Begonia Polkadot

About three weeks ago I went to Jakarta to my mother's house. It was Easter holiday. My sister from Canada would also be there. My husband was abroad and my children hadn't seen my mother already 2 years. So enough reasons for Jakarta.

Jakarta is a world city, very different from Malang. It is full of high buildings, malls with famous international brands. They are still working on new malls although there are still a lot of empty buildings.



I lived there for more than twenty years but now everytime I go there, I got "culture shock". Everywhere you go, there will be traffic jam. That's why you can hardly make plans. But ok, I won't bore you with my story about Jakarta. Maybe you know it much better, maybe you've lived there recently or maybe you live there now.

Although I don't like to sit in traffic jam, I still did it because I need to do shopping for groceries. I choosed the close one from my mother's house, Cilandak Town Square or known as CITOS.

I went there with my sister. At the entrace of the supermarket, my sister stopped and stared at plants which are sold there. They are indeed nice plants and one of them has leaves with white spots. It's so pretty, I never seen it before. The vendor said its name, Begonia Polkadot.

The young leaf is red but when it grows it will become green. It also has a nice shape. I was sure that I'd buy one to bring it to Malang but not now. Better to buy it one day before I flew back to Malang, I thought.

The next time I went to the same mall again, I was just with my children. Actually it wasn't for shopping but for having some fastfood because Citos has a lot of nice (fast food) restaurants and cafe's. Beside we have been to other shopping malls that day. In Malang the favourite fast food restaurant of my children is Mc Donald but in Jakarta they preferred to go to A & W which you can't find in Malang.

When we passed the supermarket, I saw a woman buying a lot of plants including the Begonia Polkadot, two carts full. There were just two Begonia left. I asked the vendor if they still have more than these 2 left Begonia's. He said that the new ones would come on Friday next week. Apparently these plants are also new to Jakarta's people. So they rush to buy them. A couple days ago when I saw them for the first time, no one around us seemed to be interesting on it. Today was Saturday and on Monday next week we'll fly back to Malang. So I had to buy it now if I wanted to bring it to Malang. I choosed one of these 2 Begonia's. They didn't have a big plastic bag so I had to carry it and then we went to A & W.

It was crowded at A & W but we were lucky because we saw a family leaving their table. While we're eating there, my son has dropped his drink accidentally to his chest. The t-shirt and floor got wet. Luckily a waiter came and didn't get mad then he cleaned the floor. Trip to my mother's house would take at least 1 hour and we haven't finished our dinner yet. So I need to go to buy a new t-shirt for my son. I let the children staying there till I came back and also to look on the plant. I finished my french fries fastly and rushed to go to Matahari Department Store on the second floor. Just outside the A & W I heard my daughter calling me, "Buy a nice one Mom!"

I didn't think about a nice one or not. I just need a dry t-cloth for him. But in the store I still compared at least 4 t-shirts. I don't know it happenned because the calling of my daughter or because I'm a woman. Anyway after choosing and paying the nice one, I went back to A & W, took the shopping bags and of course the plant and found a taxi. Off to my mother's house. It has been a long day but I was satisfied to be able to do a lot of things in Jakarta in one day!

On the day we went back to Malang, my mother helped me wrapping the plant. The intention is to bring it as a hand luggage. I couldn't imagine how it would be if they put it together with other luggages/suitcases. At the airport I wasn't sure whether they'd let me taking the plant to the plane. To my relieve, at the control point, there was no problem at all.

In the plane I put it under the chair before me. It didn't block other passengers' way. I was happy and didn't expect that it went so smoothly. But shortly before take off, a stewardess came to me and asked if I could put it in the closet. But when she knew that there's grond in it, she didn't want it. Finally she did what I was afraid of. She took it away and put it with other passengers' suitcases. Uuh-ooh, there went my Begonia Polkadot, destroyed under heavy suitcases. I wished I could buy one in Malang.

At the airport in Malang, I collected our luggage. Then I waited for the black plastic bag in where my Begonia is. It took a while when my daughter said, "There it is!" To my surprise I saw it on the table near the conveyor belt. I took it and peep at it. Yes, it is still a whole! I am so happy. Thanks for everyone who took care of it.

At home I still keep it in its pot. I need to find a suitable place in my garden. Not too close to other plants so everyone can enjoy its beauty. Every time I see it, I feel happy. I think I appreciate it more due to all difficulties I got to bring it home. Your hard working on something makes you love it more.