Reuben turns 2

That's the way son!

Dressing Up

The boys wore traditional Indonesian costumes for Independence Day celebrations at Kinder. It was great fun.

Soren was a prince from Yogyakarta, the last remaining kingdom in Indonesia, and Reuben's clothes were from Padang.

Reuben contemplates the vastness of his empire.

Even a prince must have his milk.

Colourful traditional food from around the Indonesian archipelago served at Kinder--ever so sickly sweet.

Back at home, Soren redistributed costumes and persuaded us all to remain in character for the entire afternoon, and our every move was carefully choreographed and dictated from on high.

Little blue Jedi.

A brief intermission as our Director momentarily collapses in exhaustion.

Rain!

It's still the dry season, but it's been raining a lot recently, especially in the afternoons. The boys love to don their raincoats, and I love the sound of it bucketing down.

Hari Kemerdekaan (Independence Day)

Celebrated by Indonesians across all religions and cultures, Hari Kemerdekaan (17 August 1945) commemorates the day that Achmed Soekarno, first President of the Republic of Indonesia, proclaimed Indonesian independence from 350 years of Dutch colonial rule.

Across Indonesia there are flag-raising ceremonies in every suburb. We went and stood to attention, hummed along to the national anthem, saluted and whatever else the person in front of us did. We assembled in rows according to immediate neighbourhood--the one with the most residents present won a cash prize!

Oops, left his black and whites in Papua! In Indonesia, if in doubt, a batik shirt is always a safe bet.

One of my favourite neighbours.

The security guys from our block--always up for a laugh.

We realised on arrival that ours were the ONLY children there, and that the ceremony was going to be pretty boring! Thank goodness for some fresh dirt and a couple of toys which kept them quiet the whole time. There was absolutely no escape route; if they'd decided to protest, we would have had to parade them past the choir, assembled guests, dignitaries and some very solemn members of the Indonesian army!

Soren was tired from the early start, so we caught a becak home.

Gotong royong (working together)

Throwing a party, sprucing up a neighbourhood, or raising a child for that matter, are the collective responsibility of extended family and neighbours. These men are washing the prayer mats outside their local masjid (mosque).
Re-painting in preparation for Hari Kemerdekaan (Independence Day). In the kampungs (traditional neighbourhoods of close quarters and strong community ties), the locals spruce things up themselves. In the perumahans (bigger houses, higher fences, more privacy, weaker community ties), residents pay a small fee for workmen to do it.
This is the kampung behind our perumahan--we had hoped to live in a kampung but it didn't work out that way. We joined in the festive spirit and tidied up our yard too.

Not just for the big day but for the whole month of August all the streets are adorned with colourful banners and the red and white Indonesian flag is proudly flown in the front yard of every house.

Sawo

Our helper Ibu Anik shares a laugh as she shows me how to eat a peculiar-tasting fruit called sawo. I don't think it will be a regular feature in our diet! A shame, because we have a tree in our front yard that produces them by the bucketload.

Soccer

It's possible they asked him to join their team as goalie for reasons other than his extraordinary skill, but who cares! These are some of the guys Philip chats with on our street.