Power's Peregrination

first ski trip of 2010

2010-01-22T21:55:00.002-05:00

early tomorrow morning (and I mean early), I'm meeting Jaci and Tom and we are driving to go SKIING!

when I was younger, I traveled out to Breckenridge, CO with my parents to go skiing and that's where I learned how to ski. Mom and Dad used to ski a great deal before I was born and now they don't do anything like that anymore b/c doctor's basically tell Mom she should stay away from anything where she could majorly injury herself and my Dad just got two new knees.

I could also be found on the slopes in WV, PA and MD. however, THE MOST FUN, HANDS DOWN WAS SKIING IN VAL D'ISERE, FRANCE! my parents and I went on a school Spring Break trip when I was in 8th grade and it was an amazing trip! the Alps were breathtaking and going on a ski lift over the steepest cliff I have ever seen in my entire life scared the shit out of me! 8th grade lindsey.

let's see what happens tomorrow. I haven't been on skis in a few years and so it should be interesting. Tom is the better skier of the couple, so he's excited that Jaci has someone to ski with.

i'll be sure to take pics for proof of all the fun

2009 catch-up

2010-01-16T20:35:00.002-05:00

I don't know why I haven't written a new blog since August, but I have a few different things to write about.

I'm still unemployed... part-time. I took on a position as an Independent Contractor for a company called DwellWell, Inc.. They contact me when they have a client for me and I do whatever needs to be done. So far I've been working with a novelist, doing general research. That started in October, after I returned to New York.

Ahh, yes, I was at home in Maryland with my parents for a month and a half. My Mom was in a car accident, so I Amtraked my way home to be with my parents. We just didn't know that the hospitalization and rehab was going to be so long. Thankfully she is well and relaxing on our boat in the Abacos (which are a part of the Bahamas) with my Dad until late Spring. Retirement.

Travels, ok here they are:

August- 2nd Annual Girl's Weekend at the Boat in Ocean City, Maryland

Sept-Oct- Maryland and DC

Nov- DC to visit my best friend, Maryland for Thanksgiving

Dec-Jan- West Palm Beach, Florida and the Abacos with my parents

In the wake of the little blizzard NYC had in the late teens of December, JetBlue cancelled my two flights and I got down to Florida a day late. Because of the weather, we stayed in Florida through Christmas and we took the boat over to the Abacos on the 26th. Waking up early, it took 8 hours to travel to Marsh Harbour and for most of it, I slept. The water was a bit rocky, nothing I couldn't handle with my sea-sick patch behind my ear, but the medication made me sleepy. It was a beautiful trip, until the sun went behind the clouds and it got chilly. Good thing I went to Target and stocked up on longer shorts and lightweight sweaters- it got cold! In the Bahamas! But it was great to spend time with my parents, although the weather didn't cooperate and we didn't get any fishing in. Set them up on Skype and with my brand spanking new MACBOOK PRO, we've been able to video chat. It was a great feeling on my father's birthday :)

Another couple on the dock had their daughter come to visit with her family. Mom told me that the daughter's husband had sold his company, she had quit her job and they up and moved their two kids to the country of Panama a few years back. Now she's a school teacher and loving every minute of it. I told my Mom right there that I wanted to do something like that in my lifetime. I want to move somewhere, maybe only knowing one or two people, or maybe none at all and just make a go of it. Someplace international. Just think of all the beautiful encounters you would have, as long as you made the effort. I feel like I could. I'd certainly miss my family and friends, but there's just something about taking that leap of faith and doing something different. As I sit here blogging, still realistically unemployed, I have mixed emotions of what I just said because I'm not working and could totally do it, RIGHT NOW. There are certain things in my life that aren't in place, but then again I don't know when they will. All I know is that I am getting sick of of not working and I want to do something.

Perhaps moving is a bit drastic, but I live in one of the best cities in the world and so I need to explore all those local places I haven't gotten a chance to and let's hope that satisfies my craving for the time being.

FREE ANNIE !!!

2009-08-11T11:33:00.001-04:00

Check out my friend Annie's new blog!!! A little info...

Annie is a 26-year-old fashion stylist living and working in NYC, and she has a problem. A BIG problem. Annie has accrued $15,000 in debt due to uncontrolled spending habits, school tuition fees, and Dunkin' Donuts iced coffees. She needs your help!

"Hello Friends!!
I have arrived! Thanks to the help of the most beautiful, intelligent, and witty people I know...(my friends) Free Annie is up and running!! I am so excited to be able to share my progress with you during this journey via my blog!!
I promise to keep you updated on all the adventures and excitement going on over here at Free Annie. Feel free to help me out and forward the site on to your friends and family to spread the word. Hopefully their will be daily news of big sales, and big donations!! That will be up to you guys! So here it is lovies, let the money grubbing begin ;) !!
xoxo
Annie"

http://freeannienyc.blogspot.com/ http://freeannie.com/

An Unfortunate Decision

2009-07-26T00:48:00.002-04:00

I made the decision to not travel to Jakarta for Sari's wedding.

Perhaps in a year or so, I'll return. Perhaps with a travel companion. Perhaps alone.
But I know I'll return.

To Travel or Not To Travel. Terrorist Bombings Edition.

2009-07-21T19:51:00.008-04:00

Jakarta was bombed a few days ago. The Ritz Carlton Hotel and JW Marriott Hotel were hit. When I heard this, something popped into my head and then I promptly got confirmation from Sari in the form of a Facebook message- her wedding venue for October 2nd was the JW Marriott Hotel. She's furious for many reasons, including now the task of finding a new venue.

Now I'm torn. Weighing the pros and cons of traveling to Jakarta now.

Pros: once-in-a-lifetime experience, quality time with Sari, her family/friends, kickass kebaya made for me and me alone

Cons: fear of terrorist bombing, kidnapping, all those bad things that aren't going away anytime soon, cost of plane ticket (still not purchased), possibly vacay time taken away from possible future job

I still haven't made up my mind and this needs to happen soon, as I need to inform Sari and send my measurements for my kebaya should I be going. Sari and Johnny will be coming to NYC for their honeymoon, so I will be seeing them only a few days after their wedding, but it's not the same :( After I returned from my extended trip in 2008, I automatically knew I wanted to return to spend more time with Sari out and about since we didn't get that chance really during that visit. And also to visit her family and friends, who I really became close to. Sari recently posted photos from the cousin's wedding I attended with her parents and it brought back some many wonderful memories from that trip to Bandung.

Even as a 27 year old woman, I still called my parents, as I am an only child and very close with them. Had a discussion with my Dad, who if he were in my shoes, said he wouldn't take the chance and cancel the trip. There's no guarantee that relations in Jakarta will become any better in the coming months or years, but I do know I want to return. The question is when is the time to go?s Is the time to go now, when the city may be a bit more unstable than usual or is it in a year or so, when we don't know what will be going on, but perhaps I'd be lucky enough to have someone travel with me (which would automatically make me feel better about any given situation)? I'd love to take someone back with me to show them everything that I got to experience when I was there the first time. The Starbucks, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, KFC, Pizza Hut- all those fabulously Indonesian places! Haha :)

I'm going to sleep on it for another night and make my decision tomorrow. I'll let ya know what happens.

Indonesian Bridesmaid

2009-06-20T23:42:00.004-04:00

After I returned from Mountain Jam that last weekend in May, Sari, my former-roommate whom I visited in Jakarta last year (see previous posts) facebooked me to tell me some very exciting news... she's getting married! On Sunday, June 21st she is being proposed to. Let me explain: Johnny her boyfriend has already asked her in private, but there is a tradition where the two families get together and an official proposal takes place. If all goes well (and it better!), Sari and Johnny will be married on Friday, October 2nd, 2009.

Sari has previously been married and isn't looking for the huge, glitz and glamour that she had for her first. The wedding will be more intimate and the wedding reception will be held at a local hotel. Even though she doesn't want it to be large, I have this funny feeling that it's still going to be a big deal. Sari asked both myself and our friend Kenzo to be her bridesmaids. Kenzo actually already bought her ticket online for less than $700 roundtrip, but I didn't get online to the deal quick enough, so I'm still looking. I would love to go over for two weeks, but hopefully I'll have a job by then, so I am planning on returning to Jakarta for a week, departing NYC on Saturday, September 26th and returning on Sunday, October 4th.

The part I am looking forward to the most has got to be my kebaya. During my previous trip to Jakarta, I wore a lime-green kebaya to a family wedding and I bought a beautiful, red/gold lace kebaya from a department store for myself. While cleaning my closets out this past week, I put my red lace kebaya on and low and behold (I knew it), those 10 lbs I put on since my trip have definately done their share to not allow me to wear it in public at this point in time. So, gotta lose the weight so I can wear it to some family event. For the wedding, Sari is going to be getting kebayas made for Kenzo and I and so I have to send her my measurements now and get fitted/tailored within the first day or so after I arrive in Jakarta. Start the diet and exercise!

In another exciting turn of events, I am going to learn how to speak Bahasa Indonesia. I'd love to be able to say a few basic things to Sari's family and friends while over there. I already know how to say a few things such as dog, cat, car, plane, girl, boy, woman, man. Don't forget "the cat is in front of the car". I got that one down pat! I am using the Rosetta Stone program and it's awesome! Gonna be jibberjabbering in another language in no time at all!

So that's my update! I am gonna write another within the next few days about my job search, so be on the lookout!

Mountain Jam @ Hunter Mountain

2009-06-03T18:32:00.008-04:00

A lot has been happening since I last posted. I've gone to a number of concerts (Alkaline Trio, AtomicTom), the most recent one being Mountain Jam this past weekend at Hunter Mountain, NY. My ex was teching for Michael Franti & Spearhead, who were performing on Sunday and I drove up Saturday evening and stayed through Monday morning.

Why Monday morning? Did you take a vacation day? NO WAY! I was let-go from my job on Friday. An end of the day blow. To be honest, I was having some problems working at my last job and I was feeling like I wasn't fitting in and not as passionate about a job as one should be. So it's a blessing in diguise. I did not expect it though.

Back to the concert- I was supposed to get my zipcar and drive up Sunday morning but my ex got into the hotel early and asked if I could come up Saturday night. It really was a lovely drive once I got unstuck from the mess of New Jersey roads once across the GW Bridge!!!! Horrendous I tell you! Two hours later and I was at the Villa Vosilla at Hunter Mountain. A throwback to a 1960s, this is a a mini-resort. Looks small from the outside, but man, this place is a MAZE when you walk inside! The bar, that leads to the night club area with stage/dancefloor (perfect for a retro wedding), dining area, lounge area, indoor pool/sauna/game room! This place had the most amazing Italian food and the owners were so generous to the whole group. :)

The show on Sunday was awesome. Michael played an acoustic set on a sidestage, then I got to sit on the mainstage and watch the main performance- amazing! After the show, we went back to the hotel, relaxed, grabbed some dinner and then something magical happened...

MP AND I GOT MARRIED BY MICHAEL FRANTI! completely fake, but let me explain...

Earlier in the night I walked into the night club area, complete with archway covered in tulle and exclaimed that this was where I was going to have my wedding. Carl, the bassist for the band overheard me and put this bit of info in his pocket for later on. The band takes the stage around 11:30pm for a set and there are a lot of people in this room. Friends, family, fans, the owners of the Villa Vosilla. Michael says the following: "Welcome to the Mountain Jam 2009 after-party at the Villa Vosilla and wedding reception. We heard some rumors... are there any couples here tonight that would like to get married?" Michael and Carl then point to my ex and I. What the hell! We walk to the dancefloor with people clapping and stand in front of Michael. "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today..." and then we were "married" by Michael Franti. We had our first kiss and dip. People clapped. Some girl was my maid of honor. Throughout the whole night, whenever Michael mentioned wedding reception, we'd scream and yell and throw our drinks up in the air. I think I consumed about 2 bottles of pinot grigio that evening. We had our first dance to "All I Want Is You". fantastic.

The goodbye was quick but hard. He lives in LA and I live in NYC and that's the main problem. I'll always love him and it's hard to see the possibility of when we could possibly be together. So I'll take whatever time I can get, if I feel like it's ok too and I look forward to seeing him back in the area late August/early September. The drive home only took 2 hours. Definately have to go back for some skiing and I'll definately be staying at the Villa Vosilla.

bacheloretting it up in Michigan

2009-03-27T21:38:00.008-04:00

now I am just getting to the age where friends are getting married. jenny's sister leah is getting married in April back home in Maryland, but moved out to Grass Lake, Michigan this last year to set up shop with her fiance. this being said, I have actually never particiapted in a bachelorette party before and this weekend was not what I expected. that may be a little unfair for me to say, as the whole family is loud and fun, but it was more low key than rowdy. but fun nonetheless :)

the flight to Detoit was super short, literally just over an hour of flight time! and we spent a good amount of time in the 12 passenger van driving to the casino, back to the house and out to Ann Arbor. our motto of the weekend was seriously EAT DRIVE DRINK GAMBLE.

