Fred went a wandering.

Traffic jams are about as common as the motorbikes, just less popular.
Many are caused by sheer weight of traffic. A lot more are caused by sheer stupidity.

These micro bus drivers are parked three abreast on a main road through BSD, Jakarta.



Note the passengers getting on the middle one.

He goes leaving one in the inside lane and another few in lane three.
Drrrrr.

Cute little rodents in a cage with a little wheel and all sorts.
Is this a pet shop?



Maybe - He has a cobra and various others in a glass tank.



There's the owner dude with a small python.

The rodents are for sale but .......

Snakeskin bags, purses and wallets.





Note. The quality looks excellent.

The sign in this window translates to snake soup and various other snake based foods.
Must give it a go one day.

I've been into the centre of Jakarta today.
Going by train is always good for a couple of snaps.
A shoe shine boy at the station.



I often use the non air conditioned trains because they're more fun.

Inside the carriage.



It's more like a market than a train.

Food.

More from inside the train.

Food (again)



Newspapers



and a load of other stuff.
Entertainment was provided by this blind guy for whatever you wanted to pay him.

I'm as some of you will know, an from a place in England called Yorkshire.
People from Yorkshire have common traits.
We say as we see and tend to make terrible diplomats because of it and we have sayings.

One of those sayings is, "There's none so blind as them that don't want to see" (Forgive the Yorkshire version of English)

This lad was sitting on a bridge in the middle of jakarta.







Now for those blind people.







None of them seem to be able to see him at all.
Perhaps they could get work as buskers on trains.

Safety last in Indonesia.

I said before, Indonesians aren't known for thinking ahead.
Safety isn't even a consideration for many less educated workers and their bosses don't care because they can usually get away with it.

Some guys loading trees onto a waggon.



Even piece by piece, there's a fair bit of weight.



You have to make sure the winch and rig are as safe, sorry, cheap as possible.



And that all staff have all safety equipment, including suitable, steel capped boots.





Note for the potentially upset.
This isn't a tourist brochure; just what I see.
The good news is, at least one tourist has come to Indonesia because of these photos, had a great time and intends to return.

My wife, kid and I wandered off on holiday to Belitung island, just off Sumatra.
Pretty good place, more so when we moved into a hotel right next to an unbelievable beach (Bonus - fantastic restaurant).

I went for my usual wander. Petrol stations are strictly supervised affairs with strict safety rules.

Customer rolls up.



The highly trained, experienced attendant takes their order.



And fills up the bike.

The sea around the island is really shallow.
Notice the black dot near the centre of the frame.



Have a close up.



The guy must have been 500 m out but still only up to his waist.

Fishing, as you would expect, is big business on the island.

OK, maybe not big but important to the locals.

Hey Fred

Nice pictures. Really catcy--- how long you been here---

rcraj wrote:

Hey Fred

Nice pictures. Really catcy--- how long you been here---

I'm coming up to five years now.
It's been a great time, I love the place.

There is a down side to Indonesia, show me a country that hasn't, but the upside massively outweighs the little that is bad.

Note - Except the roads. Thery're my pet hate.

The bin man.
Pushbikes with a sidecar are used for all sorts of things from mobile food wagons to rubbish collection and pretty much everything in between.



Public transport.
Cash can be hard to come by so any means of free transport is good news.

Indonesia isn't known for it's aggressive enforcement of safety rules as this box shows.
It's outside the vehicle registration centre in BSD.
Most people will look at this as dangerous.
Electricians will PM me to ask if they can use it in safety presentations.

The roads, as I've said before, are no better.
Three on a motorbike is bad enough, no helmets makes it worse but the last guy sitting backwards so he can drag the food cart while in three lanes of traffic.......Ug

More crazies on the roads.

Gas bottles on a bike - drrrr



I'm tyred.





Thirsty sir?
These guys hang around traffic jams selling what they can.

I had to tax my gay motor scooter a couple of weeks ago.
Vehicle tax offices are strictly local here and I bought the thing from a guy who lived in a different part of Jakarta. That means new number plates and a larger 'cost'.
Not saying, just guess.
There are agents that'll do the work for you but they just add even more to the deal so they end up sweet.
Outside the office is a who village of little sellers with all sorts available.



Yep, they're real.







And, as always, food.

Motorbikes are used for anything and anything.
I'm amazed I've not seen a mobile cinema yet. I think I've seen everything else except that and a circus.



Need some sewing doing?



Still, not everyone can afford a motorbike so some transport things on Shanks' pony.
I'm guessing this bloke has some lifestock that are a tad hungry.

