Jenny’s Journies

Sunday, 31 December 2006 @ 5:48pm.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!

I wish you all much happiness and strength now and in the future.

Monday, 18 December 2006 @ 9:30pm.

I went to Glodok (the Chinese area of “Old Jakarta”) last Saturday with a friend. We meandered through various narrow alleys in what are essentially the poor “kampung” (villages) within the city. While the main streets are bustling with shops selling everything from clothes to electronics to traditional medicines (cobra anyone?) to souvenirs, the buildings themselves have seen better days. One can still see some of the physical damage from the 1998 riots. We eventually found the Petak Sembilan Temple after asking a number of people along the way. It is also known as “Vihara Dharma Sakti” or “Dharma Bhakti” and was established in 1976. There are two buildings, one appearing to be more for ancestors and the other for this life (but they have combined purposes). Poor Indonesians crowded the front of the temple begging, resting, passing the day, etc. Chinese-Indonesians were inside making offerings, saying prayers, and burning incense and candles (wax and the oil kind in bowls).

As more background, there was ash everywhere from the burning incense. It was a little hard to breathe because of all of the smoke and the interior rooms were hot. This was a new experience for me as most of the temples I’ve been to before tend to be very clean, more “orderly,” and um, meat-free. The latter in particular was quite interesting as I didn’t expect to see plates of offerings that included pork and other meat. For example, there were cuts of bacon, even a pig’s head, chickens, and fish. The second temple - Toasebio Temple - was not too far from the first one. It was similar in design, structure, and atmosphere as Petak Sembilan, but differed with its numerous little gold Buddhas and candles that had accompanying cards marked with deceased relatives’ names.

After visiting the temples, we walked around more streets and came across small markets selling a random assortment of goods. One alley had food galore - yummy moon cakes (I had a chocolate-filled one, which I think reflects an Indonesian influence), fruits (mmmm…duku fruit), noodles, fried snacks, and pork (which I have not seen in ages!). One thing that I had heard prior to my visit, but still surprised me anyway was the presence of sellers who did not speak any Indonesian or English at all. I tried to bargain with a couple of women over some items, but we couldn’t communicate very well with each other. We resorted to pen and paper. I have heard that some families come from China and go directly to Glodok (legally or not) and if they are older, they do not get formal education unless they have money.

We later made our way to Glodok Plaza, a gigantic mall which basically brings the outdoor markets inside a cement building. Inside, customers could purchase a television, buy clothes, find a wheelchair, get a tattoo, eat lunch, let their kids play in a plastic ball pit (similar to Chuck E. Cheese in the U.S.), and get furniture all in one day and in one place should they have such a desire.

Here are some photos from the visit to Glodok:

Saturday, 16 December 2006 @ 9:30pm.

The Jakarta International Film Festival (JIFF) is now in its eighth year and runs from December 8th to the 17th. It is a rare opportunity for Indonesians (and foreigners) to see award-winning domestic and international films at local venues for free or discounted prices. There are more than 200 films from over 35 different countries. One of my friends said that it is not surprising for people to rearrange their work schedules around JIFF so that they can see one or more films per day! I’ve been enjoying myself, but am not yet one of the hardcore filmgoers who sees multiple films daily. People generally line up one hour before a movie starts to obtain a ticket if it is a free movie. For paid movies, most people bought their tickets before the festival began because tickets on the day of showing often run out, but everyone still has to line up early as seats are first come, first serve. Some of my friends have written film reviews for some of the screenings, so check out their work in The Jakarta Post.

So far I have seen:

Serambi - documentary with some probable fiction about the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami that hit Aceh (recommended)

An Inconvenient Truth - Al Gore warns about global warming (highly recommended)

Falkenberg Farewell - summer misadventures of a group of guy friends in a small Swedish town (I left early, though, as I didn’t like it much unfortunately, but others might like it.)

