Jenny’s Journies

Wednedsay, 29 March 2006 @ 1:56pm. There isn’t much news to report. I’m working at the office today in an attempt to “catch up” on work. I feel as though I am very behind in my research, but just keep telling myself that I am probably where I need to be and cannot push things.

Blogsome crashed yesterday and there were a whole lot of bloggers who were none too pleased with the situation. The Blogsome forum was full of complaints and concerns. What a lesson. I should have known to save my posts and will starting today.

Julie introduced me to a great Korean restaurant on Monday. It’s called New Korea Tower if I remember correctly and it’s located on the 30th floor of a high-rise building near the Freedom Institute. The veggie side dishes were great and though the menu was a bit pricey, the restaurant served quality food. One cool thing was that hot tea was served at the beginning along with a very cold washcloth to wipe your hands. Later, cold tea was served with the main course. At first, I was a little surprised my tea was cold and thought it was a mistake. Then I realized that cold tea is exactly what you need when eating spicy Korean food.

Sunday, 26 March 2006. Yesterday was very nice. I went to a friend’s house in South Jakarta for a BBQ/potluck. I met some new people and had great conversations. We also watched a silly movie: “Old School.” It wasn’t a great movie, but sometimes you need to hear “Americanisms.” My friend has a large VCD collection, so I borrowed a few to watch later this week. VCDs are really popular here and widely available. The originals are quite good, but the pirated copies can be hit or miss. Prices are pretty reasonable for foreign and domestic films, too.

This morning I went to a demonstration. The demonstrators gathered at the roundabout near Plaza Indonesia, which is a popular place to have demos/protests. They were in support of the anti-pornography and pornographic action law. I didn’t stay for very long, though. I heard part of one speech, but then left. I felt like I stood out like a sore thumb in part because I was the only woman not wearing Muslim attire. I also didn’t have an assistant or friend with me, and it is usually easier to have a male present as a go-between, representative, and/or “protector.” I basically didn’t want my personal security or respectability to be called into question. In any case, I snapped a couple of pictures:

This banner is a call to legalize the anti-porn bill now.

This is a picture of the demonstration from a distance. I took the photo from a nearby pedestrian bridge.

Finally, here are some random notes:

1) Just when you are feeling down, life can present you with something of beauty: I saw two butterflies - one black and turquoise blue, the other black and yellow - that each had wings larger than my hands. They flew past me in downtown Jakarta. Who would have thought nature like that lived so close by?

2) While there are some very serious and negative things that can come along with “globalization,” I can’t help but appreciate that Starbucks is in town and sells decent cheesecake, Washington apples are sold in supermarkets, and American t.v. shows often air here.

3) My bathroom now has new tiles, but they aren’t level, so water sometimes spills out into the rest of my room.

4) The more I learn about Indonesian politics, the more I realize I don’t know anything… but this is probably true for most things, right?

5) Making friends here is really, really, really hard. Someone actually told me that it’s not just difficult for foreigners; it’s hard for Western-educated Indonesians to make friends here as well. I have been told and have personally experienced that it is relatively easy to make acquaintances and network, but deep, close friendships are rare. This makes me sad.

Friday, 24 March 2006 @ 3:18pm. Here’s a brief update of current events:

Pornography bill — The debate and protests for and against the bill continue. Recent articles stated that the bill would be changed to focus on the distribution of pornographic materials (e.g., magazines, internet, and films), not “pornoaksi” (pornographic acts). There is criticism, however, that the revisions don’t go far enough or remain too vague. My recent favorite quote was from State Minister of Culture and Tourism Jero Wacik who suggested that legislators not rush any deliberations on the bill. He basically said that the world could not regulate culture, make it uniform, and “Our differences make the world an interesting place” (The Jakarta Post, 20 March 2006).

Papua protests — Four police officers and one Air Force soldier were killed on March 16th by protesters. The large protest took place near the Cendrawasih State University. Protesters demanded that PT Freeport-McMoRan close its gold and copper mine, which is said to be the world’s third largest copper reserve and has one of the world’s largest gold deposits. Local Papuan community leaders are currently upset because a government minister refused to meet with them. There have been other protests or attacks against American companies (e.g., ExxonMobil Corp., Newmont Mining Corp.) in other areas as well.

Tension between Muslim groups — Yet another example that shows that Islam in not a homogenous entity… In Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, the police have not yet made any arrests regarding an attack last Friday on a house belonging to a member of Ahmadiyah. Ahmadiyah is an Islamic group that some “mainstream” Muslims consider to be heretical. The police are having a difficult time dealing with the string of attacks on Ahmadiyah members and their property in Lombok because the status of the group is supposedly unclear. The Jakarta Post notes, “The Indonesia Ulema Council has issued an edict condemning Ahmadiyah as a heretical sect, but the central government has yet to take an official stance on the issue” (21 March 2006).

And more close to home…

LSI (Indonesian Survey Institute) made the front page of the national papers today. Check out one article at The Jakarta Post.

The Freedom Institute also recently won a major award.

