I took Eamon to gym this afternoon at a nearby mall. According to Google, it's about 1.8km in a direct line from our house to the mall, or 4.8km and 12 minutes by road. It took us 26 minutes, 6 lane changes and 2 U-turns to get there - traffic wasn't too heavy. The way home was even better - about 20 minutes and a pretty straight run.
In contrast to our usual trips in Jakarta, I drove today. A bit over a week ago our driver of 18 months quit. No notice was given, nor were we offered a reason, he just texted Kieran, asked for his pay and left. In a country where good jobs are hard to find and poor jobs pay barely enough to survive, I am left to wonder at what long term planning would encourage leaving behind a 15 year career at the drop of a hat. I can only hope he had given a better offer - although it would have been nice to know. So now we are in that inconvenient phase of hunting for a new driver, of having to taxi for school drop-offs and pickups and restricting any excursions to places I am happy to drive.
What tickled my mind this afternoon, however, was that after 21 months in Jakarta, I am becoming accustomed to the driving style. So much so, that I actually feel fairly comfortable venturing out alone with the kids for the local mall run (I drove it twice today!). I no longer sit tensely at the steering wheel, squeezing my sides in as the motorbikes zip past on both sides of our car, or wait amidst the blaring horns until a gap appears before inching my way out of an intersection. Instead, I have mastered the art of pulling out into a stream of busy traffic - the confidence in the act ensuring that others will stop to make room. I can find the third lane - the one between those marked on the road, and navigate it with aplomb, and when it disappears, I can nudge my nose into the non-existent gap between the cars beside me, forcing the driver alongside to back off and let me in. In short, I can survive, for short distances, on the roads around me, and while I may still not be brave enough to attempt the school run, with its 5.5 km and multitude of turns, I have hope that my new found confidence will stand me in good stead the next time I have to embrace the terrors of Sydney driving!
Showing posts with label kids. Show all posts
Showing posts with label kids. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Hong Kong - the D'Bay Way (Part 1)
It sounds extravagant to say we struggled to choose a destination for our latest holiday, but we did. There are so many interesting places on offer in Asia and we're keen to see as many as possible, but the limitations of heat, rain (much of Asia is in the height of monsoon in August), and two small children with a limited, highly Western-oriented, diet did, unfortunately crimp our options. I'd love to be one of those families who confidently head to rural Cambodia or Bhutan, toddlers and preschoolers in tow and has a wonderful time subsiding on local delicacies, staying in huts and traveling by river boat, but for our kids that's sadly not a viable choice. Yet. I still have hope for next year.
I've actually been to Hong Kong before, so "new" perhaps isn't strictly accurate, but I was only eleven at the time, so I'm not sure it counts. My over-riding memories of that visit were dirty streets with people living in cardboard boxes, markets with chickens, pigs, snakes and other animals being slaughtered on demand, providing the ultimate in fresh meat and a harbour where we were warned people were taken straight to hospital if they fell in the water. I'm happy to say this stay was quite different.
Instead of staying in an hotel downtown we opted for an apartment in Discovery Bay on Lantau Island. This proved to be a great choice. Discovery Bay, or D'Bay is a residential suburb on the Eastern side of Lantau Island popular with expats and Cathay Pacific pilots and crew. It's close to the airport and Disneyland, has its own beach, plenty of restaurants, supermarket, bookstore and great access to public transport with ferry and bus terminals. It's also car-free, so remarkably quiet and relaxing - although you do need to watch out for golf carts! We rented a one-bedroom apartment, which, although a little cramped with two active boys, provided a good base with the advantage of being able to cook our meals and wash our clothes.
Discovery Bay - beach and view from our apt.
Hong Kong has a huge amount to offer visitors, including those with young children. Prior to arrival, I'd found SassyMamas 50 Things To Do With Kids in Hong Kong (she actually has a sequel with 50 more), narrowed the list to a dozen or so and had a family meeting to work out which 4-5 were our top picks. In the end we chose Disneyland, the Big Buddha, Victoria Peak and Ocean Park as our days out, with the remaining days to be spent on the beach, relaxing or, in my case, disappearing off to the Sham Shui Po markets for a spot of shopping!
Victoria Peak is a famous landmark in Hong Kong and provides a fantastic view of the city, the harbour and outlying islands and across to Kowloon and mainland China. We caught the ferry from D'Bay to Central - an experience in itself as you cross the shipping lanes and watch freighters being unloaded in the bay. We saw one monster ship with roughly 3500 shipping containers aboard heading out to ports unknown. From the ferry terminal, a fifteen minute walk takes you to the lower terminus of the Peak Tram, a funicular railway. On a hot Sunday morning, the tram was packed, the queue winding around and up the street, while passengers were squeezed in like the proverbial sardines, doors pushed shut on Kieran's back and me holding grimly on to Rory with one arm and a bar with the other as we headed up, the steepest section 27 degrees to horizontal making the skyscrapers outside look like something in a crazy mirror house. At the top, Sky Tower provides a viewing platform with the inevitable giftshop exit as well as a mall and restaurants for your shopping and dining pleasures - we grabbed an adequate meal at Bubba Gumps (although they completely failed to bring Kieran his order) and decided on a walk instead.
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| Views from Victoria Peak |
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| Waterfall on Hong Kong Trail |
So passed the first couple of days of our Hong Kong holiday. I'll continue with more on the other sights in Part 2.
Friday, August 2, 2013
Flying with Toddlers - A Rant on Airline Policies
We've had the fortune (or possibly misfortune) to fly quite a lot with our boys. They're both seasoned travellers and have probably racked up more miles in their short lives than I did in my first two decades. Our four year old confidently navigates security checks, reads the emergency card before take-off and let's us know when the iPad can be turned back on!
Like many, we generally eschew the full-service airlines in favour of the low-cost carriers to alleviate some of the economic burden of travelling as a family of four. We do, however, often prefer for our wriggly, independent-minded, can't-sit-still, twenty month old to have his own seat with full restraint - namely his car seat - especially on flights over a couple of hours duration. While an extravagance, this seems a safer, more comfortable solution for us, for him, and for those unlucky enough to be seated around us. So it drives me slightly mad that airlines seem to strive to make this request tortuous if not impossible to accomplish.
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) strongly urges parents to use an approved child restraint system (CRS) on aircraft, and in 2010, the National Transportation Safety Board released a Safety Alert with the same recommendation. In the US, carriers are prohibited from denying use of an approved CRS for a child if a parent has bought them a seat. Unfortunately, it appears that the rest of the world is somewhat behind.
Not only do you have to fly through innumerable hoops to prove your child restraint is approved for use in aircraft (and this definition varies depending on which country the restraint comes from), it is almost impossible to actually book a seat for an under 2yr old on most airline online systems. Recent experiences have almost had us vowing to forgo flying until after our youngest's second birthday (although we'd still have the child restraint issue to deal with then).
If you want to book online with Tiger, Scoot or Virgin Australia, forget it - their airline systems can't handle under 2's in seats. With Virgin, the call centre is your best bet - they were happy to help, and while it took the better part of an hour to book a one-way ticket, they did waive the call centre fee since I had no alternative. Tiger and Scoot got the boot from us - yes we could book over the phone, but the cost for our tot was full adult fare PLUS the infant fee! So our 1yr old costs more, not only than the 4yr old, but than an adult! No thanks.
Our recent trip used a mix of airlines - Qantas, Jetstar, Virgin, Air NZ and Air Asia. Despite having called ahead to confirm, providing the make and model, I was told at check-in for Qantas that my car seat wasn't allowed onboard. After arguing the toss, the check-in staff relented, so on we went....right down the back off the plane which seems to be the default position for car seats - probably to discourage further use! After buckling in the seat, and toddler, I was then approached by cabin crew wanting to verify the "Approved for use in aircraft" sticker yet again. Unbuckle toddler, wrestle seatbelt undone, pull out car seat and repeat.
Similar situations occurred for subsequent check-ins. With Virgin I was told flat out that car seats weren't allowed. During the ensuing discussion, the staff member admitted that usually the car seats don't have the appropriate approvals and "yours is the first one that meets the standard" (it should be noted that Virgin Australia do not allow Australian-approved car seats on board - ours is from the US). The general impression I was left with was that car seat carrying mums (or dads) are troublesome, should be refused on principle and only accommodated if absolutely necessary and with the least assistance possible.
While I appreciate the need to ensure the safety of all passengers, surely if airlines have a policy allowing approved car seats, they can make the effort to streamline their use - because surely a safely and happily restrained toddler is better for everyone than the squirming, wriggling, seat-back pulling demon on poor mum or day's lap! And while we're at it, how about a universal set of requirements for approved seats? Is that really too much to ask?
Rant over - and on a more positive note, I'm writing this having just had two wonderful flights on Malaysian Airlines where our tot travelled, car seat enabled with no questions asked!
Tips for car seat travel
- check the regulations and policies for each airline you're travelling with, some require prior approval by phone
- make sure your seat has the appropriate stickers for approval
- if you get knocked back at check-in, persistence can sometimes win the day
- expect to have the seat nearest the window, and possibly right at the back of the plane
- tuck a blanket under the seat and into the seat back pocket to form a pocket - it will catch all the things junior throws around!
Like many, we generally eschew the full-service airlines in favour of the low-cost carriers to alleviate some of the economic burden of travelling as a family of four. We do, however, often prefer for our wriggly, independent-minded, can't-sit-still, twenty month old to have his own seat with full restraint - namely his car seat - especially on flights over a couple of hours duration. While an extravagance, this seems a safer, more comfortable solution for us, for him, and for those unlucky enough to be seated around us. So it drives me slightly mad that airlines seem to strive to make this request tortuous if not impossible to accomplish.
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) strongly urges parents to use an approved child restraint system (CRS) on aircraft, and in 2010, the National Transportation Safety Board released a Safety Alert with the same recommendation. In the US, carriers are prohibited from denying use of an approved CRS for a child if a parent has bought them a seat. Unfortunately, it appears that the rest of the world is somewhat behind.
Not only do you have to fly through innumerable hoops to prove your child restraint is approved for use in aircraft (and this definition varies depending on which country the restraint comes from), it is almost impossible to actually book a seat for an under 2yr old on most airline online systems. Recent experiences have almost had us vowing to forgo flying until after our youngest's second birthday (although we'd still have the child restraint issue to deal with then).
If you want to book online with Tiger, Scoot or Virgin Australia, forget it - their airline systems can't handle under 2's in seats. With Virgin, the call centre is your best bet - they were happy to help, and while it took the better part of an hour to book a one-way ticket, they did waive the call centre fee since I had no alternative. Tiger and Scoot got the boot from us - yes we could book over the phone, but the cost for our tot was full adult fare PLUS the infant fee! So our 1yr old costs more, not only than the 4yr old, but than an adult! No thanks.
