incognito Posted September 27, 2009 I am thinking about going on a holiday for a week in Indonesia in december. Im wondering if any members here have been, and can recommend a good motel in JaKarta??? also looking for any travellers tips,places to see. will i get away with just speaking english? or should i learn some indo as well??? just really hatched this thought recently, need a good week away!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Korky Posted September 27, 2009 (edited) not long back from indo but i was in mainly in lombock not java (but flew through jakarta) so cant rec a hotel. you should be able to get there for no more than about $600. food is super cheap. their command of English is pretty good so you can get away without a phrase book (especially if your not going rural) but like most places an attempt at a few local words can win you friends pretty quickly. one recommendation i have is hang on to your departure card (that remains after you have torn your arrival card from it) i got spanked for not having it on my departure, held up at customs for at least 25 minutes, was threatened with missing my flight, a $500.00 fine and a note on my 'file'. in the end i paid the equivelant of $24 and i had to go along with the charade of them doing me a favour, my tounge was well bitten into, never had this prob before. the rest went swimmingly. have fun and stay incognito. Edited September 27, 2009 by Korky Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
paradox Posted September 28, 2009 i have a feiend from indo, i might not see him in a while but if i do i'll ask him some tips. yeah i hear if you book ahead you can get return flights for well under $600, & you can live for 2 months for AU$100 or something... jogjakarta is meant to be a cool city, lots of street art & interesting things happening i was planning a trip there with my firend for next month but my plans had to change. i was thinking about going to borneo. unfortunately times running out to get to see the most bio-diverse place in the world. palm oil plantations & logging are taking care of that..... "There are about 15,000 species of flowering plants with 3,000 species of trees (267 species are dipterocarps), 221 species of terrestrial mammals and 420 species of resident birds in Borneo" (MacKinnon et al. 1998). thats if you're into jungles Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chiral Posted September 29, 2009 Jakarta is a stinking hot sweltering busy city with appalling pollution and traffic conditions. Great street side nurseries with amazing plant selections. Street side food is absolutely amazing and cheap. Avoid any public transport like the buses as they are rammed full of hot sweating people and there is absolutely no air conditioning. The best Hotel to stay in is the Crowne plaza. The Manga Dua shopping centre claims to be the largest shopping mall in the world, with literally millions of shops and stalls selling all sorts of local products. There isn't that much to do in Jakarta, but getting a short flight to Jogjakarta is well worth it..heaps of arts and crafts, pottery and textiles, the batik is absolute amazing and cheap, so is the silver jewelry etc. A place called Puncka which is up in the mountains is glorious, it's where most of the tea plantations are, many markets and places to chill and take in the scenery. Remember this is a predominately Muslim country so please act accordingly and show respect and politeness where ever possible and don't be intoxicated in public. Indo is very poor in places and can make you quite sad with all the street beggars and such, just try to keep a mellow attitude and help out if you can. I highly recommend a train ride from Jakarta to Bogor..a real eye opener and a lot of fun...people thought I was David Beckham on the train and kept asking me for my autograph..was kinda sweet and funny. The botanical gardens in Bogor is amazing with wild deer roaming around and kratom growing wild all over the place. Cigarettes are $1.00 a packet and a good feed of noodles, chicken soto or nasi uduk on the street can only cost like 20cents..beware of hypnotists who are amazing at conning people out of their money without you being aware of it. Taxis are the way to travel around as they have air conditioning and aren't to bad in cost although the traffic moves at such an appalling pace the meter does seem to bother you after you have tried to travel 3 klms in 1 hour. Flights are relatively cheap coming in around between 300 and 600 bucks with a transfer at Bali usually. Also the women are absolutely beautiful and super friendly. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mescalito Posted September 29, 2009 Weird coinkydink this is. Was talking to a friend of mine who makes ormus and is into channeling,subtle-energies and the afterlife esp. Montague Keene and the Silver Cord Circle,he mentioned a diety called Salumet not 2 nights ago. I reversed the word to Temulas and googled both...strange. Anyway Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
incognito Posted October 3, 2009 well im gonna go- 7th-15th of december. return flight is $840, hotel (5 star) $815 including buffet brekkies im thinking 1500 should be enough spending money for a week. thats my holdiay budget blown! anyone keen to come with me?? no one here is keen, id go by myself but im figuring theres safety in numbers. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chiral Posted October 4, 2009 Money...your atm card should work in most ATms...which are hard to find actually unless you are in a shopping mall. You can bribe/offer anyone cash for information a lift any advice etc...it's very impolite not to actually. travelex is a cash passport and very good idea to use when travelling ...I use travelex cash passports when ever travelling through asia. Keep you money very safe..I can't emphasise this enough..the kids and beggars are brilliant at their jobs...they like to bump into you in crowded places like markets and shopping centres. Drinking alcohol is frowned upon so make sure you find a bar that is safe to drink in...they will be full of westerners and beautiful girls. Jakarta is a bustling vibrant mad place...have fun and stay safe....if I was you I would hook up with a female indo girl on a chat get to know her and she will offer to show you around and see things you may not find yourself, local knowledge is great and can save you heart ache if you get lost...which is extremely easy....the lack of street signs and names can have you all twisted around and shittin yourself...lol Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
paradox Posted October 4, 2009 still haven't had a chance to chat to me mate, but i remember him telling me that a cool this to do in indo is rent a schooter. you can travel around the entire island(s) cheap as chips. just have to be super careful you don't get hit by a truck. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zen Peddler Posted October 4, 2009 Yeah get out of Jakarta - Its a sweltering bun fight... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chiral Posted October 4, 2009 well im gonna go- 7th-15th of december.return flight is $840, hotel (5 star) $815 including buffet brekkies im thinking 1500 should be enough spending money for a week. thats my holdiay budget blown! anyone keen to come with me?? no one here is keen, id go by myself but im figuring theres safety in numbers. My wife has a million women friends in Jakarta who are happy to be a tour guide and show you around if you want...they are really cool people..very polite and funny so that's an option too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Jamanoid Posted October 4, 2009 Just get the nasi goreng. that is all. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