Soaring Eagle Casino in Mt. Pleasant, MI was very cool and I definately did it up in my dress and stilettos for my evening playing blackjack and the slots. everyone else was wearing jeans. of course I won some money on both, but put it back in and left Saturday a bit poorer. Jenny's mom won $1000 by playing $3 in a slot machine, then won another $60! atleast she treated us to lunch at Bob Evans down the road ;)

Saturday night I got all gussied up in jeans and a cute red top before we headed into Ann Arbor for drinks and dinner at Grizzly Peak Brewery. the food and beer was delicious. plans were switched from bar hoping to going back to the house and playing a little texas hold-em. I don't play, so Jessica and I curled up on the couch, munching on some snacks and watching the train wreck that is Rock of Love Bus with Bret Michaels. what a night! we also talked a lot about Jenny's wedding in 2010 since there were wedding mags all around Leah's house.

before we headed to the airport on Sunday, we ate lunch at an Oprah approved deli in Ann Arbor called Zingerman's. so good! I got the #67- corned beef, pastrami, yellow mustard, spicy mustard on pumpernickle and rye bread. ah-mazing! below: jenny at the cheese counter!

all in all, it was not as crazy as I expected, although Leah did blush when we sang happy birthday to her Saturday night! no crazy pranks or penis necklaces allowed! but it was a fantastic weekend and just makes us all so very excited for the wedding in a few weeks!!!!

Michigan and my Trophy Wall

2009-03-15T21:58:00.003-04:00

This Friday I have a 6am flight to Detroit to meet up for a bachelorette party weekend. Jenny's sister Leah moved recently to Ann Arbor, Michigan and is getting married back home in Maryland in April. A bunch of us are flying out from various places to take part in the festivities this weekend, which includes a night at a casino and a night out in downtown Ann Arbor. Very exciting stuff since I've never been to Michigan and this group is hilarious!

Today I was nursing a little hangover and literally woke up and planted myself on my couch for the entire day! But I did manage to put some newly printed photos in my Target frames and add them to my hallway wall. I also took my smaller fishing photos and hung them around my marlin photo/flag frame that my Dad put together for me as a celebration upon catching my very frist white marlin. Yes, it seems as if I have a "fishing trophy" wall in my Sunnyside apartment. Top that.

Hope this week at work is better than the last; it was a bit rough to say the least. Fingers crossed and let's go!

wrap-up of the past year

2009-03-12T21:29:00.014-04:00

This year has been a bit crazy to say the least. finally got a job in July and the ups and downs never stopped! here's a rundown of my travels from 2008 and 2009 thus far...

April: Los Angeles to see my beau at the time
<-

July: Maryland for the Moler Family 4th of July Party, Boston for Carolyn's birthday ->

August: Ocean City, Maryland for a girls weekend at my parent's boat

September: Boston for a mere 48 hours!, Virgina with Jenny to go skydiving ->

October: fake-vacation in NYC LES at Hotel of Rivington with my beau at the time b/c my kitchen ceiling caved in and was undergoing repair. ah, to live in a hotel!

November: Thanksgiving in Los Angeles with my beau at the time

December: Philly to catch up with Godmother/sister & Erica, Maryland for Christmas

January: Philly to see Power/Waitkus family reunion

February: drove from Miami to Key West to spend a long Valentine's Day weekend with Mom/Dad, Rockville Maryland to celebrate Mike's graduation and Mike/Jenny's engagement!

March: next weekend traveling to Michigan for Leah's bachelorette party! woohoo!

Not quite sure what this year will bring, but I am sure I'll be looking forward to some more travel. Looking forward to Jenny's bachelorette party next Valentine's/President's Day weekend in 2010 in Las Vegas already and what if Sari gets engaged? I better be given plenty of time to book a trip and get my kebaya ready, cause I'll be heading back to Indonesia!!!!

I'm back and I'm gonna start blogging more often... so watch out!

April Update

2008-04-29T11:53:00.002-04:00

I know this is supposed to be a "travel blog", but I've been pretty much unemployed since I got back from my trip, although I am going into Theatreworks about 2 days a week, and I though I should write a little something.

On the travel front, I did take a Friday-Monday trip to Los Angeles to see my boyfriend, which was amazing. I got the chance to meet a number of his friends, eat some great food and spend some quality time with the one I love, so it was a fantastic trip all in all! Just seeing him made me feel better and better about our long-distance relationship- we just needed a jump start in my opinion.

Secondly on the travel front, I went to Rockville, MD to see Jenny and Mike this weekend, which was also fantastic. We went to the Great Grapes Wine Festival in Reston, VA and met up with some other friends and it was the most beautiful outdoor day ever! Glass in hand, we strolled around, tasting, drinking, gabbing, laughing and eating a crab pretzel (delicious!). Then we went back to a townhouse and grilled. It was awesome and relaxing and I bought way more wine than I should have. Jenny was out for the count around 6pm. Good times.

I have a few jobs out there that I am hoping may bite, so cross your fingers and let's hope I hear something soon. Looking forwad to dog sitting for Milo, Sammi & Rhett's pug tomorrow in Brooklyn, then I have an away concert in Lancaster, PA on Saturday and Bamboozle on Sunday. Good times ahead :)

accomplishments of the day - wed 3/12

2008-03-12T21:15:00.003-04:00

I have been back in new york for about a week, filled in at work, got a mac makeover, drank some margaritas and promptly ate a great deal of asian food. weird.

but I'm back and I have made numerous attempts to get back on track.
this is what I did JUST TODAY, my first official day of unemployment. again.

1. woke up early
2. went to a Jenny Craig meeting. back up and I need to get down. new goal setg :)
3. dealt with 7 train drama
4. sent packages at the post office
5. went grocery shopping
6. rolled coins from my cow bank on my living room rug
7. cut up some veggies
8. put up some listings on eBay
9. called my landlord re: my leaky ceiling
10. took the Q60 to the bally total fitness and took a class
11. met a new friend in class (who is my complete twin, 4 mo behind me)
12. rented a zipcar

lots done. getting back on track never felt so good.
(accept when I had had to finish off those cookies in my apt this afternoon, before really following my jenny program again. ha!)

florida & maryland

2008-03-03T10:00:00.003-05:00

hey everyone. so here's a update about the past few days:

- the woman at Quantas told me to put my 3rd bag into my other two bags, that were allowed to be 32kg since it was an international flight, and said I shouldn't have a problem with the AA regualations since she was checking the bags straight through to JFK. I didn't have to pay anything :)

- slept about 5 hours in my own bed before flying out of LaGuardia to Daytona Beach. didn't sleep. read my Stephen King short stories book

- dressed for the wake on Thursday night, funeral on Friday morning, then spent time with my aunt and uncle at my grandmother's house

- the entire time in Florida, I didn't sleep well and had very VERY bizarre dreams

- traveled on Southwest Airlines from Orlando to BWI yesterday and with Dad in a wheelchair b/c of his knee replacement surgery and a total of 5 bags to be checked, we turned into that arguing family that everyone looks at (but tried not to) at the airport

- we DID however get to skip completely the incredibly long security line b/c Dad was in a wheelchair

- got to the house and saw our brand new kitchen that Mom recently redid. it's very sleek and modern and I will post a pic soon

- switched rooms with Dad and now my bedroom (very messy with too much stuff) is his old office and had a pretty good night's sleep

- went with Elizabeth to drop off her daughter at my old school, Calverton and ran into some people there, including my old field hockey coach. also saw pictures of myself in the new school hallway. creepy.

- relaxing and sorting out some stuff in my new room before heading to the hospital with Mom and Dad for Mom's dental surgery

- am very hungry, as I woke very early today (6:50 am)

- trying desperately to maintain some tan for everyone back in New York :)

sleep deprivation

2008-02-27T20:50:00.002-05:00

Sydney Australia Current Time, Thursday, February 28, 2008 at 12:28:46 PM
it's 8:51 PM in New York right now.
and I am exhausted.

I woke up at 7am in Sydney on Wednesday, February 27th.
didn't sleep at all from Sydney to Los Angeles.
movies watched: Atonement, The Darjeeling Limited, The Invasion
tv watched: I Shouldn't Be Alive, House, some show on burlesque, some makeover show
slept maybe 3 hours from Los Angeles to New York due to my location as middle seat.

car services are great.
my apartment is nice.
my fish is alive.
my eyes are closing.

but I am in desperate need of some time to unpack, repack, shower and sleep.
getting picked up at 7:45am in the morning to head to Daytona Beach.
won't have internet, but my cell is now working at normal calling rates.
nice to be back.

the deal about the next week

2008-02-26T07:44:00.002-05:00

1. Wed 2/27: arrival at newark 5pm
2. Thurs 2/28: flying out of laguardia to florida at 9:30am
3. Fri 2/29: funeral at 10am
4. Sat 3/1: happy anniversary, darling
5. Sun 3/2: flying back to Maryland with Jack & Sue
6. Mon 3/3: mom getting dental surgery
7. Tues 3/4: show Jack & Sue their awesome souvenirs
8. Wed 3/5: train back to queens
9: Thurs 3/6: filling in at theatreworks
10. Fri 3/7: filling in at theatreworks
11. Sat 3/8: mac makeovers at saks fifth avenue with the girls
and so the month continues...

positive thoughts, everyone. positive thoughts.

manly beach, day two

2008-02-26T02:38:00.003-05:00

after some phone calls this morning, headed back to Manly Beach on the ferry. the QE2 is gone and in its place the Sapphire Princess. bought a cheap towel and grabbed some fast food. already put on my spf 30, so I was roaring to go. lasted 1-2:30pm and headed back to Sydney.

popped into the Virgin Megastore to get a few cds I was eyeing and let me tell you they are expensive! and I bought them b/c I couldn't find them in nyc. I got two cds for $40 and it's was a "Red-Hot Deal" as a cd is normally $25! craziness!

then I got back to the hotel about 5ish. and realized that I didn't get much color on my body, but tons on my face! tons! it hurts! the tan on my chest is from my Bali burn.

picture this: shortish American girl, puffy swollen eyes, chubby cheeks, red faced, eating an ice cream cone talking to MP on a public phone. it was about time for me to call it an afternoon.

it just started to DOWNPOUR and the hotel lobby has become very congested all of a sudden. thinking about dinner and then the MSI show tonight at The Gaelic Club.

so that's about it. gonna rest for a little bit and think of what to eat, as it is still pouring and I don't want to go outside right now.

probably won't blog later tonight or tomorrow morning, as I have a noon flight back to LAX and a connecting to Newark. it's been a good trip, but it feels like this Sydney trip has just been one thing after another and it's seriously time to go home.

sad news

2008-02-26T02:19:00.002-05:00

mom called me on my cell at about 1:30am my tuesday to inform me that her mom, my Granny had passed away. when we went to see her at Christmas in Daytona Beach, she was getting worse, but still didn't have a problem spending time with us. when I called to say goodbye before my trip, my uncle answered the phone and informed me that Granny had had yet another heart attack and was at the hospital. so I didn't get the chance to speak with her. after the release from the hospital, mom let me know that they had put her into a hospice home. this was during my first week in Jakarta, so I am thankful that she held on as long as she did. it's disheartening to learn that someone you love is unable to speak to you, as she just barely made sounds that told mom she recognized her voice over the phone the other day. and knowing that she was getting worse by the day doesn't make it any easier to deal with the fact that she's gone, but knowing that she is with my grandfather, someplace that she has wished to accompany him for 11 years, makes it a bit safer within my heart.

they are trying to put off the funeral to thurs, fri or sat, as the earliest I would be able to get down to Daytona would be midmorning thursday. so it looks like I will be back for a few brief hours and back into the airport for the weekend.

so I ask you to please keep Thomasina Groch and my family in your prayers.

off a recommendation from a Hell's Kitchen waitress

2008-02-25T08:29:00.003-05:00

(Manly Wharf and Cove)

I have already been to Bondi Beach. so I decided to try out Manly. MP and I had a waitress at Chelsea Grill that was from Manly and said it was a nice place. so I said ok.

