First weekend in Jakarta

04.07.2014

I wanted to go to Bali this weekend, but all the waiting sort of cut short my holiday. I decided to spend it in my own city. There are a lot of little museums and things to see. As usual, in the guidebook.

Another downside to my apartment is that you have to take a motor taxi to the bus station, because there are no local buses. I could walk four kilometres and do it, but then I'd be to tired once I got somewhere. Also, I'd probably be late.

Then, when you take the bus it is actually gender segregated. Women sit in the front and men pile in like sardines in the back. At first I was a little irritated, I mean, really??? But after a day walking around town in a modest tank top, I learned why. I was happy to be rid of all the crazy creeps, if even it was only on the bus. I don't know what they say to me, but the sound the men make is horrible. They yell and make sounds like monkeys or dogs, just because I don't wear a sweater in thirty degree heatand literally it was that hot today. Other men took pictures of me without asking and followed me down the street probably taking a movie. Later, I managed to hook onto a group of austrians and the sounds stopped. Also, in my neighbourhood, cars honk at me and slow downto pick me up because maybe i'm a prostitute??? I don't know. Most men on the street were nice, but it's very hard to tell the difference between the good ones and the bad ones. I just ignore all men right now when they try to say hello to me on the street. So, when I got on the bus to go home, I was SO HAPPY to see them there in the back, I didn't even care if there were any nice guys trying to get a seat. So, now I am all for segregation if some women get together and ask for it. Before today, i was like, get a life ladies, but now I know the kind of shit they have to deal with their whole life. It's too bad they bring it to their new country when they leave this crap,but they have the fear in their heads their whole life. I can't imagine dealing with that shit every day of your life and then all of a sudden moving to a better place??? wow...Don't know how I would deal with men in the new situation, I would probably be distrusting and skeptical of everyone, which is how I am right now. Anyway, back to the adventures. My first stop was going to be the puppet museum. Indonesia has a long history of puppet shows, just like China. So, it was really cool to see them there on display in one place. Some of them were a little creepy, but that's the fun part, right?

I was too early so, I wandered around to the "chicken market bridge" which is one of the only old things left from when the Dutch were colonizing the city, among a bunch of buildings that I also visited. In the square, they were shooting a political movie with a loud protest. I asked if they needed foreigners for another scene and I was sad when they said no.

Next up was the Jakarta history museum and the art gallery, where I saw the prison for women, which was in the basement and halfway flooded. Don't know if it was like that back in the day, but I'm guessing yes.

The art gallery had a nice design and was simple, but pretty.

Then, I went to the maritime museum, which was neat only for the building mainly. There were some nice ships inside, but the building was a restored warehouse from the Dutch trading company, VOC.

From there, the guidebook said to go and see this harbour. As soon as I got there, a creepy man started touching my arm and telling me he was a tourism officer. Maybe he was, and I have heard that people are kind of touchy feely here, but he was giving me the creeps. As soon as I was ready to run, I turned around and three jaunty Austrians helped save me. I spent the rest of the day with them and they were pretty funny, in their sarcastic way.

They took me to a park, that we all agreed was no good. Then to the national monument, that we all agreed was monumental. Then to the mall, where I finally got a mosquito net, and we parted ways. Them, for their hotel with pool and me, for Chinatown, where I found a nice little temple and then went home.

Temple Dharma Bhakti