tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-188617852012-01-22T10:10:26.814+07:00We are a group of Indonesians, ranting about our beloved country. This blog is a result of many people grumbling about many things in many ways. <br> <i>Feedback: indonesia.anonymus at gmail dot com</i>Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.comBlogger1001100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-68117823615175211892010-03-17T23:52:00.002+07:002010-03-18T00:02:10.502+07:00

When we read about Obama being a rock-star president, we thought that was mostly in the US. But no. Mr O is coming and goodness gracious look at all the frenzy!So let's get this straight: For those who think Obama would do things differrently from previous US presidents just because he grew up here, you may want to revisit that thought a little bit.Yes, he lived here in Jakarta. But he was seven!

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-79667027798406708322010-03-05T15:39:00.001+07:002010-03-05T15:42:47.126+07:00

We regularly read the Jakarta Post and have been for a very long time. From time to time we criticized it, so it is only fair if we praise them when they wrote something nice.It's about the Bank Century bailout scandal that now has turned into a circus.Towards the end of the editorial, the paper wrote:"If there is one valuable lesson from Century, it is the sad revelation that Indonesia is being

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-25271605641331813392010-02-23T16:58:00.003+07:002010-02-24T15:40:04.912+07:00

7. Life(Note: this is part 7 of 'the journey' series. To read from the beginning, click here.)I have been racking my brain trying to find things from my trip that I think is worth sharing, alas to no avail. Oh well. Too bad I did not keep notes along the way. So I guess this would be the last post of the series.It would be nice, of course, if after I got back from the trip, and after all of my

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-75539619482276834822010-02-08T17:08:00.003+07:002010-02-23T17:38:39.993+07:00

6. The Big Sister(Note: this is part 6 of 'the journey' series. To read from the beginning, click here.)One day I was on a bus, on my way to the next city. At one point, we passed a market, and the bus slowed down into a crawl. It was a hot day and the bus of course had no air conditioning. So while struggling to overcome the heat, I looked outside and tried to find fresh air through the gap in

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-61900381647262878222010-02-05T22:43:00.005+07:002010-02-05T22:59:41.006+07:00

(Note: this is part 5 of 'the journey' series. To read from the beginning, click here.)5. Breakfast at Sutini'sSomehow, when it comes to food, it was not the lunches or the dinners that I remember most from my trip. It was the breakfasts. Lunch was always hectic because I was always running around. And dinner, well, most of the time I was just too exhausted to even enjoy anything.But breakfasts

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-81965866533194089332010-01-13T17:50:00.003+07:002010-01-14T21:24:37.003+07:00

(Note: this is part 4 of 'the journey' series. To read from the beginning, click here.)4. The BaggageAs expected, being a first timer in this public-transport trip along Java, I lost a bag.I brought two bags for this trip: a backpack and a sport-bag (the one with a shoulder strap). My reason at the time was, in case I wanted to spend more than one day in a city, then I can just use my backpack

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-45120794439437412462009-12-24T16:44:00.010+07:002010-01-14T21:42:37.178+07:00

3. Feel like a fool(Note: this is part 3 of 'the journey' series. To read from the beginning, click here.)I started my trip at the inter-city bus station. So there I was, standing there, looking around when suddenly it hit me: I have never done this before. (I do travel, but mostly by flying, and a couple of times by train. But never by inter-city bus).That means, I did not know which bus I

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-91493411142916202412009-12-18T23:12:00.007+07:002010-01-14T21:24:07.997+07:00

2. The toilet psychology(Note: this is part 2 of 'the journey' series. To read from the beginning, click here.)One bad thing I did not realize until too late about taking this trip was that it will involve using public toilet. A lot.I have been fortunate all my life. My parents are well-off and they protected me really well. They made sure my world is a comfortable world. That's both good and bad

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-39653331506629386362009-12-18T17:35:00.002+07:002010-01-13T18:12:27.277+07:00

1. IntroductionMy name is Al, and as my colleagues have written previously, I just got back from my 3 week leave, taking a trip from west to east of Java, using only public transports.Before I start, I thought I should clarify a few points first.Number one, I am not a writer. I don't write and I am bad at it. So the "journey of a broken heart" posts you are about to read all have been kindly

