Surabaya

I finally made it to Indonesia! Although, I am never flying Silk Air again. When I got to the Surabaya Airport and received the Visa on Arrival, I saw that they did not need a full length visa page in my passport at all. The visa was not even attached when they handed me back my passport. What a crock of sh*t! Oh well, it's over with so there's no point in dwelling.

I was welcomed by my Auntie Jeanie, who was holding up a sign with my English name on it upon arriving. We loaded up her SUV and immediately drove to one of her in-laws or relatives' new home for a "house blessing" party. The spread on the table in the middle of the dining room was incredible. So many different and colorful dishes that I had never seen before. I especially loved the spiced fish steamed in banana leaves. I think it was called ikan pepes.

My auntie and her daughter, Annie, both speak Bahasa Indonesian, as they have lived in this country for most of their lives. Auntie and I communicated over the last two days via broken Mandarin, Cantonese, and some English. Annie speaks fluent English and is the 29-year old mother of these three adorably well-behaved boys, all between the ages of 20-months and 5 years. She 's kind of that hip young mom that most women want to be but have a hard time becoming. All I know is, when (or if) I have a couple of kids, I would not mind having her figure, nor her even-keeled temper...

Yesterday, Annie took me to a mosque with Chinese-style architecture, the Masjid Cheng Ho. We drove around Surabaya and stopped to eat some great food throughout the day. One of her cousins owns this "yellow rice" shop that serves the most flavorful dishes. So good.

One of my grand uncle's drivers is taking my mom, my grandma, my auntie, and I to another city in the north where my grand uncle has a vacation home. We'll be spending the next few days up there before coming back after the new year. I originally wanted to go all out and party in Bali for the 31st, but after all that's happened, my priorities have changed a bit. I am just looking forward to seeing more of Indonesia with my family, as I know I can party on an island any time. I'm actually headed for Bali on the 2nd and will be spending a little over a week there and in Lombok before heading to Hong Kong until the end of January.

What an amazing two months it's been...