Right before we left we took one final picture. From left to right: Diggy, Sali, Chris, Michela, me, Alex, Brendan, Sr. Lisa, and Sr. Pat.Our 1st Time on Qatar Airways
Chris, Sali, Brendan, and I were able to travel together and after some fierce hugging at the Fumicino we began our journey. Our flights from Rome to Doha, Qatar, to Singapore to Jakarta were all booked with Qatar Airways. They were the nicest flights that any of us had been on (including Brendan who is quite the world traveler). To be fair though Quantas is a close second. But anyway, it was incredible – a ton of entertainment for the very long flights, enough space so you actually attempt to fall asleep, and we were begging them to stop giving us food toward the end of each flight. Also, we had a six hour layover in Doha and Qatar Airways paid for passengers with layovers over five hours to have a free meal. And all this was for economy class!
During our layover we were able to meet some interesting people, including Father Lorenzo. He is an Italian priest who was on the same flight from Rome to Doha with us. He has been in the Philippines completing seminary and being a missionary for a long time. He’s only thirty-three and has been there since he was nineteen! He shared some chocolate with us and got us each to share our faith stories. He had to run off to catch his 1 am flight (ours wasn’t until 2 am), but it was really nice to meet him.
My 1st Time in Asia
Brendan’s been as happy as I’ve ever seen him, but for me 3rd world Asia has been a bit of a shock. It’s like all the pictures and stories except vibrant and 3-D. Everyday completely new experiences remind me just how far away from the USA I am.
Brendan’s been great though! From the minute we pulled away from the airport in Jakarta, Indonesia, he’s been smiling because it reminded him so much of Calcutta: the crazy traffic, the heat, the people…
Of course there have been places that looked similar to home – the view from the Singapore airport was familiar and downtown Jakarta has many high rises and nicer areas. The afternoon that we were in Jakarta Sisters Mela and Joseline took us into the city center and up Monas. Monas is the equivalent of the Sears Tower or Hancock building in Chicago and has a great view of the city. Monas is their national monument – a giant white stand with 250 kilograms of pure gold on top in the shape of a flame (a little bit like an Olympic torch). We took an elevator up to the top and had a long look at giant Jakarta.
Monas, one of Indonesia’s national monuments.
Brendan admiring the view.
Here I am with one of the decorative fans that were given to us. And we needed them – Jakarta was hot!!!
Brendan showing Sister Mela how NOT to work the binoculars : )Our 1st Indonesian Wedding
The same day that we visited Monas, the four of us (Chris, Sali, Brendan, and I) went for a walk around the Canossian convent we had spent the night at. We visited the only Catholic Church in the area, which was nearby (Indonesia is predominantly Muslim). It was decorated beautifully with fresh flowers, but we didn’t think much of it. Then an older couple in traditional Indonesian wedding clothes came up to us. They explained that there was a wedding in an hour, they were the aunt and uncle of the groom, and that would love it if we came! So we said we would be back, left quickly, and bought some wedding gifts.
Here are the aunt and uncle of Chandra (the groom) with us at the entrance to the church.
The wedding was beautiful, including all the Indonesian wedding clothes that were our first taste of traditional South Pacific outfits. The wedding was at 10 in the morning and went for about an hour. Even at that time it was hot and they gave each of us a decorated fan so we could fan ourselves.The Mass was all in Bahasa Indonesian, but had a very similar format to Brendan and my wedding. The bride and groom, Boca and Chandra, had picked out different readings and different songs, but it was cool because many of the songs were in English, including “Here I Am, Lord” and “The Prayer.” So we were able to understand those at least : )
One thing that was different was that during the wedding the bride and groom knelt before each of their parents and the parents put their hands on each of their heads in turn in a blessing. Again, it was beautiful! We are starting to get used to being in cultures that focus less on being independent and more on family and community. These cultures seem to do a much better job at valuing parents and grandparents, which is something we can all strive for.
My 1st Bed Bugs
The next morning I woke up presented with many little gifts – bed bug bites all over my legs! They were behind my knees and around my ankles and itched like crazy! I told Brendan I must have been mosquito dinner, but he told me about bed bugs. I’d heard about bed bugs of course, but never experienced them in all their glory : )
We’ll just say it wasn’t fun, but it wasn’t so bad. I was a little paranoid to go to sleep the next night (even in a new bed in a new city), but it’s been about a week now and no new bed bug attacks including in our permanent beds in Dili. Yay!
Our 1st Wet Season Storm
From Jakarta we flew to Kupang, West Timor. We were picked up at 5:30 am to start the traveling process and we finally made it to Kupang around 1 pm.
The whole flight was over hundreds of tiny islands that are part of Indonesia. That’s when it started to become real that we are going to be living on an island for a year! And the weather on the flight was great for sight-seeing until the very end when we ran into a thunderstorm. It was our first storm of the many that occur almost daily here in the wet season.
It was pouring when we landed and had to leave the plane and run for the airport. Mandala Airlines was actually very nice and gave big umbrellas to passengers so we could make it inside. Brendan and I chose to share one, but we still got hit by some rain – but it was like Brendan had said about Indian rain – it’s warm!!!
I love playing in the rain, but the problem is always that you get cold during or after. Here that problem is solved! But, to be fair, other problems do come with daily torrential rains. Anyway, it was an interesting welcome to West Timor and one more big sign that we are no longer in Iowa.
The view out the airplane window when we landed in Kupang.
All wet after sprinting from the Kupang airport to the car with the Sisters.Alright, take a break, and come back tomorrow to read more about our trip to East Timor!
Love,
Rachel and Brendan
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