Our recent trip used a mix of airlines - Qantas, Jetstar, Virgin, Air NZ and Air Asia. Despite having called ahead to confirm, providing the make and model, I was told at check-in for Qantas that my car seat wasn't allowed onboard. After arguing the toss, the check-in staff relented, so on we went....right down the back off the plane which seems to be the default position for car seats - probably to discourage further use! After buckling in the seat, and toddler, I was then approached by cabin crew wanting to verify the "Approved for use in aircraft" sticker yet again. Unbuckle toddler, wrestle seatbelt undone, pull out car seat and repeat.
Similar situations occurred for subsequent check-ins. With Virgin I was told flat out that car seats weren't allowed. During the ensuing discussion, the staff member admitted that usually the car seats don't have the appropriate approvals and "yours is the first one that meets the standard" (it should be noted that Virgin Australia do not allow Australian-approved car seats on board - ours is from the US). The general impression I was left with was that car seat carrying mums (or dads) are troublesome, should be refused on principle and only accommodated if absolutely necessary and with the least assistance possible.
While I appreciate the need to ensure the safety of all passengers, surely if airlines have a policy allowing approved car seats, they can make the effort to streamline their use - because surely a safely and happily restrained toddler is better for everyone than the squirming, wriggling, seat-back pulling demon on poor mum or day's lap! And while we're at it, how about a universal set of requirements for approved seats? Is that really too much to ask?
Rant over - and on a more positive note, I'm writing this having just had two wonderful flights on Malaysian Airlines where our tot travelled, car seat enabled with no questions asked!
Tips for car seat travel
- check the regulations and policies for each airline you're travelling with, some require prior approval by phone
- make sure your seat has the appropriate stickers for approval
- if you get knocked back at check-in, persistence can sometimes win the day
- expect to have the seat nearest the window, and possibly right at the back of the plane
- tuck a blanket under the seat and into the seat back pocket to form a pocket - it will catch all the things junior throws around!
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Exploring Jakarta - Sunda Kelapa
For those whose geography is as sadly lacking as mine, Jakarta is on the coast of Java. As such, it has a harbour, and was at one time, an important trading port. Although the city has grown well beyond it, the harbour still exists and is home to the world's last wooden trading fleet. We took a visit there one Saturday morning.
Sunda Kelapa is hot, dusty and industrial. The road along the dock is narrow and potholed, lined with trucks loading and unloading all manner of cargo - cement, plastic water tanks, bales of cloth, all headed for other parts of the archipelago aboard these beautiful wooden vessels.
Access to each ship is via gangplank, a bendy narrow board with rather dubious looking attachment to the ship and pier. We were invited aboard a couple of vessels, but decided to leave that for when the kids are older and less likely to injure themselves!
Sunda Kelapa is hot, dusty and industrial. The road along the dock is narrow and potholed, lined with trucks loading and unloading all manner of cargo - cement, plastic water tanks, bales of cloth, all headed for other parts of the archipelago aboard these beautiful wooden vessels.
An excellent and somewhat different type of tourist attraction for Jakarta, but one that is well worth a visit.
Monday, December 31, 2012
Christmas, Jakarta Style
Almost a month since my last post - oops! I could claim it's because we haven't done anything much interesting, but that would be untrue. Instead I'll blame the lead up to Christmas and all the associated chaos!
As our first Christmas in Indonesia approached, I realised I had a mental list of things I wanted in order for things to feel like Christmas - a Christmas tree, Santa photos of the boys, something resembling a proper Christmas dinner and a visit from the man in red for Eamon (being pretty sure Rory didn't really care!)
Apparently you can get real Christmas trees (or at least a tree resembling something pine-like) in Jakarta, but figuring out where and how was beyond us. In addition, having just experienced one infestation of termites, we were not keen to introduce another source of bugs and other critters to the house. So, having seen a permanent source of artificial trees at my favourite market, Pasar Pagi Lama (or Pasar Asemka), Kieran went on an acquisition run and returned with a lovely 7ft specimen, completed with snow-tipped branches! Item one completed!
As you can imagine, Christmas isn't a huge deal in a country 87-some percent Muslim, but when you figure out how large even a few percent of 240 million people is, there are still a fair few celebrating, and hey, what self-respecting retailer wouldn't try to cash in on the hype anyway? Hence, at least some of the malls made an effort to supply a dose of the Christmas spirit with decorations, trees, carollers and even a couple of jolly old men in big red suits! We visited one of the larger malls, Taman Anggrek, a few days before Christmas, primarily to investigate Jakarta's sole indoor ice-rink (and no, they don't have any outdoor ones!), something Kieran had been keen on since we arrived. Taman Anggrek was clearly making an effort - their central atrium hosted a Christmas tree probably 3 stories high, along with a delightful little Christmas village, carousel, animated figures and Santa grotto. Ok, the village houses were really small shopfronts, the carousel wasn't for riding on and the animated figures were rather minimalist, but still, the atmosphere was definitely Christmassy. Even better, the queue for Santa photos was non-existant and we actually managed a rather successful shot of the whole family after Rory decided that being handed over to some big dude with too much facial hair wasn't really his thing! So, tick, another thing off the list.
My idea of Christmas always includes lots of baking and overall yummy food generation. I blame this on my mum. The lead-up to Christmas at home was always a frenzy of cooking and baking, and the big day one for eating the largesse. Besides, it's fun making food you know your family enjoy and only get once a year! Kieran's list of Christmas fav's includes turkey, fruit mince pies, truffles (or rum balls) and Christmas pudding. Mine is ham and some vague sense of biscuits I don't usually make. Sounds simple.
