Non-motorized Transportation

The people of Indonesia that live outside of Jakarta use a number of non-motorized ways to get around.  Below are some examples--

This is near Solo--a city of one million.  The driver is sitting behind the passengers.  Notice the bright colors on the wagon.

Baiceks (baychecks) are very common.  We each rode one for about seven blocks for about $1US each.  Many of these are very old and some with very colorful and unique paint!

Map of Indonesia Overlaid on a Map of the USA

Below is a map of Indonesia (the green area) overlaid on the USA.  The large island to the right is where Bali is located which has one small branch of the church.  About 90% of the church members live on  the island of Java along the bottom   Jakarta is located close at the point where Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona meet.   There is a small branch on the large island to the north and one on the island to the west.
The USA is the 3^rd most populated country in the world and close behind is Indonesia.  We’ve been blessed in the USA with lots of land!

Traffic

All I can say about the traffic is it is bad!  The only time the traffic doesn’t seem to bad is early Sunday morning---like around 8am in the morning on the way to church.  The office where we work is about 3 miles from our apartment.  On a good day, which is not often, it takes about 30-35 minutes, but most of the time it take an hour or more.  In the evening it is usually an hour plus and a few times over two hours!  We sometimes we read or play games on the IPAD.  Most of the time we just sit there watching the traffic and take pictures!

Church in Indonesia

We enjoy attending church.  The members are very friendly and everyone—adults, youth and children want to shake our hand each Sunday.  The people are very kind, loving and humble.  There are about 6000 members of the church in Indonesia with most living on the island of Java, where Jakarta is located.  There are 16 chapels located throughout Indonesia, with 24 wards and branches, organized under one stake and two mission districts.  Currently there are 70 missionaries with about half being from Indonesia.  The closest temple  is in Philippines. 

 This is the building we attend most Sundays.  Two wards meet in this building--one english speaking and one Indonesian speaking unit.  This is a two story building with the chapel and cultural hall on the second floor and offices, classrooms, kitchen, etc. on the first floor.  Sports are played outside in a paved area behind the building.  This was one of the first church buildings built in Indonesia.  It is located about one mile from where we live.

 This is the front yard of the church--yes, Gail continues to find new ideas for our yard at home!

This is the chapel.  it will hold about 130 people before the overflow area needs to be opened.

 This is the church in downtown Jakarta.  It is in an office/store complex and does not look like a church.  This was due to various restrictions in place at the time that did not allow the building of christian churches.  It is four stories and does have an elevator!

This is the chapel in the above building.  It is located on the third floor.