Our Garage is Full of the furniture that will be going to Papua .......some EXPATS ARE MOVING TO Papua ~

 There are four couples with MAF departing soon to Papua - because this house has a garage...it is much more convenient to load up the Container from here.  So 4 families brought their items to the house and this morning at 8 am the truck/container arrived.  All week our neighbor Pak Jonohas

  been wrapping all the large pieces in cardboard & ties getting everything prepared for the day to load up!

Our porch too had stuff on it ~

 Other expats have just a few pieces to ship over -  their container actually left the States and went directly to Papua. Salatiga is a temporary 9 months stay to take the language.  MAF has available to them some borrowed furniture for those who choose to do it that way. 

 Craig & Kayla were one of the first couples we met...Craig & Kayla are expecting their 3rd child!  I have been blessed to share a Ladies Bible Study with Kayla and a group of gals - we did the Beth Moore series - a really good study.... 
......so that was sweet all these months!

 Some expats have furniture made here in Salatiga to take with them.  They decided to only bring their personal items from the States & have furniture made here to take to Papua.  Not a bad idea!

 Joy & Julie look on - to all the happenings around them. What an exciting for these young families to finally be able to take that next step... Joy & Luke have finished the language course and are ready to head out....they are very excited to begin their lives there after preparing for 12 years....Bless their hearts!  Julie and Greg will be departing in August. 

These barrels are really handy too - they are filled up with odds & ends~

 ...Sunday morning - here comes the container....yeah!!!!!!

 The village road is very small and narrow...so

Pak Jono had to climb up on the container to cut some branches!  Pak Jono has been doing this now for 6 years and really knows what he is doing and very is efficient!  The expats are so appreciative of his work and help! He builds these frames to park the motorbikes inside the container and than it will be easier to pack large pieces on top of these frames...great idea!

 Everything comes out of the garage and one room they used and then of course they have a better overview of the situation. 

 It was great to see the team effort of all these people!  We are so proud of their commitment to serve and gosh just look at these young families and their heart to go!

 2:30 pm - oh my goodness the "doors" are shut...way to go guys! 

Amazing - it all went in there?????!!!!!

 

The driver  headed down the road....yep off to Surabaya and then on the ship to Papua! 

Luke and Joy will be following it on Wednesday!  We will lend them our motorbikes for the following days - we have to go to the dentist anyway in Semarang! That way they have some 'wheels' to get around on until they leave!  

Well the garage is swept clean...and in a few weeks another family is leaving - so they can surely use the garage again...please do...for we only need it to park the 2 motorbikes- feel free to do so you guys!  It helps to have a little working room to prepare!  

We are ever so thankful to the Lord to help!!!

The verse says "This is the Way walk in it"

At church this morning, with the International school closed for the Summer, many families are preparing to depart ~ we prayed for those that were heading out this week and said our good-bye's.  Bitter-sweet and exciting!  In a few weeks it will be our time to say our good-byes too! 

It has been a very precious time here and we have met such wonderful people!  Oh we hope to see them again some day...who know....GOD knows!  YES!

Friday Evening Indonesian Church Gathering & Saturday Afternoon Language Club in Kampung Dukuh!

Charles who is Indonesian and married to Marie who is from Auburn CA -invited us to join him at an Friday evening Church group gathering....oh yes we said we would enjoy that! 

We followed him and his son Sam to the house where it was held.  The people were already singing - it was sweet to hear and see!  They asked us to share a little bit our story and how we came to be in Salatiga!

We are grateful to do so - and feel blessed to share how God orchestrates our steps.  Our brothers & sisters were pleased to hear how our backgrounds connected here in Indonesia...we always get BIG smiles! 

Charles shared the Word from John 15 - and did a little translating for us - Afterwards hot "sweet" tea is passed out and some snacks - so gracious!  Prayers were said...beautiful songs were sung and we had enjoyed a very special and touching evening!  Thank you Charles for inviting us and thank you dear people for allowing us to worship with you this evening!  Tuhan Memberkati! God Bless you!


The Next Day - Beppie dropped in for a cup of coffee...always enjoy that!  Her daughter is here from Holland - on vacation and just left this morning to Bali for a few days to meet up with old friends!  Stefanie graduated from the International High School here and now studies in Holland ~  Remember Beppie is Dutch and Elisha her husband is Malay. 

At 3:30 we all walked down the road to the Language Club.  Wawan & Nanik house.  People were starting the gather...and we again had a really good turn-out again!  It is lots of fun to help and the people appreciate it so much....it makes our hearts so warm to come together like this!

After our group lessons - there was a list of words "opposite words" so we had to put this words in sentences.  "You are tall and I am short"  "Indonesia is warm but Arabia is very hot"  "I like the color red but my favorite is black (and she added) it is mysterious!" OK!  We have lots of fun and there is always much laughter!  Beppie too has joined us these past weeks and she loves coming! 

Novia introduced us to a game...the Indonesian people on one side and the foreigners on the othr side....OK?  She wrote a word "Shark" on the page and showed it to the Indonesian people and we had to ask questions in Indonesian ...to find out what it was: a thing? a animal? till we guessed what it was! 

She would show us the word in English and then the other group would have to ask questions in English till they guessed it!  Lots of fun! 

Beppie has quite a sense of humor...and one boy said "you crazy one" meaning she was lots of fun!  laughed - yes it was so much fun!  Everyone departs with kind handshakes and thank you's!  Sweet and it fills your heart with LOVE!

Sunday afternoon Get Together with Gordon & Deborah~

It was time to get together with Gordon & Deborah...they have been busy with their Imlac language classes and we had not connected for a while!  OK let's do it!  We decided to go to Kayu Arum.  Play a game of pool and then have some dinner together!  Great idea you guys!

So they came to our house on their bike (yes they did recently purchase a motorbike and now they are zipping through town too!)

I was sitting behind Nico - and reached into my purse to take a picture of them as they drove up to the signal light.......

Looking good you guys!!!!  How fun huh? 


We tried going to Kayu Arum on the back roads of town....so we cris-crossed through town...and arrived there!  OK first a few games all right?

Both Gordon & Deborah played very well...and so we played a couple of rounds together!

Couple against couple! 

OK - get that ball in the left pocket now Ellen...Ellen??????  Did you do it?  NO! gosh! 

We wandered over to the restaurant...a sweet setting...surrounded by lovely gardens and lights of special lighting~

I think we had worked up an appetite...by this time...ha!  Three games...and yes that will do it!!!

The restaurant is open to the surroundings...no need for walls here in Indonesia...always great temperature! 

We had a lovely dinner...and had a chance to get caught up with our new friends from Kentucky!

They are learning the language...and then will be heading to Papua - but that will be next year!  First study hard...and we know that it really takes learning it by a school or a tutor...and it has to be done on a daily basis - which Nico & I did not do either!  Oh we wish we had...but the school is too pricy for us.  Where did the time go to...to not take a private tutor all these months?????

We are proud of our friends Gordon & Deborah...committed and kind hearted they are...they have sold everything!  What a blessing they are - we are thankful to have met them!  

A Fun Drive with the Dutchies!

 The Plan was for the Dutchies to go for another ride on the bikes....OK let's do it...how about Tuesday after Kristian finishes with teaching in the morning?  YES!

We met at Kawan Kitchen and visited there with Elisha & Beppie for a little while and then off we went for the afternoon! 

Go - and did we ever!  We zipped through the busy town and then came to the outskirts of town - and even that was pretty busy! 

 Kris & Lianne had told us about this Viewpoint way up on this mountain...and you could see all around!  It sure sounds good to us!  So off we went Beppie joined us as well! 

We drove by the many rice fields - and it is always so lush and green - such beauty - and to see the people working in the fields with their straw hats - so Indonesian and ever so heartwarming - my father so loved this country he was born in!!!!!  Yes a beautiful sight to behold!!!!! 

We just love to ride like that...seeing so many sights left & right!  I keep wanting to stop...to get that camera out...but Kris & Lian & Bep are up ahead...better stay on the road...ha!

 We came to the turn off and yes!  It was a place we had actually stayed - the Tlogo Coffee Plantation!  "Oh Kris we have been here before!"

But the difference was....that behind the area where we had stayed on the coffee plantation was this high mountain...and Kris pointed up to it...and way up there on the top was the Viewpoint - that he wanted to take us to!  "COOL!!!! Oh fun are we gooooing UP THERE????"

 And so we climbed up up up...this paved road...(thankfully newly paved!) because there are so many 'pot-holes' on these little roads!  We continued to climb - a narrow road almost less the a car-width road and we got to the TOP!

 Wow...look at this place...and the View was beautiful!!!!!! 

It was a bit hazy outside..but still we could see all around us!

We could see some clouds had come in....the weather was changing~

 There was a pagoda that you could sit under...and we could order our lunch...which we did!

 Lian & Bep looked over the view...and there in the distance is Lake Banyu Biru and Ambarawa!

 

 This place is a campground & it sure seemed to be a hang-out for the youth.  The schools are finishing up and a lot of students were up here too! 

As we headed down the hill somebody waved and smiled...."Hey..that looks like Intan?? Is that you with your friends?"    I saw your smile and thought "I know that smile...that looks like Intan!"...well her father told us later it was! Ha! 


We had lunch and had fun just being together!  Oh we Dutchies have enough to share!  Beppie's daughter is arriving tomorrow from Holland.  Stefanie spent her first year at the university of Leiden and is coming home to join her friends as they graduate here at the International School!  Beppie is excited to see her daughter after a year...of course! 


Well - we headed down the mountain again...and we wanted to show Kris & Lian & Beppie the Coffee Plantation and the adorable cottage we had stayed at when we first arrived in Salatiga!

Strangely enough the place was closed!  Oh my what happened?  They told us the government had taken it over...and it would be re-opened in July again. 

 This was the very cottage Nick & I stayed at...do you remember the pictures on the blog 8 months ago?  Oh it was & is adorable...we was pleased to share it with them!  We could see it was a little let-go and overgrown...so we hope the new ownership will take care of it soon! 

 Across from our cottage was this cute pagoda that in the evenings they had lighted a candle there on the table...so cute to sit there in the evening!  "Beppie ...let me take a picture of you OK?"   Nico took them a little further...for there were several little cottage in this coffee plantation...they were all in a very private setting...cute as can be!  With little pathways to each one! 

 

The weather really starting changing by this time of the afternoon....oh oh...we better head back....well all at once...it began....and DOWN it CAME!!!!!!

Hard!  Kristian & Lianne stopped across the street undercover.  I wasn't fast enough and really didn't want to cross traffic...so I stopped & Beppie and Nico too..on this side of the road.  

Out comes the poncho's...

 There is Kris & Lian...and they had taken better cover then we did...hey you guys over there!!!!!

Can you see the road?  How quickly the puddles come?????  Everyone just gets off their motorbikes and just waits for the rain to pass!

There they stand...but the water was coming down the slope and our shoes were really getting wet...we better join those "smart ones...across the street!"  So we did...and waited about 15 minutes until it lightened up!  Well it still rained a bit....but we made it back...and by the time we were back in Salatiga...well the rain had stopped already!  OK you Friends~ Luitjes...time to head back now...thanks for a great afternoon! As always - we enjoyed it!  

Next time...the road along the lake to Banyu Biru OK?????