A trip to the supermarket dispelled that idea - the ingredients we take for granted in Australia are simply not available here. No mixed fruit, mixed spice, or candy canes at any of the expat-friendly supermarkets, although you could buy single serve Christmas puddings for $15! Time to innovate. Christmas pud with dried pineapple and other tropical fruits and lots of raisins (sultanas are quite expensive!), fruit mince pies, homemade pineapple sorbet and fruit salad sound doable. I tried brandy snaps, but they failed dismally (maybe too humid? or the butter is different?) so went for merringues instead - tricky in a gas oven that doesn't do low or high temperatures well and is about as stable as a toddler on a balance beam. For the main course, a small chunk of surprisingly tasty ham and a frozen turkey which Kieran brined and cooked beautifully (although getting sufficient quantities of ice made from drinking water was another challenge). Veges, salad and rolls and the meal was complete - a great spread shared with two lovely families who hadn't made the exodus home this year. The boys each had a friend to play with and with the usual overabundance of presents and new toys had a great day.
So, although we plan to be away next year, I'm glad we spent Christmas in Jakarta.
As our first Christmas in Indonesia approached, I realised I had a mental list of things I wanted in order for things to feel like Christmas - a Christmas tree, Santa photos of the boys, something resembling a proper Christmas dinner and a visit from the man in red for Eamon (being pretty sure Rory didn't really care!)
Apparently you can get real Christmas trees (or at least a tree resembling something pine-like) in Jakarta, but figuring out where and how was beyond us. In addition, having just experienced one infestation of termites, we were not keen to introduce another source of bugs and other critters to the house. So, having seen a permanent source of artificial trees at my favourite market, Pasar Pagi Lama (or Pasar Asemka), Kieran went on an acquisition run and returned with a lovely 7ft specimen, completed with snow-tipped branches! Item one completed!
My idea of Christmas always includes lots of baking and overall yummy food generation. I blame this on my mum. The lead-up to Christmas at home was always a frenzy of cooking and baking, and the big day one for eating the largesse. Besides, it's fun making food you know your family enjoy and only get once a year! Kieran's list of Christmas fav's includes turkey, fruit mince pies, truffles (or rum balls) and Christmas pudding. Mine is ham and some vague sense of biscuits I don't usually make. Sounds simple.
A trip to the supermarket dispelled that idea - the ingredients we take for granted in Australia are simply not available here. No mixed fruit, mixed spice, or candy canes at any of the expat-friendly supermarkets, although you could buy single serve Christmas puddings for $15! Time to innovate. Christmas pud with dried pineapple and other tropical fruits and lots of raisins (sultanas are quite expensive!), fruit mince pies, homemade pineapple sorbet and fruit salad sound doable. I tried brandy snaps, but they failed dismally (maybe too humid? or the butter is different?) so went for merringues instead - tricky in a gas oven that doesn't do low or high temperatures well and is about as stable as a toddler on a balance beam. For the main course, a small chunk of surprisingly tasty ham and a frozen turkey which Kieran brined and cooked beautifully (although getting sufficient quantities of ice made from drinking water was another challenge). Veges, salad and rolls and the meal was complete - a great spread shared with two lovely families who hadn't made the exodus home this year. The boys each had a friend to play with and with the usual overabundance of presents and new toys had a great day.So, although we plan to be away next year, I'm glad we spent Christmas in Jakarta.
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Everyday life - 3 months in the land of not quite right
My posts have been a bit sporadic lately as we have been experiencing that wonderful thing that accompanies moves to different places, new bugs and viruses! Now granted, kids get sick everywhere, it's just the environment that makes for potentially more exciting times over here! We also been pretty busy sorting out preschool for Eamon and continuing our saga to find a permanent (well, for the next 3 years at least) home.
Our first three months in Jakarta has been, as anywhere, up and down. Encouragingly I think there are more ups on the whole. Some of the downs have been dealing with injury and illness - we've had several bouts of upset stomachs (except for Kieran who is pretty much constantly suffering due to being provided lunch each day at university), the usual run of colds as well as a ruptured tendon in Kieran's middle finger (tucking Eamon into bed at 5am - go figure!) and a couple of episodes of croup - scary in Australia, this is something I'd be happy not to experience again, particularly in a hotel in Lombok, several hours away from anywhere useful. Note to self - research nearest (semi-)decent hospitals before travelling outside Jakarta. Luckily when we're in Jakarta we have access to an Australian doctor and a fairly well-stocked clinic for useful things like prednisone.
The biggest bane of our first three months has been finding a place to live. After losing 4 for 4 of the apartments we'd initially wanted to higher bidders, we decided to go for a house instead and quickly found a great place (plenty of room for visitors!). Unfortunately it needed a few repairs and modifications before we could move in and so the tedious process of negotiation, gaining approval, waiting for tenders and finally waiting for the actual work to be done began. Add in 2 weeks of general shutdown over Lebaran and our move-in date is looking to be our 4-month anniversary in Jakarta! Good thing we brought 12 suitcases with us!
The hotel we've been staying in has had a few interesting features. For the first six weeks, the washing machine had a disturbing tendency to produce electric shocks when taking the wet clothes out. I mentioned this to one expat:
ME: Our washing machine gives us small electric shocks when we take the wet clothes out
HER: Small electric shocks? Oh, that's fairly normal here
ME: So it's not dangerous then?
