The Two (and a half) Weeks of Living Dangerously – Part 3
Current mood: horny
Category: Travel and Places

Were Not in Kansas Anymore

(But Whats With All the Friends of Dorothy)

So like I mentioned before, lack of sleep and time zone changes quickly took their toll the first day in Jakarta, so that Thursday was pretty much a wash.  Was able to go out to eat and basically crashed, allowing my body to set itself to Indo time.  Friday was going to be active, and my only real chance to see the city, Im sure in a way that few tourists do (those that end up in Jakarta for some strange reason anyway). 

Essentially, Friday was spent going to casting calls for Ezy's ever burgeoning acting career.  This was my first glimpse at the both the entertainment industry and Jakarta; Im still not sure what was stranger.  To get between agent meetings and casting calls, Ezy's agent Rian drove us around in his car which I got to know exceptionally well, in that we spent a majority of the day stuck in Jakarta's never ending traffic.  And the traffic is interesting to say the least.  The rules of the road dont quite apply the same way in Indo.  You are responsible for anything that strays into the front of your car, which usually happens to be a motorcycle (they usually just pull out in front of you without looking).  Lane markers exist, but are merely suggestions that nobody pays attention to.  In fact, unless youre on a major thoroughfare with barriers between your lanes and the oncoming traffics lanes, drivers will just hop into the oncoming traffic lanes to drive until someone comes at them from the other direction.

And the motorcycles are everywhere.  There is no such thing as motorcycle safety training and this was demonstrated over and over again throughout the day.  Motorcycles occupy and maneuver through every bit of open space on the road.   They pass on both sides, ride 5 deep across in one lane, and if there isnt any road left to move past the cars, often they just take to the sidewalks (I have photographic evidence of this if you're in doubt).  Its actually kind of amusing, in that they all weave in between the cars up to stop lights, so every intersection looks like some sort of crazy race is about to go down, with a hundred cycles lined up at the starting line.

One thing that strikes you as you make your way through Jakarta is the massive amount of people that are just hanging out.  Just hanging out, everywhere.  And you never know if theyre working, or waiting to go to work, or just chilling.  Gives me a different perspective on the bums hanging out at the off ramps of our expressways, guess they got a lot of brethren across the ocean they didn't know about.

So as we made our way from agent meetings to casting calls and back again, sucking exhaust from the extensive traffic, I began to notice that we were dealing exclusively with two types of people - gay men (NTTAWWT) and women.  Now while it might not seem a surprise to most of you that the fashion and entertainment industry is dominated by these types, this trend seemed to continue for the extent of our trip.  Seriously, I met more gay men in Indonesia than I've met in my entire life (NTTAWWT).  I guess then that it was fitting Ezra got to cast (and while in Bali we found out he did so successfully) for the part of an ambiguously gay man named Heaven in a short film.  Now we just have to wait until Ezra finally lets on off-screen (really man, we all know anyway :-)  (again, NTTAWWT)

Most everyone at the castings was friendly, and it really gave me a chance to get to know Rian, which made me feel a lot better.  See, a day before I left I had gotten an email from Rian basically introducing himself as Ezras manager, and then asking me for my address so his aunt could send me a package of stuff he had left in the US, so I could bring it with me to Jakarta.  Now, my immediate impression was of all those pre-9/11 airport security questions, for example: "Has anybody unknown to you asked you to carry baggage for them?"  Not the most comfortable of feelings, going overseas being asked to bring a "special package" with you from somebody you dont know.  Now when I got there and talked to Rian, I found out that the man just wanted his brand new Hugo Boss shoes and Prada bag - how silly I was!  The man just needed to accessorize goddamn it! 

Before I had left the US, I had asked Ezra if he needed me to bring him anything from home.  My thoughts being along the lines of things he had either left here because he couldnt bring it with him on his initial voyage or some old-fashioned, red-blooded American product that those damn Indonesians wouldn't import.  Well, his request was not so much in line with my thoughts.  Ezra just absolutely needed these sweet sunglasses that could only be found at The Upstairs boutique on South Lamar.  Now, even when I told Ezra's other friends about this before I left, we all agreed this was possibly the most metrosexual thing the man could have done.  After my brush with the gay agents and casting directors, and finally finding out what Rians request was really about, I discovered that Ezra was just a victim of his surroundings.  To him it was perfectly natural that I would fetch designer sunglasses from across the ocean and bring them to him.  It was a natural as breathing.  Or popped collars.   Man this was gonna be a long trip...

