Indonesia has history of colonization by the Dutch, English and Japanese, and influence of such colonization appeared every here and there, notably the use of alphabets and Dutch influenced buildings. With my background of Japan, Holland and England, those things made me feel a bit awkward, if not guilty. The history has got absolutely nothing to do with myself as an individual but sometimes such feelings cannot be helped.
I've been to churches, temples, shrines and a synagogue, but it was my first time going inside a mosque. I am not religious but I actually like religious buildings. Good ones are always well taken care of, and you can really see that people SERIOUSLY keep the place clean with love and respect. They are also so peaceful, even ones in middle of a city.
There's a saying in Japanese, "You only rely on Gods when you are in trouble（困ったときの神頼み）" and that has quite a sarcastic connotation but I personally think it's totally fine to pray for Gods only when you are in trouble. There are times, like you know, bad break-ups or when your loved ones die, and you just need to be away from caos, be in an absolutely peaceful place, have your mind clear, to think better.
I liked the mosque in Jakarta as well. A town with a great religious building is always a great gift. Its mosque was very big, and more welcoming than I was expecting.
インドネシアのオランダ、イギリス、日本に占領されていた歴史の陰は、様々な場面で現れて、それらに対してなんとなく罪悪感を抱かずにはいられなかった。歴史と自分個人という人間は何も関係ないと思っていても、なんとなく。
日本のブランドや企業の進出にも少し驚いた。トイレはみんなTOTOだし、日本のデパートが並んでるし、日本車のシェアは日本国内よりも高かった。そこは嬉しくなるというか、誇らしくもなった。同時に、韓国の進出もかなり目立った形で認識出来て、SamsungやLGの派手で大々的な広告やキャンペーン、ラヂオから流れる韓国のポップソングなんかを考えると、日本独走の陰りは明白。やはり次の数年でまた状況は大きく変わるのでしょう。