Religion and Politics

Two things "they" say you should never discuss... yeah right, like that is going to stop me if I have questions... I have discovered in my travels, that you can ask any question... it is all in how you approach the question... I always provide and out if they dont want to talk about it...

when in Hawaii I asked a native Hawaiian, how far back can you track your family? without hesitation or arrogance he said... "why to the beginning of course"... it gave me goosebumps... as I find religion interesting... my questions had continued... is there a Christ figure in your beliefs..."there is one white God, in our history" and incidentally when Cooke arrived at the Island the hawaiians thought he was God...and treated him as such... (bet they were suprised later)

So here in Indonesia, my questions continue... this is a Muslem country, I have seen some wearing the traditional dress, where the women cover there hair, I have not seen it to the extent of covering their faces. The staff in the hotel are very western in their dress.

However, Muslem religion is alive and well. Three times a day... the call to prayer echos from the various Mosques in the area... the call is over loud speakers, and the pattern to me sounds like a prayer itself.

I had the opportunity to speak with one of my students... Mala, she is married, 34 with 2 children, I should mention she is the 'baby' of 6 children. She spoke openly of her religion and expressed a little sadly that the perspective of the West, was incorrect...

We in the west (including me) had the perception that women were second class citizens, we are wrong. Mala explained (these are my words not hers) that woman are placed on a pedestle, worshipped almost. they walk behind not because they are second, rather to be protected. Wow, for me a lightbulb went off, in my mind i saw flashes of images that i did think made the woman a second... hmmm it is about perspective.

Also, I spoke with several women who are not originally from Bandung, that are married - and their husbands followed them with their job location... found that one suprising...

Muslems believe in prophet mohammad, a man not a god, they know of Christ, but do not believe God to be Christ's father, but do recognize the miracle of his conception... but that appears to be where the religions separate...they do not believe christ was crucified on the cross, someone was but she couldnt remember the name of who...

I should also mention that she read the Divinci Code... so has an interesting perspective herself LOL

They have here a fasting month... it is not a fixed month, but rather moves each year. This year it will be September... Fasting for a month, doesnt that make you weak? Yes she replied... I said so if Canada wants to invade indonesia, we wait till fasting month when you are all very weak - she has a good sense of humour and laughed. So you eat nothing for a month... (I have a hard time, grasping fasting - I like food too much) No not quite... they take nothing, food or drink from 5am to 6pm everyday for a month... after 6pm they can eat and drink... It is customary to have snacks at 6 that are high in sugar... (see even ancient cultures understood jumpstarting the metabolism)

Women can be excused from fasting if it is that time of the month, but are required to make up any days they missed before the next years fasting month. It is a personal responsibility to make up this time... it is not 'policed' by anyone, just the individual.

Muslem traditional culture reflects the proprieties of the early 1900's in North America, a woman would never be left alone in the company of a man. (Even a married woman - cannot be left alone with a male other than her husband or family member).

Times are changing here (it is a little sad) the apparent influence of media - my students all know Beverly Hills 90210 and the pictures of tv are changing their world - a new social issue of approximately the last 10 years or so is teenage pregnancy. This is a new occurance facing their society... And I wonder if in another 20 years, the moral traditions will have weaken/changed such that these issues will become more widespread.

Mala and I have had several discussions, and all appear to be illuminating for both of us... yesterday she thanked me for sharing perspective... those were her words... life is so much about perspective...

Map of Indonesia...Island of Java

I know that the volcano here on the island has made the news... so I thought this would help give perspective...

I arrived in Jakarta very poor air quality... I bet it is worse than LA...

The drive to Bandung (pronounced BanDewng)was almost 3 hours...

You can see on the map that the volcano is considerable distance from where I am, and the way the winds blow ensure I will not have any problems.

Click on the photo to enlarge... btw Bali is in the bottom right corner... use your back button on the browser to return to the blog.

Shopping

Bandung is know for it's outlet stores. It was time to go check them out... It was on a Sunday afternoon, ( I should mention that population of the city grows on weekends as those in Jakarta seek relief from the heat and pollution of that city. - the hotels occupancy is always above 95% on weekends - hmmm sounds like Fort Erie in the summer).

Crowded, and I have discovered that shoppers are the same world wide... we love a bargain, and here it is no different... clothes, shoes, electronics each have their own store - so you must drive to each. I only purchased one item - a beautiful cashmere scarf for $20 US +.21 that the credit card company put on my bill for foreign (not sure about that one LOL)

True confession, i really didnt feel like shopping it was more the people watching that I was enjoying.

