Weekend in Jarkarta - Saturday....

A few weeks ago, I accompanied Charo, my principal and a fellow teacher to the ‘real’ market.  We started out really early Saturday morning.  Everyone had just received their pay, so needless to say, it was full. 

Oh my, I found things in there I had never seen before.  Charo, my principal bought me a delicious treat that was filled with pork, something that is not in abundance in these parts.  We then headed over to the meat section that looked like a meat market. 

 Hmmm, I guess it was.   Take your pick – chicken, beef, pork, fish, all kinds of seafood.  You tell them how you want it cut and how much you want. 

Then, we were off to the vegetables.  The freshest vegetables I’ve ever seen… amazing!  Take a look at these beautiful colors… Carrots, potatoes, greens, beets, tomatoes, limes, broccoli, cauliflower, onions, corn, garlic, chili peppers, and awww the mushrooms… I love mushrooms! 

Green beans, eggplant, cucumber…. And vegetables I’ve never seen before… some I’ve seen, but don’t remember the name of… the list goes on and on and on….

The fruit was similar in choices…. Bananas, oranges, apples, pineapple, tons of tropical fruit, and….

Coconuts!  Here, they are putting them through a machine and making coconut juice.  It was really fun watching them work… This whole isle is nothing but coconuts!

SCALLOPS!

I bought pork chops, pork on a stick (forgot the name for it), bananas, tomatoes, some kind of soy stuff that is ‘the bomb’ when cooked right, Mushrooms, tiny onions (great flavor), potatoes, two of the sweetest pineapples, green beans, and some more things that have slipped my mind at the moment… all of this for about $15!  I was in heaven…I would have bought more had I not already been to the store the day before.

We headed back home to get some rest before our evening outing for dinner and a movie; Larry Crowne with Julia Roberts and Tom Hanks.  Yes, it had subtitles… but the movie was in English – the subtitles were in Indonesian.  Didn’t bother me a bit! J

Till next time...

The Largest Primate Exhibit in the World....

A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of spending the day with a fellow teacher.  Now I have traveled around Jakarta in various vehicles.... a mini taxi van, a van, our school bus (big van), a little red 'cart', a taxi car....

but never on the back of a motorcycle.... till now!  Miko, a fellow teacher was gracious enough to show me some new things in Jakarta on the back of his motorcycle!  I love excitement... and that's just what I got on this trip..... We went to the Biggest Primate Exhibit in the World and to Taman Mini (Mini Indonesia).  We began our day at about 9AM (finally, I know someone who runs later than I do).  We headed straight  for the zoo.  The sights along the way were pretty cool.  I continue to see families all piled on their motorcycle, still amazing me each time.  Once we got there, you guessed it, I needed to visit the little girls room.  Now, here in Jakarta, they won't know what you are talking about if you ask for the 'restroom', 'little girls room', or 'bathroom'.  It is simply the 'toilet'....

This particular toilet is one that I swore to NEVER use; however, when you are a long ways from home and need to pee..... you pee in what ever is available at the time, right?  Besides, I just told myself that the 'squating' was no different than squatting in the pastures when I was young.... notice there is no bidet... the bucket of water is to 'flush' with.  BUT, being the Mother that I am and being used to packing my purse for anything that I just Might need - I pulled out the Wet Ones that I bought in the States; just in case they would be needed.  Problem solved, I join Miko outside the toilet to find that he is PAYing for me to use the toilet... ARE YOU KIDDING ME?????

 He explained that here in Jakarta if you need to use the toilet, then you will pay.  I think he paid her something like 1000 Rp which calculates to about 12 cents.  OK, not so bad... they can have their 12 cents.  Off to the zoo.... nothing like what you are used to seeing when you go to the zoo.  Personally, I think it's better!  Take a look and see what I mean....

There's no cement, pavement... it's not commercial... just natural in it's surroundings.. here's more...

Most of the exhibits are in small buildings... enclosures and behind glass, not like in the states.  Now, that part, I like better in the USA.  Below is a pic of the leopard exhibit.  You walk up and watch them while they spend all their time inside a glass wall.... not fun. :(

Off to search for the primates!  Where oh where can they be....

Should we go this way... or that way.... not knowing for sure, we asked a man who was sitting along one of the paths.  We finally reached our destination -

Pusat Primata Schmutzer - The Largest Primate Exhibit in the World!  Awesome!  Let's go in....

First a little photo op... say Cheese my little friend -

OK, now, we are off to the Real primates.  This exhibit is Awesome!  It is about the size of the entire Tulsa Zoo and all primates.  The gorillas have a ton of room to roam and the chimps have 'monkey island'... all the others have their own enclosures and look as if they are at least enjoying their captivity, such as it is.

