A Spot of Weather

I try to post something once a week, but occasionally I run out of time, ideas or both. But there has been a dry spell lately, in the weather as well as my imagination! It was broken yesterday as the heavens opened and dumped almost an inch and half of rain on Perth in less than an hour. Wind gusted to 120km (75mph) and over 150,000 Perthians lost power, some for more than 24 hours. I had a flashback to hurricane Ike as the trees swayed wildly and water swirled at each side of the road.

We had spent the afternoon playing mahjong and were on our way home when the cloudy skies let loose their barrage of precipitation. It sounded like someone was hammering on the roof of the Hyundai i30 -- thump, thump, thump -- getting faster and then slowing down. I found myself praying silently "please God, prevent the hailstones from breaking the windshield, the water level from flooding the car, and please keep us from plowing into another car."

It was a loud 15 minutes, but nothing broke and no one was hurt, although traffic slowed to a crawl and we got drenched as we ran from the car into our apartment building. My Canadian friend Ethel, a rather nervous sort, was calm as we drove through the mess of tree branches, deep water and hail stones ranging in size from moth balls to golf balls pelted everything in sight. As we turned into the parking lot and waited for the gate to open she laughed and said "this is just like driving in Newfoundland!" The laughter helped -- we needed all of our sense of humor to get out of the car and submit ourselves to a drenching as we freed several broken tree branches which had become stuck in the mechanism of the gate to the parking lot. Drowned rats ... that was us!

Thanks to Ethel I made it home safely and checked the flat. Not expecting a freak hail storm, I had left several windows open, but fortunately the winds were blowing in a different direction and the apartment was unscathed. The power went out 15 minutes later and Vince and I had a nice candlelight dinner of peanut butter and crackers, accompanied by a loud thunderous soundtrack and spectacular lightning!

Today the sun is shining and I must commend the Perth city officials and public works employees. Many of them worked through the night and by 10:00am this morning most of the mess had been cleared up. Only the flashing traffic lights, continued power outages and some very large broken branches still attest to the forceful chaos of yesterday.

We've been told to prepare for another storm tonight, which we all hope will be less severe. Here's more info for those enquiring minds. http://www.abc.net.au/local/photos/2010/03/23/2853482.htm  . Not all the photos here were taken by me. Several were forwarded via email and I'm unsure of the artist. Thank you, anonymous photographer :->

We'll be in Houston just 10 days from now and the weird weather will be behind us. See you soon!

Vocabulary Lesson #2

Last night we turned on the TV for maybe the third time since we’ve been here. What was playing? Crocodile Dundee, of all things!  It reminded me that it’s time for another Aussie vocabulary lesson.

Much Australian slang is derived from the country’s history. The first settlers to Australia were convicts from England. To communicate with one another without the jailer understanding them, the prisoners shortened some words and rhymed others, hence Cockney Rhyming slang. If you saw Ocean’s 11, you’ll remember the scene where Basher shouts “we’re in real Barney… Barney Rubble – trouble!” Aussies still shorten many words today, for convenience I imagine, rather than avoiding the law. They are great teasers and give back as good as they get. Upon first hearing a bloke insult his "mate" at a bar, you expect a fight to break out. Instead you get laughter and a barrage of wisecracks as they try to outdo one another. Great fun. Here are some examples:

Britney Spears - From the Cockney Rhyming slang: Britney Spears/Beers, as in “a couple of Britneys please, Doreen”.
Fat as a match - Someone who’s actually thin. (Aussies frequently tease each other by describing their opposite)
Monkey bath - A bath so hot, that when lowering yourself in, you go “Oo! Ool Oo! Aa! Aa! Aa!” Try this one on your kids.
A few Kangaroos loose in the top paddock - someone who is mentally 'not quite there,' also a picnic short of a sandwich, lights are on but nobody is home, etc.
A bit more choke and you would have started, mate - A classic. Said to somebody who has just passed wind in public rather loudly. Highlights the Aussies gift for sarcasm.

