Jakarta Part 1
As promised, I wanted to share some stories about my husband, Trent, and my recent trip to Indonesia. There is so much to tell so I will have a 2 part series about our travels.
After 30 hours of flying, Trent and I arrived in Jakarta, Indonesia into the welcoming arms of Trent’s sister Sarah and then later that day, the rest of our expat Jakarta family. We arrived with 2 suitcases full of Canadian treats, including Christies Bread, croissants and of course Canadian Gold, Hawkings Cheezies. The excitement of being in this massive city took away any feeling of jetlag.
Traffic is famously horrible in Jakarta and as my 12 year nephew put it so eloquently: “It is like the cars are rocks and the motorcycles are water flowing through and around the cars”( and any space available, including sidewalks which are rarely seen). There are very few traffic lights and sometimes not strictly followed, so traffic feels very slow and chaotic. It is amazing to see a sea of cars and motorcycles flowing slowly down stream. Some scooters with an entire family of 4 including parents and small children. Passengers on the back of bikes are constantly looking at cell phones, not even holding on. This way of life is far different than what I am accustomed to. But somehow they manage and it is just a normal part of existence in a megacity with a population of just 42 million people!
There is so much cool stuff to see in Jakarta! There are gem markets, textile markets, food markets, flea markets, you name it!. Even the grocery stores blow your mind.There is constant stimulation to the eyes. It is amazing!
There are snazzy shopping malls, fabulous restaurants, motorcycles everywhere, cats all over the place. It is interesting to see the profound dichotomy between the rich and poor. On one of our walks to a shopping mall it felt like we were travelling through a very poor area with the polluted river running adjacent to the street with homes made out of concrete and clothes hanging everywhere, through a sea of motorcycles and then you walk right up to a fabulous shopping mall. Rich adjacent to poor. Just like that.
On one hand you see a guy cooking fish on the side of the street, next you go to a fabulous roof top day club with an infinity pool and 360 degree views of Jakarta on the 32 floor of the Orient Hotel. Then you go to another fabulous restaurant opened by a Michelin Star chef on the 62nd floor of the Langham hotel which is draped in opulent marble. Fantastic!!!!
Jakarta is a city that has so much to offer, we hardly scratched the surface on this visit. Trent and I are extremely grateful to our Jakarta family for showing us the city that they live in and for exposing us to so many different and unique things. We are very lucky to have had this rare opportunity. It is one that I will treasure and never forget.
Happy Spring, for sure this time!
