We went with a driver and a local girl on Sunday to check out the city. I have never seen so many motorcycles. It's a way of life here for many families. In fact we saw families of 3, 4 & even 5 traveling around on motorbikes. Kids sandwiched in between parents and appearing very content. I was right...there are no rules on the roads in Jakarta. It seems to be organized chaos, but I've not seen any road rage unlike in the US. Amazing.
It's Ramadhan, the ninth month on the Islamic calendar, so the muslims are fasting (food and drink) from sunrise to sundown. Indonesia is 95% muslim, so this is a very big deal. I'm awakened each morning about 4am to the loud speaker from the neighborhood mosque calling the muslims to worship and prayer before sunrise. It's a loud male moaning/singing sound that lasts for about 10 minutes. Once we are at the office, I hear it again at noon, 3pm and once more before sunset. Some people in the office leave by 3:30pm so they can get home and prepare a meal to break the fast with their families. This lasts for a month and then they mark the end of Ramadhan with a celebration. Not all people in our office are Muslim. We have quite a few Catholics and a few Christians as well.
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2 comments:
Wow Jen it sounds interesting!
Have a great day.
They would love Sturgis, don't think they would have a problem with Gillette traffic - it's plenty insane, getting worse by the
day. Great you have an opportunity to see what the locals are doing and their life style.
Anxious to hear more about what you're doing.
Gram
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