Homegoing for the "Monk"

Homegoing for the "Monk"

Perhaps it is not surprising that my first business trip for 2005 is to Jakarta. Actually it was quite unexpected; I only got confirmation last Thursday to be here for this coming week. I had originally planned to be in another country...but I'm certainly not complaining.

It's good that I finally get to be on the road again; being on the move all the time actually makes me more productive. Why? Because every journey is a fresh start and we usually get a fresh spurt of energy everytime we begin something. As long as we know how to harness this impulse of energy to the maximum, we get a lot of things done.

This time I decided to stay at the same hotel which I had called home for two years. Since leaving Jakarta at the end of 2003, I had chosen to stay in other hotels, usually in Tanah Abang or Kota, on my business trips, I suppose I wanted to see Jakarta from a different perspective. But I found that my old hotel still gives me the best deal. Feeling a bit nostalgic for my "second home", I decided to stay there again.

I was quite happy to see some familiar faces here when I arrived; Diki, the bellboy was smiling broadly when he saw me. Diki got married in 2003, while I was still staying here and now he already has a five-month old baby. He used to stay in a rumah kos nearby, but he told me that he commutes daily from Depok now.

In the lift, I bumped into Intan, my cheerful and bubbly little Sundanese room attendant. I have not met her for a long time because she was on maternity leave during the tailend of my stay here. Now she's back to work; I asked her: kerja di lantai berapa sekarang? Intan used to take care of all the rooms on the 7th floor, where I stayed. She told me that she's in charge of the mini-bar now, and is not assigned to one particular floor. Putar-putar, she said, with the characteristic twirl of the Indonesian tongue. I suddenly realized how much I've missed her cheerful voice greeting me every morning.

I have also forgotten how small the rooms are in the hotel. But it is sufficiently furnished, cozy and has a good view of Jalan Wahid Hasyim; when I was staying here, I had never been happier. I spent many quiet nights here writing proposals, building presentation slides, preparing lectures and marking exam papers. I used to think of it fondly as my monk's cell. (Strange thought I must admit, for Jakarta is the unlikeliest place for a monk to live! )

When I had to shift out from the place, I was surprised at how many books and other pieces of junk that I had accumulated in that tiny kamar. Took my some time to pack and discard away all the junk. I gave away my bulky items such as DVD player and mini compo to Wiwik and Ditje. I also had to use Setiawan's garage in Pondok Indah as my warehouse for a while. Took me a couple of trips before I managed to transport everything back to KL.

It's not going to be a long stay this time but I'll make sure that I get to catch up with every one of my friends in Jakarta. And hopefully I'll get to see Nilam and Sukma too...