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Wassenaar — SIDH commemorated Indonesian National Teachers’ Day on Wednesday, 25 November 2015. This national day, which is not a holiday, was to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Indonesian Teachers’ Association. For this observance SIDH held a special ceremony led by our Principal, Mr. Budi Wahyu Rianto. Mr. Rianto addressed the audience with the speech of Indonesian Minister of Education and Culture, Dr. Anies Baswedan. The Teachers’ Hymn was also sung in the occasion. To close the celebration additionally our Students’  Association set up a flower-giving event and poem recital as a token of appreciation for our teachers and teachers elsewhere.

Wassenaar — To cheer the Tree Day 2015 our Students’ Association organised tree planting event and students race, Friday afternoon, 20 November 2015. The occasion was designed to strengthen students’ awareness to nurture green environment. Indonesia’s rain forest, home to among the most biologically diverse habitats on Earth, nowadays has been threatened by severe deforestation due to massive plantation and forest-products industry.

The fruit trees selected for the tree-planting event were sweet cherry (prunus avium) and sour cherry (prunus cerasus). They were chosen as, although cherry varieties are usually self fertile or self pollenising, the chance they would bear fruit would be larger if they were mixed. The trees were planted in our front yard. Our Principal, Mr. Budi Wahyu Rianto received the honour to plant the first cherry; and Nadia D. Zafira planted the second one on behalf of Students’ Association’s members.

Afterward the students had a run which was officially released at the starting line by Mr. Rianto. The route was from our school toward the students’ dormitory, the Freedom area and then returning to our school. On the way they carried out special and spontaneous pranks to celebrate the birthdays of some students that fall in November.

Indonesian Embassy, The Hague — To commemorate the Indonesian Heroes’ Day 2015 SIDH was entertained by the Indonesian Embassy The Hague with a movie screening event, Thursday evening, 12 November 2015. The selected movie that evening was Guru Bangsa: Tjokroaminoto. It depicted a heroic struggle of an Indonesian nationalist, Raden Mas Hadji Oemar Said Tjokroaminoto in the early 20th century.

The event was officially launched by the Chargé d’affaires of the Indonesian Embassy, Mr. Hersindaru Arwityo Ibnu Wiwoho Wahyutomo. The entertaining and learning evening was attended our home staff, local staff, teachers and, of course, our excited students. It was closed with a full dinner of truly Indonesian taste. The chance to join the event at the Indonesian Embassy was really a surprising privilege for SIDH.

Wassenaar, 9 November 2015 — During the usual Flag Ceremony SIDH held special remembrance of the Heroes’ Day 2015. It is to remember the Indonesian heroes who fought against the might of the British and Dutch armed forces during the asymmetric Battle for Surabaya, 10 November 1945. It was estimated the Indonesian side lost about 15.000 soldiers and irregular militias consisted of kyais and santris (leaders and students of Islamic madrasas) and other pro-independence supporters of all ideologies. Around 200.000 fled the devastating city. The battle itself ended in three weeks. However this bloodied event had opened the eyes of international community on the steadfastness of Indonesian people to defend their newly proclaimed independence of 17 August 1945.

This remembrance ceremony was led by our Principal, Mr. Budi Wahyu Rianto and followed solemnly by our students and teachers.

Wassenaar — The Probudi 2015 is divided into 2 activities: 1). Appreciation of International Culture; and 2). Promotion of Indonesian Culture.  For the first programme SIDH organised two-day study trip to Efteling (Netherlands), Luxembourg, and Bastogne (Belgium), 6-7 November 2015.

In Efteling the participating school community refreshed themselves. For our students it was a adrenaline-pumping activity.

In the afternoon we headed for Luxembourg and spent one night. The next morning we explored the Luxembourg City and the surrounding before came down to the Casemate du Bock (The Bock Fortifications), the remnants of fortifications in the City’s north-eastern corner. In 965 Count Siegfried built his Castle of Lucilinburhuc in the vicinity which in centuries gradually developed into the modern Luxembourg City. We witnessed and experienced how the Luxembourgers had spent their winter seasons in the vast underground system of passages and defence lines to survive the fierce attacks of the Burgundians, Hapsburgs, Spaniards, Prussians and French.

From Luxembourg we left for the Bastogne War Museum in Belgium. It is dubbed as The Living Memories of the Ardennes. Cited from its website the new museum route offers a modern memorial center and interactive context of the causes, events and consequences of the Second World War through the prism of the Battle of the Bulge. Here in groups our students and accompanying teachers strolled to view and study the expositions and memorabilia of the fiercest battle of the Second World War. Next to the museum stands the proud Mardasson Memorial to honour the memory of American soldiers wounded, missing in action or killed during the Battle the Bulge. It was very exciting experience and learning the history of heroism and patriotism.

We arrived back in Wassenaar on Saturday’s evening.

While for the second programme we have planned to provide angklung workshop to a Dutch secondary school in Hoofddorp.