The "I" Factor

It is all very exciting when you get the chance to live overseas and having lived in a couple of different countries before it doesn't matter where in the world I have lived there are things that have me asking "Why", "I don't understand" or "I just cant believe it" all comes down to one thing which I like to call the " _ factor". It is just a matter of filling in the blank with an "I" as we are living in Indonesia.

The "I factor" seems to cover things like;

• When the washing machine is repaired then you are told "It all OK Mrs" and a day later the same problem occurs, you put it down to the "I factor".


• Your stuck in traffic and you start to think "There must be an accident" , so when you pass the policeman directing traffic he seems to be not helping the traffic flow at all you put it down to the "I factor"


• When your driver first started working for you, you made sure you told him that you do not lend money and then he asks to borrow money and as well seems not to be able to work a full month without there being some sort of problem, you put it down to the "I factor".


• You make an appointment for the maintenance man or sales person to meet you at your house at 1pm but they do not show up until 3pm, you put it down to the "I factor".


• You finally find your favorite box of breakfast cereal in a supermarket and then you look at the price which is $15 and you refuse to buy it, you put it down to the "I factor"


• You catch the same flight every two weeks and the flight never arrives on time, you put it down to the "I factor".


• You give simple instructions to be followed and you ask "Do you understand what needs to be done" the person answers "Yes Mrs" and you find out the wrong thing has been done, you put it down to the "I factor".

Living in Jakarta I think there hasn't been a day that has gone by I don't hear myself saying "Oh the "I" factor. The joys of living in a different place other then Australia.

Moved In

I can now finally say we have moved into the house here in Jakarta. It only took 54 days but who's counting. With a little paint and a bit of tlc I think the house has come up looking really good from the work which I requested.

Our Items arrived on the 23rd of June and by Thursday the 24th June we where sleeping in the house. Moving from the apartment into the house was quite easy as both are located in the some complex because we didn't have many items in the apartment the move didn't take very long. Thanks to Isah (our house keeper) Marina and Marnie (Marina's house keeper) unpacking our shipment went really fast. Herman our driver kept Paige busy unwrapping items so it went all very smoothly.

With moving into anywhere new there are always teething problems that need to be sorted out and one was the washing machine. The problem was the drain hose for the water was too high up for the water to drain away. You would think it would be easy to fix just take the pipe out of the wall, put the hose through the wall then add extra draining pipe to the hose then all would be good. Well that's what I suggested in the first place but after a number of attempts from the maintenance department of cutting down the pipe twice, making a platform for sit the washing machine to sit on then realising I was right and the men did what I said and the problem was solved, it only took five days to get the washing machine draining correctly. Isah our house keeper said "Mrs you said how to fix the problem at the start and they not listen, these men are crazy".

With the washing machine sorted and some leaks from pipes fixed I think we have ironed out some problems. Paige was really happy to see all her toys and her bike again it does make a big difference having some of our own items around us.

It is starting to feel like home away from home.

So let me tell you about the house;

The house is what I would call a villa or town house. It consists of two stories, which the ground floor consists of open plan living and dining area, a small study area, toilet room, a small second living room which is Paige's playroom, enclosed outdoor area, a laundry area and house keepers area at the back of the house.

The second floor consists of three bedrooms, plus study room which could be used as a bedroom, two bathrooms and a small storage cupboard.

Below are some photos of what the house looks like now to see before photos visit the blog post "House 21 Waiting to Move In" under May 2010.

I am very happy with the end results.

Picture: A map of the house layout

OUT SIDE

Picture: View looking down street right hand side of driveway

Picture: View from driveway

Picture: Front of the house

Picture: View from front door

Picture: Front side of house looking from road

Picture: Side garden area looking down from front yard

Picture: Back yard area looking towards side of house

Picture: Back yard looking towards neighbours house

GROUND FLOOR

Picture: Enclosed outdoor area

Picture: Lounge room looking from front door, there is an out door area behind dinning table

Picture: Dining area looking from kitchen bench area

Picture: Kitchen looking through kitchen door



Picture: Kitchen looking from dinning room

Picture: Paige's playroom looking from the kitchen

FIRST FLOOR

Picture: Guest room cupboards opposite Paige's bedroom

Picture: Upstairs hallway looking from stairs

Picture: Paige's Bedroom

Picture: Paige's Bathroom

Picture: Ben & Bernadette's Bedroom

Our Staff

Getting settled in Jakarta always takes time but finding the right staff also takes time as well. Having lived in Indonesia before I must admit it was easier this time around knowing how to find staff also how important it is to set the ground rules straight away or sometimes things don't go to plan. Doing research on salaries is also important so before hiring staff I made sure I asked many questions on salaries to other expats and what tasks their staff was expected to do.

My golden rules are staff must be on time to work, must be honest, not ask to lend money as the answer will always be no and if you don't understand something please ask.

For people who haven't had house staff before I know these rules sound pretty straight forward but living in Indonesia is never straight forward so I made sure that these rules were communicated very well and was understood.

Our house keeper "Isah" I found through a friend of a friends house keeper and our driver "Herman" I found through a friends driver. He is also contracted through where we hirer the car from so you could say we are lucky that all fell into place regarding our staff.

So let me tell you a bit about them;

Isah is 44 years old, isn't married and has no children. She speaks English and her house is two hours away from where we live. This means Isah is a live in house keeper who works Monday to Friday from 6am to anywhere between 5pm or 6pm. If I need Isah to work weekends or extra hours of a night doing baby sitting I make sure I give her extra days off during the following week. Isah is very nice and has made my life settling into Jakarta really easy. There are times I have been stuck in traffic that when Paige gets home from school I know she is here to take care of Paige. Apart from babysitting which I need as Ben works away 10 days at a time, she does the house keeping duties and helps me to deal with the maintenance department and helps translate things when I need it.

Picture: Paige & Isah, our house keeper

Herman our driver is 37 years old, married with 4 children (3 boys & 1 girl). He lives half an hour away from where we live and travels to and from our house on his motor bike each day. His normal working hours are from 8am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. Hours out of those times as well as weekends isclassed as overtime. Herman duties are to drive us where ever it is we need to go. There are times when I have needed a hand with things and he is only to happy to help. If you asked Paige what Herman's job was she would say he has to give her door service (open and close the car door for her) its funny to see as Herman is a really good sport with Paige and plays along with her.

Only time will tell how things work out with our staff fingers crossed it will all work out just fine.

Picture: Paige & Herman our driver

Picture: What a driver does when he isn't driving