http://www.maf.org/cannon/blog http://jungleaviator.blogspot.com/2010/09/when-youre-in-mood-for-all-american.html When you're in the mood for the all American meal while living in Indonesia, why not try Aroma Brand Pork Wienerly. Yes, it is as good as it sounds, in fact, even better. Coupled with some freshly made hot dog buns delivered straight to your door (really) it made for a memorable meal. The best part is...I even learned a new English word...Wienerly! Go ahead, say it 5 times fast. Wienerly, Wienerly, Wienerly, Wienerly, Wienerly! Ah, now you feel better right?! And you thought we were just learning the Indonesian language. This is what we call a "bonus" word. Next time you're at Sonic Drive In, don't ask for a Chili Cheese Coney, ask them instead for a delicious Chili Cheese Wienerly. Selamat Makan! noreply@blogger.com (Sean Cannon) Wed, 08 Sep 2010 12:40:00 +0000 http://jungleaviator.blogspot.com/2010/08/mt-merbabu-pics.html A few posts ago, I showed a picture of a nearby volcano and incorrectly called it Mt. Merapi. This volcano does exist, but it is about 8 miles behind this one...Mt. Merbabu. Mt. Merbabu is the volcano I am currently planning to climb. It is only about 8 miles from my house, and very near the town we drove through yesterday. Read yesterday's post for info on that trip. I took this photo from Brooklyn's school soccer field this morning after I dropped her off. They have a beautifully manicured soccer field. This photo I took of the same mountain when I got out of school from the public soccer field. The two soccer fields are vastly different. One is nice manicured grass with metal soccer goals and nets, the other, a dirt field with bamboo goal posts without nets. One of the reasons I believe soccer is so cosmopolitan is due to that fact that the overhead is very low. All you really need is a ball! While taking the photo from Brooklyn's school, I almost walked through this spider web. I seem to walk through a lot of those here since I am taller than most, and my head reaches places that have not been "walked through" yet. Everywhere here there are little "warungs" or stores that sell various things. This one sells snacks and "bensin," aka, gasoline. Because of the amount of scooters and motorcycles here, many people just buy a liter at a time. You can see the glass bottles full of gas for sale. noreply@blogger.com (Sean Cannon) Thu, 26 Aug 2010 06:42:00 +0000 http://jungleaviator.blogspot.com/2010/08/back-road-drivin.html Instead of doing homework today, I was invited by a coworker who has a car to take a road trip without any purpose...just the kind I like... (Post Script-I forgot to add this picture yesterday.) Andong Volcano is just north of Merbabu Volcano, and is dormant. Both Volcanos, among others, can easily be seen on Google Earth for those of you who like that kind of thing. (Ahem...dad.) We went south into the mountains and stopped to pick up some friends near a market. This is typical here, although it was late in the day so there was not much left to buy. Across the street from the market was a bamboo yard. The man seen in the photo is scrubbing down the bamboo in order to sell, probably as fence posts. Green beans are growing in the background. While not the best picture, you can see the types of animals and birds we have here are beautiful. By the time we backed up and I was composing a better picture, the bird flew off...that always happens! The higher elevation we were driving in must have been conducive to growing tobacco. It was growing everywhere. After the leaves are picked, they are dried and then put into bales like in the photo above. While driving by a Mosque, we stopped and talked with some of the people sitting outside. They were all very nice and cordial and we talked for a few minutes with them. Many people keep goats and horses on their property, but have to walk to nearby fields to gather food for them. The rice was a lot farther along in this part of Java, and the workers were all out in earnest doing whatever it is they do in the rice world. There are no heavy machines used in the rice world, so, use a water buffalo instead. This cracked us up! This man was herding his ducks, there must have been 30+ ducks. It was almost as if those ducks had traveled this road numerous times and knew exactly where to go. I cannot say that before today I had ever seen so many ducks running (not flying). It was pretty funny! I posted a pic a few day ago of the what the horse drawn carts look like here in Central Java, here is one in action. Notice the bag between the horse and cart...don't leave home without it! noreply@blogger.com (Sean Cannon) Wed, 25 Aug 2010 13:52:00 +0000 http://jungleaviator.blogspot.com/2010/08/several-times-week-i-try-to-get-away-in.html Several times a week I try to get away in the afternoons and practice my Indonesian with some of our local neighbors. Brooklyn was bored today (that's the last time she'll whine to me) so I took her with me. After exhuasting all I could of my vast Indonesian conversational skills (or lack thereof) my friend wanted to send us home with some fresh young coconuts and a special sugar to eat with them. When we got home we all tried this new food and really liked it. The coconut milk was the best part in my opinion. The soft inner flesh was also good with the special sugar. Once again, the kindness, patience and friendliness of the local people is very comforting. Rebecca and I both have already found special people to practice with, which is a blessing as we stumble over ourselves trying to make simple sentences. noreply@blogger.com (Sean Cannon) Mon, 23 Aug 2010 13:51:00 +0000