Little Jakarta

Jakarta Transportation

2009-02-28T20:20:00.002+07:00

Yes, here's a new guide about living in Jakarta. This time we'll talk about public transportatons available in this city. I personally choose to use them more than my own vehicle. Why? Jakarta's streets will always put you in a traffic jam. Especially in the morning around 9.00 AM , when most people goes to work, and in the afternoon after 5.00 PM. So, you'd better watch out for those hours if you don't wanna catch the stress because of the traffics.

On the good side, though, you can find many types of public transportations in Jakarta. Some of them are quite comfy, while others just plain "dusty & dangerous". So, it would be best for you to read this part of the guides so you don't stuck on those last kind I mentioned.

So, here are Jakarta's public transportation :

1. Ojek, you can read it "O Jack". We started from the smallest one. Ojek is a motorcycle kind of taxi. It can bring you wherever you wanna go, for a price. For me, there are three kinds of Ojek driver. The good, The bad, and The ugly. The good ojek driver will give you the best price, a safe drive, rented you a helmet you can put on, and sometimes made a good dialogue with you. When you've arrived on destination, he will smile at you and wish you good luck. While the bad ones do the exact opposite of him.

Ojek Driver

The "Ugly" Ojek driver is the worst among three, and yes, they are still exist. They will go against the road stream, ignore traffic lights, and Spit some curses against other road drivers, which unintentionally can drive faster than them. I'm not making this up, if you stay in Jakarta, you'll obviously encounter one of these bad boys on the street. I suggest you simply ignore them, you'll waste your time just to pay them attention.

Ojek drivers can be found almost in all areas of Jakarta. It's because of their slim dan relatively small figure, they can move faster through the traffic. You may use them if you are in a hurry, in exchange of your own safety, of course. Just kidding, it's not that bad actually. Some of them are pretty nice, but I don't suggest you to try it if you are in Jakarta for the first time.

2. Bajaj

After 2-wheels vehicle, here comes the 3-wheelers called Bajaj. Believe it or not, it's one of the oldest type of transportation in Jakarta. They contributed like.. half of the total air pollution in Jakarta. Haha. Let me describe it for you. It has a scooter machine, very very noisy. One of my cousin got less hearing capability after everyday riding in a bajaj for a full month. It's body made of old steel (well, it's actually just steel, but most bajaj were produced before 1980, makes it old)

The smoke produced by bajaj also considered dangerous, hazardous for health. Local government has change the diesel fueled bajaj into LPG fueled bajaj for the past few years but still, it doesn't do much. Anyway, bajaj has a few advantage compared to ojek, because now you are sheltered from heat and rain. Which is pretty nice, since Jakarta is an extremely hot and cold town.

Another things you need to know is when you are driving behind bajaj, not "inside" it, Be very careful because just as local jokes always say, "Only God knows when a bajaj need to turn or stopped", and "When a bajaj gotta turn, it gotta turn". Lastly, as a passenger, you can never ask the driver to stop by mouth words. Just tap into his right or left shoulder to make it stop, and it'l stop.... immediately at the moment, without looking back. So, you are the one who has to make sure that it is safe to stop. Okay? Have fun.

3. Kancil

The advance form of bajaj came out at 2006 in form of Kancil. 'Kancil' actually came from many local folklore, known as a very smart yet naughty animal. Kancil serve as a safer and healthier vehicle. You even could buy it as a personal transportation if you like. There's also a bonus fan inside to ensure you feel a little cooler under the heat of Jakarta's sun.

But contrary to bajaj, which you can find almost all around Jakarta, Kancil is located mostly in houses complex. To provide a cheap n healthy type of short spaced transportation. I never had a chance to try one before, so I couldn't really describe to you how is it feel inside. So, if you have tried it, please give me a story.

4. Microlet

Actually there are many types of Microlet in Jakarta, which serves different route. I am not suggesting you to try these transportation if you are still not familiar with Jakarta's road route. You might get confused, ended up in an unknown terminal, or worse. Although they have a pretty cheap price (around Rp 2000 - Rp 4000) , the Microlet is well known for their "uneducated" mannerism.

What makes me says that? Well, first of all, they stopped wherever they like, whenever they like and... as long as they like. Most Microlet or as local tongue called "Angkot", an acronym for ANGkutan KOTa or City Transportation, has no safety precations for their passenger, which make it dangerous when combined with impatient behaviour of the driver. Yes, they are one of the main cause of Jakarta's Traffic Jam. We hate it, but we need it. A total irony.

