We found a nice bar/restaurant on Saturday night which is apparently a popular place for single Western men to hang out and drink beer. It is located just a five minute walk from our doorstep, and is inside a swanky fitness club which seems to cater to Western clients at Western prices. The restaurant/bar itself is pretty cheap and pretty nice, although its theme (“aphrodisiac food”) is a bit disconcerting at times.

We were the only non-mixed couple in the place. We saw no Indonesian men the entire time, and in fact, the only Asian men were two single East Asians sitting at the bar together. They looked the businessman type. The rest of the clientele was some mix of Aussie, Kiwi, Limey, and others types of obnoxious, heavy-drinking blokes who were there both at 3:00 (when we stopped by to check the menu) and at 7:30 (when we finally showed up to eat). Most of these blokes were not anything to write home about in the looks department, we should say. However, one by one a posse of scandily-clad Indonesian women entered and ridiculous flirting ensued, the extent to which even embarrassed us a little bit. While we haven’t yet come to a consensus about the relative justice/morality/propriety of such relationships–who exactly is being exploited here?–we can confidently say that we find it creepy in a non-specific and non-judgmental way.

If you are interested, you may also check out our latest set of photos, from the National Museum and the Wayang Museum.