Wisma Bahasa.

Jen and I just got back from two weeks in Yogyakarta (pronounced Jogjakarta). The trip was a lot of fun, and we got to see a number of the famous tourist sites in the area, but the primary reason we were down in Yogya was to study Indonesian.

Francois and Genvieve, two friends of ours from the embassy, had studied in Yogyakarta at a school called Wisma Bahasa. They had only good things to say about it, and so we decided to give it a go.

Welcome to Wisma:

We started out our stay in Yogya at the Hyatt Grand Regency on the outskirts of town. We were met at the airport by a teacher from Wisma Bahasa, and driven to our hotel. The next morning, the school had arranged for a hotel driver to bring us to class.

Wisma Bahasa:

The school was about a fifteen minute drive from our hotel. Located down a quiet side street in a residential area, we never had any issues with traffic noise in class. I say this because we were a little surprised to see that the classrooms were open to the outside. At first we weren’t sure what to think: we had expected air conditioning and a cushy classroom. The fans and basic layout of the classes was a bit spartan:

Despite our initial misgivings, we were soon won over by the Wisma Bahasa program and teaching family. I say family because they put a lot of importance on making the students feel at home. Jen and I each had a team of teachers with one designated as our coordinator. My team was made up of Likhu (my coordinator), Isna, Roro, and Niken.

Likhu:

Isna:

Niken:

Roro:

Without exception, I found the teachers to be very knowledgeable, fluent in English (great for explaining difficult concepts), personable, and attentive to my learning style. I was always comfortable in class, and never felt that progress was either too slow or too fast. The teachers made the language learning experience incredibly easy and enjoyable.

Our gang of teachers:

Jen and I were a bit ambitious, and took three 105 minute classes per day. I was tempted to ask for a fourth class during the first few days, but once the teachers got a bearing on my previous language capabilities, classes became much harder as they pushed me to learn.

Jen’s birthday was on the first Friday we were at Wisma Bahasa, and we came at the right time of month to join in the school’s celebration of January’s birthdays. Jen was given a little batik scarf as a present, and the whole school got together to have lunch.

The feast:

One of the best things about Wisma Bahasa (besides the teachers of course) was the food. Most days we ate at the school’s canteen, and the food was always cheap, delicious, and healthy (enough). We always looked forward to lunch.

Lunch in the open area:

At the end of our two weeks, we were sad to leave the school. Our teachers were great, the lessons fun and engaging, and the overall experience excellent.

More soon on Borobudur, Prambanan, and pickpockets.

-Ryan

As always, extra shots on Flickr.

Food and Fire.

One of the other attractions in Ubud is the market. There were two main sections to the market: the touristy art market and the more local-oriented food market. While the art market was cool, and Jen convinced me to buy her a painting ($5) and two little sandstone statues ($3/each), the really interesting part was the food area.

Market:

In a recessed area at the back of the market, local vendors sold all sorts of fruits, vegetables, and meats. Jen was somewhat appalled (and concerned) to see raw fish and meat being sold with no refrigeration. We wandered around through the dark alleyways of the market, which made for some great pictures.

Descending into the market:

Exploring:

The other side:

On the way out:

On our last full day in Ubud, we spent a few hours at a spa and then caught up with Jen’s friends Christie and Dave. They were in Bali as part of a month-long trip around Southeast Asia. After being surprised by how expensive Singapore was, they moved on to the more budget-friendly towns of Bali.

We had dinner at an Indonesian restaurant (and enjoyed some Balinese palm wine and rice wine), then went to see a traditional performance. After dark, we walked down to a temple area, and watched a Kecak fire and trance dance.

The whole performance took place in the light of burning oil lamps, giving the dancers a pale red glow. The men chanted and swayed in unison, moving through the repetitive choruses and intricate verses of their chant without missing a beat. The movement and sound were hypnotic.

Monkey:

The dancers acted out a story as well, but I was too busy watching the individual performers to follow the bigger story.

An archer:

The small moments were mesmerizing:

Before you start thinking that the trip was all roses, I have to add one negative point to our visit to Bali: Seminyak. We decided to spend our last day and a half there, and were vastly underwhelmed (and somewhat disgusted).

