sampai jumpa lagi Chase

Chase, our trainee, left today to embark on his first assignment in Dubai.

We will miss him...

Losari Coffee Plantation

My mom came to visit and we flew from Jakarta to Jogja and then drove two hours to a tropical oasis in central Java to Losari Coffee Plantation, surrounded entirely by volacanoes. The views were stunning.

We woke up early to do yoga in an open-air hut, overlooking the lush vegetation. We drank "jamu", herbal remedies, mixed by "ahli jamu" (an herbalist) and walked on the plantation grounds, visiting the organic garden & traveled on foot to the various stages of coffee production. We ate fresh palm sugar & minature bananas plucked from the trees...
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photo taken in front of the dining lodge

the vegetable & herb garden

having a good ole time

learning tricks of the trade in the kitchen

the food was so delicious

like a pair of bookends

celebrating mom's birthday!!!

yummy birthday cake

dinner, the last night

photos taken in central Java

transporting sheep

children playing at a nursery

men selling spices at the local market in Jogja

man transporting live chickens

typical public transportation

Borobudur

my mom came to Indonesia in September & we woke up at 3:30am to see the sunrise from Borobudur, the biggest Buddhist temple in the world!

we went out for dinner in Jakarta with Chase, Helena, Megha, Alex and my mom before she left..

Jakarta

this is the second weekend in a row we've stayed in Jakarta...a record for us. It's been fun to chill here and become more acquainted with the city.

Last night after work, Alex, Ben, Luke and I played tennis and then we joined some friends for thai food, etc..

here are some pics

Jakarta: city planning at its finest.ben and alex amused

luke and me

nicole and me

last Sunday we went to brunch with our friend & neighbor Helena.

making friends