Bu Lieke

On my last day in Surabaya, Akbar and I headed over to Bu Lieke's house. ("Bu" means "mother" and is a common term of address for adult women.) Bu Lieke is the woman with whom I lived when I was in Surabaya for half a year in 1997-8. She's a well-to-do widow who's got a big house with rooms that she rents out by the month, mostly to foreigners from North America, Europe, and Japan. She speaks Dutch and English and is a real hoot. She's a very devout Muslim who's been on the hajj but also very supportive and open-minded. People are always coming over to seek advice or support from her, or just to listen to her ribald jokes. It was so nice to spend the day with her just catching up and filling her in on my life these last couple of years.