Different for Girls

It’s my sister and my first day in Malang. We left Jakarta yesterday noon with lots of food from three days stay in Jakarta. My sister missed many so she (or we) ended up bought many from wherever we made stop. I was amazed myself when I shared with a friend the list of what we had in our hotel room. Snake-skin fruit, mangoes, rambutan, kelengkeng, pineapple tart and cheese cookies, milk, bread, Javanese snack… Now I’m lost.

But what we had accumulated on our first day in Malang? A lot! My sis, auntie and I drove up to mountain before six this morning. I’m glad that my sister and I have same biorhythm. She wasn’t jet lagged from her travel instead we faded away and awoke the same time. We used to start talking before 4:30, like this morning.

It was a nice morning. We went to see uncle who lives in family farmhouse up in the mountain forty minutes from home. We brought breakfast and snack we collected on the way. On the way back, we brought vegetables and fruits from the farm. We also stopped by school uncle manages. It’s always nice to be out in the sun. It’s Sunday, the village looked quiet.

We didn’t stop yet. With my sister around, the trip is a mix of memory, eco, and definitely culinary tours for my sister and… me. We went to a wet market downtown where we used to go with Mama when we were kids. More fruits and foods coming into car. It’s loaded!

Back home, I felt like eating anything. My sister said she rarely saw me had such appetite and later in the afternoon when I said I need to tell myself to stop eating… she was mesmerized. Me too! I ate things with gusto. Good that at the moment I could feel my appetite for food has been disappearing. Glad!

We used early evening to sort out Mama’s document. It exhausted us before too long. So many documents to read and comprehend. It has given me lesson of what I should do with my personal documents so that I would not overwhelm others and myself later.

I learn more every day since my sister arrived. How to understand our differences, to stop eating, and to comprehend things.

Picture of family farmhouse in Batu, Malang.

The Deadly Art of Survival

Four days have passed since my last post. Where does time fly? I had no time to sit and write. My days in Jakarta were spent in traffic with my sister. Only on my first day I spent a day with a good friend attending a bazaar and did a lot of… shopping. It was nice to be away from Jakarta bazaars for a while, things looked new. Jewelry was my new interest. Oh oh not new actually. I bought a lot of jewelries this time, I mean.

So yes, I spent the past two days with my sister. We have a business to do while we are in Jakarta. And surprisingly, we found out that we were not eager to roam shopping centers. It was fun but most of the time I could not ‘concentrate’ well because of carsickness. It was bad because I used to drive myself, not sitting in the back driven.

Anyway, we are happy with what we have accomplished so far. Today is going to be our last day in Jakarta. There is a document we need to legalize and hopefully we still have time to window shop. In Jakarta, we don’t have much options: business, eating, and shopping.

That’s what we are going to do today.

Picture of Jakarta car survival kit.

When A Stranger Calls

Traveling is fun. Meeting people. Airport is a dangerously fun place. A friendship could start from here. And I’m extra careful about it. I use magazine or book and iPod to filter ‘make a new connection’ mode. I liked to allow just a tiny opening. But destiny persists…

You have nice body. I envy. A woman who stood behind me waiting for the plane door to open whispered. I took off my earphone and thanked her then walked pass smiling. I was thinking if I should wait but no…

We shared a taxi in the end. Taxi was short because of bad traffic in the city. It happened we live close by. That’s when destiny controlled me. She talked I talked she talked talked talked I talked. She lives in Ubud! She is an e-graphic designer. Typical business in Ubud. Online. It’s so nice to have met her, same place, different world, different personality.

My new friend still talked when I combated cold sweat. I didn’t have enough intake before left early this morning. The traffic was not good although was not bad either. I told my friend in Jakarta through text message how I suffered in the city. She already made a full program for us tomorrow. It’s a rare occasion we are in Jakarta at the same time. It’s a small window for us before she leaves again soon for another trip.

I canceled my plan for the afternoon. Feel depleted already. I might come to a nephew's birthday get-together this early evening. Mingle with relatives. For a change.

Picture of Whispering by Dolo.

To Share or Nut To Share

My bedroom is clean. My fridge is empty from fruit and food. I had finished packing a few hours ago. I always have this feeling. When things are ready. I don’t like it. I don’t like being parted from the house.

I had nice morning with several long phone calls. My duty today was to make people feeling relieved. A cousin called to share her worry. My Ubud friend texted me about her latest development of rash she had suffered for days. I talked with everyone. I don’t have idea what I had shared with them. All I know half day just passed. I really hope they felt better after talking with me.

I had easy afternoon. I thought I would have liked to go out makan angin but in the end I enjoyed staying in. It was nice weather. I watched DVDs (sounds much but actually I only browsed). And it was nice to hear my sister’s voice again after long time. She called on her way to meet me. Often I could not believe that it takes her 24 hours to get to Asia and another 24 hour to get to Jakarta. The latter is her choice. She likes to stay overnight in Singapore. Anyway, talking with her had brought back the evil in me, in us. We giggled a lot planning out our moves, our days.

I might go to sleep early. I look forward to going to Jakarta tomorrow. Like other trips, it might be the beginning of something.