This little guy sits inside a glass enclosure all day.  He has plenty of things to play with, but seems very excited and eager to communicate with all the passers by.  He was playing on his tire swing till we walked up to the window.  With great excitement, he quickly swung over to us and begged for attention.  I was all too happy to give it to him.

She was all too happy to sit for me a while and pose while I took her picture.  Then she got bored with me and decided to find something else to play with...

She made me think of and compare her to The Thinker by Auguste Rodin... ya know the one - if you ever studied Humanities, you know what I am talking about... so, am I right? LOL  Just saying.  OK, moving on.  The Orangutans and the Gorillas are in some amazingly spacious living quarters.  Open spaces, plenty of places to hide from us if they don't want to be seen... and plenty of natural trees to play in and around.

I love my Orangutans....

This little guy is being selfish.... If you notice, he has his own bottle of milk - and he has his buddy's bottle of milk.  He is on the run with the buddy not far behind.  It was a lot of fun watching all of this unfold.  There is a little cave around the corner and he goes into it, trying to hide from the other one.
He is followed, but the buddy (bigger than him) sits there and Watches him drink both bottles and doesn't do a thing to stop him... interesting.  Sometimes you don't have to be bigger to be the bully. hmmmm

I loved watching this little guy.... There were several of us up top on a walkway watching him and None of us could get his attention.  He just sat there patiently and quietly.  Somehow, I think We were the ones putting on a show for him.  I think they are smarter than many of us give them credit for.  However, if you are patient enough, you might get them to do something picture worthy....

Isn't he just Beautiful!!!!  We were on the other side from where we seen him earlier and he showed up long enough to prance around and show his stuff.... then, like most males - he was gone.

Off to the other exhibits... the more primates I saw the more I wanted to see More.... big ones, little ones, fat ones, skinny ones (OK, I am sounding a little Dr. Seussy here)  you get the point... I got a little brave and climbed up on the railing to get a better photo opp. (Yes, Mom, I did! - Somehow I know you are not surprised) Anyway.....

Hello!  This little guy come swinging over to me, out of nowhere to get a better look at me getting a better look at him. (Can you see where this is going?)  I was getting as close as I could to get a good shot of this little bitty tiny baby monkey and this one was trying to get as close to me as possible.  He lunged to the fencing, which set me back a moment.... but didn't get me off the railing.  I wanted my pic of the Baby!  Just about the time I got a good shot of the baby monkey, I was touched by the big one... WOW!  Talk about excitement.  He reached through the fencing and raked the back of my hand!  It was Awesome!  I didn't think a person could get off a railing that fast! Ha!  He and I shared a gaze, then we were off to the next exhibit.  Miko, by the way, got a big kick out of the monkey coming after me..

BTW:  Here's the itty bitty tiny baby monkey that caused all that ruckus earlier.... Definitely Worth It!!!!

Here's some more pics of..... more monkeys... Yea!!!!

This little lady was resting in the shade with her baby playing beside her... When she saw us walking up to the glass, she snatched the little guy up and carried him to us.... she was so proud of her little baby.  It was great how she kept looking to make sure we were looking at the baby... THEN, she put her hand up to the glass and I put my hand up to the glass to meet hers... She so knew what she was doing!  I loved it!  Wow!  What an amazing day!

The chimp didn't want to play on this day.... he just laid there and watched all of us.  So sad, I love Chimps!  .....

There were babies everywhere! It was a day I will cherish forever... and I was touched by a monkey!!!!!  Thank You Miko for a wonderful day.... Wait, we aren't through yet... We are now off to Taman Mini....
Till next time...

The reason I am here....

OK, finally what many of you have been waiting (patiently) for..... the reason I am here... to teach.  I teach at Ichthus International School (South) in Jakarta, Indonesia.  I have a pretty interesting schedule:  four math classes each day - two 3rd grade and two 4th grade; 4th grade homeroom twice each week; three remedial classes each week; and a debate class (H.S.) each week.  Oh yes, and four Cambridge Math preparation classes per month.  It sounds like a lot, but if you are a teacher and reading this, you will know that it is actually a fairly light load.  We have 10 periods in each school day/ 45 minutes in each period; 11 if you count the after school activity classes.  (That's where my Debate class comes into play).  I have plenty of time to prepare and grade papers at school, but always seem to have the need to bring things home.  No surprise there, since I am a daughter of two teachers and a sister of three teachers.

Let's start with my homeroom class:

Wait a second.... let's talk a minute about about how I get to my room each day.  First, the bus picks all the expat teachers up and takes them to school (we all live in the same neighborhood).  It's more like a Big van than a bus, but we call it a bus just the same.  It is crowded and the streets are Very crowded....

You will find motorcycles (notice the child's book bag on the back of the motorcycle), cars, vans, buses, taxis... you name, it's on the road... all headed to get their children to school, themselves to work, or early morning shopping.

