Leaving my cellphone in a taxi

It was bound to happen sooner or later.  I am usually so careful about that too. This may sound shallow and cliche but my cellphone actually is my life line here. I use email and Skype to keep in touch with everyone from home, the map had saved me from getting lost a countless number of times, I even have a translator on here I use all the time (for obvious reasons). The thing helps me survive in a city where I don't speak the local language and have absolutely no idea where I am most of the time. If there were a life or death situation where I had to choose between my cellphone and a person I would probably choose the phone (just kidding... But seriously). Okay you get the point, enough about the cell phone!

So it wasn't two minutes after the cab left that I realize she was missing. I was looking forward to some FaceTime chatting once I arrived home from dinner and had that feeling of dread when I reached into my purse and didn't find what I was looking for. I immediately sprint to the security gate and was very upset to find the cab had already left. I tell the security very articulately that I had been stupid enough to leave my cellphone in the taxi by repeating the words handpone and taxi and looking distraught (without the translator I have no idea how to communicate, but i digress).  The security guards here are awesome and immediately began calling Blue Bird (the taxi company) to find the whereabouts of my driver and now lost cellphone. After no luck getting through, It occurs to me about 20 minutes later to try and phone my phone. So I give security my number and someone actually answers. They speak to each other in Bahasa Indonesia for about 10 minutes then he hangs up.  Since my Indonesian is a little lacking, we walk to my neighbour Astu's house for a translation.  Apparently the cab driver has my phone and is going to return it but he is just dropping off some other people first.  Okay, I can handle that.  I head off to my house to wait for the speedy return of my most beloved prized possession.

Around 1am that night I get a call (for lack of a better word) from Astu, not so much a phone call but more of a yell from her window to mine, apparently the taxi driver will not be coming tonight to drop off my phone and instead will leave it at a taxi depot.  I'm not entirely comfortable with this idea.  Unfortunately, many people in Indonesia do not make a lot of money and that phone is worth a years salary to a taxi driver, so the idea of it changing hands again doesn't really enthuse me.  Really though, what choice do I have?  Another taxi will come in the morning and bring my phone to me.

Okay, next morning.  I sleep in obviously since I no longer have an alarm clock.  No worries, I wasn't planning on going to work anyway, I have way more pressing issues on hand to deal with.  Shortly after waking up there is a knock on the door.  The maid comes to get me and downstairs there are two of the security guards.  This is a pretty humourous situation because the security and my maid don't speak one word of English and my Bahasa Indonesia is limited to numbers and greetings.  They say words like taxi depot and handpone, so I assume these nice gentlemen are going to pick up my phone for me.  I hand them 500,000 rupiah ($50), they hop on the same motorcycle and head off immediately.  All I have to do is sit and wait right?

Around 2pm the men still haven't come back.  So I decide to walk up to the security gate and asses the situation.  Unfortunately, my memory of what these guys look like isn't so great so now I am starting to doubt whether they were even security at all.  They were wearing army fatigues and sometimes our security wears army fatigues so obviously you can see why I assumed they worked there.  When I get to the gate, I just say handpone, handpone over again until someone responds to me.  Malam was the reply, which means night in Indonesian.  Okay, I guess my phone isn't coming back until night.

Well, believe it or not that night around midnight I get a call at work from Astu saying that she has my iphone.  Ahhhhh, my baby has returned.

So, moral of the story?
1.  Don't leave your cellphone in a taxi
2.  Be patient because nothing happens fast in Indonesia
3.  If you live in a foreign country be sure to make friends with your English speaking neighbour

Indonesian Weddings

Shinta and Aji

Greeting the wedding party

I've been lucky and have had the chance to attend two weddings since I've been in Jakarta.  Last Sunday one of the girls I work with got married and invited everyone from the office for her big day.  It goes without saying that this isn't quite like the traditional North American wedding I'm used to, Indonesian weddings are short and sweet and they really don't involve too much of a time commitment.  We showed up at 11am, put some money in an envelope and formed a line to greet the bride, groom and family on the stage.  Once we finished our greeting (which is done by closing your hands as if you are praying and touching fingers tips) we ate from a huge buffet, then took a few pictures and left.  The whole ordeal was over by 1pm.  I guess when you don't serve booze there really isn't much else to do!  The outfits that the bride, groom and whole wedding party wear are amazing, and the decoration and food is outstanding, there is just so much attention to detail.  Definitely a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon.