2 is easy, 3 is hard, and things I forgot to mention...

I enjoy traveling. I have always felt sorry for those who want to see the world and, due to their financial circumstances, are unable to. I've also stared ponderously at those who proudly declare they've never left their state, or their part of the country, or even the US. I mean, if you like homogeneity, lack of cultural experiences, and exposure to ideas other than those you already have, then, okay, I guess I see why you are proud of your lack of traveling. Other than that.... HUH!??

There's an interesting thing about traveling, though. When I was in college, I had plans for spring break that, to make a long story short, fell through. I ended up taking a week long cruise by myself. Met some great people, some not so great people and, well, a stalker. Anyway, I discovered something I am rediscovering in week three of my trip. All the experiences you have are hollow when they are experienced alone. I can do a two week business trip any time of the year without blinking. After two weekends away from the family, three weeks from seeing familiar faces, it gets a little tougher. Two is easy, three is hard.

Things I forgot to mention....

1) The Bahasa language is interesting. I've been told it's very easy to learn. I'm finding that to be true, though I am finding it much harder to pronounce. For example, "hari ini" (hah - ree, ee - nee), literally, means "day here", or "today". "Wareng Nasi" (wah-rung nah-see) literally translated means "Shop rice". Rice is an integral part of the diet here. I've been told that a traditional Indonesian doesn't consider it a meal unless they have eaten rice. "Wareng Nasi" - Shop Rice - is the Bahasa word for "Restaurant".

2) I bought a DVD player on Saturday when I was out touring Kemang. The hotel, unlike the Ritz, did not have a DVD player in the room. I rented one for two days last weekend - at $10/day. I bought one this weekend - for $20. It was an interesting experience. I went to "Electronic City" in south Jakarta. I walked in and initially thought it was like any other electronics store - large screen TV's, appliances, computers. Then I started looking for the DVD players...and found more TV's, more appliances. Turns out, the store was not arranged by product, but by brand. LG in one area, HP in another, Sony in another. Fits perfectly with the book I finished - "A Perfect Mess". I'm sure organizing by brand makes sense to some one...but it sure made finding a DVD player impossible. I finally bought a local brand called "Innova" - when it plays a DVD, it vibrates...enough to shake the dresser.

3) Man, this one is hard to write. (For the slow ones, read the title again).

4) I probably should have skipped to Five...if I am to believe the Chinese. Indonesia, like most of SE Asia, is heavily influenced by China - the region's 800 pound (400 KG) gorilla. In China, the word for the number four sounds very much like their word for death. So, my hotel, like all the hotels, apartments, addresses, streets, etc in China, doesn't have a floor that ends in 4. No 4, 14, 24, etc. I haven't seen if any of the rooms end in 4. We also don't have a 13th floor. Apparently the West is influential, too.

5) Will Smith is a great actor who does great movies. One of the movies I bought is "7 Pounds". I had seen a few ads for it back in the States and, it looked interesting. It was an absolutely great movie. Slower moving than I anticipated, but overall great. Highly recommended.

6) I had lunch today with one of the managers who will be working for me. He asked me how many "Pembantu" (Pum-bahn-too) - house help - we would have. I told him it was up to my wife. He said he had two - one to clean, one to watch the kids - both of whom live with him. He said that's the way of life here. If you have kids, you have at least one pembantu, usually two. It's very surprising to me. We'll see how it works for me.