indonesia Part 2

Hello again! This time I'm writing from the house of James and Mihee in Batam, Indonesia. Batam about a 3 hour flight from Bali, is a locals' city. However there are several definitions of "local" around here. 

Fist a recap of the past few days since the last post. We went to the meeting in Bali which was held in a small two story building. We sat upstairs where the meeting was actually held, while the bottom-floor seats were connected via video monitor; friends were able to answer questions when they were seen on a screen upstairs so a microphone could be brought to them. The whole auditorium probably held about a 150 people if full. The brothers don't where jackets here, which makes dealing with the climate easier, even though the hall did have air conditioning. This congregation is made up of mainly people who have traveled here from other places, like Australia and San Diego. Some retired here a few years ago, others have arrived recently, looking for an inexpensive place to live where they serve in English. Like our congregation back home, this congregation welcomes a lot of tourists just passing through, like ourselves. It's always comforting to go across the world and easily sync up with the weekly meeting program. After meeting we went to a nearby restaurant with a few locals, then headed back to the resort.

We spent another day enjoying our resort accommodations, and Sophie and I spent a good deal of the day swimming in the ocean and drinking Prost beer. In the afternoon we walked to Bali Collection, an outdoor mall across the street from our resort. We had the Indonesian version of pizza and then did some souvenir shopping. Afterwards we headed back to get packed up for our early flight to Batam, which was taking off about 6am. 

Upon arriving in Batam we had enough time to stop at James and Mihee's house, get settled and change clothes to attend their Sunday meeting. Their congregation has their assembly on the weekend, so this would be the last opportunity to attend one of their meetings. We drove to the Kingdom Hall and had our first opportunity to witness Batam driving first hand. Driving in Indonesia is essentially a free-for-all. The only rule is don't hit anyone, but otherwise, lanes, right of way, even the direction of the road are all mere suggestions! The Hall was only 10 minutes away from the house, and is a small but quaint building. It's a modest place for sure, but holds some of Jehovah's very precious "belongings". There are several Indonesian locals which attend here, as well as several imports from different places, including the Netherlands.

Batam is a majority Muslim city, but the populace is made up of primarily Indonesians and 2nd and 3rd generation Chinese. The people are largely very poor, eating on around a US dollar a day, though there are also some very wealthy communities here. Most of the friends here are using savings to live and some occasionally go back to the US to work for a few months to fund their next stay abroad.

After meeting we went to lunch with the friends and then went to a dance party at a foreign sister's place. There were many children in attendance and they danced their little hearts out, as did many of the adults. It was a casual and fun environment. 

The next day was a real blast. Some of the friends from the hall and us went to a wake boarding amusement park of sorts. It's essentially a long rectangular lake with a system of cables installed overhead. You strap on a wake board, life vest and helmet, then grab the handle on a cable and let it pull you around the lake, surfing on top of it. Getting started for your first time is very tricky, and makes for a lot of crash-landing in the water. Several of us were eventually able to get the hang of it though, and it was a real thrill to glide down even a good portion of the lake. We stayed until about 5pm enjoying association, water sports food and drink. Afterwards the group stopped at the house, and then went on to eat dinner. I however had to stay at home and try to sleep, because....

Unfortunately I've had to return to a working schedule this week, which means syncing back up to Vegas time, with mixed results. I'm typically working an 11pm-8am shift here, where the plan was to stay up afterwards for field service and association and hit the bed around 4pm. The going to bed on time part hasn't worked out real well, so i'm definitely sleep deprived and feeling it. The following day i slept in while James, Mihee and Sophie went to field service. That afternoon I went to lunch with James and another brother, then came home. The group went to see a movie while i tried to get some sleep. 

The next day, after working a full day, i went to field service with everyone else. I had a very pleasant morning working with a local Chinese brother, who thankfully did all the talking in the majority Chinese neighborhood we went too. Afterwards we met for lunch in a multi story shopping mall. Because the girls were already scheduled to get manicures in that mall, I decided to go to the movie I had missed the night before, since there was theater in the mall as well. James came with me and after doing some window shopping, we went to the movie. Afterwards we met up with the girls and came home. 

So that brings us to today. After my work shift ended I went to catch some Z's while the family went out to lunch. I've been writing this and watching movies on TV ever since. I will be going back to bed soon, and tomorrow is our last day in Batam before we start to journey home. The day will most likely be dedicated to packing up and getting ready for the trip before we board a ferry back to Singapore, where we will catch a flight to Korea, then back home! 

Hope you enjoy the pictures below. 

Indonesia 2018 so far

I'm writing this from a computer desk in our suite in Bali, Indonesia. It's Thursday afternoon here. Sophie is sitting behind me munching on salad and browsing social media. We are both enjoying our first Prost beer, a local lager that is smooth, crisp and light, similar to a Hefiweizen or BlueMoon. Today we finally got to enjoy a day of relaxation in the pools and the beach. But first, here is what has led us here.

