Jogja on my Mind – Part II * B

The moment we landed in Jogjakarta, Indonesia it seemed a lot greener and more lush than Cambodia and all the rest of Southeast Asia. Maybe it was because we arrived here in the rainy season or maybe it was because we left from the dusty city of Phenom Penh.

The rain in the rainy season here is not your typical rain. There is a cleansing feeling after it, which comes from the sudden drop in temperature. On a hot day this is a lifesaver. I was very excited to experience rain after three months of dry weather.

On the first day I noticed that the people here were so nice. Yes, I know we have said this for every county so far, but this time it is different. Almost everyone we have met spoke fluent English so it was very easy to have a rewarding, long, continuous conversation, unlike the basic exchanges in the other countries we had visited so far.

In the neighborhood we were staying in there was a local group of kids roaming the allies and playing their life away. Today I played a barefoot match of soccer with them. At first it was a little awkward, but after a while we were playing as if I had known them forever. The little kids were the cutest and the most friendly. Me and a couple of them played with  a tire rolling it back and forth! Old grandmothers were lining the alley talking. Almost everyone here spent their time chilling, hanging out happy to let you into their conversations. There was a small field right next to our losmen. Early one morning some old women came to the field with big speakers and started blasting music through them while doing aerobics. This was similar to people exercising together in Saigon, Vietnam except that here there were only older people. I saw a man that joined  who looked around 80 years old!

Having breakfast included with your guesthouse price might seem like a small thing. In truth it is the best thing that can ever happen when traveling on a budget, because in most places the breakfast winds up costing even more money than the lodging!!! It’s also very nice not to have to get up every morning hungry and go out searching for food, instead breakfast is right in your guesthouse! This is one of the great things about  all of Indonesia’s hotels and losmens (guesthouses)!

One of my favorite things about Jogjakarta (Jogja) is that there is public transportation here. This is the first time we have had it since Bangkok, Thailand!!! People move around in city buses. There are different numbers on them, such as, 1A, 2A or 3B and each one goes on a  different circuit. The drivers are crazy though!! They drive at what feels like 100 miles/hr and try to pass other cars, motorbikes or anything on the road while swerving left and right!! What’s even crazier is that they drive like it is a piece of cake! The bus attendants are very helpful and they speak very good English. They are always there to help. The passengers are also very friendly and it is easy to strike a conversation while travelling on the bus.

They day we went to the Silver Village right next to Jogjia the dense environment of the city unraveled in front of us. I saw how dense the community of this old city really was. When I say dense environment I really mean it. There were no yards and all the houses were glued together with only small allies in between.  Only motorbikes can get through for people reach their houses. Kids run around in the alleys and fly kites. They didn’t just fly the kites but tried to cut the string of their opponent’s kite so it would fall down.

Jogja has the most dense community that I have ever seen!!!

I really enjoyed spending time here and exploring.

-B