lost and found

The Monas in Central Jakarta is a symbol of the country’s independence as indicated by the flame on the top of the monument. As with most symbolic towers, you get a chance to see most of the government buildings and other establishments surrounding the Merdeka square.
Most tour guides would lead you to the Hall of Independence on an upper floor and at the ground, dioramas and reliefs of the nation’s history are on display. Coming from a colonial country myself, I can appreciate the countries’ national development.
“Where is the entrance to the tower?! We have been circling the monument for about 20 minutes now and we can’t seem to find a way in?” I forgot to state, that my father mentioned this statement BEFORE we would have gotten the chance to see Central Jakarta’s breathtaking skyline and the panoramic view of the city.
It has been quite a while since I was a ‘real’ tourist. As a foreign contract worker, we do get to travel a lot, most of the time all expenses paid BUT, for work related reasons. My father as well in his youth had a similar experience.
I have been granted a leave of absence and took the first bus from Johor Bahru, Malaysia, then the train from Woodlands, in time for the last flight from Changi to Jakarta the previous Thursday late evening. Luckily my long-lost God mother has made contact and sponsored my stay in Jakarta. It was a coincidence that my mother was attending a conference in Jakarta and has asked my retired father to accompany her for the trip.
With no calls from work, accommodation and transportation concerns, or domestic issues that may disrupt the trip we ventured on as real tourists.
Everything fell in place for that memorable afternoon as we circled the monument, in the rain, while almost resigning to pictures or selfies at the base of the tower only to realize that the entrance to the tunnel was at the opposite side of the road around the tower.
A day later at Café Batavia while sipping a ‘White Nipple’, we shared a lot of laughs as we came to terms with the common tourist characteristic which is, ‘being lost without a map’. Had it not been for the Bahasa Melayu I had picked up at work, we could also have also been ‘lost in translation’ as well.
As Barney Stinson would put it “whatever happens in this life, it’s not legendary unless your friends are there to see it” At this point in my life, I managed to share the tourist experience with my parents. Indeed it was a Legendary Indonesian weekend.