Ok. So we are here in Indonesia. There is a bunch of us, Dave is the Canadian with so many bugbites he kind of looks like he has chickenpox and he is always taking pictures, Heather is from Pennsylvania and used to milk cows. There is Ben, a doll, really, and does he do a mean British accent! Mars, Marcia, some call her Marisa-from New York, very Hilary-esque (Taub that is). Josh is typical Indo, hip hop extraordinaire, my little brother in some circles. Kristi has been working in Vietnam, then Laos and now is doing this. We have all been together EVERY day. Every night. We are a very interesting family at this point.
We left Chiang Mai and flew to Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. Had several hours layover and then made it to Jakarta where we stayed at the VIA house. For anyone who doesnt know, I brought my blanket from home. I know, it doesn’t seem like me to do something so ridiculous but I did. And then I left it on the plane. How annoying right? But, alas, they found our group and hand delivered it. But it is the blanket that got me through the homestay from hell…
But I will spare anyone reading this the details. I think I have been talking about it too much to really feel like writing about it. We made it to Yogyakarta in one piece, blankets and all. It is a miracle. The overnight train was not especially terrible or great. Thank baby jesus for tiger balm, though, because the smell of pee did linger longer than we would have liked. Smudge some of that greasy stuff on your top lip and you are in business! And thank god for the non-Muslim in charge of making the food/drink menu. There was beer, which Marisa and I drank out of a straw. My first time, possibly the last, I haven’t decided. We started language classes at Wisma Bahasa, which is a language school. They are going well. The language isn’t too difficult, it is just the remembering everything that is starting to become a pain. Not too much really going on. I have pancakes for breakfast on the roof of the guesthouse I am staying in every morning. They are more like crepes, thin pancakes. They are served with honey and a side of pineapple. The coffee is less than impressive, for Java that is. I mean, it is basically an inch or so of black sludge at the bottom of your cup. Not my idea of a good time, so I have since made the move back to tea. The food here is really fantastic. Alot of it is fried, which I try to stay away from. The tempeh is like nothing in the states. The flavor is insane!! I could easily be a vegetarian with food like this.
I have a cell phone here so if anyone has some extra minutes on their international calling cards, feel free to give me a ring. The number is 011 62 812 27 433601.