Picture of Life is A Long Song (After Jethro Tull) by Dolo.

Don’t Ask Don’t Tell

I often wonder how Balinese manage their daily life schedule. They must be present at any event in their, or related, banjar. And I, as an outsider, don’t always know what is happening in an area. There are times when I saw the whole family of every house in a neighborhood sitting outside wearing baju adat with white top waiting for something. Or, in one of my unlucky trips to Tegallalang, many shops were closed. Consulting Hindu calendar only is not enough because different banjar has different event calendar.

Anyway, I enjoy the unpredictable in my little village Ubud. That makes the place alive. Full of surprises. Like I was surprised how well my neighbor knew my routine. An Ibu tried to talk with me when I was in kitchen preparing smoothie. Ah. I jumped. It got me thinking, she must know what time I mop the floor, flush toilet, scrub bathroom floor, and have meal. The Balinese family lives just behind my wall. And I know their routine too. How often they had masak besar (with pig in pots), when the whole family get together chatting in their porch, or when father was not well.

No secret could be hid in Ubud. I giggled with my neighbor friend when we had lunch in a warung in Ubud main street. We waved in turn to our friends passing the street. They could just spot us! We could not have an affair in Ubud. My friend agreed. It’s better to let everything open, he said. It was a nice get together before we part again for weeks.

I went up Tegallalang in a very heavy rain. The water was high and the rain was so densed that it’s not easy to drive. My first time in the area in such weather. It’s so unpredictable. I was half wet got home. And when the sun out again before dark, I could not let it pass without enjoying.

I drove downtown trying to find mini entertainment in this small place. I checked out sweets in my favorite shop, second hand books, then had light early dinner in my favorite café. What a nice way to spend a Saturday night. I should do more often. Mingle with the community. Like flocks of people in white walking along the main street going to a ceremony, I spotted on the way home. How do they manage their time in this Saturday night?

Picture of Excuse Me, What Did You Say? by Dolo.

If These Walls Could Talk

I got up with the notion Nothing to lose in mind. A family issue has stirred me to the notion. And more of other things. When I asked myself, hey I don’t have anything to worry. I have nothing to lose. Life is so good in my part. If not, then it's yours, it’s not my problem. Be selfish is one of tips on Mental Clutter article I read in a blog (I could not find).

My friend also reminded me that we are responsible for our own feelings. I told her that I had believed in that since long time. I had stopped blaming others and a situation if I didn’t feel happy. She thought I’m lucky to be able to do that since she thought she is a doom thinker since she was born. She has to battle a lot to fight it. Well, I am too still fighting up to now but at least it’s easier for me after realized that it’s me in the control seat.

What a day of ‘doing nothing’… A friend commented me a luxury girl. Again, when phone calls cannot be counted as working. Fine. I went banking, grocery shopping, and got facial treatment. Then was on phone long time. I don’t like talking on phone but making an important decision needs a good communication. That’s what I did.

So I laughed when an artist I’ve known more than six years told me that he didn’t mingle a lot the past years since he liked to ruminate on his work at home. He also continued his like for fishing that made him away from home for days. I met him at the opening of his first solo exhibition since we worked together five years ago (or more?).

And later his wife ‘complained’ that she often talked to a wall. I laughed a lot because she told it as if she didn’t know that she is married to an artist. It seems the kids follow their father so the wife had prepared herself to face three walls in the house.

I feel so good to be among artists again. I longed for the feeling. I’m proud to see my artist friend blooming. I considered his painting high quality. I promised him a better exposure in Jakarta. He is really good! His paintings were deep and intricate. Indescribable.

It got me thinking to return to art business. I don’t have gut, that’s all. Like when I thought about my other artist friend who is more senior and has same good even better quality paintings but hardly ever had a show. Knowing him for years, I know what he lacks for.

Picture of the e-brochure of the exhibition.

A Room With A View

A big fat lie. I mumbled. I called my favorite warung to get a delivery service and the girl – after being in the edge of saying yes – said they could not give me the service. No motorbike! I often saw they had at least three motorbikes in front of the warung. Who doesn’t know that 80% of Balinese own and ride motorbike?

I’m sick of lies, big and small, lately. Some people can do it easily and casually. Some don’t realize what they are in, or pretend not to know. What’s happening with us? I guess life is too complicated these days that people prefer to simplify whatever complicates them rather than to face it. Now I’m grumbling something that I could just ignore. I have a better life, I should not think much about it.

So I checked out my mirror this morning. My friend who had inspired me to start up a studio yesterday. Hayaa… We are in the same stage of "haven’t started". I justified my excuse with hers. We were busy with something else and by the time we finished it’s already ‘late’ to start. So hard to understand how late is late for an artist. Ten hours to go is still considered late but my friend and I considered the mood as normal. It’s a matter of perspective.

Anyway, we tried for the second time today. I found out she was still online when noon approached. So was I. I made a little progress, just a little, and I’m not sure with her. I still have tomorrow that I could stay in. Too much time makes me less productive. Same old song.