checked the weather. I was going to lie out, work on the tan that no one will ever see when I am back in NYC all bundled up for the cold weather. but I guarantee you my face will be tan!

was going to be cloudy, chance of rain. put on shorts and tank. went outside. went back inside to change clothes that included a tshirt. left bikini in hotel. dumb move.

yesterday the QE2 came into Sydney and was in Circular Quay, so I got a few good pics. hopped on the 30 min ride to Manly. got off the ferry and what comes out of the sky? hot sunshine and lots of it! it was a little cool with the wind, but I was still pissed at myself for not bringing the suit.

at lunch at Blue Water Cafe. had a flat white (coffee) at Jellyfish Cafe. I am checking off recommended places in my Lonely PLanet Sydney City Guide. it makes me feel accomplished! walked about for a little bit. offered to take pics for couples in exchange for a photo opp of my own. works out for both parties :)

hopped on the ferry back to the city and ran some errands for strategically packing these overweight bags: extra 3rd duffle bag, packing tape, razor blade, free FedEx boxes, a scale. you should see the way I molded those boxes to form fit my painting and wood carving. perfection I tell you.

here's the baggage deal: flying Quantas to LAX. flying American Airlines to EWR. both flights have different baggage regulations. which majorly sucks. so this is what I'm doing:

chelsea's bag: currently 26kg -> paring it down to 23kg, free for both flights
rizal's bag: currently 37kg -> paring it down to 32kg, free intl & $50 domestic
3rd bag: putting all those extra kgs into it -> max 23kg, $140 intl & $132 domestic

now, sending a medium size box back to the States would be $320, as a starting point. so this totals $322, so it's about the same. I am seriously going to look like a crazy person at the airport on Wednesday. wearing very comfy pj clothes and carrying all these bags. I am gona be ready for them if they try anything. and I will unzip those bags and shift stuff around if I have to. I'm ready, man.

in the immortal words of Kirstin Dunst, "Bring it!"

jatu's facebook photos

2008-02-25T06:53:00.002-05:00

updating with the pics jatu just put on facebook :)

photos in the hallway of Dragonfly leaving the L'Oreal Party

group shot after bride/groom finished their night on stage

(before the designer took Novie's bling)

me, Jatu, Puspa & Deece at Birdcage

soundwave 2008

2008-02-24T06:20:00.007-05:00

for the SECOND day in a row, I have realized my watch was 30 minutes slow. and yet again it happened just as I missed the train to St. Peter's train station near Sydney Park.

today was Australian Soundwave 2008. and I had my list of bands to see roaring to go- Boys Like Girls, The Starting Line, Plain White T's, Mae, Mindless Self Indulgence, Motion City Soundtrack, Alexisonfire, Incubus, mewithoutyou acoustic. didn't want to see The Offspring b/c to ask a blunt question: does anyone care about them anymore in the US?

so the day started out bad. and got worse. stood in a horrible cluster of people trying to enter the one entrance to the festival onyl to be told that the woman at the guest list booth didn't have the band guest list and told me to contact the band contact. well, didn't have that info. walked out of the park and 10 minutes away to the closest pay phone b/c my cell wasn't working (got it working later at a very expensive fee). called MP, who told me to think positively and act dumb. went back to the woman who after 10 more minutes, called my name and apologized for the misunderstanding. got my VIP bracelet and headed in.

now I have been to my share of music festivals and this one was not well organized (a girl at the train station tonight said the same thing). the lines for everything was crazy long (I waited in line for a rainbow slushie for a little over 1 hour). that and a stick of chocolate covered fruit were the only thing I ate for 6 hours in the sun. and the placement for the stages were not placed well I think. anywho...

got to Main Stage 2 just in time to persuade the security guard to let me backstage since I was MSI's only VIP from America! ran into Kitty (their drummer) and her tech, who allowed me to watch the show from the side of the stage. which was awesome. Mindless Self Indulgence is a pretty awesome band if you ask me. Little Jimmy Urine, their lead singer, like to crack insults at the crowd and told them today that MSI was here to punish them for making Crocodile Dundee 2 b/c "why try and top perfection?". one of the techs for Incubus gave me some ear plugs, which definately came in handy. they are playing another club gig on Tuesday night, so I may try and head down there for that on my last night in town.

waited in line for a slushie. got out of line. bought chocolate covered fruit b/c there was no line. bought a Soundwave 08 tshirt. waited in line for a slushie. for over an hour. it was $6.

headed back down to Main Stages 1 & 2 and caught some of Alexisonfire and the first few Incubus songs. headed back to Stage 5 and caught a few mewithoutyou acoustic songs and got the hell outta Sydney Park. it's summertime here, but man, does it get chilly when that sun goes down.

now I missed a bunch of the bands I wanted to see b/c of my entry problems and waiting in line for something to quench my thirst. sucks.

got the CityRail train back to Central Station, where I stopped in China Town for some food that I just ate in my room. my back hurts, my right heel has a blister on it BUT I AM HAPPY AND PROUD TO INFORM EVERYONE THAT I PUT SUNSCREEN ON THIS MORNING AND DID NOT GET BURNT! of course, I wasn't in the sun that long, but I was responsible today.

tomorrow I am going to ferry it to Manly Beach for some more sun and good food. Tuesday really is going to be the day of figuring out how to get all my stuff home. I think I may just pay for a third bag and try to evenly divide my bags so they are all at ok weights. still have to look into it.

so that's about it. getting pretty tired, so maybe I will sleep better today, as I wanna get up early tomorrow and head to Manly. yay!

summer sunshine & the opera

2008-02-23T03:42:00.007-05:00

I am having such a horrible time trying to sleep here. the bed isn't all that comfortable, I have to say, but I was up till about 1:30am again this morning. which made me wake up late and unfortunately my watch was 30 minutes slow, so I just made it to my seat for La Boheme in the Opera Theatre at the Sydney opera House at 1pm. they won't let any late comers in until the intermission, 55 minutes into the performance. I've never been to the opera before, but my seat was fantastic because I could see the entire stage and the subtitle scroll above the stage. of course I have been Rent, but I didn't know too much of the plot and fell in love with it. at the end, when my eyes were filling up with tears, a gentleman in front of me started sniffling like crazy! he definately caught the attention of those around him, as he was not trying to be discrete at all. this opera moved him to some unknown place.

(oh. I ate hazelnut gelato for breakfast.)

the Queen Victoria cruiseliner is on it's maiden voyage around the world and arrived into Sydney early this morning. as I watched the news late this afternoon, I learned that the QE2 is coming into Sydney tomorrow for the very last time and the two cruiseliners will be crossing paths in the harbor at about 6:30pm. I would love to view this, but I will be at Soundwave. I've emailed the drummer of the band I am going to see and hoping that we'll be able to catch up for a few during the day. not excited about all the down time, but I checked the lineup and it looks like I'll have a busy day. and yes, I will wear SUNSCREEN! SPF 30. NO EXCUSES.

grabbed a Matilda ferry (didn't pay! haha!) to Luna Park, at Milsons Point on the North Shore of Sydney. this mini theme park even have an attraction called Coney Island. took a ride on the ferris wheel for $8. damn, I am never having kids in Sydney! I also saw 3 wedding groups taking photographs around the Opera House and Luna Park today. at the latter, two brides were competing for the entrance shot, with their bridemaids, who were in almost identical shades of pink dresses. scary. I was actually banking on a fist fight. that would have been cool.

grabbed another ferry to Darling Harbor and Harborside. ate another ice cream cone. ok. I know it's getting ridiculous, but I am glad my clothes still fit and yes, it's back to Jenny Craig when I get home. but it's summertime here! when in Sydney...

took the monorail (yeah I said it) close to the hotel and grabbed a piece of pizza (b/c I hadn't eaten anything but iced goods all day) and it sucked. it was beyond horrible. not even comparable to those small places in New York that don't have good New York pizza. this was just bad. and I ate it. yuck.

I've been in the hotel lobby on the computer for awhile now. Paula is going away in March, so I'll be filling in at TheatreworksUSA in her absence and Annie & Suzanne are going to Athens mid March and they started a blog! Carolyn is also going to Cape Town, South Africa to do some volunteer work in March. lots of things going on in people's lives and I have to say that I miss being home and being connected to those that I have such close relationships with. and so that is why I am excited to be going home soon. a trip to see Mom and Dad is also needed that week I get back and to Jenny also, since I need to see her new place.

Soundwave Festival tomorrow at Sydney Park and I'll let ya know what bands were great and which were horrible. The Offspring, Incubus, Mindless Self Indulgence (yay!), Killswitch Engage (boo!), Boys Like Girls, Mae... lots of good music to listen to :)

why I cannot live in Sydney

2008-02-22T03:28:00.006-05:00

(Sydney Tower from Oxford Street)

ok. so maybe it's wasn't such a wonderful idea to eat all that Dairy Milk and beer for dessert... and some double-stuffed Oreos (that Sari's mom bought me in Jakarta) for breakfast... and after that late lunch in Chinatown, that strawberry shortcake ice cream from Baskin Robbins. fat.

got a late start today and slept in till like 11 (hitting the snooze on my alarm for 1.5 hours) then watched an episode of Dr. Phil, where the husband thought Christmas was a Pagan holiday and was a cheapskate towards his wife regarding presents. then Oprah, where a woman hoarder had soooo much stuff in her house and of course Oprah fixed it and got her all new stuff. I don't think she'll be hoarding again with all the brand new furniture she received :) yeah, ok, so I needed a down morning. for me.

walked past the Surry Hills Police Centre and onto Oxford Street, which was beautiful, but full of pricy shops. got a pair of earrings at Sportgirl and a dress at a sample sale that was only $10. the sun was shining today and so I dropped off my stuff at the hotel and headed to Patty's Market Haymarket branch and got the most fabulous souvenir EVER! I will have to post a picture later, but Sari's family had them everywhere (kitchen, car, bedrooms)... and it is a kangaroo tissue box holder! it's amazing and to say that for $4 I could have both half a kangaroo stuffed animal AND a tissue box holder is beyond my wildest dreams. I wish I could have bought everyone one, but Mom said I have to stop shopping since I'm alreday overweight (my bags, not me). I did manage to call them at 2am though. Dad managed to get on the phone for promptly a few seconds and went back to bed. I got a kickass two piece bathingsuit at the (Ken) Done Gallery Factory Store in Market City, which is located above Paddy's Market. and a tee. and all three pieces were on sale.

dropped by for a late lunch/early dinner at the restaurant I missed yesterday (since I was alreday in Chinatown) and had some duck soup and shanghai dumplings. yum. followed up en route to the Pack & Send store, to check out how much it would cost to send a box back to the States, by an ice cream cone. by the way, it would cost $330 to send one that was 20 kg back. fantastically expensive. still have to call American Airlines about my luggage situation, because if I could just pay for an extra third bag and if it's cheaper than excess baggage fees, then I am heading back to Paddy's Market for a piece of luggage.

(cathedral & town hall)

but I got to Pack & Send and it was closed. EVERYTHING EXCEPT THE BARS PRACTICALLY CLOSE AT 6PM. and the bars are packed with people having a pint on the sidewalks. how is anyone that gets out of work at 5pm supposed to run shopping errands (yes, the Queen Victoria Building shops were closed as well) or do anything if everything closes at 6pm. AND THAT IS WHY I LOVE NEW YORK. I could do pretty much ANYTHING at any time or atleast until 9 or 10pm. makes me a better person. I don't know if I could live in Sydney now that I know this occurs.

since I ate late, I am gonna stay in for awhile, then maybe walk a bit to get something to eat later. it's not that I don't want to go out and do things, but once again it's the end of my trip and I am totally feeling the drag of being by myself in public places day after day. especially since I have seen the tourist attractions from my trip back in 2004 (aquarium, zoo, BridgeClimb). I do have La Boheme to look forward to tomorrow and taking the ferry to Luna Park should give me some nice pics of Circular Quay.

a little something extra. this gem of a rowhome is on Goulburn, arpproaching Crown in Surry Hills. it's a little dream house. it's green and has a balcony and is awesome. someone buy it for me :)

walking the Sydney basics

2008-02-21T08:40:00.009-05:00

so after all that drama, I started my day in Sydney. walked down Pitt St, which I remembered from my last shopping experiences in the Arcades and down to Circular Quay, stopping to pick up brochures for the ferry rides and such.

went to the Opera House and found out they are alternating performances of Carmen and La Boheme in the Opera House and I got a ticket in the mezzanine for the matinee performance of La Boheme on Saturday. figured I walk past Hyde Park on my way there, grab lunch and maybe hit Luna Park (children's amusement park) via ferry after the show.

the last time I was in Sydney I had the chance to see a theatre production in the Drama Theatre, so I am very excited about seeing an opera in the infamous Opera House. and I have apparently one upped MP with this one. point for me :)

got my ticket, read my city guide and wrote down a semi schedule of my trip till I leave on Wednesday afternoon. walked over to The Rocks, near the Harbor Bridge and popped into The Ken Done Gallery that I found on my last trip. If you have ever been in any of my apartment since 2004, I believe you have seen my "I Wish You Were Here" Sydney print. it's currently in a brand new frame (thanks goes out to MP) in my Sunnyside bathroom. viewed some original painting and they are so incredibly vibrant and amazing, that I will always make it a priority to stop in when I visit this city.

had lunch at a lovely little teagarden cafe- chicken/leek pie with salad. yum. walked back to the hotel, only to realize that I had worn the wrong sandals and had blisters beneath toes on each feet. grr. got in the room and promptly took a nap for about 2 hours. dressed and walked over to Chinatown for dinner. wanted to go to Emperor's Garden BBQ & Noodle Shop, but ended up at Emperor's Garden Seafood Restaurant, but the later was amazing. had some soup, dim sum and salt & pepper squid with fried rice and let me tell you- now that I have a wok at home, I am putting in all my effort to learn how to cook that. it was delicious beyond delicious.

took a cab to a local alt music venue, Annandale Hotel, but once I got there, I realized it was a little too seedy for me to go into after all, so I hailed another cab and grabbed a six-pack of Cooper's Sparking Ale and some Dairy Milk and headed back to the Travelodge.

what a day it has been. I am very excited for tomorrow, even though I don't really know what I am planning to do. definately need to exchange more money b/c like I said before, the exchange rate sucks and after eating twice, buying a book, internet card and those meaningless taxi rides, I am down a significant amount from what I changed today. grrrrrrrrr.

I'll keep ya posted. thanks for reading :)

recent sucky developments

2008-02-20T19:12:00.002-05:00

1. I had a breakdown at Sari's house yesterday morning. the trip is getting long for me.

2. I had to pay US$615 to Malaysia Airlines because my two pieces of checked luggage were a total of 63kg and 34kg overweight. I was charge US$18.09/kg. even after I started crying and becoming more and more confused b/c my bags were the same weight as they were when I left Newark, they didn't take mercy.

3. heading back to New York on 2/27. no stop in Los Angeles.

4. got about 2 hours sleep thanks to the 4 children (belonging to one couple) who nearly gave me several heart attacks while standing up on their seats and jumping through the aisles at 3am.

5. had to deal with bringing in a wood carving through Australian Customs & Quarantine. thank God they let it in.

6. just arrived in Sydney and gonna check out Circular Quay before I can get into my hotel this afternoon, repack my souvenirs bag and take a nap.

7. probably would have been smarter to send my second piece of luggage international freight than pay that fee. looking into what American Airlines will charge me when I am going back home.

8. stomachache. bring on the new day.

leaving on a jetplane to Oz!

2008-02-19T23:06:00.004-05:00

this is what Sari wrote for today, Wednesday the 20th, on my/our initial day-to-day schedule of this trip to Indonesia.

woke up at 4am to the local mosque readin the Koran and got it on video. prayer call at 4:15am. made some phone calls, remade the bed and tidied up my room. uploading photos and updated the blog. not much to do today other than spend some time with Sari and shower and pack.

heading to the airport for a 6:20 flight to Kulala Lumpur then to Sydney, where I will arrive Thursday morning.

it's been a great trip, although one very different from what I had in mind when I arrived. with Sari sick, I was left to do many things on my own and make my own fun. but it was a fantastic trip and I only hope I can come back and visit. next time only leaving 3 days in Jakarta and more in Bali! and I have to visit Lombok and Yoygajarta.

miss you. it's becoming a very long trip, but I can't wait to spend some time in Sydney and stopping in Los Angeles to see my man before heading back to NYC and the job search!

Taman Mini Indonesia

2008-02-19T22:16:00.004-05:00

I finally got there yesterday and it didn't even start raining until I was back in the house for about 10 minutes!

took my second Gray Line Tour to Taman Mini Indonesia, which is a theme park that houses examples of all the different islands in Indonesia's archipelageo. stopped in the museum and saw all the different clothing from the different islands and villages and it's amazing to see the vast difference between them! some of the head dresses that these women wear are crazy- they look like they will topple over at the very mention of a light wind!

spent the most time in the Sumatra section, where this picture demonstated what the prayer house would look like for a family's housing compound. we didn't stop in all the locations- just Sumatra, South Sulawesi and Bali.

there is also a small theme park inside the larger park especially for children and it's castle is based on the DisneyWorld's castle in Orlando.

headed up into the cable car, number 06 for a ride across the lake in the middle of the park. in the lake, there are little islands and they are shaped and placed to represent the Indonesian archipelageo. that was really cool. the Taman Mini Indonesia landscapers really have their fill of work to do on a daily basis! took visit on the first half of the ride and it turned out great!

I was the only person on the tour again, so they dropped me off at the local grocery store, where I picked up some packing essentials and went home to start packing all my stuff up. and it's quite a lot, but I actually have a good amount of room left in that second suitcase. great! I can buy more stuff in Australia!

Free Sari! (even for 1.5 hours)

2008-02-19T22:01:00.002-05:00

with Kariim in town, Sari's parents thought it was okay to allow Sari to leave the house for a family dinner at a traditional Indonesian restaurant right around the corner from the house. but we still drove. and it rained. go figure.

not much to say about dinner, although I had some crispy beef tenderloin, along with a little of everyone elses and had some Es Campur for dessert. it's shaved ice, with chocolate sauce and a mixture of fruits and juices- very tasty and extremely sweet!

{and I almost completely forgot! Kariim took me to the World Trade Center to get my next plane ticket from Malaysia Airlines and we had to stop at Plaza Semanggi to get some video games for him to take home to Quatar. the boy (or man, as he is a husband and father, but has a baby face to me) bought me POPCORN! from a movie theatre! love him.}

a 24 karat gold flame & costume kebaya

2008-02-17T21:56:00.012-05:00

Jatu picked me up yesterday morning, for an exciting day of tourist adventures. She had never been to see MONAS, the National Monument in Jakarta, so I didn't feel so bad when Sari recruited her to take me to see it. MONAS is basically like a candle, erect like the Washington Monument, but it has a 24 karat gold flame on the very top. expensive, Jakarta!

we got our tickets, saw the diarama stations in the museum beneath the monument, depicting the coming of age story of Indonesia. the diaramas were awesome, but much too dark, so I wasn't able to take any photos. then we stood in line. Jatu compared it to standing in line art Disneyland, but it lacked the immense excitement that you know you are going to feel. yes, you stand in line for a long time and yes it's over in a few minutes (hell, a few seconds for a Disney ride), but the anticipation wasn't the same. all in all, it took us FOREVER to get to the front of the line and realize the monument has 1 elevator that fits 10 people. hey, it's an old monument.

got up to the top and started taking photos. the landscaping was gorgeous and they had banners of the city and buildings labeled so you knew what you were looking at.

waited in line to go down to the pedastal and took more photos. we were getting good at taking pictures of ourselves by this time.

I do have to say this though. Indonesian people are by far the pushiest people I have met. whether it's trying to squeeze in a motorbike or minibus on the road during a mass traffic jam or pushing their way into an elevator- it's not pretty. they are worse than New Yorkers trying to get into a subway at rush hour. and that is not an easy thing to top.

left MONAS and went to eat at the food court in Grand Indonesia and started searching for a kebaya for me to wear with my batik sarong I purchased in Ubud. went to Pasaraya and found a whole section in the department store dedicated to formal kebaya wear and stayed in the Rizal Costume section, where I tried on many a different fit and color kebaya with the bustier underneath. after a good amount of time, I settled on a red/gold kebaya and two bustiers- red and gold. I am determined to wear the gold with the kebaya and the batik sarong.

but the red with the kebaya and jeans. and heels. it just looks hot.

but of course, I couldn't just leave the store yet. my eye caught on a mermaid skirt, Sari told me is called Prada Batik. it's a batik skirt but with glitter. very fancy. and I got it. to wear with kebaya or navy/gold top back in New York.

ate dinner with Jatu and bought some more dvds and then headed home for a fashion show. Sari's brother Kariim met me at the gate and he'll be staying at the house till tomorrow, I believe. he's a pilot for Quatar Airlines and lives there with his wife and little girl, but is only in town for some business.

then we had a fashion show for Sari and her mom. and I was taught how to wrap my sarong properly. and I have come to the conclusion that I might possibly need help getting dressed and will definately be taking a taxi if wearing this in New York!

Novie's 1st Wedding & my 3rd

2008-02-16T22:44:00.005-05:00

Jatu and Puspa came over to take me to a wedding hall to say "Selamat Ya!" to Novie and Ronny. Novie used to work at Femina. the room was filled with birdcages lit up by tealights and the colors were purple and red, with red chinese lanterns hanging everywhere. Novie is Chinese and Ronny is from upper Sumatra, so his male friends were wearing traditional shawls over their right shoulders.

I don't know if I mentioned before the amount of photos that the bride and groom take with various family members, cousins, groups, etc. but I did go up on stage and represent Sari in the Femina Magazine photograph. it was a lot of fun and we even took more pics with the couple after the reception had winded down and before Novie had to return her diamond hair pins and brooch to the designer, who was waiting on her. we waited around for awhile then headed out for a drink at Birdcage, which was full of well dressed people and they (thank god) knew how to make a dirty martini. my bartender in Bali didn't know how to make one :( almost fell asleep in the car on the way back.

Jatu and Decee (all the way on the right) will pick me up today and we are gonna go see Monas, the national monument and try and find me a kebaya to wear with my batik sarong.

oh! and Sari's brother is coming into town from tonight through Tuesday, so all the rooms in the house will be full, as her parents have been staying here since she's been sick.

blog later :)

my last days in Bali

2008-02-16T03:07:00.010-05:00

tuesday 12th: went shopping in Kuta Beach, bargained for some tshirts and wrap-around batik dresses and those people are ruthless! you gotta walk away and they'll come running back after you. Laila picked me up at the hotel and we stopped by Ku De Ta, an expensive and fabulous restaurant, bar and lounge in Seminyak that Sari had told me to visit. Kate Moss had a party there when she visited Bali sometime ago. it was crazy windy still, so we just took a pic and headed back to the house. Anchit, Laila and their two boys, Mir and Kavi took me to Ultimo, an Italian restaurant in Seminyak for dinner and it was delicious. Anchit is originally from India and speaks wonderful, proper English and his son Kavi is the most polite little man you have ever met. decided to stay in Bali with Laila until friday the 15th, and so I had to buy a new plane ticket and forfeit the one for the 13th. the longer stay was worth it though :)

wednesday the 13th: woke up with Laila and dropped the kids off at their private school, then hung out at the house. had Balinese coffee and breakfast pastries at Ninih's house. went home and watched the movie Waitress, which I bought in Kuta (awesome burned copy). I highly recommend this movie, so much heart. had lunch with Laila and Irma, her partner at The Bali Services, where they work from Laila's home and organize private villa rentals. one of the maids then took me to Seminyak on her motorbike (yes, I wore a proper helmet this time), about a 15 min ride and dropped me off. did some browsing and when Laila and Irma picked me up a few hours later, I had a birthday card for Kavi and started blowing up ballooons in the car. we sang for him and had a birthday dinner and chocolate cake, which Laila shoved into her son's face while laughing hysterically. he had apparently seen it done to someone and requested that for a future birthday it be done to him. we then watched a bootleg copy of Across The Universe, the Beatles movie, which was wonderful. great songs and story and everything.

thursday the 14th: happy valentine's day! places do celebrate it, but we didn't so anything special. dropped the kids off at school, Laila drove me to Denpasar to go to the market and see all the stalls and fruit and such. bought some snake fruit- the outer shell feels like snake skin, but it is sweet and tasty. spent the rest of the afternoon at the house lounging and then got dressed and we headed to The Beach House at Echo Beach for dinner. I picked out a snapper filet on the seafood bbq buffet and it was delicious. Ninih joined us, as she had decided to move to Solo to join her fiance, so it was a tearful goodbye for Laila, as Ninih will be moving while Laila and Anchit are in Singapore for vacation through the end of next week. oh! and I got a drink called Arak Attack, which is Balinese Arak (rice alcohol), sprite and lime juice and it was delicious. and I forgot to mention that all of this dinner took place in the middle of a monsoon. it was crazy windy and rainy like no other. definately would not have made for a romantic Valentine's Day dinner since you practically had to shout to the person across the table from you.