There had been a flood in Bali the week before we visited, and evidently the flood had washed garbage down the rivers of the island and into the ocean and onto the beaches.

Our first impression of Seminyak Beach:

We tried to go swimming, but lasted only a few minutes. The feeling of garbage brushing against our legs was too much.

Paradise lost:

Despite the unfortunate ending to our vacation, our visit to Bali was generally amazing. The island is as beautiful as we had heard, the people as friendly, and the shopping (unfortunately for my wallet) just as varied. We will be back soon.

-Ryan

As always, more on Flickr.

To Ubud!

For our first wedding anniversary, Jen and I decided to pay our first visit to Bali. We didn’t want to end up on a beach (what with our Christmas pounds still hanging around and all), so we headed off to the cultural and artistic capital of Bali: Ubud.

Jen was in charge of choosing the hotel, and after weeks of poring through the Lonely Planet and scouring the internet (and endless calls of “Ryan, come look at this one – I promise it’s the last one for tonight!), she settled on Nick’s Pension.

Our back entrance:

Located off of the two main roads in Ubud, it really was a great choice, and worth all of the research. Nick’s Pension is one of three properties in a chain with the same owner (I guess it would be Nick), that includes Nick’s Hidden Cottages and Nick’s Homestay. We splurged ($43 Canadian a night!) and got a “superior room”, which is essentially a half-bungalow with private verandah. Everything wooden in and around the grounds was carved in Balinese style, and we had a rice paddy and jungle-covered stream on the grounds. Very calm.

Our place:

The main attraction for Jen in Ubud wasn’t the culture or the shopping or the art. It wasn’t even the peace and quiet that was a nice break from the insanity that is Jakarta. No, it wasn’t any of those “normal” things. The highlight of Jen’s visit was monkeys. Yep. Monkeys.

The Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary was about a fifteen minute walk from our hotel, and Jen must have dragged me down there at least three times during our five day stay. I love animals as much as the next person, but I have to say that the last time I went out of husbandly obligation. It was our anniversary after all.

I haden’t seen my little niece Sophia for a few months, but I found a little monkey who acted a lot like her the last time I saw her. It was fun watching him play.

My little niece’s twin:

Jen’s friend:

My visitor:

The one thing I wanted to do while we were in Bali was to go white-water rafting. We shopped around a bit, but had our guides make us a reservation with a local company. So, on Friday morning, we got up early and headed out to the Telaga Waja river. We were joined by a Russian psychology professor, a Swedish woman from Dubai, and an American couple on leave from English-teaching jobs in Korea.

When we got to the river, we were put in a boat with a vacationing Australian couple and our guide. I was kind of happy, because the Russian professor had decided that he needed to be very “hydrodynamic” while rafting, and had squeezed himself into a tiny Speedo. Fun.

The river itself was beautiful, and the ride wasn’t too demanding. Most of the time the guide and I were the only ones paddling – photo to follow.

We made a pitstop at a waterfall for some refreshments, then headed back into the river. At the end of the trip, there was an all-you-can-eat buffet of delicious Indonesian food. The day was great.

Rest stop:

Cooling off:

More on our Bali trip to come! For now, lots more photos on our Flickr stream.

-Ryan

Looking back at 2008, part iii.

This is part III of our look at our lives in 2008. Previous posts here:

Part I & Part II.

In October, Jen took part in a Jakarta Animal Aid Network project to “fix” cats on Pramuka Island off the north coast of Jakarta. She had a great visit – the work they did on the island was useful and rewarding, and island was beautiful.

With some new friends:

Scenic Pramuka:

I was invited to go to Hong Kong to write a promotion exam – the bonus was that I was able to extend my visit and see some of the area.

I caught up with my friend Mark from Manila and his wife:

We made a quick run out to see the Po Lin Monastery:

Macau is about an hour’s ferry ride from Hong Kong. While I was in New Zealand, I did five bungy jumps, and when I heard that the tallest commercial bungy site in the world was in Macau, I had to go.

Here goes nothing:

The other major sight in Macau are the Ruins of St. Paul’s Cathedral:

While I was in Hong Kong, Jen was on her way down to Vegas for her sister’s wedding. The ceremony was beautiful, and Jen was thrilled to spend time with her family.