But I’m happy and that’s the most important of all. I got an email from a once closed friend in Jakarta. She lives in Kuala Lumpur now. She said her health hasn’t been good since she moved five years ago. I didn’t expect such situation happens to her. She was a serious girl but active as well. She did painting and other art forms but today she wrote that she has mental and physical health problem. She mentioned about being out of country (as an expatriate) so long but then concluded that she thinks it’s more that she has not been spending her time to her satisfaction. So sad to hear that!

I feel blessed that I’m able to turn whatever not nice situation to something that I could bear. No ego, detaching, impersonal, and all those life secrets from Chopra’s The Book of Secrets. I really wish my good friend finds a way to help herself because no one would. I really care…

Picture of San Sebastian Church in Manila. It looks tall from the very below.

Entangled

I walked up and down stairs like a hamster. It’s a good day to stay home because of the on and off drizzle since morning. I had planned it actually. I copied my friend who told me yesterday that she would stay in unpacking stuffs for her newly finished studio. She looked excited and I copied her spirit to open up a studio. My studio. Necklace.

I have not done it when I write this post. I was busy with lots of something else. I intended to clean up my desk from administration work. It’s like a debt that eating up my energy every time I looked at the pile. It didn’t take long to finish but it took an eternity to kick me to do.

I had nice ladies day with my Ubud girl friend yesterday. It’s been one month since my friend and I had such the last time. We had missed each other that she asked me to pin down a date of when I would be around after my next trip. I couldn’t tell her because I don't know myself but I had to tell her a date. Like a promise. Yes, my two girl friends in Bali would stay on the island during December so we checked each other out and would see what we could arrange together.

I have a big plan for the weeks to come but really I haven’t made a progress. A friend suggested me to go out more whilst I thought I have to stay in more to get things done. What do I miss? I have all materials ready but where my spirit goes?

And finally, I chickened out of having a Facebook account for the second time. A friend wanted to share travel pictures in his Facebook and other friends I didn’t see very long time invited me to join Facebook so I could follow their life. All were so inviting that I created another account under a false name this afternoon. Yes, I had deactivated one with my real name last year.

I enjoyed my new account in less than ten minutes. It came to me again the might-be impact of such game. No no… I would never be ready to mix my network. This is not for me. I’m out. For ever. The last deactivation took place immediately.

But it’s good to be reassured once more… I needed it.

Picture of a palm leaf becomes entangled by nice parasite plants.

Wonders Are Many

Today I wondered about some things.

First, what an invention smoothie is. I could hardly finish a B&B (bread and butter) plate of fruit (not more than six tiny cuts of each, of four kinds of fruit at max). If I could finish it, I would only have a tiny space for something else. This morning I had two bananas, a palm size of papaya, an apple, a quarter of mango, and a lime in my smoothie. One tall beer mug. If I had the fruits cut, forget it. I wouldn’t be able to down all. So I’m happy with the invention.

Second, what a nice relationship we could have with others if we are open and brave to speak up and listen. I had nice time with my dear neighbor friend with his two closed friends from office where he worked in the past. I joined in the crowd just before lunch. We had hilarious talk: dirty and naughty as usual. That kind of talk when we don’t have anything to hide and be afraid of. After the open and hilarious talk, we kept the same respect. How could we have this kind of feeling in a real relationship?

Third, I watched someone used money to get things he desired. I couldn’t care less about people who do this in business. But people who do this in relation to relatives? That’s when I care about moral and value. I better stay away. I better choose my battle carefully.

So I look forward to having my sister around next week. Been three years not seeing her, I already have rough plan how we would spend time together. Frenzy shopping in malls and markets? Dining out? Endless chatting for sure…

I have no wonder about the last point.

Picture of a lodge in the ‘jungle’ in Manila.

Basic Instinct

Have lunch with your staff. A friend had suggested when I said I didn’t have friend to spend Sunday. Not that. I didn’t need a company, I needed a partner to bounce ideas around. Any idea. Rusty, fresh, or made up. I’d better stay in rather than wander around if no one available. It was a good sunny day.

Funny the past days I used up my time enjoying depressing stuffs. I read Tony Parsons’ Man and Wife – one novel of his famous trilogy about man-woman relationship. I had read the last one in the trilogy that I haven’t seen yet the connection because I forgot what was the novel about. I just noticed a common thread of both novels, both talking about man’s feeling on his relationship with women and being involved in a blended family – a modern family Parsons’ called – where being a parent is not necessarily being a biological parent. Learning from other people’s life, I could feel the complication.

Yesterday I watched Little Black Book for the sake of ‘watching a movie’. I couldn’t care less when the movie turned out exaggerated. About a girl who dug out information about her boyfriend’s past life. The book and the movie reflect the basics in a relationship. After all, I liked the way the girl put it after her relationship ruin because of what she did. She concluded that there are things that better left as a secret. That’s very true! What matter is now.

To close the depressing entertainment for the weekend, this afternoon I watched The Pianist – about a musician who survived the World War II. It’s a very good movie. Of course. But it's also depressing because it’s so good! It’s so real! The violence, the fear, the luck.

It’s Sunday night and I’m ready to start a new week. I survived the depressing entertainment. They don’t depress me.

