Epilogue ASIAN GAMES 2018

Epilogue

ASIAN GAMES 2018

Author : Syifaa Azzahra

Editor : Yunindya Astria

Proofreader : Rizki Nur Cholifah

Once I got back to Jakarta and shared my experiences with my fellow Volunteers in Jakarta, I learned that the volunteer system in Jakarta and Palembang was very different. The same division could even have different duties. One thing that really stood out to me was the rules that we had to obey. In Palembang, Volunteers were not allowed to have their phones with them at all times. We could if no body found out, but if we did get caught, we would surely get scolded and could even get our Accreditatin Card (AD) taken away. And so that included not allowing us to make updates on social media (this is why I got none). In Jakarta, they had the freedom to have their phones, but of course under rational circumstances. In Palembang, PAs were not even allowed to sit down, we had to stick to our VIP all the time. Though I never got scolded for sitting down, a lot of my friends did. One time, one of my friend’s AD card was taken just because she had long nails. And some National Olympic Committee-Relations Volunteer also had their ADs taken just because they were accompanying their athletes in the golf car. Although all these people had their ADs back later, but the regulations that were made for us were just irrational.

I’m not saying that the volunteers in Jakarta did not have their rules and regulations, but they were more rational and flexible. And so that eased their working process and they could even have made better memories. One thing about Jakarta though. I heard that the PAs and VPAs were really arrogant, they saw themselves as being superior and they did not want to be called volunteers. Well of course not everyone was like that, but rumor has it. While Palembang, The PAs were especially very humble and kind.

And if you ask me, whether all the sacrifices I made for Palembang was worth it, I would say, it was more than worth it. It was a priceless experience. I got to do things that I probably would not be able to do anywhere else. I assisted the best VIP, working for them was a happiness and it wasn’t awkward as I had imagined. I met friends, especially the PA friends who were genuine, humble, loyal. Although Palembang is a really quiet place. If you go out at 9 P.M. no body is outside and all the doors are already closed. but the culinaires never dissapoints my taste buds. But the most important thing about Palembang is that it’s not so much of a great city without the warmth of the people inhabitting the place.

I’d like to thank my parents for letting your daughter go on an adventure, for giving me the freedom to take chances and to believe in myself.

I would like to thank my aunt and uncle for taking me to enjoy Palembang foods and let me see the Ampera Bridge for the first time even though they were tired from work.

I want to thank Mr. Lubis for giving me and Alsya a comfortable place to stay.

I’d like to thank Alsya for being a good friend for everything. Nindy for being a sister to me even ‘til now. Tri, Riffie, Cindy, Abyan and Mila for being my very first friends I had even before the Game started.

I’d like to thank Mr. And Mrs. Seymour for accepting me as your assistant and treating me very well even though I had many weaknesses and made many mistakes in my assistance.  You even gave me a permission for Eidl Adha prayer. From the deepest part of me I’d like to say that I am very honoured and I’ll never forget the kindness you gave me.

I’d like to thank INASGOC for successfully having the 2018 Asian Games in 2 cities. For letting me a part of the International Relations and Protocol Department.

Thank you for everyone in the Bowling Venue, every time I listen to an Asian Games Official Theme song, I feel like it takes me back to when I stood there and watched the athletes played the game, and everyone was doing their thing and encompassing me. I miss that.

Last but not least, Thank you to all the Protocol Assistant friends that I can’t mention one by one, but you made my memories a thousand times more beautiful and unique.

 

Core Story ASIAN GAMES 2018

Core Story

ASIAN GAMES 2018

Author : Syifaa Azzahra

Editor : Yunindya Astria

Proofreader : Rizki Nur Cholifah

Introduction

            My voluntary journey in the Asian Games 2018 was no ordinary journey. I experienced so many things through this event, Probably from A to Z. And you wouldn’t believe it but it all started from one little accident.

            Long story short, I was t saying goodbye to my three friends from my Student Study Service. It was so hard leaving them and the other 15 back at the rent house. I was full of regrets for leaving them. Staying with them for 20 days were probably some of the best time I had in my life. And parting from them was also probably the worst. My friend, Alsya, who was about to be my 1 month roommate was already waiting for me at the airport. So I, with a heavy heart brought my suitcases and board the plane.

            The first 2 days I spent in Palembang I felt gloomy, quiet, and unfamiliar. At that time, I never knew that the following month were about to be literally the best time in my entire life.

            My position in The 2018 Asian Games Jakarta-Palembang was as a volunteer. I was in the International Relations and Protocol Department (IRP). My Division was Protocol Assistant (PA). Assigned as a Protocol Assistant for the Representative of Asian Bowling Federation. Sounds cool, right? Well, it is. At first glance, I thought being in IRP was the worst. Because my duties were the most random and different. What I’m trying to say is that every individual in our division had different roles on how to assist our VIP guests based on their needs and what kind of situation we would face from their arrival to their departure. I’m sure you can imagine how complicated it was. Our VIP’s work schedule depended on how we used our senses and made decisions. It was huge responsibility, After some time, I learned that my division was better than I thought, and I didn’t regret every effort I made into becoming one of the members in my division.