Shortened words that end in “ie”
Bikkie – biscuit, or cookie in America. Also, “it cost big bikkies” – it was expensive.
Bikie – biker, Hell’s Angels style motorcycle rider. As opposed to biker – a bicycling enthusiast. This still trips me up occasionally.
Brekkie - breakfast.
Cossie – pronounced cozzie. Swimsuit. Short for “bathing costume.”  Also called a "bather", but only in certain parts of the country.
Greenie - environmentalist
Kindie - kindergarten
Mozzie – mosquito
Postie - postman
Rellie - family relative, as in “can’t go fishing this weekend, the rellies are in town.”
Sunnies - sunglasses
Surfies - people who surf (usually more often than they go to work!) A related term is Shark biscuit – somebody new to surfing.
Oldies - parents, as in “I’ll have to ask the oldies.”
Trackie - track suit
Truckie - truck driver
Uni – University. Not to be confused with “college,” which is equivalent to years 11 and 12 of American high school.

Shortened words that end in “o”
Arvo – afternoon
Journo - journalist
Rego – vehicle registration
Thingo – whatchamacallit, thingamabob, gizmo, thingie (my favorite!)
Salvo - The Salvos – Salvation Army, bless them
Yobbo – uncouth person

Expressions (You've probably heard these before)
Right – All right, OK, as in ”She’ll be right, mate.”
Too right! - Definitely!
Ripper - great, fantastic, as in ”It was a ripper party.” Pronounced "rippah potty!"
Ridgy-didge - Original, genuine.

Assorted Nouns
These are Australian, so they don’t always make sense to us Yanks ;-D
Bottle Shop - liquor store
Budgie smugglers - Speedos. So named because they fit so tight there isn’t even enough room for a bird (budgie) and the bulge in front makes it look like the wearer is trying to smuggle a budgie out in his underpants. Hey, I didn't make it up...
Click – kilometre. As in “He’s 10 clicks away.”
Docket - A bill or receipt, as in "May I put the docket in your bag?"
Digger - A soldier. Named for the soldiers in North Africa in WWII who dug trenches to hide in and shoot from. The protection helped them survive the extreme desert heat and wartime conditions.
Hoon - Hooligan. This sounds quaint to our ears, but hooligans are in the same class as petty thieves, gang members and drunk drivers who do donuts in your front yard at 1am. Not nice people.
Hotel – not a hotel at all, but a bar. The Windsor Hotel, which shares a parking lot with our building, is a very large bar. Not a sleeping room to be had there. 
Larrikin: A bloke who is always enjoying himself, harmless prankster. Kind of like Americans think of hooligans.
Squizz (noun): A look. ”Take a squizz at this” means have a look at this or “check this out.” 
Manchester - bedroom linen: sheets, pillowcases, comforters (known as doonas), etc. When you shop for bed linens in Kmart or Target, you go to the Manchester section.
Stubby - A 375-ml beer bottle.
Stubby Holder - Polystyrene insulated holder for a stubby. We’d call it a koozie. Not to be confused with a cossie (swimsuit)!

3 Weeks to Houston

This week marks the end of our fourth month here, and all of it summertime. Aussies love to talk about the weather, and the locals say that this year is the hottest, driest ever. They're probably right - I haven't seen a drop of rain since I got here. They think they have it tough, but I laugh in the face of their heat wave. While the temp soars to 40C (104F), there's not one stinking ounce of humidity. No heat index, no warnings to restrict outdoor activity because of poor air quality. The air here is always clean and the sky is always blue. Nobody's heard of the heat index, and you never hear anyone say "it's 85 degrees but it feels like 99" . Oops -- I'm supposed to tell everybody how awful it is here, so those of us here can keep the good life to ourselves. :-D 

We've been -- I've been -- making lists, lots of them. Lists of what to bring back with us (empty suitcases, to fill up with stuff to take back), what to bring back with us, who to see, and what to do while we're in town . Sharon's wedding arrangements are coming along nicely and it feels strange not being there to be part of the excitement. Can't wait to see the family again!