Picture of a man painting roof at Regina Building in Escolta, Manila.

The Chipmunk Adventure

It’s Saturday again. It's raining outside and there's citronella aroma in the air. It’s new to me. Hey, I’m getting ready to spend the evening like other evenings in Ubud. By myself. Meet us in Malang. Meet me in Hanoi. My friends in adventure demand my time next week that I had sweetly turned down. Not exactly turn down, I simply need time for myself and next week is all I have till next year. Might be.

The past few days I have been thinking of having an adventure. Doing things I never did before. A friend called it thing that takes you to the next level. It’s interesting. He has been traveling around Asia the past seven months looking for his next level. The level that I thought he might not even recognize. I reminded him that he might have had the level in him, that he only has to discover, not search in places that foreign to him. I don’t know. Life always has such complicated dimensions.

I made a mini adventure to Tegallalang this noon. This place has sort of magnet to me. It gives me pleasure in the absence of good friends. My Denpasar friend left for America today. My Ubud friend is still in Yogya doing an adventurous batik workshop. It’s time for me to start my own adventure.

Tegallalang was horribly quiet. Some parts of the road are being fixed so shops on both sides could not expect guests to stop by. The atmosphere had formed the business style. They kept their shops open but no one tending. Even when I called the number from the name card, no one picked up. It happened in two shops. I desperately silently shouted in the air I will give you business! No answer.

I only managed to order a futon for extra bed-cum-ottoman (when folded). I also indulged in ceramic shopping. Buying art is addictive. I need to do it regularly. I have visited this special ceramic shop since years ago. They are funky artists with fresh creation. Stuffs don’t stay the same. Always new and reinvigorating. The girl recognized my eyes for funky art right away. She was almost sure I’m an artist myself. I wish…

The mini adventure did good to me. The two funky bowls are sitting on my wooden floor, waiting for me to enjoy every now and then. My refuge from a quiet Saturday.

Picture of the inside of a funky bowl.

Prince Charming

So my day was determined by a frog. A frog jumped slowly passing my bedroom close to midnight last night. I had loud music and it seemed he made his way as quiet as possible not to attract my attention. He? I decided it was a he. A special frog reminds me of a prince so he had to be a he. I asked a friend if I should kiss him. I should not, maybe. I just watched him considering his jump to go downstairs. It was dark. I switched on the light to help him seeing the ground. He jumped three stairs at a time.

I didn’t manage to send him out before sleep. He was weak, I didn’t have the heart to nudge him to an open door. He jumped passing it actually. I was sleepy and longed for my bed also it was kajeng kliwon when spirits moving around to show off. I left him downstairs with hope he would not turn into a prince later.

He did not. He’s a dead frog in the morning. I was not happy about the fact that he could not make it. So sad. I should have done something to help him out, or he would die anyway I don’t know. That’s how he decided my day today. I had to wait for Pak Agung to come to pick him up. And since the frog was around my room last night, I got an idea to move things in the room. Not because of him, like all, the idea was just there.

My house is small, enough for one, a bit tight for two, but… the need for cleaning is endless. I told Pak Agung how exotic a Bali house could be. Nice to experience and painful to care. I limit the number of my furniture (that is not easy) but I moved them around every few months. Some times it takes time to find the right ‘match’ to create space for a new art or simply for a space. I created a bigger space in my bedroom while keeping the same furniture. A limited space had pushed me to be creative.

I’m happy. I took off the kilim to let the nice wooden plank breathe this week. The kilim needs heavy vacuum cleaning too. I will teach Pak Agung how to do tomorrow. He had decided to enter a new world of looking after a modern household (in a village) after I moved to live in Ubud. Heard he didn’t want to work before like he never worked all his life before I included him into my business five years ago. And even more now the past one year, he has helped me a lot in the house. We worked hand in hand tidying up the house. I have employed an agung – a high caste in Bali. I respect him.

So here I am, staying in again, and happy to be in my clean and tidy bedroom. Thank to the poor frog…

Picture of a movie inspired by The Frog Prince tale.

The Dawns Here Are Quiet

Three weeks is not a short time, it seems. I spent some time every now and then enjoying my now green bushy garden. The plants are so tall and bushy now. I could not see such change when I was around. Like all, we have to have a break to see things growing. An evolution could not be followed too closely. Maybe.

I stayed home all day yesterday. Enjoying. Actually I had lots of housework, like usual after away for weeks. Laundry and cleaning. Ubud is humid and hot but wet too half day. This morning I didn’t feel like going out but sure I ‘had to’ go out.

Lucky girl in Bali. A friend sent me text message. A reminder that I need to repeat again and again to myself. In Manila every time I told people that I live in Ubud, I could feel silence for a few seconds. One told me that I already live in an ultimate spot – paradise. I reflected while driving around Ubud this noon. Ubud looked quiet. I was wondering how business survives in Bali while wondering about my own. Still, I’m lucky.

December is coming. I look forward… I like December. It’s time to pause and contemplate, renew spirit, and spend time with loved ones. I have several homework from family that fell on my shoulders just recently. Some times I wonder Why me? Maybe it’s just the way the universe arranges.

