The Good Life

This is what I learned today from my "Bahasa Indonesian Word-of-the-Day": Pria itu punya otak udang - That man has a shrimp brain. I love this language.

Life here ain't too shabby either. Today started with another trip to the Ragunan zoo for a run with the Jakarta Free Spirit running group. My new found friends (see pic below) picked me up at 6:00am, and we headed south to meet up with the mostly-expat running group. There are usually about 10-20 people there, and they all seem to be really great. One loop around the zoo is 5k. Today I tried two in preparation for a 10k race that's coming up Oct. 3. It's still a struggle getting used to the heat/humidity, but it feels so good to be getting back into some of my favorite hobbies.

(I'm second from the right...just in case you couldn't pick me out)

Yes, that's "hobbies" - plural. I found salsa dancing last Thursday night! There is a Ritz-Carlton Hotel in walking distance from my apartment, and within said hotel in a lovely little bar that has live "latin"music  (no brass, but let's not be choosey beggars, right?) and some pretty fantastic dancers. Aye, there's a rub; most of the leads are private instructors who are hired by students to both teach them and dance with them all night. Think Patrick Swayze in Dirty Dancing. This practice is called "booking," as it was explained to me by the main instructor. Harumph. Luckily, the instructor was very kind and not only danced with me, but also introduced me to some other women to chat with. As the night went on, I did get in a few amazing dances with some professional dancers (one of whom went to LA for their salsa congress). I even met a tall guy (seriously...the guy used to play professional ball...7' easy) who is a Zouk instructor. This is what I understand about Zouk: It's a dance from Brazil and the Caribbean that's a cousin to samba and lambada. Also, it requires the woman to have long hair, so she can whip it about in wild gyrations. Check out this video.  He also explained that he needed a tall partner to help him with instruction...would I be interested? Thank you, Jakarta...Thank you.

I should also mention...(I'm so incredibly spoiled) that while gushing today to my running buddies that I found a salsa joint, one of them exclaimed that she, too, loved salsa and used to perform and compete. Kindred spirits!

In other news: I tried Javanese coffee today - so powerful that I perspired, and I swear my teeth were vibrating for several hours afterward. I, along with all of the students and teachers at Sebasa, were invited to go see an American, Muslim Hip-Hop group at Jakarta's Hard Rock Cafe this Thursday. And, line dancing is acceptable physical training for police at the language school (more on this to come). 

Real work starts Monday, so I'm off to go create some lesson plans now. I promise...Bali reports soon!