HER: Oh no, it's definitely dangerous
When our pembantu finally got maintenance in, they quickly found the cause - the barrel was live. Since there is no ground on Indonesian plugs I guess this isn't that surprising, but it was certainly disturbing. We've also recently had a run of leaks from the ceiling in the kitchen, ensuite and bathroom. Luckily, maintenance have a remedy for this - they come in with a wet vacuum and dry the ceiling. Since no effort is made to actually fix the cause, the leak generally reappears the next day. We can be reassured that our leak is reasonably minor though as a large chunk of the hotel foyer was streaming water yesterday!
On the up side, we are getting more settled, even minus our own abode. Eamon is attending preschool four mornings a week and we now have help so Rory doesn't have to spend hours in the car each day. We've managed to buy a car and hire a driver, and Kieran is becoming increasingly competent at getting us around on Sundays. Both boys have swimming lessons once a week and there are several playgroups to attend. Even better, I'm starting to explore some of the more interesting markets and sights around the place.
Our first three months in Jakarta has been, as anywhere, up and down. Encouragingly I think there are more ups on the whole. Some of the downs have been dealing with injury and illness - we've had several bouts of upset stomachs (except for Kieran who is pretty much constantly suffering due to being provided lunch each day at university), the usual run of colds as well as a ruptured tendon in Kieran's middle finger (tucking Eamon into bed at 5am - go figure!) and a couple of episodes of croup - scary in Australia, this is something I'd be happy not to experience again, particularly in a hotel in Lombok, several hours away from anywhere useful. Note to self - research nearest (semi-)decent hospitals before travelling outside Jakarta. Luckily when we're in Jakarta we have access to an Australian doctor and a fairly well-stocked clinic for useful things like prednisone.
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| Eamon ready for preschool |
The hotel we've been staying in has had a few interesting features. For the first six weeks, the washing machine had a disturbing tendency to produce electric shocks when taking the wet clothes out. I mentioned this to one expat:
ME: Our washing machine gives us small electric shocks when we take the wet clothes out
HER: Small electric shocks? Oh, that's fairly normal here
ME: So it's not dangerous then?
HER: Oh no, it's definitely dangerous
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| Rory - has grown two new teeth, learnt to crawl, pull-up and cruise while in the hotel |
On the up side, we are getting more settled, even minus our own abode. Eamon is attending preschool four mornings a week and we now have help so Rory doesn't have to spend hours in the car each day. We've managed to buy a car and hire a driver, and Kieran is becoming increasingly competent at getting us around on Sundays. Both boys have swimming lessons once a week and there are several playgroups to attend. Even better, I'm starting to explore some of the more interesting markets and sights around the place.
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Exploring Indonesia - Lombok
Jakarta basically shuts down for the week of Idul Fitri (and often for the following week too!). This included Eamon's preschool and the university Kieran is at, so we decided it was a good chance to take a break from hotel and city life and head somewhere more relaxed, and hopefully, more Indonesian!
The problem with travelling at Idul Fitri is that everyone does it, so roads become clogged, flights are fully booked and stories of hours long traffic jams abound. Last year, Yanti, our pembantu, went home to Surabaya - a 12hr bus trip that took 16hrs (this year, it took 24hrs!!) due to traffic, and stories of 5hr trips to the airport are not uncommon. It seemed prudent to take precautions and leave early. Kieran managed to find flights to Lombok, an island to the east of Java, and close to Bali for the Saturday night before Idul Fitri. We decided to give ourselves plenty of time to get to the airport and left the hotel at 4pm for a 7pm flight. Unexpectedly, instead of hitting traffic, we had a clear run to the airport, arriving by 4:30pm to find minimum crowds and that our flight was actually 8pm! Oh well!
The Jakarta domestic airport has little to recommend it. There are the basic facilities and a few shops, but not much else. Several "lounges" are available to those willing to pay for a place to sit, free softdrinks and small buffet of questionable food. We coughed up, enjoyed the seating and a couple of Sprites and stuck to our pre-packed sandwiches! The flight out was full, late, and low on air conditioning, but otherwise fine. Rory complained vigourously about being constrained (as is his wont) and Eamon happily drew pictures or played with the iPad for the 2hrs.
On arrival at the Lombok airport, conveniently situated in the middle of nowhere, we found our pre-arranged pickup was conspicuously absent (although the hotel did offer to send him immediately if we were willing to wait the hour for him to get there) and so we piled into an outrageously priced taxi and headed for Sengigi Beach. The roads in Lombok were surprisingly good, making for reasonably fast driving, however the celebrations for Idul Fitri (announced while we were in the airport in Jakarta as being the next day) led to many revellers and impromptu celebrations. The worst of which were a group of (probably drunk) young men in the middle of the road who proceeded to hit our taxi as we slowed for them. As some also picked up large rocks, Kieran politely suggested to the driver that maybe he could check for damage later and get the hell out of there! Luckily the boys were both asleep and oblivious to our less than encouraging welcome to Lombok!
Sengigi Beach was lovely. Our hotel was a few kilometres out of town meaning we were a little isolated from restaurants or supplies, but the lovely view over waving coconut palms, black sand beach and volcanic cones on Bali made up for it. Although older and slightly run down, the Bintang Sengigi was clean, peaceful and a great place to unwind and enjoy unpolluted air. The kids pool was a hit with Eamon who loved "practising his swimming" and the beach proved irresistible to Rory who thought sliding straight down the steepish beach into the water the best thing ever!
Getting into Sengigi for a look around was very easy using the bemo (small converted vans with wooden benches in the back and usually minimal dashboard or panels). A slower option is the cidomo, horse driven carts which are also popular, although sadly, not so much around our hotel. Once in town, there were plenty of restaurants, and we enjoyed some quite exceptional food, including local specialties of ayam taliwang (spicy chicken - very good!!) and some very fresh seafood (in contrast, we also had Australian steaks and NZ lamb chops one night for roughly $9!)