5. Taxi

When you talk about taxi, actually there are only two biggest player in these industry. The Blue Bird Group, (known by the blue color of their taxi), and Express Group (Their taxi color is white, and lately they offer the exclusive class of taxi using super luxury Toyota Alphard)

Blue bird, known for their safety performance, already has a good name in taxi Industries since 10 years ago. Their excellence service and on time schedule considered number one in Jakarta. Although lately they has dropped their standards, but compared to other taxi services, they are still better. Blue bird Group also has "Pusaka", their regular taxi, the Silver and Golden Bird, for higher class taxi. And Big Bird, from sesame street. Nope, just joking, "Big Bird" here was a bus rental service provided by Blue Bird Group. Search them online if you need thir services.

Express Taxi on other hand is a cheaper alternative for you. But don't judge the price 'cause their service is excellence too. Now that's the attractive value, right? Same good service with lower price, who wouldn't want that?

Well, for a first timer in Jakarta, I'm suggesting you to take only these cab options. Yup, there are some other good taxi services, but take it by you own risk. You can easily find taxis around Jakarta's hotels. Or if can't find one, simply browse or call.

6. Minibus & Bus

There are a lot. and I mean A LOT lot of buses and minibuses in Jakarta. It is one of the main daily public transportation for most of Jakarta's people. You may imagine being in a bus is like being in a can, full of people, kinda hard to breathe, exhausting, sweating, and so on. Well, it does happened in some buses. In busy hours from 9.00 AM to 6.00 PM, you'd likely to be trapped in those situation.

Anyway, buses have routes, just like microlets. And also similar to their smaller brother, the bus drivers in Jakarta also share the same 'method' of driving. Reckless, speedy, it's like almost all bus driver have to take anger management lesson. Every bus drivers usualy has a sidekick, called "Kenek", his job is to collect money from passenger. You can also ask the direction to these Keneks. But remember they don't understand non-Indonesian language, so, you'd better just said the location and hope other passenger understand what you mean.

For beginners, I really am suggesting you to avoid using public busses. Except you really really understand the route, and you have a guide with you. Otherwise, you'll end up confused.

Actually, not everything is bad. Sometimes (or often in some routes) you'll find entertainment specialist on the bus. We called it "pengamen". They are road singers, sometimes with a guitar, sometimes they use only tambourine, or nothing, just plain singing. Don't be surprised if you find some of them actually have a really good voice. One, have made it into Indonesian Idol champion in 2008.

Here are some of them:

Well, why am I talking about them here??? Just skip this and read the next section..

7. Transjakarta

Now, THIS is the newest yet the most popular transportation nowdays in Jakarta.

My personal opinion when I first get into this Big Bus is... "Hmm... Nice. Finally Jakarta has a proper and cheap transportation for its locals" But then now, three years after that, I don't think I still have the same impression.

For one thing, it is still the most comfortable bus amongst all of the same type. But the problem is, every people in Jakarta seems to get into it and THAT is what makes it uncomfortable anymore as a public transportation. You have to stand along the road when it's full. But the main problem doesn't lie there.

You see, it's the waiting period on the terminal that usually gets on nerve. The number of buses available seem too few to serve on a daily long route. You may visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TransJakarta if you need any guide about the route.

It's free of road singers, beggars, and also road merchant. Also an information for you, there are no toilets inside the terminal also in the bus. So, you need to pay a visit the toilet first if you're going on a long route.

And that sums up all kinds of public transportations in Jakarta. Some that I don't mention in here like "Andong", "Becak". and some traditional "bemo" are actually planned to be removed by the local governments, so we'll talk about it some other times.

My personal reccomendation for the first timer are either you take a taxi, or transjakarta busway. Don't bother other types because you may as well get lost. If you need to ask anything about the route or places in Jakarta, feel free to ask me. Okay?

Have a nice visit, now I need to go have some dinner. More posts coming Up... :)

Jakarta's Hotels (03)

2009-02-18T16:27:00.003+07:00

Five Stars Hotels

This post shows you the top class hotels in Jakarta. These hotels offer more facilities and of course the highest qualities of service amongst other fewer stars hotels. I’ve in some of them. Not as a room renter but sometimes there are events held around these high class hotels.