The lucky couple:

For Christmas, Jen and I went up to the Puncak, and stopped off at Taman Safari on our way home to visit some cute baby animals:

Peaceful Puncak:

Indonesian housecat:

So that was our year. Pretty busy, but we have so much to look forward to in our time here in Indonesia.

-Ryan

As always, so many more photos on Flickr.

Looking back on 2008, part ii.

This is part II of our look at our lives in 2008. Other posts here:

Part I & Part III.

When we got to Indonesia, we didn’t waste any time taking advantage of the travel opportunities in the area. Our first weekend in Jakarta, Dana & Gilles took us out to the Embassy’s bungalows in the Puncak area. The bungalows are a great place to go to get away from the craziness of Indonesia’s capital.

Peaceful Puncak:

Crazy Jakarta:

The next weekend, we headed to Gili Trawangan, an island off the coast of Lombok, Indonesia. The island was beautiful, and the people were incredibly friendly. While we were walking through the village, Jen and I got invited into the home of a local fisherman and his wife, who gave us coffee and talked about their hajj. They were quite poor, but happy to share what little they had. Once we left, their kids followed us around for awhile, and took advantage of some free transportation:

On the way back to the airport, we made a stop to visit with the local wildlife – we weren’t feeding this guy fast enough, so he stole the entire bag of peanuts and ran up a tree:

After a month or so in Jakarta, I went to Bangkok to attend a conference. I was actually there just as things were starting to break down. I never felt unsafe, but some of the pictures were pretty unsettling. I still managed to get out and see a bit of the city.

Tuk-tuk ride:

Wat Arun:

Jen was supposed to join me in Thailand at the end of the conference, but the security situation led to the cancellation of her plans. To make up for it, we booked a trip to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for the next weekend. The highlights of our trip were visits to the Kuala Gandah Elephant Santuary and the Deerland park.

Jen with her new friend at Kuala Gandah:

Making Jen jealous with Muda (a sunbear) at Deerland:

One more post to come to finish off the year. More on Hong Kong, Pramuka Island, and another wedding.

-Ryan

Looking back on 2008, part I

This is part I of our look at our lives in 2008. Other posts here:

Part II & Part III.

2008 was a big year for Jen and I. We got married, posted to Indonesia, visited Malaysia, and celebrated the wedding of Jen’s sister Sarah. It’s the time of year to look back a reflect on how things went in 2008, so I’ve put together a recap of our lives over the past year.

The year started off with a celebration at our wedding in Cuba. We were fortunate to have a lot of family members accompany us to the big day:

Not too long after, we had our second ceremony back in Ottawa. The first ceremony in Cuba was a secular declaration of marriage. For our second, we were fortunate to have a friend of the family (Kevin Dingwell) officiate the religious affirmation of our vows. It was a funny contrast seeing photos from Cuba and from Ottawa side by side:

In early March, after a long wait, we finally received confirmation of our posting to Indonesia. There wasn’t much time to sit back and enjoy the news, as we had a lot to do before we left in August. In the final countdown to our departure, I managed to get in visits with family in both Kingston and Nova Scotia. It was great to see everyone (and I hope some come to visit us while we’re out here). Here’s a shot from the Kingston visit:

After months of preparation (and lots of shopping), it was time to pack up our apartment and head out:

Mom and Dad were thankfully able to give us a ride to Toronto to see us off. Even though it was a sad time, I’m glad that we had a few hours with them before we left:

Our first stop on our Great Asian Adventure was in Korea – we quickly saw that some things are the same, no matter where you go:

When we got to Jakarta, our apartment was ready and waiting (and even bigger than we had imagined!):

We’ll stop there for now, but there’s a lot more big stuff to recap: trips to Thailand, Malaysia, and Lombok, as well as another wedding. Come back soon!

-Ryan

Bungy.

When I was planning my visit to Hong Kong, I figured that I should also make a trip out to Macau. Not only was it touted as the Vegas of Asia, but it is also the home to the tallest commercial bungy jump in the world. A big bonus is that it’s only an hour’s ferry ride from Hong Kong (a comfortable hydrofoil ride at that).