Sophie and I departed Los Angeles Sunday on separate flights and both landed in London around 11am. We took the airport express train 15 mins to famous Paddington Station, where we checked into a nice Hilton hotel attached to Paddington. We then walked around London enjoying the cold temps (32 degrees) and taking in the sights, which included Buckingham Palace, The Wellington Arch, huge trees and Piccadilly Circus (like times square). We ate at our favorite London spot called Rules, and enjoyed our usual Prime Rib meal for two. Sooooo good we get the same thing every time. We have happy memories at Rules, and this just added to it. We didn't sleep much that night(Sleeping hasn't come easy on this trip, as our biological schedules have definitely been on Vegas time until now), so after breakfast we napped for a few hours, checked out of our hotel, and embarked on another walk. Selfridges was the destination this time, a massive department store where we sipped juice, noshed gelato, and window shopped. After walking back we grabbed our luggage, hopped on the Express train again, and boarded our flight to Singapore.

This was a 12 hour flight so we really enjoyed having the first class seats. We each had our own "pod" with lay flat seats, meal and drink service, and of course private entertainment. Since the flight left in the evening, after the dinner service was over, the massive A380 went dark and quiet so everyone could sleep. I wasn't feeling it though, and had napped the first hour and a half of the flight, so I spent the next several hours watching movies and playing a computer game. Even with all the comforts of first class, this was a loooong flight, and I was glad to deboard in Singapore. Unfortunately that wasn't the last stop, as we simply had a layover to fly on to Bali.

In Singapore we were happy to meet up with James and Mihee at the airport. The Singapore airport is in beautiful surroundings and is very clean. I witnessed a janitor using a toothbrush to clean the bathroom sink! We've seen on documentaries that Singapore is a very safe and clean place to visit, and we can vouch for that just a little bit now. I was glad that the terminal we were flying out of was brand new, and much like Terminal 3 back home, is relatively deserted. Still, after going through our 4th security inspection in about 3 days, lugging heavy luggage around massive airports, and spending a lot of time in confined spaces, I was feeling pretty haggard. The family decided to grab a light meal in the lounge before we departed, but I could only sip beer and sample dessert, and felt pretty much like the walking near-dead (walking dying?) Afterwards, we got on the worst flight of the trip, which was thankfully the shortest. The plane was about 30 mins late, which caused us a little problem in Bali. It was about 2.5 hours in a small, very crowded, stuffy Air Asia flight. They were literally pumping scented mist inside the plane from hidden dispensers above the cargo holders. I have never seen that before! It wasn't bad necessarily, but made for a weird humid environment on the flight.  I was so tired that I did snooze for about two-thirds of the flight. My neck was pretty stiff.

Finally we landed in Bali, and I was done with traveling by then (still am). Soph and I had been wearing the same clothes for about 3 days, since we only packed one cold-weather outfit for London, and we were now wearing it in the hot and humid climate of Indonesia. We couldn't wait to get to the hotel where we would be staying, shower, change and get some sleep! But first, since the Air Asia flight was late, we landed around midnight and missed the last free shuttle ride to our very near by hotel. So we had to procure a taxi, which James had warned us was going to be chaos. The cab drivers in the Bali airport approach you like peddlers in the Caribbean, trying to get you to hire them. James explained that a typical taxi ride in Indonesia might run you about three US dollars, but at the Airport, the price always starts at $20, and needs to be negotiated down. Much thanks to Mihee and James for taking the brunt of this task and getting a cab for the four of us for about $9. Considering the hotel was only six minutes away, it was still too costly, but we were glad to be on our way. We got to the Hilton Airport about one in the morning, checked into our small suites and crashed out without much fanfare. 

The next day we woke up late, enjoyed the free hotel breakfast and good conversation, and called an Uber to take us to our true destination, the Grand Hyatt resort in Bali. It was about a 30 minute ride (which cost less than our six minute ride the night before) through winding roads. The climate had turned rainy and cool. The Grand Hyatt resort is in a "gated community" for resorts so-to-speak, an isolated district made up entirely of hotels and resorts. The Hyatt is a beautiful, sprawling resort with outdoor walkways connecting all of the various hotel buildings and public areas. After a warm welcome by the staff, we relaxed in the outdoor lounge, talking and drinking the punch-like "welcome drink" while waiting for our suites to be ready. Our accommodations are amazing!; two large suites connected to each other by a shared living and dining room, with patios looking over the grounds. I was thrilled to be spending the next few nights here.

That evening, James and Mihee took us to another resort to view the sunset from their coastal cliff restaurant called "The Rock Bar". That place is amazing! Built literally into the cliff side, with the ocean and one side, it sprawls on for a half-mile, winding along the cliff like a snake. The tables look out over the ocean and normally present one of the most beautiful sunset views you could ever see. Unfortunately, due to the rainy weather, we were not able to witness the spectacle. I guess that gives us another reason to come back!

Today we slept in, had breakfast, and then finally hit the pools and connected beach. The pool grounds of the resort are awesome, with multiple large pools, including one called "The River Pool" that has rock walls and trees hanging over it to mimic a real river. Of course there are also multiple slides for the children (and children at heart ;)). Behind the main pool area is the private beach, which is only a 20 foot walk away. You can easily go from pool to beach all day if you want! We did all our swimming in the pool, but eventually we all headed to the beach for photos. The beach scenery is stunning; I couldn't quit looking at it. The sand is different here, more like the texture of a thousand small beads, rather than grains of sand. The ocean is blue green, clear, and warm. I'm sad that I only have one more day to enjoy it!

Tonight we go to the meeting, with the Kingdom Hall only being about 20 mins away. Then another day at the resort. Sunday morning we fly on to Batam, Indonesia, where James and Mihee live. I will post another update in the next few days.

Much love to everyone back home!

Danny