So I have been “missing” for the past week. That’s mainly due to the new project in Jakarta and partly due to the poor internet connection I have over there. The only place with a decent internet connection is my project site, which is exactly where I do not access my blog from. Sigh… one week into the project and I already miss my broadband at home… err that’s second to missing my significant other of course… 
First time in my life that I step into Jakarta, and yes, all the stories about the traffic are true. The constant horning, criss-crossing of vehicles between the lanes provided quite a bit of a culture shock, where in Singapore we hardly hear the horn go off for more than 2 seconds. After getting a lot of advice from various friends about the “safety regulations”, I stuck to just traveling between work and the serviced apartment, and always tried to get a “Blue Bird” or “Silver Bird”. There are still minor harrowing moments of course. Every time I cross a road it feels like I was Frogger in the old arcade game.
I guess with every city, or most things, you just need to know the system and learn to work with them. As I settled down over the past week, although not totally comfortable (and I suspect I will not ever be completely comfortable), I began to feel more at ease. It is not as bad as people make it out to be, but being a foreigner in a foreign land, I just have to be on my toes.
Photos taken using my Nokia E65.
January 15th, 2008 at 7:39 pm
Jakarta does has her charm. It just take time to uncover and learn the culture. I especially love the Indonesian culture, so diverse.
Well, I used to see a lot of little children playing around in ruin areas and fishing and swimming in dirty black drain water. The place can get depressing at times.
Anyway, you should take the opportunitely to see as much as you can. I think in the end, you may grow to love Singapore a bit more than what you already do now
January 15th, 2008 at 11:48 pm
Erm… what if I grow to hate Singapore for the bloody expensive cab rides and the lack of pirated software? I kind of like the feeling of spending money in the thousands… at least for a while
January 21st, 2008 at 9:56 pm
Hi Darkspore, you took really good photos, and you displayed them very artistically !
January 22nd, 2008 at 12:15 am
Hi Cynthia! Thanks for dropping by and I’m glad you like my photos. I’m still learning, so I kept all the ugly photos hidden
December 28th, 2008 at 12:30 pm
[...] very Indonesian name) briefly bunked over at my serviced apartment during the last two months of my eight-month stint in Jakarta. As I waited for him outside the busy Wisma Atria, I joined in the countless number of people [...]