            One of the best things of being PA is our blue uniform which I preferred over the yellw and orange one. Also, the number of people wearing blue was the most rare. So not only did we looked awesome, but we were also precious. That’s why I never wore my jacket, so it’d be easier for people to find me even when it was super cold in the Bowling Venue. Another thing is, I had access to so many places, almost everywhere except the dining hall. But I still got to access all competition venues and all VIP rooms,

            The first four days I spent as a volunteer was only waiting. While at it, I helped out the Venue Protocol Attendants (VPA) in the Bowling center. It was awkward, because it’s not supposed to be my primary duties.  But I got to meet great people, such as the venue manager (VM), competition manager (CM) and also some of the sports steering commitee (SSC) who acted as the protocols. On the 18^th of August, the competition manager told me that someone from the Asian Bowling Federation arrived and he’s supposed to land in Palembang exactly that moment as he spoke. I was surprised, scared, and confused at the same time. Because I was supposed to know all these informations at least a day before, and the person in charge of this in my division told me nothing. What dissapointed me more was that I so badly wanted to do my job perfectly including welcoming my guest from the first time he landed on Palembang. And I just lost that chance. Fortunately, some PAs were on stand by at the airport so I asked them a favor to take care of the luggage, transportation, accreditation card and other things he might have needed. The least I could do at the time was to immediately leave to the hotel where my guest would be staying.

            My VIP’s name is Michael Seymour from Australia. I was very lucky because we spoke the same kind of English, so communicatin was not a problem. He is the Vice President of the Asian Bowling Federation and acted Technical Delegates in the Tenpin Bowling Game of Asian Games 2018. It was an honour for an ordinary person like me to be his assistant. He was a great persn to work for and it made things even better

            The next day I was so excited for work because my guest was finally here. And I’ve been jealous of my friends who were assisting from way before. I went to the Bowling Center with Mr. Seymor in the morning. A few hours later, I went to the airport to pick up another VIP guest from the Asian Bowling Federation, Her name is Emba Leung from Hong Kong. She was the Honorary Secretary General of the Asian Bowling Federation. Only this time, I wasn’t late. I even got to pick her straight from the airplane door. I mean literally the airplane door. I was allowed to cross those boundaries because I was a protocol, I rode on some kind of special airport car, and I thought... I loved my job so much. I was actually supposed to assist her, but I didn’t because I already assisted Mr. Seymour. So my Friend, Cindy was the one assisting Mrs. Leung from that onwards.

            On the 20^th of August, Mr. Seymour’s wife came. And I picked her directly from the airport. The best thing was that she was an Indonesian. So she and I were like friends. We spoke in Indonesian and chit-chatted about many things. She’s a really nice and humble person. The first time she entered her hotel room, she took me inside her room and gave me food from her hometown. I am really by her kindness. From there, we went straight to the Bowling center and we even did some shopping later on that day.

            So the next few days I always left my place really early in the morning and head to the hotel and pick the Seymours. After they finish  breakfast they usually handed me some fruits to eat for breakfast. We’d leave the hotel afterwards and go straight to the bowling center.

            Everyone in the Bowling Center were really friendly and nice to work with. My fellow Protocol Assistants often told me that they would find arrogant and unfriendly people out there. But that never happened to me. So that was another thing I was thankful for. Whatever their duties were, they were always really kind to me, even though I was a minority in terms of division and clothing, I still managed to make friends with  everyone.

            The other volunteers always told me whenever there were problems. Especially when it came to language. Most of them accepted my advices. I was not being a show-off but I felt like I was seen as a know-it-all even though I certainly knew very little. So I did much more than I should have as a Protocol which I was more than happy to do. One day, I was asked to get an athlete’s shoe in his room in the athlete village. It wasn’t me that they asked for, but I was the only volunteer there who had access to the athlete village beside the VPAs, who were always busy in the VIP Room. So I embarked on an adventure to get the shoe, I walked on what seemed like a Saharan Desert, took a bus, and finally arrived. Even as I got there and came inside the athlete’s room with one of the officials. I got scolded for not knowing how a bowling shoe looked like. I wish I could just say, “I wasn’t responsible for the game, I was responsible for the VIP. I wasn’t supposed to know those informations.” But of course I kept it to myself. The day was a long day. But you know, sometimes you get sad, angry, annoyed, and panicked at the moment a story is created in your life, but after some time, you’ll be grateful it happened because it becomes a memorable part of life. Just like me telling you this story.