Black Gold - documentary about injustice from the unfair global coffee industry and the negative impact on coffeegrowers in Ethiopia (recommended)

Sierre Leone’s Refugee All Stars Band - documentary about a group of talented refugee musicians (highly recommended)

In other news… I went to the dentist today. My bottom left wisdom tooth sometimes hurt, so I thought I should get it checked out. I went to the Mintohardjo Hospital (naval hospital open to the public) in Bendungan Hilir, Jakarta. I went early (no appointments), filled out some general forms, waited for my turn, and then was seen by a woman dentist. There were no x-rays, though I saw other patients in the waiting area with them so they are taken if needed. I think I had a cavity. We conversed in Indonesian, and she simplified things for me, but I still didn’t know a couple of words. She cleaned the tooth, applied medicine, and then sealed the “lubang” (hole, cavity). The process probably took 15 minutes and with waiting, the entire visit took an hour or so. I was told to come back if any pain occurred again in the future. I asked about whether or not I needed my wisdom teeth pulled as I know several people who have had that procedure done as they got older, but the dentist said my teeth were fine so there was no need. Whew! Not including transportation to and from the hospital, the dental check-up and capping the cavity cost Rp. 350,000 or about USD $40.00. No wonder “health tourism” is growing in Asia!

I went on a Glodok (Chinatown area) adventure today with my friend, too, but I’ll write about that in the next posting…

For a random factoid break, check out the list of the most popular websites visited by Indonesians at Alexa, a website that monitors site traffic. Click here. Interestingly, Friendster tops Google! Duniasex.com (SexWorld.com) is listed at number 14, Ebay ranks at number 43, and Bali Online is at 89.

Friday, 08 December 2006 @ 8:05pm.

Tasty Treats:
Speculaas (spiced biscuits/cookies) - Verkade brand
Tim Tam chocolate mint cookies - Arnott’s brand
Rambutan
Salak (snake-skinned fruit)

Quote of the Day:
“Ninety percent of the politicians give the other ten percent a bad reputation.” — Henry A. Kissinger
(Another variation is “Corrupt politicians make the other ten percent look bad.”)

Recent Controversies Topping Indonesian News:

“Golkar will decide fate of lawmaker in sex scandal”

The Jakarta Post (online) - 08 December 2006

The leadership of the Golkar party will convene Friday to decide whether it will recall legislator Yahya Zaini, who was caught on a sex video, from the House of Representatives. “A decision will be made after the investigating team holds its meeting Friday,” a member of Golkar’s central board, Agung Laksono, was quoted by Antara as saying Thursday. Agung is also the head of an investigating team tasked with probing the sex video that shows Yahya in a compromising pose with dangdut singer Maria Eva. He also said that it would be easier for the central board to make its decision as Yahya had indirectly admitted his wrongdoing. “He has resigned from his post with Golkar central board. We view that as an admission of guilt,” he said. Yahya, through senior Golkar member Andi Matalatta, tendered his resignation to party chairman Jusuf Kalla earlier this week. Yahya, former chairman of the Muslim Students Association (HMI), is currently head of the Golkar party religious affairs department. The investigating team, however, had recommended to Golkar central board that Yahya be dismissed, without the knowledge of the resignation letter. The plot in the sex scandal thickened when both parties told their own version of the story. The family of Yahya said he was a victim of extortion and the 42-second video shot using a phone camera, was deliberately distributed as a means to blackmail him. The sex video was reportedly shot sometime in 2004. Maria, first in a press conference and later in almost all television celebrity gossip programs, confessed to being Yahya’s lover but said she had refused to marry him as she was against polygamy. The dangdut singer also said that Yahya forced her to have an abortion. In a related development, the House disciplinary committee has started to falter in its investigation into the sex scandal. A meeting of the council Wednesday failed to set a timeframe for when it will summon Yahya. Council chairman Slamet Effendy Yusuf said that it would first consult those who filed reports against Yahya and experts in telematics. “We can assure you that the lawmaker in question will be made to appear before us when the House sits,” Slamet said. The House will be in a recess starting Dec. 9 and will convene again in early January.

