Indonesia Overview

By the time I left on this trip, I was not looking forward to Indonesia. My Mother had single-handedly convinced me that while in Indonesia I would be robbed, kidnapped, be on an over-crowded ferry that would sink, have my passport stolen and my identity and credit compromised, treated like a lower class citizen because I am female, be condemned for wearing shorts and a tank top, have someone plant drugs on me, be put in jail, beaten and sentenced to death. And that was just all in the first day.

So needless to say, I was no longer too excited about my trip.

The Canadian government only contributed to my growing fear of Indonesia. The travel warning there is on high alert: "avoid all unnecessary travel." Frankly (and excuse my language) I think it's bullshit. Sure, Indonesia has had more than it's share of problems; earthquakes, tsunami, the Bali Bombings of 2005, but every place has their problems. The Twin Towers in NYC, flooding in New Orleans, Gang wars in Vancouver. There's risk in going anywhere, doing anything... but we should not live our lives in fear, paralyzed by the ideas of "what could happen."

In my three weeks in Indonesia (which was not long enough by the way) my worst complaint was at times people ripped us off. And by ripped us off I mean they charged us $1.50 for a half hour taxi ride instead on $1.

Besides that, I encountered a land of beautiful people. People who were dedicated to their religion and living good lives. People who smiled and said "good morning" and "sweet dreams." People who wanted to have their picture taken with me and practice English with me. People who gave us gifts, taught me Indonesian dance, and helped us when we were lost. And people who told me I was beautiful even though I was hot, sweaty and wearing the same clothes for the third day in a row.

The news is made up of 99% bad news, so of course the news you hear about countries like Indonesia will most likely be negative. I guess the point of this is you can't always believe what you hear. People have a fear of the unknown. You just have to go and discover it yourself.

~Jen

PS. love you Mom :)