Bule [pronounced like boo-lay] - a white person in Indonesian.
It's not derogatory, in fact many people are fascinated by white people.
I just spent two weeks in Indonesia, 10 days in various parts of Bali and 4 days in Jakarta. My friend Georgie, the one I went to Greece with, is half Indonesian and grew up in Jakarta. Last year I had told myself that in the fall of 2014 I would do a tour of Asia. Per life's usual ways the only thing constant is change and by autumn I wasn't sure if this Asia trip was going to happen. Georgie casually mentioned one day I should come to Indonesia in the summer when she went back to visit her family. Well, whether the offer was genuine at the time or not, I jumped at the opportunity to have a local! So by March we had sorted all the details and I had my first plane ticket to Asia.
I arrived at nearly midnight on a Sunday. I had to wait ages for the visa on arrival because something happened with the computer system and they had to process passports by hand. I walked outside after picking up my suitcase and it was like walking into a wall of sticky air. I'm used to hot and humid summers in Virginia and North Carolina, but England has been spoiling me with mid 70s and next to no humidity. Georgie met me and her brother (who also lives in England) at baggage claim and we headed to the family's apartment. We only had a few hours before we had to be up again and back at the airport to leave for Bali. After a shower and a short nap we were eating breakfast around 4:30 before heading out again when the first call to prayer could be heard from the mosque nearby.
I don't think I went into the trip with many expectations. I had done some google searches and Pinterest browsing for things to do in Bali, but since Georgie goes to Bali every year I just left it up to her really. The only thing I said I had to do was meet an elephant. I have an obsession with them and it only made sense to hang out with one while I'm in Asia. People keep questioning my obsession, so I suppose I should give a short explanation. I am fascinated by their extreme gentleness despite their size, their reputation for impeccable memory, and their large hippocampi which allow them to feel a vast array of emotions. Since I'm a really sensitive person I relate to this and admire them greatly. I also think they are unique and majestic looking creatures.
Bali
Bali was actually much more populated than I had imagined. It is tropical and jungle like in places, but where people stay is built up and busy. Funny enough though, apparently while we were there it wasn't as busy as usual. When I say 'built up' it isn't in a western sense. There are chickens wandering the streets and stray dogs every where. Many of the stores are little shanty-shacks selling street food and textiles that attract tourists. Most people ride mo-peds and there aren't any rules of the road (which consequently creates horrendous traffic). But there are many high class boutiques and five star restaurants to choose from as well.
We spent the first five days in Seminyak at a boutique hotel called Kamar Kamar. This was close to a lot of the shopping, a few beaches, restaurants and nightclubs. We spent most days out doing excursions to sightsee like the coffee plantation, the elephant refuge, and Ubud.
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| At the Coffee Plantation the guide was explaining the process of cleaning the beans |
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| The coffee plantation overlooked rice paddy fields |
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| With Sogi at the Elephant Refuge |
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| Ubud Palace |
We also visited a local Balinese home where the entire family lives in one compound. They have their own small temple as well. We were able to walk around and see their home for a donation to their livelihood. Traditionally Balinese create lots of wooden carvings, and their work station was in the back of the compound. I bought a hand-carved elephant as a small souvenir for myself. They keep a pig as a 'pet' until it's large enough to slaughter, and some ducks and porcupines as pets also. The family also has a line of roosters under cages that are kept for cock fighting.
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| Hand-carved elephant |
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| We joked that this chicken was window shopping for her husband |
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| With the patriarch of the family, they said he is 96 years old |
After five days we moved to Nusa Dua Beach Hotel which is about 45 minutes from Seminyak. It is much more isolated in the sense that there aren't many shops, restaurants, or clubs near the hotel. It's certainly more family oriented as you pretty much never have to leave the hotel. There are multiple pools, it's on the beach, activities planned for guests, and several eateries from which to choose. On the beaches local artisans walk up and down selling their crafts like sarongs, bracelets, and paintings, or their services, like henna tattoos, braiding your hair, or massages.
Bali is known as the Island of God. It is the only island in Indonesia that remains predominantly Hindu. The people there pray religiously and set out their offerings dutifully. Nearly every where you walk there is an offering in the road and you cannot step on them; this becomes a bit of a hop-skotch challenge. Each store has their offering in the corner, each restaurant has it out front. The Hindu prayer that is broadcast over speakers is quite haunting (as compared to the Muslim call to prayer which I think is lyrical and pretty).
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| Hindu prayer gathering for the full moon |
Jakarta
Georgie's mother's family is Chinese Indonesian (locally known as Chindo) which sets them apart a bit in their cultural aspects. We went to her grandparents' house for lunch the first day in Jakarta. I walked in to paper balls hanging from the ceiling, a large collection of Buddhas, and the only eating utensils were chopsticks. I quietly asked Georgie if it always looked like a Chinese restaurant or if it was a special occasion. It actually was her uncle's birthday, but she laughed a said no, it always looked like that.
Their maid, Ikha, was fascinated by me. She brought me a mug of cold water and told Georgie that white people like cold water so she brought me some. Every one else just got room temperature water. I had to laugh because personally I don't really care, but it was thoughtful. She was very attentive to me, bringing every possible dish to the table to offer me. And one day I was ill so she made me corn soup and porridge and brought rounds of things I could add to it to make it taste better. She also wanted to take multiple photos with me as a bule. She knows a few phrases in English and would say "thank you very much" with a giggle after each photo.
Jakarta is the capital city of the country and home of the major government and financial hubs. It's mostly what you would imagine of a capital with skyscraper buildings and highways. The traffic is like I-95 on a holiday weekend. There are nice shopping malls with stores like Louis Vuitton, there are less pricey malls with shops that will read your aura, and there are warehouses that sell all the fake brands. There are also street vendors, people walking through the lanes of traffic selling novelty toys, no road rules, parents riding mo-peds with their babies tied to them and no helmets, stray cats every where, and lots of smog.
The last day in Jakarta we went to the mall that had the aura reading shop. I sat in the chair and placed my hands on the electromagnet reader. The man took my photo and asked me to wait outside. He brought me my packet with my photo and the explanations of what the results meant. I opened the envelop to find a technicoloured photo of me. Apparently most people are just one colour! And as I read the description of the colours I had to laugh because it was me to a T. It even said I am generally healthy, but occasionally have tummy troubles... how on earth could this photograph know that my digestive system regularly revolts against me?! I was thoroughly amused.
So after two weeks there and 24 hours of travel back to England I am counting down the months until my next trip to Asia, which is actually in the works already to Thailand in December 2015!