Things to take with us: souvenirs for friends and family. If there is something in particular you would like from Down Under, tell me now. So far I have requests for UGG boots, Vegemite (to prove it exists), Tim Tam biscuits, and a good looking, single Australian bloke. Not sure that last item will fit in a suitcase but seriously, if you ask for something, I'll do my best to find it and bring it along.

Things to bring back: Salted almonds, Crest toothpaste (Colgate has a lock on the market here), Rotel tomatoes, absorbent coasters, Zest soap (it doesn't leave residue on the shower door), Sweet & Low, graham crackers and makeup (because it's cheaper in USA), Velveeta cheese for queso. I don't like it but everyone else sure does, and it's a great antidote to homesickness. and memories, lots of memories.

Things to do while we're here: Sharon & Lynn's wedding!, eat Mexican food (but watch out for those chips), doctor and dentist appointments, visit friends and family, and shop for winter clothes. I used to wonder about visitors from other countries who went crazy over prices in our department stores. Now I understand their enthusiasm! I bought an end-of-season summer dress off the clearance rack for $65 in a department store because the discount shops sell only the most casual of clothing. That same dress would have made its way to Ross or Marshalls and I could have had it for $15 or less. That's why the empty suitcases. We're going to fill them up with sheets and blankets, some winter clothes, extra tennis shoes, some hard-to-find foods and a few more dishes and pots and pans to make our next place feel more like home.

Four weeks from yesterday is our departure date - April 1st. Our route will be Perth - Singapore - Moscow (refueling stop) - Houston. Can't fully describe how much we're looking forward to seeing y'all, in Houston, Tennessee and California.

House Hunting

In the beginning, a cozy flat overlooking the Swan River was all one could ask for: easy commute to work, shops and restaurants in walking distance, and of course the beautiful skyline view.

Now that we’re going to be here longer, it’s time to for something more suitable. Translation: A small apartment is okay for 6 months, but for the long-term I’d really like a gas stove, an extra bedroom for visitors, and a refrigerator larger than a suitcase. ;-> My foray into the real estate world has been interesting. Here’s some stuff you need to know if you want to rent a place in Perth.

1. Prices are listed per week, not month. So that penthouse with covered parking, huge balcony and a plasma TV going for $1,500? Nope, it’s over 4 times that -- not in the Vetter price range.
2. The “descriptive language phenomenon” (some would call it lying) is alive and well here too. The term "city glimpses” means that if you stand on tiptoe in the bathroom you can see a sliver of river and skyline. A “short walk to the shops and cafés” means about a mile. A "stroll" is about half a mile.. “Minutes away” means you can get there by car in around 5 minutes – which can get you halfway across the city most times. “Around the corner” means a 5-7 minute walk. Two bathrooms means that one has a shower/bath and sink and the other has all that plus a toilet. The term half bath doesn’t exist here. “Air conditioned” means there is a wall unit in at least one room, but not necessarily everywhere. That would be "fully ducted air conditioning." "Sweeping views" means that you can look out the window and see the river or skyline with no obstructions like trees or other buildings in the way. Naturally, those are in the most demand. 
3. There are interesting differences in construction. Besides the fact that everything is metric, in every home I’ve seen the door handles are a lot higher -- chest level compared with waist level. Counter tops (benches)in kitchen and bathroom are also much higher – around 32 inches. Most buildings are made of brick, which makes them durable but they do hold in the heat. And just try putting in a nail to hang a picture… perhaps that’s why I’ve seen so few decorations on walls. Towel racks have two small racks instead of one thick one, the better to hang those thin Australian towels on. Because we're in the city, yards (gardens) tend to be small.

Some real estate vocabulary:

• Robe – short for wardrobe, or closet. It can be anything from a freestanding unit like an armoire, to a walk-in closet. A built-in robe is the kind of closet with sliding doors, often mirrored. They're quite popular in apartments since they conserve space.
• Air con – air conditioning. Ducted air con is what we’re used to, reverse-cycle air con is the wall mounted unit. They're pretty efficient for what they are, but they only cool one room at a time.

