When I was studying Intl Relations
with Webster University, I produced a paper on the effect of McDonalds on
globalization. It was fun to write and I
remember reading about how McDonalds created the concept of a “line;” Tom
Friedman made mention of this in one of his books. In Indonesia I have seen remnants of mass
chaos when it comes to waiting in a line, but nothing compared to what I
witnessed at the airport this weekend. I
was flying to Bali, so I arrived at the airport 90 min prior to the flight,
which was really worthless. You have to
wait until a certain time to check into your flight, but people still crowd the
counters until the destination is called.
So you can imagine what happens once they call out a destination. You have to somehow get up to the counter so
you can get your plane tickets and check in your baggage. It was pretty crazy, and I can’t imagine getting
away with that chaos in the United States.
 |
| This is where the Sultan would select his bride |
Earlier in the week I was able to
take a field trip to Taman Sari, an R&R site that goes back many
centuries. Today there are remnants of
the many baths and pools that used to populate that area of Yogyakarta. The guides like to point out the fact that it
was also used by the Sultan to pick his next bride. The women would bathe, swim, whatever, and
the Sultan would go up to the tower and peek through the windows. He then would pick a lucky candidate and she
would be escorted to his private chambers just below the tower. Another fascinating aspect of this “vacation
home” is that there is an underground mosque with several tunnels that lead in
many directions and can be used to flee or hide from the enemy. I was also told that the tunnels could be
flooded, and with thick walls and sentry posts, this complex actually makes a
pretty good military fortification.
 |
| You have to wear sunglasses with a radiation suit |
After class one afternoon, I
decided to go downtown to see the Children’s museum. One thing about museums in Indonesia is to
expect the unexpected. I was thinking it
would be a two-story museum with a couple of exhibits for kids to play around
with. This place was like 5 stories with
an IMAX theater, a splash pad, and a lot of interactive exhibits. Later that evening I was invited out to hang
out with one of the Australian Army guys who I have hung out with a couple of
times. We have had some really good
dialogue about military life and some the similarities and differences. We went to one of the large fields that is
south of the “Keraton,” (the main government building where the Sultan resides),
and just hung out and participated in some traditional Indonesian night life.
One of the places that I have
always wanted to visit ever since studying Indonesia is Bali. This weekend I was able to go to Bali, and
boy do I want to go back! I left late
Friday evening and got in around 11:30pm.
The following morning I had to wake up early, because I had a shuttle
come pick me up for the scuba diving trip.
I got to the Atlantis International –Bali dive shop, and they had
everything already to go for me…very professional and customer-friendly. The shop employs “bule’s” or white
westerners, but a majority are from France.
We left for our dive site at around 9am, and it took 2 hours (by car) to
get to Tulamben.
Tulamben is known for the coral
garden and the USS Liberty that sunk back in 1942. The coral garden was really cool because
there were some sunken Bali-like temple statues that are covered with
coral. The garden had so many different
types of fish and it was a very cool experience. The second dive was to USS Liberty, which was
hit about 10mi southwest of the Lombak Strait back in January 1942. It was en route to the Philippines from
Australia, loaded with railway parts and rubber. It was tragically torpedoed by a Japanese
submarine. It was then towed by the
Dutch to the beach, but slipped into the ocean after the eruption of Mount
Agung (1963), a volcano on the northern part of Bali. Needless to say, I was able to get a lot of
cool pictures and video thanks to my GoPro camera…that thing is awesome!!
In the evening I checked out the
Bali nightlife, particularly at Kuta Beach.
I ate at the Hard Rock Café and walked around talking to the numerous
people lining the streets of Kuta Beach.
It is really funny, because once they see that I can speak the language,
their attitude completely changes; I guess they have had some bad experiences
with rude westerners.
On my last day in Bali I was able to hire a
driver (Madi) and he showed me the countryside and villages surrounding
Ubud. He first dropped me off at “Bale
Udang,” and Balinese restaurant that specializes in ginormous shrimp….and other
things. I drank jus alpukat, had a
shrimp and mushroom soup in a coconut, rice (of course), and 10 huge BBQ
grilled shrimp. It was a little pricey
(for Indonesia), but I had to eat here…it has my name written all over it. There are two restaurants in Bali and both
are set over large coy ponds, so you can actually sit on these bamboo platforms
that allow you to dip your feet in the pond.
It had a really cool ambience.
