Our new home

This is the outside of our house, Taman Malabar No. 11. Below are shots of my cozy little space and the soccer that's regularly played across the street.











Our rooms feels very dorm-ish, with a mix of about 10 other undergrad and grad students renting space. Doors are always open, the "dudes" here are incredibly friendly.. whether that's a dorm thing, an Indonesian culture thing, or just a stoked to have American chicks living next door thing, we're not sure. Thankfully, our friends a few doors down have a TV and already welcomed us to watch Friday's USA England match with them. I think I've asked nearly everyone I've met where the World Cup games will be shown, but with a 1:30am start time here and an extremely minimal bar scene, no one seems to have a solid answer. Hallelujah for the dudes. Being in college has its perks sometimes.

We're situated right in the heart of Bogor (as far as we can tell), across the street from the Botantical Gardens - Kebun Raya - fun fact it is the only site Georgie W. visited in the country when he dropped by in 2006. We're five minutes walk from work/campus and extremely close to a large Western style mall, Botani Square. Despite its conveniences, I'm heavily conflicted about its presence here. Thankfully we're uncovering many of the more authentic and traditional spots nearby, and there are plenty of gems!

Lessons learned in first few days:

-Bring umbrella at all times - when it rains it freaking pours here. Bogor is said to average 322 thunderstorms a year. Yes, 88% of the time you can expect a downpour. Through Saturday we were 3/3 and as I write Sunday evening looks poised for the same.

-Be prepared to be stared at. Sometimes its an expression of excited curiosity, other times not as friendly, but clearly, we are different. In our tours of town and the Kebun Raya yesterday, Dan and I in total had six different people ask to take pictures with us. Not a joke.

-Being cautious about health and food safety is paying off. It seems the three of us are adjusting well. And Em, if you're reading, I have heeded your advice and am taking my vitamins daily :)

-Life's activities fall with the sunlight: the action starts early in the morning and ends early in the evening. The lack of nightlife is quite a contrast to my last eight years in New York, but a welcome one. Certainly the opportunity to snag more sleep and take advantage of a simpler, slower pace.