Arrival

We landed almost an hour earlier than expected, which was great, as I hadn't been thrilled at the idea of arriving after 9pm.

I felt well rested and stress free, and walked comfortably to immigration to buy my tourist visa. - This can only be bought when you get to Indonesia, costs $25 US, and is valid for 30 days. If you wish to stay longer than this, you need to apply for a fuller visa in your home country.

I had wondered if there would be long queues? Would they give change in US? Would where I need to go be clearly marked? etc. It was in fact really easy and straight forward, just as the lady I had 'happened' to meet up with the Thursday before I left said it would be. She had gone through the process in the summer and helped made sense of the email instructions I had received from the people I would be staying with.

On coming out into the arrivals area, I looked for the sign with my name on it. A taxi had been booked for me, and someone should have be holding up my name. I was gutted as I didn't see any sign! I confess my disappointment was more about not having that TV type experience (I KNOW, Sad!), than worrying about where my taxi was.

Trying to ignore all the people vying for my attention, I headed off to the right, looking for this taxi company, who I had been told were either Goldenbird, Silverbird or Bluebird! - As a side note, if you are in Indonesia and need to hail a taxi, it is recommended that you go for either Silverbird or Bluebird. They are seen as more trustworthy, and will also usually have operators back at the base who will have enough English to help if you are having trouble explaining to the driver where you need to be.

I was just being led off by some man who had said he would help, when I heard someone call out my name! That was kinda cool, and was also a phew moment when I realised I had been heading out of the airport into the taxi free-for-all!

I sat back and just 'exhaled' when I got into the taxi, watching the night lights, and trying to comprehend that I was actually here, in Indonesia. Wow.

When we were almost at the address where I would be staying, the taxi driver did get a little confused. We couldn't find the right number, and my email instructions didn't seem to help. - It should be said, that it was not surprising, as it was a very long road, and for some unknown reason you can choose what number you want your house/building address to be, so the numbers aren't necessarily chronological! I tried to call my hosts for help and couldn't, as despite setting up my roaming, my mobile wasn't working as it should, but we got there in the end.

I got a warm, brief welcome from my host and stood in my lovely spacious room, tired, hot, not quite sure what time zone my body was on (= 3rd change) and feeling bad as I hadn't had small enough rupiah to give the expected and understood amount to the taxi driver as a tip. You see I paid for the journey at the airport kiosk and didn't think about getting smaller change. I really, really felt bad about this. Wages in Indonesia are really low and their economy is not in a great state, so the expected 3,000 rupiah would be nothing to me, but something to him.

As a side note, in terms of getting rupiah, it is wisest to get some before you go as there is no guarantee you will be able to get currency changed in the airport, particularly if you arrive late evening like myself. And though there are ATM machines, I was told there is no guarantee they will have money in them. Most places who sell currency will not have rupiah in stock, and so you will probably have to put in an order. I did so through the post office, putting in an order before 3pm one day, and able to pick it up after 2pm the next. You are unlikely to get anything smaller than a 10,000 note note, so once you arrive in Indonesia, it may be worth remembering to get some smaller notes as soon as you can.

Despite technically having lost a nights sleep, I was up till 2amish. I had decided I had to unpack there and then, and then repeatedly tried unsuccessfully to call home, as my phone was still playing up. I finally settled for sending a text and battling my frustration with thoughts of how amazing it was that I was really there, I went to bed thankful for my unexpected door to Asia.
(4 days consistency!)

Departure

Booking my flights
I booked my flights with Emirates, just booking the tickets was a journey in itself. Here's a bit from my journal:

"1.9.08 - Booked my flights, slightly freaked out, pretty OMG, what am I doing, bordering on stressed. Just the maze of finding flights, checking times, checking dates, changing times, changing dates. It's all a bit on top, but now it's done and I can't turn back! 2.9.08 - Worrying about the rest of the money, bordering on freaking out this morning about whether I've got airport right (saw email that said going to Java!). Phew, held breath as I checked travelling to Java on net! MALARIA HOT SPOTS! They say no, E says yes, HELLO, what am I supposed to do?"

All ready to go?
So I'd checked, re-checked and checked and re-checked again my flight details. I had also phoned ebooker, only to realise that it wasn't a typo, and I would be leaving Jakarta a day earlier than I thought I had booked for! I'd got some new travel insurance, had my immunisations and was basically ready to go. I then looked at the baggage allowance and thought: 'they can not be serious!' .