Macau itself is small, but not walkable by most people’s standards – well at least if you want to see the whole island in a day. The walk from the ferry terminal to Macau Tower was long, hot, and smoggy. You can actually just see the ledge I jumped off of towards the top of the tower – it’s the lip just under the satellite dish:

The tower is 338m high, with the sky deck (the level with the bungy jump) up at 223m. The elevator up has a glass wall, so you get some nice views of Macau in all its smoggy glory.

Once I got to the top, I quickly remembered why I love/hate bungy – I’m deathly afraid of heights. To be honest, just being 61 stories up was about the scariest part of my day. The thing is though, that this was my sixth jump at an AJ Hackett bungy site, and I’ve always felt really safe with their equipment and staff. According to their website, there have been over 2 million jumpers at AJ Hackett sites, and nobody has died (they don’t say no injuries, but nobody’s perfect).

Ready to take my chances again, I quickly changed into the shirt they gave me, and got fitted for the harness.

There was actually a couple ahead of me in line, but they were pretty nervous, and asked me to go before them. I was just looking forward to being on the ground again, so I happily obliged. The tensest moments for me were when I was all harnessed up and moved outside to be tied in. They had me sit on a wobbly metal table. Looking down off the edge of the platform was enough to make me nauseous.

Once they got me all tied in, it was time to go. It was a short but shaky hobble over to the edge, where we stopped for some photos:

Just before you jump, they drop the end of the bungy cord over the edge, and you feel it pull on your legs…my heart jumped. Then it was 5…4…3…2…1…go! Unlike other jumps I’ve done where you….jump, this time they told me to lean forward. You know the feeling you get when you lean your chair back so far you begin to fall back? Try that 233m in the air face first!

As soon as I got past the point of no return, I started screaming. Fierce, manly screaming. The whole way down. Really, I wasn’t scared.

The last time I did a jump (the Nevis jump in New Zealand), I was ready to go again as soon as I got back up. Not this time. Even the offer of 50% off wasn’t enough to tempt me to try it again. Maybe if I go back again some day, I’ll give it another go. Or maybe I’ll just wait until someone else builds a bigger, higher jump and go do that.

My jump off the Macau Tower was my scariest yet, but totally worth it. I was impressed again with the professionalism and attention to safety of all the AJ Hackett staff, and would definately trust them again.

-Ryan

More photos on Flickr.

Buddha.

Just a short post with some shots from our trip to the Po Lin Monastery and the Tian Tan Buddha on Lantau Island in Hong Kong.

Tian Tan Buddha in the distance:

Mark climbing the 268 stairs up to see Buddha (it was a long, hot climb):

Close-up of the Buddha:

Proof that I made the climb up to the statue:

We grabbed lunch at the vegetarian restaurant attached to the Po Lin Monastery – really good, and cheap. The monastery itself was quiet and beautiful:

This gentleman was the only monk I saw at the monastery:

More soon.

-Ryan

Kickin’ Around Kowloon.

After Mark and I finished our test, we decided to head to Kowloon to celebrate our success and Allison’s birthday. Hong Kong island, to me at least, is very much like New York. It’s modern, tall, and Western-feeling.

Kowloon on the other hand is everything I had hoped Hong Kong would be. As glib as it sounds, it’s like Chinatown on a much larger scale. Kowloon felt more like Asia to me.

Welcome to Kowloon:

After some wandering around the area around the Jordan Street subway station, and much debate, we settled on a second-story restaurant that looked relatively posh from the ground. Turns out that it was a hot pot restaurant.

I’d never heard of/had hot pot before, but it was great. From Wikipedia:

Hot pot refers to several Chinese varieties of steamboat stew. It consists of a simmering metal pot of stock at the center of the dining table. While the hot pot is kept simmering, ingredients are placed into the pot and are cooked at the table. Typical hot pot dishes include thinly sliced meat, leafy vegetables, mushrooms, wontons, egg dumplings, and seafood. The cooked food is usually eaten with a dipping sauce.

Yep, we ordered beef, crab, “assorted balls-of-meat”, and a few other things, and cooked them in a huge pot of simmering coconut seafood soup in the middle of the table – delicious!

