Fred went a wandering.

Monas - National monument or national disgrace?

This is the centre of what should be Indonesian national pride. It's a great big tower in the middle of Jakarta, representing all that Indonesia should be.



Sadly, it represents much of what Indonesia commonly is.







Until the government get get this place cleaned up, the rest of Indonesia has no chance.

Flooding - I wonder why.



At the end of the rainy season last year, there was a demo by people of the village just upstream from this bridge. They said the new estate was the cause of the floods in their villages.
Why can't people turn their brains on and take responsibility for their own actions?

thanks for amusing sharing about Indonesia 

tjendrakasih wrote:

thanks for amusing sharing about Indonesia 

You're very welcome.
It's just a bit of a hobby I indulge in as I wander around.

Nice Picture

frendyhoras wrote:

Nice Picture

The villages and the estate flooded a couple of days ago.
What a shock.

mas fred wrote:

frendyhoras wrote:

Nice Picture

The villages and the estate flooded a couple of days ago.
What a shock.

Fred , Welcome to Jakarta.

The Uniquely Asia only in Jakarta

Ladies and gentlemen (And transgenders we don't really much mention),
A moment of your valuable time, if I may.

I would like to apologise for the total lack of posts on this thread, this is because I've been feeling like death warmed up for a few weeks so I haven't been out very much.

I have hardly taken a snap for ages and the local sheep are feeling lonely.
I'll try to resume normal service now I'm hunky dory again.

Anything and everything is carried on motorbikes, not just on small side roads but on main roads as well.
These were taken from a bridge in BSD, South Tangerang, Jakarta.
This is a really busy main road but that's a nothing detail when you have the chance to carry a silly load on a motorbike.





Bikes are also used by food traders of all sorts.
A chap delivering bread. These guys run around the estates, selling their products.



and finally, a mobile restaurant.

anon wrote:

Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat
Please do put a penny in the old man's hat
If you haven't got a penny, a ha'penny will do
If you haven't got a ha'penny, then God bless you!

Christmas come to Indonesia as well. Christianity is a minority religion but the vast majority just accept it being around without the slightest care either way. (Sadly, some more extreme people want to bomb Churches but they are a tiny minority)

The big sign as you enter BSD is being decorated, as much of the city is.



The bridge was being decorated with fairy lights. Note how they're open to vandalism but there are so few vandals, they're safe to leave there. The lady in the photo is old and ragged. She's there quite a lot, begging for whatever he can get.
Many beggars in Indonesia are con merchants that are simply too lazy to work, many more are in true need.



Of course some, regardless of their religious views, people like the lady above and this family will have a terrible Christmas.

First thing, yet another apology for the almost total lack of posts. I'm running about a lot and never seem to get time to stop and mess on the internet.

Right, to business.
Evening food courts are, as I'm mentioned before, very common.
Here's another example.



Bread is sold as roti bakar (fried bread). Chocolate is very popular but a variety of options are available.



This is sambal, a very hot and spicy sauce. Indonesian sambal is wonderful.



As you can see, hygiene rules are strict, if anyone knew any.



Still, you have to think positive, the activity keeps most of the rats away,  cockroaches don't like being around people and bacteria is killed by the very high cooking temperatures.
Strange as it may seem, food from street stalls is rarely a health hazard.
If the washing up is done in dirty condition, you can get something unpleasant from the plates or cutlery but unlikely from the food.
If I eat at the stall, I ask them for the food wrapped up but eat it there with a  disposable spoon I take with me.
Some restaurants are not so safe. Unlike the food stalls who get fresh every day, they tend to hold greater stock levels and not to care much about storage or cooking.
Veggie types have no problem finding non meat alternatives. This is still a poor country and meat is expensive. This stand sells tofu.





I'll post again in a moment.

A man in a tree.



He's part of a team doing a serious trimming job.



The old fashioned ways work because labour is cheaper than a buzzsaw.



Being on a major road, all the usual health and safety regulations are in force. The usual is none at all.

Bits of tree are really handy as they can be used for all sorts of things.