The air con unit in our bedroom. You turn it on and off via the remote on the wall.
• Timber flooring – wood floors.
• Bench top - counter top.
• White goods -- large household appliances like washer, dryer, dishwasher and refrigerator. When you rent an unfurnished apartment, a modern unit will already have a dishwasher but you usually buy your own fridge and washing machine. For some reason dryers are often installed, which doesn't make sense because people are really big on hanging clothes on the line to dry here. You'd expect to have a washer and not a dryer, but hey -- this is a foreign country. I'm not supposed to understand it. :-);

White goods in our utility room. Washer below and dryer above.

In the past 2 weeks I've worked with 6 different real estate companies, researched 19 properties, visited 13, and made a shortlist of 5 to show to Vince. Real Estate agents can be a snippy lot but when you say the magic words "corporate lease" they become quite attentive. You can almost see dollar signs fill their eyes, like Wimpy (I'll gladly pay you Tuesday...) while thinking up his next get rich quick scheme. Pretty fun to watch! Why so many agents? Compare the Australian renting method to the American one. The last time I rented an apartment I visited a complex, talked with sales people in the management office, and was shown available units. That method doesn't work at all here. First, there is no management office for apartment buildings because people buy their apartments here. If they decide to rent them out, they do so through a real estate agent. So if you run across a building you like, the next step is to find it on the Internet, which is usually done via the REIWA (Real Estate Institute of Western Australia) site. All agencies post ads for the places they manage, and you can create a recurring search which will email listings to you daily. In this forest of agents, the trick seems to be narrowing it down to one or two who know the market and have lots of listings. In our current apartment building there are 64 units on 16 floors, and I've seen 6 of them on the Internet, managed by 3 different real estate companies! This is a good time of year to look, though. With an oil boom on, the summer will get very busy as expats come over after their children finish the school year.

So we will have a new place soon, and the vetteroo villa welcomes visitors. Just let us know when you're coming and we'll put the shrimp on the barbie!

Bloom Where You Are Planted

As far as foreign assignments go, Perth is one of the best. They speak English here, the weather is great, the food is even better, and the kangaroos are adorable. It is safe for families and there are lots of things to do here. The public transportation is so good that with some planning, it is possible to get around very well without a car. The Australians are very friendly, and there is a variety of organizations for visitors from other countries such as the American Women's Club and the Petroleum Women of Perth. Then there are the sub-groups: bible studies, tennis group, young Mums' group, coffee club, walking group, book club, movie club, curry club and more. Local charities need volunteers, and there are even opportunities for paid work.

I am grateful to many people who helped us get settled here, especially the ladies in the beginner's Mahjong group. They have helped me find a good doctor, hairdresser, grocery stores, etc.  We've been here just over 3 months now. Vince's work is going extremely well and I have made dozens of new friends. It would be easy to spend my days attending one social event after another. But the question keeps popping up: why are we really here? What is God's purpose for us in Perth?

I don't have the answers to why Perth, why now, why us. But I do know that we need to make our days count. So... how do we do that? We started by finding a church, the Christian Reformed Church (CRC) of Perth. Their doctrine agrees with ours -- click here for more details http://www.crcperth.org.au/What%20we%20Believe.htm and we've been made very welcome by the membership, composed of about 70 families with weekly attendance of around 65 at the morning service and 25 at the evening (teaching) service. There is a shortage of Sunday School teachers, so I have volunteered to teach the 3-8 year olds once a month. Fortunately I'll have an assistant! Vince is considering teaching an adult Sunday School class because they don't have any. After the church service there is a social time with coffee and cakes -- lots of cakes -- and this has been our primary way of getting to know our fellow believers. We'll no doubt find other opportunities to serve in time.