The feast:

The birthday girl after dinner:

We wandered around for awhile after dinner, working off some of the many mysterious meats we had eaten. There were neon signs everywhere. In Indonesia, the writing uses the same alphabet as English, so I can still read (if not understand) the signs. There’s something about being in a place where I can’t understand the language at all that feels exciting and adventurous.

Kowloon at night:

Mark’s friend Betina:

Eventually, we made our way to the Temple Street Night Market. I’ve been to Patpong in Bangkok and to Petaling Street in Kuala Lumpur, so my expectations were pretty high for this one (I do know that I’ve only been to the “touristy” markets, so I was ready for more of that).

Temple Street Night Market:

There was a lot of stuff for sale, but strangely, most of it was more along the lines of “mitations rather than real fakes. In Patpong and Petaling, there were “Coach” purses, “Rolex” watches, and “Samsonite” luggage. At Temple Street, I saw “Swiss Navy” watches, “ProSport” bags (LeSportsac copies), and other renamed goods. To be fair, there were guys sitting near the stalls with catalogs that had pages and pages of brandname luxury goods, and I’m sure I could have bought some real fakes if I had really wanted to.

For sale by owner:

On my first visit to the market, I didn’t buy anything. The stuff was generally overpriced and poorly made (what you get for going to a “tourist” market). I did see some paintings I liked, and ended up going back for one the next day. Allison, Mark, and Betina spent a lot of time trying on sunglasses, but I don’t remember anyone actually buying any:

One last thing I’ll say from the Temple Street market was that the prices were not (for me at least) as flexible as those in Thailand and Malaysia. In Malaysia, if the first asking price for a watch was around 1200 ringgit ($400+), the final price was around 120 ringgit or under (~$40). For the painting I got, the opening price was HKD 120 (~$20). I tried the normal trick of asking for a discount, and the price dropped to HKD 100 (~$16). This was as low as I could get the guy to go, even after I teamed up with an Australian tourist who was after a painting in the same stall: we offered HKD 180 for both paintings, but the guy didn’t budge. Its strange that after living in Southeast Asia for awhile, paying $16 for a painting can feel expensive if you think you can get it for less, even if it would be far more expensive at home.

That’s all for today, more to come soon on Macau and bungy!

-Ryan

More photos on Flickr.

Into Hong Kong.

When my work decided to send me to Hong Kong to write a test, and offered to pay my flights and two nights in hotel, I jumped at the chance to extend my trip and see some of what Hong Kong and Macau had to offer. Luckily for me, I have a friend who works at the Consulate there: she let me crash at her place, saving me the biggest cost of my trip (hotels on Hong Kong island are insanely expensive).

My flight from Jakarta to Hong Kong was my first with Cathay Pacific. I think I can safely say that it won’t be my last. The service, food, and entertainment were all great, and I really felt safe on the plane, which is saying something.

I took the Airport Express train from the airport to Hong Kong island – it was a fast, easy way to get downtown. Once I got checked in to my hotel, I headed down to the harbor to take a look around. Hong Kong was a lot cleaner and more orderly than Jakarta – it was a nice break to be in a place where everything works, but I still enjoy the chaos of Indonesia.

The tallest building in Hong Kong, the IFC 2 (featured in the Dark Knight):

The one thing that defined my visit to Hong Kong was the hilly landscape. When I visit a city, my favorite thing to do is walk around and sightsee that way. I’m not one to take a lot of cabs. So while I enjoyed seeing the city, the hills were pretty killer. There isn’t a lot of walking to be done in Jakarta, so suffice to say that my legs and feet were not happy with me by the end of my visit.

Hilly Hong Kong:

After I was done wandering the city, I met up with a friend from the Canadian embassy in Manila who was also in town for the test. We caught up in Lan Kwai Fong, a bar area on Hong Kong Island popular with expats.

Mark, Allison, and Betina at La Bodega:

Out for ice cream:

It was an early night, as Mark and I had to write the test the next day. Not bad for a first day, but there was a lot more to do in Kowloon and Macau before flying home. More to come in the next few days…including jumping off the Macau Tower!

-Ryan

More photos on the Flickr stream.