Checking out Ika’s place in Semarang in Central Java

Saturday morning Ika and I had a cup of tea / coffee at the restaurant of the hotel which was included.

I knew we would be eating again and did not want to stuff myself. Out on the main street I saw plenty of the little becaks, the 3 wheeled cycle driven taxis. Indonesians are hard workers and people were scurrying about their daily activities. Semarang reminded me of Denpasar in some ways with a ton of motorbike place and road side warungs, not much tourist stuff going on though. On the way to her parents place Ika pointed out her high school and sisters school. Apparently Central Java has the highest level of education in Indonesia.

Accessing the family kampung meant driving down some bumpy roads and ending up in a little street which is part of a government housing project. Her parents own a shop which sells all kinds of nick-nacks and is open 19 hours a day, 7 days a week. The family lives in the 2 adjoining rooms.

Ikas 15 year old brother Brahma was watching tv in the back rooms and Ibu was cutting up more things to eat for us including unripe mango which comes with chili and salt. I still prefer the ripe mango but Indonesians have developed a love for this unusual snack.

One of the things on Ikas mothers mind was the date of our wedding. As soon as possible was her suggestion and we talked about how we would go about this. Not being a muslim and having no interest in the religion at all I had settled on getting a civil one to satisfy the parents and maybe flying to Singapore get another civil one to be recognized as married outside of Indonesia. Over here the rules state all marriages have to be under religious rites and a civil paper can be issued after that. A muslim marriage is undertaken under the authority of the Department of Religious Affairs who can write a civil certificate as well as a religious one. They issue a book called a Buku Nikah, or wedding certificate. It is so funny because it also lists the 24 rules for marriage (the man must protect and provide for the wife, etc.). Ikas dad said it would be no problem at all doing a muslim wedding as the local imams were not strict and the fact that I was not muslim could be overlooked. I could be muslim for a day which is okay with me as long as there is no cutting or converting.

Ika mother has indentified various days of the month (Wednesdays in January and March) a good days to get married. The way things might work out is we have the muslim wedding at the end of January, then have a traditional Javanese wedding in early March. A muslim wedding is over and done with in 10 minutes, no big deal. The traditional wedding means me getting into the sarong and jacket, with face make up and all the trimmings. There will be a reception after which I have to pay for. I want to keep prices as low as possible and am aware I could get jacked severely by all involved if I am not careful.

Walking around the neighborhood I saw that the area is surrounded by countryside and much like village life in Bali people are out in the street getting small snacks and drinks. People responded to my greetings and kids were very curious at meeting a tall white person. Central Java has some areas which are strongly muslim, in fact most of the population outside of the Chinese community here seems to be muslim. People in traditional muslim clothes tend not to want to engage in conversation but most everyone else is easy going. I did not get harassed or made to feel out of place at all, in fact the Balinese will hassle the hell out of you more in Kuta.

Semarang seems a safe place to travel although I would have to take Barries advice and check out the town some before I can recommend it to anyone.

Looking through the family photo albums I got a glimpse at how their life had developed. The parents had married young and squeezed out 4 kids (Ika, Awang, Ningrum and Brahma). Ikas dad looked like a bit of partier in the early shots with shoulder length hair, as was popular in the 70 s. The album I saw an Indonesian mirror image of a western family starting out almost 30 years ago. They have their formal photos with everyone looking sharp, family outings, birthdays with the girls done up like princesses and a variety of bad hair representing the changing times.

Ikas dad came home around 8 pm. He paints cars for a living and likes to play badminton, a game very popular in Indonesia, as the cost of equipment is low and technique is at a premium. Ika said he rarely loses even to players 20 years younger. I cannot wait till Chris and Sean get hold of him, he is in for a beating, or a least an ear-full.

We all took a taxi over to the hotel and got ready to hit a warung for dinner. On the menu was sop buntut (oxtail soup) and ayam goreng (fried chicken). I had one of each. Bill for 5 of us including extra chicken and drinks was 96,000rp. I paid.

Right after the food we walked back to the hotel to watch the final of the Tiger Cup, a SE Asia challenge soccer tournament. Indonesia had reached the final against Singapore and everyone got comfortable, myself and Ika on chairs and the other 3 on the bed. Ikas mum liked the big bed so much she fell asleep on it and told Ikas dad afterwards she wanted a bed like that, to which he replied, its bad for your back, joking.

Singapore won the game 3-1 after some poor finishing by Indonesia. The home crowd seemed resigned to being on the losing end, though showed some frustration when good chances went begging.

Our flight back to Bali was due at 6.30am so we all said goodnight.

The parents came along the next morning to ride with us to the airport. That in itself was going to be a tricky thing as they only have a motorbike, but after meeting in the hotel lobby Ika and I caught a cab and they followed.

I think Ika enjoyed being back in Semarang, she likes the muslim aspects of life in Indonesia rather than the Hindu aspects of life in Bali. Personally I like both but have no plans to move to Central Java anytime soon. For a western expat like me Bali offers a pleasant combination of traditional culture along with creature comforts and utilities.

We arrived on time and once again the duality of Indonesia struck me again. While most of the passengers were dressed western style, many were in muslim attire, over the planes intercom Thin Lizzy belted out The Boys are back in town no one batted an eyelid.

Here in Bali I am glad to be back in town.