Tag Archives: Indonesia

Six Things I Learned 

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I learned a lot during our recent trip to Taipei, Malaysia, Indonesia and Manila — not only about these places, but about our own country, too. 

Here are six things I now understand more clearly:

Bandung, Indonesia

America is not the center of the universe. 

Our country has been so powerful for so long that it can seem like the universe revolves around us. But it doesn’t.

Many Americans are obsessed now with our political turmoil, and for good reason. When you leave home, though, you’re reminded that most people around the world are far more focused on other things. 

As I wrote while serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer several years ago, my Moldovan friends didn’t “care about American politics unless it affects them personally, which it rarely does. At least they know where America is, which is more than most Americans know about Moldova.”

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Did people ask us during our trip about President Trump, the war with Iran and other issues? Yes, and I plan to share some of those conversations in an upcoming post. 

But we were asked far more often about our family and other matters that had nothing to do with American politics. The television in our hotel was more likely to show a badminton match than CNN.

Recognizing this doesn’t mean our American passions are unimportant. It’s just a reminder that others generally don’t share them with the same intensity. 

Taipei. Taiwan

Countries are complicated. 

Is Alaska the same as Texas? Obviously not. Yet Americans often blur entire regions, such as Southeast Asia or Africa. They use phrases like “developing” to obscure immense diversity within places. 

The four countries we visited turned out to be significantly different. Taiwan is technologically advanced, orderly and democratic. Malaysia is striking for its multiculturalism and welcoming form of Islam. Indonesia has a huge population with diverse islands. The Philippines has strong cultural ties to both Spain and the United States. 

We saw many other differences within and across the countries as well. They can’t be reduced to sound bites and neither can other countries around the world.

Sandakan. Borneo

They have their own histories.  

America has been dominant not only in terms of its military, economy and political power, but also in its cultural imprint. Taylor Swift and LeBron James are more famous than many world leaders. 

It’s humbling, therefore, to come to a place like Southeast Asia and be reminded that they had sophisticated civilizations and complex histories long before Europeans arrived, much less McDonald’s. They were shaped by trade routes, empires and migrations that had nothing to do with us. 

Penang, Malaysia

The interactions among these countries were far more important until relatively recently. When Champa and I were in Malaysia, we stayed in a hotel that was once the mansion of a prominent Chinese businessman in Malacca. He and other Chinese immigrants played critical roles in the development of that city and others. The emigration of families from Taiwan centuries ago changed the face of the Philippines. Muslim traders reshaped Indonesia and Malaysia. The region’s majestic Hindu temples are reminders of India’s influence.

Once America did enter the picture, its impact was mixed. We liberated the region from brutal Japanese occupation during World War Two and provided essential economic and military assistance, notably to Taiwan in recent years. But we also employed scorched earth tactics to keep the Philippines under control in the early 1900s. We supported dictators like Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines, Taiwan’s Chiang Kai-Shek and Indonesia’s Suharto. 

Taipei, Taiwan

There are far more people in Asia than in the United States.

Southeast Asia is among the most densely populated places on Earth. Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines have more people than the United States and Canada. Jakarta has more people than New York, Los Angeles, Chicago , Houston and Phoenix combined.

If you add in Vietnam, Thailand and other countries usually included in “Southeast Asia,” the comparison is even starker — and vastly more so if you include India, China and the rest of Asia.

Yet many Americans cannot place these countries on a map. Their visibility to us doesn’t align with their actual human scale. We regard our own lack of curiosity about other countries as normal and make jokes about it. Viewed from afar, our insularity is less amusing.

Harina train, Indonesia

Their economies are growing fast. 

The United States is generally wealthier than Southeast Asia, in some ways dramatically so. We saw heart-breaking poverty in several places. 

But we also saw new rail systems that operate efficiently. Most of the airports were modern and immaculate. Smartphones were ubiquitous. Mobile payment was common. Skyscrapers were everywhere. Many parks and other public spaces were spotless. Taiwan has the world’s leading computer chip factories and other countries in the region are also moving fast in the tech world. Millions of people are highly educated and middle class, or more.

So are we still ahead of them economically? Overall, yes … but that’s for now. 

Manila, Philippines

Travel gives us perspective. 

Probably my biggest take-away from this trip wasn’t about Southeast Asia per se but about travel generally. 

Champa and I have been privileged to travel widely. We’ve seen repeatedly that what seems true and universal in the United States — our politics and assumptions about the world — are culturally specific rather than inevitable. 

Especially at this moment when bombast and nationalism dominate our national conversation, it’s been therapeutic to view America with more distance, more nuance and less chest thumping. 

Yogyakarta, Indonesia

I love my country. I’m proud to have served it twice overseas. But I’m also proud to be part of this larger world, which lately feels saner in many ways than my homeland. 

We can learn a lot from other countries, even those that are “developing,” if we approach them with open eyes and open hearts. They remind us not only that the United States isn’t the center of the universe; it’s not even the center of our own small planet. 

