Week 8: Three Groups for Summer 2027

If my little family and I could settle in Indonesia, if we could make a living by introducing this beautiful country to tourists from all over the world, if the money we raise could help the children of our village build a better future — these are the dreams that carry me forward. The groups for summer 2027 have been formed. Eleven adventurers will set off to discover Java from July 19 to 31, fourteen will follow them from July 31 to August 12, and four will bring up the rear from August 12 to 24. We would have liked to place some people from July 7 to 19, but very few were available then. Same issue for late August. No problem. The local travel agency will arrange two minibuses instead of one, book larger villas and strengthen the support team, and our various outings will run like clockwork. The last group, for their part, will enjoy a smaller team and get to explore Indonesia at a more relaxed pace.

Group 1: The Younger Generation Takes the Wheel

The very first travelers looked after by Java Horizon are almost all visually impaired and studying in the Paris region. We have three members of a first-year physiotherapy class at AVH Paris, along with two friends from Nanterre recommended to us by one of the students in that class. We're also welcoming another AVH Paris trainee, studying to become a wellness practitioner, who signed up with a friend from Toulouse. He lives in the Pink City himself. One last globetrotter from the school, who is planning to marry a Thai woman, will be joining too. Finally, we'll welcome a braille teacher, as well as a former AVH Paris student from the 1990s, now a massage physiotherapist in the Deux-Sèvres department, who is traveling with her daughter. Seven out of eleven therefore have a direct connection to the AVH Paris vocational training center and will have plenty of stories to swap about the institution.

Group 2: Families on the Move

Our second contingent has a very family-oriented, cosmopolitan feel. A couple of Moroccan origin and their two daughters, a French-Syrian couple, a French-Algerian couple and two Tunisian brothers form the heart of this cheerful bunch. To round it out, a French-Moroccan friend is sending us her mother, the French-Algerian couple is bringing along a French friend, the French-Syrian couple is packing a neighbor in their suitcases, and a woman from Nantes of North African descent is joining the party. Most of this group is Muslim and will be delighted to visit Indonesia's magnificent mosques. The others, less driven by spirituality, will easily find their place within this big, open and caring family.

Group 3: Strangers at the End of the World

Unlike the first two groups, where many members know each other and have things in common, this final team doesn't really have a common thread. A Breton fan of his region's traditional music, a woman from Toulouse who speaks Esperanto, a French-speaking German and a dad from northern France active in community work: that's how we might sum them up in a few words. The woman from Toulouse and the German do know each other, though, and all of them are over forty. They are also blind or severely visually impaired, and will therefore be accompanied by carefully selected local guides to assist them as best as possible throughout their stay.

Coming up this week

The WhatsApp groups will start coming to life, and everyone will be able to get to know each other at their own pace. I'll ask them to fill out a medical questionnaire so we can assess each person's specific needs, and then we can turn to the plane tickets. Which airlines offer the best quality, and which are the cheapest? Which routes are least disrupted by the conflicts currently unfolding around the world? We'll discuss together the best way to reach Indonesia without a hitch and without blowing the budget.