from the horizon

Arriving back in Indonesia was so much better than I ‘d expected. On the way from the airport, I was able to chat with the driver in my broken Indonesia. I feel connected in this contry. Secondly Jakarta is similar to any other westernized Asian city. There are skyscrapers, malls, fast food chain, nice restaurants and nightclubs: All the accepted indicators of civilization.

I had mixed feelings about my accommodation. I am staying in the Ambhara Hotel, which was very plush by my standards. I did a little dance of glee when entered my room, it was nicely decorated, with a bed that I actually fitted in, and all those hotel toiletries, which just make me feel pampered. There was room service, a laundry service, masseurs (complete with happy ending service if so desired), a buffet breakfast, a gym (which balance each other off). On arrival I was no longer worried about spending the 2 weeks in Jakarta. I am living in the lap of luxury. But I felt guilty for the extravagance (and expense) of it all, that was being provided for me by a charity organization. I have managed to resolve that feeling by reminding myself how difficult all the traveling and working in new environments is, and appreciating all the things, such as this hotel, which make it easier.

My work here is interesting. I’m developing another database to help the organization manage over 100 million dollars worth of grants, and their associated budgets. I know that this is important for the organization, but I feel totally removed from the actually development work that is being done. When I am playing with lines of Visual Basic code on the computer, it is hard to feel connected to the beneficiaries who we are trying to help.

The traffic and pollution in Jakarta isn’t as bad as I thought it would be. I’m doing my bit, and walking the 15 minutes to work, it’s probably quicker than driving anyway.

Something I don’t see every day:

Last weekend I was exploring around Jakarta and came across a TV show being filmed on the street. I started chatting with a guy there who trained a group of actors. The conversation was more in Indonesian than English, so my understanding was fairly limited. He managed to communicate that they were having a practice the next day, and wrote down the address, complete with instructions on which bus to catch. So the next day, I managed to get myself onto the bus as instructed, and found my way to their “theatre” – which turned out to be in a hall belonging to the Navy. The best way I could describe the group would be as amateur actors, and after a large amount of waiting, I finally got to see them practice. I would describe it would be a cross between theatre sports and improvisational dance with an Indonesian flavour.

It was interesting to get this view inside Indonesian society, and to see the similarities between our different cultures.