Lawang Sewu, Indonesia

Top photo: Borobudur Temple, Indonesia

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Spiritual Bali

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For many people, “Bali” evokes an image of Julia Roberts cycling through emerald-green rice paddies to visit her spiritual mentor, a traditional medicine man named Ketut.

The 2010 film Eat Pray Love, based on Elizabeth Gilbert’s novel, helped establish Bali as a global destination for spiritual exploration, wellness and self-discovery.

We just spent a week in Ubud, in central Bali, where many of the film’s Indonesian scenes were filmed. Everywhere we looked, we saw yoga classes, meditation sessions and organic cafes.

But we also saw overbuilt hotels, crowded streets and rows of shops selling souvenirs to tourists.

Foreigners praying at Tirta Empul Temple

An influx of Western spiritual seekers and other visitors has strained the authentic Balinese identity that attracted them. It’s hard to be an exotic backdrop for Western personal growth while adapting to the complex challenges of modernity.

Some U.S. cities, from Sedona to Asheville, also attract visitors seeking personal transformation. So do Kathmandu and other cities around the world. But Bali felt to me like the crown chakra of spiritual tourism.

When Champa and I took a class there on how to make incense sticks, our teacher began by chanting and sprinkling us with holy water. Only after we’d all meditated could we begin. When I asked him how many sticks I should make, he said: “Whatever your spirit says.”

Not exactly what you’d hear at Target.

Tourists posing with monkeys

We used Ubud as a base to visit waterfalls, a coffee plantation and a forest where monkeys perch atop willing tourists. We saw several temples, including the iconic Tanah Lot perched on a massive rock in the crashing waves of the Indian Ocean.

Tanah Lot Temple

We splurged on our hotel, the Puri Saraswati, which features a beautiful water temple and nightly dance performances. We ate breakfast beside its lotus ponds. We got massages and dressed up in Balinese clothes to take photos beside the temple. We strolled beside tranquil rice fields and sampled the excellent nearby restaurants.

We then left Ubud for a seaside hotel close to the airport for two nights before our next flight. The vibe there was decidedly different— more beach town, less ethereal. But it was still Bali, which felt almost like a different country than Java, the island where we’d spent our previous ten days in Indonesia. It was like going from Detroit to Nirvana Disney World.

Taman Ayun Temple

Bali is primarily Hindu, beautiful and bountiful in tradition. Java is predominantly Muslim, historically rich, vastly more populated.

Bali is smoother and easier for Western visitors, as well as more expensive. It’s the simpler choice for anyone new to Indonesia, which is why it attracts as many foreign visitors as all of Indonesia’s other islands combined. If I were on a honeymoon or a spiritual journey, it’s where I’d go.

Ulu Petanu Waterfall

As I wrote in my last post, though, Java was also compelling in its own way and we were very glad to experience it. My advice to anyone seeking cultural insight into Indonesia along with personal growth would be to visit both islands, and maybe more, if possible.

Don’t take it from me. Listen to Ketut, who told Liz in the movie: “To find the balance you want, this is what you must do.”

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Java Journey

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The Indonesian island of Java has more people than Russia, Japan or Mexico. If it were a country, it would rank ninth in the world, with more than 150 million people packed into a space the size of Alabama.

We just spent ten days traveling across much of Java and saw crowded villages, towns and cities blending into each other. Traffic was intense, notably in the capital city, Jakarta, which has more people and vastly more motorcycles than New York, Los Angeles and Chicago combined. The traffic around our Jakarta hotel was so relentless that we were unable to cross the street without someone helping us.

We couldn’t cross the street in Jakarta because of the traffic but we could walk safely to this neighborhood restaurant for dinner.

Yet Java is also home to some of Asia’s most beautiful temples and cultural sites. It has lush rice fields, tasty food and natural beauty. It’s far cheaper to visit than neighboring Bali, where most foreign travelers head in Indonesia.

We enjoyed exploring Java with a local driver, Ari, who showed us lots of interesting places and took good care of us — all for a very affordable price.

As shown on the map, we started on the western side of the island, flying from Kuala Lumpur to Jakarta. One full day was enough there to see the main sites, including a national monument where we learned a lot about Indonesia’s complicated history.

From there, we drove to Bandung, which has “only” 2.5 million people, stopping along the way to visit the Tangkuban Perahu volcano, above, with its grey craters and steaming mud pots. Our hotel in Bandung surprised me with a cake for my birthday.

Next we took an all-day trip on a modern train to Semarang on the north-central side of the island. We spent most of the ride staring out the windows at endless fields, mosques, motorcycles, shops and schoolchildren. While touring Semarang, we met the students you see in the top photo, at a train museum. We were especially impressed by the Sam Po Kong temple, an ancient Chinese complex that has been extensively restored. We drank some refreshing fruit shakes while there, above.

We then headed south towards Yogyakarta, stopping at temples, tea plantations, waterfalls, volcanos and hiking spots, including one memorable walk through rice paddies to a beautiful temple.

The highlight in Yogyakarta was its two famous temples. Borobuder, above, is the largest Buddhist temple in the world. It features nine stacked platforms in the shape of a giant tantric mandala, all decorated with more than 2,600 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues.

