“.. I travel the world to get to where you are 

Strangers i met along the way 

You forget Jakarta 

Leaving all the lunacy behind 

This time give me back my sanity 

Yeah I'm still on my way to get to where you are 

Try to let go the things I knew 

We'll forget Jakarta 

Promise that we'll never look behind..” 

Forget Jakarta – Adhitia Sofyan 

For as long as I can remember, I have always loved exploring cities. But Jakarta is special. 

Since I was a minor, Jakarta has been a part of my life. I remember the first time I stepped my little feet on airplane was the day when I feel really proud of myself. A kiddo, around 7 seven years old; flying alone to the cap for the first time ever, only accompanied by a flight attendant. There was no fear at all. Instead, I was overjoyed to finally be able to fly. Since then, we have been having a relationship, and little did I know, that it will be a bittersweet one. 

Talking about you, Jakarta, is like talking about that one friend you always despise, but you end up realize that you miss them on regular basis. Do you get me? When it comes to me visiting you; Jakarta, the agenda will never be as smooth as I planned. Life has never been “flat” with you. 

Each of my temporary visits in Jakarta, has taught me a lot of things. 

I’ve been in Makassar for my whole life, yet whenever I stepped my feet on Jakarta, I’ve already lived through some life changing, or unique, moments. As much as I believe that I’ve grown accustomed to transition, I’m just now realizing that some important series of changes that have ever happened to me are occurring in the city. 

When people ask me, how I like living in Jakarta, I semi-jokingly answer it as a “playful” relationship. Well, where to start… I have many relatives there, it feels like my second home. I keep coming back and forth for holiday since I was a kiddo. I lived there for 6 months after my final exam towards becoming a GP, to work. I wandered around Jakarta (and in the neighborhood of Jakarta) for a living. Oh, how I miss that time. I worked day and night in many clinics, hospital; in every corner of Jakarta, breathed to the dirty oxygen and pollution on my online motorbikes, I was blended into the "unique" mass of public bus and train passengers… all for a better life. 

My brother wedded there. And in the same time during the wedding, my dad had his first cardiac arrest, hospitalized and had his angioplasty, there. I attended courses there. I watched concerts of my favorite artists there. And I just came back again last year for a month-length training for my new office, there. Probably the most interesting part is: the fact that I met so many new people there.

For as much as the city has played me out, now I think about it, what it has given me back.. is worth it. Jakarta has strengthened my character, pushed my self-growth, and motivated me to appreciate the best support system of friends I’ve ever had. It has mercilessly tested me and dared me to confront my fears. It was there that I learned what I love, who I want to be, what I would and wouldn’t tolerate from my life, how to save and spend money, and how to fight for what I want. 

For better or for worse, I’ve never felt so vulnerable as I have in the city. 

I must ultimately admit that despite the challenges — or perhaps because of them — I love Jakarta. It’s changed me for the better, and continues to do so every day. The lessons that this city has taught me about change will remain in my heart forever. Patience, perseverance, confidence, learning new things, meetings, surprises, disappointments, expectations, separations .. 

Mustafa, Simba’s (Lion King) father once said:
"..it's all the circle of life that will always happen".

There is always meaning to everything. 

There is always meaning in each cup of coffee, random chats,
and cheese cake that we spent. 

For you, Jakarta, it's always hard to forget you, and it's always hard not to come back.