Cup of Java!

Jakarta- from the back seat of my cab!

There is not only a lot of coffee here, but a lot of mosquitoes as well. They've had a Thanksgiving feast on my legs the last two nights. Travel advice in SE Asia- only book a bed where they have mosquito nets!

This isn't my first time to Indonesia. It is, however, my first time to this island- Java. Which so far is very different from my experience in Bali, Indonesia. Jakarta, the capital city, is crazy busy. Cab rides feel like a video game. Imagine riding passenger in car in Mario Kart, it's nuts! Motorcycles flood the streets and are the bravest souls I've ever seen on two wheels as they constantly weaving in and around traffic. There are also a million "taxsis" (taxis), quite a few buses, and pedestrians in motion. Yup pedestrians. There are few designated crosswalks, so the last few days I've been perfecting my Indonesian jaywalking, it's scary! There are also a plethora of Banjaj (pronounced 'Banjai') which I find fascinating in a rustic sort way.






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Jakarta has been a cool place to stop in and see a few things and I did meet some really nice people, but I what I'm really looking forward to is the much talked about city 'Yogyakarta' which I'm headed to tonight in a mini van "with air con". Total travel time: 12 hours.

(Here are some friends I met along the way: Rivero from Jakarta, and Marie from Toronto!)

Yogya(Yogyakarta's nickname) is known for beautiful silver in all forms- jewelry, wall art, etc! I'm really excited to learn and watch these great artisans at work!

After I will go on a little adventure to Borobudur which described in my guide book at "Like Angkor Wat in Cambodia and Bagan in Myanmar, Java's Boroburur makes the rest of Southeast Asia's spectacular sites seem almost incidental. Looming out of a patchwork of bottle-green paddies and swaying palm tops, this colossal Buddhist relic is one of SE Asia's marvels, surviving Gunung Merapi's ash flows, terrorist bombs, and the wear and tear of million pairs of tourist flip-flops to remain as enigmatic and beautiful as it must have been 1200 years ago." !!!! I'm going to be sooo camera happy!

That's all to report for now! Off the the land (or city!) of SILVER and breath-taking views!!!