Blogs from Jakarta, Java, Indonesia, Asia

Head can be heated, but the heart must stay cool… ~ Indonesian Proverb HE SAID... Today we were continuing to explore the bustling city of Jakarta. Wide awake at 5:30am and feeling completely refreshed, we immediately jumped into the day. We may have been a bit too eager. When we arrived at Yello Harmoni Hotel’s expansive dining area for breakfast at 6am, the place was devoid of front-of-house staff. However, food dishes were trickling in (thanks to the kitchen staff), so we decided to settle at a table with city views and help ourselves to the meagre buffet offerings. I went for a simple option – cornflakes and sultanas, along with hot tea. We had a long day of walking ahead, and we were heading out into Jakarta’s morning humidity at 8:30am, so we didn’t have ... read more

I arrived around noon, but my host had to work until 18h. I had contact with another couchsurfer who picked me up from the airport and took me for lunch. I am a bit more familiar with Indonesian food, so when I saw satay on the menu, I had to try it. It was so delicious! And as you might guess, eating it in the country of origin instead of my home country, it was the best I had ever tasted. The guy was also super kind and wanted to bring me to the place where I would meet my host, but when we left the restaurant, it was too late for him to enter the city. Apparently they have a system in Jakarta, that there are certain hours, only odd numbers on one day and ... read more

I wake in a cold sweat. I think I might have made some unflattering remarks about the safety and security record of the airline we came here on in an earlier post. I now realise that we will be travelling with them again today. I hope they’re not one of those companies that pays people to search the internet to see whether any of their passengers have said anything disparaging about them. I wonder how they might extract their revenge. Crashing the plane would seem to be a bit extreme, but maybe they might think that feeding me dodgy food was an appropriate punishment. I wonder if I can hold out all day and all night without eating. We spend the morning lazing by the pool with Brian and then catch a taxi to the airport. ... read more

Fajn vyspaty, po vypnuti poistek v byte smer lobby na free wifi signal. V mini warungu si tu davam plnene placky zeleninou, k tomu mi neskor donesu free caj (asi deci) Majitel je zo sumatry, takze jasne, ze mam ist tam. Ludia tu postupne cakali na odvozy do prace. Vela sa ich tu poznalo, tak asi dlhodoby podnajomnci/vlastnici. Ako pracovat by som v tomto meste nechcel, by ma drblo z kazdodennych zapch. V ba to je prechadzka ruzovou zahradou oproti tomuto. O 9.00 ma uz ocakava na ceste cs. Dostavam od nej pohladnicu ako suvenir. Zastavuje mi mini dodavku a smer zel. stanica. Dufam, ze sa s touto babou este niekedy stretnem, fakt super osobnost. Cesty opat zadrbane, nasa minidodavka vzadu plna malych skolacok v krojoch. V predu som sa tlacil s jednou zenskou, nastasti vystupil ... read more

Hey allihopa! Så er første uge ved at være overstået og vi er i skrivende stund på sydkysten, i byen Yogyakarta. Vores tur startede med et par dage i Jakarta, som ikke viste sig at være noget hit - det var da også nævnt mange steder at den er trist, støvet, traffikeret og uden egentlige højdepunkter. Så vi brugte tiden på at køre rundt og kigge, ligge ved poolen og komme af med jetlaggen (vi er 5 timer foran her). At se Jakarta-skyline fra 66. etage var højdepunktet, det var tilgengæld også et nydeligt skue med en kold "Bintang" i hånden. Efter Jakarta tog vi til byen Bandung som et mellemstop, en by viste sig at være endnu værre traffikmæssigt end Jakarta - trafikken står praktisk talt stille dagen lang - som i HELT stille. Med ... read more