We enjoy many things about this church. We're forming friendships here and being exposed to cultures beyond just Australia. The roots of this denomination are in The Netherlands and at least 2/3 of  our church members originate from Holland or South Africa. Many emigrated to Australia after WWII and raised families here who now also attend the church. Another 1/3 is Australian, and then there's Vincde and me, the token Americans. It's quite a mix of accents on a Sunday morning. There is a group of pastors who preach in rotation at the 5 Perth-based churches. This gives pastors a rest from preaching on two Sundays per month and frees them to spend more time on pastoral care or other matters and less on writing sermons. Music? Well, there is a huge ministry opportunity in that area! Pastors select their own music to accompany their sermons, so the music is unpredictable from week to week. There is usually a mix of modern and traditional music, but they mostly sing hymns. Our church does not have a regular pianist and there is no choir. Music is played either by the pastor's teenage children (piano and guitar) or via pre-recorded instrumental CDs. Many of the hymns have recognizable lyrics with just a few changes of words, but often the tune is quite different. I am still learning the tunes to many hymns. Vince is oblivious to this -- he is super tone deaf and just sings loudly and joyfully. More than once we have sung a capella when pre-recorded music was not available. So if you have a passion for music ministry and you want to come to Perth, let's talk!

We celebrated communion last week for the first time since arriving here. The Lord's supper is served in a wonderful way at this church. A very large and long table is set up at the front of the church (think of two 8-foot tables next to each other end to end with white tablecloths on them). At the appropriate time the deacons usher people by row to the table at the front. When every seat at the table is taken the whole church sings a hymn and the pastor conducts communion at the table. The bread is passed around and eaten, then the wine, in individual portions just like we do it in Houston. The difference is that 32 people are sitting around one long table and it feels intimate, like family. It works for our church because there are usually less than 70 people attending on any given Sunday morning. It is possible to serve the entire church communion in two seatings. While we don't exactly "recline at table," it does make me feel like I'm having communion similar to the manner Jesus' disciples did :-D

There are many senior citizens in our congregation who bring a richness and history to the group. I hpe I am treated as well as they are when I reach their age. Last week our most senior member, John, turned 90 years old. The pastor announced it at the end of the service, they brought in a large cake, and we all sang Happy Birthday.  His grandchildren and great-grandchildren put together a "Happy Birthday Opa" Power Point slide show with photos from his life. The love in the room brought many of us to tears.

Here is an introduction to our new church home and some of our "family" members.

The sun pours in on a typical summer day in February. Buildings in Perth are made almost entirely of brick The red carpet is a nice touch.

. Coffee, tea and cakes (cookies or other snacks) are served after every Sunday morning service. It's a time for visitors to meet people, and for regular attenders to socialize in a relaxed way. Here, a group of ladies is having a "cuppa."

Rob, one of the elders. He wanted me to mention the earring in his left ear- a bit unconventional for this crowd, but I've seen them oin many Australian men "of a certain age." Everyone dresses casually in hot weather, which is most of the year. Maxi dresses are in style here too.

Vince having a coffee and a chat after the service.

Inside the modest but comfortable building. The words to hymns and praise songs are projected onto the screen at front left. Our pastors tend to speak from the pulpit (center). Announcements are made from the table at the front left, beneath the screen. The chairs are all orange plastic and I suspect they have been there for several years. Many of them have seat cushions, handmade made by various church members, which are left on the chairs week after week. Like folks everywhere, people tend to have a fovrite seat!  The table at the back left holds sermon outlines and current newsletters.

Some of the kids are having some fun on the piano after service. Every child the world over can pick out  "Heart and Soul." :-)

We have a small youth group which they hope to grow. Like elsewhere, when teens go to "Uni" (University) their church attendance tends to drop off for a few years.

It's not just girls -- most of the guys were outside playing sports, but one of them agreed to pose for a photo.

The church is on a small street in a typical neighborhood. There is a shortage of parking spaces, so cars park right up to the front door, sometimes even on the grass, or "verge." 

Third from the left is John, who just celebrated his 90th birthday.

They take good care of the pastor here. He needs his own parking spot since he has 3 kids and drives a "ute" (utility vehicle, or SUV) . It has been so hot that you can break a sweat just walking the 20 feet from your car to the church.

Big Changes: We're Gonna Be Here A While

Some big changes are happening in the Vetter household! The original plan was to come to Australia for 9-12 months so Vince could manage the Australia/New Zealand practice temporarily. However, this position has become available permanently after some key staff changes. Vince has enjoyed this role very much in the 3 months we have been here, and he has accepted the job on a permanent basis. Woo-hoo! I hope you will share our excitement and anticipation. This is great news.

In the business world, "permanent" can mean anything from 2 years to life. For us, it means a commitment of at least 2 to 3 years. It's a great opportunity for Vince, with a boom in the oil & gas business going on here in Perth, as well as the challenge of growing the Australia practice significantly. We are both looking forward to making a difference here, in whatever manner God has planned for us. This also means that we will see less of the children and grandchildren, but we are already figuring out how to stay connected.

So... our trip to Houston in April will become the first of many over the next few years. We want to visit as many of y'all as possible during this upcoming 3-week visit. And now that we will be here longer, perhaps some of y'all can come visit us in Perth! It is a lovely place and we'd love to share it with you. Meanwhile, you can always reach us via email:  vince@vetter.com and anita@vetter.com and of course, vetteroo@gmail.com . 

Cheers for now,
Anita & Vince

Checking Out The Neighborhood: Jakarta and Singapore

Our plan for this past weekend was to drive to Western Australia's famed wine region. At the last minute Vince was called to Jakarta on business, so instead of wine tasting at the Margaret River, Vince invited me along and we experienced a bit of Southeast Asia!  We had a stopover and plane change in Singapore, so we stayed an extra day to sightsee and shop. Not only did we get two trips for the price of one, at Singapore airport I saw my first Starbucks since November. :-D

One word sums up Jakarta: different. The only thing familiar about this place is the humidity. Jakarta is situated at the northern tip of the island of Java, about 50 miles from the equator. It's the end of the rainy season (no winters here) and the days are hot, humid and overcast. Like Houston in August. Population is 8 million in the city, 12 million if you include the suburbs, which works out to 44,283 people per square mile.

Wide streets, green spaces, expensive cars (most taxis are Mercedes), modern skyscrapers and shiny building - a visitor's first impression of Jakarta.

Motorcycles are the preferred mode of transportation for the vast majority of residents. Motorcycles and mopeds outnumber vehicles by at least 10 to 1.

While Vince met with clients, I went sightseeing and shopping. I wanted to try the open air markets in search of batik fabric but was counseled against it. The streets are not laid out in any recognizable pattern, I don't speak Indonesian, and I guess they thought I would be at risk. So I headed for the closest mall and a store I read about on the Internet called Batik Keris (pronounced "crease"). Jakarta is not pedestrian-friendly. The congested traffic and the absence of sidewalks makes foot travel dangerous and impractical. Not to mention the heat and humidity. A 10-minute taxi ride from a mall I could see from the hotel window took me to the Grand Indonesian Mall, a towering building some 41 stories. The mall occupies 7 floors and has many modern stores like Harvey Nichols, Marks and Spencer, Prada, Gucci, Armani, even a Starbucks. The store employees were impeccably dressed and groomed, full of smiles and "may I be of service?" I tried to help the economy out by spending money in their stores, but there was very little actual merchandise to buy and the clothing stores carried only 1 item in each size. Once sold, they didn't have another. Another cultural trademark appeared: nobody ever says "no" or "I can't." If you ask them a question they will answer "yes" no matter what it is. Do you have these trousers in size 38? Yes. But they were not on the rack and when the saleslady went to look for some she returned with a big smile on her face and said "the size 38 has been sold. Thank you!" It happened in several stores. But I did find the Batik Keris store and swooned over the beautiful fabric. Some of it will find its way into my wardrobe, I am sure.

Spotless malls for tourists with cash to spend. They are heavily guarded to keep out undesirable visitors. Before entering this mall I had to pass through a security checkpoint, a metal detector, and have my purse inspected.

