School visit in the villages near Maumere

We were very excited to accompany the English teacher Bert to his classes and set off early in the morning by taxi to a small village near Maumere. The night before, we bought lots of candies and pencils for the children. We visited three different schools in different villages. As soon as we arrived, the children eagerly ran towards us, surrounded us, and followed us. While we were in the classrooms, children from other classes hung out of the windows and curiously watched us. We felt like superstars there. The oldest children were 12-14 years old, the youngest about 7. The youngest even sang us a song. We were able to talk to the children. They told us about their hobbies: cooking, singing, and shopping for the girls, football for the boys - for example, Real Madrid was the favorite team of several children, or Manchester United. One class touched me particularly, about 30-40 children surrounded us and one by one shook our hands, bowed their heads, and briefly touched our hands to their foreheads. A few girls taught me a traditional dance. As we walked past a class of younger students, they all ran out of the classroom and the teachers had trouble keeping them back. We were introduced to various teachers and school principals. It was very hot and also a exhausting morning. We had lunch at the teacher's friend's family: rice, spinach, and something made of eggs. There too, we were the center of attention for the children. After that, we went to the teacher's house. He wanted to organize the further journey for us. As this always takes time in Asia, we went swimming on the beach behind the house. Here too, we had a group of about 15 children with us in the water, and the neighbors also joined us. The children climbed a tree and jumped into the water from there. A girl took photos with Elena's camera and family members posed obediently. After refreshing ourselves, it was already evening and our transport finally arrived to take us back to Maumere. We sat on a loading platform with about 10 other people. In Maumere, a driver was waiting for us, and we continued into the mountains to Mount Kelimutu, our next stop on the island of Flores. I believe that the visit to the villages was one of the most beautiful and intense experiences of this trip and of my life. I have never encountered such nice, cheerful, lovable, and warm-hearted people anywhere else, so we were a bit sad when we said goodbye.