Although chilling out by the pool and playing at the beach were the main reasons for going, we were keen to do a little exploring, so hired a car for a day and headed north along the coast and then inland to check out the Monkey Forest which did, indeed, have monkeys hanging out by the side of the road, happily taking food from the hands of less wary travellers than us! (the realisation that rabies, if contracted, is 100% fatal without prompt treatment, even for those vaccinated has been enough for me to declare all animals untouchable, no matter how seemingly cute - which, in fact the monkeys were, except for the baring of extremely sharp-looking teeth!). Continuing on, we found a likely looking lunch spot in a restaurant above the road with lovely views back to the coast and the Gili Islands. Unfortunately the food was rather less promising than advertised (call me a wuss, but I'm deeply suspicious of chicken satay that arrives cold, in a place with no electricity) so we fed the kids up on biscuits and carried on.
Our next destination was a Buddhist temple with "holy eels" - sounds interesting and attractive to small boys! The temple is at a small place called Suranadi which basically consists of the temple, a rather run-down hotel with extremely cold pools and a few warungs or small shops. The temple was very popular, despite no longer having eels in residence (apparently you used to feed them boiled eggs, but this is no longer allowed so the eels have gone elsewhere) and was quite lovely with spring-fed pools and channels. The real bonus to Suranadi was a paved path through rice padis which allowed Eamon a good view of rice being planted, growing and being harvested. Our day out ended with a stop for some oleh-oleh (gifts) for Kieran to take to university (and some yummy carrot stick chip things) before heading back to the hotel.
Unfortunately, both kids came down sick that night so we decided to cut our losses and head home a day early. Despite only seeing a very small part of Lombok, we were very happy to enjoy some time in rural Indonesia away from the bustle and pollution of Jakarta. Hopefully we can come back again in the next few years!
The problem with travelling at Idul Fitri is that everyone does it, so roads become clogged, flights are fully booked and stories of hours long traffic jams abound. Last year, Yanti, our pembantu, went home to Surabaya - a 12hr bus trip that took 16hrs (this year, it took 24hrs!!) due to traffic, and stories of 5hr trips to the airport are not uncommon. It seemed prudent to take precautions and leave early. Kieran managed to find flights to Lombok, an island to the east of Java, and close to Bali for the Saturday night before Idul Fitri. We decided to give ourselves plenty of time to get to the airport and left the hotel at 4pm for a 7pm flight. Unexpectedly, instead of hitting traffic, we had a clear run to the airport, arriving by 4:30pm to find minimum crowds and that our flight was actually 8pm! Oh well!
The Jakarta domestic airport has little to recommend it. There are the basic facilities and a few shops, but not much else. Several "lounges" are available to those willing to pay for a place to sit, free softdrinks and small buffet of questionable food. We coughed up, enjoyed the seating and a couple of Sprites and stuck to our pre-packed sandwiches! The flight out was full, late, and low on air conditioning, but otherwise fine. Rory complained vigourously about being constrained (as is his wont) and Eamon happily drew pictures or played with the iPad for the 2hrs.
On arrival at the Lombok airport, conveniently situated in the middle of nowhere, we found our pre-arranged pickup was conspicuously absent (although the hotel did offer to send him immediately if we were willing to wait the hour for him to get there) and so we piled into an outrageously priced taxi and headed for Sengigi Beach. The roads in Lombok were surprisingly good, making for reasonably fast driving, however the celebrations for Idul Fitri (announced while we were in the airport in Jakarta as being the next day) led to many revellers and impromptu celebrations. The worst of which were a group of (probably drunk) young men in the middle of the road who proceeded to hit our taxi as we slowed for them. As some also picked up large rocks, Kieran politely suggested to the driver that maybe he could check for damage later and get the hell out of there! Luckily the boys were both asleep and oblivious to our less than encouraging welcome to Lombok!Sengigi Beach was lovely. Our hotel was a few kilometres out of town meaning we were a little isolated from restaurants or supplies, but the lovely view over waving coconut palms, black sand beach and volcanic cones on Bali made up for it. Although older and slightly run down, the Bintang Sengigi was clean, peaceful and a great place to unwind and enjoy unpolluted air. The kids pool was a hit with Eamon who loved "practising his swimming" and the beach proved irresistible to Rory who thought sliding straight down the steepish beach into the water the best thing ever!
Getting into Sengigi for a look around was very easy using the bemo (small converted vans with wooden benches in the back and usually minimal dashboard or panels). A slower option is the cidomo, horse driven carts which are also popular, although sadly, not so much around our hotel. Once in town, there were plenty of restaurants, and we enjoyed some quite exceptional food, including local specialties of ayam taliwang (spicy chicken - very good!!) and some very fresh seafood (in contrast, we also had Australian steaks and NZ lamb chops one night for roughly $9!)
Although chilling out by the pool and playing at the beach were the main reasons for going, we were keen to do a little exploring, so hired a car for a day and headed north along the coast and then inland to check out the Monkey Forest which did, indeed, have monkeys hanging out by the side of the road, happily taking food from the hands of less wary travellers than us! (the realisation that rabies, if contracted, is 100% fatal without prompt treatment, even for those vaccinated has been enough for me to declare all animals untouchable, no matter how seemingly cute - which, in fact the monkeys were, except for the baring of extremely sharp-looking teeth!). Continuing on, we found a likely looking lunch spot in a restaurant above the road with lovely views back to the coast and the Gili Islands. Unfortunately the food was rather less promising than advertised (call me a wuss, but I'm deeply suspicious of chicken satay that arrives cold, in a place with no electricity) so we fed the kids up on biscuits and carried on.
