An Expat Thanksgiving

HAPPY TURKEY DAY EVERYONE!

Our Thanksgiving meal was as traditional as you can get here with a potluck. We started off with wine and cheese and then there was pumpkin soup, turkey (imported from Iowa of all places), garlic/shallot mashed potatoes, spicy creamed spinach, ratatouille stuffing, cranberry sauce (from a can sadly, but still good) apple pie and mango crumble (that might be the most Indonesian touch of the evening.)

It was an international crowd consisting of 7 Americans, 1 Brit, 1 Canadian and an Australian, but that is to be expected in these parts. My friend Christina came over during the day and we cooked up a storm and then lugged all the goodies off to the Ritz, where Christina and Peter live, for dinner. Our place was just too small and the Ritz generously contributed a big table, chairs, table settings for 10 and maids who clean everything up the next day. How could we pass that up? The staff was VERY excited when we arrived with all the food and very curious to know all about the turkey. There was a moment of fear in the elevator where we suspected the bell boy was not going to let us out without getting a taste.In line with Thanksgiving everywhere, we ate, we drank, we laughed and had a great time. Of course we were missing home a bit, but that is how it goes and it was nice to have an expat family to celebrate with. We certainly have a lot to be thankful for!
Hope you all had a good holiday as well!

Our High End Lives

It's been a high end couple of weeks for the Parnes'. We have finally started to take much-deserved advantage of our jobs. Last weekend we flew to Lombok on a work assignment to write about the hottest new luxury boutique hotel on the island.  It opened a few months ago, so they invited us out to check it out.

We arrived to find out that we were the only guests for the first night and that two other rooms would fill on the second night.  It turned out the other two rooms were for a photographer and fashion model in town to do a shoot, so we basically had the place to ourselves.  

The hotel is on a deserted stretch of beach in the northeast corner of Lombok. It's part of a small chain (this is property #4) of 'art hotels' that are each absolutely gorgeous.  We expected it to be impressive, but it was unreal.  

Being the only people there, we were given the best suite (which goes for $450+/nt) and treated like royalty.  Our suite was easily the nicest room we will ever stay in in our lives.  The entire footprint of the suite was 140 square meters, which included the private plunge pool overlooking the ocean, koi pond and enormous outdoor bathroom.  The room itself was 80 square meters, which is bigger than our two-bedroom apartment in Jakarta.

We spent two full days lounging, getting massages, snorkeling and just enjoying the luxurious surroundings. We also enjoyed a lovely romantic private dinner on the beach. Needless to say, we'll have nice things to say in the magazine.

This past weekend I was flown to Singapore to report about a luxury hotel there.  I took Haviva with me out of pity. While it wasn't a beachfront hotel all our own, it was an executive room with access to the non-stop buffet and open bar of the executive lounge.  It was also inclusive of a ridiculous complimentary dinner at the upscale Cantonese restaurant downstairs. 

The highlight of the weekend was our pair of fourth row seats to the Saturday matinee of Avenue Q, which the theater comped us for having written a nice story about them.  It was the cast and crew of the Filipino production, and it was fantastic.  Neither of us has seen the Broadway production, but it's hard to believe it is any better. 

Sunday we spent the day at the Singapore Zoo, enjoying the fresh air and organized splendor that is Singapore.

Back to reality this week as it's crunch time for getting our December issues out...   

There's a Haviva in Australia!

Our friends the Holdaways have a farm in Australia and recently I was honored to find out that a new calf was named Haviva. I have no idea what I did for the honor, but I am more flattered than I think the Holdaways thought I would be.

Obama-rama

History was made yesterday and while we were not in the U.S. to cast a ballot and feel really American, we were able to celebrate here with Democrats Abroad. In typical Indonesian fashion, the celebration was at a mall, but it was easy to forget where you were and just revel in the moment none the less. As many of you know, Americans are not the only ones happy with this result and there was a pretty diverse crowd, adding to a more American feel.

They sold some great t-shirts, showed the speech on the big screen and even dropped red, white and blue balloons from the ceiling. Some of Obama’s old classmates from Jakarta were there as well, and it was great to see how excited Indonesians are about all this. There is an incredible sense of pride for them that the next American president has such a connection to their country.

It was a great night and while we are missing America more than ever, we are thrilled it will be a very different country whenever it is we get back there.

Star Teen 2008

Sorry it has taken so long to give you all the update on Star Teen 2008. I know you are all at the edges of your seats. Well, despite the very horrible weather that Howie and I both thought would certainly ruin everything, the event was quite a hit and a lot of fun, even for us managing editors.

As it turned out, the event was much more made for TV than we realized. The studio where it was being taped was really small, so the off-air show proved to be quite an event. They created this “festival” kind of scene (think summer rock concert for teens) with a few booths, some local bands and dance troops and clowns, men on stilts and circus freaks walking around. It was a little odd, but there was a decent turn out. The highlight for me was the 10 meter wall that our design guy made with a life-size photo of each of the contestants, posing of course. All these teens and parents were running up to the wall and taking their pictures with their favorite. It was funny to watch.

Howie and I spent most of the pre-show in the VVIP tent, hanging out with parents and siblings of the finalists and advertising clients. Not a bad gig – the food was yummy and the company was not so bad either. It was great to see all the nervous families, so excited for their kids.

The show itself was 2 hours and the focus was much more on the bands and “stars” than it was on the Star Teens, which might have been for the best. They did their little catwalk thing, danced, changed outfits a couple times and even answered a couple questions from the judges, but it was the crowd that made the show. There were maybe 100 seats for the studio audience and in MTV style they packed the floor of the room with teens, who all had signs for their favorites and were cheering loudly. There were definitely some crowd favorites and the signs these guys made were pretty impressive.

In the end, Nirwan, a somewhat alternative looking guy with a socialite mother and a sinetron (soap opera) sibling won for the guys and a cute girl names Felicia won for the girls. It might have been rigged, but you did not hear it from me.

Happy Diwali!

Since our return from the jungle things have been less than exciting. The one week off of work really set the November issue off to a tricky start and upon return, people definitely had some trouble buckling down. I was also sick and out of the office for 3 days (my first sick days in the past 2 years which is pretty amazing) and managed to leave my computer in a taxi after my first day back to the office, setting me personally back quite a bit.The good news is that by some miracle I got my computer back with only about 12 hours of complete panic and hysterics and Rp. 100.000 (about 10 bucks). I am also officially healthy again and while it was painful, the November issues made it to print on time.

Finally, last night we had the opportunity to take advantage of our highendedness. Sinetron (Indonesian soap opera) moguls the Punjabis threw a HUGE Diwali party in the ballroom at the Ritz and we were invited and told to bring anyone we wanted. There was an expected 2000 guests for all you could eat Indian delights and an all you can drink open bar. We brought Trish, Chad, Drew and Mel and definitely took advantage of everything that was offered. Chad even managed to get called on stage to participate in a contest, which he won and brought home a sandwich maker.

It was a pretty crazy night that has left both Howie and I a little worse for wear today - believe it or not there is a point where you can have too many samosas and glasses of free wine. But, we will muster up all the energy we have for the big finale of Star Teen 2008 - Highend Teen's cover girl and boy competition which will be airing live tonight on Indonesian TV. Who will be the next cover star??

