As part of the world’s largest archipelago, this capital city is similar to the rest of South East Asia, but different in that it probably has the nicest people. I was lucky enough to visit Jakarta a couple of times for work, and while I missed on some of the regular touristy events, I managed to see a different, real life side of the city.
With a huge population, and a thriving commercial district, the main street in the city will remind you of Singapore or Kuala Lumpur. The earlier governance was very proud and always felt that Jakarta should be comparable to any major commercial city- and ensured the city centre makes Indonesia look like a developed nation
TO DO:
Shop, eat, walk through the busy streets, try to speak a bit of Bahasa. Of course if you have the time visit Bali for a perfect culture and beach holiday. If you have more time, take the trip to Raja Ampat- the ultimate diving destination- hard to reach but as pictures suggest, well worth it. Unfortunately I didn’t make it to either place.
A must visit in the city is old city of Batavia called Old town. It’s a 3 hour exercise and you can just spend those hours walking through the rundown streets.
Aside from an almost daily massage at the best spas, restaurants, clubs and malls are what I visited most in Jakarta.
TO EAT:
One of my nicest experiences in Jakarta was walking down the road from my hotel and chancing upon a pretty little bungalow and realizing that it was actually a restaurant. The balcony was full of tables, the kitchen was where the home kitchen was, and the dining room had the nicest biggest table. It was a restaurant called Dapoer, one of the recent conversions from a home to a restaurant.The chicken satay and nasi goreng are a must try for local food
My favourite meal by far however was at restaurant+nightclub Blowfish. Fusion Asian food with a spectacular variety in sushi. It was here I finally mastered the art of using chopsticks, not without some embarrassing instances though
NIGHTLIFE:
Jakarta is incredible for its nightlife. The schedule is, go home from work, eat dinner by around 8pm, start getting ready, and finally leave your house fully ready at 11pm. Once you enter, the party’s just starting and you can be out till 5am or in some clubs, the next day. On my first night there I landed up going for a fantastic party organized by Malboro at an old train station.
My favourite club was Dragonfly– saw some of the best dressed people and tried out some of the best alcohol. Definitely a must visit for anyone there who likes nightclubs
TO STAY:
I’ve tried out a couple of different hotels in Jakarta, but my favourite is definitely Grand Kemang at Kemang. The hotel fits the bill in terms of facilities and food, has a cute bar, but its best advantage is location. Right in the heart of the area, Kemang which is lively at any hour- even 4am. In fact 4am is when I got most of my street shopping done in Kemang.
For a quieter time, there’s a little boutique hotel – Gran Mahakam at Mahakam, the hotel has an excellent breakfast, but the area has no night life. If its more of a corporate trip, the main strip is an option- but that’s restrictive because you can’t move around without transport
TO SPEND:
If zeroes are not your thing, be prepared to get highly confused with the Indonesian currency. I spent most of my time counting millions and then converting amounts into dollars. Everything costs over ‘one million rupiah’.
Food and massages are really cheap- you could manage both meals and a massage in approximately 75 USD a day. Staying is usually about 150 USD a night for a great hotel, and cabs – the easiest way to travel around are reasonable.
nutterbugg 