Tag Archives: jakarta

Pictures and politics…

02 Sunday Mar 2025

Posted by in Indonesia, jakarta, Photography, Politics, Travel

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , ,

Today has been another where I’ve hardly moved from Bigland towers as I’ve been determined to crack on with editing the hundreds of pictures I have in the queue from all my travels. Mind you, whilst the weather’s slowly picking up as spring approaches, it’s still chilly enough to keep me indoors. I’ve managed to get all sorts of images done today. The straight travel shots are the easiest. The ones that take time are the shipping and aircraft shots as I need to look up the technical details of each one. Here’s the galleries that have had pictures added today;

Aircraft and airports

Ships and shipping

Indonesia travel

Malaysia travel

I’ve even added the first pictures of the year from the UK rail network;

Northern trains

Whilst doing this I’ve been keeping one eye on the news and the unfolding story of the European summit on Ukraine which has been held in the UK today. After the American debacle (which shows every sign of backfiring on Trump and Vance) it’s been refreshing to see the levels of international support for Ukraine – even from some right-wing governments like Italy and Turkey. What was also great to see was the UK centre-stage with the adults back in charge again. I don’t agree with everything Sir Keir Starmer and his government is doing, but – by God! – what a difference to the past few clowns we’ve had as PM! Contrast Starmer in the thick of it with other European leaders who are engaging with him and respect him with the past scenes of Boris Johnson at summits where he was ignored and wandered around (hands in pockets) like ‘Billy no-mates’. The UK is finally starting to shake off the disgrace of Brexit and the Tory shit-show to regain some credibility in the world.

How things will pan out in the long run is open to question, but there’s no doubt that the majority of the UK supports Ukraine – despite what bots, trolls and Russia apologists on social media are trying to project.

One of the interesting things about the situation is how it’s almost impossible to fit a fag paper between the hard-left and the far-right on so many policies (like Starmer and Ukraine). The poor ‘tankies’ of the hard-left still can’t get over the fall of the Soviet Union, or the fact Jeremy Corbyn turned out to be a failure. They still hanker after both which leaves them irrelevant to politics in the modern age. Mind you, Farage and ‘Reform’ are also struggling. Having nailed their flag to the Trump (and Putin) mast their populist politics are looking increasingly hollow. It’s too early to say with certainty, but this does show every sign of being a seismic shift in world politics and alliances. I’ll blog more about this another time, but for now it’s time to go.

I did see one comment on social media that made me laugh today. Someone posted (in reference to the apocryphal Chinese curse) ‘I think I’ve had enough of living in interesting times’. I can’t but agree…

I’ll leave you with a picture, which is from my Jakarta sojourn. Streetlife in the Indonesian capital’s never boring as there’s always something to see – and traffic to negotiate. Here’s an example.

Food outlets line Jalan Lontar Raya whilst an endless procession of scooters and other forms of transport add to the noise and chaos.

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

Asia day 37. Time’s up…

20 Thursday Feb 2025

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

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , ,

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.

Beef with fragrant rice.

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?

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

To be continued…

Asia day 36. Time’s almost up…

19 Wednesday Feb 2025

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

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , ,

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…

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

Asia day 35. Jakarta junket…

18 Tuesday Feb 2025

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

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , ,

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…

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

Asia day 34. In transit from country to country…

17 Monday Feb 2025

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

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , ,

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.

My last one for a while…

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!
Nice place, isn’t it?
The exterior.
– and the lobby of my hotel…

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

Indonesia day 1. The adventure kicks off in earnest…

15 Wednesday Jan 2025

Posted by in Indonesia, jakarta, Photography, Travel

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

It’s 05:00 UK time and midday here in Jakarta. We’re currently kicking back in the lobby of our hotel after a looonnngg journey of over 18 hours. Our flights with Qatar were both excellent. Clean, modern aircraft (a Boeing 787-9 and Airbus A350-900, reg A7-ALS) with great food, good entertainment and lovely staff. As expected, we had no time at all on the ground in Doha. We were straight off one plane and onto another. I binge-watched movies and survived on a couple of hours sleep whilst Dawn did better on the snoozing front.

Landing at Jakarta was an interesting experience as a lot’s changed since I was last here in 2017. Now it’s an airport run by apps and QR controls, Both immigration and customs are done via QR codes. Want a taxi? Download an app. For once, I did. We had plenty of time to get into town as our plane had landed at 07:05, so we made a leisurely exit and had a coffee in a cafe outside the terminal whilst we adjusted to the temperature and plotted our next move. having sussed out the ‘Grab’ app we ordered a taxi whilst we waited at their stand. I’d normally have used public transport but as we were tired, loaded down with luggage nd this was all new for Dee I decided a taxi would be the more relaxed option. Grab staff were both courteous and helpful, even plying us with free bottles of water. Last time I got a taxi to the airport it was in a battered old IC engined thing. Today we had a modern EV with the driver navigating his way through the torturous traffic and diversions due to construction work on sewers and metros by satnav.

Our hotel’s in the Glodok area, not far from the old Dutch quarter and Kota station, I could have sworn I stayed here back in 2017 but I don’t have my records to hand. Reception’s on the 8th for skyscraper. The floors below are packed with little shops selling electronics, steel and engineering widgets. I dunno what our room will be like but I’ve booked an upper floor with a view although the one we have from the bar and outdoor seating area isn’t bad!

Jakarta’s another sprawling SE Asian megopolis an all its vibrant, chaotic sights, sounds and smells…

Once we can get our room my first priority is making sure Dawn (who’s not as used to these long days) does is get some sleep. I might join her for a little while, but after that I’m keen to reacquaint myself with the city.

15:30 (UK time) 22:20 Java time.

We managed to get out for a long walk around the old colonial part of Jakarta, but now jet-lag is catching up and it’s time for a decent night’s sleep. I’ll talk more about what we got up to tomorrow, along with more pictures.

When the roads are blocked, just drive on the pavement! Construction of the new line 1 MRT outside Kota station’s causing a lot of problems for road users, hence scenes like this.,
Kota station’s a fine example of colonial transport architecture. It’s still a busy transport hub today.
In Dutch times the Kali Krukut canal would have been lined with sailing barges and Godowns (warehouses) as it was massive commercial area. Abandoned and decaying for many years the canals recently been restored with the banks becoming tree-lined walkways. Here’s a picture of how it looked in 2017.

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

6th January picture of the day…

06 Monday Jan 2025

Posted by in Indonesia, Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, Travel

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , ,

Despite yesterday’s rain, the snow has proved to be tenacious. When I woke up this morning we’d had a fresh dusting of the stuff which had added to the several inches which has survived. It’s melting, slowly, but I suspect it’s going to hang around for several days yet.

Due to the treacherous conditions underfoot and with other plans in mind I haven’t ventured out at all today. Instead, I’ve been busy scanning through airline and other travel websites. Now – finally – we have a winter break arranged as I’ve just booked the pair of us on a flight from Manchester to Jakarta (Indonesia). We fly on the 14th January. This will be Dawn’s first visit to Indonesia, although it’s certainly not mine. The last time I was in Java was in 2017. The plan is slowly taking shape but the outline is that we’ll have a couple of days in Jakarta to get used to the new climate and time zone as we’re going to be swapping sub-zero temperatures for a wet and humid 29-31 degrees! After Jakarta we’ll be travelling overland by rail to Yogyakarta for a couple of days in order to visit some of the superb ancient temples in the area as well as enjoy the city itself. Continuing by rail we’ll be popping into Surabaya before continuing by rail all the way East to Ketapang, where we’ll be catching a ferry across the narrow strait to…Bali. January’s not the optimal time of year to visit this neck of the woods but I’ve done it several before and really enjoyed it as it’s quieter and the rain doesn’t last all day by any means.

Whatever the weather, It’s going to be lovely to be back in South-East Asia. I’m looking at extending my trip beyond the few weeks Dawn has in order to maximise our holiday time together before I go off to travel solo and visit some of the region’s rail projects. But first, we’ll be enjoying some amazing sights, scenery and fabulous food – as well as some lovely accommodation. The value quality of places to stay in Bali is hard to beat. So, expect a real range of pictures and blogs later this month, and into February (and maybe March). Here’s a taster. This is the incredible Buddhist temple at Borobudur, just outside Yogyakarta.

This was the view the last time I visited Borobudur (November 1998). If we get weather like this again I’ll be more than happy…

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