Several miles away, the Prambanan Temple is the largest Hindu temple site in Indonesia, with an array of imposing structures whose stone carvings depict the epic Ramayana. We also enjoyed an outdoor dinner at a nearby restaurant with a breathtaking view of the temples lit up at night, followed by an excellent ballet performance of the Ramayana, above.

We also visited a sultan’s palace, a museum and other sites in Yogyakarta, including workshops for producing traditional shadow puppets, above, and batiks, below.

Yogyakarta was our favorite place in Java. It felt cosmopolitan but relatively livable.

We’re glad we traveled to Java even though parts of it, notably Jakarta, were a bit overwhelming. Java packs a lot of diversity, history and people into a corner of the world that gets little attention from Americans.

Bandung

I’ll be posting next about Bali, which is far more familiar to many travelers. Yet Java has more than 30 times as many people as Bali. As we saw for ourselves, it’s not just its numbers that are so impressive but its beauty, people and overall vibe.

In every sense, Java is full of life.

Cafe in the Paddies

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We were hiking beside rice paddies, pineapples and lemongrass in rural Indonesia when we were startled by a small homemade sign beside the trail.

It was for a coffee shop located just above where we were walking. 

Really? Here amid rice fields on the slopes of Mount Sumbing, on the island of Java, as far from your neighborhood Starbucks as you could possibly get?

We climbed some dirt steps to look and there was a stylish open-air cafe offering locally grown tea and coffee along with fried bananas, boiled cassava and other snacks. 

The cafe was also selling colorful packages of roasted local coffee beans and herbal teas. It had free wifi and accepted credit cards. The scenic view and fresh mountain air were free.

The young owner, Dodik Yudiantoro, above, opened Selogriyo Coffee in 2019 after attending tourism school — just in time for the pandemic. He reopened two years later and has been serving tourists and a growing local coffee culture ever since. 

Our barista, Joko Utomo, above, said they’ve been working with local travel companies to attract tourists visiting the nearby Selogriyo Temple, below, a beautiful Hindu structure set in a natural basin. We were among the tourists who combined a hike to Selogriyo with a trip to Borobudur — the largest Buddhist temple in the world — and other attractions near Yogyakarta. 

The cafe charges about US$1.75 for a latte and other drinks, which is expensive for the local trade but far less than a similar order in Europe or the United States. You also have to pay a small fee to hike the trail to the temple. 

We enjoyed chatting with Joko and thought both the coffee and tea were excellent.

If you’re ever in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, do give it a try. It’s the most unexpected — but memorable — cup of Java you’ll ever have. 

Enjoying the cafe with our guide Arie.

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How Indonesia Moves

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How would you react if you saw the family in the photo below riding down the street? They’re all on a single motorcycle. Neither kid has a helmet. The daughter is reading a smartphone while her dad drives. 

Would you be amused? Worried? Outraged? 

Since arriving in Indonesia several days ago, I’ve developed a different reaction: unsurprised. It’s something I’ve seen repeatedly here, as with this family:

In America, we have more than 30 cars for every motorcycle. In Indonesia, there are about five motorcycles for every car. In Nepal, where we also saw families routinely riding on motorcycles together, the ratio is similar. In Vietnam, whose motorcycle traffic awed us, there are ten or more scooters and motorcycles for every car. 

Motorcycles in these countries are much cheaper to buy and maintain than cars. They use less fuel. They’re better at navigating traffic jams and are easier to park. 

In all three of these countries, and in much of the world, scooters and motorcycles are the backbone of the transportation system.

These photos show just some of the many ways people use them in Indonesia — not only for their families, but to transport everything from building supplies to crops.

Indonesians who order a ride on Grab — like Uber back home — are more likely to choose a motorcycle instead of a car. It’s cheaper and faster for navigating the dense traffic in Jakarta and other cities.

Another option for short trips is walking, but many sidewalks here are uneven or nonexistent, so pedestrians end up walking alongside fast-moving traffic, breathing vehicle exhaust along with the smog. Buses are often packed and slow. 

The predominance of motorcycles here is a big contrast with our own country, where we have a car for nearly every person. Motorcycles are mostly recreational, not primary transport, although situations obviously vary. 

Road speeds are generally lower in Asia but motorcycle accidents can still be devastating and the sheer numbers and limited emergency care response amplify the toll. Head injuries are one of the leading causes of death in road accidents across Southeast Asia. 

Helmets dramatically reduce that risk. Yet in many countries, enforcement of helmet laws is inconsistent. 

I wish these kids were all wearing helmets but helmets cost money, especially if they need to be replaced regularly for growing children. I also recognize that some Americans who ride motorcycles would prefer to forego helmets. More to the point, visitors to our country might be just as critical of our gun violence, our giant SUVs, our obesity and other things we consider normal.

Champa and I own a single car, an aging Prius that’s equipped with airbags and other safety features. All of our neighbors own cars and most have two or more. We’re all privileged to take our cars for granted. 

If we’d been born in this part of the world, we might be crowding together on motorcycles, too. Not that four of us would ever fit on one.