Jakarta Road Race Series 2011

The Jakarta road series event is a yearly Jakarta tradition that offers individual as well as family 5K and 2.5K races, aimed at raising money for local charities. The 5K races are held at 4 different locations: the British International School (BIS), the Jakarta International School (JIS), The International Sports Club of Indonesia (ISCI) and the Jakarta Ragunan Zoo.

        After placing third in my age category at the first 5k race at ISCI on January 30th, I had in fact no other choice but to register, along with fellow Jakarta Free Spirit team members to the March 27th race at the British International School and try to beat my time. 

BIS Jakarta

      At 6 a.m and only 20 minutes of driving west later, my friend Guillaume and I arrived in "Pondok Aren", a sub-district in the city of Tangerang, and were charmed by the green open spaces and the smell of grass (because smelling grass in Jakarta never happens, never). As I was walking toward the sign-in booth, I was immediately struck by a state-of-the-art campus. And looking at the brand new buildings and the amazing sports facilities (2 tennis courts, 1 soccer field, and an Olympic-size swimming pool) wondered if I might not be working for the wrong school after all. 

        The race started at 6.45 a.m. in 80F (31.1C) 66% humidity weather. As usual the run was a lot of fun: we ran through neighboring Kampungs filled with satay barbecue air and happily high-fived local children along the side of the road while running. I crossed the finishing line in 23min57sec and beat my time by 27 seconds. 

My friend Guillaume and I both scored first place in both the female and male 20-29 age category.... and even got to stand on the podium!

Love C-

22 Minutes of Fame (+ commercials)

House Hunters is an American reality series that currently airs episodes on the cable television network HGTV. It premiered in 1999 and has now expanded to the world with its House Hunters International series. The program follows individuals, couples, or families searching for a new home with the assistance of a realtor. Each broadcast features three properties, one of which is selected by the prospective buyer or renter. In the final moments of the show, the new owner provides a tour of the house, revealing what their new life is like in the new home.

                  A few months ago I woke up to a surprise in my inbox: it was an email from a TV show Associate Producer. The woman told me she had seen my blog online and thought I'd be a great fit for their House Hunters International Jakarta episode. I immediately jumped on the offer and thought what better way to document my life here than having a professional crew shoot it!  

After all, aren't 22 minutes of moving images worth a thousand words in a blog?

            Jakarta has a very distinct real estate market. To start: there are 2 categories of expats: the ones that can easily afford a 2000 USD + rent per month and the ones that can't. Being a teacher I fall into the second category which also means that my choices in terms of housing options are quite.... limited to say the least. The city has in fact a lot of both extremes: very rich and very poor... but very few of "in-betweens". 

So for us teachers finding a house in Jakarta is all word of mouth... although one might use the help of a broker if he's lucky to find one.  Other interesting facts about the real estate include: 

• one or two year rent to pay upfront
• included staff service (maid, gardener, guards) 
• and yearly arduous rent negotiation. 

We were blessed with an amazing crew!

         The 3 day movie shooting was a lot of fun! We tried to cover as much material as possible and got great shots of  my classroom at the French International school, the Mahakam animal market, the Kemang neighborhood,  the notorious heavy Jakarta traffic ... and much more. I'm very anxious to see how this will all translates on camera. Dates for the backstory shooting have been set and I cannot wait to be back in front of the camera. :)

Classroom scenes

Love C-

Top 10 Bali Fun Facts

         Call it whatever you want: tradition, custom, belief ...If you're from the States you might even call it "O.C.D** for what I know; The Balinese people have thousands of rituals to observe everyday and most of which are geared towards keeping all evil spirits as far away as possible from their house... and man, will they make sure it is done. 

Offerings to keep the boat safe from Bali to Gili.

There are way too many of them but to name a few....here is my top 10 list of stunning Bali facts:


1: Babies can not touch the ground before the age of 3 months, which means they require to be held and carried around at all times.
2: All babies are born with 4 brothers of equal importance: the blood, the foetus, the plancenta and amniotic fluid of the newborn
3:The "brothers" are to be taken care of all your life more particularly on a daily-basis until the age of 6.
4:The baby's placenta should be buried in the family compound as it is believed to be part of the newborn's soul and source of good luck and guidance.
5:Evil spirits cannot turn corners.
6:The kitchen is a powerful place where evil spirits can be neutralized.
7: The tooth-filling ceremony is executed for all adults by smoothing down their incisor and eye-tooth: the purpose is to cut the gluttonous, arrogant, and bluff which are owned by every human being. 
8:What happens in our life now, is the result of our past actions.
9:Good spirits are believed to reside in the mountains, whereas the seas are home to demons and ogres.
10:A newborn baby is most likely the reincarnation of a family ancestor.

**OCD is a type of anxiety. Kids with OCD worry a lot. Sometimes they feel afraid that bad things could possibly happen to them, sometimes they feel that something bad could happen to people they love, or sometimes they feel like they have to get things "just right" and have to check to make sure.

TIME 4 MOM

"When we weren't scratching each other's eyes out, we were making each other laugh harder than anyone else could."

Lucie Arnaz, daughter of Lucille Ball

Feb 19th 2011, JAKARTA SOEKARNO-HATTA International Airport - Here I was, the only white woman standing among hundreds of Indonesian drivers, mothers and children, waiting for the most important person in my life: my mom. 

        One of the many perks of being a teacher in the French Education System is the glorious, divine, extraordinary 16 week paid vacation... that's right you read it: 16. Now, one of the many perks of being a teacher in the French Education System in Indonesia is the cheap airfare to places like Bali, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Malaysia. And I won't lie: having awesome vacation to look forward to is part of how I'm able see Jakarta has a livable city. 

          For my mom's first time in Indonesia I had planned the following itinerary: a couple introductory days in Jakarta followed by 3 almost excessively relaxing days in Amed, Bali, a 4 day shopping spree in Ubud completed by 4 exceptional days on Gili Air, an island part of the big Island of Lombok. The actual unwinding of the plan exceeded my expectations: we had more fun than I could have ever hoped for.

           I consider myself very lucky and privileged to have spent such quality time with my mom. Although her leaving Jakarta resulted in an intense though brief desolation , I now feel recharged and reenergized... 

6 more weeks until Spring break ;).

 Love C-.