Koi pond, video wall and (behind) a play area for children. Note the guard at right.

My favorite store. No haggling, just good quality fabrics and clothing in traditional Indonesian Batik designs.

Vince models a recent Batik Keris acquisition :-)

It is a land of contrasts. There are two classes of people here: a few very rich and the masses who live in poverty. Traffic? It's one big game of chicken. As three lanes of traffic squeeze their way into two marked lanes, the horn you hear warns you that another car is about to enter the lane ahead of you and cut you off, so you'd better prepare for it. Everyone knows and accepts this system, and I didn't see any scratches or dents on the cars we passed, but all the same, I chewed my nails to the quick. As our car snaked through traffic (which makes Houston's freeways look like the Autobahn), our first views were of tall, beautiful hotels and skyscrapers reflecting a golden sunset and the trendiest stores in multi-story malls. That's the tourist view and it's obvious a deliberate effort has been made to maintain this gleaming image. A closer look reveals a very different place: a city so crowded that bodies literally spill onto the streets. Thousands and thousands of people not living but rather surviving; families of 10 or more living on a piece of ground the size of a Houston living room. No running water, toilets, electricity, shelter, or even a change of clothing. They populate every street, sitting in the dirt, the luckier ones selling trinkets to whoever will buy. One family was living inside a discarded refrigerator. The smell was intense and the breeze did not help much: Jakarta is the world's third most polluted city. It's not third world but it's close. In spite of these conditions, everywhere I looked people were smiling. The men smoke cigarettes and chat on street corners, the women take care of the little ones who run half-naked in the few green areas, chasing each other and laughing. And talking. Chatter everywhere, in a language spoken at a fast, clippety-clip pace and sounds like a cross between Dutch and Chinese.

Looking up: contemporary government buildings. At street level: the everyday business of making a living and shopping for family.

The word "Masjid" means mosque - Jakarta is currently a muslim country, combined with historical influence from the Chinese and Dutch, which is most easily visible in their architecture.  Gray skies? A combination of weather and pollution.

The haves and have nots. An abandoned bus shelter becomes a sales stand and refuge for people living on the street. The rest of the family is living behind the blankets to the right. The motorcycles belong to the shoppers to the left.

Old crates become a combination family home and place of business. I wonder what potions those bottles contain?

A shop by day, shelter and sleeping quarters by night.

A typical street scene. Note that the men do all the selling and business. Women care for the children and manage home life.

How do people survive in this environment? They are... resourceful, and the kindest way to describe it is to say that they do what is necessary to survive. If they are very fortunate or have connections, they might work for the government, which appears to provide very little assistance but does seem to employ an awful lot of people, at pitifully low wages. For the unemployed in the cities the alternatives are begging and crime, and both are common. Another approach is the offering of personal services in exchange for gratuities. Those whose jobs which allow them to mix with tourists and businessmen use every opportunity available to earn extra money. We experienced this (except the crime :->) immediately upon arrival. When you arrive at Jakarta airport you must purchase an "entry visa." We queued for 20 minutes and paid US$25 apiece, cash only.  It took 2 employees to tell us to keep moving and point to the available window and another two to count our money and place a visa in our passport. From there we joined a second queue to go through immigration. Another 15 minutes and 3 uniforms later, we cleared immigration. On to baggage claim ( no help available there) and then another queue for Customs, mercifully shorter since we had nothing to declare. A final perusal of our passports and we were good to go.