friday the 15th: finished packing, driver picked up Anchit, Laila and I to go to the airport. they were flying about an hour after me for their trip, so we shared a car. stopped at the Bintang supermarket and I bought some goodies to take home, along with some Balinese coffee (completely ground, you put it in your cup and add the water, stirring the coffee powder in- it's delicious and doesn't need milk once you add the sugar. it's black as death though) and a bottle of Arak. had to pack it in the bag and thankfully it didn't break in the luggage! got to the Air Asia counter and my bag was 27kg OVER THE FREE BAGGAGE LIMIT of 15kg. so at Rp 20.000 per excess kg, I had to pay Rp 500.000, which was a little over $50. I was also told that they have a baggage limit of 32kg, but they let me go anyways. I have no idea what I would have done if I couldn't get that bag home. I went crazy shopping on presents. AND I had to carry a painting and a woodcarving on the plane. few hours later I was back in Jakarta and it started to rain the moment I got into the house. WELCOME HOME! spent the evening with Sari, who is still being cared of by her parents. she gets yelled at if she gets out of bed.

saturday the 16th: had to take Sari to the hospital for one more blood test. then we went to Sari's grandmother's house (Sari's mom's mom), who I previously saw at the family reunion in Bandung. she was extremely happy to see me and tried to feed me even more than Sari's mom does on a regular basis. we had lunch, but she kept insisting (in English) that I have some of the chicken soup with chicken feet. I told her they scared me. she still loves me though, as she told me I have to come and stay with her the next time I come to visit. "when will this be?" she asked. "when Sari gets married again". this got a chuckle out of everyone. now I am posting this in Sari's room as she sleeps and about to check on the laundry I just put in the washer. tonight, Jutu (Sari's boss) is taking me to their friend's wedding reception and for a girl's night out. looking forward to it :)

good intentions and sand storms

2008-02-11T21:15:00.000-05:00

both yesterday and today I woke up to a rooster crowing early in the am. delightful. that's sarcasm. yesterday I woke up and decided that I will not be traveling to Yoyga and was trying to extend my trip to the 14th, but Air Asia would only grant me an extension of leaving a day later on the 13th, without having to buy a new ticket. so I will be staying at Laila's house again tonight and leave Bali at 9pm on wed the 13th- just in time for Valentine's Day with Sari!

I went to the pool with all the best intentions of getting a fabulously dark tan and I should realize by now that this does not happen to me after a short period of time; that it must happen after several, several days in the sun with suncreen on. in the end, I didn't reapply as quickly as I should when I got out of the pool and yes, I got a sunburn. it looks like I am wearing a white bikini no joking! the front and back of me are red, but my sides are completely untouched by the sun, so I feel like some kind of weirdly painted racing car! vrrrrrrrooooommmm! and this morning, it hurts, even after buying aloe vera and walking around my hotel last night watching the Grammy Awards and letting my body cool off.

after the pool, I headed inside for some tv and Harry Potter reading (which I finished by the way and will be leaving books 6 and 7 for the hotel library). and then I made the decision of all decisions: it was bungy jumping time! I called up AJ Hackett to make sure they were still doing jumps b/c it was crazy windy yesterday (and continued onto today). they were, so I got in a taxi and headed over. there were tons of people, given the winds, but I paid for my regular jump, talked to the guys I was going up with and waited till it was my turn.

now, I am not joking about these winds. it was serious. I was afraid that I would swing side to side and hit something after I jumped, but it was cool. I would have gone at sunset, but a storm came and it was getting dark when I jumped. I didn't let go of the rail for a few seconds and then I just jumped out. I think this might have been the first of the 3 times I have done this (Cairns, Australia and Las Vegas), where I actually jumped and soared out. it was awesome. and after you do it once, you want to do it again. but they actually had to postpone some of the jumps b/c of the high winds. got a taxi home and took a shower. walked to a nearby Shanghai restaurant b/c I didn't want to walk far, as it was blowing all the sand from the beach to the road. after putting lotion on, my body was covered in sand that was blowing through the air. even this computer is grimey with sand particles. bought some aloe vera and as I was going to bed, the hotel lights shut off! the electricity had gone out due to the storm and this happened a few hours later while I was sleeping. you could hear it go off it was so loud.

now it's morning and I am at Rosso Vivo having breakfast and using the internet. a bit overcast today, but I have to pack (late checkout at 2pm) and will go to the market until Laila comes and gets me tonight. not much else, it will be nice to see Sari again, who got home from the hospital last night but is till on bed rest. looking forward to some down time with her in Jakarta, although it's a crazy city and I don't think you could pay me enough to live there. probably won't post till thursday and I'll give ya a Sari update :)

thank you, "Eat Pray Love"

2008-02-10T10:09:00.000-05:00

so Carolyn gave me a wonderful book entitled "Eat Pray Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert for xmas, about this one woman's journey through Italy, India and Indonesia. it was a magnificent book and she spoke about this medicine man/healer who lived in Ubud and she spent a great deal of time with him. and just as he told her to send friends to see him, he did the same to me. gave me an extra business card and told me about his money troubles.

Kadek and I found the place no problem and were ushered into a courtyard while held several smaller housing structures. I asked for him and they pointed to an other man, only wearing a sarong who was sitting on his porch. he quickly (and this man is 87 years old) tried to get dressed for a palm reading... and photo session (as he inquired if I wanted one!). this slowly became a 15 min process, in which he was shuffling through some things and brought out the book that made him so infamous.

we took pictures first- him solo, him and me, and photos with his daughter and great-grand daughter, who had the most gorgeous smile :)

Kadek was near me, so he heard my predictions, in case I didn't understand Ketut Liyer's english. after every sentence, he did however ask me "do you understand me?" and yes, he also kept saying "It is so nice to know you", just like how Liz mentioned it in the book. I got tingly.

he then looked at my ears ("You are a good girl. you have good karma. do you understand me?") and told me my nose was shaped funny- laugh it up, Mom, I did not fall on my face drunk! BUT that it was good for me. he then looked at the palms, checked my upper chest, legs, back and pulse and told me the following:

1. I am a very good girl.

2. I have great karma. like 75% good karma. he hasn't met anyone with 100% yet.

3. I will definately not go to hell. I will go to the good place.

4. I will live to be 100 years old.

5. I will have two marriages- one at 27 and another at 30.

6. If my husband is not good to me, I was instructed to leave. without crying.

7. I will have two children.

8. I am sometimes emotional.

9. I am a very smart and bright girl.

10. I am somewhat an artist.

11. I will have one semi-serious accident in my lifetime (this after he asked what I drove- car or motorbike and I responded that I am from New York and ride the subway)

12. I will be very rich throughout my lifetime.

13. I need to work before I get married.

14. I have a very strong sexual appetite and should often wake my husband while he is sleeping to fulfill any needs I may have.

15. I am a good driver.

And that's what he said. I asked about my particular boyfriend right now, but Ketut Liyer sort of talked in circles and woulnd't tell me anything with lots of details. and while we were talking, another group fo three women came to see him. I was asked to pay Rp 250,000 for the palm reading (around $28 USD) and sign his composition book, promising to send my friends to him and send the photos we took when I get home. I was also told to bring my husband to Bali on our honeymoon to see him. I didn't question if this was supposed to be husband #1 or #2. all in all, it was definately an experience to see someone who I had read about in the flesh. and yes, he is sort of how I pictured him in my mind- barely any teeth left and very smiley!

monkey fights and the uneven sidewalks of Ubud

2008-02-10T09:27:00.000-05:00

OH MY GOD! got picked up this morning by my driver, Kadek and we drove to Ubud, about 45 minutes northeast of Kuta. and yes, I did see Ketut Liyer, but he'll get his very own post this evening!

went to Mandala Wisata Wanara Wana (the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary) where there will literally monkeys EVERYWHERE! I got really scared actually walking through and around them on the path, thinking they were going to attack me! I got video of this one older monkey who was pushing two stones back and forth together on the ground. he was really into it- trying top figure out how they fit together and would best move around. very smart monkey!witnessed a monkey fight, visiting the Pura Dalem Agung (the Temple of the Dead) where you can see the pics of the Gods devouring children! eewww and very creepy, as these statues literally surrounded you. and when visiting a temple, you have to follow some rules: no bare shoulders, need a sarong and a scarf/belt if you are a woman and you cannot by any means visit if it is your time of the month. bad stuff. so I donated and got dressed and set my fav self-timer for a glamourous pic. I bought some little bananas when I came out of the toilet to feed the monkeys and the woman took my pic for me. these monkeys were crazy! and seriously, they know if you have food. I kept the bunches in my purse and when they get a hold of your shorts, they do not let go unless you feed them. it was pretty awesome, I do have to say. but the monkeys at the entrances were very fat and deven when I peeled a banana for them, they refused. gluttonous monkeys.

got back in the car and went to get a palm reading from a well-known healer. see newest blog.

got back in the car and drove to the center of Ubud, at Jl. Raya Ubud and Jl. Suweta. at this corner, you can visit several temples and the Ubud Palace, where a family actually lives! they formal living rooms and dining area were just under tentlike wooden structures. no walls. they also hold a dance that I bought a ticket for, but in the end, Kadek took me to another Kecak Dance in Sanur. that was earlier, as I was very tired from walking up and down Jl. Monkey Forest like 3 times. and no, I don't need a taxi ride; can't you see I am walking up and down these uneven sidewalks. I was not wearing good shoes for this either. it's unfortuate I didn't take a pick of the sidewalk b/c it was crazy messed up! had lunch at the beautiful Cafe Wayan (2 cokes, 1 water, Wayan chicken curry w/rice) and bought some silk scarfs and a batik sarong for myself.

Kadek's english was better than I anticipated, from what Laila told me, so that was a welcome suprise. I saw the Kecak Dance and followed along with my english language theatre study guide that they give you to follow the storyline. pretty awesome. look it up online to get the gist. the sounds that these men were making were amazing! and yes, like other performers in the world, I saw them laugh out of character a few times when something funny happened. actors are all the same. I took lots of video, but my pics didn't come out well. try and post later.

want to save some money, so I don't think I am gonna travel to Yogyajarta to see more temples b/c actually, they are all starting to look the same. I am gonna to try and stay in Bali till Thursday night and work on my tan, then return for the weekend to Sari, who hopefully will be getting out of the hospital tomorrow. that's about it. gonna write about my future now...

Balinese food, wind and motorbikes

2008-02-09T09:31:00.000-05:00

where did I leave off? ah yes...

loving my newly discovered self-timer on my camera...

friday morning, I proceeded to put in 2 hours in the sun before Laila came to get me. she also pursuaded me to stay with her family that night, so I checked out of the hotel early. she took me to Mario's Silver, where I purchased a good deal of authentic 925 Silver and then I made two necklaces at a bead shop. then she took me to Geneva Handicrafts and I got all the fun stuff that the stalls sell for much more... and I didn't have to bargain b/c their price was so good. I also walked away with a few paintings, one of a fish, but he looks pretty scary actually. I have no idea where I am going to put it up in my apartment!

we then headed back to Laila's house, in a small village outside of Seminyak, which is situated between two rice patties. one of her two sons was at a sleepover, but I got to make friends with her 3 and a half year old but not until this morning when he deemed me worthy enough to speak to. and also play catch with in the yard. but at dinner last night, Laila and her husband had two friends over and I was discussing going to Ubud on Sunday and seeing the monkey forest and I told them all about the book "Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert and how she seeks out this healer in Ubud named Ketut Liyer. he apparently knows all! well, Laila's friend mentioned a friend may have gone there and left the table, only to return with Mr. Ketut Liyer's business card in hand... complete with directions on the back of the business card! so actually, Laila called him this morning to make sure he would be home and taking guests on Sunday and he answered the phone and will be home from 1-5pm. she explained why I was coming and he was very nice on the phone and so I am going to get a palm reading from him tomorrow afternoon!

so Laila takes me to the Pura Tanah Lot (commonly referred to as the "Floating Temple") and there was some kind of festival, as everything was decorated with very bright colors and ribbons and many people were on the temple grounds! it was absolutely lovely and the waves were just crashing all around! the "Floating Temple" is an island, which can really only be reached by the practioners during low tide. we walked around, took some pics and Laila bargained for me on a wood carving present for someone and a traditional, detailed wall carving depicting a man/woman next to one another. hope it's not a problem with customs!

we then had lunch at a small resturant in Echo Beach, where it was crazy windy! Laila (in the middle) then brought me to my new hotel, Kuta Seaview and my room wasn't ready till 7:15pm! so I had a few drinks at Rosso Vivo, the hotel resturant where Sari was craving dinner one night during this trip. Sari put my into contact with Dani, a freelance and Reuters photographer, who took my on his motorbike to a side of the street restaurant for a crab that was bigger than my outstretched hand. seriously. I saw this thing alive and 10 min later it was on the table. Dani brought out his camera and took some pics of me at the table, so I will post them when he emails me. then he dropped me home to the hotel and I sorta love being on a motorbike. he didn't drive too fast, as I wasn't wearing a helmet, but it was pretty awesome!

so tomorrow I am being picked up at 11 and traveling to Ubud. I will be back late, so I will try and update if I can. I will definately let you know what Ketut has to say about my future... 13 children, anyone?

