Netherlands East Indies

Was taken off the sick list today — hope I don’t get another dose very soon, as I easily lost from 10 to 15 pounds in that two days of fever.

Another air raid today — two in fact — and neither could I detect any evidence of Jap planes. But despite this, it still seems to scare hell out of the poor native servants. Following are a few sights worth noting — shops boarded up with beautiful hardwoods — barefooted servants — pairs of white, silver-belled oxen drawing tremendous house-like carts, with folding roofs — tough little native horses pulling “boxy” little open carriages around (native taxis — hire for 20 cents, Dutch) — majority of cars in the streets are English Fords — rather snappy in their own small underslung way — native street vendors (mostly gone since the raids) standing with annoying patience before the shaded hotel terraces and smiling with a mouthful of teeth — some gold —and waving their wares up-and-down to attract some unwary beer-guzzler’s attention — the beds, with the canopies of mosquito net (rather handsome — and yet sexy looking too — sort of harem-ish”) their hard mattresses and pillows, and the inevitable “Dutch wife” — some of the wonderful tropic fruits — one called “menges” (mangosteen) is particularly good.