The food are awesome, the service is awesome, and the so was the facilities. Very reccomended if you have more money to spend upon luxury. But if you don’t, I suggest you reduce the stars point. So, now let’s see the list of five stars hotels in Jakarta. All of them was located in Central areas of Jakarta.

Central Jakarta

Aryaduta Hotel US$ 75.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Prapatan 44 - 48 Jakarta

Borobudur Hotel US$ 88.00 /room/night
Address : Jalan Banteng Selatan No.1

Crowne Plaza Hotel US$ 95.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Gatot Subrobto Kav. 2-3 Jakarta,

Intercon Midplaza US$ 148.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Jend Sudirman Kav 10-11

Le Meridien Hotel US$ 100.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Jenderal Sudirman Kav.18-20,

Mulia Senayan Hotel US$ 135.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Asia Afrika

Nikko Hotel US$ 75.00/room/night
Address : Jalan M.H Thamrin No.59

Four Seasons Hotel US$ 175.00/room/night
Address : Jalan H.R. Rasuna Said

Sahid Jaya Hotel US$ 65.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Jend. Sudirman 86

Sari Pan Pacific Hotel US$ 70.00/room/night
Address : Jalan M.H.Thamrin No.6

Shangri-La Hotel US$ 125.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Jend. Sudirman Kav. 1

Sheraton Media Hotel US$ 85.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Gunung Sehari Raya 3

Dharmawangsa Hotel US$ 85.00/room/night
Address : Kuningan Jakarta Selatan

Grand Mahakam Hotel US$126.00/room/night
Address : Blok M Kebayoran Baru

Grand Melia Hotel US$ 110.00/room/night
Address : Kuningan

JW Marriott Hotel US$ 130.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Arteri Lingkar Mega Kuningan

Park Lane Hotel US$ 75.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Casa Blanca

Ritz Carlton Hotel US$ 185.00 /room/night
Address : Kuningan

Sultan Hotel US$ 95.00 /room/night
Address : Jalan Gatot Subroto

Imperial Aryaduta Hotel US$ 95.00 /room/night
Address : Lippo Karawaci

So, now you have a place to stay and I hope you enjoy Jakarta’s hospitality for a while. Relax, change your clothes, take a little nap and whenever you’re ready to find another one of my stories about Jakarta, feel free to pay another visit on this blog.

Jakarta's Hotels (02)

2009-02-16T21:37:00.004+07:00

Four Star Hotels

So, here we are, another session of Jakarta’s hotels. Judging by the stars amount, these four stars hotels should give a better qualities than those “usual” three stars hotel, right?

I figure in daily lives, those four stars hotels can walk right infront of the three-stars and say, “Pshh, three stars? What could they do to live these days?”. Such arrogance.. But indeed, there must be some qualities that put an extra star in these hotels rank. It’s not my job to judge. It’s yours! Unless you‘re gonna pay me to taste every three to five stars and you’ll wait for me to post the review on this blog.

Anyway, to put some conclusion, you might wanna try and find out what other people’s thought about four stars hotels in Jakarta. I’ve been this long in Jakarta, and I never place my head upon one of their beds. Sorry I can’t give you more reviews, but at least, here’s the list of four stars hotels in Jakarta

.::Central Jakarta::.

Acacia Hotel US$ 65.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Kramat Raya 73-81

Alila Hotel US$ 95.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Pecenongan Kav 7-17

Aston Atrium Hotel US$ 75.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Senen Raya No.135

Atlet Century Park US$ 80.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Pintu Satu Senayan

Cempaka Hotel US$ 50.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Letjen Suprapto, Cempaka Putih

Golden Boutique Hotel US$ 55.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Gunung Sahari no. 46

Jayakarta Hotel US$ 60.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Hayam Wuruk 126

Le Grandeur Hotel US$ 55.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Mangga Dua Raya

Millenium Sirih Hotel US$ 68.00/room/night
Address : Jalan K.H Fakhrudin

Mercure Rekso Hotel US$ 79.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Hayam Wuruk

Novotel Mangga Dua US$ 70.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Gunung Sahari Raya No 1

Redtop Hotel US$ 65.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Pacenongan no. 72

.::North Jakarta::.

Danau Sunter Hotel US$ 65.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Danau Sunter Permai Raya

Mercure Convention Center US$70.00/room/night
Address : Ancol

Patra Jasa Hotel US$ 50.00/room/night
Address : Jalan A. Yani Cempaka Putih Timur,

.::South Jakarta::.

