HOLIDAY CELEBRATIONS IN JAKARTA AND MELBOURNE

Good to spend some time back in Melbourne!

The embassy sets us up with temporary household items while we wait for our things to get delivered, but be were starting to wonder if we’d be trying to make it through the holidays with only four place settings.  Luckily, it took just about five months for our stuff from Washington and Zimbabwe to arrive in Jakarta, and so we had everything in time for Thanksgiving.  We had some friends and colleagues from the building over for a semi-traditional Thanksgiving dinner – roast chicken filled the role of a turkey, but otherwise we had all the fixings, and it was a great way to ring in the start of the holiday season.

The post-delivery jumble of boxes... and metal warthogs.

I had a couple weeks of annual leave to use or lose before the end of the year, so I took a couple weeks off right before Christmas and we headed to Melbourne.  Andrew went a couple weeks ahead of me for an extended visit with family and friends.  It was my first trip back to Oz in about 10 years, and it was a very welcome change of scenery.  Open space!  Clean air!  Blue sky (at least, in the second week I was there – the first week was a bit windy and chilly… but even that was a welcome change)!  We did lots of walking – along the Yarra River, around the botanic park, and through several of Melbourne’s neighborhoods that, like Portland, all kind of have their own personality.  We also took a couple side trips - a few days with Andrew’s friends in a coastal town called Anglesea about an hour outside Melbourne, and a visit to the Yarra Valley, including lots of wine tasting and a visit to the Healesville Sanctuary… sort of a native animal zoo.  We did a “VIP tour” of the sanctuary that provided some up-close-and-personal interactions with some of the residents. 

A stroll through Melbourne's botanic garden.

One of Melbourne's colorful neighborhoods.

We stumbled upon several speakeasy-like bars that were tucked away in alleys... including this tiki bar.

An old favorite... the Rose Hotel (where I think I should get a discount).

Playing tourist on a Yarra River boat tour.

A bit cool at the beach... a refreshing change!

Double rainbow all the way.

Lorikeets were absolutely everywhere - and seem to be enjoying all the fruiting trees.

Evidence of a successful rainy season on display along a hike in Healesville.

We stayed at an inn in Healesville that had a resident cat, two dogs... and this donkey that clearly thought he was a dog.

"Oh the donkey and the black cat can be friends..."

Sunshine and gum trees in the Yarra Valley.

You work up quite a thirst hiking.  Good thing there were lots of wine tasting rooms where we could take a break.

We got to give some treats to echidnas at the Healesville Sanctuary... and they may be my new favorite animal.

Most of the koalas were passed out asleep... but this guy (gal?) was up and about.

A koala depiction of how I feel about government bureaucracy.

It wasn't just the koalas that were enjoying a siesta.

Requisite photo of us and a sleeping koala.

This guy apparently thought my hair would make good nesting material.

We traveled back to Jakarta on Christmas Day.  Eating airplane food definitely made for a non-traditional Christmas dinner, but we got together with some embassy friends for a Boxing Day dinner with turkey, stuffing, and all the trimmings.  Our apartment building put up a huge Christmas tree in the lobby, so despite the 90-degree weather, it still felt a bit like Christmas. 

Seemed to be appropriate attire for a flight on Christmas Day.

The Christmas decor in our apartment lobby.

And in between the various holidays and travels, we’ve continued to try to explore Jakarta.  Most recently, we checked out “Kota Tua” (or “Old Town”) an area in north Jakarta that has a lot of old buildings and museums from the Dutch colonial era.  We had coffee in a historic coffee house, and checked out a couple museums, including a history museum and an old bank-turned-banking museum.  Both had some interesting displays, but the banking museum was air conditioned, so it was the winner.

This old Dutch colonial building on the old city square now houses a history museum.

The square is filled with folks riding around on these colorful bikes - with matching wide-brimmed hats.

Looking down on the square - and colorful bike riders - from the history museum.

And perhaps what we have enjoyed most of late have been the clearer-than-normal skies.  This is the rainy season… though it hasn’t been that rainy.  But perhaps the rains that have come have helped clear out the pollution a bit.  Whatever the reason, we’ve enjoyed some beautiful sunsets lately, and were able to watch Jakarta put on a show-stopping fireworks display on New Year’s Eve from the rooftop of our apartment building.

One of the colorful sunsets we've enjoyed recently from our living room window.

And even more impressive view from our rooftop.  That's the ocean in the distance!  It's usually obscured by smog.

The high rise jungle as seen from our rooftop.

We've even gotten to enjoy a full moon - and stars!

Jakarta put on quite a show on New Year's eve with fireworks going off all over the city.  We took it all in from our rooftop.

And so a new year now begins.  The Christmas tree in our apartment lobby has been replaced with a Chinese New Year display.  The post-vacation glow has slowly worn off as we gear back up to the usual routine.  But we look forward to seeing what new adventures the new year will bring and look forward to sharing them with you.  In the meantime, we wish you a very happy and healthy 2023.

The Chinese New Year display in our lobby.  Happy year of the rabbit everyone!