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-78873911523443117872009-12-18T00:06:00.005+07:002010-02-24T15:32:08.635+07:00

Our young colleague, Al, is brokenhearted. His girlfriend dumped him, saying he spent too much time at work. to add salt to the wound, she is now planning to marry the rebound-guy whom she met not long after she left Al.Al is devastated. One secretary claimed she saw him crying near the water-cooler. Al denied it.But not all is lost: His hardwork paid off and he just got himself promoted. But

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-35906294848926542982009-10-14T17:24:00.003+07:002009-11-13T18:13:07.839+07:00

We read an opinion today by the Jakarta Post [1] and couldn't keep wondering why on earth they would write something like this. It's on Obama not coming to Indonesia in his Asia tour.Read the whole thing there but here is some taste of it:------" [...] Indonesia – the world’s third-largest democracy and country with the world’s largest Muslim population – is of vital strategic importance to the

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-80195432067636888242009-10-06T20:25:00.002+07:002009-10-06T20:42:07.183+07:00

It's God's will, some say. And we hear this time and time again when disaster strikes (such as the recent earthquake that took way too many lives.)It's God's will, some say.Sure, some of us Indonesians (if not most of us) are religious in one way or another. So respecting God's will is an instinctive response.It's God's will.Is it?OK, earthquake is a natural phenomenon, but if we really look at

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-85178090830754468022009-09-11T17:10:00.006+07:002009-09-11T19:52:03.177+07:00

In the past (and in our book) we wrote our opinion that drug users should not be thrown to jail.That drug users are not criminals. They committed no crime.(We think for an act to be considered a crime, there should be at least a victim. Either a loss or damage of property, injury, death etc.When people use drugs, there is no other victim other than themselves.This should set a clear

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-62372275295787946192009-09-09T15:13:00.003+07:002009-09-09T15:19:40.909+07:00

It's quite touching to from time to time receive an email or two from dear readers asking why we don't write very often.That's very sweet. Thank you.And if we could, we would blog more. It's fun. More fun than working, really.Unfortunately it is difficult to write something when most of our time we are exhausted doing this mundane things we call our job.(Just like everybody else we have to earn

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-3892325666967194272009-08-17T18:49:00.002+07:002009-08-17T18:52:07.727+07:00

More than a decade ago there was this thought in our mind, whenever we looked at our children:What if, one day, in the future, our children looked at us and ask:"Mom, Dad, What have you done? Why did you leave behind this poor, corrupt and undemocratic country? Why didn't you do something to change it? Now we have to fix everything..."So now, looking back, we are relieved to know that we can say:

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-21057461489783246282009-08-07T20:54:00.005+07:002009-08-07T21:06:51.553+07:00

Aparrently in Sudan women get flogged for wearing trousers.From the New York Times [1]:"The 1991 indecency law was adopted by Sudan's Islamic regime which came to power after a coup led by President Omar Al Bashir in 1989. It follows a strict interpretation of Islamic law that imposes physical punishment on ''those who commit an indecent act that violates public morale; or who dress indecently.''

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-48305232138025854942009-07-29T17:22:00.010+07:002009-07-30T13:58:19.015+07:00

Our young friend Roni went on assignment a while back. On the plane he had an interesting conversation with a fellow passenger. Here it goes, in his own words:I got on the plane and found my seat. Next to me was an elderly gentleman. Grey hair, nice batik shirt. Awfully familiar face although I still couldn't remember where I saw him before.While waiting for the plane to take off, I emptied my

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-17314559779470599202009-07-09T20:20:00.005+07:002009-07-09T20:31:04.045+07:00

That seems to be the theme these days, since it is 'almost' certain that SBY will keep his job for another term.It would be an understatement if we say we are not touched by the whole democratic process. Watching people going to the voting booth, having their say, and see for themselves how their votes actually matter.You see, we here at the IA compound are not young (average age of 54) and we

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-66404032024424391192009-06-29T18:04:00.004+07:002009-06-30T03:56:48.520+07:00

Is it just us or is there more and more ads about 'how to get rich' on many Indonesian blogs?Do you notice them? Some are about how to make money through internet ads, some offering multilevel marketing gimmicks, and some selling ebooks on how to get rich without even trying, which sounds like scams than anything else.Let's get it straight:we are not criticizing those who place the ads. People

