On Sunday my host sister Syifa and I woke at 5 am (actually she was up long before then) to catch the 6:30 commuter train to Jakarta. The price was only 3000 Rp. Roundtrip our excursion cost us under 20,000 Rp, or 2 USD. Syifa's response: I had no idea it was so cheap! We can do so much traveling! My response: hell yeah! The original plan was to meet up with four other volunteers in the big city and make a day of sight-seeing. Our plans did not unfold as expected as Sunday was the day before Idul Fitri, the biggest holiday of the year for Muslims, and my host family asked us to be home early so they could prepare. Syifa, always good-natured, was happy to only do a half-day and see more with me later.
Jakarta was a ghost city when we arrived. A solitary man fishing for plastic bottles in the river was one of the only people we saw on the way to the Monas National monument, a tower which you go up by elevator and are able to see all the way out to the Jakarta Bay. Syifa told me that there would be heavy traffic coming into the city later that day because there were many festivals in Jakarta for Idul Firti. Hopefully next year I can see them. After arriving at the Monas we waited for another volunteer to join us at the "big candle" as he called it.
Waiting in the lobby of the Monas, watched over by the benevolent presence of a cat!
While Syifa and I waited for Chad to arrive we amused ourselves by going ‘bule-hunting.’ Syifa said she had never seen so many bules in one day before. We counted later and figured that we had seen 7 nationalities/regions represented in Jakarta that day: Thailand, France, Denmark, Japan, Javanese (apparently they are from further west than Karawang and have different facial features), American and Taiwanese. In my quest to be seen as a local and not a bule (which, according to Syifa, will never happen) it was fun to joke around and speculate about the other foreigners for once. I was very crushed when some locals singled me out for the customary bule photo, but this just proved Syifa’s point that I won’t ever be able to pass as an Indonesian even if I wear batik and speak Indonesian.
We met Chad and took the elevator to the top of Monas. It felt very “segar”, or fresh. We were all happy that this was the one thing we chose to do. Next time, maybe later this week, I hope to see the planetarium!
On the way back to the train station we got a bonus look at the Presidential Palace where Jokowi will live! This picture was taken right before a guard came up to me and told me, with a frenzy of hand motions, not to take any photos.
Monas aka "the Big Candle" (named by Chad) from the outside.
We took the commuter line back (for only 2000 Rp.) This was a car for woman only. There was a co-ed car and also one for just men. Syifa said it's so women can feel safer.
Part 2: Idul Fitri
Monday was Idul Fitri, similar in spirit and even some traditions to our Christmas. First, everyone gets dressed up in new clothes and takes to the street to pray. As we drove through the streets at 6 am everything was boarded up, locked down and as ghostly as Jakarta had been the day before. Everyone in Karawang must have been in the streets. My pictures don't do it justice but for as far as the eye could see there were people all facing East towards Mecca. My host dad (in the foreground) and two host brothers joined us on the female side of the street for some reason. All the kids were on our side too. I suspect my host dad joined us because we were late and the prayer had already started over the loudspeaker when we arrived.
Jakarta was a ghost city when we arrived. A solitary man fishing for plastic bottles in the river was one of the only people we saw on the way to the Monas National monument, a tower which you go up by elevator and are able to see all the way out to the Jakarta Bay. Syifa told me that there would be heavy traffic coming into the city later that day because there were many festivals in Jakarta for Idul Firti. Hopefully next year I can see them. After arriving at the Monas we waited for another volunteer to join us at the "big candle" as he called it.
Waiting in the lobby of the Monas, watched over by the benevolent presence of a cat!
While Syifa and I waited for Chad to arrive we amused ourselves by going ‘bule-hunting.’ Syifa said she had never seen so many bules in one day before. We counted later and figured that we had seen 7 nationalities/regions represented in Jakarta that day: Thailand, France, Denmark, Japan, Javanese (apparently they are from further west than Karawang and have different facial features), American and Taiwanese. In my quest to be seen as a local and not a bule (which, according to Syifa, will never happen) it was fun to joke around and speculate about the other foreigners for once. I was very crushed when some locals singled me out for the customary bule photo, but this just proved Syifa’s point that I won’t ever be able to pass as an Indonesian even if I wear batik and speak Indonesian.
We met Chad and took the elevator to the top of Monas. It felt very “segar”, or fresh. We were all happy that this was the one thing we chose to do. Next time, maybe later this week, I hope to see the planetarium!
On the way back to the train station we got a bonus look at the Presidential Palace where Jokowi will live! This picture was taken right before a guard came up to me and told me, with a frenzy of hand motions, not to take any photos.
Monas aka "the Big Candle" (named by Chad) from the outside.
We took the commuter line back (for only 2000 Rp.) This was a car for woman only. There was a co-ed car and also one for just men. Syifa said it's so women can feel safer.
Part 2: Idul Fitri
Monday was Idul Fitri, similar in spirit and even some traditions to our Christmas. First, everyone gets dressed up in new clothes and takes to the street to pray. As we drove through the streets at 6 am everything was boarded up, locked down and as ghostly as Jakarta had been the day before. Everyone in Karawang must have been in the streets. My pictures don't do it justice but for as far as the eye could see there were people all facing East towards Mecca. My host dad (in the foreground) and two host brothers joined us on the female side of the street for some reason. All the kids were on our side too. I suspect my host dad joined us because we were late and the prayer had already started over the loudspeaker when we arrived.
Umi and me in my new Idul Firti shirt! Another tradition of Idul Fitri is to buy new clothes and shoes for your family members.
My pictures taken on Umi's phone don't really capture the hugeness of the moment. It will be one of the memories I will carry with me after leaving Indonesia.
After praying we drove to my host parents' relatives in Karawang and then further away in Cikarang as part of the "mudik" tradition, or returning to your hometown to visit your family. Technically Idul Fitri was only Monday but the holiday extends the whole week and most people visit relatives, living and dead, if they're able. My family did not visit the graves of their dead family while I was with them but that is another tradition of this week.
No comments:
Post a Comment