The New Digs

Has it really already been almost one month? Wow. The orientation portion of the fellowship is over, and now everyone is off to their sites to get down to the business of teaching English. For me, this means back to Jakarta to move into my apartment before classes begin on Monday. This year, I decided to pass on the Bellagio - hand flurish - for something a little closer to Indonesia. I'm still living in a high-rise, and I'm still on the 26th floor, but this time there are actual Indonesians living in the same building. One of these Indonesians happens to be one of my running pals, Miranda. But wait, the perks don't end there. First off all, I have a balcony from which I can see this view of the city:

I live in a tower that looks identical to the ones shown in the picture. The apartment complex is enormous...over twelve towers. There are two rockin' shopping plazas in walking distance (the blue roof in the distance is my favorite). One contains a used book store from which I purchased copies of Woody Woodpecker and Bugs Bunny comics in Indonesian to practice language. This is the view at night:

One more pic looking straight down at the awesome walk way that connects all of the towers. You can see one of the two pools, the fitness center at the top of the picture, and the oval b-ball court. This place is bustling every night with kids playing soccer on the concrete.

Alright, let's move inside. From the balcony looking in you can see the living room and kitchen. Burnt orange couch! I'm in love.

 

Close up of the kitchen. I have a gas stove, aaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnd an oven. Oh the brownies that will be made.

I don't even know how this happened (referring to shoes).

Spare bedroom just for you. Come visit!

 Master bedroom wardrobes. That's right, I have two. Don't judge.

My soft-pink bed. I had a small 'ugly American' moment when I made a face at the Saved-By-the-Bell-Opening-Credits-Patterned bedspread that was originally on the bed. I didn't mean to; it just came out like a knee-jerk reaction, and my poor landlady had her son go get a new cover right then and there. Sigh. I'm not proud.

 Washing machine with a separate spin section. I had so much fun trying to figure that thing out today.

The bathroom. Just kidding, it's the servant's bathroom. Kidding again! I don't have a servant, but this really is meant for a housekeeper.

Maybe my favorite building in all of Jakarta is now just outside my front door. How did they do that?

That's the end of the tour; just a taste of what you, too, can experience when you come visit me. ;)