            I even got to be friends with the security officials that include university students, Police Officers and some from the army. Maybe the fact that I came from somewhere else outside the town that’s not Palembang made other people interested and many of them would often ask, “Why’d you want to take so much risk just to be a volunteer here?” which I was still confused what to answer at the time, but probably it was because it was a once in a lifetime experience I had to take. Aside from that, we talked about many things. They’d even ask about where to get the volunteer’s uniform because it looked better than theirs.

            I feel that I was also close to some of the Sports Steering Committee(SSC) who were middle aged women. They were Mrs. Tuti and Mrs. Lina. Maybe because they also came from Jakarta, so we kind of share the same story of being in a foreign place that’s so much more quiet than Jakarta.

            Some of the best time of the day happened when there’s another VIP guest who came over. Not that I got to interact with them, but because I knew that my PA friends would be coming over and it felt like a family from home was visiting me. Even when I had never actually spoken to that person before, we eventually got to know each other better. For example, my friend, Nindy, who assisted the VIP guests from Malaysia came to the Bowling Center a lot because her VIP guests wanted to go there often. And then she’d be like a sister seeing her little sister and we’d have some conversation about the issues we had in the past days. She’s now like my real sister. It’s not that I’m not close with other volunteers at the venue, but just by having someone of my own origin around me feels comfortable because we share the same problems, experiences, thoughts, and errands,

            Even when there came days that no PAs would come over, it was always a good day. In the morning when we first arrived in the Bowling venue, either Mr. or Mrs. Seymour would take me to the VIP Lounge and asked me what food I wanted and they’d grab some for me. In lunch time, they’d give some food from the athlete or VIP lounge, or sometimes, Mrs. Seymour would take me outside and we’d get some different varieties of food. I can’t remember how many kinds of food we had in different places. When the day started to get dark, and some Volunteers whose shifts were over have left, the place started to get quiet and that’s when I’d talk to the remaining volunteers, the Security Officials and just about anyone I happen to pass by. But I guess most of the time I would spend standing beside Mrs. Seymour, had some talks, went out for food, or looked at other venues. Whatever it was, I enjoyed every second of it.

            To be in my division required us to do so many things, including to be frank unexceptionally and unconditionally kind to every single person that passes by. So that’s why I was always smiling, bowing down, and even greeted everyone that crossed my eyes. At first it was kind of a burden because I’m a shy person, but getting out of my comfort zone makes me feel good, even though it was awkward and I was afraid that when I greeted people first, they’d think I was a weirdo or something. But I took that challenge, and the responses weren’t bad at all. Maybe it’s true what people say that creating a smile even though there’s nothing to be happy about will make you feel better.

PA's work hour was unpredictable, some of us started to work at 6, some other started at 10, sometimes we’d finish in the evening at 4 and some other days we got home at midnight. For me alone, my work hours usually started at 7 and could end at 11 P.M. One day, I finished work before 8 P.M. and decided to accompany my friend to watch a movie that started at 10 P.M., I ended falling asleep almost the entire movie. we came back home at 1.30 A.M. and I was regretting myself because I had to leave early the next day. Even though I felt like a zombie the entire next day, I believe I made the right decision. I hated the idea of spending a precious hour in Palembang doing nothing, so I wanted to make every single hour worthwhile, even if it was just watching a movie. Every passing day sometimes felt tiring, but I realize I had to make beautiful memories every day. It was the kind of exhaustion that gave me satisfaction. That I was spending my time into doing something worthwhile.

The saddest day came on August 29. Because the Seymours had to go back. After all the memories and all the kindness they gave me, they had to go home. I was crying on the way back home. After that day, I didn’t really have much to do. I no longer visited the Bowling Venue. But still visited the Athlete Village. Untill September 2nd, I spent most of it in the airport’s VIP Lounge, waiting for a VIP to come. One day, I got the chance to take a selfie with Mr. Erick Tohir, The head of INASGOC. The time spent there really brought me closer with the other PAs because in the free time, we’d talk about random insights and I liked it. Sometimes, the VIP Lounge staffs would give us extra food that was supposed to be for the VIPs and we’d eat together. It was fun.

From the 3rd to the 5th of September, I spend (spent) everyday with my PA friends. went for Karaoke, had a farewell party, and sent our friends who came from outside of Palembang. Till I had to send Alsya back home. It was sad, but we’re still in touch even till now. In the evening, I was the one who had to go back. The saddest part is that I always leave people and places behind when I was finally fully accustomed to them. It was the same kind of feeling when I left my KKN friends, but worse. Inevitably, I had to keep going, like everyone always does in life.

This journey has been extraordinary in every way posibble. Like every other journey, I always learn something new and astonishing for my simple self. This story will be a part of my life History that I will never forget even the tiniest bit. From the moment I decided to choose that peculiar city, I never in my wildest dreams thought that it would lead me to a sequence of adventure, emotions, people, and much tougher decisions to make. Things happen for a reason and I hope the experiences and the new family I gained will lead me to greater journey in the future. Whatever the challenge is, I’ll take it.