Jenny’s Journies

Thursday, 23 November 2006 at 1:10pm.

Happy Thanksgiving! May you have tons of fun with family and friends! I was getting a bit down about missing this holiday in the U.S., but Fulbright is coming through. There will be a get-together tonight, but I’m not sure what we will have for dinner! It’s not like there are turkeys, cranberry sauce, stuffing, or pies to be had easily around here! Today I brought cinnamon rolls from Cinnabon to the office. I’ve gotten into the habit of bringing food for the holidays, even if they aren’t Indonesian holidays. Why not celebrate as much as you can, right? The cinnamon rolls were a hit and folks were all smiles. Gotta love it.

In other news, I was sad to hear that Michigan didn’t win against Ohio State, our ultimate football rivals, but here is our fight song anyway (we are a proud bunch afterall!):

University of Michigan Fight Song (short version):
Hail! to the victors valiant
Hail! to the conqu’ring heroes
Hail! Hail! to Michigan
the leaders and best
Hail! to the victors valiant
Hail! to the conqu’ring heroes
Hail! Hail! to Michigan,
the champions of the West!

And in case you hadn’t heard… “U-M mourns death of Glenn E. “Bo” Schembechler“: The University of Michigan mourns the loss of former head football coach Bo Schembechler, 77, the winningest head coach in the team’s history, who died Nov. 17 at Providence Hospital in Southfield, Michigan.

In Indonesian news, it’s hot. I know, I know, I say that a lot. But it’s *really* hot these days. It sprinkled today a little, thank goodness. Someone told me that the heat was probably responsible for the rambutan fruit not being sweet. I hope rambutan season will improve!

U.S. President Bush’s visit went off without a hitch overall. I haven’t heard any bad press, other than coverage of some of the demonstrations. A lot can happen in six hours, and fortunately, it sounds like things went well.

Pollution seems to be getting worse by the day in Jakarta.

The haze from fires in Kalimantan seem to be letting up.

Political parties are strategizing for upcoming local elections in various regions.

48 orangutans have arrived from Bangkok, Thailand where some of them had been made to perform in mock kickboxing competitions. It took three years of bilateral negotiations and plenty of lobbying by environmental organizations, but it finally happened. Hopefully they can return to safe nature preserves, adapt well, and live out the rest of their lives in comfort.

Sunday, 12 November 2006 at 3:31pm.

On Friday night, I went with friends to Fatahillah Square in Kota Lama (Old City), West Jakarta. We went to see the opening show of the Jakarta International Puppetry Festival (JIPF). The show was held outdoors in front of a museum and close to Cafe Batavia (the latter by the way had a nice atmosphere, but was much too pricey). Slamet Gundono and the Komunitas Suket performers presented “Wayang Air” (Water Play). It was “a modern interpretation of puppetry” - think “performance or experimental art” with people, not traditional puppets. According to today’s Jakarta Post, “Slamet chose the medium of water for his human puppet theater to shed light on the water crisis looming in his hometown of Solo, Central Java.” I guess I found this a bit confusing since the performance used a lot of water, which may be considered wasteful. I’m not sure if I didn’t “get it” or if it was the lack of music in long parts or the uncomfortable vibe in seeing certain “sexualized” artsy scenes and being surrounded at the same time by men standing in the audience who kept staring at me (probably a combination of all three!), but the show wasn’t really my cup of tea. For more information about the JIPF, though, go to http://www.jakartapuppetfest.com.

Yesterday, there was the unfortunate news of a bomb blast at the A&W fast-food restaurant in Plaza Kramat Jati, East Jakarta. The alleged bomber, 36-year-old Muhammad Nuh, is being treated for injuries at the National Police’s Soekanto Hospital. No one else has been reported as wounded. The Jakarta Post said today that past bomb blasts in Jakarta included “the Philippines Embassy bombing in Menteng, Central Jakarta, in 2000″ and “explosions occurred in subsequent years at the Jakarta Stock Exchange building on Jl. Sudirman, Atrium Senen shopping mall in Senen, Central Jakarta, and the JW Marriott Hotel in Kuningan, South Jakarta. A massive explosion killing 11 Indonesians and injuring several others took place in front of the Australian Embassy in Kuningan, South Jakarta, in September 2004.” Let us hope that yesterday’s bomb is not the beginning of a series. Sigh…

Folks are gearing up for U.S. President Bush’s upcoming visit, which I believe is set for November 20th in the city of Bogor (not too far from Jakarta). I have heard that a helicopter pad is being built in the Bogor Botanical Gardens in preparation for Bush’s arrival. There have been some relatively small protests, as well as public debates, about his trip to Indonesia, as I’m sure you can imagine.

In much less serious news, a friend and I discovered Ya Udah, a lovely not-too-expensive restaurant on Jalan Jaksa no. 49 in Central Jakarta. I had a big plate of spaghetti there along with apple pie and ice cream for dessert. The chocolate mousse gets an A+. The waitstaff were polite and efficient. The menu is long and varied, too. If you’re craving sandwiches, sausages, or breads, try Ya Udah. Oh and the little bathrooms were clean! We highly recommend that travellers and those living here check it out.

Thursday, 09 November 2006 at 4:30pm.