So after all the business was done, it was time to hit up the club.  I had been hearing about the club scene in Jakarta from Ezra for months, as apparently that and going to the malls are about the extent of the cities recreational activities.  The party du jour was the grand re-opening of a club called Embassy.  We made a quick stop at this other club Vertigo first, but apparently it wasnt happening according to my loyal tour guide (seemed fine to me).  So we head to Embassy and finally make our way inside.  My best description of it is to compare it to the clubs in Cancun - kind of big pit dance area surrounded by a stepped area that has tables.  The place was supposed to be posh but I think we were tricked by false advertising, in that it was dreadfully hot, crowded, and mostly concrete.  One redeeming quality of the club was that they had these eight foot demon like characters walking around in full leather bondage gear with whips, basically sexually molesting people.  Im proud to say that I went to Indonesia and all I got was raped by an eight foot demon.  Needless to say we quickly left Embassy and headed back to Vertigo.

Vertigo was a pretty decent club by most any standard, with a techno room upstairs and all time hip-hop DJ downstairs.  This was my first introduction to the bottle popping VIP crowd and the Jack Daniels was definitely welcomed after my demon-raping.  Mingling, partying with models, dancing the night away for the first party night of the vacation went all in all very well, and Ezy and I ended up pulling a couple of girls from the club for some late night eats.  Second lesson of Indonesia dont trust club lighting.  Looks like one of our lovely ladies tricked us with her legs for days which drew attention away from her Planet of the Apes face.  The night could have been saved by her friend, another model, but Ezra won the worst wingman of the year award at the restaurant by blatantly insulting her, relentlessly, although not completely undeservedly.  Oh well, fuck it, I needed some sleep anyway tomorrow we head to Bali for the real party.

Next:  Baliday

Definitions:
NTTAWWT - Not that theres anything wrong with that :-)

Currently listening : 10,000 Days By Tool Release date: 02 May, 2006

6:00 PM - 1 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

A Quick Aside
Current mood: accomplished
Category: Blogging

Im not quite sure what has gone wrong with some of my postings, but it looks like some of my apostrophes, quotation marks, and various other punctuation marks have disappeared when I post.  For now, Im going to blame it on Microsoft Word evil black magic.  But anyway, sorry about the hassle ... I do use proper punctuation ... usually ... well, except for the ellipsis. :-)

And I now realize why I dont blog.  It takes forever.

Currently listening : St. Elsewhere By Gnarls Barkley Release date: 09 May, 2006

5:50 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

The Two (and a half) Weeks of Living Dangerously – Part 2
Current mood: drained
Category: Travel and Places

H to the Izzo; Gang to the Warung

So as I alluded to in the previous installment of my blog, the Ambien did nothing for me except make me sick.  I think it was a partial mix of excitement, uncomfortable airplane seats, and the fact that I was in the middle of the 4 of the 3-4-3 seating arrangement in the econo-class cattle car.  Stuffed between 2 strangers battling for elbow room for 14 hours is no way to sleep.  Flight from HK to Jakarta was almost completely empty and I was able to lay out on the 4 seat arrangement, but by that time, I was too tired to sleep anyway, so I just stretched out and relaxed, anticipating my adventures.

Landed in Jakarta, grabbed my bags, made it through immigration and customs without a hitch and walked out into the waiting area to find Ezy waiting to pick me up.  Now, Im not sure what is in the food in Indonesia, but something has made him think that popped collar polo shirts have become in vogue.  Despite my best efforts, he insisted that it was the cool thing and highly recommended by his manager and fashion stylist Rian.  Awesome.  Now I get to explain to Rian how Ezy and I used to make fun of the idiotic frat boys walking down 6^th St with their collars popped (the extra cool ones had polos as undershirts for the dreaded double pop). 

Anyway, we bargain for a cab and head on our way.  I did feel vindicated that within five minutes of being in country I saw goats on the side of the road.  LONG LIVE THE GOAT KING!  Good thing he met up with me at the airport, or I have the distinct impression that the cabbies wouldve taken full advantage of this bule (pronounced boo-lay = Bahasa for Westerner).  Its one of the first lessons of Indonesia nothing is full price; you are fully expected to bargain, which can be kinda fun if youre game for it. 

