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I realise that I haven't updated my bog for some time, so here goes!
Travelling times
Guy has been in the job for nearly a month. He seems to be loving it and taking the travel in his stride - Bali, Singapore, Malaysia and Bali. He has already purchased 2 Batik shirts (short and long sleeve), which is what the Indonesian men wear for business. I can see him having a whole work wardrobe in the future! He enjoys working with his team and has started to made changes already.
Liam and Aidan are settling into the school routine at BIS - British International School. Liam heads to Bandung for a school excursion. Aidan will be exploring Jakarta culture in May for his school camp. They will both be staying in a 5 star hotel. Their pembantu's are not allowed to go on camp - so the kids must dress themselves and look after their things. Something that Aidan and Liam have been doing for some time now! But not every child as BIS is independent!
Bandung
At the end of January, I spent the weekend in Bandung. Guy had to head to Bali for the weekend. I met up with Yanty and her family for a tourist view of Bandung. For those who don't know the connection - I worked with Yanty in my last job in Canberra. She grew up in Bandung but lives in Canberra. We went to a family park on top of a hill, where the kids had fun on the rides and I explored some local food and drink. We went to a volcano crater - Ciater - in the rain. We then went to an indoor amusement park, which had a rollercoaster on the outside of the shopping centre - which we did at night. It is one of the fastest rollercoasters in the world. If you want, check out this video on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-aRK6QpP4k&feature=fvst
And yes - Liam and Aidan enjoyed themselves immensely!
Singapore
We have been advised that it is healthy to escape Jakarta every 6-8 weeks. So given that Guy started work in early February, we decided that we would head to Singapore for our first family escape. Our driver, Pak Dwi picked the kids up from school on the Friday afternoon, as Guy and I were studying at the University Atma Jawa - language training. It worked out well and the staff at the Uni were pleased to meet Liam and Aidan. We left on Friday afternoon, flying Lufthansa for the first time.
We stayed at a central location - Novotel at Clarke Quay. One of the reasons we wanted to head to Singapore was to buy some more coffee pods. We did that plus some exploring with the kids. On Saturday morning, we walked up Canning Hill and took the kids to Battle Box, which is a bunker used in the Second World War. A conference was held in the bunker in which the English (and Australian) agreed to surrender to the Japanese due to lack of food and water. We enjoyed showing the kids the exhibit and tour under the hill.
Saturday evening saw us head to the Night Safari Zoo, which Liam really wanted to see. We managed to see most of the animals but not the show. On Sunday we did the river cruise, which was useful as Liam was learning about rivers at school. We also enjoyed walking up to Robertson Quay and found an Aussie pub and enjoyed watching a replay of the NRL - All stars v Indigenous Stars. Yes, all my boys were happy.
And more…
I think that we are settling into our routines, whether it be school, work or for me shopping. The boys have joined the Komodo Dragons Rugby Union Club and play each Saturday afternoon at their school.
Visitors
We had our first visitor this month, with my sister, Suzanne spending a week here in Jakarta and a week in Bali. She enjoyed seeing Jakarta, where we live, work and I play. On Friday afternoon I took her to the school, as Aidan had an assembly. We then travelled home together, rather than the kids taking the bus. I then escaped to Bali (Nusa Dua) for just over 2 days, where we spent time exploring and talking. When she returns I will spend some more time showing her Jakarta, before she heads back home. I am enjoying showing off where I live.
And me?
Every day is different. I get to go food shopping where sometimes they will have what I am looking for, others they don't. I am enjoying cooking, even attempting to make local fare.
I am trying to head to the gym every week and not just get massages!
I have made friends with Aussies in our street.
I have joined the ANZA (Australian and New Zealand Association) which has been social. Next month, I am going to explore Jakarta with another rugby union Mum, though the Indonesian Heritage Society. Next term I will look at enrolling at the JICC - Jakarta International Community Centre.
I have printed off photos to create some paper albums. I have managed to get my photos and memorabilia up to date in Memory Manager (except for the last week). I have been able to complete some digital scrapbooks - just need to order them (old projects).
I still have so many items on my list, but I am conscious that my journey is at the beginning and I still have plenty of time. I am enjoying living here.
I think it would be fair to say, that we are all enjoying Jakarta to date.
- comments
Christie So glad you are enjoying your adventure! Love the updates and post lots of photos!!
Chris Thanks Christie. Photos on FB. Will endeavor to add more!