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-15798876366808758072009-05-28T18:32:00.004+07:002009-05-28T18:58:02.598+07:00

(A friend of a friend wrote this in a social networking site. We translate, edit and publish it here with her permission. We added the footnote to make sure all sources are cited. A slighty more original version in bahasa Indonesia can be found at our other blog here.)---Dear friends,It's such a relieve to finally cast my vote in the election.A relieve because before this I did not even know

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-79319570575667485102009-05-26T14:47:00.000+07:002009-05-26T14:48:13.626+07:00

A bunch of Muslim clerics in East Java "are seeking ways to regulate online behavior in Indonesia, saying the exploding popularity of social networking sites like Facebook could encourage illicit sex" [1].Oh, please.Anybody still wonders why Islamic parties are losing votes in the recent election?--------Eskimo: "If I did not know about God and sin, would I go to Hell?"Priest: "Not if you did not

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-31026949293949020282009-05-19T15:26:00.007+07:002009-05-20T19:52:21.269+07:00

"Vice presidency is like a spare tire. It has no power to do anything." said Prabowo's henchman at the Gerindra party [1].But that was a week ago. This week, apparently it is ok for Prabowo to be a spare tire in Megawati bandwagon, and it will be made official on May 24 [2].People, however, have not forgotten about his past."His past? You mean his crime against humanity thing?" asked one

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-33273530461120231252009-05-14T21:51:00.002+07:002009-05-14T21:56:09.290+07:00

And hence we forget things.With all the excitement of having published a book, we forgot to mention a friend who has made it possible.Without him, this blog will just be a little blog in the corner of cyberspace.Thanks to him, now it is also a little book in the corner of a bookshop. (We did mention and thank him in the book, but we thought we should mention him here too, so here it is).He is

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-85123156800497645412009-05-12T23:22:00.001+07:002009-05-12T23:25:55.655+07:00

What do you know. Global warming may cause Indonesia to shrink, like a wool sweater in a tumble dryer.With the rise of the sea level, it is said that 8 of 92 Indonesia's outmost small islands are vulnerable. They are Kepala, Dolangan, Manterawu, Fani, Fanildo, Brass, Laag and Nipah islands.Although small, they are important: They serve as baselines for Indonesian sea territory. So if one of this

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-47876622964292644582009-05-07T14:37:00.003+07:002009-05-07T16:37:12.376+07:00

But it is.With humility we present to you our first book, published by Gramedia Pustaka Utama.It's in Bahasa Indonesia, so our sincere apology to our english-speaking readers.in keeping with this blog's tradition of being non-profit, net income from the book's royalty (if it sells, that is!) will be directed to charitable activities in education.Already available at Gramedia bookstores.Kopi Merah

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-58253342076008616862009-04-28T22:10:00.003+07:002009-04-28T22:16:31.221+07:00

If in the near future you buy a car and find that the backseat is somehow more comfortable than the cars of previous generation, you probably should thank the Chinese.As the Chinese car market passed the United States to be the biggest in the world, the taste of the Chinese customers start to shape how the cars are made. And one of them is comfortable backseat. The reason? "Because even the

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-35355080422503816582009-04-23T17:47:00.001+07:002009-04-23T17:50:56.808+07:00

American banks are posting huge profit this quarter:Citibank: $1.6 billion [1], Goldman Sachs: $1.81 billion [2], Bank of America: $4.2 billion [3].Does it mean the economic crisis is over? Green shoots [4] and all that?Not really. Because apparently some magic tricks are involved.Says Paul Krugman:"Goldman changed its definition of “quarter” (in response to a change in its legal status), so that

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-75297016457448553732009-04-20T19:53:00.003+07:002009-04-20T20:09:44.924+07:00

This may be difficult to digest for some of us Indonesians who are regularly flooded every rainy season: We are looking at a global water shortage.Many of the world's big rivers (China's Yellow river, Germany's Elbe, America's Rio Grande) no longer reach the sea [1]. According to the United Nations World Water Assessment Programme, "urgent action is needed if we are to avoid a global water

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-55408461481533920622009-03-06T23:11:00.005+07:002009-03-06T23:29:17.787+07:00