(my awesome bed at Kuta Seaview)

one attracts two

2008-02-07T10:30:00.001-05:00

extension of yesterday: had dinner at the famous Made's Warung, where Sari recommended the Nasi Campur, which is a little plate of everything and it was delicious. bopped in and out of some shops and headed to the room pretty early. nice arrival day :)

onto the new blog...

I believe that it takes a certain kind of person to travel solo. not saying that I wouldn't have loved having Sari here, but being on your own brings out many experiences that you may not have had otherwise and it takes a certain amount of trusting your own judgement to act accordingly when those situations arise.

got up early today and had breakfast, quickly put my bikini on and made my way to the front row of lounge chairs that face Kuta Bay and turn their backsides to this marvelous "infinity edge" pool. if I wanted to take a dip, basically, I could pay close attention to my belongings. so I got about 45 min of sun and then it starts pouring. I got video too. it got dark and the heavens just opened up! while I was taking refuge in the outside dining area, Jane, a woman traveling with friends, but who was on her own today, struck up a conversation and it was lovely. we talked about many things, introduced ourselves and say goodbye. I went back to trying to obtain some sun, while reapplying sunscreen and reading the final Harry Potter book. needless to say, that it turns cloudy again and I finally went inside, only to realize that even with my best sunscreen reapplications, my front and back look blotchy. can't win them all.

showered and dressed and headed to the mall for a little shopping. loving the exchange rate! took a taxi then to Kori Restaurant (actually near my 2nd Kuta hotel), which was recommended for their seafood in two Bali travel books I have with me. and I have to say that the food was delicious. I had a won ton sampler basket and the chef's special mahi-mahi, and something called a Golden Kori for a drink. the only problem I had was that my waiter (mas) brought my appetizer and entree out at the same time. this actually pissed me off. I get this from my Dad. so instead of a leisurely dinner, I had to eat a bit faster since both food were best eaten hot. and I didn't think that he would actually understand if I asked to return the entree for a later time slot during my meal. oh well.

put my walking legs on and hoped over to the Hard Rock Megastore to check out the goods, before having dessert at the cafe, next to the Hard Rock Hotel complex. as I was about to put my hand on the door, I heard the intro to a Coheed & Cambria song and saw their Nokia Unwired at Hard Rock Live performance on the tvs inside the store. seriously. I left MP a message and tried to call Erica to no avail. it weirded me out that I am seriously around the world and I and watching and hearing a band that I have met on more than several occasions and whom I am friendly with friends, crew and loved ones. it's a small, small world afterall.

I walked around the corner and order a Thick Avocado Shake with vanialla ice cream and chocolate sauce because Sari told me I have to try something avocado during my trip, and yes, I did get my hurricane glass as a souvenir. I know they are overpriced, ok. it will replace the one I broke previous to the Holiday Extravaganza in December. As I am taking pics for MP, who loves the memoriabilia that the Hard Rock Cafes have gotten their hands on, I offer to take a pic of a group of ladies. they then proceeded to shuffle me into a picture with them. Indonesians certainly like foreigners! while I was finishing off my shake, a girl next to me inquired where I was from andwe got to talking. second time today! her name was Bity and we exchanged numbers, as she is actually from Jakarta, a few years younger than me and works for a Swedish cosmetics company. she is returning to Jakarta tomorrow and we scheduled to be in touch and have coffee when I get back to the city. she knows some people in New York and you know how this starts... hopefully I will be making some new friends!

by the time I walked home, the shops had closed and I am in the lobby, getting bitten up by mosquitos and posting this and pics. tomorrow I am gonna get some sun and then spend some shopping (batik, silver, wood carvings) with Laila and have dinner at her home in Bali with her family and an out of town friend. I'll keep ya updated!

ps- my Dad is going to have knee surgery today, so keep him in your prayers.
love ya.

Bali for One, please

2008-02-06T04:14:00.000-05:00

hiya. saw Sari at the hospital this morning in her new room. cozy, but not as cool as the other one. I was dropped off at the airport bus shuttle near Blok M and Sari's mom treated me just like a daughter- picked me out a seat, made sure the driver knew which terminal I was getting off at and finally smothered me with forehead kisses and got off the bus. adorable beyond words.

and oh lord! I almost missed my flight! Air Asia had called out the boarding of the Xpress Line, as their boarding is similar to Southwest Airlines- no assigned seating, but I didn't hear anything else until the last call for the plane. I walked up to someone and they were like, you have to get on that plane. and I did and sat next to a wonderful young woman and her 6 mo baby boy, who was wonderful and giggly during the tripo when he was sleeping and I helped her carry her bags into the airport. she asked about my trip and if I needed a ride to my hotel! so nice. I had told Laila, Sari's cousin to get me at 2:15pm from the airport, but when I got on the plane they announced it was 1.5 hour flight and that would have put me in at 1pm. ok... we landed and Bali is one hour ahead of Jakarta, so Laila was right on time after I got my massive bag (which I fully intend on filling with souvenirs).

I got to the hotel with Laila, who checked in on the room and we are gonna talk tomorrow about plans to do things: I am sunning tomorrow all day. I need a tan. Friday we are gonna go shopping, see a temple near her house and eat at her family's house, as she will be cooking a Balinese meal for another friend of hers. great that someone so nice is here to help me along.

I have never been to Cancun, but Kuta Beach, I think would be just like it. same shacks and stalls with souvenirs and local wares, and yes, my hotel is directly next to a huge shopping mall. I put additional money on my cell phone and had lunch at Stadium, a sports bar that Sari recommended. I had stir fry noodles with chicken and a Lychee Sensation, made with Bali Moon Pineapple Liqueur. delicious. and now I am sitting in the open-air lobby of the hotel, thinking about taking my book outside for a bit (it's 5:20pm and very little sun) and then deciding on a restaurant where I can look presentable. at this moment, I look quite the opposite as I didn't really take a proper shower this morning.

and I almost forgot! I went bungy jumping in Cairns, Australia alone back in 2004 and in Las Vegas with Jenny that following fall and guess what flyer I got my hands on today?? There is a AJ Hackett Bungy location in Bali and I am totally putting to the top of my to-do list this trip.

anywho, gonna run, but my cell number is 081380012133, if anyone cares to call. any Asia calling card will do and you actually get a lot of minutes for $5. hopefully I will be darker skinned tomorrow ;)

dear Allah...

2008-02-05T10:01:00.000-05:00

ok, I realize it is the rainy season and all, but if you could please stop this spur-of-the-moment downpour that just started as I am editing my blogs, that would be great.

(Sari's mom is afraid they are going to send me home a convert to Islam, as I wake up every morning at 4:15am and again at 6:30am to the prayer calls from the local mosque. it's a great alarm clock, although there is no reason I should be aroused at that time in the morning while on sabbatical. ever. I even tried to record the calls using the video portion of my camera this morning. it's faint, but extremely distinctive)

anywho- I am asking this because the last two days it rained horribly last week, the road to the airport was closed. one day the airport itself was closed. our plan already was to have Sari's mom drop me off at the bus station in the morning, so that I can take an airport shuttle.

please, please, please, PLEASE STOP RAINING!

RS Tebet & my 2nd venture to KFC

2008-02-05T07:14:00.000-05:00

disclaimer: I got permission from Sari to write this and post all pics.

this morning, we admitted Sari to RS Tebet, the local hospital just down the road from the house. she has been diagnosed with Hepatitis A, which effects the liver and her skin and eyes have turned a slight yellow color. she got one of the largest single rooms in the hospital and it's almost as nice as a hotel. I joked that I wasn't going to go to Bali tomorrow, but rather sleep in the companion bed in her room! (UPDATE: she switched to a smaller room where the tv actually worked) after her parents and I returned from lunch at home and I ran some errands (prepaid cell cards, ice blended mocha at The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, dry cleaning), I was dropped off at the hospital to return some things to Sari and I spent the entire afternoon in the nice leather chair, vibrantly reading Harry Potter 7 to her (complete with faux british accent at times and expression) and taking photos. the hospital will be good for her and if you are concerned for her well-being and thoughts on the issue at hand, don't worry- she made sure to ask when being admitted if they have cable, StarWorld in particular, so she could watch American Idol on Wednesday!

after I said goodbye before sunset, I walked to KFC for dinner, since her parents weren't at the house at that time, and completely ordered in Bahasa Indonesia. amazing. I am now updating the blog and posting some pics if I can. I will be leaving on Air Asia to Bali tomorrow morning and should get in at 2:15pm, with Sari's cousin Lela picking me up. I fully intend on getting a ridiculous tan while I am there. in my bikini. now, I don't believe I have lost any weight this trip, but I may be wrong. I am not drinking. I've had two beers since I got here both at Sushi Tei. but if there is sun, my stomach is gonna see it :) and yes, I have my spf 30. I will not be recreating the Great Australian Great Barrier Reef Sunburn of 2004!! but you gotta admit that I need some color, judging by that picture above.

I am bringing my computer with me to Bali.

love ya. miss ya. mean it. (just read Bergdorf Blondes and a character in the book says that. ha!)

{below is the view from Sari's first hospital room.}

for US $39, you can get...

2008-02-04T05:40:00.000-05:00

... a few spa hours at Martha Tilaar Salon & Day Spa (http://www.marthatilaarspa.com/) in Jakarta! I got a one-hour aromatheraphy massage, a spa creambath for my hair (since it's so dry) and a top notch pedicure. I did get an "I Love Mondays!" 15% discount since I paid in cash as well, so that brought the total down to what amounts to US $36. then add on another 4 bucks total for tipping 3 separate people (they each got Rp 10.000,00). what a deal! I totally recommend it. I was planning to get something called "Body Contouring" but my driver this morning, Muskin and I were running late due to a stop at the Amex bank. they didn't have a good exchange rate for traveller's cheques, so they sent me elsewhere in morning traffic. atleast I have more than enough money for the rest of my trip and that's the important part. and of course i had to take a picture with all my bills! look how rich I am! haha. my exchange rate for my traveller's cheques were US $1 = Rp 9.030,000 (they switch our coma and decimal point). So pretty much, a red Rp 100.000 bill is about equal to US $11. as a comparion, a regular sized iced blended mocha drink at The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and a large almond cookie only cost me about Rp 35,000, or US $3.87. Starbucks is pretty much the same. BEAUTIFUL!

just got home a little while ago and ordered some food in: dumplings (a litte weird, but ok) and chicken fried rice (amazing). Sari is, of course, in bed still.

in regards to my Bali trip: I am not staying at the Kuta Seaview Hotel for the entire trip, as they are booked. so from February 6-9, I will be at the Bali Garden Hotel (http://www.baligardenhotel.com/), which will come to about US $55, whereas the Kuta Seaview Hotel will be about US$58. Not too shabby! the stays would have been cheaper had Sari accompanied me only because her aunt got us another discount since Sari is Indonesian and I am American. but I am totally not complaining!

will try and post some pics tomorrow, as the only thing I will be doing is getting another card for my cell phone and packing for Bali :)

Bandung, baby! & the turmoils of sick Sari

2008-02-03T09:27:00.000-05:00

yesterday I went to Bandung (southeast of Jakarta) with Sari's parents only. Sari, you see, is very sick with the chills, on and off again fever and general ickyness and is lucky enough to be on bedrest this week and not in the hospital. so this means that not only did I get to go to the family reunion and wedding with her parents yesterday, posing as their youngest daughter, I am going to Kuta, Bali by myself from the 6th - 12th and stay at the beautiful Kuta Seaview Hotel. Sari's cousin in a travel agent, so she got us (or me) a nice deal on the price and it looks beautiful.