As i sat on a bench watching i was again keenly aware that i was the only white face to be seen in the crowd. One little boy about 5 years old (children are the most honest and true) was staring at me as he walked... still staring looking back over his shoulder as he walked right into a wall... *big grin* it was cute...

I will return to the stores before i leave - i think i would prefer to go alone, and shop at my own pace.

The Wedding

I attended a traditional wedding reception - the bride was the teacher of one of my students Mia. Some customs are shared with the west and others are quite different. As the only non-asian in attendance i was greeted with visible misgivings, possibly even mistrust, (I was not afraid - but it was slightly uncomfortable), it made me appreciate how minorities in the west must feel, but again i was fortunate i did not feel any threat. As i looked out into a sea of nonsmiling, mistrust, I bowed my head slightly and smiled warmly, and relief, my smile was instantly returned, and i was made to feel welcome.

The reception was held at the home of the bride's parents, the event closed the narrow street where a tent for some relief from the afternoon sun, had been installed. The dogs and chickens that roamed the streets, appeared to respect the formality of the event and did not try to join the guests under the tent.

before entering the tented area, a table had been set with a guest book and a large box where guest's deposited envelopes. Mia and i split the gift, each giving 50,000 rupiah (80,000 RP=$10US). It is customary to give cash, only immediate family members give gifts.

Guests paraded in line through the small home, past the guests of honour - the bride and groom and their families. The wedding party met the reception line with each giving a 2 handed handshake that was as featherlight as butterfly wings. A long table of prepared foods awaited guests after they had greeted the bride and groom.

I am an adventurous eater, so i will try things... even those which i have no clue as to what they are. the food was good, though i never did truly discover what exactly I had eaten. Different from western tradition, after the food was consumed, guests leave to make room for those who follow.

I heard that over 500 attended. we were among the earlier guests.

Live from Bandung Indonesia

Wow, quite a difference on this side of the world...

I have seen rice patties, and more dragonflies than i ever knew possible... The butterflies are the colours of neon highlighters...

the locals are friendly, and when they smile they glow... it is amazing to see.

Driving...
I read the best quote about driving in Indonesia. "They drive like birds fly" all over the place but do not seem to collide. I will NOT be renting a car for me to drive LOL, rather the hotel has agreed to provide a driver for where ever I would like to go.

The Sheraton Bandung....
The hotel is quite nice 153 rooms divided into two sections, the main area and the tower area, I am in the main area... it is the less expesive rooms. dont get me wrong the rooms is nice, has french doors to a small balcony overlooking a courtyard. Shower, no tub which is a little disappointing for me - but the shower i will say is quite nice, I am suprised by the water pressure, among the strongest i have experienced, almost makes up for the lack of tub... almost.
In every hotel there is a book which tells about the properties features, hours of service etc. I always read these from cover to cover... in this one I read that "the hotel bans guest from bring Durian into the rooms at anytime." not too sure what this is but i better find out...

Food...
Food in the hotel is a blend of Indonsian, Asian, and western... though western tastes nothing like western :-)

I am trying a variety of items, the majority are rice type dishes... and they do like thing spicy here... really spicy...but are aware that hot is not my preference, so they make mine with the spice on the side... i do add a little of the spice...

Fruit juices are big here, all fresh made - the ones we are used to like Orange, Apple or Pineapple but also fresh strawberry, starfruit, carrot, papaya, avocado, watermelon and what they call a health drink... lime, pineapple, broccoli, potato and i am not sure what else... it looks so gross... but out of politeness I tried it... and it is so good i have almost one a day.

Oh I found out what Durian is... it is a fruit... the size of a very large melon, with prickly spine sort of like a giant chestnut. The story goes that this fruit was given to a king, to woo his bride by its wonderful taste, the only condition of this gift was that the magician that gave it to the king be invited to the wedding... the bride loved the fruit and the marriage took place, the king forgot his promise to the magician so the magician turned the once pleasantly soft skin to how it is now all spiky and rough. In addition the smell of this fruit, even before opened is very difficult to describe... hmmm mabye that sweet/sour rotting smell of a city in the summer... it is a little nasty - and apparently when it is opened its smell intensifies... and takes at least 3 days to clear the smell out of a room...

Well, of course I had to try it LOL... to me the smell took me back to childhood... i had experienced numerous ear infections and had been taking the pink liquid penicillian... that is what it smell like to me... and get this I still ate it... cant say it was a good taste, there was a bit of an alcohol taste to it, cant say it was a bad taste... but i didnt eat the whole portion i was given, but at least i can say i tried it...