"Glad that's over," I said to Vince just before the large glass doors opened into the public section of the airport. Instantly it was noisy, crowded and chaotic. I knew to expect crowds and to watch out for the usual ne'er-do-wells, but this was ridiculous. Swarms of people everywhere,  calling out to one another and confronting newly arrived visitors with offers of everything from cheap hotels and taxi rides to "beautiful girls" and shoe shines. There was barely room to move as we pushed forward to meet our prearranged driver. In the 5 minutes it took to find him we were besieged by no less than 4 people offering to carry our luggage, 2 who asked if we needed a hotel, and 6 who offered to get us a taxi or drive us to our destination. They followed us like an entourage, ignoring our polite "no thank yous" until we had to literally shoo them away. We met our driver at the airport McDonalds which for some reason is called Tony Jack's, and as we followed him to the parking lot a second string of would-be luggage carriers and taxi drivers pursued us all the way to the parking lot, offering lower prices and good service for a low price. Whew! Exhausting.

Our hotel was a fortress-like island in the center of town, surrounded by trees and a long entry road, including a security checkpoint where 5 uniformed guards opened our car doors, looked inside at our bags and inspected the trunk.  Since the hotel bombings at the Marriott and Ritz-Carlton two years ago, everyone is being extra careful. They allowed us through and we entered an oasis of beauty: a gleaming, spotless hotel with dozens of friendly and courteous bellhops and parking attendants. Service and smiles everywhere. The noise abated and my pulse returned to normal, and I realized I had been clenching my purse so tightly that my fingers were sore. Once inside, we registered and got room keys, etc. The usual tipping procedures applied here, but the people who helped us always took the opportunity to offer something more: having taken our luggage to our room, did we want them to put it on the bed or help to put things away? Did we want them to show us the way to the restaurants? Did we want to schedule a spa service? Upselling nirvana. The hotel was wonderful, and everything so lovely that you could almost forget about the sea of poverty 12 floors down and a block away.

Sightseeing in Jakarta is kind of like sightseeing in L.A. or Houston -- everything is spread out and too far to walk to. I hired a driver to take me to the Textile Museum, so I could learn a bit more about the origins of the batik fabric I enjoy so much. The journey to the museum was actually more fascinating than the museum itself, which was a small house containing a collection of various textiles and royal outfits from the different islands of Indonesia.  The hours of labor represented in the beadwork and weaving boggled my mind.

Traditional gowns worn by royalty in earlier times.

Samples of hand woven fabric in a timeless design. I purchased fabric similar to this in a modern mall.

They made beautiful fabrics and costumes from hand looms like this one. Amazing.

While visiting the textile museum I was joined by a group of school children who were here on a field trip. I asked permission of their teachers (the guys at the back in matching shirts) to take a photo and they obliged. Note the headscarves on the little girls.

Such precious children. Even though I didn't speak their language, they understood my smile and gratitude.  This shot captures their true spirit.

From there we went to "Taman Mini Indonesia Indah" (Beautiful Indonesia Miniature Park). Wikipedia describes it best.

The park is a synopsis of Indonesian culture, with virtually all aspects of daily life in Indonesia's 26 provinces [in 1975] encapsulated in separate pavilions with collections of architecture, clothing, dances and traditions all depicted impeccably... There is a lake with a miniature of the archipelago in the middle of it, cable cars, museums, a theater... and other recreational facilities which make TMII one of the most popular tourist destinations in the city.

I took many photos. A few are below, and I will soon post a whole album on Picasaweb. Although the country is not at its best right now due to a corrupt government and the suffering of several natural disasters, it was once quite dazzling. The site occupies 250 acres and even with a car it took several hours just to see the main attractions. Before this visit I didn't realize that many countries had an influence on today's Indonesia: Holland, which ruled the islands from the 17th century until 1950, Thailand, Fiji, China, and even Japan. 

Musical Instruments

It was an interesting trip and I'm glad to have the opportunity to experience Jakarta. However, I left with a sorrowful heart for the millions of people who suffer in desperate poverty. It is hard to accept that conditions there will not change until those in power choose to act. But I can pray for them.

Business went so well for Vince that he stayed an extra day in Jakarta, leaving us only an afternoon and evening in Singapore. We made the most of it, taking the train from the airport into the city to get a feel for the place, and walking through as much of it as we could. This is a shopper's paradise as well as a beautiful, pristine metropolis. We will have another stopover here on our way back from our trip to Houston. Looking forward to it ;-)