2018
Flashing through Day 3 in pictures
28 October 2018
Today, 28 October, is Hari Sumpah Pemuda (“Oath of Youth Day”), the day in 1928 when Bahasa Indonesia (Malay) was chosen as the national language to unite this diverse country with its hundreds of ethnic languages! (Also, coincidentally Jasmin’s brother Rama’s 18th birthday today!)
The festival pace increases as the stamina fades so did not even start this last night! I was so exhausted. So just a quick whiz through yesterday’s equally stimulating day in pictures while it is still fresh in my mind. The wondrous Gillian Triggs, former human rights commissioner extraordinaire, whom I heard at the Byron Bay festival too, on her memoir Speaking Up, displayed her humanity, dignity and eloquence yet again. As she passed me before the session I greeted her and she stopped for a chat. I was able to tell her she would find the Ubud audience as wildly supportive as the Byron one - she got a standing ovation at the end of her interview there, which I think I started! Still tirelessly fighting for the rights of refugees. Great lady!
(I think the stripy effect of my cropped photo makes it a work of art, no? They did not remove the screen for long - had to keep their sponsors happy!)
The festival pace increases as the stamina fades so did not even start this last night! I was so exhausted. So just a quick whiz through yesterday’s equally stimulating day in pictures while it is still fresh in my mind. The wondrous Gillian Triggs, former human rights commissioner extraordinaire, whom I heard at the Byron Bay festival too, on her memoir Speaking Up, displayed her humanity, dignity and eloquence yet again. As she passed me before the session I greeted her and she stopped for a chat. I was able to tell her she would find the Ubud audience as wildly supportive as the Byron one - she got a standing ovation at the end of her interview there, which I think I started! Still tirelessly fighting for the rights of refugees. Great lady!
(I think the stripy effect of my cropped photo makes it a work of art, no? They did not remove the screen for long - had to keep their sponsors happy!)
Cancellation of the second session meant a whole hour off (no energy for running down the hill to the other venues) so had the opportunity to catch up with several festival friends in the cafe area. Among them Michael Vatikiotis, - he wanted my advice on getting an Indonesian translation of his English novel set in Yogyakarta’s art community Painter of Lost Souls - I had given it its first edit years ago. He wanted to know how much he should pay an Indonesian translator. I was able to give him the highly varying rates we get paid to translate Indonesian to English. Soon after I was chatting to an Australian publisher who happened to mention a book, in Italian I think, that she had recently published in English. I asked how much she had paid the translator - $14,000! That is the first time I had ever heard what international publishing rates can be. To put that in perspective, my first novel of 380 pages paid me $1000! But we are helping launch Indonesian literature into the world and know that Indonesian publishers cannot afford to pay exorbitant international rates. Nor can Michael for his book.
I see my vow to make this a photo only email is failing. I am such a garrulous wordsmith, I can’t help myself.
Panel of “Outsiders looking in” – non-Indonesians with lifelong insights into working on Indonesian issues - with the incisive Sidney Jones, Janet Steele and Australian, Ross Tapsell. Ross’s youth makes his perspective quite fresh - he said he was the only bulé among the tens of thousands at the anti-Ahok demonstrations in December 2016 (he was there to gauge the mood) and while the Muslim fanatacist speakers were warning the crowd against foreigners, the people around him all wanted selfies with him!
I see my vow to make this a photo only email is failing. I am such a garrulous wordsmith, I can’t help myself.
Panel of “Outsiders looking in” – non-Indonesians with lifelong insights into working on Indonesian issues - with the incisive Sidney Jones, Janet Steele and Australian, Ross Tapsell. Ross’s youth makes his perspective quite fresh - he said he was the only bulé among the tens of thousands at the anti-Ahok demonstrations in December 2016 (he was there to gauge the mood) and while the Muslim fanatacist speakers were warning the crowd against foreigners, the people around him all wanted selfies with him!
Then invited to lunch at the upmarket restaurant (Italian!) Uma Cucina by Diana Darling, my editor on many translations, for our annual catch up. Isla, whose work she edits too, but they had never met each other, joined us. Blue crab risotto! Splendid luncheon in every way.
After lunch was Fatima Bhutto (niece of Benazir), writer of novels - a beauty and a brilliant author by all accounts. Not a word in the interview of her family’s extraordinary past and all the ghastly assassinations - I heard that she’s here strictly to talk about her novels. I must read her latest. She had been at one of the very early festivals too and i have a dramatic photo of her then that I cannot locate.)
That’s all for now folks. Day 4 is rushing in to pull me away! Big 15th festival Birthday Bash today. I feel like it is my birthday too! Fifteen years of festivals to look back over.