailand, this is the same idea, but MUCH less touristy. This is a real traditional market that just happens to be in boats on a river. There were 2 markets, the first being a close one that was predominantly food stuffs. What makes this one cool are the floating cafes which you pull up next to and get coffee and tea and breakfast treats. They give you a long bamboo stick with a nail at the end to stab the snack of your choice, which was lots of fun and made it possible for me to ignore that my coffee cup was rinsed in the not so clean river water.
The second market was a bit cooler in that it was really a traditional market with everything from fruit to furniture and it was really bustling. We bought a strange new fruit - 
That afternoon our friend Chad joined us and we all did a canal tour together to catch a glimpse of local life. The canals are less than clean, but as you ride along the river is filled with people bathing, kids swimming, women doing laundry and cleaning veggies or rice for dinner. The people were great, waving and yelling hello, kids jumping into our boat or hanging on; it was a great look at real life. The tour culminated at the Pasar Wadai (Cake Market) that is special to Ramadan. Stalls were set up all along the main river-way selling cakes and foodstuffs for breaking the fast. It is a great sight and there are all kinds of delish snacks that you can only get this time of year. Despite our day of eating, we of course indulged in some snacks ourselves and had a nice riverside picnic. Mostly it is just fun to watch people stuff their face as soon as they hear that call to prayer... ironically the anticipation is palpable.
Since things were pretty shut down and Kalimantan is known for its jungle, we decided that we could not be there and not do a jungle trek, so we hooked up with Tailah - the most recommended guide by Lonely Planet - and signed up for a 2 night 3 day jungle trek. Tailah was a great ambassador in the jungle and the trek really turned out to be the highlight of our journey, despite all 4 of us (Chad's wife Trish joined us on Tuesday) being completely unprepared without any rain gear or warm clothing.
Once in the jungle, the trek went from village to village, 3 hours the first day, 7 hours the second and 3 hours on a bamboo raft back to Loksado the third. The hiking was a bit challenging, with a few steep bits, but not too horrible. All along the way there are small villages where we were greeted with what seemed like everyone. Such beautiful faces, adorable kids and interesting stories.
Most of the villages are Dayak and they live in small communities harvesting the rubber and cinnamon throughout the jungle. Traditionally each village has a 
It is hard to explain the stunning people and sights we saw. Tailah has been doing this for 30 years and knew everyone in every village. There was a lot of respect for him and clearly a trust that was passed on to us as his guests. And by the way, if you are looking for an ego boost, this is the trip for you. I have never been told I was beautiful so many times... and without a shower or a change of clothing for 3 days I am the first person to tell you I was not feeling too pretty.
The bamboo rafting back had some awe inspiring views and a few hair raising moments where I was sure our raft was going to flip and land the few things I had with me in the river. But, despite some rapids, a small dam made of rocks that our captains took down and some heavy rain, it was incredible and fun and a great way to end the journey.
This trip was a great reminder for us as to why we came out to Indonesia to begin with. The people were wonderful, the sights were gorgeous and it was just one great experience after another. The only thing it was missing, as far as I am concerned, was a monkey or two, but I am just getting greedy. 
