Time Has Come!

Yes, the time has come to get with the times... Thus, the new blog site. No more clogging your e-mail boxes with our e-mails. You can come here to see what's new with me and Chris.

tea fields 

fruit market 

hungry hippo 

Libby w/leopard 

Chris w/chimps 

Cubs 

traffic 

Countdown & Joys of Jakarta, Indonesia

During the past 24 days, we have endured five countries and changes in hotels, cultures, languages, currency, and food. We’ve enjoyed the new sights we’ve seen, the embedded impressions / memories about each culture / country, the 72 meals we didn’t cook, and most of all the sharing of our American culture and technologies with those we’ve encountered. With all that being said, in two days, we will make our 24-hour journey back to the United States. I am yearning America and all it has to offer – a feeling I last felt when I was stationed overseas while I was in the Air Force. I have thoroughly enjoyed the new experiences, but I am (we are) also ready to come home to resume our lives – even if I have to start cooking again! I have always considered myself a proud, patriotic American, but this time away has made me appreciate our democracy and freedom even more.

Overall, we have enjoyed our time in Jakarta. The hospitality in the other countries was great, but our Indonesian hosts are above reproach. They have gone out of their way to make our stay in Jakarta most enjoyable and safe. We’ve found Indonesians to be jovial people. There is always a lot of joking and laughter which puts one at ease and ensures a good time. At their insistence, they treated us to dinner most nights, and I felt like I was at a table with family rather than at a business dinner. If you know me as well as you should, that’s a huge statement. Oh, by the way, the fork is optional – most Indonesians eat with their hands (everything meat, rice, garnishes) – maybe that’s why the table atmosphere is so relaxed. How serious can one be when eating with their hands?

With the continued terrorist threat, we have been very careful and safe. Since being here, I haven’t been out in the city without a local host because it is not safe. So much so, when I meet Chris for dinner at night, Chris’s host sends a driver and an escort for me (not wanting me to catch a cab to the dinner location which I have done in most other countries.) We also learned the reason why we go through airport-like security (bag /body checks, metal detectors, and guard carrying an M-16 gun) at our hotel. Our hotel was bombed a couple of years ago. With the reinforced security, the Marriott is now slated as the safest hotel in Jakarta according the locals. One night we went to the hotel disco and we became the “object of protection” – the 6+ foot, security guard was always within 3 ft of us…

I must “RETRACT” my original statement about Jakarta “appearing” to be more structured and organized. That was late night deception – kinda like judging the DC traffic Sunday at midnight. If at all possible, Jakarta’s traffic is WORSE than Manila’s, and to put it in perspective, it is about 10 times worse than DC’s. You see, the deceiving part for me were the LINES on the roads. I ASSUMED this meant structure. Well, it doesn’t. Jakarta does not have a public transportation system and often two lane roads are turned into 4 lanes, there is no police enforcement, and the situation is complicated further because of all the motorcycles. They out number cars 3 to 1 and is the main mode of transportation for most because they cannot afford cars. It is common to see a whole family (two adults and two children) on one motorcycle. They speed along and weave in between the cars – making driving here a hazard! The wait time, at times, is unpredictable and unbearable. That being said, there does seem to be an ebb and flow here with few accidents. It is a mystery to me…

The class distinction in Indonesia is very similar to that in the Philippines and it is an “understood” way of living. Chris’s host has 3 live-in servants and 2 drivers (one for himself and one for his wife.) They pay their live-in servants the equivalent to $40 per month. Amazing!

While in Jakarta, we enjoyed lots of shopping, new fruit, and great meals. We also traveled outside of Jakarta into the countryside villages (Puncak and Bogor) where we saw tea farms (most of which are farmed by hand – not machines), botanical gardens, and we enjoyed a safari. (Pics attached are from tea farm (1640); fruit market (1639) safari – these pics are NOT zoomed or altered!! (1584, 1614, 1616, 1621), us near Dutch maritime museum (1529), and traffic (1645).

So, to my “readers,” I must bid you an “adieu” for now -- this is the FINAL EDITION of this trip's recap and during this time, most of you have endured 7 pages of single spaced typed text and 35 pictures.

We will be in touch with you once we are home!