Picture of fern by my dry pond.

Go Toward the Light

I learn every day, every trip, every moment.

I just finished my Asia tour that took almost three weeks (minus two days). It’s fun, enriching, light and not-light alternately, tiring, energizing, enlightening… In short, I enjoyed!

One point I learned. I have to learn how to travel light. I left Denpasar with a bit over 20 kgs. I left for Manila with a bit less than 20 kgs. I left Manila with 9 kg excess because the airline just applied a new allowance of 15 kgs only. The excess baggage cost was equivalent to a Jakarta-Denpasar ticket. I left for Malang with 13 kgs excess (of 20 kgs allowance) and left for Denpasar with 15 kgs excess (of 25 kgs allowance!). Yes, I flew home with 40 kgs! Yea, Yu Sih was nice to pack up a box of mangoes from Mama’s garden for me to bring.

Packing is an art. I learned that cotton and linen are heavy. Silk batik is light. I might have to wear batik a lot when traveling that I had started in Manila. I read today that the jet-set prefers to travel light and acquire stuffs on the way. One tip is to always bring at least one fancy clothes for ‘in case’ and the rest is ‘let’s see’. I’d like to buy the idea but how to pack mangoes light? What about my every-inch-different cream pots? Thing that needs research.

Another fact that I’d learned, no, that it had been confirmed now… Malang-Ubud could take 10 hours! I really have to find way to shorten the time to save energy. It was so tiring experiencing bad traffic and delays.

Hey, I’m happy to be back home. Nothing is matter now.

Picture of incomplete wooden dolls in the Katipunan Museum, Manila.

Now You Know

I just found out when I was going to publish this post.
This is the 1000th post since I started on 8 February 2006.
Thank you Rad, my friend,
who had given me the idea
to start a blog.
A bow for you!House was empty by 7. Dhana and the house-boy had left for school. I awoke too early then slept again so didn’t feel good when got up before 6. I did few emails then played piano! I didn’t remember when the last time I played. I was not sure of myself. Said that we would never lose the skill like cycling and swimming. My skill is rusty now. It took a few songs to bring the feeling back. I’d been barely good in playing piano since ever. It seems.

I started the day early (already late for Malang-ers) at 8:30. I spent almost three hours from desk to desk in bank and notary office. It’s typical that we could not get all information before we came with what we thought is enough. That’s when I understand that administration takes a lengthy time to finish. Fine. There’s nothing I could do. Respect the house rule.

I had lunch with my childhood friend Tetet who had an idea to do something in a space we have. I interviewed her to know more about her idea before we visited the house. Mama’s neighbor greeted me. My sister and I are lucky to have grown up in a warm neighborhood. We and the neighbors have known each other since the 1960s.

We walked around the house. I felt like rediscovering the house I thought I'd known all my life. It looked so different now. Of course. And more, the space had different dimension to my have-grown size. I enjoyed every room and cherished nice memory with Mama, Papa, and my sister. I imagined my sister and me in our bedroom where we often had pillow fight. Very nice!

I closed the day visiting Mama’s jeweler. I’d been thinking about him since Mama passing away. I came to visit him to make sure that Mama didn’t have anything with him: jewelry or debt. He looked happy to see me. In the end, I learned about handmade and cast jewelry. I decided to buy several silver jewelry as a kick-start of my new venture with my friend in Manila. I thought about it for a while before made a decision. Yes, I have to start somewhere. It could be here too.

When I got home at 4:30, I felt like I had spent the day productively. Now I know that I need to invite my sister to visit Malang soon to speed up administration process. That I had also made a decision to start a new venture. It is now.

Picture of windows of our childhood house in Malang.

Talk to Me

Your phone is locked up again? I asked nephew Dhana who didn’t reply to my text message yesterday. I asked him how he’s doing and let him know that I would come this afternoon. No, I thought you just said Hi. Oh, fine, didn’t it deserve a reply? Yaa… He replied unmeaningly.

The past days I learned a lot about how I communicate with others. I’m a quiet person. Verbally. I write more: emails and blog. I’m among few who prefers this way of communication. Many people enjoy oral communication or text messages. Text message is fine for me but I don’t consider it as a real communication, only for practical purpose.

Anyway, I shared my feeling with Dhana that I appreciate if we could have a ‘proper’ communication even very brief every now and then. It happened, in the morning, I had nice online chat with a good friend about how we had communicated and what we expect each other to make a conducive atmosphere to have a nice flowing chat. So I reflected on both cases. Communication is skill. An art.

So I flew to be closer to my interlocutor, Dhana. I arrived in Malang around 4 o’clock this afternoon. It's a nice day, I had nice morning in Jakarta, then nice flight. It’s one of those trips that I felt confused about where I’m going. My driver laughed when I could not answer what airline I would be in.

Dhana looked well. He’s happy with stuffs I brought for him. Now I’m ready to meet Tantes and Oom, Mama’s siblings, who happen to be in Malang. I’m ready to communicate with them.

Picture of complicated cables in Escolta, Manila.