Our next destination was a Buddhist temple with "holy eels" - sounds interesting and attractive to small boys! The temple is at a small place called Suranadi which basically consists of the temple, a rather run-down hotel with extremely cold pools and a few warungs or small shops. The temple was very popular, despite no longer having eels in residence (apparently you used to feed them boiled eggs, but this is no longer allowed so the eels have gone elsewhere) and was quite lovely with spring-fed pools and channels. The real bonus to Suranadi was a paved path through rice padis which allowed Eamon a good view of rice being planted, growing and being harvested. Our day out ended with a stop for some oleh-oleh (gifts) for Kieran to take to university (and some yummy carrot stick chip things) before heading back to the hotel.
Unfortunately, both kids came down sick that night so we decided to cut our losses and head home a day early. Despite only seeing a very small part of Lombok, we were very happy to enjoy some time in rural Indonesia away from the bustle and pollution of Jakarta. Hopefully we can come back again in the next few years!
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Entertaining Eamon - Part 1, Inside Fun
Six weeks in a hotel is a long time for an active 3yr old, especially when the hotel is right in the middle of a city of 20-some million people. Out the front gate are shopping malls, garbage canals and busy roads with no parks in sight. Suffice to say we've had to innovate in order to avoid insanity - or the worst of it anyway.
Since we are by no means the only parents bemoaning dearth of green space and outdoor play space the malls, in true capitalist fashion, have stepped into the void with a multitude of indoor playgrounds and activity centres of varying quality and entertainment value. Our current favourite is Lollipops at Gandaria City in South Jakarta where for between $8-12 (depending on the day) Eamon can run himself ragged in the five levels of netted play space, slide down huge inflatable slides and challenge himself on a high ropes course (complete with helmet, harness and flying fox). If that tires him out, he can then enjoy the quieter side with rides on those things we always tried to avoid paying for in Canberra shopping centres, a turn at air hockey or even fishing for goldfish to take home (something we've thankfully avoided so far!). There's also a toddler play area for the smaller folk that I'm sure Rory will love to explore now he's mobile.
Eamon on the high ropes course at Gandaria City - he handled the balance beams incredibly well despite being 3-4m up, and even paused to yell "Cheese" down at me!
We've also spent a fair bit of time at the carnival-style entertainment district in Grand Indonesia - primarily because it is the nearest place to escape to from the hotel. Unfortunately it's less of a place to run and play and more focussed on rides, but Eamon hasn't complained! We've been rather surprised to see him quite confidently tackling not just the high ropes course above, but also the rides below with no fear at all, and a great deal of enthusiasm. A different side of our usually fairly cautious little boy!
Eamon checking out the rides at Grand Indonesia. He happily rode the apple and bouncy camel by himself but took dad along for the flying butterfly bicycle thing to help with the pedalling (the more you pedal, the higher you go).
Since we are by no means the only parents bemoaning dearth of green space and outdoor play space the malls, in true capitalist fashion, have stepped into the void with a multitude of indoor playgrounds and activity centres of varying quality and entertainment value. Our current favourite is Lollipops at Gandaria City in South Jakarta where for between $8-12 (depending on the day) Eamon can run himself ragged in the five levels of netted play space, slide down huge inflatable slides and challenge himself on a high ropes course (complete with helmet, harness and flying fox). If that tires him out, he can then enjoy the quieter side with rides on those things we always tried to avoid paying for in Canberra shopping centres, a turn at air hockey or even fishing for goldfish to take home (something we've thankfully avoided so far!). There's also a toddler play area for the smaller folk that I'm sure Rory will love to explore now he's mobile.
Eamon on the high ropes course at Gandaria City - he handled the balance beams incredibly well despite being 3-4m up, and even paused to yell "Cheese" down at me!
We've also spent a fair bit of time at the carnival-style entertainment district in Grand Indonesia - primarily because it is the nearest place to escape to from the hotel. Unfortunately it's less of a place to run and play and more focussed on rides, but Eamon hasn't complained! We've been rather surprised to see him quite confidently tackling not just the high ropes course above, but also the rides below with no fear at all, and a great deal of enthusiasm. A different side of our usually fairly cautious little boy!
Eamon checking out the rides at Grand Indonesia. He happily rode the apple and bouncy camel by himself but took dad along for the flying butterfly bicycle thing to help with the pedalling (the more you pedal, the higher you go).
During the recent school holidays, many of the malls had special exhibits or events on to assist harried parents in entertaining their children. One even added a zoo to its fifth floor along with petting area, butterfly house and fishing! Another had marvellous displays and wonderful trees made of thousands of (artificial) butterflies, the purpose not entirely apparent, but the result quite spectacular. We even found a small squadron of full size sailing boats alongside one set of restaurants/cafes, complete with blue sky and clouds painted on the ceiling.
While I would never have considered myself a shopping mall kinda gal, I have begun to value these monstrosities, not for the shops, but for the desperately needed distraction they provide, for the air conditioning, and for the space to walk Rory in the stroller. The novelty is beginning to pall, even for Eamon, but with 73 shopping malls on my tourist map of Jakarta, I am hopeful that I can find new amusements to occupy us all until we can get a place of our own.
PS. for those thinking we have given up on outside time altogether, part 2 of this is about outside areas we've found to play.
