The borders had opened up many months earlier (late 2021?), but with the long list of everchanging rules to keep up with, I held on until recently when it’s about all gone before planning a trip back home 😄. With those months of waiting, Mom really wanted me to stay for longer, so I took a good two months off to spend here at home.
But so familiar feel! 😄
Oddly, it didn’t feel like it’s been too long since I’m back, as in things still look and feel quite recent and very familiar, like I was here just last week. Except of course, a few things I would note, such as the strangely more restricted way of life due to covid e.g., mask indoors and QR code check-in to places (even on landing at the airport, it’s right there for me to scan already). Way stricter than Australia. People even wear mask outdoors, funny how we are indeed habitual creatures ~ I’m impressed how widespread the mask wearing is outdoors, given the weather!
The other familiar thing I’m more acquainted with this time is that the roads are mostly built for cars, not pedestrians or cyclists. More acquainted because one of the good habits my family have developed during covid was walking outdoors (though the air isn’t as clear, but then they wear masks remember? Perhaps not a bad thing then), so now I walk with my Mom on some days and cycle on my own on others.
Even with driving, I feel at home with the roads and ways of driving here, an useful skill to keep that makes me quite independent to get around places on my own. Initially, I wanted to renew my lapsed Indo driver licence so I could drive myself to a church that Sun. My bro said, ‘It’s ok, just drive, the police don’t work on Sundays here.’ (Joking 😄) But good thing we realised I could just use my Australian driver licence anyway!
Home and family 🏠
My very cute nephew has changed quite a bit but his cuteness and sweetness remain. I had headaches the first few days here and I told him, ‘I think I need a massage.’
He replied, ‘I will massage you!’ And so he did massage my head, and two seconds later he said, ‘Is it better now??’
I said, ‘.. not yet?’
He said, ‘I will continue to massage you.’
And a few seconds later, he checked again if I’m feeling better. I told him I supposed a little bit so. He said, ‘I will continue to massage you.’ He’s so cute. 🤣
He also said, ‘today is my lucky day, because you come home for 2 months.’ Awww…. 🥹
My brother and sis-in-law picked up golf during covid too, and now they encouraged me to pick it up too as they find it so enjoyable. So we went to the driving range. It’s quite a relaxing place to chill too, so we sometimes ask some other cousins to come along. We also asked my nephew, ‘Do you want to go to the golf with us?’
He answered, ‘.. Are there butterflies there?’ Because all he’s interested in is to catch some bugs to bring home as his pets. Still the same animal lover as he was, but the good thing is he’s not attached to them in a way that will inordinately impact him. When he told me about his past pets and how some butterflies died, I asked him what then?
He said, ‘flush down the toilet.’ That’s about it, then he’ll find new ones 🤣
If anything, it’s my maid who’s very attached to animals, in her case cats. I’ve forgotten how many kitties there are in this country, they’re literally E.V.E.R.Y.W.H.E.R.E! Being a Muslim country, most of the populations have a distaste towards dogs (unlike western countries where they’re considered family). In fact, here you call people ‘dogs’ as like swear words. Instead, they love cats. There are many stray cats everywhere, I spotted at least 15 different cats during my first 18 holes game here at the golf course! If this nation is ever gonna be taken over by an animal, it will be cats for sure! 😸😸😸
Likewise around our neighbourhood. There’s a particular kitten that come around to our porch every day, as my maid keeps feeding it. One morning, she took a piece of cake, brought to kitchen, heat it up on the stove before she passed it to the kitty. Before handing over the warm cake to the cat, she blew on it for a bit (afraid it’s too hot for the cat) before giving it to the very lucky cat 😸! My mom who witnessed it watched quietly and told us afterwards hahahaa.
As one of my cousins got married, many of the extended family came back and I’ve been able to meet them. One great news is that this cousin is now attending a pressy church in Jakarta (she came to Christianity recently, the last time I met her she wasn’t yet a Christian). It’s also a wonderful time meeting the little ones, some for the first time!
Many more could be said, but that’s for a light start about this trip home! 🙂