My house is ridiculous. Enough said.
Can you say coy ponds? How about work-out equipment? What about foosball, ping pong or pool (both types - billiards and swimming)? Heck, not only do I have hot water, but an overhead shower, flush toilet, and a washing machine! And of course, I am writing this post from home via wifi (on the upstairs patio that joins the front house to the back house, complete with gazebo and hammock). I've counted at least 6 people who work in the house, plus 2 dogs and at least 3 cats. And then there's the fish - aquariums and ponds everywhere. The houses are made of stone and marble with windows all around. I know, my Indonesia is rough.
Fishies!
Ibu (Mom, Mrs., etc) L, the widow of an important Surabayan, owns a boarding house here in town which AMINEF usually utilizes for at least 1 ETA every year. This year Ibu L doesn't have room for both of us at her house (I am living with another ETA, yay!), so we are staying in the back house at her son's compound.
Before I continue, let me back up a little bit. The flight yesterday was pretty normal, although the landing did make my stomach turn a few times. All my luggage arrived safely (woo-hoo!) and Mr. K and I were greeted at the airport by 2 of the other English teachers at my school. Still feeling a bit woosie, I had absolutely no appetite, but felt bad protesting their offer to take me to dinner before home. And where did they want to take the sick girl? None other than a warung - or food shack, essentially. Moral of the story - I went home with a box each of fried rice and and fried noodles, even though the doctor told me explicitly not to eat fried or oily foods yet, much less at warungs. But these things don't translate very well, so I had to fake my way through it (and thus the doggie bags). So of course, when we arrived home, Ibu L greeted us with a table full of food. It is impolite to not eat at least something, so LM, the other ETA, and I forced ourselves to nibble here and there. Mr. K and the other teachers then left us to wander about our new home.
Ibu L sent us on a tour of the house(s) with one of the ladies who works here, Karte. Ibu L speaks English very well, but I am happy to report that most of the staff does not - now I will have bahasa Indonesia opportunities every single day!
Back to the house - LM and I each have our own rooms with air conditioning. We share a bathroom that is next to the pool, in between our rooms. We have our own fridge, but we are offered breakfast and dinner every day at no extra cost. So it's lookin' like a pretty sweet life.
Don't worry though, I did see a cockroach out by the pool last night. And my ankles are COVERED with mosquito bites (the city is very humid - perfect for the pesky biters). I normally react pretty strongly to mosquitoes, meaning every bite welts up to at least twice its original size and becomes red and leaky. Karte keeps looking at my ankles and making funny faces. Just a moment ago she came up to me with a jar of oil and insisted on rubbing it all over my legs. Afterward she gathered what seemed like every member of the staff to come over and gawk at the bites. Which reminds me, after breakfast this morning (don't have to go to school until Monday), LM and I went for a swim. When we did, the ladies in the house all gathered around to watch us and smile and giggle. I guess this is just something we are going to have to get used to. LM is ethnically Middle-Eastern, speaks Arabic and is Muslim whereas I am "bright" and more removed from the people here, so I tend to get a bit more attention, at least so far. When we walked to the mall (a quick 7 minute walk from our gated community), people just stared. We've decided it's best to be friendly, so we say hi first in bahasa Indonesia and then in English to everyone we see looking at us.
W, Ibu L's son, is head of the household. He is a businessman who travels a lot and speaks nearly perfect English. We sat outside with him, his friend ,and his friend's 3 daughters last night chatting and getting to know one another. W has 2 daughters (high school age) and a seven-year-old son who has his own mini-house (or so they call it) on the property. Ibu L keeps repeating, "I am your momma here. You must feel at home! Make yourself at home. Ask me any questions. Make this your home or it will feel like a prison!" I can't tell you how great it is to have her. She's very comforting and genuine. She sincerely cares about our stay here and is doing a lot to make sure we are happy.
Below are some pictures.
You'll notice I'm trying not to use full names most of the time, and this is on purpose. I hope you understand!
Here is where we eat breakfast, looking out over the pool.
A few coy ponds on the left, basketball ball hoop/dog pen on the right.
Stairs leading up to my room, the door in the back. Cute little corner with leather couches right next door. Around the corner to the right is the front door to the back house, if that makes sense, complete with a porch swing for greeting neighbors.
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