so back to the trip to Bandung. it took us about 2 hours to get there, traveling east then south through some mountains. mountains that Sari's dad told me (I have video!) were being excavated and have dwindled in the past years. I also got some prime video from the backseat of the car of the local rice patties, which used to provide rice to all of the Jakarta region of Java, but no longer have the means to do so. once we got to Lembang, near Bandung actually, Sari's mom's side of the family was celebrating an 87th bday, so I got to meet her relatives and mother at a villa they rented in this nice complex. we hung out there until we got dressed for the wedding, which was a few minutes away. Sari's mom instructed me on how to greet two types of people in Indonesia: those older people to be respected and those equal and not so older than me. This is where I became a trained puppy... when she said "asbah", I took the hand of the person and touched it to my forehead and when she said "munjungan", I placed my hands together like I was praying in church, touched my thumbs to my nose, brought then down and between the person's hands and replaced them on my nose. It'll be better when I show you in person. anyway, these are Sudanese words, not Indonesian, as her family is Sudanese (not Javanese or Sumatran) and everyone loved that I knew sort of what was going on. everyone was very nice and I was even warned not to eat some of the more "Fear Factor-ish" food they had on the buffett. once it was time to get changed, Sari's mom wrapped me up (I made sure to go to the bathroom beforehand) and when I stepped out in front of the family there were lots of oohs and ahhs and the word "beautiful". Sari's grandmother told me that Sari must bring me over to visit, as she lives near in Jakarta. the family was nothing less than wonderful :)

and like any other family in the world, we got lost following directions to a wedding, taking place at the mother of the bride's house in a massive housing complex. for about a good 15 minutes. it was hilarious. once we got there, Sari's dad took my camera and took the remaining pictures of the wedding and small reception afterward. the couple would be having another huge reception at a local hotel, just like the one Sari and I previously went to on the night of my arrival, but we only stayed for the ceremony and the reception and drove back to Jakarta to see Sari., who was still sick.

ok. so the wedding... here we go...
this was a traditional Sudanese wedding ceremony. the "priest" character, Sari's dad told me, first gives a pre-ceremony ceremony regarding wedding advice, and even though he is present during the ceremony, he doesn't actually marry the couple. the father of the bride takes the groom's hand and basically gives over the power of protecting his daughter for the rest of their lives. it was lovely and it was even more lovely to have Sari's dad explain what was going on. because I am pretty damn sure they looked up during a point in the ceremony and said "what's this American girl in a lime green kebaya doing at our wedding?". I would have thought that. anyways, they do that with the father of the bride and sign some documents then they headed outside for a tradition called sabar. it's basically like the throwing of the bouquet to the single gals, but they throw money (paper and coins) and candy to the guests and man, you should have seen some of these women get down on the ground getting all the money they could get their hands on. it was crazy. I only got one Rp 1000 bill and a piece of candy. The picture is with Sari's aunt in the middle and her mom on the right. I didn't try all that much, but to tell you the truth, those women were ruthless... and the majority of them were married already! but it's tradition and apparently I will be getting married sometime soon. hey, that's not me speaking; that's Sudanese tradition! after that, the groom crushed a egg with his foot and the bride had to clean it for him. they they threw down a clay vase. oopah! the couple then goes inside and kneels in front of the many parents and grandparents and says thank you over and over again. and then they force drink and food on each other (like wedding cake) and they have to tear a chicken apart. Sari just told me that the person who gets the biggest part will apparently be earning the biggest income in their relationship. notice: it was the bride. and finally the ceremony was over and we got in line to say congratulations (selamat ya) to the family members and do the "munjungan" move and there's a great shot of me with the newlyweds. hilarious. we had some food and then headed home, but not before changed and getting out of that outfit. at the top of the sarong, you have crazy uneven amount of cloth and a belt, so you wear basically an elastic band around it (like the ones you wear to suck in all the fat on your stomach) to make it smooth. it felt good to take that off, I tell ya. feel asleep on the way back home, but not before playing the game of "try to kill the mosquitoes in the car". I succeeded in getting the last one against the car window. always a winner.

Sari is going to sleep and I am keeping her up with my typing, so I have a spa day tomorrow and will try and post pics in the afternoon. I will have internet access in Bali and I do have a new Sony Ericsson cell phone and my own Indonesian number, so if you want to call me... let me know...

love you, miss you, mean it
ps- starting Harry Potter 6, Carolyn. yay!

cravings

2008-02-01T03:48:00.000-05:00

... but not the kind that Heather, the TwUSA receptionist is having :)
(cheese.... Heather, you are craving cheese right now, aren't you? or ice cream? frozen banana?)

I am craving microwave popcorn. I really want some. but Sari says that you can really only find popcorn at the movie theatres, not in the grocery stores.

man, I would give anything for some popcorn right now. yummm.
and some diet coke that actually tastes like American diet coke. although grape Fanta is amazing.

dadaa.

Jakarta: Underwater

2008-02-01T03:30:00.001-05:00

Sari came home from work early yesterday b/c she was feeling sick and so we stayed in after all. no dinner, no concert. about 11:20pm I was woken up by a ferocious thunder/lighting storm that scared me so much that I contemplated going downstairs to Sari's room for the night. and it kept raining! it's now 3:35pm and it's just starting to let up. I cancelled my tour because Mini Indonesia wouldn't have been fun in the rain and sick Sari (chills and all) stayed home from work. I had planned on going to the Amex bank and a mall to get the 6th Harry Potter book, but all the cab companies were booked and my sick roommate couldn't drive me. so it looks like I am gonna have to use my Visa or borrow some cash till Monday. Iman & Ivi, Sari's parent's came over and brought their sick daughters (yes, including me as my stomach has been acting up since last night) some soup and medicine. all parents are the same worldwide :)

tomorrow morning, hopefully the four of us will travel to Bandung for Sari's cousin's wedding and Ivi has been explaining to me how to greet certain people at the wedding. I'm starting to understand her more and more everyday! finishing up a horrendous movie on the Hallmark Channel, but perhaps Sari and I will watch her bootleg Hairspray dvd this afternoon.

gotta get a new calling card also, as my convo with MP was cut short midsentence this morning :(
I probably don't be posting till my Monday morning, hopefully with pics of the weekend wedding. have a great weekend everyone!

traffic & dehydration

2008-01-31T01:54:00.000-05:00

Wednesday morning, Sari and I tried unsuccessfully to get some Amex traveller's cheques cashed at the Amex bank since they weren't open yet and I had a Gray Line tour to catch at the Gran Melia Jakarta hotel. Beautiful place. This was where the Satria's sister's wedding reception was last Saturday. Got some change at the hotel and met up with Slmat (driver) & Edward (guide). Turns out Edward is Catholic and yes, this is his real name. I was the only one on the tour, which cost me a whooping US$25 or Rp 230.000. The tour was called Kampoeng: The Old Batavia and basically we went to some locations that had to do with the history of Jakarta, from a small harbor tour in the 14th century to current day. Old Batavia is in the 'Kota' area of the city now, which holds all the reminiscence of how the Dutch structured their Jakarta, when they held rank.

First we went to the National Museum and Edward and I walked through, examining all the Hindu (dominant religion prior to Islam) statues and traditional housing structures for all the different 'types' of Indonesia culutre. Everything from spirit houses to beautiful gold and diamond jewelry- definately a nice place to go, but alas, no pics were allowed. The best thing about this stop on the tour was that it was field trip day for some local schools, so I was stared at by quite a number of, let's say, second graders. girls and boys staring and smiling at me, like I was somekind of show. I have to admit it was kind of cool.

Second, Edward took me to Glodok, the center of Jakarta's China Town and we strolled down the market street and visited Petak Sembilian Chinese Temple, dedicated to the Buddhist goddess of mercy, Kuan Yin. It was very beautiful, but there were many homeless beggars outside of the temple. Edward mentioned that they are here in case people feel as if they need to give some of what they have away after praying at the temple. because of this, some of the "beggars" may not be that at all; many just leave their nice clothes at home and act as beggars for extra money.

After getting stuck in some lovely traffic (what's new in Jakarta!), we headed to the Fatahillah Museum, which is housed in the old town hall of Batavia. One of the best stories is of the Portuguese canon that was originally placed in the square before the old town hall. Because of the design at the back of the canon, many women came to make offerings to the canon, in hopes of finding a husband or bearing children. the officials had to move it into the courtyard, away from the public b/c they did not want the canon associated with such thoughts.

After lunch at Cafe Batavia, we went by the Kota Intan Drawbridge and the Sunda Kelapa Harbor. The 500-year old harbor is home to brightly painted Makassar schooners called Phinsi, which transfer goods to all of the outer Indonesian islands, without means of electronic equipment.

My tour was supposed to take 7 hours, but I was done in 4, as I was the only one, so I met Sari at Senayan City and went to work with her in the afternoon. She had a photo shoot, so I was in the studio as she was coordinating the shoot and arranging the models. One horrendous thing about yesterday was that I didn't drink enough water during the tour and once Sari met up with me, I was done for. almost started crying b/c of the searing tension headache I had. our evening plans were cancelled and after sitting in traffic for 40 minutes, I took a pill and went to bed for 4 hours, only to wake up to eat some soup and go back to bed. Today was supposed to be another day out for me, but I am home, about to go to Pizza Hut for lunch (update: I did eat there and it was interesting. honey lime tea and a personal stuffed crust pizza with chicken and tomatos and some dill mayo sauce. my lips are still tingling) and the grocery store (successful!). Tonight is dinner with Sari's aunt at a new mall for her birthday. My Chemical Romance is playing at the local stadium and I was hoping to go, but with my feeling not so great and the planned dinner, it's a no go. Would have been cool though. The posters are everywhere around the city!

Tomorrow, I am going on another Gray Line tour, The Golden Jakarta Tour, to the Taman Mini Indonesia Indah, a miniature park reproducing the Indonesian archipelago. I am very excited about tomorrow and I will be sure to drink lots of water and carry my pills with me :)

tuesday's events

2008-01-31T00:44:00.000-05:00

hmmm... Sari took Tuesday the 29th off as well, so the three of us (including her maid) to visit her parent's for lunch. Sari's Mom doesn't have a maid right now, so Sari lent her maid to her mom for the day. Very nice house, but the best thing was seeing all the photos of Sari as a little girl and the family portraits.

Sari has bangs now and she looks just like she did when she was younger! After a nice lunch and some fantastic english conversation with her Dad (and her Mom, who is getting very good I must say), it was time to play dress-up for this Saturday's tradition Sudanese wedding ceremony with Sari's Mom's family. I tried on a few things then exclaimed "I am not a tiny Asian woman! I have hips and legs!" This got a nice laugh out of her mom. We finally found a kebaya that fit me and a sarong that they will wrap me up in, so much that I will just be able to walk about stiffly. I am really looking forward to it, especially since my color pattern is lime green, purple and gold. yes!

Sari and I took off to Senayan City mall and take a look at this escalator!

I also got approached by an Australian(?) guy who started asking me how long I was in Jakarta for and finally my number. yes. I got hit on by someone in a Jakarta mall. awesome! Sari and I ate at Sushi Tei and just like in New York, I over ordered, but some friends came to hang out so the majority of it was finished off. we then headed to Foodism for a drink and some convo. Sari had work on Wednesday and I was tired, so we headed back to the house and to bed.

and let me mention about the malls in Jakarta- they are everywhere and totally the place to be seen. you think that malls in the US are hangouts for teenagers? come on over to Jakarta! on the weekends they are packed with women wearing their best outfits, always with very tall high heels. if they are shopping with their children, there will most likely be a nanny with them in charge fof the child. and these nannies have uniforms. they look like nurses. I saw one even wearing a mask over her mouth. during the weekdays, the housewives come shopping. still in high heels.