Here are some recent food highlights:

Saturday (04 November 2006): Eastern Promise at Jl. Kemang Raya no. 5 in Kemang, South Jakarta offers British and Indian food, a bar, a pool table, and live music. It’s a popular hangout for expatriates. I met with a bunch of new folks there for dinner and had a great time. The Indian naan was excellent! I tried the mixed seafood curry and saffron rice. The curry sauce was good, but the dish needed more bits of seafood and less onions. The rice was too dry, but wasn’t too bad with the curry sauce.

Sunday (05 November 2006): Bread and Breakfast at Jl. Kemang Raya no. 15 (second floor) in Kemang, South Jakarta offers American-style breakfasts. They have lunch and dinner entrees, too. I recommend their Pink Panther drink, which consists of strawberry, watermelon, and lychee juices. Their pancakes were pretty tasty. It was the first time I’ve had pancakes and syrup in a really long time!

Monday (06 November 2006): A new friend treated me to breakfast at the Hyatt. Whoo-hoo! Can we say “croissants” and “brie?” How about “Swiss yogurt” or “omelette?” “Poppyseed muffin” and “banana bread” anyone?

What’s been keeping me busy lately:

- Working on my survey questions. We hope the survey will go out at the end of this month.

- Editing applications and writing letters of recommendation for Indonesian students wanting to study abroad.

- Developing and promoting Indopedia.

- Running from office to office to extend my research visa. This has taken up a lot of time!

- Working out at the gym.

- Helping new Fulbrighters in town.

- Preparing for a workshop to help Indonesian students improve their foreign university applications.

- Dealing with the weather change and gearing up for the rainy season.

- Keeping up with U.S. election news. I was very disappointed that I didn’t get the chance to vote (absentee ballot procedures are lengthy and expensive when you’re abroad unfortunately), but was very glad to hear about the Democratic sweep. For the state of Michigan in particular, many of us were disappointed at the passage of Proposal 2, which dissolves Affirmative Action, though. Interestingly, I heard that the U-M campus went 75% against it and 21% for it. This was the latest message from the university president:

“Diversity matters at Michigan, today more than any day in our history. It matters today, and it will matter tomorrow. It will always matter because it is what makes us the great university we are. I am deeply disappointed that the voters of our state have rejected affirmative action as a way to help build a community that is fair and equal for all. But we will not be deterred in the all-important work of creating a diverse campus. Earlier today I addressed the campus community about the passage of Proposal 2 and what it means for the University of Michigan. You may read my remarks here: http://www.umich.edu/pres/speeches/061103div.html. Please join me as we continue our work to make Michigan a welcoming campus.” — Mary Sue Coleman, University of Michigan President

As a related note, I’ve had some thought-provoking discussions with a couple of Indonesians about Affirmative Action and issues of race/ethnicity both in the U.S. and Indonesia.

Thursday, 02 November 2006 @ 4:33pm.

Another great scholar has left our midst…

“Clifford Geertz, an eminent scholar in the field of cultural anthropology known for his extensive research in Indonesia and Morocco, died at the age of 80 early yesterday morning of complications following heart surgery at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Geertz was Professor Emeritus in the School of Social Science at the Institute for Advanced Study, where he has served on the Faculty since 1970.” A complete obituary may be found here.

In other news…

* “National blood supplies dropped to critical levels during the fasting month and hospitals are now urging the public to donate before they run out completely. In Jakarta for example, Palang Merah Indonesia (Indonesian Red Cross) usually has between 10,000 and 11,000 packs of blood in their supply, but currently only has around 4,000, which is far below the required minimum of 8,000 packs.” (28 October 2006, The Jakarta Post online; paraphrased)

* “Hutomo “Tommy” Mandala Putra, former president Suharto’s youngest son, was recently freed after serving time in prison for arranging the 2001 murder of a Supreme Court justice. Tommy received a conditional release after completing only two-thirds of his jail term (numerous sentence reductions were factored in). Authorities said he displayed “good conduct” at prisons in Nusa Kambangan, Central Java, and in Jakarta. Tommy was originally sentenced to 15 years imprisonment in 2002 after he was found guilty of possessing guns and ammunition, plotting to kill Supreme Court justice Syafiuddin Kartasasmita, and evading arrest. In 2005, the Supreme Court cut his term to 10 years.” (30 October 2006, The Jakarta Post online)

* “Fifteen Muslim men have been arrested in connection with a spate of attacks on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi in recent years, police say. The attacks include the beheading of three Christian schoolgirls last year and the bombing of two markets in 2004. Sporadic attacks between Sulawesi’s Muslims and Christians have continued despite a peace deal signed four years ago that put an end to fighting.” (31 October 2006 BBC News online)

* “An eight-person team from the European Union has begun monitoring work ahead of elections in Indonesia’s Aceh province. The head of the EU Election Observation Mission, Glyn Ford, says 36 more members will be arriving in just over a week with a further 36 bolstering their numbers shortly ahead of polling day, set for December 11. Under a peace pact signed between separatist rebels and the Jakarta government, Aceh will for the first time directly elect its governor and vice-governor, as well as district leaders in the polls.” (01 November 2006, ReliefWeb and Australian Broadcasting Corporation)