It is time to sit back and cherish the moments I spent in Indonesia. It’s a beautiful country with wonderful people, I regret, Indonesia is often known to the outside world only for bad reasons like natural disasters etc. Till I live in Indonesia, I was no different; I too thought the same way. Natural disasters happen here, but there is something else which makes this country very special. It’s the people, the cultural diversity, the food and the landscape.
Indonesians are the friendliest and most pleasant people in the world (or at least in the countries I have visited). Whenever I go out, I see happy faces, always greeting with smile. They are very polite; always talk with low voice (compared to Indians). I have not seen a single instance of public fighting, or heated argument even in markets like Pasar Bawah. People respect each other; “terimah kasih” (thank you) is used generously. After living couple of years in Indonesia, I think I have become more polite. Last July when I went to Mumbai, I got habituated to say “thank you” to everyone, even for the auto (bajai) driver. He gave me a suspicious look, as if I am not going to pay him. It is not a common word in Mumbai, people say “thank you” only on getting some considerable help. In Mumbai, I generally avoid smiling at strangers; I may not have an answer if he/she asks me why I am smiling. So most of the faces are either expressionless or pretend to be busy, as if world is going to end if they do not finish their work before end of day. It is a contrasting experience here; I can see smiling faces in office even when they are behind schedule to finish a critical task. Here, it is not polite to not to smile at others. Frankly speaking, these smiling faces cheer up my day.
The love for music of Indonesians is amazing. It even put me in embarrassing moments, when I have been asked to sing “kuch kuch hota hai” in some functions. I never sing in my life except the national song. I prefer to skip the function instead of singing. Here, my friends think every Indian can sing & dance as they see in Bollywood movies.
I enjoyed the Indonesian food, especially the seafood. I will never forget the crabs of Kenari (Balikpapan) & grilled fish of Jimbaran (Bali). Feel sorry for Vrushali, since she is vegetarian, it is hard to find her something to eat when we go out. The definition of vegetarian is different here, the gado-gado, (only Indonesian vegetarian dish) comes with eggs in it. Veg salads come with a garnish of tiny prawns. Padang food is very close to Indian food but with more curry & less spicy. I preferred it most of the time (at Sari Ratu) when I was in Jakarta. Fruits like Durian, Rambutan, Manggis & Duku are not available in India. Es Campur is another dish I plan to suggest to my restaurant friends in India to include in their menu.Indonesians use sugar generously in their tea. At least 1/4th cup should be filled with sugar. This is the reason; when I go out, prefer to have tea without sugar. It is typical, when we order a can of cola in restaurant, the glass come with full of ice. We need to eat/remove some ice first to find a place to pour cola inside the glass.
Indonesia has beautiful landscapes. This is a perfect place for people who love nature. The wildlife, beaches, hill stations, volcanoes, lakes, ancient temples… everything is available here for a serious tourist. Few places which impressed me are - the Borobudur temple (I wonder why it is not in the list of 7 wonders of world), Mount Merapi (visited just after eruption in 2006), Lake Toba & wonderful island of Parapat in the middle, Balinese Hindu culture and their temple ceremonies & art skills.
Shopping is always a pleasant experience in Indonesia. Shop owners don’t feel bad even when we spend couple of hours in the shop & come out without buying anything. Indonesians think all expats are super rich & visit Indonesia only to relieve of their excess cash. I was upset once in a shop at Balikpapan, for same ruby stone, I have been charged 40% more than the price Kurniawan paid. Later I visited the shop complaining about the same, the shop keeper smilingly said the deal I got is “Harga Buleh”
(expat price). They fix different price for expats, which is normally very high & call it “Harga Buleh”.Living in Rumbai camp is a different experience. I got the luxury of going home for lunch, which I never had since my childhood. We raised a garden in front of our house, worked hard to protect it from monkeys, wild pigs and even from snails. When we newly shifted here, almost everyday a new Gardner will come & ask for job. Tired of these, we put a note on the door, saying Gardner is not required. Even after this one guy approached from back door!! I remember a incident when Kumar was living here, his wife told one guy to come later (she meant in evening, when Kumar is at home) since she could not speak to him in Bahasa. He went away & returned after 30 minutes with a recommendation letter from his previous employer!! He misunderstood word “later” for “letter”.
I believe I have under utilized the camp facilities. Never tried playing golf, very few times went to play bowling, tennis & swimming. Our project’s change management team organized many events, including Cricket, Vollyball, bowling & singing at Karaoke. We had jungle walk couple of times, thanks to Devi.
I enjoyed the tropical rain in evenings, at our porch with hot cup of tea & Pakoras. Vrush had a good time with expat wives, played canasta often. They surprised her by all women wearing sari on her farewell party.
There are many more good things to remember, I cannot write all of them here. I really thank all who made my days memorable here. I plan to close my blog with this article, since I may not get a chance to live in Indonesia any more.
