Yogjakarta, Java

Now that was interesting. We went for a walk again today to discover a different side of yogjakarta. We went on the guided "Kali Code walk". The Code (pronounced tshode) is the river that runs through the city from north to south. On its shores live lot of people. It is the most densely populated area of this big city. The population in this quarter is generally from a lower social class. They make up for it with strong solidarity within their community. Every neighborhood forms a so called RT. Several of those form a RW. Within those units - mostly in the smaller ones - people organise their social lives themselves. That entails for example paying hospital bills for members of the community, free aerobic classes, the access to information through free newspapers, a neighbourhood watch and a community centre in which children can get help with the homework, children and older people get a free basic healthcare and food packages get prepared for those in need. All of this is possible through the daily collection of the smallest amounts of money. Every family can decide for themselves how much they want to give. This way, everyone in the community is taken care of.

They also get some help from the outside with for example groups of students going into these communities and teaching about not to throw trash in the river which through fishing is an important part of their livelihood.

Walking through this neighborhood felt like being in a small village. Everybody was super friendly, offered us some food, wanted to take pictures with us, etc.

We also learnt a lot about religions. for example that every Indonesian has to declare his belonging to one of the 6 official religions. This information is also stated in your passport. But at the moment all 6 religions manage to coexist peacefully. Quiz of the day: what are the 6 religions?

We capped of this great tour with some great street food. Fried Tofu balls with vegetables inside, rice with sambol and Quail eggs. Delicious!Read more