Aston Rasuna Residence US$ 85.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Rasuna Said

Ambhara Hotel Rp 900.000/room/night
Address : Jalan Iskandarsyah Raya no. 1 Kebayoran Baru

Grand Kemang Hotel Rp 650.000/room/night
Address : Jalan Kemang Raya

Kemang Icon Hotel US$ 156.00/room/night
Address : Kemang.

.::West Jakarta::.

Aston Grand Suite US$ 115.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Garnisun Dalam, Semanggi

Batavia Hotel US$ 50.00/room/night

Ciputra Hotel US$ 68.00/room/night
Address : Lippo Karawaci

Grand Tropic All Suites US$ 55.00/room/night
Address : Jalan S. Parman

Harris Tebet Hotel US$ 60.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Dr. Sahardjo, Tebet

Kartika Chandra Hotel US$ 60.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Gatot Subroto

Menara Peninsula US$ 70.00/room/night
Address : Jalan S Parman

Sahid Cikarang Hotel US$ 100/room/night

Santika Hotel US$ 70.00/r/n
Address : Jalan Jendral Sudirman

Jakarta's Hotels (01)

2009-02-16T18:06:00.004+07:00

I know you'll need to choose a place to stay as soon as you breathe Jakarta's air. So I'm sorry, it took me a while to develop these lists of hotels around Jakarta. Not because there are too many hotels to write down, but because I’m a little bit busy and a lot bit lazy. ;p Anyway, here are some hotels you might wanna consider staying in for a while, along your visit to Jakarta. I’ve divided it into three sections, three stars, four stars, and five stars.

I never understand why they use stars to show qualities. I mean, who has the idea? Who has the authorities to judge upon one hotel and others? What exactly differs a three stars, and a five stars? Well, they must have some technical answer to those questions, but I’m not. So please don’t ask me or I’ll look even dumber than I already am.

Three Stars Hotels

Since Jakarta is divided into five areas, north, south, east, west, and central, so I’ll introduce you the hotels by those sections..

.::Central Jakarta::.

Alia Hotel Pasar Baru US$ 40.00/room/night
Address : Jalan Pasarbaru Selatan no. 13

Alpine Hotel US$ 50.00/ room/night
Address : Jalan Gunung Sahari Raya No.35

Bintang Griyawisata US$ 45.00/ room/night
Address : Jalan Raden Saleh No. 16

Bumi Karsa Hotel US$ 60.00/ room/night
Address : Jalan Gatot Subroto Kav 71-73 Pancoran

Ibis Arcadia Hotel US$ 60.00/ room/night
Address : Jalan K. H. Wahid Hasyim No. 114

Ibis Kemayoran US$ 50.00/ room/night
Address : Jalan Bungur Besar Raya 79 – 81

Ibis Mangga Dua US$ 60.00/ room/night
Address : Jalan Pangeran Jayakarta 73

Ibis Tamarin Hotel US$ 60.00/ room/night
Address : Jalan K.H. Wahid Hasyim No.77

Paragon Hotel US$ 50.00/ room/night
Address : Jalan KH. Wahid Hasyim No. 29

Quality Hotel US$ 70.00/ room/night
Address : Jalan Pangeran Jayakarta 70

Sofyan Betawi Hotel US$ 45.00/ room/night
Address : Jalan Cut Meutiah

Sofyan Cikini Hotel US$ 45.00/ room/night
Address : Jalan Cikini Raya

Willtop Hotel US$ 55.00/ room/night
Address : Jalan Pangeran Jayakarta No. 44

.::South Jakarta::.

Grand Flora Hotel US$ 60.00/ room/night
Address : Jalan Kemang Raya No. 7

Manhattan Hotel US$ 75.00/ room/night
Address : Jalan Prof. Dr. Satrio No.1 Kuningan

.::West Jakarta::.

Ibis Slipi Hotel US$ 70/ room/night

Kristal Hotel US$ 80.00/ room/night

Ibis Slipi Hotel US$ 60.00/ room/night

Sahid Cikarang Hotel US$ 100/ room/night

Twin Plaza Hotel US$ 60.00/ room/night

Huh? Where are the hotels in east and north Jakarta? Well, apparently, according to my resource, there are not so many three stars hotel around those areas. But if you are going to be in those areas, you can always ask me about where to stay. You can also look up in google to search any hotels.

