Pointing the way home

Wan Jing/China Daily

Unlike more popular languages, there are no textbooks for Indonesian studies, not to mention other auxiliary materials.

Prabowo had to compile his own books by surfing the Internet, comparing notes, cross-examining what other universities were doing, and scouting from his shelves of books.

One of his compilations is called Mari Mengenal Indonesia (Let's get to know Indonesia), which covers topics from Indonesia's multiculturalism to its economic growth.

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In the last three years, Prabowo has been on the editing board of the Indonesian version of the international Chinese teaching syllabus and contributed to several Mandarin-to-Indonesian dictionaries.

For a class with senior students, he would assign an original Indonesian novel and discuss it in relation to the country's social, political and economical status. He also often passes around a bag of Indonesian sweets in class.

"His is the most authentic class," says Zhang Dongdong, who has studied the language and culture with Prabowo for the last three years. Zhang adds that he likes the relaxed atmosphere of Prabowo's class, as well as his energetic and encouraging teaching methods. "His tag line is this, 'dui' (right)."

For both Christian and Chinese festivals, the class will visit Prabowo's home near the campus, where he lives alone. "We sometimes cook for him," says Hu Zhuoyi, another senior student.

"My students are my hands and limbs. They're my family," Probowo says.

He makes friends with everyone, from the boiler man to the school president. In return, they treat him like a local. "Whenever I joke about not getting treated well like an expatriate, they will retort by saying 'but you don't need that!'" he laughs.

Prabowo says he truly experienced the Indonesian saying, "Tak kenal maka tak sayang" (You won't love someone/something unless you get to know that person/it) in China.

He has fallen in love with China's food - "I'll never grow tired of it!" - gotten used to severe winters and become a deft user of Chinese messaging instruments such as renren.com, Sina Weibo and QQ.

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"You should always immerse yourself in a new place, otherwise you have not really lived there."

He says he's aware of the responsibilities for the country he has come to love. "I'd like to contribute whatever I can to enhance China's and Indonesia's understanding of each other. As a teacher, I should be a bridge that links the two countries," he says.

Because of Prabowo's influence, Hu Zhuoyi says she aspires to work in areas related to bilateral communication in the future.

On Dec 5, Prabowo met China's top political leader Xi Jinping together with some 20 other foreign experts. He exchanged ideas to expand the existing educational exchange programs between China and Indonesia, with the hope that more young teachers and local Indonesians can be enlisted in the programs.

"My dream, or my China dream is to see China becoming a greater, more stable country and that will benefit everyone, including neighboring Indonesia," he adds.

Contact the writer at sunye@chinadaily.com.cn.