So like I said, we hop a cab and head towards Ezras kos essentially the equivalent of a dorm room with a shower and toilet.  Not quite a studio apartment, because of a lack of a kitchen.  Although, for a westerner, it doesnt even make sense to have a kitchen anyway, cause food is so cheap, everyone eats out anyway.  You can have a full meal at a decent restaurant for just about $4, so why bother.  His kos complex is pretty interesting in the fact that its part dorm room, part apartment complex, part hotel.   Laundry service, mini fridge, TV, furniture, and maid service included for the low, low price of ~$200/monthwhich ironically is incredibly expensive for everyone except foreigners.  Luckily for Ezy, most of his neighbors are exactly that and I dont so much mean that in the sense that they are foreigners, but more so that these foreigners are female models.  (Kieran, feel free to scream ASSHOLE! right now).  So yeah, essentially hes got a one room sex palace in the middle of a bunch of single female models.  Well, some of them have boyfriends back home (i.e. France), but thats an entirely different country, that doesnt count!

All in all, its a fairly western style living situation, especially in as much that most Indonesians live with their parents until they get married.  This is based on both a cultural and monetary basis.  See, a recently graduated engineer, after 4 years of university makes approximately $300/month.  So even if you have what would be considered a good job, there is absolutely no way you could afford to live by yourself.  The cultural influence definitely comes into play, however, as well.  Even the high profile models, actors, and actresses wed meet throughout our travels, members of some of the most elite of Indonesian society, still live with their parents.  They might have an apartment in one of Jakartas new high rises, but it was just a place to have.  I guess for partying or storagenot quite sure.

The cityscape, including roads, buildings, and traffic, has been one of the most difficult things to describe to people since Ive gotten back, since there really is nothing like it in the western world.  Even in Mexico, or islands of the Caribbean there is really no comparison, but Ill give it my best shot.  To get to Ezras kos, you have to pass through a maze of streets called gangs.  Im guessing that the term is related to the English term gangway.  Basically, the first thing to understand is that city planning is anathema.  You really dont appreciate the idea of zoning ordinances until you see what happens without them.  Im pretty sure if there was any kind of city planning, the meeting went something like this:

Man 1: I want to put a building right here. 

Man 2:  But that would make this 2 way street only 10 feet wide. 

Man 1:  And? 

Man 2:  Ahh, fuck it.

So essentially, you end up with main thoroughfares through town, which you take until you get to a neighborhood, and then you navigate forever through these tiny gangs to your final destination.  Except that Im pretty sure that you just have to know where youre going on these gangs, in that I dont think they actually have names.  Imagine a bunch of alleys all about 10 feet wide, that meet at weird angles, mostly one way to cars, two way to motorcycles, with warungs (ubiquitous food stands) and pedestrians on both sides.  And yes, those 10 feet include the pedestrians and the warungshahayou probably thought there were sidewalks.  Yeah, actually, on the sides the gangs are concrete drainage ditches that had to be left over from the Dutch occupation of antiquity, so make sure you drive that car straight! You wouldnt want that tire to slip into that 3 foot ditch of skuzzy drainage water.J

Even the building practices themselves struck me as a bit odd.  I dont know if they dont believe in the idea of front and back yards or if land is just too expensive to justify such excesses, but even the expensive houses fully utilize the land.  Meaning, if you have 1 acre for your house, you build a 1 acre house, leaving enough room to park your car.  And then you surround your house and your parking space with an 8 foot wall or fence and top it off with some glass shards or razor wire.  Not sure what exactly inspired this ubiquitous design practice, but it makes for some very unfriendly looking neighborhoods. 

Now, there is quite a bit of construction going on around Jakarta, and it appears that they may be demolishing some of these horribly designed neighborhoods with gangs from the time of horse carts to replace with high rise skyscrapers.  Guess time will tell. 

Next:  Jakarta Part 2 Casting Calls, Gay Men, and Jack Daniels (Oh My)

Currently listening : 40 Oz. to Freedom By Sublime Release date: 23 July, 1996

3:04 PM - 3 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

The Two (and a half) Weeks of Living Dangerously – Part 1
Current mood: jet lagged
Category: jet lagged Travel and Places

Casual Encounters

Well, Ive finally gotten around to starting my Indonesia trip blog.  Its amazing what kind of jet lag a 12 hour time difference will give you which makes doing anything, even watching TV, painful when all you want to do is go to bed at 2pm.  Have to plan for that one next time J

Anyway, Ive been struggling the past week to figure out what the hell I want to write about from the trip.  Even in person, its been quite a challenge trying to pick out what stories to tell to what audience, and so far I think Ive done fairly well in not repeating any one story.  I guess its probably easiest to just start at the beginning and see what my brain picks out as the salient points along the way.

