Where Energy Drinks Rule

By this point in time, I've had many conversations, with many people about the amount of sleep people get in Guyangan and Pati. I may have mentioned this before (I can't remember now) but I'm actually in the town of Guyangan, just outside of Pati. Anyway as you might have guessed, people in the small towns, especially, are very devout Muslims, which means getting up at 4:30am or 5:00am to pray every day of every week. So, most people here are running on 5 or 6 hours of sleep on a regular basis, even the students. Sometimes they find time for napping during the day, but it's not like something they have built into their schedule. The fact surprised me because of how much even indonesians joke about the fact that they are really laid back. One person said to me, "Indonesians never sweat when they work, only when they eat!" This, of course, was in reference to their spice food.

But from what I have noticed, especially with the teacher crowd, is that these people are very busy and have very little free time. Most teacher work at least 3 jobs, whether it's working at three different schools, private tutoring, or just some odd job. This means that, with a daily ritual of prayer (5 times a day), they have very little time to sleep. Most of the time I've witnessed someone praying, the actual preparation for the ritual takes the most time because they must cleanse themselves thoroughly and then change clothes. They probably spend 1 and a half to 2 hours praying a day... everyday... pretty much everyone.

So, it's pretty funny because every time I watch indonesian television, the commercial breaks are full of advertisements for energy drinks and caffeine pills. M150 Energy and Stamina or two brands that I see advertised literally every commercial break on certain stations. Not to mention, every time I sit down at the school with teachers, they are drinking coffee or tea, every time, any time of day. They must think I'm lazy as hell for getting my 8 hours. Oh well, not something I'm willing to sacrifice! :-)