Jogja: Motorcycle Romance

The train to Yogyakarta (“Jogja” for short), was a breeze (but not as breezy? lol) compared to the ferry. We sang Bob Marley songs with our new friend Didit, and got at least an hour’s worth of Indonesian lessons from the whole compartment. One of the best things about Indonesia is that the people are very friendly and involved. If you ask one person a question, two or three more people are likely to join in and help you figure out the answer. Even if don't speak Indonesian and then have no idea what the answer means! The view on this stretch was breathtaking, with small villages tucked in the countryside and miles of rainforest, rivers and rice patties. The trip would have been perfect if Marco hadn’t convinced me the “Beef Steak” we at in the Café Car was probably rat. Thank Marco. Now I can never eat beefsteak again.

We reached Jogja late that night, but easily found our host at a McDonals in a fancy, modern mall. I never thought I’d say this, but it was actually nice to eat French Fries and a burger. A little taste of home. It’s weird how a regular McDonalds feels like a fancy restaurant after eating from carts on the street and boxes on the train for a week.

We were Irfand’s first couchsurfers, and he brought along two of his friends a moral support to meet us. (For those of you who don't know, couchsurfing is a website for travelers to connect and find places to sleep. It's an amazing way to meet awesome open-minded people and I highly recommend it). We understood that he was giving us a ride home rather than taking the bus. What got lost in translating is that the ride was on the back of his moped. Imagine our surprise when he told us to hop on, luggage and all! After the first minute of gripping onto Irfand for dear life and trying not to think about all the statistics I heard about mopeds at the Fulbright orientation, it was a wonderfully freeing way to see the city at night. I completely fell in love with motorbikes and I'm now irreversibly addicted to zooming through Southeast Asia with the warm night breeze whipping through my hair. I'm pretty sure my mother will not approve of this newfound motorcycle romance. But it's too late. I'm in love. 

We wound through narrow streets and residential neighborhoods far from the tourist areas. Irfand lives in a small room tucked into a tiny urban neighborhood and slept on a blanket on the floor so we could have a bed. The three of us took up the entire floor space, and it was incredibly humbling to receive such generosity from a student with such a small space. He went above and beyond to make sure we got the right bus tickets and even called our next couchsurfing host Martin to make sure we knew how to get there. The two of them spent so much time on the phone organizing our transport, that they have gotten to know each other and decided to travel together! Couchsurfing is so much more than saving $10 on a hostel. Getting to know Irfand and having him as our host completely changed our experience in Jogja. We got to see student life in Indonesia, and felt deeply enriched by our cultural exchange with him. Oh and I made a random video of us eating on the street with a band playing Beatles in the background. I sang along to the delight of the band and the dismay of Marco :P

Riding a Motorbike: Now I can die happy

We spent our one day in Jogja at the archeological site of the Prambanan Temples just outside of the city. Although the temples were beautiful and the history of the site was fascinating, the swarms of tourists and overpriced tickets made us even more grateful that the majority of our trip has been spent getting to know Southeast Asia through its people and its dirty and real neighborhoods rather than tourist sites filled with German retirees in visors and spoiled backpackers. It was quite a confidence boost to pose for a million pictures with random people though! 

Why did this woman want her kids to have a picture with us? I will never understand....

Fancy old Temple! Can you imagine this as your house/yard? Crazy