So I left Austin on the evening of May 16^th and wouldnt arrive in Jakarta till the afternoon of May 18^th.  I would have 2 stopovers on the way, LA and Hong Kong, and if it wasnt for the layover in LA, I wouldnt have existed for the 17^th.  Have fun wrapping your head around that one, I know I did.  All in all its a 31 hour trip from takeoff in the ATX to landing in Jakarta, and man does it suck.  In LA, I got the distinct pleasure of hanging out in LAXs international terminal for the 7 hour layover, which is chock full of uncomfortable furniture and overpriced food and beverage.  I thought I had it rough, but I happened to be sitting at the bar reading my Lonely Planet guide to Bali & Lombok and this surfer sits down next to me and asks if Im headed to Bali (hey, he is a surfer after all).  Turns out hes on his way there too, for something like his 18^th time, but hes come all the way from Costa Rica.  Yeah, that day hed arrived at LAX via Costa Rica to Panama, Panama to New York City, New York to LAX, and from LAX he was headed to Hong Kong then Bali.  Anyway, we start chatting and hes a nice enough guy, but he didnt have a chance to visit the docter before he left, so hes stuck without any sleeping aid.  Im no pusher, but I figure if anyone deserves some prescription sleeping pills, its definitely someone on that long of a trip, so I helped a brother out. 

While were chatting at the bar, some dude comes up behind us and says "Excuse me" and reaches between us to grab some napkins off the bar.  Now, the way he reached in his back was to me, but as I looked up, I saw a 6 foot 6 inch frame of this lanky white guy wearing a knit skull cap, covering long black hair, with some sort of goggles over the knit cap.  He reached in, grabbed the napkins and walked off.  Immediately, I was gripped by an intense feeling.best described as... "No fucking way!"  The surfer I was talking to noticed my reaction, "What, that some rockstar?"  How do you explain?  Too much explanation, I decided.  "Yeah," I replied.   Eventually, our intruder comes walking back into the restaurant/bar and sits at a table with his buddy, looking at a laptop and talking about whatevers onscreen.

I decide that if for nothing else, everything I learn is about meeting new people of all types. "Excuse me," to my new found surfer buddy.  I walk to the bathroom, and on the way back through the restaurant, I stop at the intruders table.  "Excuse me," I say, but as I say it I already know the answer to my question as I see his black fingernails.  "This is gonna sound a little weird, but you dont happen to go by the name of Mystery, do you?"  The intruder sticks his hand out to shake, "Absolutely, pleased to meet you."  Couple minutes of small talk, a "very nice to meet you" and I head back to the bar.   Thing is, nobody else in that place even recognized him, but to me it was literally a character from a book come off the page into reality, no less completely randomly in some bar of the international terminal of LAX.  Im not even in Indonesia yet, and this is how this trip is gonna start?  I can only imagine how the rest of it is gonna roll.  Fuck if I could sleep on that 14 hour flight to HK, even 2 Ambien couldnt knock me off that high.  Hope they helped out surfer boy. 

Next:  Jakarta

(FYI, if the above story doesnt make any sense to you, read "The Game" by Neil Strauss)

Currently listening : Live from Mars By Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals Release date: 27 March, 2001

3:31 PM - 2 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

The Yellowest Rose in Tejas
Current mood: lazy
Category: Parties and Nightlife

So I went out last night with some buddies to the finest establishment in the ATX, The Yellow Rose.  They were miffed that they got snubbed for another buddies bachelor party, so they decided to throw their own.  Well, it ended up being quite the evening, especially since some of them got there at 4 in the afternoon and didnt leave till after midnight.  Highlights of the evening included my buddies' $1500 tab, hanging out with Mark Buehrle's cousin, and meeting Vince Young.  Let me tell you, VY can toss handfuls of dollar bills on a strippers ass almost as well as he throws the pigskin.

Hope y'all enjoyed my first ever (and maybe last) blog. 

Currently listening : Gut the Van By Dispatch Release date: 06 November, 2001

8:40 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment