Another busy day…

26 Wednesday Feb 2025

Posted by Paul Bigland in Norway, Photography, Railways, Siemens, Travel

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Norway, Photography, Railways, Siemens, Travel

09:00 (Norway time).

The group have breakfasted and checked out of the (rather nice) hotel, now we’re gathering ready to head out on our rail trip to explore the first Norwegian railway line to be equipped with digital signalling. Apparently, we’ll have our own reserved coach on the train and lunch will be served in it on the return trip! (spoiled, us?) We’ll get back into Oslo later this afternoon when I’ll have a couple of hours to myself as my flight back via Schipol doesn’t leave until 18:55.

Last night’s meal at the Munch museum was both entertaining and educational. I never realised that Munch painted several versions of ‘the scream’ or that he painted them on cardboard, which makes conservation all the more difficult. I really need to come back when the museum’s open to the public and have a mooch.

I’ll try and blog through the day, although that may be erratic as there’s a lot to see and do…

18:00 (Norway time).

Sorry, trying to blog through the day was a complete non-starter due to the fact we were on the move all day – and busy. Now I’m at Oslo airport waiting for my flight to Manchester (via Schipol) so I’ve time to try and flesh the day out a bit. First up – here’s a few pictures…

Here’s the lovely old station building at Jaren (it dates from 1900) which we visited. It’s an important point on the first line equipped with digital signalling. We got to see the new kit – and the old…

Here’s how the line was controlled. This signalling panel is still in situ in the station building, although not for much longer.

The old relay room in the station building. This equipment dates from the mid 1950s. It’s redundant now, but many other Norwegian rail routes are still controlled his way. You can imagine the issues with getting spares and finding people with the knowledge to maintain this old kit.

One of the Stadler sets that work the line, this one was waiting for our Southbound service to pass.

Back in Oslo I had a couple of hours to kill before heading to the airport which gave me time to get some shots around the station and in the city. Here’s an international train bound for Stockholm, worked by a Swedish locomotive and stock.

Our little trip gave us the opportunity to see some of the Norwegian countryside, which looked stunning as most of it was coated in a thick layer of snow. we skirted several frozen lakes and small towns along with isolated wooden bungalows and farmstead, some of which looked stunning. The only thing that was in short supply was wildlife. We had several Ban Nore and Siemens staff with us whom we we could ask technical questions of. One chap told us to watch out for Elk along the route, then he observed that when the snow’s really heavy, the Elk tend to use the railway as a trail! I wouldn’t fancy meeting one head-on!

I’ll blog in far greater detail about the trip when I’m home and have all the pictures edited. Right now my main focus is getting home!

18:50.

We’ve boarded the plane and will be on our way shortly. I’ve really enjoyed this short trip to the ancestral home. I can see me coming back to explore more soon. Whilst the Bigland family roots are to the South-West of Oslo, I’d also like to have a look up in the far North of Norway. The railway line to Narvik (via Sweden) sounds beautiful.

But for now, the main thing is to return home and start sorting out the 1000s of pictures I’ve taken over the past month – and sort out work for the future. I think my wings may have to be clipped for a little while. Plus, we’re only a few weeks away from the Community RAIL awards in Newcastle – so I need to have the decks cleared for that.

I’m writing this mid-air, although it won’t get posted until I land. The KLM flight from Oslo is less than half-full – even tho’ it’s the smaller booked plane (an Emberauer E195). Curiously, we’re being charged for drinks and nibbles whilst on the outward flight with KLM, they were free. What’s that all about?

On the bright side, this 90 minute flight should be on time, and I can make a rapid exit in order to make my 50-minute connection back yo the UK. That’s when the fun may start. I’ll have 45 mins from landing to make the last train back to Halifax…

21:10 (Netherlands time).

Another dash through the massive Schipol airport has got me to gate D57 with time to spare. Looking at the crowds here, I suspect this plane’s going to be anything but empty.

21:50.

We’ve boarded, but it’s a full flight, and we’re late. This could get interesting. Just to keep the Manchester vibe alive, it’s pissing down here at Schipol!

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

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Free time in Oslo.

25 Tuesday Feb 2025

Posted by Paul Bigland in Norway, Photography, Railways, Siemens, Travel

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Photography, Railways, Siemens, Travel

Due to the logistics of getting so many members of the railway press corps to Oslo for this event, it doesn’t actually kick off until noon today, which has meant I’ve had a free morning to wander around the city centre and get a few pictures. Naturally, as my hotel is right next to it, the railway station was my first port of call. The building is a fascinating mix of old and new. The old building dates from 1882. It’s been kept and the concourse turned into this very elegant and attractive dining and bar area;

There 19 platforms at the station with services right across Norway. These old commuter trains caught my eye. The oldest I’ve seen dates from 1970 whilst the most modern is from 1992.

This particular Class 69 unit was built in 1984.

The interiors look rather dated too…

Almost all services are EMU operated, expect for this one, the 09:25 to Stavanger operated by Go-Ahead. Not for much longer, apparently. It’s going to be stopped soon as it’s losing money.

Right, it’s time to go and do some work. See you later…

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Rolling blog. Norway next…

24 Monday Feb 2025

Posted by Paul Bigland in Air Travel, Aircraft, Airports, Norway, Photography, Railways, Travel

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Air Travel, Aircraft, Airports, Norway, Photography, Railways, Travel

12:00

After spending over a month in 35 degree plus heat and humidity I’m swopping the tropics for a short trip to Scandinavia. Having spent some of the morning reliving my time in Malaysia through editing pictures (you can find the results here) it’s time to leave Halifax and the Pennines behind and head off to Manchester Airport once more. I’ll blog throughout the trip, so feel free to pop back and see how it goes…

13:05.

I’m on way! Dawn kindly dropped me off at Sowerby Bridge station, where I caught the 13:02 bound for Salford Crescent.

As you can see from the picture, it’s a lovely (almost spring-like) day for travelling. Far better than the gloomy conditions I arrived home in.

14:40.

I had a 30 minute interlude between trains at Salford Crescent, a station that’ll soon gain an extra platform to take pressure of the island structure that was provided when it was first built. It’s not difficult to see why it’s needed. There’s an intensive service through the station nowadays. Plus, it’s an important destination in its own right due to the changing nature of the area. There’s also a lot of people like me changing trains to access Manchester Airport services.

16:10.

And relax. I’m at the airport after a trouble-free journey. Getting through security and all the other airport gubbins was easy as the place is really quiet today. Now I’m killing time before my flight departs. I’ve already had a text from KLM to say it’s delayed. Fortunately, the delay is only 10 mins (at the moment, anyway) but I have less than an hour at Schipol where I change planes, so I hope it doesn’t get any worse.

My steed from Salford Crescent to the Airport.

16:50.

I have to admit that Manchester Airport has got better over the years. Even so, neither this nor any other airport would be my choice of transport, but it’s not always down to me to make that decision. Here’s my next conveyance.

17:20.

That was interesting. We have a nearly full 737-800 and the crew have been desperate to get people to stash coats and small bags underneath the seats in front of them ‘cos people are bringing too many big bags on board which will only fit in the overhead racks! This has caused further delays as stuff has had to be redistributed!

Despite that and my now lack of legroom, the flight’s not been bad. We flew out of Manchester just as the sun was setting, the passed over rugged Derbyshire before heading slightly South to cross the Wash and skirt Cromer before crossing over into Europe. Another interesting thing about the flight is that the majority of the cabin crew are late middle-aged. I’ve no idea why. KLM isn’t a budget airline either. You get free nibbles and a drink. Not bad on such a short flight.

20:25 (Netherlands time).