Friday, July 20, 2012
Getting out of town - Bogor
One month in and still in the process of obtaining an apartment and vehicle, it was time to take a break and get out of the city, enjoy the countryside, and wander in the great outdoors - or as close an approximation as can be had from Jakarta in a rental car with two small people! A quick discussion on the relative merits of going Saturday vs Sunday (ie. which day was more likely to have slightly better traffic) and we bowed to local knowledge (otherwise known as the driver), and an early start Saturday was agreed. To maximise morning efficiency, a late night ensued readying provisions for the expedition. Obligingly the kids dismissed the need for alarm clocks and after the usual chaos of trying to feed, clothe and wash one 3yr old and an 8mth old the stroller was loaded up and transportation called. Safely ensconced in the car along with bike, ball, stroller, baby sling and new powered eski (chilly bin!) full of fruit and (turkey) bacon & egg sandwiches it was southward bound for Bogor!
Bogor is the town (city?) closest to Jakarta. In fact it is slowly being consumed by the metropolis and relegated to a suburb with new estates servicing the needs of commuters to the Big Durian (as Jakarta is also known - for those fortunate folk who have never encountered this tropical delicacy, it's a fruit roughly the size of 2-3 coconuts with the unappealing aroma of vomit. Supposedly it tastes good - I'm not in a position to comment....anyway, back to Bogor). Bogor is home to a couple of million people, the National Botanic Gardens (Kebon Raya), and the President of Indonesia. The gardens cover about 100 hectares and are a popular destination for locals & foreigners alike. The city (town?) is somewhere between 45 and 90 minutes from Jakarta (75 minutes the day we went) along a toll road modelled after the US interstates. In fact, aside from the banana trees and slightly dilapidated houses, it really could have been the highway from VA Beach to Richmond.
Bogor was reached around 9am. Kebon Raya is easy to find although an open entrance gate may require a loop around the outside. The park was already quite busy, with plenty of people out and about enjoying the weekend and a number of different groups utilising the space for team building games, prayer meetings and warm and fuzzy get togethers for company employees. As Rory was somewhat over the car, we piled out along with all our gear (our driver helpfully ensuring that even those items we hoped to leave with the vehicle were piled into the stroller) and left him to find a parking space somewhere within mobile phone range.
Kebon Raya is a lovely break from the city. Although only a couple of hundred metres higher than Jakarta, it was definitely cooler, the air just that bit fresher and the chance to walk through green space something to be relished. Eamon had a great time zooming around the paths and roads on his bike and Rory enjoyed looking up at the trees and the chance for a nap. The park contains a number of features including orchid house, zoo (or possibly a zoo museum), small lakes, mosque, cactus garden and soccer field an can be explored on foot or by car. There is also a cafe which is supposed to be quite good - unfortunately the previously mentioned company love-in had commandeered it the day we visited.
A brief foray into the streets around the gardens resulted in a hasty retreat as we swiftly realised that Bogor (or this part at least) is no place for a stroller, particularly one laden with all manner of picnic-ing gear and a small bicycle. Sadly concluding that sustenance would need to be found in yet another mall (or the roadside rest area which was our driver's suggestion) we piled back into the car. The nearby mall, however, did at least, provide a slightly more authentic glimpse of Indonesia than you experience in malls in Jakarta. Our lunch, provided by a promising looking cafe was, unfortunately, accompanied by fairly poor service including a waiter who tried to argue that "with toast" in the menu didn't mean the scrambled eggs Eamon ordered should actually be accompanied by any bread products!
After lunch we headed back to Jakarta, somewhat disappointed we didn't get the chance to explore the city properly. It also brought home that no matter where we go here, we are going to stick out like the proverbial sore thumb, and that exploration is going to be a very slow, limited process with two young kids in tow. Good thing we have plenty of time to return!
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| Eamon enjoying Kebon Raya |
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| Security for President Yudhoyono's Palace |
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| Cactus garden |
Kebon Raya is a lovely break from the city. Although only a couple of hundred metres higher than Jakarta, it was definitely cooler, the air just that bit fresher and the chance to walk through green space something to be relished. Eamon had a great time zooming around the paths and roads on his bike and Rory enjoyed looking up at the trees and the chance for a nap. The park contains a number of features including orchid house, zoo (or possibly a zoo museum), small lakes, mosque, cactus garden and soccer field an can be explored on foot or by car. There is also a cafe which is supposed to be quite good - unfortunately the previously mentioned company love-in had commandeered it the day we visited. |
| Rory taking a turn pushing the stroller |
A brief foray into the streets around the gardens resulted in a hasty retreat as we swiftly realised that Bogor (or this part at least) is no place for a stroller, particularly one laden with all manner of picnic-ing gear and a small bicycle. Sadly concluding that sustenance would need to be found in yet another mall (or the roadside rest area which was our driver's suggestion) we piled back into the car. The nearby mall, however, did at least, provide a slightly more authentic glimpse of Indonesia than you experience in malls in Jakarta. Our lunch, provided by a promising looking cafe was, unfortunately, accompanied by fairly poor service including a waiter who tried to argue that "with toast" in the menu didn't mean the scrambled eggs Eamon ordered should actually be accompanied by any bread products!
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| Street stalls outside Kebon Raya |
After lunch we headed back to Jakarta, somewhat disappointed we didn't get the chance to explore the city properly. It also brought home that no matter where we go here, we are going to stick out like the proverbial sore thumb, and that exploration is going to be a very slow, limited process with two young kids in tow. Good thing we have plenty of time to return!
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