Jungle Fever

Well, we were skeptical and expectations were very low, but we could not have ended up with a better holiday. Saturday we arrived in Banjarmasin, a small town in the south of Kalimantan known for its canal/river life. Things were a bit quiet because of Ramadan (getting lunch was a challenge) but we were able to see the major sights. Saturday afternoon we just wandered the city, but Sunday morning headed out to Cempaka, a town about 30 minutes outside Banjarmasin known for their diamond mines.
In the blazing sun, groups of 10 men mine for diamonds and gold. They find about one good diamond a month and the proceeds are split between them. It is hard to explain how hot it is and how hopeless this job seemed to us. There were just piles and piles of rocks and guys sitting in pits of water sifting through them. It seems like even finding one a month is a stretch. Shockingly only one guy tried to sell us some clearly fake gems and when we turned him down he was still incredibly friendly and seemed not to mind at all.
The next morning bright and early (5 AM) we headed out to the famous floating markets, which were incredible. For those of you who have been to Thailand, this is the same idea, but MUCH less touristy. This is a real traditional market that just happens to be in boats on a river. There were 2 markets, the first being a close one that was predominantly food stuffs. What makes this one cool are the floating cafes which you pull up next to and get coffee and tea and breakfast treats. They give you a long bamboo stick with a nail at the end to stab the snack of your choice, which was lots of fun and made it possible for me to ignore that my coffee cup was rinsed in the not so clean river water.
The second market was a bit cooler in that it was really a traditional market with everything from fruit to furniture and it was really bustling. We bought a strange new fruit - jeruk mentega which means butter fruit and looks like some kind of giant fuzzy tomato - and chatted it up with the locals. If you get the chance to have the jeruk mentega, you might not want to bother. It turned out to be kind of gross and the fuzzies gave me a little rash, but it is always fun to try new fruit.
That afternoon our friend Chad joined us and we all did a canal tour together to catch a glimpse of local life. The canals are less than clean, but as you ride along the river is filled with people bathing, kids swimming, women doing laundry and cleaning veggies or rice for dinner. The people were great, waving and yelling hello, kids jumping into our boat or hanging on; it was a great look at real life. The tour culminated at the Pasar Wadai (Cake Market) that is special to Ramadan. Stalls were set up all along the main river-way selling cakes and foodstuffs for breaking the fast. It is a great sight and there are all kinds of delish snacks that you can only get this time of year. Despite our day of eating, we of course indulged in some snacks ourselves and had a nice riverside picnic. Mostly it is just fun to watch people stuff their face as soon as they hear that call to prayer... ironically the anticipation is palpable.
Since things were pretty shut down and Kalimantan is known for its jungle, we decided that we could not be there and not do a jungle trek, so we hooked up with Tailah - the most recommended guide by Lonely Planet - and signed up for a 2 night 3 day jungle trek. Tailah was a great ambassador in the jungle and the trek really turned out to be the highlight of our journey, despite all 4 of us (Chad's wife Trish joined us on Tuesday) being completely unprepared without any rain gear or warm clothing.

Chad stayed in Banjarmasin Tuesday to wait for Trish and Howie and I headed to Kendangan, about one hour from Loksado, where the trek was to start. It is supposed to have a cool traditional market and Lonely Planet said it was a good place to stop on the way. Lonely Planet was pretty wrong overall about Kendangan - the hotel was gross, the market was nothing too special as markets go and there was nothing to do. But the stop was salvaged by this incredible pesta, party, where what seemed like all of Kendangan gathered in the city center, set off fireworks and just generally had a great time. It was quite a scene, with trees lighting fire left and right and the streets packed densely with people on motorbikes. It sounded like Baghdad from our hotel room, but we had fun.
Once in the jungle, the trek went from village to village, 3 hours the first day, 7 hours the second and 3 hours on a bamboo raft back to Loksado the third. The hiking was a bit challenging, with a few steep bits, but not too horrible. All along the way there are small villages where we were greeted with what seemed like everyone. Such beautiful faces, adorable kids and interesting stories.
Most of the villages are Dayak and they live in small communities harvesting the rubber and cinnamon throughout the jungle. Traditionally each village has a balai, longhouse, where anywhere from 10-20 families live together in a community style. The balai tradition is on the way out as small houses are being built in these communities (and after sleeping in one we know why... it is NOT quiet with animals underneath, children crying and zero privacy) but each village has a kepala balai, who acts as a village head. This is a lifetime appointment and these guys have seen it all. We ate dinner and slept in the balai and armed with kretek, clove cigarettes, and candy for the kids, we heard wonderful stories and really got to know people. We even brought some sparklers for the kids, which although in this giant house made of wood made us very nervous, everyone seemed to enjoy immensely.
It is hard to explain the stunning people and sights we saw. Tailah has been doing this for 30 years and knew everyone in every village. There was a lot of respect for him and clearly a trust that was passed on to us as his guests. And by the way, if you are looking for an ego boost, this is the trip for you. I have never been told I was beautiful so many times... and without a shower or a change of clothing for 3 days I am the first person to tell you I was not feeling too pretty.
The bamboo rafting back had some awe inspiring views and a few hair raising moments where I was sure our raft was going to flip and land the few things I had with me in the river. But, despite some rapids, a small dam made of rocks that our captains took down and some heavy rain, it was incredible and fun and a great way to end the journey.
This trip was a great reminder for us as to why we came out to Indonesia to begin with. The people were wonderful, the sights were gorgeous and it was just one great experience after another. The only thing it was missing, as far as I am concerned, was a monkey or two, but I am just getting greedy.