... especially motorcycles...

the side streets can be a little scary, at times....

If you notice, there isn't much room here.  A car and a motorcycle can pass each other comfortably.  Therefore, our driver is pulled over in the above picture and is waiting for the van to pass.  If you look further down the street, you will see pedestrians.  There are normally more than the two or three in this picture.  What seems so strange to me is how we all seem to 'dance' around each other in perfect timing.  Notice where this street ends at a T in the road.  There is a 'safety mirror' so that you can see who is coming around the corner.  Horns honk and the cars keep on going!  Yes, I pray, Daily, on my ride to work! LOL

After our Awesome driver delivers us safely to school, we clock in for the day (with our finger print), check the teacher's log book for new memos, and drop our things off in our teacher's staff room before morning devotion.

My staff room is on the top floor.  So, I have three (count them, three) flights of these stairs to climb each morning to put my things away and do any last minute preparation before our morning devotion.  About 20-30 minutes later, I go down four flights of stairs to the dining room where we teachers have our morning devotion.  Our devotion time is spent singing, praying, scripture reading, and sharing uplifting words.  Then, you guessed it,  back up four flights of stairs to my homeroom class.  We have homeroom two days a week, assembly two days a week (taking the class down stairs), and chapel on Fridays (taking the class down stairs).  All of which, I am with my homeroom class.  Homeroom is over at 8:15 and classes begin.  They are all 45 minutes long and take me from the fourth floor, to the third floor, to the next building.  Usually there are multiple trips up and down the stairs for classes, lunch, and preparation errands (as much as 7-8 times a day).  Needless to say, I get a pretty good workout daily... (not to mention the 45 minutes that Meena and I spend walking in the evenings and the swimming and workout facility we are joining this week). So, you get the picture... up the stairs.... down the stairs.... up the stairs... down the stairs... I am now Back into my size 8's!  I would say those stairs are a blessing, right! :)

This is my staff room.  My desk is the one on the right with the ORANGE purse on it. I share it with 4 other subject teachers and 4 classroom teachers. The classroom teachers do a ton of work for us.  They take role, collect homework and get them to the subject teachers for grading, keep the class together between subject teachers, and usually have a class of their own throughout the day.  Mr Kristyo (Mr. Kris) is my classroom teacher.  He does an Awesome job and is so busy, you will rarely find him in the teacher's staff room.  I count on my other classroom teachers, as well. 

OK, that brings me back to my homeroom class.....

I am homeroom teacher to 22 students - 17 boys and 5 girls.  To those of you who just bowed your heads in prayer for me, many thanks!  So, would you like to meet them?  Let's go in and meet my 4th Grade Honor class.......

Welcome to my homeroom.  We are 4th Grade Honor. (Each class is named after a virtue: hope, faith, love, honor, perseverance)  These are the sweetest children you will ever meet.  Each one of them are winning my heart.  They all come from prominent families.  We have students here whose parents are actors, actresses, models, major businessmen, major suppliers, etc.  Somehow in all the pampering and awesome experiences these children get on a daily basis, they are really great kids!

My other classes are: 3rd Grade Hope, 3rd Grade Faith, and 4th Grade Harmony
My Debate class doesn't start until August, so you will hear more about that class later.

The building to the right is my building.... my class is just right of the one you see on the top floor.

Here are some of my boys on the playground.  This is also where they have their P.E. classes.  These are the uniforms they wear on P.E. days.... otherwise they are in their more formal uniforms (like in the class picture).

This is the parking lot for the teachers who drive to school... notice all the motorcycles lined up under the awning.... I am pretty sure there are more cycles there than vehicles.

We are breaking ground for the new secondary school..... Ichthus is Growing!
Thank you so much for letting me share our school with you.... I hope you enjoyed the tour.  If any of this brought up more questions, please leave comments and ask.... I will answer all questions and will share with you anything you are wondering about.  Which brings me to a question:  What do you want to hear about next?
Till next time....

People of Jakarta...

Whew, today was a Full day.... a trip to the Yayasan Kampung Kids to drop off food, to the nail salon for a fill, and the local market to shop for baskets and flowers.... Get ready for some very interesting pictures.  I took pictures along the way and hope you enjoy....
First, we went to the Yayasan Kampung Kids to drop off some food. Jo cooks for them once a month.

From their website: "The idea for this project started in the garage of one of our founder, who, during the last three years provided soup , rice, fruit, juice and milk to approximately 30 of the local children.

Bahasa English was also taught once a week to the same children and some adults. Due to the recent economic crisis in Jakarta on September 20, 1999, we began serving soup and rice to approximately 150 children in village. Additionally, approximately 50 children 5 and under and pregnant or breastfeeding mothers receive a cup of milk. This presently provided 3 days a week. KAMPUNG KIDS was legally formed in November 1999."