What do you know: your bum may be bad for the environment: Altough toilet paper can be made from entirely recycled paper, it is "the fiber taken from standing trees that help give it that plush feel, and most large manufacturers rely on them" [1].To fulfill demand in America -- whose citizens reportedly prefer their toilet paper soft and fluffy -- millions of trees have been harvested in North

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-7858372578639900302009-02-12T16:42:00.005+07:002009-02-12T16:56:13.597+07:00

A bit late, but there is an article in IHT with an interesting question: Where would we be if women ran Wall Street? [1]Would the world be in this financial mess?In the article, Muhammad Yunus, the big daddy of microlending, said:"Women are more cautious. They wouldn't have taken the enormous types of risks that brought the system down."Mari Pangestu, our Trade Minister -- who by IHT is dubbed '

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-14163004665635454172008-11-18T22:40:00.004+07:002008-11-18T22:47:35.079+07:00

In Indonesia Japan Expo 2008, the Japanese showed off their super-fast train technology. Known as shinkansen, it is fast (can go up to 300 km per hour), convenient, and - of course being Japanese - almost always on time.And apparently we can't wait to have one. It is said that PT Industri Kereta Api (INKA) is planning to produce our own shinkansen by 2016 [1]. Japan Transportation Consultant has

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-19626768095872655592008-11-05T19:39:00.007+07:002008-11-05T22:53:52.833+07:00

We all witnessed a phenomenon today that we thought we would never see in our lifetime: A first African-American ever elected to the highest office in America.Indonesians, of course, just like many people in any other countries, are mostly for Obama. The online survey in Detik.com for example, gave Obama an even bigger landslide than he actually got in the election.So we love Obama, no doubt

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-38479547965978997072008-10-09T21:19:00.002+07:002008-10-09T21:25:34.579+07:00

Nobody around here likes to talk about the recent economic crisis it seems. Probably because it is an eerie reminder of 1997. Alas, there is no escaping it. The dark days are here again, and sooner or later, we will have to face it. the Jakarta stock market has started taken the beating, and the rupiah is going nowhere but down.So are we ready? (Or is that a silly question, especially after we

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-81261312919357035262008-08-21T22:40:00.003+07:002008-08-21T22:48:47.554+07:00

It's no secret that Indonesia's football team is bad. Let's face it. It's almost embarrassing.How many times do you hear people say: “out of 230 million of people, we could not even find 11 men who can play football?”Well guess what.China has the same problem. Are you watching the olympics and being amazed by how the Chinese athletes are literally mining the gold medals? Oh yes. But not in

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-43656065919371195742008-07-02T16:37:00.002+07:002008-07-02T16:41:22.959+07:00

One colleague told us that bananas sold at a supermarket near her home are all imported. She could not even find the typical Indonesia's 'pisang ambon' anymore."My kids love pisang ambon and I just can't find them anymore... Whatever happen to them?"We certainly don't have a problem growing them. One other colleague once complained how banana trees grew so quickly in his backyard. He enjoys the

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-23946086617556442512008-06-20T19:14:00.002+07:002008-06-20T19:17:55.271+07:00

One younger staff told us a story: She is deeply in debt. Credit card debt. It started innocently enough until the bill grew faster than she can manage.Now her salary is not even enough to get her out of it."I can barely afford the minimum payment every month..."And just paying the minimum every month is pretty much a financial quick sand: You are going under eventually.For readers who don't know

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-63795051973271753282008-05-29T20:04:00.002+07:002008-05-29T20:07:07.195+07:00

We had lunch appointment the other day, with a friend of a friend. And because the restaurant was at his building, we dropped by at his office.He gave us a little tour around the office and gave us a brief story of the company he owns. A medium sized business, quite successful. It does not make him a billionaire, but he certainly is comfortable. And very proud.At one point, one man popped by and

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-39738883129433470732008-05-07T17:08:00.004+07:002008-05-07T17:16:36.363+07:00

Watching the situation in Zimbabwe we couldn't help wondering about Robert Mugabe's mustache. Look at the picture below [1] if you are not familiar with Mr. Mugabe's face.Mr. Robert MugabeWhy the mustache?Seriously: It is election time in Zimbabwe, where he must campaign for the Presidential election run-off (at least that is the latest we read when we wrote this piece).And things are not looking

