Life in Jakarta for an American living as I am is often more frustrating than you could possible imagine. Many things are not just different, but in many ways completely backwards from life as I normally know it…. Add to this, attempting to do this at the local salary level and not that of a normal American Ex Pat l, it makes for a very hard life at times… After much frustration attempting to make it here in Jakarta, as of just recently I have been able to solve some very key problems…...

It finally dawned on me the other day just what Indonesia is.... In a word, it is basically a cheap copy! Let me explain. To understand, you'd really have to spend some time here, but I'll do the best I can to shed some light into why I have come to this conclusion. For awhile, when I first moved here, I spent a bit of time at a local Cafe/Coffee Shop. It is modeled after a little French Cafe, and in fact makes a good Cafe Latte (makes a terrible espresso...but we'll get into the r...

Many people ask me why I did it. Why I left the states to live in a third world country. At third word pay. As I watch the old man squat by the side of the street, washing the plate he will soon serve me my Kwea Tau Korging on, I have to pause and ask myself the same question, yet, strangely, while I know the sanitation may leave a lot to be desired, his food is good. I take the offered plate of noodles, pay him his 1000 rupees (roughly 10 cents) and eat my meal slowly, all the while...

Today's story I'll call "Violating Rule Number One for Living in a Foreign Country" When I moved to live in Italy, I created a set of rules for living that helped me to survive...the first of which went something like "When getting involved with a local girl that does not speak your language, make sure she does not have a boy friend as big as the countries National Monument" The other night, a girl that lived in my "Kost" (a sort of rooming house in Indonesia) had seen me sett...

Food in Jakarta is one of the wonders of living here, and one of the things that allows me to keep my sanity! The other day, a friend from the office was helping m find a place to stay, and as the evening wore on, it was time to have dinner. The people at my office have taken it upon themselves to "introduce" me to the varied and strange food offerings here in this country...and trust me, it covers a wide gambit! So, to start today’s adventure, I shall call it.... "Do you want th...

Good Morning! I guess I need to start my blog with a bit of an explanation. See, I'm an American ExPat now living and working in Indonesia...but with a twist. I'm doing it on a local Indonesian salary! Let me clarify...most Americans working here come here because the local economy is SO low, that when making a normal ExPat salary they can live like Kings...living is spacious homes, have servants at there beck and call...and generally live the "Good Life" at a fraction of the cost of li...