More photos at http://picasaweb.google.co.id/howieandhaviva/SouthKalimantan

Selamat Idul Fitri

We're headed off to Kalimantan for a week because the city (and most of the country) is shut down for the end of Ramadan holiday. We get two days off for the holiday and then are forced to take three more "mandatory vacation days," a concept that would never fly back in the States.

We're going to spend the week exploring the canals and river villages around the South Kalimantan capital, Banjarmasin. We're leaving for the airport momentarily and returning next weekend.

For those of you celebrating other, more Jewish holidays, we wish you a happy new year!

Ramadan's Shofar

You learn something new every day. On my way to the wholesale clothing market last weekend, I was stuck in horrible traffic (nothing new there) and, as I gazed out the window, I realized that the street was lined with drums, made mostly of brightly painted oil drums. Turns out I was not simply stuck on drum street (shops tend to be grouped like that, so to stumble on the drum area actually seemed normal) - these are special holiday drums, bedug.
Bedug are large drums used in mosques to mark the end of the long day of fasting. The shofar of Ramadan, so to speak. Traditionally this is a wooden drum with one or both sides covered with goat or cow hides which come from the slaughtered animals on Idul Adha. Today they still use the hides, but the drums are made from almost anything that can be made into a drum.As it turns out, I was actually near the goat market, which, out of convenience, becomes drum row this time of year. I think we might have to buy one of the drums… would not want those poor little goats to go to waste, would we?

Goodbyes, Puasa and Mudik

To kick of Ramadan, a couple weekends ago we headed back to the Canadian bungalows in hills outside Jakarta. There is not much to tell - we ate a lot of cheese, drank a lot of wine and Howie declared the weekend a success since he did not wear shoes until we got dressed to go back to Jakarta. This picture of our friend Gilles bringing us Bloody Maries by the pool basically sums the weekend up.This past weekend we staying in Jakarta for yet another goodbye party. This time for our friend Manoah, who is moving to Singapore. We know we will see him a lot, but this was a good excuse to get a lot of people together and have a good time (Manoah's specialty.) The night started with 30 people at an Italian restaurant and then we moved on to a karaoke place where about 10 more people joined. This was our first non-China karaoke experience and, to be honest, I am bummed it took us this long to participate. It was the double VIP room (VV.II.PP?), there were about 5 mics and the drinks were flowing. Everyone was singing and dancing and it was a great time. The songs ranged for fabulous 80s to the traditional and dangdut (a mix of Indonesian/ Malay folk, Arabic and Indian music which is as fun as it sounds.) Check out Howie's awesome new shirt as well - it was floral and stretchy!