I feel so out of place in my bermuda shorts and sandals.

taking it easy

2008-01-28T10:55:00.001-05:00

monday, 1/28 11:06 pm
hey. I can only get internet off of Sari's computer, which has dial-up, so I am gonna try and connect my computer and post some pics later. here's a recap:

sunday: went to the Plaza Senayan & bought a black dress for me at Metro to wear Monday night to the L'Oreal launch party. ran errands with Sari & had dinner at Waroeng Pasta and met up from her boss at work, Jatu and her friend. came home and watched part of a horrific movie with Sarah Michelle Gellar titled "The Return".

monday: woke up at 4:15am to the first of five prayer calls for the day from the local mosque. louder and longer than the weekend, but Sari reminded me (& we watched it on tv), that their former President (more like a dictator) had died yesterday and today was the funeral. hung out and took it easy, then took a bajaj (little enclosed motorcar) down the road to have dessert after lunch at The Cheese Cake Factory- and no, it's not the same.

got an iced tea at Starbucks and read some Harry Potter 4 on the couch. lots of thunder, but no rain to cool off the humidity.

got all gussied up and had a Femina (Sari's magazine) driver take us to Dragonfly, a club where L'Oreal was launching new haircolor and giving out Colorist of the Year Awards.

one great thing about this morning is that Sari and I planned out my day trips for the rest of my time here, so I am busy while she is at work. booked a city tour for Wednesday and a spa day for next Monday.

it's a very interesting city from what I've seen so far. I can definately say that I am in the middle of culture shock- from the way the house is set-up to the neighborhood and the men with their carts/stalls hocking food every minute of every day (bread, anyone?). and yes, the traffic is as bad as I read about. and my stomach has been fine; although I haven't eatten anything crazy yet.

hoping to get a good amount of pics up tomorrow, but Sari says downloading takes a while, so cross your fingers ;)

accomplishment #1

2008-01-26T05:53:00.000-05:00

hi! I am happy to announce that I am using the computer in Sari's bedroom as we speak. Once I got on the plane at JFK, it was made known to me that we would actually be making a stop in Stockholm, Sweden then going onto Kuala Lumpur and then Jakarta. So that was interesting. Didn't see too many devastatingly beautioful blondes however. The KLIA airport is apparently the first enviromentally friendly airport in the world and I have to say that it was beautifully constructed.

The best part of the trip so far still happened at the airport in Jakarta prior to getting my Visa On Arrival- I had to go to the bathroom standing up. When I say this, picture a recessed toilet into the ground basically and footholds on the side.

got to the house and settled into my room. Sari took me to KFC where I had Kombo 1- two pieces of chicken, some rice and a soda. We then hit the grocery store and I came back for a 2 hour nap, as we are going to a wedding reception tonight. So I am gonna run and start to get ready. By the way- it's so hot here and I was totally thinking it would be ok to wear jeans and a top everyday, but it's hotter than hell and there is no way I will put jeans on these legs unless it's nighttime or it's windy or rainy. I feel that if I do nothing exercise/resistance wise, the pounds are still gonna sweat off! Sari says it's like a sauna here and I'll want to take several showers per day.

anyway- gotta run and get ready for tonight. lots planned this week, as Sari is taking Monday and Tuesday off to spend with me. lots of love to you :)

Selamat Jalan, Lindsey!

2008-01-21T12:46:00.000-05:00

My last day at work was on Friday the 18th, and I got a send off fit for a pirate wench at Jake's Saloon! I can't figure out how to post the flyer, as it's Adobe Acrobat, but if I do, I will attach it- it's crazy fun!

Saturday I got my hair done and then we had a Bon Voyage party at Flight 151 with dinner and drinks. I have to admit that I bought little plastic airline wings from some woman on eBay and they totally didn't get to me on time for the party :( They would have been such an awesome little favor! But it worked out awesome and I think everyone had an awesome time.

And it's Monday! Yesterday, MP and I picked up Sari's suitcase of stuff she previously left in NY from Rizal's and also Chelsea's big suitcase for me to pack in. Man! These bags are huge! Just making my lists, writing my info cards, etc etc etc. I am getting very excited and sort of can't believe that the trip is like 3 days away! Gotta run and get my cup of coffee!

making her list & checking it twice (or thrice)

2008-01-07T22:21:00.000-05:00

the holidays were a little crazy, truth be told, but I survived. florida was crazy and not so warm, new years eve had me (apparently) trying to catch a cab in the middle of the street and downing more mixed drinks and shots than I should have.

and now it's coming up on two weeks out from my trip. and I have started to make lists people. I have made two and started crossing them off. let the craziness begin. or continue. whichever it may seem to be to you, looking from the outside in.

there is shopping to be done, bills to be paid, contacts to be ordered, passports to be photocopied, itineraries to be typed. oh! and a dress to be bought appropriate for two (yes! two!) Indonesian wedding receptions. what my luck :)

I definately haven't been planning on my actions during my stay, but Sari will be taking some days off when I get there to get me aquainted with my surroundings, so I am feeling more comfortable. I also just got my hotel for Sydney and I am hoping to attend the Soundwave Festival that Sunday I am in Sydney and catching some people I met this summer (Mindless Self Indulgence).

woohoo for now :)

giving everyone a little help this holiday season

2007-12-21T14:49:00.000-05:00

by going on this excursion, it seems as if I have helped everyone with their holiday shopping for moi this season. I am always very appreciative when I receive gifts, but as I get older, I am starting to see the importance and dare I say, the excitement of receiving practical gifts!

For Christmas 2007, I have received the following travel gifts:
- 2 journals
- Eat, Pray, Love (FANTASTIC BOOK!)
- global alarm clock, with two time zone settings
- wattage converter/adapter kit
- a lovely tunic
- hanging toiletries kit
- Members Only lightweight jacket
- portable door alarm

Yay for traveling and yay for practical Christmas gifts!
Thank You!

shots & such

2007-12-11T21:39:00.001-05:00

left work early today to head to my gp to get my travel shots: tetanus, hep a, typhoid, polio booster. oh yeah! two shots in each arm was exactly what I needed. but then I got to head home and eat some tasty chinese food. yumm.

also on my plate: mountains of hotel reservations for the upcoming spring tours. of course, I won't have a watchful eye over the spring shows on the road in 2008 and beyond, I am getting as much done as possible, so I can get through the holidays and my various days out of the office. not to mention making the workload thin enough to teach my replacement how to keep numerous shows on the road happy with their accommodations. yikes!

on another note, Sari texted me last night from Jakarta asking about my passport information for an eticket (to Bali I assume). the thing is I deleted her number from my cell when she left. I had to write back making sure it was her!

and she's got me a little terrified about staying at her place, especially if she comes to new york for fashion week (yep, how ironic is that!) and leaves me alone in her house with her two maids (yep! maids). being a westerner where there aren't many, sorta unnerving. and I need to start finalizing plans for my trip, what I'm doing during my trip and it's gonna happen over the downtime in the next weeks.

k. my arms hurt. time to head for bed.

views from the bay windows

2007-11-23T14:41:00.000-05:00

as I am writing this, I am on my parent's couch with their hp laptop, watching the tbs law & order svu & ci marathon. good times.

coming home to Maryland is relaxing and it will always be home, but it's not. I don't sleep in my old room because I don't like the bed that's in there, so I sleep in the guest bedroom across the hall... and wake up with back pains due to the mattress. when I travel home, I don't bring pajamas or toiletries because I have them all here. saves me room in my suitcase. but it always seems that I have things to do, even when I don't, in New York, and when I am in Maryland, I don't. it's not necessarily a bad thing, just different.

after Thanksgiving at Jenny's house, which included some glasses of wine, a few games of tennis on the wii, and dinner/dessert, I bailed home due to a headache. a small nap and a phone call later, I started to watch grey's anatomy but couldn't finish. my headache and nausea had gotten the best of me. and I still don't know why I was feeling so bad and it's continued through today. hence the tbs marathon.

don't know where this post was going, but I'm about done with it now.
thanks for all the love this past year. I am truely grateful for all of my friends.
happy post-turkey day.

hallejulah! my flights are booked!

2007-11-18T19:21:00.000-05:00

thank God I got an email from Sari this morning, telling me not to book China Airlines. it was the cheapest flight from New York to Jakarta, but after hearing that it's not the greatest and most comfortable airline around, I booked Malaysia Airlines from Newark to Jakarta, as well as Jakarta to Sydney. To round it out, it's American Airlines/Quantas on the way home.

January 1/24: Newark -> Kuala Lumpur -> Jakarta, arriving 1/26

February 2/20: Jakarta ->Kuala Lumpur -> Sydney, arriving 2/21

February 2/27: Sydney -> Los Angeles -> New York

"CANNOT WAIT TO MEET YOU. You have to buy cute bikini to wear in Bali. I've told all my good friends in Jakarta and Bali that mybestroommateever is coming to town. :)))" ~ Sari

the holiday season is gearing up- the tree is up, presents are wrapped and I'm being so incredibly domestic by baking apple and pumpkin pies and making soup! with all the concerts, parties and things to look forward to this coming month and a half, the time is going to fly by... I just know it!

yes, I prefer non-stop flights

2007-11-15T12:08:00.000-05:00

finally booked my Christmas travel this morning. I'll be heading out on a non-stop flight to Daytona Beach on Saturday, 12/22 and returning home through Atlanta on Wednesday, 12/26.

last year had the family traveling to see my grandmother Thomasina for Christmas as well and I bought my tickets through cheaptickets.com. not so cheap, but cheaper than direct from the airline. after lots of waiting at LaGuardia, I was bumped from my flight and could only get as far as Jacksonville, through Atlanta. I did get Delta $$s, which I have used to go to a wedding on, and I still have more left! yay for that! I had to spend the night at a Jacksonville La Quinta (good thing I book hotels for a living) and Jack & Sue picked me up off of I-95 en route from Maryland to Daytona Beach.

this is why I prefer non-stop flights earlier in the day and will, from this point forward, always buy from the airline for the holidays! my vacation time is precious and I'd much rather be down in Ormond Beach decorating Thomasina's fake Christmas tree; the one that Dad and I purchased at Wal-Mart last year for $25!

on a side note: I went to Target last night and got my holiday decor and Christmas tree. pretty awesome. I'll start putting everything together tonight. woohoo!

technical difficulties, not just a Julien-K song

2007-11-09T20:57:00.000-05:00

after some careful thought and consideration regarding some lack of judgement and insensitivity on my part, I have deleted the blog posting about communication between home and the road.

thanks for understanding.

a correction (or a different interpretation)

2007-11-08T16:15:00.000-05:00

gmail messages:

Anthony: its etymology comes from "perigrinatus" which means literally "to travel abroad"or "to travel outside of the country"

Anthony: o apparently perigrinari means in latin "foreigner" too. just looked that up. thats as a noun tho.

either way, it's better than any title I could have come up with!

name this blog

2007-11-08T12:55:00.000-05:00

welcome. as I was reading Chonny's Life of Cinematic Moments and drinking my 80 cent coffee this morning at my desk, I was moved to start my own blog that would incorporate my travels from this moment on.

not that I'm going anywhere, other than Maryland for Thanksgiving this month, but I am looking forward to a trip to Los Angeles and Daytona Beach in December, and more importantly a long pilgrimage to Southeast Asia and Australia this coming January & February.

as I logged onto gmail this morning, I asked friends to name this new blog I was going to start. anthony responded with "Power's Peregrination" (which ultimately won) and morgan gave me "Wanderlust" (which I am also in love with).

I am going to Jakarta, Indonesia & Bali to visit Sari, my former roommate on West 17th Street. she was only in New York for a year and many came to love her personality and style. she even snagged herself a NYPD boyfriend! as I was coming up on 4.5 years at my current workplace, I decided it was time to move on and take a break to do a little sightseeing before jumping back into a new position in life. this is where Sari came in and I basically invited myself to stay with her for a few weeks. she has taken it with great enthusiasm and is practically planning our travels together (Bali for her birthday) and mine alone (Singapore).

Peregrinatio (sometimes anglicized as Peregrination) is the Latin word for pilgrimage, according to Wikipedia. loving the sound of the blog title, but a little put off by the defination of pilgrimage. I am Catholic, but lapsed. I have recently taken an interest in my boyfriend's beliefs, Self-Realization Fellowship. founded by Paramahansa Yogananda in 1920, it combines beliefs from different religions of the world. when MP was in New York in October, we went to a service and I have to admit that I almost fell asleep! this was due to a long period of meditation and absolute silence in the room. after some chants and a reading regarding reincarnation (quite funny), we left and I mentioned that it was incredibly relaxing. in a time where we have so many technological distractions, it was nice to have an hour to think about nothing but the positive things I needed to tend to.

I am interested in taking the time while on this upcoming vacation to sort things out in my life. I have wonderful friends and family, all whom I love very much and want the best for. decisions need to be made about what I want to do with my life. work- event planning, tourism? a need to focus on the positive and weed out the negative (which always manages to squeeze its way in there one way or the other).

so although not a pilgrimage in the tradition religious/spiritual sense, the more I think about it, the more I like the name of my new blog and the meanings behind it. welcome to my blog. xoxo.