Thursday, 23 March 2006 @ 3:45pm. I had a great interview today! I met with the Chief Editor of The Jakarta Post, the national English-language newspaper here. The interview took place at a really nice coffeehouse/lounge at Hotel Mulia Senayan. What a fancy hotel!

Yesterday was tiring, but interesting. I went to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) for one of their seminars: “Memperingati 60 Tahun Kemerdekaan Republik Indonesia - Disain Baru Sistem Politik Indonesia” (”Remembering 60 Years of Indonesian Independence - Design(ing) a New Indonesian Political System”). I didn’t know ahead of time who would be present, so it was a pleasant surprise to find that the opening speaker was the Vice-President himself, Jusuf Kalla. He didn’t stay long and I didn’t get to meet with him personally, but I was able to snap his picture:

He’s a lot shorter in person.

Most of the sessions were about improving political institutions. Though the panels’ topics weren’t closely related to my research, I did manage to network a little bit with other participants.

Later in the evening, Julie and I went to a discussion in East Jakarta for Jaringan Islam Liberal or JIL for short (Liberal Islam Network). It is their 5th birthday. The speakers touched on a few issues of interest, which provided me with some more food for thought. I was tired, though, by the Q&A session, so I had to leave early. Thinking and working in Indonesian - and not eating enough at the right times during the day - can make one exhausted.

I can’t wait for the weekend actually. A few friends are going to get together on Saturday for a BBQ/potluck. This week has been long!

Tuesday, 21 March 2006 @ 6:03pm. Since I was relatively productive yesterday, I somehow thought that today would be the same. How naive of me to think that would be possible! Yesterday I managed to prepare materials for an afternoon interview, go to the legal records office, conduct the interview, go to the gym, and have decent meals. I was tired at the end of the day, but I was okay. I was pleased with the interview session in particular, especially since it was my first time to the Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat or DPR for short (House of Representatives).

Today, however, was a different story. I went to the legal records office, but it was slow going through the materials. I also came to the realization that there were many more potential articles than actual articles of real interest. I have to decide now how much do I want photocopied at this office, what do I need to request from other government offices, and whether the time spent on these documents in general is worth it. I have only combed through abstracts for 1997-1999 so far, but the abstracts aren’t very helpful. It’s a gamble whether requesting 40 photocopied pages based on a glance of the title and keywords will be fruitful. We’ll see…

I later had to wait an hour to be picked up from the records office. Waktu hujan (rain time). It was raining. Apparently enough said.

I was picked up by motorbike, which I like, though I prefer driving. I often wish I could have my own motorbike like I did when I lived in Yogya (read: freedom), but the traffic is too congested and dangerous here. Sigh…

My late lunch was what broke the camel’s back. I found two long black hairs in my veggies, only after I had started eating. Yuck!!! I remember that friends used to joke back in Yogya about various vitamins: vitamin s for vitamin semut (ant), vitamin b for vitamin batu (stone/pebble), and vitamin r for vitamin rambut (hair). I wasn’t in a joking mood this afternoon, though.

Oh, and have I mentioned that there are toxic fumes in my room? I think there is a leak in the bathroom (I’m on the second floor), so the houseboy spread a white substance on my bathroom floor. It requires a couple of days to dry. I don’t know if they are going to leave it like that or put tiles on top of it. In any case, my room smells of strong chemicals, so I’m staying at the office longer than usual.

On a bright note, however, there are a few upcoming birthdays for family and friends. HAPPY BIRTHDAY AND BEST WISHES!!!

The following pictures were taken at Taman Mini “Indonesia Indah” (”Beautiful Indonesia” Miniature Park), which is less than an hour from Central Jakarta (this depends on traffic of course). This year the park turns 31. Construction began in 1972 and it formally opened in 1975. The park occupies more than 100 hectares (around 250 acres) of land. Taman Mini is the brainchild of former First Lady Ibu Tien Soeharto. There are various houses located on the property that represent the diversity of Indonesia. Each house contains traditional clothing, tools, instruments, and other artifacts, as well as souvenirs for sale. Don’t expect detailed signs or lots of historical references, though. There are also food stalls, but it would be rare to find anything other than soup, fried rice, or chicken (typical Javanese fare). Museums scatter the park, too. For example, there are museums on telecommunications, sports, transportation, heirlooms, insects, military, stamps, oil and gas, etc. The museums have additional charges, though. There is also a small lake with large paddleboats in the shape of ducks, an IMAX theater, and stages for performances.

The park was quite crowded on Sunday. I went with Julie, her brother who was visiting, and his friend. We only saw a handful of foreigners. The overwhelming majority of visitors were Indonesian families and young children on fieldtrips. Given that there are very few affordable public spaces, I can see the appeal of Taman Mini. Many people were just hanging out, sharing meals, and relaxing (even though most of the day it was raining!). One interesting note is that some houses seemed more popular as hangouts than others. I’m not sure if this was just the location of the houses in relation to the entrance and parking or if there was some other reason.