How’s the three stars hotel’s quality? It’s pretty nice and clean. The food are decent also. You don;t have to be afraid of any “horror” experience cause you’ll never get it here. Unless you are unlucky, of course. Under any normal circumstances, you can stay in those hotels because of their economical values. Next : We’ll talk four stars hotels in Jakarta.

World's Largest Indoor Amusement Park

2009-02-11T18:08:00.001+07:00

This just in..

Now, Indonesia has the largest indoor amusement Park located in Makassar city around South Celebes Province in the center of Indonesia. It is scheduled to open in June 2009, but the whole project was scheduled to finish on 2010. Well, Makassar is located about 2 hours by plane from Jakarta. You can go there by these airplane services : Garuda Indonesia, Merpati Nusantara, Lion Air, or Sriwijaya Air domestic flights.

I've been there three times, and overall I like the city, especially the seafood. The best fish I've ever eaten in my life so far. Anyways, judging from the name "Trans Studio Theme Park", I'm assuming that this amusement park was owned by one of the largest national TV Stations in Indonesia, Trans TV Group.

Here are some picture They've released :

: Overall - View

: The Maket

: Terror Twister

: Lost World

: The Hall

Now, Let's hope they can maintain these assets in a good way..

First Stop : The Airport

2009-02-11T18:06:00.000+07:00

You know the old phrase they used to say, "Don't judge a book by its cover". Well I, for once would like to say "Don't judge a city by its airport!" Trust me, I'm not saying this because of some cases when a tourist run back towards his/her homelands as soon as they arrived in our beloved Soekarno - Hatta international airports.

Well, actually the airport itself isn't that bad (or is it?). Of course it wasn't the best airport in the world, but there are some "qualities" that made this place quite nice for some (very few) people. Let me tell you these :

1. Once you've arrived, you won't get a hi-tech, clean feelings that most of other countries' airport. Instead, you'll get the old, historical feelings as if you just entered an ancient era to start your adventure. It's unique, well not in a very cool kind of way of course, but trust me, you won't get those feeling anywhere else in the world. (I might exagerate things a little bit, since I haven't been able to go further than Malaysia myself :p )

2. After checking with the immigration, you can walk around a little bit before going through the exit and once again feels the hospitality atmosphere of Indonesia. Enjoy it, because another area outside those exit doors is entirely not in the same mood. It's not frightening, just different. This is truly a moment for those who love surprise. Once you step outside, you'll ask yourself, "Am I still in the same city?". Here it is. Welcome to Jakarta, Indonesia.

3. The airport outdoor is a hot, humid, and crowded place. You'll see a lot of restaurant, some of it you may know, so eat there! I'm not reccomending you anything other than what you've used to eat. Indonesian food can be harsh to some who aren't prepared. But again, there's always time for a little try outs. Some taxi driver will approach you to use their services. Be nice and politely reject them. Not far from there, you'll find the real taxi services. You can go in either one of them, the fare actually same. Now you are ready to reach you next destination, the hotel.

And I guess there really aren't much to tell more about the airport. Except one day you'll return to this place, and ready to go to your homeland just to tell them how much you love living in Jakarta.

Find out more reasons, if you decided to stay...

Have a nice day.

A Little Intro...

2009-02-11T18:05:00.000+07:00

My dear readers..

First of all, I would like to congratulate all of you who have reached my blog. I know it must be really hard, since I just made this blog a few minutes ago. Haha! But it's really an honor to accept your visits. I hope you enjoyed this little piece of my mind.

I also would like to introduce you a simple man who made this blog, which is me. Named Nico, I'm originally born in Indonesia, and inherit the chinese genes from my parents. I love Indonesia, of course not as much as I love leaving it right away, but there're so much to talk about, the people, the cultures, the food, and of course the ladies... ^^. So, since I've already lived in Jakarta (the capital of Indonesia) for longer than I should, I figure it might be interesting to share my knowledge upon this cute little city in the largest archipelago country in the world.

Obviously, being an Indonesian born chinese doesn't make me an English expert. So, in the near future, you'll see more of my writings had a lot of false gramatical and vocabulary. I personally would like to call it "Indonglish", a horrible mixture of my disastrous knowledge of English with Indonesian grammar.

Well, whatever, we'll talk a lot about Indonesia anyway, disaster is already on the house. I'm living it, and yet I survived. What makes you won't?

And here goes the story...