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-46513213726975594982008-03-31T14:18:00.004+07:002008-03-31T20:13:59.239+07:00

After the new law that will allow the government to block risque sites is passed, now the government is set to do it.How?Apparently, the government will compile a list of sites that are considered indecent and then pass the list to internet service provider. The ISPs will then block the sites.This will give some kind of security to ISPs: If there are some indecent sites are found to be accessible

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-21424326307540832792008-03-13T23:22:00.007+07:002008-03-13T23:33:07.919+07:00

As the US is heading towards the big 'R' (read: recession), its currency is losing value in many other currencies (Euro, Yen, to name a few). But interestingly enough, that does not apply to our big 'R' (read: Rupiah).Check out the charts below:Let's start with US Dollar vs the Euro:US Dollar vs Japanese Yen:US Dollar vs Indian Rupee:US Dollar vs Chinese Yuan:Now take a look at our currency...US

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-19800373136517175262008-03-02T19:44:00.007+07:002008-03-02T19:56:18.385+07:00

One day we had an opportunity to take our interns to lunch. 11 of them. We love our interns. We call them 'the kids'. Some even call them 'our kids' (Yes folks, most of us are THAT old). Our interns remind us how great it is to be young: Full of energy, the future is right ahead of you, and you think you can do and achieve anything and everything. They are after all a glimpse of our country's

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-5708773123325874882008-02-14T23:39:00.001+07:002008-02-14T23:47:41.693+07:00

A colleague, needed to go to the airport very early in the morning, took the airport bus.The bus was not full, but enough people to fill the seats. Still waiting for its schedule to leave, the bus stood idle, while some more passengers were trickling in.It was really quiet. Still very early in the morning, the passengers probably did not get enough sleep to be able to catch the bus, and all they

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-65596410923179399922007-12-18T19:33:00.000+07:002007-12-18T19:38:32.625+07:00

A country once had a terrible famine. 5 out of 13 million of its people needed food aid. It practically had to beg to the world for help.Then the new elected president, thinking enough is enough, said: "As long as I'm president, I don't want to be going to other capitals begging for food".Now, not only the country can feed itself, it also feeds its hungry neighboring countries.Name of the country

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-21423061191994811882007-11-28T17:28:00.000+07:002007-11-28T17:52:12.177+07:00

Do you know that Indonesia is one of the biggest rice producers in the world?With almost 34.9 million tons a year, Indonesia is on the top 3, below China and India. (Bangladesh no. 4, Vietnam no. 5, Thailand no. 6)Impressed?Sure. Unfortunately, we eat all those rice: We consume 35.8 million tons a year. A deficit of almost 1 million tons!Compare that to Vietnam who produces 22.7 million tons and

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-22531887748274805392007-11-14T22:55:00.000+07:002007-11-14T23:15:38.017+07:00

Our HR folks told us a story. Here it goes:A while back, business as usual, HR was expecting someone to come for an interview. A fresh graduate, for an entry level position. Female, engineer, everything looked good on the CV. Situation normal.Then around the time the person was supposed to come, a call came from the security guards at the reception on the ground floor. They said there was a

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-49959541277910352092007-10-31T23:21:00.000+07:002007-10-31T23:24:38.580+07:00

The news about Indonesia's (used to be) famous singer jailed for drug-possession reminded us of a tragic event occurred about a year ago. A colleague, call her Z, was a rising star. Smart and insanely hard-working, she climbed up the rank so fast many people couldn't believe it. Her last assignment was a high-profile project, so important that everybody thought a seat in senior management was

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-19954398158442651832007-10-29T16:43:00.000+07:002007-10-29T16:46:51.676+07:00

See the comic strip below and please admit that you feel this way too. (At least when you read newspapers or watch the news...)-----Source : dilbert.com

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-14718233760780018802007-10-03T23:13:00.000+07:002007-10-04T20:28:56.645+07:00

Sorry to do a Freddie [1] on this one, but really. What's up with this world? two countries are fighting over a song?Background story:Malaysia uses the song 'Rasa Sayange' for tourism campaign. Indonesians claim the song belong to them, and Malaysia claims the song has been heard for many many years throughout the archipelago, therefore it is not exclusively owned by Indonesia.Since then

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-79564898279973909432007-09-28T22:09:00.000+07:002007-09-28T22:45:35.522+07:00

A country is about to split in two, and guess what: nobody thinks it's a tragedy.Some even think it's a good idea. How can that be?What country are we talking about? Yes, you got it: Belgium.Background story in short:The country's population has two major linguistic lines, the French-speaking Wallonia (the Walloons) in the South and the Dutch-speaking Flanders (the Flemings) in the North.In the

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-23703762337256967452007-08-30T16:07:00.000+07:002007-08-30T16:12:11.374+07:00

You know, people say in politics you can spin anything.Not this time, eh Malaysia. It looks bad whichever angle you look at it. Come on.Background story, read here.How do you spin a news about policemen beating up a civilian (who is a foreigner) for no obvious reason?This, of course does not mean we are saying that Indonesian police is better.But you know, with all the news we read about Malaysia

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-52479443400118356052007-05-18T16:44:00.000+07:002007-05-18T16:52:29.296+07:00

Read this: US government decided to grant 150 yoga-related copyrights, 134 patents on yoga accessories and 2,315 yoga trademarks [1]."Under the new patent, those teaching yoga will have to pay a royalty to an American patent holder if he or she imparts the knowledge [2]."The Indians are furious."Yoga has its roots in India. How can anyone else think of patenting it?" asked a surprised Deepika

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-74874916357725211212007-05-07T15:05:00.000+07:002007-05-07T15:19:23.030+07:00

A country, blessed with oil-rich soil, makes a lot of money due to the sky-rocketing oil price. A lot as in 300 billion dollars (and counting). What do they do with this money?They invest it. Yes, with the purpose to provide for the future generations. So far the investment makes a return of 7.9% a year. (last time we checked, if you open a time deposit at Indonesia's giant Bank Mandiri, you get

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-4844123710796750542007-04-04T15:45:00.000+07:002007-04-04T15:58:36.862+07:00

"I am closing down my shop, son". Ibu Syam calls everybody younger as if they are her children. "It's not making any money and I cannot afford to keep it. I am getting old, and the bills, oh my God.."Ibu Syam owns a small shop right by her house, selling everything from soaps to snacks and drinks. Even stamps. It's a tiny little shop managed solely by her.She was a teacher, so she said, teaching

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1170415293717512972007-02-02T18:16:00.000+07:002007-02-03T22:33:40.319+07:00

Flood. Traffic jam. You're stuck in your car for hours. What can you do. Maybe it is time to learn a thing or two from an asongan boy*?One colleague, B, got stressed out in a middle of traffic jam. The radio said many places got flooded. Hence traffic can't move.Can't stand it, B looked around for a fix (he's been trying to quit smoking, but stuck in traffic for hours after a very tiring meeting

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1170239570918463882007-01-31T17:30:00.000+07:002007-02-02T18:23:42.070+07:00

But not today: Indonesia matters wrote that Indonesia's competitiveness is now ranked 50th, went up from 74 last year [1].Sure, compared to the neighbours Malaysia (26th) or Thailand (35th) it's still down there. But hey. Up is up.And Indonesia's Fitch debt rating is now positive. Up from stable [2].And the regulation No. 37/2006 that gave (some say outrageous) pay rise to parliament members is

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1169733042870526422007-01-25T20:41:00.000+07:002007-01-30T15:59:02.866+07:00

Fellow Indonesians: Maybe it is time to wake up. The world is changing and what have we been doing?Are we going to join the game or forever be spectators?From the tribune:"Ten years ago much of Asia was wracked by a financial crisis". But now, "with booming Chinese economy at their core Asian economies are forecast to provide the biggest share of the world economic growth." [1]"The outlook hints

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1167902673040335232007-01-04T16:13:00.000+07:002007-01-23T19:41:31.493+07:00

To continue from yesterday, let's be fair and listen to what our Minister of Transport has to say about the latest fiasco [1]:In his defense, our beloved Minister of Transport, Hatta Rajasa said that he frequently made mistakes because he is way too tired. There are many accidents lately, he is extremely busy and that led to mistakes [2]."I am tired and I receive too much information, so

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1167750558939440652007-01-02T22:06:00.000+07:002007-01-08T03:29:53.353+07:00