I’d forgotten just how big Schipol airport is! It’s massive. When we landed we seemed to taxi for a good 20 mins (at a lick too) before we got to an air-bridge. Getting from there to my departure gate took ages. There was no time to stop off anywhere even if I wanted to. I made it to gate D71 five minutes before we started boarding. This is another full flight that seems to have been upgraded from the Emberauer I was expecting to another 737-800. Still, all that matters is that I’m on – and I have a window seat (not that I’ll be seeing much this time of night).

Passing through Schipol has brought back lots of memories of Amsterdam, a city I’ve not revisited for far too long. There’s lots of stories I could tell, going back to 1981 when I first came over with the intention of staying. My girlfriend at the time and I joined a group of friends who were squatting here. Sadly, it didn’t work out (Barbara didn’t take to things), and we split up on our return, but that was the start of my long relationship with the city which I’ve enjoyed with various friends and partners over the years – or just on my own. Now I’m just passing through, but I have a hankering to return. Perhaps a long weekend in the summer?

Right now, it’s time to explore pastures new and the ancestral homeland as the Biglands originated from Norway many centuries ago…

Shame it’s only a flying visit and I won’t have chance to visit the relatives, or the town of Bygland or Byglands fjord.

23:00.

Oslo airport is pretty quiet this time of night, and I entered the Schengen area in Schipol there was no more immigration ho-hah to pass through (don’t get me started on the Brexit shambles). Now I’m on the airport express train into central Oslo. Cool looking, aren’t they?

00:15. (Norwegian time).

Dunno why, but I was surprised to see just how much snow was on the ground as the train made its way from the airport to central Oslo. Maybe I’d been lulled into a false sense of security by the temperatures on the weather forecast. It’s not a problem, and central Oslo has been cleared of most of it. My hotel is right outside the station which is ideal for going for a wander tomorrow morning before i meet up with colleagues from Siemens and the UK. Right now it’s time to turn in as we’re going to have a busy day tomorrow. In the meantime, here’s a couple more pictures from the trip.

The airport Express pauses at Oslo Central.

I may be in Norway, but the first sign I saw when I left the station building made me feel right at home!

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

It was nice whilst it lasted…

23 Sunday Feb 2025

Posted by Paul Bigland in Photography, Railways, Travel, West Yorkshire

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adventure, Photography, Railways, solo-travel, Travel, West Yorkshire

My weekend at home is drawing to a close but it was nice whilst it lasted. My body-clock has been reset back to UK time, although I’m still waking up early, which is no bad thing. Maybe it’s my age! Sadly, the weather here in the Pennines wasn’t conducive to outdoor activities. When I got up at 07:00 the wind was already howling, with the promise of rain later, so staying at home seemed like the sensible option. Besides, I’d plenty to do, what with picture editing and preparing for my next trip away. In fact, the day flew by. I’ve managed to edit and caption dozens of pictures which you can find in the following galleries (the links are built in).

Indonesian railways

Aircraft and airports

Here’s a couple of samples to pique your interest.

Yes, that is a small child stood in the middle of the tracks waiting for a train to pass outside Duri station! Trespass is endemic on railways in SE Asia (including Indonesia) but then many railways have shanty towns backing onto the tracks which people then use as their backyards. The train itself is an ex-Japanese Class 205 set. Introduced in 1985, the 205 series were used on both JR East and JR West lines. 524 205–0 series vehicles were shipped to Jakarta between 2013 and 2020. They form the backbone of the capital’s suburban train fleet.

Garuda Indonesia Boeing 737-800 number PK-GFM seen at Jakarta’s Soekarno Hatta airport on the 3rd February. The aircraft has been repainted into a retro livery which was used by Garuda in the 1960s.

There’s still several hundred pictures in the queue for editing, but they’re going to have to taka a backseat for a while as I’ve more immediate concerns. The other job I had to do (apart from unpacking and repacking) was confirming my travel arrangements for getting to Norway on Monday. This will see me returning to Manchester airport – albeit with a much smaller suitcase! I’ll have time to blog throughout the trip as it’s a fairly leisurely affair. I don’t fly until 17:15 and even then it’s via Schipol airport in the Netherlands. I won’t get to my hotel until around 23:00 but there might still be chance for a snifter in the bar with colleagues from the UK and elsewhere. The press event itself doesn’t actually start until Tuesday but we’ve got a lot to fit into the two days.

OK, time to go. The pair of us have both had a busy day. Now it’s time to eat and enjoy each other’s company before I head off again.

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Back in Blighty…

21 Friday Feb 2025

Posted by Paul Bigland in Musings, Travel, West Yorkshire

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Musings, Photography, Travel, West Yorkshire

This won’t be a long blog from me as I’m slowly adjusting to life back here in the UK generally and West Yorkshire specifically. Right now, it’s just past 21:00 but my body clock is still working on Jakarta time, so it’s set way past 04:00. Awkward.

After catching the train back to Halifax Dawn very kindly offered to pick me up from the station so I was home not long after 09:00 UK time. My first task was to unpack and get lots of clothes in the wash, then have a shower. Thus the smell of Asia (and me) has quickly faded into memory! I’d hoped to try and stay awake for as long as possible in order to reset the body-clock but I retired to bed just in case. As I’ve a huge backlog of pictures to edit I managed to keep busy and stay awake until 14:30, by which time my eyes were on fire and my eyelids felt like they were made out of lead, so I gave in and had a couple of hours peaceful sleep – where nothing was moving, there was no engine noise nor anyone sounding their horns. Bliss!

I woke up in time to venture out this evening It’s Friday, so the quiz in our local pub (The Big 6) was on the agenda – along with the chance to catch up with old friends. Dawn joined me and the pair of us spent a couple of hours answering questions and laughing, as the banter always flows between the quiz participants. It was almost like we’d never been away, leaving the past month feeling like a blur.

Now we’re back at Bigland Towers. Dee’s cooking some spicy prawns whilst I’ve retreated to bed to write this blog before curling up for the night. We have a social day planned for tomorrow and I need to be bright-eyed and bushy tailed!

In the meantime, here’s a few pictures from today.

I’ve not travelled on one of these for a while. In fact, it’s only the 2nd time this year! CAF built 195023 waits to lead a sister unit from Manchester Victoria as the 07:57 to Leeds.

After drinking nothing but fizzy beer (aka lager) for the past month and a bit it was lovely to return to the ‘Big 6’ and have a range of beer styles to choose from. Then there’s the free pork pie…

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Asia day 37. Time’s up…

20 Thursday Feb 2025

Posted by Paul Bigland in Air Travel, Airports, Indonesia, jakarta, Photography, Travel

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Air Travel, Airports, Indonesia, jakarta, Photography, Travel

I’ve decided to have a lazy last day here in Jakarta. After all the running around i’ve been doing, it’s time to savour a last day of soaking up some sunshine up on the hotel roof (which I have to myself). It offers some great views across this part of the city and the streets below where I can watch folk go about their daily lives whilst the multitude of local cats wash themselves or doze in the heat.

Besides, life will be full on when I get back and I’ve learned the value of peaceful solitude over the years. Now’s the opportunity to enjoy it for a couple of hours!

16:30 (Jakarta time).

In fact I enjoyed the sun for all that time – and dried a shirt that I wanted to travel back in. I even managed to nip out for a wander and chance to get a last few shots of street-life before it was time to leave. Asia fascinates me. I love the way so much of people’s lives is lived on the streets and how many people make their living there. It makes for such a vibrant and interesting place, so far removed form life in the UK. It’s also a photographer’s dream! Jakarta’s a mad place, but I must admit – I’ve rather enjoyed it. It must be the masochist in me. It reminds me of some Indian cities, only with added massive Singapore style shopping centers full of international brands. The only things I won’t miss are the pollution – and smoking. Indonesians are inveterate smokers and it’s a habit that seems to be catching on with more and more women – as is vaping.

Having run out of time I packed, showered and ordered a taxi to the airport. Navigating Jakarta’s mad traffic took way over an hour but as I had plenty of time before my flight it wasn’t an issue. Now I’m airside having checked in easily enough. My first flight to Doha is with Garuda Indonesia whom I don’t remember having flown with long-haul before. At Doha I transfer back to Qatar so this is chance to make a comparison.

Terminal 3 at Sukarano Hatta airport is much like any other. You could be almost anywhere in the world if it wasn’t for the people passing through that give it its identity. Here there’s still people off on the pilgrimage to Mecca as well as international travelers of all sorts. In the queue to check in I ended up in conversation with an Indonesian woman from Java who was on her way back to Singapore where her and her husband live. Her English (or rather West coast American, where she studied) was excellent. We chatted about Indonesia and language all the way to check-in. I love impromptu meetings like that.

Right, almost time to go as my chariot awaits. I doubt I’ll have time to blog en-route so the next time you’ll hear from me I’ll be back in the UK.

00:00 (Qatar time).

I’ve time to kill between flights here in Doha so here’s a quick update. My Garuda Indonesia flight wasn’t bad but the Boeing 777 wasn’t the most modern of aircraft. The entertainment system was outdated, and the headphones suffered the classic problem of ill-fitting sockets leaving to sound cutting out unless you jiggled them. Plus, the most modern film was at least 5 years old! Still, the food was good and the legroom wasn’t bad.

I even managed an hour or so’s sleep. Bonus!

Security at Doha is tight. I had my bag x-rayed once, and I was frisked twice – the last time at the gate. All the staff (not one of whom are local) were polite and efficient, so the whole thing was stress free so I was at my new gate within 15 mins of my plane landing. I wonder what Manchester will be like?

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To be continued…

Asia day 36. Time’s almost up…

19 Wednesday Feb 2025

Posted by Paul Bigland in Food and drink, Indonesia, jakarta, Photography, Railways, Travel

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asia, Food and drink, Indonesia, jakarta, Photography, Railways, trains, Travel

Today was my last full day here in Asia and it’s been a good one, despite the wet start. I’d set my alarm for 07:00, but it wasn’t needed, thanks to thin walls and noisy neighbours – the only drawback to where I’m staying.

My plan had been to head out before 09:00 but the drizzle and gloomy skies persuaded me to delay my departure for an hour. That worked out well as I ended up seeing part of the school run, Jakarta-style – which includes how many people you can fit on a scooter! I still haven’t beaten five – although I still have time tomorrow!

I retraced yesterday’s steps to Tanah Abang railway station only this time I took a different route where I finished up at the end of the line at Tanjung Priok. The Dutch built the port in the late 1800s and they rebuilt the railway station into a rather magnificent edifice in 1925. Nowadays, only one platform under the huge trains he’d roof is used by passenger trains (a shuttle service from Jakarta Kota). The rest is used for stabling intermodal wagons and locos for freight services out of the docks.

The station’s still well worth visiting as a relic of the Dutch era and as a piece of railway architecture.

My next stop was Jakarta Kota, the more well-known example of Dutch stations on Java. I managed a range of pictures there before moving on to something more modern by catching the train to Manggarai. This station’s changed out of all recognition since my last visit in 2017. Now, it possesses an upper level as the trains to Bogor run on elevated tracks at this point. There’s plenty of empty platforms in the trainshed on the same level – just waiting to be plugged into the network when new elevated tracks are completed.

This snd Jatinigara station further up the line are great examples of modern Javanese stations. I’d go as far as to say they’re world-class when it comes to facilities on offer. In fact, they could teach us a thing or two – like this, seen at Jatinigara (another station which has been heavily rebuilt and modernised).

A ‘co-working’ space on the main concourse above the tracks which is used by young and old. I think the plants are a really nice touch.

I visited several other stations on the network but there’s far to many pictures to sort out now. Hopefully I’ll have time to write up my about my rail trips around Jakarta tomorrow as the system’s an excellent one. Having got home I had grabbed a shower then headed out to eat in one of the lack backstreet food stalls. Here’s today’s meal.

Rice, fish and loads of veggies (plus a potato cake). Oh, and that red blotch is chilis!

Whilst I was eating there the heavens opened which delayed me somewhat but then wet streets at night are so photogenic.

The backstreets where I’m staying are a maze, and on every corner there’s a place to eat.

Now I’m back at home getting ready for the off. My flight’s not until tomorrow evening, so I’m hoping to make the most of the morning. Let’s see…

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Asia day 35. Jakarta junket…

18 Tuesday Feb 2025

Posted by Paul Bigland in Indonesia, jakarta, Photography, Railways, Travel

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asia, Indonesia, jakarta, Photography, Railways, Travel

The only problem with sleeping in a windowless room is that you get some very good sleep! Well, once all your neighbours have crashed out anyway as the soundproofing of the internal walls in this hotel was the one thing they scrimped on! I’d forgotten to set an alarm so I slept soundly until 07:30 which is unusual for me. I’d already decided that today was going to be home-based for the morning as I’ve a massive backlog of pictures to edit and I’ve stuff to sort out as I’m only a few days from returning back to the UK. As usual, something’s got to give. In this case it’s going to be having a trip on the high-speed line out to Benteng and back. It’s a bit of a logistical pig and there’s too many other things to do nearer ‘home’.

The first part of the day was spent in my hotel getting dozens of pictures ready for captioning before they appear on my Zenfolio website. That’s when having a desk (but no window) is rather useful. My only break was to nip out for breakfast (which is included in the price of my hotel) at the communal space I ate at last night. Breakfast was a buffet affair of traditional Asian (friend rice or noodles) plus Western – which meant sandwiches!

Having been fed and watered I returned to the hotel to spend another few hours editing, then thought ‘bugger it’ – let’s go exploring. My plan was to walk the half a km to the nearest railway station, Tanah Abang, then take a few trips on the suburban rail network. That walk turned into quite an experience as it was through a maze of narrow local lanes which tourists don’t normally explore, especially on foot! Nor that I was worried as the reception I got was universally friendly with several people asking for me to take their picture. The journey was fascinating as I got to see backstreet life, which consists of mad traffic and more small businesses than you can shake a stick at – and many of them are transient, based on little carts like this.

I’ve got a lovely bunch of coconuts! (but not much else)…

Finally, I made to Tanah Abang station, which has changed completely since 2017. The old locomotive depot has vanished. In its place a brand new station is appearing. The old low level platforms have all been rebuilt to the correct height for the imported Japanese trains – which have all been refurbished internally.

What hasn’t changed is the friendliness of the rail staff or the internal cleanliness of the trains, which are kept spotless by an army of cleaners. There’s also white gloved guards and security patrols throughout each train. The staff are all impeccably turned out, with (from what I could see) a very high number of female employees at all levels that would put the UK to shame. Here’s a few pictures from today.

Thumbs up from a young guard on the suburban line. Staff are impeccably turned out – including white gloves.

A cheery wave from a young lady guard who say me taking a picture of her train as it departed. After I waved back she even flashed the trains headlights!

Remember I mentioned how mad the traffic is in those narrow streets? Have a watch of this…

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Asia day 34. In transit from country to country…

17 Monday Feb 2025

Posted by Paul Bigland in Air Travel, Aircraft, Airports, Indonesia, jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Travel

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Aircraft, Airlines, Airports, Indonesia, jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Photography, Travel

The time’s just after 11:00 here in Malaysia and I’m at Kuala Lumpur airport waiting for my Air Asia flight back to Jakarta. To be honest, I’m sad to leave. There are so many exciting rail projects that I didn’t get chance to look at, I barely had a day in one of my happy places (Georgetown) – and I could hear a beach calling my name. But it wasn’t to be…

As usual in Asia, I was up early, but I didn’t have a great night’s sleep (too many things going around in my head), so I was having my last roti canai breakfast at 07:30 this morning.

