Blogs from Jakarta, Java, Indonesia, Asia - page 2

Møjn la familia Så går turen endnu engang østpå, helt bestemt øen Java i Indonesien. Indonesien består af mere end 17 000 øer - og hvis man besøger én ø om dagen, vil det tage over 40 år at komme igennem dem alle - der er mange! Java er den mest befolkede ø i Indonesien - og verden - med 140 mio.mennesker og i hovedstaden, Jakarta, bor mere end 30mio inkl opland (ca dobbelt så stor som Bangkok). Det er nogle vilde tal der gør sig gældende. Og hvad tager man sig så til på Java? Java er spækket med aktive vulkaner, gamle buddhistiske templer, flotte strande, omkringliggende øer og masser mærkelig, stærk mad - bliver rart at komme "hjem" igen :) Jeg sender naturligvis lidt billeder og indtryk undervejs som jeg plejer, det er skide ... read more

.... the Equator! Singapore is 1deg North and Jogyakata is 7deg south! You will be pleased to know my bag weighed in at 19.5kg. Phew. And I could fit into my long trousers comfortably .... and finally we have a nice hotel in Jogyakarta complete with swimming pool, so all good here. Now for some amusing facts. Singapore has a limited number of cars on its roads, which means that traffic jams are kept to a minimum. This is maintained by a 10 year permit being applied for, accompanied by a wad of money, to put a car on the road. And the number of permits issued each month equals the number or cars taken off the road in that month, so the quantity of cars is kept the same. Added to which there is a ... read more

On a whim and an invite I hopped on the domestic flight from Sumatra to Jakarta the capitol, the economic seat of power, and city of nine million people on the Indonesian island of Java. Here I was to meet Amis – 25% of the C.C. (Cartagena Crew), a quarter of the F.F. (Fearsome Foursome), and an integral part of the Tower of Power who I had the privilege of crossing paths with way back in March at the start of my journey in Colombia. Upon my arrival as I dined in the wee hours of the morning alone after my long journey amidst the cockroaches and the rats on the streets of this mega city I was excited to again meet my friend the next evening and catch up on where and what we have ... read more

General info: Currency: Indonesian Rupiah Cost of living: 1,5l bottle of water 6R, 0,5l local beer 30R, meal in average restarurant 50R Flight to Jakarta sounded promising to me and I have to admit, I was a bit surprised with the significant domination of Islam in that region. The name of the city comes from Jayakarta, which old Javanese translate as "victorious city". It's rapidly growing, second largest in the world metropolis. Tropical climate creates perfect conditions for coffee plantation. That day I was given an opportunity to find myself in Tangerang area, which, saying politely, disappointed me. Obtrusive traffic noise, chaos on the streets, noticable air pollution and unaesthetic buildings, ruined my first impression. My attempts to explore the city met with failure. Cars dominate the traffic totally. Drivers use beeps instead of brakes, pedestrians ... read more

We explained to the kids at breakfast that our 3 hour train to Bandung arrived after lunch and that they might like to take something with them from the buffet breakfast. Hat took prawn crackers, Ed buttered some toast and we took a large waffle and the omelette that Hat ordered but didn't eat as it tasted of peppers. We're trying to encourage them to think ahead and become more self reliant. Our train from Gambir Station turned out to quite straightforward and I was very pleased that the tickets I'd bought online yesterday worked a treat. We'd taken the air conditioned carriage option and we were all grateful. The train went very slowly for the first few miles and we got to see the other side of bright shiny Jakarta. Tarpaulin shacks, sandbag walls, tiny ... read more