What a way to start a new year.A plane is reported missing and dozens of busybodies can't even get the fact right:08:15Hasanuddin airport announced that the wreckage of AdamAir plane was found in Ranguan village, Polman,West Sulawesi.Information was given by the locals who found the plane and the bodies.09:15Transportation minister Hatta Rajasa announced that AdamAir is found. 90 died, 12

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1166010216893226742006-12-13T18:17:00.000+07:002006-12-26T14:06:19.450+07:00

Pertamina, the Indonesia's oil and gas company, placed a one page ad in the International Herald Tribune (Tuesday December 12, 2006 - Page 22):At the bottom, it says:As Indonesia's national oil and gas company, Pertamina has been a careful custodian of the country's rich natural resources, helping develop the lives of millions of people and establishing the company as a pillar of the nation.To

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1165579652369383082006-12-08T19:04:00.000+07:002006-12-21T17:43:00.603+07:00

Once a year our place of work announces its much anticipated 'promotion list'. Yes. That's right: a love letter to some and career-death-sentence to some others, the email announces who got promoted. Which staff got to move up to managerial level (more perks), and which managers make it to senior level (even more perks).This year (announced not long ago) there was a big surprise among the staff.

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1163164484142318822006-11-10T20:06:00.000+07:002006-12-07T18:46:46.903+07:00

Dear Mr. Bush, We heard you'll be visiting this part of the world. Well, welcome. We Indonesians love guests. We know you probably won't enjoy all the protests staged by our people, but hey. That's not new to you, is it.Anyway, since you are going to drive half the population of Jakarta and Bogor nuts with all the superfluous security precautions [1], maybe we should think in advance of what

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1159432636277053282006-09-28T15:31:00.000+07:002006-10-30T13:40:03.926+07:00

Planning to fly home for the lebaran holiday? Better book your ticket now. Or maybe you are too late already.But before you do fly, you probably want to know this.This is from the Economist [1]:Remember the in-flight announcements you hear when you are about to fly? Apparently, they are not entirely truthful.Like this one: 'Your life-jacket is under your seat, and you need to wear it in the event

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1158317589952720522006-09-15T17:49:00.000+07:002006-09-21T21:42:50.490+07:00

Two male colleagues, call them A and B, waited for the elevator:A: Hey. How's things? Still working on project ## ? (naming one of the on-going projects)B: Yeah. Endless, mate. Endless...A: Is it really? B: Yeah. Alas. But you know, there is one thing that really bothers me.A: What is it?B: Teletubbies...A: What?B: Teletubbies... My daughter loves them so much. We bought all the dvds.. I don't

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1158143672674488102006-09-13T17:22:00.000+07:002006-09-23T12:30:05.410+07:00

A while back Jakartass sent us something: A badge of honour.(It took us a while to sort our incoming mail. Yes, we still get hatemails, so the legitimate email is always buried. Sorry Jakartass. Didn't mean to ignore your mail).Truthfully, we don't know what to do with the badge. Not that we don't appreciate it. We do. We just don't think we deserve it.Why? Because we are a bunch of lazy bums,

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1155899104538825072006-08-18T17:57:00.000+07:002006-11-05T17:17:41.920+07:00

Do you trust your doctor? When your doctor gives you perscription, have you ever wondered if the medication is really for your benefit and for your benefit only?D, one of our secretaries, started to wonder. A few days back she went to see a doctor. Had always been a very fit young lady, D doesn't really have a doctor that she can call her own, so she went to a clinic recommended by some of our

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1154946329784492792006-08-07T16:54:00.000+07:002006-08-28T09:34:14.700+07:00

"When you're on the street, at a sidewalk, or in a car stopping at an intersection or whatever, and then a beggar comes to you asking for money, will you give?"One colleague asked this question when we were having our coffee, while waiting for our meeting to start.It then turned into an interesting conversation:A : "I won't. Never. It will just encourage them. They are lazy. It's the laziest

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1153903336045845772006-07-26T15:37:00.000+07:002006-12-13T11:52:52.003+07:00

Yes, we experienced the blackout too. Oh, dear. Much unpleasant.And if you think it only means sweating away at the office (like treespotter), or dessert gone bad in your fridge, you should think of Pak Sembiring. He owns a small photocopy shop, and the more power-cut he gets, more customers leave him, taking the business elsewhere.The shop is his sole source of income: "PLN holds my soul hostage

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1152276119100461522006-07-07T19:34:00.000+07:002006-07-26T15:46:06.086+07:00

After we blog about how our kids learn from us - good or bad - in this post, Agusset wrote in his blog that there is another thing that we hate but teach our kids:Our always being late. He wrote that our lack of discipline can set a wrong example for our children. Make them think that it is ok to be late. Think that being on time is not really important. Yes, we admit. We are not always on time.

