#myfirstime

Why Jakarta? Because we (me and my buddy) just wanted to board the aircraft and fly. Not forgetting that flight to Jakarta was the cheapest until we (actually, my buddy) made the booking and the fare + all the damn taxes and whatevernots summed up to a-not-so-cheap fare. However, we just go with it. Fortunately, the accommodation fee was alright. So tak budget burst lah sangat hahaha

It was my first time setting foot in Indonesia. 

Transportation was fine. Kalau nak naik teksi, naik Blue Bird sahaja okay! (My sister and even the locals there reminded us to stick to that taxi company; no other taxis!) We did take the Bajai  (somewhat like TukTuk in Bangkok) there. Korg kena tahu berapa harga yang berpatutan untuk naik Bajai, kalau tak nanti kena ketuk. Serious! Our last day we went to a carefree event (Hari Olahraga i think they call it. It is every Sunday affair. They will block the whole stretch of road. No vehicle shall pass *insert Gandalf voice* nyahahaha except for TransJakarta buses.) near our hotel (Ar+otel Thamrin). It was approximately 10mins walk. We were exhausted after the Olahraga event so we decided to take the Bajai. The fare should be max 20000 rupiah (~2sgd) but the Bajai owner wanted to charge us 25000 rupiah (it was only 5mins ride to the hotel). But in the end, he charged us 20000 rupiah. The day before, we took the Bajai for a 20 mins ride with the same charge! See, almost got con there. 

Traffic there was a nightmare. Sesak gila okay! Maha tailgate eh dorg drive. Mana Bajai nak lalu, motor banyak selit menyelit. However, no accidents (Alhamdulillah!) and no honking! Chill je dorg tunggu sampai trafik gerak. Chill je orang motor tahan kereta jadi members motor yang lain boleh gerak dulu; takda kena hon. NYAHAHAHAHA imagine kalau kat Singapore. HARAAAAAMMM! orang signal nak masuk lane bukanya orang nak beri laluan. Lagi dorg speed up tak kasi orang signal tu masuk lane HAHAHAHA oh and people jaywalked like nobody business. Jalan raya dah besar, sesak dengan kenderaan pula tu tapi masih ah pedestrian boleh lintas gitu aja! Chill je dorg. #sungguhWOW

We took the boat ride at Ancol Beach. 10000 rupiah ride but it was a great experience. The view was great. The Sun was preparing to set. The boatman was catching jellyfishes and put them in a bottle. He then gave them to the kids for free. Yes, GRATIS lo. 

After the boat ride, we took the Gondola at Ancol Beach. The view was beautiful. We could see the whole beach from the top. We took it at the right time. Sun was setting, the breeze was cooling. We heard the Azan along the way. Nyaman! 

Accomodation:

Ar+otel Thamrin (highly recommended!)

Eateries:

Roca (Ar+otel’s cafe) - breakfast for the two days HolyCow! Steakhouse by Chef Afit (creamy sweet corn dia yaa ampun sedap okay!) Solaria (Ancol) Martabak65A ( martabak manis!) Yoshinoya 

Jalan-jalan:

Monas* Tanah Abang Ancol  Olahraga event  Grand Indonesia

*Went to Monas in the morning. Saw the Kereta Kuda (pony rides) and I really really want to ride it. But I am glad that I did not have a ride. 

Later that evening, I was in the car with my buddy and acquaintance of ours. I was so excited when I caught a glimpse of all the Kereta Kuda iined up by the roadside from far. When the car drove nearer, I saw the ponies salivating/ drooling! I saw there was like a pool of water on the ground (must be their saliva). My excitement was gone. It was sympathy that took over my excitement. Poor ponies! They must be very exhausted. It looked like they were sleeping while they were on their feet! Sedih gilaaaaa! Nasib aku tak naik tadi. Kesian kuda tu. 

The next day while we were heading to the Olahraga event, I saw a Kereta Kuda passed by. The pony’s face was literally in front of my eyes. It looked so haggard! I feel so sad for the pony. How I wish I could save these ponies. Aku tak tahu how the process goes tapi penat gila aku tengok kuda tuuu! Macam kena torture! Tak tahu lah kalo by default kuda tu nampak penat tapi pada aku kuda tu macam kena paksa. Kepenatan kuda tu terserlah. Aduii sedih betul aku tengok. Nasib aku tak naik tu kereta kuda. Sungguh kesian!

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