Rest Stop

My friend and I sat quietly in car that brought us back from Greenhills market yesterday afternoon. We sat in our own deep thought. We just finished a brief tour of a well-known pearl market that my friend had wanted to show me before I left Manila. She is a pearl person, I’m a stone person, so we both enjoyed the market. We shared a string of stones we bought to contest our design. For fun, also for our future idea.

We thought about our friendship that had brought us talking about our mutual friend who lives in a remote area in Bali. How lonely her life must be and all that entail to such life style. I reminded her about choice everybody makes. I don’t see any difficulty of making friends even if I live in a remote area. But true, making a relationship is a big challenge. It’s another form of bungee jump but it’s all about our decision.

I arrived in Jakarta after midnight. I was lucky to have the row for myself so could stretch my legs. I didn't feel like reading, I enjoyed music all the way and dozed some times. I often felt Manila-Jakarta flight is shorter than the other way. A flu pill helped me to have a good rest. My nomad life started again.

I awoke early and used all morning to reply and write emails that I’d put off. Then I was a couch potato all afternoon. I haven’t felt 100% but had lots of things to do so it’s a bit ‘depressing’. I spent three hours running errands before dark. I felt better.

But still, I miss my bed in Ubud.

Picture of Chiko this morning.

Parallax View

It’s my last day in Manila. I preferred to stay home because of cough. Not bad but it’s just nice not to bother people in a supposedly to be a quiet forum. Yes, my friend had asked if I’d like to join her to do one of her history course assignments – attending a talk about Catholic Church in the Philippines. For one, it started at 9. I had longed for a nice slow morning. So I stayed in.

Looking back, I enjoyed my visit in Manila this time. I had nice time with my dear friends, met many nice artists, and visited nice places (and less visit to malls). Experiences I gathered during my visit have reignited my spirit to try new things when I’m back in Ubud. I had collected ideas. This is what I need when I decide to have a break from daily routine.

I also confirmed about prices in Manila – it’s cheaper (except for electricity bill, they say). I often had to recalculate taxi fare because it’s unbelievably cheap. For a short ride is about $1.2, for a 30-minute ride in slow traffic is about $2.5. In Jakarta? A short ride costs $3. With better taxi could cost almost twice. A long ride in slow traffic could not be less than $10. To and from airport? Ha. Denpasar taxi? Forget it. It costs even more.

Goods are generally cheaper too. Branded clothing costs 30-40% more in Jakarta. I didn’t shop this visit. Only two books, a few original music DVDs, and an art piece. The art price is so reasonable. I realized the other day that I bought an artwork every time I visited Manila. It’s just nice to see different art here.

Good that I look forward to continuing my journey in Indonesia. This is a rare mood when I feel fine being away from my cocoon in Ubud for a lengthy time. I used to rush back by shortened my trip here and there and in the end I didn’t significantly accomplish errands that could make me feel not-good. Last night I thought I might have become a real nomad since I started my life in Ubud last year.

It’s just nice to enjoy an ever-changing view like in riding a train.

Picture of a lifebouy [sic] in Pasig River ferryboat.

For Keeps

I got an assignment out of the blue the other day. My friend 'promoted' me to help out museum volunteer committee that works on setting up a private textile museum in Intramuros, the walled city. I felt honored so I took the offer right away. No second thought.

I didn’t feel super this morning. I got mild running nose that gave me slight headache. The traffic was not smooth so we made a stop at Starbucks to get something to nibble but lucky there was no traffic after the stop. So it was good!

The textile museum would be set up on the fourth floor of an old building where the other floors are for art and handicrafts shop. It seems that this is the collection of the owner of the business. I could see myself when I entered the semi empty space on the fourth floor with drawers of Philippine’s textiles. Doing art business is tough because it involves battling with self to decide which to sell which to keep.

There were seven of us that three of them are Filipinos. Today they discussed about a key color to be used in the room. It was not an easy decision. I was overwhelmed already by the amount of the textiles. I don’t know anything about the ethnic map of the Filipinos and the ladies didn’t go through categorizing or selecting theme first. In fact, I didn’t have a clue how they would start displaying. They all had ideas. If I were in the committee, I would be happy to be the facilitator to set up a ‘system’. So I was in the observer side again.

I was still struggling with my running nose so I didn’t feel like touching the textiles, let alone opening the drawers. The camphor had made me sneezing. Yes, they used camphor to prevent bugs from eating the textiles. I gave them tips how to keep textiles then hung around observing again.

And when they needed a real-size model pattern for men mannequin, they looked at me. Said I fit the size of tribal men in the Philippines – diminutive. Interesting. I happily did for them. I laid down on the floor and had my body traced with pencil. They removed my hourglass shape (as a man) and elongated my legs as the pants had to fall above knees. Fine. They said my body pattern would be kept in the museum from now on. That’s good!

I took a pill to ease my nose in the afternoon that made me drowsy in dining table of my friend’s house. We had a Filipino jeweler came over to show his work. He works on gold plated filigree jewelry. Not my style but I admired the work very much. Again, I admired the spirit of creating and preserving culture. It’s a dying craft! Hardly one would like to do delicate intricate wire work anymore. I am glad to have met such artist.

My nose was dry when I got home in the evening but I felt tired.