I don't do tourist brochures.

Every town and village in Indonesia has a village head.
Uniforms are a big thing out here; a throwback from the Suharto times.

The village head of Tidung island, Thousand islands.



Not all who live on tropical islands live in luxury.



And not all tropical beaches are filled with dusky maidens.

Nothing is wasted.
This boat was knackered and pretty much rotten. A little thing like that won't stop these guys.
They'll rip off the bad and rebuild.



What is this guy up to?



Hharvesting coral.

Cool police boat.

Street food. You can get all sorts of stuff.
See if you can guess.

He has a customer



In it goes



It's fried



Needs chilli (Everything does out here)



It's eggs.

Mosques are everywhere out here and come in all shapes and sizes.



There are three basic positions when praying.

No benefits system.
That means people work in any way they can. No work means no food.
This guy walks around the streets trying to sell whatever he can.



He won't be making very much at all but he will be working very long hours.

Motorcycles come in all types.
They range from the perfect to the totally buggered.
People riding these bikes range in size too.

Some vehicles don't have an engine at all but you can always get a push from a mate.

The roads are one of my favourite hunting grounds for snaps in Indonesia.
The photos aren't always top quality because you can't set up a shot or even check the position of the sun. However, some turn out well.

These were passing one afternoon. As with many, it was a rush job to get the picture.



Note the mirror on my bike.



The camera wouldn't set up fast enough to get a good shot of the bike in the mirror but it was long, very, very long.

Sort of personal post for a change.

I have a cold, a serious cold. I'm snotted up, have a headache and feel like poo on a stick.
I usually just take a few tablets washed down with coca cola but Sulis came up with a more natural relief. (and no coca cola - bonus)
This isn't a cure but it helps.



This is big, juicy chunks of pineapple and home made sambal. Basically, its chilli ground up with red sugar and a few other bits and bobs.
Tastes good but it's just a degree or two cooler than the place where the bad people go when they snuff it. (depending on your religious beliefs).
To my shame, we bought pineapple from the supermarket. We'd never have done that when we lived in the countryside. City life stinks in that respect but I like to think positive so I enjoy the easy availability of fast food and electronics.

We went shopping yesterday. The maid took Michelle on the train that runs through the supermarket. Michelle seemed to enjoy it.



and the ice cream.



We all eat a bit of that. Seriously nice and only Rp2,500 each.

More street food. These guys loved the idea of being mildly famous on the internet.
Food looked pretty good as well but I was about to take lunch with my wife so I resisted.



Need a drink with that sir?

I've mentioned before a large problem of people simply tossing rubbish in rivers.
Several problems. Looks a mess and clogs drainage up, thus worstening flooding.
Some local dude in Bintaro has decided enough is enough and sent out a small army of men to clear a polluted river.



They even went out with two nice dingies so they could be sure of getting all the rubbish from the river.

Here's a couple of closer pictures taken when they came to my end of the place.
There's a small dam here.
As you can see, they're really hard at the clearing work.





This sort of incentive needs repeating all over Indonesia, a triumph for the environment, an inspiration to us all.

but....

The idiots were simply tossing it all into the next bit of the river.
What a pointless waste of time.

Oh well, I like to think positive. At least that bridge hasn't fallen into the river yet.



Gets a bit closer to it every day.

That bridge has been repaired again.
They moved the metal plates back and added a tyre so it doesn't move so easily next time.

We have a couple of big supermarkets here. The poor simply can't go because they don't have the cash. Of course some poorer people go to collect what rubbish they can find to sell.





Sad old world.

That bridge is getting worse. The hole is slowly growing but you have to look close up as the metal plate hide it from a casual glance.
That tyre is sticking up a bit. Wonder if any motorcyclists will come a cropper on it.



I wonder when it'll collapse.

Of course, safety isn't always the first concern in Indonesia.

Indonesia is a great place. I know it has problems but I love it anyway.
The people are the big bonus. If you think Thailand is the land of smiles, you've not been here.

Back to English.
It has become a fashion, a fad, pretentious and posh to speak English and have your signs in English.

Pity they mess up.

I found a tiny ice factory. Passed it a few times without knowing what it was.
They use tap water to make the ice; thus it isn't a good idea to use it.
However, it's cheap so it get used a lot.



And off he goes

There are many 'real' parking areas in Indonesia with fancy ticket machines and so on.
Some, like every Giant supermarket I've been to so far, are free. Others charge various rates between Rp1,000 and Rp3,000 for a motorbike.
There are loads of unofficial "Parkir" about. They all charge Rp1,000 to watch your bike while you go shopping or whatever.