A black van full of backpackers was just arriving. I could hear the Dangdut music was being played there. It was stopping in front of that cheap hostel on Jalan Jaksa. It’s the same hostel where my Irish friend, Shane was staying during his visit in Jakarta. I was walking closer to the van and I could see that the licence number doesn’t belong to the city. My tiny rented room is just opposite the hostel but the van was blocking this narrow street. I could see that there was a motorbike waiting to go to the other side if the street.

One by one the backpackers were getting off the van. They were speaking in French. Male, female and I saw probably a Chinese girl in the group too. I could have said something to them in French, but didn’t have the courage to speak the language I had learned for more than four years.

Gosh, my Dutch is messing up with my French! As my English always comes up every time I try to speak in French. While French always interferes when I speak Japanese! My friend told me those things happen because all those foreign languages I learned during my adulthood are being stored in only one side of the brain, the left side if I remember it correctly. While the mother tongue stays in the other part of the brain.

By the way, as I was trying to open the pad lock, I still could hear them talking and looking a bit confused. Yeah, I know, I don’t really like arriving in a new place in the evening either. I can’t recognize the surrounding because everything is dark and it limits your options and awareness.

I remember my experience in Athens very well. The huge cruise ship, the Minoan was arriving in Patra at about 8.30 in the evening. I had to continue my trip to Athens but I didn’t make any hotel bookings at all. So I didn’t really know where to go actually. They said that I had to take a bus from the port to Athens. And the bus stop was just about 10 minutes walk. So I dragged my suitcase and my heavy backpack there. Along the way, I saw few of the cruise attendants were already on their way home.

By the way, they’re not that nice at all. Few things were missing from their service: smile and being helpful. I was the one who had to carry the heavy suitcase of my old Italian roommate, Pietra, down stairs. No downward escalator that goes to the passenger exit. Pietra actually had asked few attendants to help her, but they just turned their head around.

I shared the cabin with her and a family. A mother and their two daughters. I assumed that they’re a family and Pietra told me that they must be from Bulgaria or somewhere nearby. Physically they were beautiful but weird and not nice to each other . The only nice one was the youngest daughter. We even tried to have a conversation. She was speaking in her own language and I was talking in English! We didn’t understand each other of course, but she smiled when I was smiling at her. So there you go, we actually have an international language which is understood by any human race.

Pietra and I, spent time together during dinner. She spoke in Italian of course and I understood whatever she was saying but the funny thing was, I actually replied in Spanish! I had no idea why at that time, Spanish was the only language I could think of. I guess I had to thank Dora The Explorer for teaching me Spanish!

As a souvenir, I gave Pietra a long Batik scarf. And in return, she gave me a huge pear that she grew herself in her garden. As we’re waiting in the lobby, I noticed that some people were talking about me and they gave me that kind of not nice stare. I guess they had never seen any Asian before and therefore I must had been a Chinese. Well, I felt sorry for them because their knowledge was very limited.

So I walked to the bus stop, there were people waiting for the bus to go to Athens. I think I had only to pay for 18 Euros for an almost 3 hour ride from Patra to Athens. I had to wait for about 15 minutes until the bus was ready. It was a medium size bus and free sitting. So I chose to sit on the second row, right side of the aisle. Next to me was a woman, we didn’t talk much. I didn’t fell asleep, I was enjoying the ride. Getting closer to the city, I could see Parthenon from a far.

They said that Athens was at the last stop and I still didn’t know where to go. Found on the travel book that Lars gave me as a birthday present, few hotel in the Plaka area, just below the Parthenon. But didn’t make any bookings yet, I was only taking my chances.

It turned out that the bus stop was not in the centre of Athens at all. I had to take another bus or taxi to go to Plaka. Looking so confused, I asked a couple of lovers where to go. They said that I should take a taxi and it would only cost for about 7 Euros to go there. A taxi driver saw his prey and offered me a ride. I didn’t trust him at all because I saw him talking to the other drivers not in a very nice way. The taxi had a meter, but I didn’t know where he was taking me.

He spoke a little bit of English and tried to show me few interesting places along the way. The Parthenon looks so beautiful at night. I told him to go to any nearest cheap hotels from the Parthenon. So we arrived in Plaka and I ended up paying 20 Euros for the ride!

I had no idea at all which hotel I should go to. It’s already almost one pass midnight. So I just knocked at any hotels. The first one was already full. Then I got an unpleasant experience at the second one. The concierge was in the middle of a phone conversation, so I had to interrupt him in order to ask for a room. He said it’s full. Fine with me, so I walked myself out. But I couldn’t open the door. I asked him to help me with the door, but he just gave me a sign how I should open it. But I couldn’t d it so asked him again. Instead of helping me out with the door, he start yelling at me without even bother hanging up the phone. As I start yelling back at him, I finally managed to open the door. Wow, that was not something I expected from a famous city like Athens at all!

I got lucky at the fourth hotel. I don’t remember the name anymore. But the man was so nice, he even gave me a discount for such a big room. I think I only had to pay for 35 Euros a night, with a very nice breakfast.

So, let’s go back to the present. Those French backpackers. As I open the windows of my rented room, which is on the second floor, I could still saw them waiting outside the hostel. I think they didn’t make any booking in advance. But I still couldn’t figure out why they took a van with a non Jakarta’s licence number. Then they entered the hostel, while I was starting to write this blog.

Let me tell you a little about Jalan Jaksa. In English it means the Attorney Street. I don’t know why, need to do research on that. But all I know, the street is so famous for backpackers. Cheap hotels, cheap pubs and cheap hookers too. The street is situated in the centre of the city centre, right in the centre of Central Jakarta. On the next two blocks is the National Monument with real gold on top and its park is much bigger than the Eiffel Tower’s. And just opposite the monument, there the Presidential Palace is. All the important governmental offices and public places are nearby. You can just walk from the main train station Gambir to this street. And as for me, it takes only 10 minutes walk to go to the gym or about 10 bus ride to the office from the main avenue of General Sudirman.

For me Jalan Jaksa is such an interesting place. It only exists in its own world. It’s just like the Kemang area in the South Jakarta. Foreigners are everywhere all over the place. What I’ve noticed so far, that there are many people from some African countries and those from –Stan ones. I don’t know what they’re doing here, but it’s obviously not only for a short stay. Those from African countries always occupy one of the street food stalls in the evening. While those men from the –Stan countries, well, I always see them on my way to the office in the morning, waiting for something together in front of an office.

While the prostitutes, I see them sitting inside the pubs or sometimes on the street sides calling for the men to come closer. I once asked Shane when he was here: so, had any girls come to you yet? He said no. Good!

Ah Shane, I believe he’s in Melbourne now and been travelling for more than two and a half years now. He’s my roommate in Paris. He was on his way south, while I was on the way back to Sweden via the Netherlands and Denmark. I think it was the first time I saw a man can be so sexy with his hairy chest! And after more than two years he finally came to Jakarta! It was so good to see him again although he had only a short stay. But the sexiest roommate was the one in Amsterdam. I had a naked man as a roommate hehehe…

So, that’s how I got to live here in this tiny but expensive rented room. Not because of the naked roommate in Amsterdam, but it was because of Shane. When I walked him back to the hostel, I saw a signboard at this place saying rooms to rent. I didn’t even have a job back then, I was staying far away for free with a friend. So here I am. I have a job now and I can afford this place. And I am looking at the hostel where Shane used to stay. Where those French backpackers are staying now. It’s all connected. It’s all action and reaction. And there is a purpose and time for everything. For everyone. And I observe it all.