20kgs
My allowance was 20kgs, which is 44lbs. Even with my light-weight cases and a determined plan to pack light, I managed to leave for the airport with my cases weighing a total of 26kgs. My sister-in-law reckoned it would be fine. I was not convinced, but had to decide whether to keep stressing myself into a melt down or pray and hope it all worked out. - I opted for the latter, but still felt slightly apprehensive during the car journey to the Gatwick.

Check-in/departure lounge
As I stood in the check-in queue my slight apprehension began to grow into a foregone conclusion. I watched as even the nice, friendly looking attendant, had people opening up luggage, putting lap-tops into hand luggage, and sent off to re-pack. I knew this was going to happen to me.

When my turn came, I approached with my brightest smile and my brother and Father both stepped forward with me. The thought did cross my mind, that despite the smiles we could look quite intimidating. Anyway, I was right, the nice, friendly looking attendant did say I had to get the weight down, it wasn't all bad though, as she said she could accept 23kgs.

So off we went to re-pack, I was glad I had family to take some of my stuff back and laughingly calm as I opened up my cases. It was also comical to see that my cousin's tip for putting airport staff off unnecessarily searching your case, was now on show for anyone close by.

If anyone was looking, I'm sure they thought the sight of us was funny, and when we began weighing the padlocks, I thought it couldn't get any funnier. I mean we had pared down my contents to almost a ridiculous amount in one of the cases, and as I said were weighing padlocks! Word of advice, if you are borrowing cases from others, make sure they are actually light-weight.

By the way, it did get funnier...

Michelin Woman
When I exclaimed that there was practically nothing left, my sis-in-law said: "put some clothes on!" It was another 'you can't be serious!' moment, but in chipped the others in wholehearted agreement, so after I got through check-in, I nipped into the ladies and came out bigger than I went in. My brother lovingly said: "it's the Michelin woman!" and by the time I got to the departure lounge, I was sweating buckets from my 3 tops and 2 trousers combination!

After taking a few minutes to cool down, and eating a sandwich I hadn't had a chance to eat, I decided that T-mobile wouldn't get all my free text allowance. So I sent texts to practically everyone in my phone and told them the about my check-in experience. From the responses I got, I had visions of my friends and in some cases their families enjoying a good laughing.

The Emirates Experience
It was my first time flying with Emirates and I would definitely do it again. One of the things I had heard about them was that they were the best economy class, and I understood why once I stepped on the plane. The space, food, service and in-flight entertainment were great. I took a number of pictures of the food I ate, and I think Emirates rocks!

(3 days consistency!)

The Journey Begins

Before I begin
Firstly, after my first post yesterday, I did go and find my journal, and read emails I sent and received while I was away. I almost wanted to just type it all up there and then! If I had done, you would probably experience information overload, so I sated my desire to type by starting a new blog, 'The Last Pages'. - Check it out and let me know what you think. The Last Pages

So, the journey begins
It all started with an email asking me if I was still interested in opportunities overseas. It was really interesting timing, as I was making decisions about work and new directions. So I replied with more than a little interest, and also no little intrigue, which continued as I saw things work out in an amazing way.

I ended up booking my flight less than two weeks before I was due to arrive and had a month away that provided laughs, learning, new friendships, new challenges, and the potential for more.

Hopefully I will be able to share some of this journey with you in a way that makes sense, resonates, makes you laugh, and maybe even inspires.

Enjoy!
(ps - 2 days consistency)

A December Day

So... I am sat at home just whiling away the time, wondering if I will actually get up and tidy my room which has become my nemesis, and absent-mindedly not watching the TV.

It then crossed my mind that it seemed a perfect time to begin my life as a blogger. I have been intending to do this for a long while. A testament to that fact was logging in to see I had a post called Asia Travels. I laughed out loud as I obviously meant to document my time away in September and never got any further!

As I'm typing I'm actually wondering if that title is actually the title of my entire blog. - I can see it in the top left-hand corner and so will this randomness end up going under that title or will a new one appear. - I am a total beginner to this world, so bound to make a few mistakes!

I have also considered getting up to find the journal I semi-kept while I was away. Maybe I can write from a retrospective point of view?

I also think the motivation of being able to look back and say I have done something constructive today, was an enticing inducement to begin typing.

So there it is, my first entry, to my first blog. Possibly forgettable to any who read it, but for me, a hopeful first step towards consistency in this area.

Hope whatever you are doing this December day, you are enjoying it!