In the UK, when a truck breaks down, a warning triangle, cones and maybe flashing hazard lights are in order, in Indonesia, a bit of tree is the standard sign.



This one has two duff tyres.



Unusual here as tyres are changed religiously, well, eventually.



Luckily, the same lack of attention is never given to the brakes. These are always at peak efficiency.

Duff tyres are a minor stupidity out here. There's better.
How about standing in the back of a truck so the large pane of glass doesn't break?



Or kids riding on top of a tanker? Well, it's only a small tanker so I suppose it's okay.

Electrical safety is taken about as seriously as road safety.
I checked this the following day so can assure posters, it's live.

A loose cable is held up with a bit of wood. I suppose that isn't too bad because it's out of reach of kids.



This section is a bit more dangerous.
Seems a car ran into the post a few days before and no one has bothered to report it.

Road closed?



Could be....After all, the high tech, electronic safety signs are all over the place.



and a pile of rocks in the road always means 'road closed - except for motorcycles', it's in the international highway code.



Not that it stops many people



but, as luck has it, there happens to be a man who'll tell you the way....better if you pay him for the service.

It was more road works.



There's always a big road improvement program here about this time of year.
As you can see, they do a section, take up the stuff and move on to the next bit.



You'll also notice the sudden drop at each edge that I mention in ealier posts.
This has been known to cause the odd problem.

The road improvements make things much safer ..................... sometimes

This road is being widened.



The locals proceed to add illegal road humps. These are better than most because they have some attempt at making them, most don't.



and, if you pay the guys a few quid, they'll miss a bit so you can get your pick up into your drive easier.
Of course, the poor sod who rides his motorcycle into the hole one dark night may be a little less than happy about this.

Some more of the older stuff.

You don't have to go far outside a city centre to find poverty. This 'house' is just outside the richest area of Purwokerto.



Snails get pretty big around here.



What do you mean, there's nowhere we can build a shop?



There is a Javanese building called a Joglo. It's basically a roof without walls. Makes a lot of sense when you consider this is a very hot country where it rains like cats and dogs half of the year.

Supermarkets.
Just like a western place



But being an 86% Muslim country they have a mini mosque in the shop.



This is a more 'conservative' Muslim school in Indonesia. Quite a lot of ladies wear garments you see on the right but very few dress as the lady on the left.
That more extreme level of modesty is very unusual out here and not generally accepted by the rest of the population.



Back to the roads and the large holes.





They look tyred

Imagine this bloke selling those thinks on the street in Manchester.



A local owning a decant car out here is rich. That usually means he has a good job so fair chance he's bright. Being bright does not mean you aren't stupid.

The drunken twit driving this car......



...is in prison because he killed the two people who were on this motorbike.



Ciggies are everywhere. They sell them in shops, on the street and even by the single death stick for people too poor to buy a full pack.
Delivery is not what you expect in the west either.

Over the bridge...



takes you to the house....



I wonder if the fish taste nice from that open storm drain that sewage from poor houses runs into.

I finally got a moment to myself where I could wander to the cinema.
Iron man two has just rolled in and I thought I deserved a big screen rather than the easily available pirate DVD,

Super high tech laser display holographic advertising is the norm in smaller town cinemas.



Of course no one thought to do anything like build an access to the banners and time boards so they use a ladder. (of sorts)

If you wander around a village after about half past three in the afternoon you will see blokes ready for mosque. That means they dress like this.



Blokes wander round selling all sorts. This one has brooms, mops and the like.
They usually attract a small crowd in the villages.



There is little or nothing by way of care for the mentally ill here so they tend to walk the streets.



A very common in Indonesia is photocopy shops. If you want something here you are pretty much guaranteed to be asked for a photocopy of your ID card. Home computers are getting much more common but most still don;t have any means to print out files so it's computer rental and photocopy shops.
Anyone going here is lucky in that this shop does both but many photocopy shops are just a single machine and that's it.