Our party only managed to visit the houses of the following islands or cultures: West Sumatra, North Sumatra, Aceh, Central Kalimantan, Papua, Nusatenggara Timur (various eastern islands combined), and Toraja (from Sulawesi). Since it was raining a good portion of the time and the rest of the day was quite muggy, we didn’t push ourselves. We got through a lot of the park, however. I joked near the end of our trip that we only had 12,993 more houses left to visit. The park doesn’t actually have that many houses to represent the over 13,000 islands in Indonesia. There are instead 27 houses - one for each province during the Soeharto period - but one wonders given all of the new provinces that have popped up in recent years if new houses will be built in the future.

Saturday, 18 March 2006 @ 4:49pm. Happy St. Patrick’s Day! I saw a bit of footage on television for the parades and it looked like a lot of fun. This holiday makes me think of the clover patches in my old neighborhood in Groton, Connecticut (my family lived there for a year near the submarine base). As a kid, I would be outside for hours with friends or on my own out in nature in search of four-leaf clovers and the ends of rainbows. The nearby streams and thick forests usually blocked our paths towards the rainbows, but I did find plenty of four- and six-leaf clovers. Really.

Yesterday I actually held a baby cicak in my hand for a couple of seconds. I was moving a book on my desk and noticed a small thing jump into my palm. It then jumped onto the desk. It took me a moment to figure out what it was, and when I did, I squealed a little. It didn’t bite; I was just startled. Upon closer inspection of my books, it appears the lizard has made a home of sorts in that area and well, let’s just say, I’m not fond of his bathroom habits. At least he eats the insects in my room!

I had a fruitful day yesterday at a local legal records office. I found potentially relevant materials, but I won’t know for sure until the photocopies come back next week. The copies are very expensive, but I like to think it helps finance the office as a whole. I ran into my friend there, so we had a late lunch together in South Jakarta. I discovered and tried New Zealand Natural icecream, and it was fan-tab-ulous! I have yet to visit New Zealand, but if the food there is as good or better than this particular company’s icecream, then I’ll have to figure out a way to get there.

I then went back to the Freedom Institute via busway to finish up some more work. Julie and I later went to a movie theater to see “The Pink Panther.” There was at least one censored (i.e., deleted scene), but I’m not sure if there were others. Everyone in the audience seemed to love this movie. The slapstick humor was taken very well. The most popular scene, however, was where Steve Martin meets with a pronunciation coach and he tries to say “I would like to buy a hamburger,” but fails to capture the American accent. We went to the less expensive theater, but I’ve heard it’s very similar to the more expensive ones. The theater had nice seats, a decent sound system, and AC, so this was a good first experience. I’ve heard that there are even more discounts on Mondays, so I may have to check it out sometime. The walk home was great - no traffic, quiet streets, no catcalls (or rather a couple of sleepy remarks initially), and not too hot or muggy.

Today it has rained quite a bit and of course, the leak is back in my room.

Thursday, 16 March 2006 @ 7:15pm. Just when you think it couldn’t get any hotter or muggier, it does! The heat and humidity seem to be worse than usual these past couple of days. It’s okay, though, since today was a good day. I had lunch with a friend at Chili’s. It was expensive, but the tacos were worth it. Not the best Mexican food, but close enough. The “bottomless” ice teas were such a treat. I then had an interview with someone at The Asia Foundation. The staff were very friendly and helpful. I got a lot of great information and tons of food for thought. I will probably return at a later date for more data. There are several former Fulbrighters who work there as well, so that was a nice connection. All in all, this was a pleasant way to ease back into interviews after my time in Sulawesi.

I took the busway to get to the foundation’s office today. If you want to go in a straight line from Central Jakarta to South Jakarta, you can take the busway for 3,500 rupiah and whiz past traffic. It only took 20 minutes to get to South Jakarta (as opposed to a possible hour in a taxi) and the office was a 10-15 minute walk from the station. I did get turned around a bit at the Blok M Mall, however. The station ends at an indoor-outdoor mall with tons of stalls selling inexpensive clothing, shoes, music, etc. and there weren’t any exit signs. I eventually found my way out by asking a few security guards, much to their amusement. This was my first time taking the busway and I highly prefer it over the regular buses because 1) there’s AC, 2) a security guard/doorman is present and keeps an eye on folks (read: no touching and less chance of pickpockets), and 3) it’s cheap. The only problem is that there are very few stops and pretty much only one or two main routes.

As for my little room, I’m happy to report that the wasp nests are gone and I have lukewarm instead of cold water. I also came home and found that my room smelled funny. They had repainted my ceiling! Whether this prevents further leakage, I’m not sure, but at least there was an effort made.

And there was a full moon last night, but the moon’s face was sideways.

The following pictures are from a visit with friends - Yosef, Nelden, James, Tom, and Julie - to the Lara Djonggrang Restaurant in Menteng, Central Jakarta.

Koi is a restaurant, art gallery, and store all rolled into one. It is located in South Jakarta. Koi has fabulous desserts! The dessert sampler plate feeds three or four people and is a great way to taste a little bit of everything. Can we just say “real Belgian chocolate?”