Beating the Curve

During pre and post arrival orientation, we were warned about the "Culture Shock Curve" - which basically explains the emotions you'll experience when living in a new country/culture. Everyone experiences the curve in different ways, but most people start happy and excited - move on to really frustrated and sad - and end with a well-balanced acceptance. I've been in Indonesia for nearly a month and a half, so it's probably too early to tell, but I have to say that I haven't really shifted out of stage one. Of course, of course, there are days and even small moments where I go through the whole gauntlet at once, like: when I'm stuck in traffic for 2 hours, get a disappointing meal (this happens a lot), or face some communication barrier at a store. (Side - I'm constantly compiling a small list of things I miss about Ohio/America. So far it includes: parks, free water, The Hot Dog Shoppe, baked goods, ovens, dryers, double stuffed Oreos, sidewalks, and swing dancing - friends and family being a given :). Anyways, things are good. And I'd like to introduce you to a few reasons why.

 Meet Hilda and Miranda. I mentioned before that I joined a running group that meets every Saturday morning at the zoo. Hilda, Miranda, and about four other of their friends meet there every week also. These ladies happily offered to give me a ride to and from the zoo every week (saving me a load on taxi fare!) without evening knowing me. Since that first week, we've gotten to know each other quite a bit better. I learned that Hilda is an avid salsa dancer, and Miranda would like to learn, so we meet up at the Ritz for dancing from time to time. They are both world travelers (Miranda's sister went to Ohio State ;), and have fun stories to tell. Miranda even offered to take me to her Presbyterian church next week. In honor of our first race, I invited the girls over the night before for a carb-loading pasta dinner. Together we cooked penne, drank champagne, and ate sinfully good sweets!

If only I had brought a red shirt...

Our first race was today in downtown Jakarta. Apparently, every Sunday, a certain portion of a major highway through Jakarta is shut down, and people are encouraged to get out and walk, bike, or rollerblade for exercise. This, by the way, is pretty unusual as the girls tell me that fitness is on about the same priority level as the environment awareness around here.

On this particular Sunday, there was a 10k race to benefit heart disease research. God smiled upon us by covering up the sun and supplying a small breeze, so it was a pretty perfect race day. All-in-all, the race was on par with any other race I've been too, minus the two times I had to stop to let cross traffic go by, the random strangers who came up and ask to have a picture taken with me (x2), and that moment at the end where I was asked to join a group of other bules to pose for a "water commercial" photo. I still struggled with running in the heat and humidity, but I met up with an ex-Marine who works at the Embassy about 2k in, and we helped each other out the rest of the way. And, now I have my benchmark for the next race: 0:58. :)

Next, meet Sarah from the UK - endless supplier of fun British sayings and helpful Jakarta tips. Sarah and I were introduced by Maura, the ELF who was in my position for the last two years. Sarah has lived in Jakarta for a little over a year and knows vastly more about the language and the lay of the land than I do. In three meetings, we had coffee in Menteng (where Obama went to school), ate pork in a German pub, and today we traveled by train to Bogor.





Bogor is a smaller town just south of Jakarta famous for its botanical garden. For us, today, it was a perfect escape from Jakarta. After a 45 minute train ride, we stepped out onto the tracks and on into the narrow streets of Bogor. Fresh air! After a short walk through the vendor-lined street, we ended up at a wonderful open-air restaurant that overlooked the village and a fantastic view of a mountain covered in clouds.

Sitting, chatting, and drinking fresh juice was just the thing I needed to digest all of the craziness that is living in a city of 30 million and tackling a new job. But then, it got even better. About 15 minutes after our arrival, there were three performances of traditional dances from Indonesia. The first was a lovely lyrical Sudanese dance performed with a fan, the second was a technical Balinese dance complete with "crazy eyes" - as Michaela calls them, and the third was a dance from the far east near Papua Guinea. I couldn't get too close, but here is a video of the Sudanese dance:

An amazingly refreshing way to spend a Sunday! It definitely couldn't have happened without the help of these fantastic people. I'm sure bad days will come, I'll reach that second stage, but I've got plenty of friends around to help me beat the curve :)

I leave you with some of the restaurant's finer menu choices...

Goldfish! (Sarah assured me they don't really mean goldfish)

They really do eat every part of the chicken.

Mmmm...fried ox lung