Home > Activities supported by FCP Foundation > Training and Education > Student Exchange > Rinske Thöene, internship in Tasikmalaya, West Java, Indonesia
Internship in Tasikmalaya, Indonesia by Rinske Thöene
Living and working in another country and culture is a wonderful experience!
It is not always easy, but can be very rewarding.
Tasikmalaya is a place 
without tourists or Western people – a place where you can experience ‘the real Indonesia’.
For three months I learned to live and work within the Indonesian health system and with the Indonesian people.
I was surprised to discover that everybody seemed to be very interested in me, in my country and in the reason for my visit to Indonesia – my research project.
In order to carry out my research project, I traveled to a lot of small villages in the region of Tasikmalaya. I visited the local health centers, called puskesmas, to screen women who had been screened in the Female Cancer Program’s ‘See and Treat’ project from 2004 - 2006.
All the women I screened were very shy, and sometimes even scared of the ‘foreign doctor’, but after the screening they were very thankful.
Smiling seemed to help overcome the language barrier – I received and gave a lot of smiles.
The puskesmas staff at each venue 
were also very kind and seemed to enjoy getting their photographs taken – at least three group pictures each time before I had to leave.
I found doing my research project in Indonesia to be an adventure; but an adventure certainly not lacking in rice, patience, practicing English or meeting new people!