In the midst of all this, it is Ramadan, which I have to say I really enjoy. Every day, the sunset call to prayer rings out thru radios in the office and half the office goes running into the kitchen. The break-fast of choice is a drink called kolak, which is a (sickly) sweet drink with bananas and sweet potatoes and various other bits. Howie loves it, I personally cannot think of anything I would less like to eat after starving all day. From there they move on to the savory or, actually anything they can get their hands on. Dates are also common Ramadan food and I had a field day with my friend Trish at the market the other day where there is just stand after stand of dates from all around the world.

But more than just watching people enjoy eating so much, I love the vibe in the air. There is a togetherness in the Ramadan puasa (fast) that I find unmatched in any other holiday. While it is only Muslims who are expected to fast, many people who are not Muslim fast in solidarity. The day starts with a "Selemat Berpuasa" (Happy Fasting!) and ends with a "Selamat Buka Puasa" (technically happy opening of the fast, which, I know, is confusing.)

For those of us who do eat, there is a solidarity around that too. Like smokers, we are confined to small areas where people hope no one is looking. There are curtains closed in all the restaurants, despite the "open" signs and, my personal favorite, is the serving of alcohol in tea and coffee cups. As if they are fooling anyone. And, no matter your religion, all day people talk about fasting, who is fasting, what time it over, what they are going to eat, and where they are going for the long Lebaran holiday that concludes Ramadan.

Mudik, the special word for traveling home for the holiday, is like the Thanksgiving trek home. There are no tickets anywhere anymore, buses, trains and planes are all booked out. The malls are packed with people buying special clothing for the holiday and anyone who gets you alone for more than 5 minutes asks where you are headed for the holiday. I love it. Even if we missed the boat and have no tickets anywhere for the holiday... but I will not get into that and ruin the holiday spirit.

Not just another Jakarta weekend

Since we have been spending a lot of time in Jakarta lately, we decided to make sure we make the most of it. Last weekend we packed in the Jakarta goodness starting with a goodbye party at the El Mundo - the Cowboy Ocean Latin Bar - which is as confused as it sounds. We are unclear on how these guys make any money since it was BYOB and even more unclear as to what they were thinking when they made the place. Either there was a lot of thought put into it, or none at all. The stuffed horse head over the door did make for quite a conversation piece though...

Despite too many gin and tonics Friday night, we got up Saturday morning and went rock climbing on the rock wall that is lirterally a 3 minute walk from our apartment. Howie and I have rock climbed before, but not for ages, but we both had a great time. The guy who runs it, Panji, is an X Games, rock climbing professional and incredibly patient and passionate about the sport. Watching him on the wall alone is enough make your jaw drop. This will definitely not be our last time at the wall, despite the amazing soreness in only hours.

Sunday I finally convinced Howie to try the hot stone massage that I have been raving about. No one has ever left disappointed and even though Howie is not big on massages, he too is now a believer.

You might remember our blog entry a year ago about the local Independence Day tradition of climbing greased poles that have prizes hanging from them. This year three friends and I decided to give it a shot at the mother of all pole-climbing venues, Jakarta's Ancol amusement park area, where organizers put up around 150 poles in the ground in a big field.

Teams came to the event from all over Jakarta and there was a giant stage with live music playing. We were the only team of foreigners participating and thus, drew quite a crowd.

While our team didn’t quite make it to the top, we felt victorious as none of us ended up in the hospital.

More photos at http://picasaweb.google.co.id/howieandhaviva/PanjangPinang/

HighEnd Is Officially Launched

Last night was the gala launch of our magazines. Actually, there was no mention of Haviva's magazine, just mine, but I let her come as my date. Yes, we've already published 5 issues, but I guess those didn't count.

The event was held at one of the top hotels in town and the highlight was a fashion show featuring "masterpieces" designed by 30 top designers specifically for the occasion. Haviva wore a lovely Florence Liem dress and shoes by Yongy Komaldi (who she's posing with). I wore a jacket designed by Lewi Saluadji.

Despite being held on Indonesia's Independence Day (and a long weekend) turnout was quite good and the night was a sucess, at least as far as we could tell.