I was able to visit the “Goa
Gadjah,” (Elephant Cave), which is an old Hindu temple, and a very interesting
tourist attraction. I went ahead and
bought a black/white checkered sarong, since I was going to have to rent one
anyway. There was also a section of the
park that had a broken Buddha statue. I
am amazed of the religious integration that exists in Indonesia. While there is intolerance in some areas, for
the most part everyone lives in peace and harmony. Bali is also known for its handicrafts,
especially woodwork. I will have to come
back another time and consider purchasing some souvenirs.
To end the evening and my trip to
Bali, I went to see the Kecak dance on the southern coast of Bali at a temple
called Uluwatu. This temple is populated
by small monkeys that have been know to steal your stuff, sometimes break it
and then return it back to you. I got
there pretty late, just in time for sunset and the Kecak performance. Words cannot describe the awesomeness that is
“Kecak.” I don’t like dance, and
artistic theater is not my cup of tea, but throw some fire in there and lovely
dressed Balinese women, and we are good to go!!
When I was studying Intl Relations
with Webster University, I produced a paper on the effect of McDonalds on
globalization. It was fun to write and I
remember reading about how McDonalds created the concept of a “line;” Tom
Friedman made mention of this in one of his books. In Indonesia I have seen remnants of mass
chaos when it comes to waiting in a line, but nothing compared to what I
witnessed at the airport this weekend. I
was flying to Bali, so I arrived at the airport 90 min prior to the flight,
which was really worthless. You have to
wait until a certain time to check into your flight, but people still crowd the
counters until the destination is called.
So you can imagine what happens once they call out a destination. You have to somehow get up to the counter so
you can get your plane tickets and check in your baggage. It was pretty crazy, and I can’t imagine getting
away with that chaos in the United States.
After class one afternoon, I
decided to go downtown to see the Children’s museum. One thing about museums in Indonesia is to
expect the unexpected. I was thinking it
would be a two-story museum with a couple of exhibits for kids to play around
with. This place was like 5 stories with
an IMAX theater, a splash pad, and a lot of interactive exhibits. Later that evening I was invited out to hang
out with one of the Australian Army guys who I have hung out with a couple of
times. We have had some really good
dialogue about military life and some the similarities and differences. We went to one of the large fields that is
south of the “Keraton,” (the main government building where the Sultan resides),
and just hung out and participated in some traditional Indonesian night life.
One of the places that I have
always wanted to visit ever since studying Indonesia is Bali. This weekend I was able to go to Bali, and
boy do I want to go back! I left late
Friday evening and got in around 11:30pm.
The following morning I had to wake up early, because I had a shuttle
come pick me up for the scuba diving trip.
I got to the Atlantis International –Bali dive shop, and they had
everything already to go for me…very professional and customer-friendly. The shop employs “bule’s” or white
westerners, but a majority are from France.
We left for our dive site at around 9am, and it took 2 hours (by car) to
get to Tulamben.
Tulamben is known for the coral
garden and the USS Liberty that sunk back in 1942. The coral garden was really cool because
there were some sunken Bali-like temple statues that are covered with
coral. The garden had so many different
types of fish and it was a very cool experience. The second dive was to USS Liberty, which was
hit about 10mi southwest of the Lombak Strait back in January 1942. It was en route to the Philippines from
Australia, loaded with railway parts and rubber. It was tragically torpedoed by a Japanese
submarine. It was then towed by the
Dutch to the beach, but slipped into the ocean after the eruption of Mount
Agung (1963), a volcano on the northern part of Bali. Needless to say, I was able to get a lot of
cool pictures and video thanks to my GoPro camera…that thing is awesome!!
On my last day in Bali I was able to hire a
driver (Madi) and he showed me the countryside and villages surrounding
Ubud. He first dropped me off at “Bale
Udang,” and Balinese restaurant that specializes in ginormous shrimp….and other
things. I drank jus alpukat, had a
shrimp and mushroom soup in a coconut, rice (of course), and 10 huge BBQ
grilled shrimp. It was a little pricey
(for Indonesia), but I had to eat here…it has my name written all over it. There are two restaurants in Bali and both
are set over large coy ponds, so you can actually sit on these bamboo platforms
that allow you to dip your feet in the pond.
It had a really cool ambience.
To end the evening and my trip to
Bali, I went to see the Kecak dance on the southern coast of Bali at a temple
called Uluwatu. This temple is populated
by small monkeys that have been know to steal your stuff, sometimes break it
and then return it back to you. I got
there pretty late, just in time for sunset and the Kecak performance. Words cannot describe the awesomeness that is
“Kecak.” I don’t like dance, and
artistic theater is not my cup of tea, but throw some fire in there and lovely
dressed Balinese women, and we are good to go!!