It was a great experience to see such good things happening here....





I was gifted a tour of the facility then we were off to the salon.  It has been 3 weeks since my nails were filled.  Way past due!  That was an experience all of its own.  I miss Danny at Muskogee's Arrowhead Mall and Tammy at the salon in Moore!  The girl who filled my nails today was very sweet, but everything was done manually and not up to my American Asians' standards.  No drills and it cost 250,000 rupiah which equals $29.41.  That is $14.41  more than I am used to paying in America.  Then, I had to pay another 50,000 rupiah ($5.88 USD) to get them painted!  I said NO to the polish and decided it is time for me to paint them myself!  You can imagine the reaction I had to the news!  It was Not good... OK, Char, it's OK... don't sweat the small stuff.  Nails done, I sat outside the shop and watched traffic while I waited for Meena and Jo to return from their shopping.  A thirty minute wait produced some very interesting shots....



They carry everything conceivable on their motorcycles...

Families will ride on one bike.... (small child is in front)

Her drink is from McDonald's!

These are a couple of ladies headed into the salon.  I was surprised to see how much Muslim women are into fashion and looking good.  They may need to cover their hair, but they are going to look good doing it! :)

Then, we were off to the market.... Along the way, I couldn't help but take a few more pictures for you....

I caught this lady riding side saddle while the man is balancing their goods in the front of the cycle!

It is very common to find children (babies and older) on the motorcycles...

If you look closely, you will find that the woman in pink is carrying  baby and the man has a small boy in front of him... all on one motorcycle.

One the street, you will find motorcycles, cars, buses, people walking, and pulling a cart.  They all seem to work together to get where they are going.  This is the friendliest 'traffic mess' I have ever seen... horns honking and all. :)

Jakarta is wall to wall traffic.  It takes an hour just to get a few miles down the road.  Sometimes, it is faster to just walk. (That is why there are so many motorcycles)  So, there are those who take advantage of the fact that there are so many cars just inching down the road.  Having a captive audience makes marketing (peddling) products very easy. 

The locals were very interesting at the market... the flowers were beautiful, and the school kids were so cute... Let me explain - The above picture is of three men taking it easy.  They are at a booth at the market and relaxing to a great game of chess....

There were baskets, home decor, greenery, and flowers everywhere...

Awesome! This caught Jo's eye, too!

He is making a memorial or a design for a wedding.... could be either.

The cages are filled with flowers that the florist use to complete orders.

Meena and Jo are walking through the upper level of the market where the designers are sorting and prepping the flowers.  One of the men is found eating his dinner.  He has 'INIO' spelled out in rose petals in front of him.  Inio is a type of music that is popular.

I couldn't help but miss the days at Teleflora when we would bring flowers home.  I love flowers!

Beautiful arrangements ready to be sold.

Pink Roses! Beautiful!

 There are many florists here at the market and flowers everywhere!

These bags are filled with rose petals used by Muslims in their religion.

This is a florist in the market.  Customers are gathered ready to place orders.  Flowers are so much cheaper here than in the States.  Meena bought a bunch of Gerber Daisies for about $5-6 USD today... They make a lovely addition to our home.

The vendor is showing Jo something that appears to be: The Nipple plant also known as the Cows Udder plant is a hardy perennial with large velvety leaves, small purple flowers and firm thorns. Its showy yellow nipple shaped fruit is related to the tomato. Unlike the tomato however, it's quite poisonous. It does have some medicinal properties though and can also be used as a detergent for washing clothes. The fruit can even last up to two months which is a long time in relation to fruits. It is native to South America

.

These guys are so talented!  Mom, this is the same stuff used to make the cross I bought for you in VA.

Now that's talent!

The market was complete with a band.... She sang very well.  This redheaded White woman caught the attention of some locals as I walked through here.  I just smile, say hello, and keep on walking.  LOL

I must say that my day was made complete with the flirtations of some young local boys......

These are 11 and 12 yr olds from the government school... They attend school Monday - Saturday.
We were leaving the market and headed for the main road to catch a cab home and Jo tells me that the boys are trying to talk to me.  They were walking in the same direction but on the opposite side of the street.
The one on the left (see pic) says, 'What's your name?'  I answer and told him that my name is Ms. Charlotte (It is Ms. Charlotte / not Ms. Shipley here).  He says, 'Where are you from?"  I answered and told him that I was from America.  He smiled really big and continued to talk.  The one in the middle asked how old I was, then asked if he could take me for a ride on his motorcycle!   They were too cute and too sweet... I asked if I could take a picture with them and they were all too happy to entertain.  I think I made their day too!

Now that my ego has been stroked (even if it was by some little eager young men), I am headed to bed for a much needed good night's rest.

Till next time....