Easter Break, Nice and Easy

Hannah being hugged by an elephant

Kayla looking a little "unsure" about being this close

Ben said, "I want one of these for a little brother!"

Now that's what I call GREEN

Great early-morning moments with Kayla

As mountain villas go...this one ain't bad

We had to bring our own game of Twister.
Can you believe it? A villa without it's own game of Twister?

Lots of small, easy stuff for us this year. We started off with a day trip to the beach (Anyer) along with 3 other school families. It's about a 2-hour drive to get there. A hotel with a pool is happy to rent a "day pass" for about 2 dollars a person which allows us to use the pool and enjoy the beach. Boogie boards rent for $1.50. It's really quite inexpensive so, of course, I'm all for that. We pack our lunches to be even cheaper. Anyway, that was how we started our break.

Next up was a trip to Jakarta's version of Disneyworld. Sorry I left the camera in the car. You'll just have to imagine the whirling teacups, Dumbo rides, 4-D movie/ride with the moving, lurching seats to go with the movie, etc. Kayla loved it. Ben and Hannah were convinced they wouldn't so we went without them. They were probably right that it was more of a little kids and old parents' park. And again, things are relatively cheap, so that makes me glad. A full-day pass is $13.00. Inside, meals are still in the 4-5 dollar range. If you were at a real Disneyworld you could hardly get a Coke for $4.00.

We also just finished another trip to Puncak, sort of a mountain escape. By mountain, I guess I mean 5,000 feet at the most. It does get cool at night which is something we never get in Jakarta. Attached pictures are from the home we stay at in Puncak as well as the Safari Park nearby. Brings back good memories of Kenya. Tomorrow it's ice skating. Today it's a movie. Oh, and a few rounds of (bad) golf in between times.

Weekend Action and Inaction

Not-quite the Winter Olympics

Nothing like an Indonesian Mall

Balcony of Mishap for Kitty #1

Hannah and two pets that are still alive this week

Kitty #1 and Kitty #2....they don't get names until we know they are going to survive

I'm going to try and do better at this blog stuff. One of my hangups is that I like to include pictures on the things I write about but then I forget to take the camera or I take it and the pictures turn out lousy or the battery or something... And then I don't feel like writing if I don't have good pictures. Who wants to read anything without pictures?

Speaking of reading. Kayla is the new reader in our family. (Wish I had taken some pictures this morning of Rebecca teaching her to read!) She's using the exact same "teaching" book that she used with Rebekah Joy, Ben, and Hannah. It's fun to watch and listen as Kayla sounds out very slowly the letters and makes them into words. The amazing part of it is remembering the other kids learning on and stumbling over the very same words. There's something wonderfully encompassing? full circle? magical? nostagic?...not sure what the right word is but it's easy to close my eyes and picture any of the other kids sitting there doing the same thing 10 or 15 years ago.

Usually we go to church on Sunday morning. I think I mentioned that we've started attending in Jakarta. I'll definitely (maybe) remember to take the camera to church next week. On the last Sunday of the month, though, they have several areas of Jakarta that are "car free" so driving to church is a nightmare. The good news is that we can go on Saturday night which we did last night. That leaves all day Sunday for different activities. This morning, that meant Kayla and Rebecca going ice skating. If the download button works right, photos should be attached.

They can skate for two hours and I think it is only about $4.00 each. I just walk around the mall while they skate. Hannah stayed home to take care of her new pets (again, if the download stuff is working you should see a couple of rabbits). Our pets more or less rotate in and out of our family. The list of casualties and burials so far this year include a couple of hamsters, a couple of guinie pigs, a bird, and a rabbit. Several fish, too, but do they really count as pets? The new family members (future cusualties) include two more rabbits, a couple of cats, turtle, and maybe a few others.

One of the cats almost took his own life a few weeks ago. A peaceful Sunday morning coffee in the downstairs sofa was rudely interrupted by a cat falling from the upstairs hallway (photos included, I hope). Contrary to folk lore, cats do not always land on their feet. This one smacked on his back and head and lay motionless for several minutes. While I looked for the shovel Rebecca said, "Hey, I think it might still be alive." I began picturing expensive vet bills and a paralyzed cat we'd need to take care for the next several years. I hoped she was wrong.

Wonder of wonders, though, the cat did begin moving. Then it began crawling and making an awful noise. My nightmare was unfolding. But miracle of miracles the thing recovered over the next several hours and within a couple days it was running around again...only to fall from the balcony once again. It needed less time to recover from its second fall and to my knowledge that's been it. Lesson learned.

And speaking of lessons learned...Ben has been hating the IB studying but he has been working harder than I have ever seen him work in my life. And it's finally paying off. He received a couple of perfect papers recently and is definitely getting the hang of this thing. Three tests last Friday went OK and I'm sure he'll do well on the two he has tomorrow. He is speaking three times more (by far!) Indonesian now then he did after two years of Spanish.

I speak less Indonesian now then when I came. Besided being able to say "good morning" when I came, I could also count to ten. I don't even remember what "one" is now...but I can still say good morning.

The Loooooong Holidays Are Almost Over

Nativity set from Bethlehem

Reading to Kayla from a travel book really puts her to sleep

Didn't understand the words, the music was uncommon, and the sights a bit strange

Love the pointy hats!

I need a shave and I have bad breath...other than that I'm beautiful

Not quite the Mara but Tamin Safari is OK

What to do with three weeks of vacation time and not a lot of extra cash?

Golf (poorly).

Spend a day at the coast.

Take an 8-hour train to Yogyakarta. (More about Yogya, in a bit)

Take a 6-hour flight back to Jakarta. It's not that the trains are so fast or the jets are so slow. It's just that delayed flights and rain and who knows what else had us sitting and sitting and sitting at the airport.

Golf (really poorly).

Spend a day at Waterbom. Check earlier posts to see what this is all about. We must have liked it since we did it again. Also did some ice skating a day earlier.

Golf (really, really very poorly stinky bad).

Visit Puncak, including the almost-Masai Mara-like animal safari. (More on that in just a bit, too). Shop at the outlet stores.

Golf (best round ever...must have been the new Outlet clothes).

And there you have it. Christmas in Indonesia. I love warm, green Christmases.

Back to Yogya. Yes, it looks a little bit like I'm trying to write Yogi Bear. Pronounced Jogja. The train ride was great. Gave us a chance to see the countryside. We spent four days there visiting famous places like Borobudur. I won't bore you with the history but a quick Google search will satisfy any of you who are intrigued by the photos. On a scale of 1-10 of excellent places to see I'd say Borobudur rates about a 6. The Masai Mara is a 10. So is Petra in Jordan. The Pyramids are a 7. Give Jerusalem a 7, too. Most of Bolivia is an 8, some of it (like Cerro Rico and Lake Titicaca are a 9). The Frosty Boy in Spring Arbor is about a 4. Lime Lake, a 3 though it used to be a 5 back in the days...

Puncak is another story. Lots of it reminded us of the tea fields driving up to Tigoni. Some was like Jarabacoa in the Dominican Republic. Beautiful green hills and crisp cool air. About a half hour from Puncak is a safari place that really had some good animals and shows. Brought back good memories of the Mara which is, I think, my favorite place on earth. We stayed at a "mountain villa" owned by one of the families that helped begin our school here in Indonesia. Another family from school along with this teacher's mom and dad who were visiting stayed there with us. Great time relaxing, playing games in the evening. And then it happened. I wasn't expecting it. It took me completely by shock. I only went along to be sociable but there I was, in an outlet store. I began seeing several "must have" golf polo shirts. The kind with the Calvin Kline embroidered thingy. Polo. Calloway. All these good things that had these teeny weeny defects (reminded me of me!). So, I shopped until all the women and girls left me and went to other shops. And then, when they were all shopped out they came back and made me stop shopping. But I had my haul of 3 shorts, 3 polo shirts, and a nifty hat all for the grade total of $32.00.

And so today when we rushed back to Jakarta from Puncak (left at 5:15 am) I was excited to get back onto the golf course and try out my new clothes. They worked great. You know, when you look like a golfer you start thinking like a golfer. The next thing you know I finished with a 44 and a 47.

Other items in the news: Hannah is the new owner of 4 new pets and a set of braces. She got them on just before we left for Puncak. In a month the dentist will decide whether or not four teeth need to be pulled. Rebecca is the new owner of yards and yards of batik fabric and 3 little Bonsai-type trees we bought while in Puncak. Photos to come in the next few days. Ben spent most of Christmas break playing guitar and playing Playstation. He says now that his brain has completely vegged out, he'll be able to work hard in school. I'm off to Australia on Wednesday for a week for an IB workshop. I'll have some more updates then. Thanks for reading.

A Bit of Style

Wearing a school uniform is really not that bad...

at least when it looks like this

For the past few weeks we celebrated Indonesian culture at school. It culminated with a an day-long parade of costumes and dance and food. Some of the girls' traditional dress was really stunning. After I spent the day dressed with such pomp and dignity I was reluctant to take it off.

We have made it successfully through Kayla's and Hannah's birthdays. Connected to those two events has been the addition of two fish and a hamster. Pictures to be added as soon as we're sure they will survive. We don't have a particularly strong history of pets lasting too long. Hamsters don't like to be dropped and fish don't enjoy murky, green water. We'll see.

I've missed the last two weeks of golf due to rain. That has really tested my often said phrase, "I never get tired of rain." Usually I don't. I love rain. I love thunder and lightening. That reminds me. I should take a picture of the tree 50 feet from our house that was struck by lightening last week. Incredible. Took off a huge limb, ripped a 30-foot long barkless patch, and sent debris flying onto rooftops and all over the street.

Last night (Friday afternoon and then into the evening) we held a senior school retreat for 25 teachers who have leadership responsibilities in the MS an HS. Subject lead teachers and grade level lead teachers. Of course you can't just have meetings and discussion all afternoon...you need a break for dinner, hence the pictures of dessert and the tables. A nice bit of style, don't you agree.

Thanks for reading.

There you saw it...the Mercers playing their instruments of choice. Kayla, sporting the new braidless hairstyle, has begun taking piano lessons. She actually likes singing even more than playing the piano. Both are done well.

Hannah also started on the piano but has been playing the saxaphone and flute at school. She was doing so well on the saxaphone that they asked her if she would play the baritone sax. It sounds wonderful and she plays it very well...the only problem is lugging back and forth to school.

Ben continues to love playing the guitar. He actually sounds pretty good and very loud as he imitates Jimi Hendrix and Led Zepplan and Paul McCartney.

And that's me, playing the CD Player. I'm OK. I hit the wrong buttons quite a bit when I'm not wearing my glasses. Most of the time I can hit "play" on the very first try.

Church, Picnics, and Trick or Treat

The first few weeks we were here we visited several different churches. Papa Bear thought some were too far to drive. Mama Bear thought some were too loud. Baby Bear thought some didn't serve good snacks. And all the Bears were confused when some didn't speak their brand of Bear-talk. A couple months ago a new church plant started and they were using our school's campus. That certainly was close enough for Papa Bear...a 1-minute car drive is just right. So that's what we now do on Sunday mornings.

I should back up and say that freedom of worship, at least in Jakarta, has been a real blessing. Indonesia is unfortunately usually pronounced this way: Indonesia-the-world's-largest-Muslim-population. It's one long word with emphasis on largest Muslim population and a long silence afterwards. It's almost like a warning: expect the worst, expect extremists. It has been surprising how casual and relaxed Jakarta has been.

Today walking around the mall I tried to estimate the number of women who wore even a basic head covering/scarf. It was around 20%. The population is 90% Muslim. And of the 20% who wear a simple scarf, it is 0% who wear the full length burka-type covering. I can't recall ever seeing one here. Nairobi? Lots. Regularly at Village Market, especially on Sundays. A crowd of burka-clad women wasn't even a head-turner to in Kenya.

So, it has been encouraging to have a wide choice of churches. It is encouraging to work in a school that is very clear in its Christian foundation and purpose.

The particular church we have been attending is a recent church-plant from Ann Arbor, Michigan. It was started by a group of Korean-Americans who moved here together. They have a web site (Harvest Mission Community Church) http://www.hmcc.net/ if you are interested in seeing what kind of a church it is. The pictures I've included are from the church picnic and games last Sunday.

This week, Saturday, many of the ex-pats from SPH and who have little kids got together to keep that great American tradition of Trick or Treat alive. Again, enjoy the pictures.

A Friend From Kenya!

Not only did the conclusion of my 1,000 Island field trip mean I was no longer responsible for 25 seniors, it meant that on my way home from the pier I would drive to the airport and pick up our good friend, Kibathi. Between business in Dubai and business in Singapore, he was able to squeeze in four days to see us in Indonesia. Reconnecting with Kenyan friends brings back Kenyan memories which was very good. Kenya was a great time in our lives. Thankfully we enjoyed every minute there so we didn't need to leave with any regrets...only good memories.

If in the future at some point we can leave Indonesia with the same kind of good memories and good feelings we had when we left Kenya or Florida or Bolivia or the Dominican Republic or Michigan...well, we will be very fortunate and very happy.

Thank you, Kibathi, for a great visit. I hope you are the first of many friends and family. Kayla wants to make sure everyone knows she took the picture of Rebecca, Kibathi, and me.