Sitting in a local eating hose watching the world go by is quite educational. The place I chose I know of old but it was interesting seeing the old men coming in who obviously all knew each other, picking up a breakfast to take to work (or take home). Suitably replete I returned home, showered, finished my packing and said goodbye to what’s been my home for the past three nights. It’s been fine but next time I think I’ll go back to where I stayed in 2023. I missed having a big window to storm-watch from!

Getting out to the airport was easy. There’s a direct rail-link that runs every 20 mins and takes 33 mins to get to Terminal 2. Arriving is a bit confusing as you have to walk through a huge shopping centre before you find the actual airport! There was a melee around check-in but I got through quickly enough. security and immigration were just as much a breeze. Now I’m sat plane-watching as I’ve time to kill before my flight leaves. Nicholas Lim (a Singaporean friend) has texted me to say the Jakarta airport rail-link is up the spout, so things may be a little slower at the other end!

I’ll update this blog later. Right now here’s a few pictures for you.

Aboard one of the new Chinese built KLIA trains en-route to the airport.

The view from the outdoor smokers area’s best for plane-watching!

I’m forever blowing puddles…An Air Asia flight creates waves as it passes through the remains of last night’s torrential rain.

It’s early evening after a ‘fun’ arrival. The flight from Malaysia was great. It took 2 hours to get to Jakarta, where the weather’s just as wet as KL only with more overcast skies. The fun started at immigration. Getting my visa on arrival was simple. It was the biometric gates that were the hassle as my arrival co-incided with several hundred people from all over Indonesia who’d just flown back from the Haj to Mecca! The queues would have been bad at a European airport, but watching elderly village women (who’d probably never flown before) trying to come to grips with the gates was a sight to behold! It was almost worth the delay. Everyone was patient with everyone else, but it did take some time!

Ordering a Grab’ taxi at the airport I travelled into Jakarta by road. The trip wasn’t bad until we got close to where my hotel is. The main roads were jammed with all manner of vehicles going in different directions but we made it through in good time until we turned into a narrow one-way street. We got caught in a jam coming up to a crossroads and moved about 100 meters in half an hour. It was so rammed with scooters, cars, and parked vehicles it was almost impassible to pedestrians, who had to try and weave their way through the gaps in the traffic. I’ve not seen anything like it for a long time. We ended up getting to my hotel 45 mins later than planned, but hey – I’m not going anywhere else tonight. The Choska Residence where I’m staying is rather plush. Impressive from the outside, it’s got some great public spaces. The rooms are fine too, with a fridge, desk and big TV as well as plenty of wardrobe space and a nice bathroom. It’s in a mixed area that seems in some ways to be quite affluent but in others not, with lots of street stalls and the usual detritus of Asian big city life. Just across the road is an interesting place that has links to my hotel. It’s billed as a communal living space. In a new building is a cafe, several different eateries – and a laundrette! Like my hotel, it seems popular with young Muslim women.

Yes, that is a row of washing machines along the back wall!

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Asia day 33. About time to move on again…

16 Sunday Feb 2025

Posted by Paul Bigland in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Photography, Railways, Travel

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Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Photography, Railways, Travel

I’m afraid today’s blog will be short and sweet as my evening hasn’t gone quite to plan. Sometimes news from home can put a damper on the brightest of days. So, I’ll leave you with a few pictures from a day where I got out to explore the phase 2 extension of the Putrajaya MRT line, which opened just a few days after my last trip here.

Tomorrow I leave Malaysia to fly back to Jakarta for a last few days before my plane leaves for the UK. I can’t say I’m ready for that right now, but hey ho…

A Putrajaya MRT train crossing the KLIA airport line on its way into Putrajaya Sentral. The remains of the abandoned and never completed monorail can be seen in the middle.

Driverless trains with big windows are fun underground!

Tonight we had another major thunderstorm and deluge. These two young Malaysian girls make light of it as they walk through Petaling market in Chinatown.

Here’s a video of the storm.

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Paul Bigland

~ Blogging on transport, travel & whatever takes my fancy.

Category Archives: Travel

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