4/realindonesia/05062010645.jpg[/IMG]

I posted a few pictures of a supermarket before and, as you saw, they are pretty western but with an Indonesian slant.
Same goes for the upper floors.
It's common to have a food court and kids play area in them. What is also common is a mobile phone market. People are mobile phone bonkers in Indonesia to the point where every second shop on some streets sell mobiles and pretty much every tiny village shop sells credit.

Upstairs in a supermarket.

Kids' play area



Food hall with the usual Indonesian slant.





And of course, a load of phone stands.

Temple on a back street.







No mental health care, part two.



Like any good mum this lass is protecting her kid from the sun.
Pity she's driving the motorbike one handed to do it.

A barber



Rp6,000 is about 30p

I think I posted a pic of this bloke before. Not all Indonesian are small. So much for stereotypes.



I was taking Michelle for her usual morning walk using the usual route when I noticed this.



Weddings, circumcisions and funerals will see Indonesians but these tents up wherever they can. This time they have covered the walkway that runs between the houses.



Of course, they put tables out so they can serve food to their guests.



But they have to cook it first

I'm shocked anyone had heard about Rod out here but at least they tossed it away.



Time for some more shopping



Of course you have to park carefully first.
Yes, this is in use on the roads

Food is a very common business out here. New restaurants pop up all the time. This style is very popular. It's cheap to build and nice to sit in. These type of places are generally affordable to the mass of the population as they are fairly cheap so get a lot of customers if the product is good. Anyone earning Rp1 million/month (In smaller towns - not Jakarta) can afford to come to a place like this every so often assuming they are unmarried. No way would a married couple live to that standard on that salary.

A new one being built.



The one we visited was slightly different as it was a 'courtyard' layout.



A common thing here is lesehan. That's usually just a simple table and no chairs. Off go your shoes and you sit on the floor at a low table.



You end up in a little stable like enclosure. That means it's private so you can eat in peace.

There are sinks around the yard like this.



So you can wash your hands before and after the meal.



It's especially necessary after as you eat like this.



That is roast chicken with rice and sambal (Chilli).
The meal for two cost Rp38,500 and there was easily enough to feed us and my two year old with some left over.

Ah, fish in a pet shop.





Sorry, did I say pet shop? I mean supermarket. These are food. Told you fresh stuf was easy to find out here.



On the subject of fresh food. A few of these chicken sellers are around every morning.
Killed at 5, plucked by 6 and on the road being sold.

160....................

Time and time again you expressed your love for indonesia extensively, can you tell us why do you love Indonesia this much?

Hericles wrote:

Time and time again you expressed your love for indonesia extensively, can you tell us why do you love Indonesia this much?

A start.

The people, in general, are amazingly friendly.
The food is out of this world.
Indonesian sambal is so good, it must be a gift from the Almighty as no man could ever manage to invent something that good.
Indonesian girls have really cute bums(I've never made note of the boys' arses or taken any photos of them)
The place is laid back.
I have a good life here.

A few things bug me slightly but that's nothing against all the things I love about this country.

Mas Fred Selamat pagi, I agree in total with you,but when your special some one is Indonesian one may look past a lot, I know I do. Phil

Photobucket have improved their site.
Uploading is so much faster but I can't get to view or link to anything new I put on there.
Basically, I'm stuck until the idiots get it sorted or I can find another hosting site.

Right, found a dump the rubbish link that takes you back to the older version of photobucket. Sadly, I'll have to upload the photos again before I can post because the new site is crap and doesn't show the new uploads.
Back soon.

Ah, the high  ranking policemen are out on parade.





All the lower ranks are getting ready for something.



Turns out a really high ranking cop was getting married.
The groom wore his dress uniform, the bride, white.
The congregation were armed to the teeth.



There is a terrorist problem out here and they're targeting coppers so, at events of note, there's quite a lot of security.

This isn't military, it's a drill demo at a school. I've seen professional troops that wouldn't match up to them.
Amazingly good.

I was out and about a couple of Fridays ago.
Now, as many will know, Friday is the big prayer day.
That boils down to mass payers pretty much everywhere. Most larger shops have a mosque as part of the building, this supermarket is no exception. I was running a bit late, naughty me, but I got there just about on time (Ish).