“SBY defends plan on polygamy, calls for sensible debate”

The Jakarta Post (online), 08 December 2006

The government’s plan to extend the ban on polygamy is being blown out of proportion by those who oppose it, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono says. Yudhoyono said the public debate that has raged since the government floated the idea last week had been derailed by critics using religious arguments. He maintained the original purpose of revising the law was to protect women. “Let us think clearly. We shouldn’t exert too much energy on this issue because there are many other problems that have to be addressed. I don’t want this issue to develop into an unhealthy public discourse,” he said when addressing a Civil Servants Wives Association gathering. The controversy was sparked Tuesday when the State Minister for Women’s Empowerment Meutia Farida Hatta Swasono announced the government was considering extending ban on polygamy for civil servants to cover all officials working for the state, including legislators and soldiers. The plan has received strong backing from progressive Muslims and many women but has met strong opposition from religious conservatives, especially men, who argue that polygamy is allowed in Islam and should not be banned by secular laws. The polygamy issue resurfaced last week when television cleric Abdullah “A’a Gym” Gymnastiar, who was popular with women and promoted harmonious family values, announced he had taken a younger second wife. Under the 1974 Marriage Law, men are only legally allowed to take a second wife if their first wives are invalids, terminally ill or infertile. The law, however, is rarely enforced and polygamy is becoming more common among Muslims. President Susilo said people should not use religion to justify polygamy, as Islam required men to meet many strict conditions before they could take more than one wife. “If people want to refer to religion (to justify polygamy), please understand the religion properly,” Yudhoyono said. Marriage laws were made by taking religious values into consideration, he said. The President said he was also concerned that women here were often victims of domestic violence and street crime, he said. There was an urgent need to protect women from violence, crime, poverty and other forms of misery, he said. The next step would be to empower women by fulfilling their basic right to enjoy adequate public services like health and education. Minister Meutia said Thursday the revision of the law would depend on an analysis done by women’s organizations, human rights groups and universities, which support a revision to the law. “It is wrong to assume that polygamy would minimize cases of adultery and prostitution,” she told The Jakarta Post. Earlier this week, some legislators argued banning polygamy would only encourage more men to visit prostitutes. “What we believe is that polygamy can lead to injustice and the psychological abuse of women,” Meutia said.

Saturday, December 02, 2006 @ 10:30pm. Time is going so fast! I can’t believe it’s already December. I was supposed to go home in November, but it looks like I’ll be here in Indonesia for a bit longer. Departure plans are still up in the air, but I’ll keep folks posted in the coming weeks. The past couple of days I have been under the weather, probably because of the weather! Apparently, it’s pretty common to get headaches, muscle aches, and other aches when the seasons change, in this case from the dry season to the rainy season. The rainy season is actually starting late this year, and many people I’ve talked to attribute this to global warming.

I hope my American family and friends had a nice Thanksgiving. I had a really good time. It was funny when we all first entered our hostess’s house - the smell of traditional food cooking instantly told us it was Thanksgiving and everyone smiled at the familiarity. To my amazement, our group enjoyed turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing, salad, mashed potatoes, green beans, carrots, pumpkin pie, apple pie, ice cream, and even ginger-molasses cookies! I found out that the turkey was from the American Club in South Jakarta, which is a combination meeting hall, gym, pool, recreation center, store, etc. I currently can’t afford the club fees, but maybe in the future, right? Other stuff was purchased from specialty grocery stores.

Let’s see…what else? Oh, of course, happy birthday to all of the November and December babies!!!

Before I sign off, here’s a random assortment of recent pictures:

Dodol (traditional candy) is similar to taffy. Dodol comes in many flavors such as chocolate, strawberry, and even durian! This picture was taken at Carrefour.

I went with friends to Ratu Plaza expecting to peruse the DVD stalls, but they were all closed because of a recent police raid for illegal products.

I saw this interesting parking sign in front of Kem Chicks, an upscale grocery store with lots of foreign goods. It is located in Kemang, South Jakarta. I saw all kinds of European, Australian, and American items (including Halloween costumes), but the prices were much too high for this student’s budget!

This is me and my friend Yosef at his birthday party, which was held at Eastern Restaurant at the ITC - Permata Hijau building. The restaurant has great dim sum, though there was more gorengan (fried foods) than dim sum places in the U.S.