My Nuansa.....: Jakarta as i see it

Assalammualaikum every one.

In this entry, I want to write about the biggest city in South East Asia, Jakarta.

I visited Jakarta for a second time last April 2018. The first one was in 2007, and that was only for a night transit coming back from Bandung.

I spent about 4 days and 3 nights in Jakarta this time, but I was on a business trip and therefore did not have enough chance to explore this metropolis city. However, I'd observed enough to share with you how does Jakarta looks like to me.

1. Airport / Bandara

The new terminal was newly completed as Jakarta is preparing for Asian Games. I was impressed with the huge and modern terminal building, definitely bigger than the old terminal but i prefer the old design which reflects Indonesian architecture. The new terminal is similar to Hong Kong International Airport open concept. Because of its gigantic size, i feel it is somehow hushed and empty. Comparing to KLIA for example, people are everywhere despite the airport is already so massive. The check-in counter was during my time were snailing slowwww like really slow. All flights back to KL that morning were delayed more than an hour because of them! What annoyed me the most, the staff acted like it was not a big deal. They continue doing their job slowly while being chatty at the same time.

2. Road

The airport is well connected to the city center via expressway. That's it. You have to take a taxi or bus or grab, no rail services available. Traffic wasn't that bad on the expressway until we reached the city road. Vehicles were everywhere, macet the locals call it. There was no lane on the road, it could be up to 5 or 6 lanes, but the road is small—total messy. I dare not to drive in Jakarta. However, i witnessed only one road accident during my stay...that's a miracle. KL has more road accidents despite being in order. I asked the taxi driver how far in KM from the airport to our hotel, he replied...not essential to know how far, in Jakarta it all depends on traffic, not the KM.

3. Hotel

We stayed in Gandaria Hotel in Gandaria City, far from central Jakarta, because our Indonesian office is situated in that area. However, the hotel rate was still so expensive even our currency is higher than the Indonesian Rupiah. The hotel is at par to Mandarin Oriental Kuala Lumpur, MO is located in KLCC, which is a premium land. But MO is still cheaper. Imagine what is the hotel rate in Jakarta central would be?

4. Eatery and Shopping

The hotel was also attached to Gandaria Mall, a semi-hi-end mall perhaps similar to One Utama. Local and halal food is everywhere, but the price was high too for me, a Malaysian. I killed my nighttime by window shopping in the mall, i went to brand that i familiar with, like Uniqlo, H&M etc...the price was higher than in KL, and the design was a bit dated. I ended up buying local brand in Metrojaya for my kids, but it was not cheap either.

I love the food, especially At the restaurant Bebek Tepi Sawah...

Back to shopping, i guess it is widely known that Indonesia is famous for excellent and cheap textile. Unfortunately, my hotel is far from the famous textile bazar but i went to a nearby market with a reasonable price and an acceptable variety of textile products.

Overall. I enjoyed my trip to Jakarta. I would love to come back for a personal vacation and explore the city like the locals. Avoid mall and luxury hotel, i would be ok haha.