Picture of my body pattern with vest and loincloth.

Quest for Fire

I’m not a typical girl who likes talking about politics. I followed political news for the sake of ‘watching the world’ so I don’t take side and I don’t have opinion about anything happened in Indonesia and elsewhere. If I said something about it, not talked about it, I repeated a portrait – not my opinion.

Today I followed the American election via CNN online that updated every now and then. I did puzzle that had made me nervous because it hasn’t come to end and my stay has been near to end. My friend texted me that she felt very emotional about the possibility of Obama wins. That’s when I realized that actually I could watch TV. How could I forget about the option? So I watched both nice speeches.

So I congratulated my two close friends who were big fans of Obama. The one in Jakarta had made talking about American politics last week that I was surprised myself I could enjoy talking about politics actually. I enjoyed the talking if my interlocutor didn’t take side or had strong opinion about one side. Otherwise, I would just enjoy listening to her/his opinion and didn’t participate much. Again, I’m not interested in being involved in an ‘argument’ (if we happen to be on opposite sides).

I had nice afternoon and evening with people who deal with art. The Chinese-New Yorker creates silver jewelry. I liked to see her passions. She is a gemologist, she combines her passion for stone and jewelry. I observed how she does business from home. I admired.

The Filipino guy I met in the evening is an art gallery owner in a big mall. He has quite a good eye for art only he needs to spread his wings, I feel. If he travels to Indonesia then he would learn more about variety and quality. I know he could be much better than what he had done. He has gripped the market already. The most important thing.

Both artists have rekindled my passion for both forms of art. That’s what I need at the moment.

Picture of San Sebastian Church’s door.

Walk on Water

We were sitting in the afternoon sun listening to humming motor in Quiapo ferry station’s waiting deck. I’m fading… A friend mumbled. Oh, I’ve been hours ago. My friend responded quickly. We were tired after being in and out the sun for six hours today. The heat had numbed my senses. I didn’t know what I needed anymore. Nibbling, drink, or cold shower.

My friend had reserved space for us to do Pasig River tour a week before I came. The tour is in high demand so we were lucky to be able to join the big group of 33. Pasig River is a river that joins Laguna de Bay, the largest lake in the Philippines, and Manila Bay. It took an hour from Guadalupe (the 4th ferry station) to Escolta (the 12th or one before last ferry station in Intramuros).

We stood in the ferryboat deck listening to the extremely popular guide (they called) explaining places and its stories along the river. Nice Filipino lady in her sixties. Energetic and experienced. I stood by her so could listen well. It was windy that it ruined my $2 umbrella. So for the rest of the trip I had no choice but stood in the sun with a fan to cover face.

Pasig River is clean with lots of water lilies floating and stuck here and there. I saw laundry hung in some parts of the river so was wondering where people wash. It’s easy to spot people use river water for washing in Jakarta but here? Later I learned that they collect the river water but do the washing alongside the river (no sloping down bank) with separate sewage that (hopefully) doesn’t go back to the river. I admire and wonder why can’t we suggest Jakartan to do the same?

We were taken to visit three old buildings owned by family for generations. It seems many places here stayed with and are preserved by the family. It’s a good thing. We were invited to visit a building owner’s office where he gave us a brief history of the family and building before letting us roamed the museum-like office. He was so generous to have us having a closer look at their stuffs that had been collected for generations.

The second building had a little museum in the mezzanine. Narrow room with musty smell of old stuffs. It’s still nice. It showed the building before and after bombing, clippings from old newspapers, and old advertisements. Observing the past is always fun. We giggled a lot when studying the ads. It’s so different now.

The third building was nice because the original interior is still kept the same. Like other buildings, the building now is used to house small offices of small business, I presumed. So many doors close to each other so it must be offices of less than 10 persons inside.

My friend and I took a pedicab to get to Nakpil-Bautista house-cum-museum where we had lunch. It’s an old house that has been used for generations. The lady of the house is a key figure during the 18th revolution against Spain. They open two living rooms for museum of the family (called The Katipunan Museum – named after the organization she was involved). It’s a nice museum with old furniture, some paintings and reproductions showing the family’s role in the Philippines’ history. By the way, the food was good. The dessert was fabulous. I enjoyed the way Filipinos treated banana. They are lucky to have nice smooth fat banana in the land. In the market, I saw they set two bananas in a skewer, spread with palm sugar, then put them in fire. I hadn’t had a chance to taste but heard it’s really good. It must be.

It was afternoon already when we finished the long lunch in the house. We were too lazy to get up and continue. Some had started to fade out. We walked to the last leg of the tour, San Sebastian Church, the metal church erected in the 18th. It looked ‘normal’ from outside but inside is all steel – the walls, ceiling, and pillars. We sat quietly on the bench admiring the architecture. I could not believe they did the prefab steel in Belgium and had it sent using steamboats to Asia that took ten years to complete. There’s always a way when there’s a willingness.

We had some 20 minutes shopping in the famous under-bridge market on the way. I loved the market, like always. So many capiz (shell handicraft specifically from the Philippines). We dragged our feet to reach our departure ferry station, Quiapo. That’s where we sat staring blankly at the water. Good the ferry came on time that didn’t leave us in uncertainty.

