Weekend trip to Semarang in Central Java

The year 2005 will be full of good things and challenges.

Indonesia has started with the massive problem of how to deal with the disaster in Aceh which will take an enormous amount of time, money and effort.

My part in helping the country along is to encourage people to give Bali a chance and come visit, hopefully pointing out some of the best features the island has to offer.

2005 is going to be a special year for me in other ways too because I am getting married to my girlfriend Ika who is expecting a child in July. Quite a pleasant surprise and one we’re both excited about.

Here are some facts so far:

Ika is 26 and comes from Semarang in Central Java and is Muslim. I met her at the fitness center I go to in Legian.

Before I took my month long trip overseas we both visited a doctor in Denpasar and had an ultra sound scan. The thing was done without appointment and cost 65,000rp and since that time Ika has been back every 2 weeks to check on things. When we first visited I had a chuckle because the doctor asked me to hand the money directly to him, something that would never happen in the west.

My plan for the future is to visit Ika’s family this coming weekend in Semarang. Our flight is on Merpati and goes via Surabaya on Friday afternoon. Total traveling time, about 4 hours including the stopover. Coming back means a 6:30am flight out of Semarang on Sunday morning, the only time they fly out. The round trip cost was 975,000rp each and I had the ladies at the small travel agency in front of Okie House on Poppies II look for flights for me.

Ika’s parents do not speak English so it will be fun smiling and eating with them.

Indonesia does have some screwy laws concerning marriage, like both parties have to be the same religion. I was reading through a sheet of rules yesterday and they include minimum ages for men and women wanting to marry (19 for a man and 16 for a woman). If either party is under 21, permission from their parents is required. It then goes on to say in the absence of both parents one will do. In the absence of any parents a next of kin or family friend will do, basically anybody, Fred the garbage collector could probably seal the deal if you are desperate.

The cool thing about having a child here in Bali is that medical care is cheap if you do not mind local doctors and getting some help in the form of a local nanny is do-able.

We have not come up with names yet and are open to suggestions. I offered up Mohammed Ali in tribute to Ika’s religious preferences.

That’s my exciting news for right now and I will keep you posted on developments. I know quite a few westerners end up with Indonesian partners and negotiating the cultural, linguistic, visa, money issues can be an experience. Different expectations stemming from a different world view can make things tough, but there are benefits as well. The other day Ika’s flip flop was flapping and I said I would buy her a new pair, she insisted it was better to glue them, something a westerner might not be so keen to do. Indonesians seem to be great with kids too and having a warmer climate seems more relaxing for them.