We were drained and happy.

Picture of a boat that transports people from both sides of Pasig River.

I Love Trash

It was still early when I stood by the busy street waiting for my friend to pick me up. Said the traffic was shocking. We made it on time in WTC where my friend had an hour volunteer job at her organization’s monthly bazaar. It’s amazing that they hold such bazaar every month whilst in Jakarta we saw such size of bazaar at least twice a year only. So I was ‘lucky’ to have a chance to experience one here.

It’s another bazaar. I walked while chanting a mantra I don’t need, I don’t need. I browsed the stalls quickly, just checked out what’s available and favorite in Manila. What struck me is Filipinos enjoy any kinds of bags: large pouches, tote bags with many compartments for baby stuffs or other purposes, handbags made of ethnic clothes from India and local, collapsible synthetic bags, and also bags made of waste polyethylene containers.

The latter had attracted my attention because it reminded me of our friend’s creation back in Jakarta. Well, she moved back to Manila a few years ago so I wonder if she had a finger in similar business here. This business is special because it involves communities that do garbage collecting, cleaning, then making the material into something. Hat off!

Then, I saw many stalls sold similar stuffs only designs that differed from one to another. I started to wonder. I checked out my friend what’s the tale behind the mysterious ample bags made of waste. The tale is… our friend introduced the idea of utilizing waste in Manila but then the business had grown uncontrollably. As the business grew, they stopped braiding waste strips but fresh strips from… printing shops! Yes, brand new waste strips! I was so disappointed learning about the fact that ruined what I had appreciated before. Of course, our friend pulled out of the business because of the difference in idea. No more concept of reuse and recycle!

Walked around together, my friend showed me other waste that had been turned into home wares. Digital print signboard! I adored. I’d already liked braided newspaper for boxes and place mats but digital print signboard as material is new to me. But… wait a minute? Is this for real? Now I know that I need a good research before admiring an eco product. It seems the new belief of using more eco stuffs has been commercially abused.

So I learned. I could say I don’t need because nice things I saw could be categorized into two: I could get it in Indonesia and I could make it myself. I care about cutting back on consumption and finding worth in all the stuffs I had acquired. It’s in my vocabulary now to refuse extra packaging especially those made of non-degradable materials. In the end of four-hour window-shopping, I got many good ideas. That’s enough for me. Nothing is wasted.

Picture of name-tags made of waste polyethylene.

Unchained Memories

I still keep my plan to make a memoir of Mama and Papa. I just don’t know how to start and when. I know the best answer to that is Just do it now! Again, like making puzzle, the pieces look overwhelming. So many pieces without clue that need to be arranged to make one nice picture. Help me!

The idea was reignited by the book I read, Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain. He is a well-known chef in New York that his show in Travel and Living Channel has been my favorite for years. Like the way he presented the show (he travels around the world to introduce food and cooking from places), the book is nicely written. I feel like listening to him talking about his passion with all ‘straight forward’ expressions he liked to use.

I admire his ability to write his childhood experiences with such vividness. How he realized food is not just for filling up stomach, how he found out his passion for cooking, his ‘firsts’ experiences that stretched over time… I often had fragments of nice memories about my childhood and was able to share it with good friends some times. But, it hasn’t come to me yet how to put the memories into writing the way Bourdain did. I could not even think of writing it a blog-post length, let alone a chapter.

Back to the memoir of my parents, I really need to contemplate to kick the idea to materialize. I could easily be inspired but I could also easily let an inspiration go. I might need a partner to kick this. I would fix my antennae high to find one especially during my visit in Malang soon.

Activities in malls have resumed. I made a trip to get citrus juicer for my friend. Ordinary juicer we could not find in Denpasar and Jakarta. I also stocked up some stuffs. I didn’t stay long in the mall, I simply could not stand crowd. Or, put it this way, I simply didn’t need anything.

Picture of my half done puzzle.

The Town is Quiet

All Saints’ Day is a big day in the Philippines. It’s a feast celebrated on November 1 or on the first Sunday in November in Christianity. Many businesses closed or open late at noon. The custom is people bring flowers to the graves of dead relatives so traffic to provinces might be jammed today. Therefore the streets in Manila looked very quiet like Jakarta on Eid day. Big malls were open though and many people came to dine. Also the same like in Jakarta.

We stayed in during the day. I worked on the puzzle that I made a little progress yesterday. Making puzzle (puzzling?) is like sorting out life. It’s easy when the spirit is high, it needs deep thinking if things cannot be resolved, it might be stuck if keep working out the same spot,… And to solve it also needs the same formula in life. Just do it! And keep doing it! But don’t forget to stop every now and then to refresh or look at the issue from distance. A way out might pop up.

My good friend had arranged programs for us to do in the coming week. We would have stuffs to do almost every day from shopping in bazaar and market, doing river tour, and attending a talk. Other than that, I know, we would chat endlessly. It’s time for us to kick the plan we had laid out in Ubud a few weeks ago.

I look forward…

Picture of decorated palm trees at Greenbelt mall.