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1151884787164909872006-07-03T09:58:00.000+07:002006-08-30T20:41:30.650+07:00

One female colleague was having a quiet sunday night at home with her husband and her two little boys. The boys were playing with their toy cars, imitating car chase, playing cop and robber. The younger played the robber.Eventually the robber got caught by the cop. But refused to cooperate."Hey, you're caught already. You can't move your car !" said the older."Who cares," said the robber brother,

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1151884693354720482006-07-03T08:56:00.000+07:002006-07-12T13:42:04.020+07:00

Duh! indeed.It's been a week, and none of the wallets has found its way back. Not even a phone call. (If you don't know what we are talking about, you may want to read this one first.Roi was right. Agusset was right.And we're a bunch of fools. There. We've said it. For the record.We should have listened to one of our colleagues who told us it wouldn't work. But you know how it is. When you are

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1151322307048275772006-06-26T18:30:00.000+07:002006-07-03T17:46:15.063+07:00

One colleague lost her wallet. What a bummer.Lady-readers surely are familiar with how it could happen: Went to a public toilet to powder one's nose, the cellphone in the handbag rang. Opened the handbag, cellphone was under the wallet. Tookout the wallet, put it by the sink, answered the call. Busy talking, left the toilet without the wallet.Our colleague did not realize she lost it until she

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1150908628893448052006-06-21T23:08:00.000+07:002006-07-02T22:15:29.966+07:00

We just got back from Yogya when our secretary reported to us: the Indonesia Anonymus email address was flooded with hatemail.We know this would happen eventually. Part of the risk of blogging, really. So we are fine with it. But not our secretary, who had to clear the mailbox without accidently deleting the legitimate emails we receive from you, our beloved readers. How could this happen, one

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1150117632769204732006-06-12T20:02:00.000+07:002006-06-22T17:39:28.940+07:00

We are back from Yogya for the moment. Yes, we are sure you have heard it all, the earthquake, the number of people killed, the sufferings. No need to re-tell.Despite all that, however, there are people who although their houses were destroyed, still have their jobs, have some money set aside for rainy days (such as this), and are ready to rebuild.The sooner they can rebuild their houses, they

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1148908274816486092006-05-29T19:54:00.000+07:002006-05-29T20:30:10.466+07:00

We are in Yogya at the moment, and there will be no blogging for maybe a long long while.In the meantime, if you are looking for ways to help the beloved Yogyakartans, check out the links below:Informasi Gempa JogjaIndonesia HelpMedia CenterOr if you rather go for something more international, you can always go toInternational Red CrossUnicefPlan InternationalIslamic ReliefDo find ways to help,

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1148417952547417022006-05-24T03:53:00.000+07:002006-05-25T13:44:24.843+07:00

Imagine this situation:You were at a tv station, waiting to be interviewed for a job. Then one producer grabbed you and took you to a studio, where you were introduced as an expert and interviewed on live TV watched by millions worldwide.How do you think you'd handle that?One man did just fine. Guy Goma was put in that situation by the BBC News 24. He was waiting to be interviewed for a computer

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1147781733938123802006-05-16T19:10:00.000+07:002006-06-05T02:08:57.810+07:00

Heard about The National Geographic-Roper Public Affairs 2006 Geographic Literacy Study yet [1]?It's a survey of 18-to-24-year-old Americans, on their geography knowledge.Some of the findings below:Six in ten (63%) cannot find Iraq or Saudi Arabia on a map of the Middle East75% cannot find Iran and IsraelNine in ten (88%) cannot find Afghanistan on a map of Asia20% place Sudan in Asia and 10% put

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1146653248728169122006-05-03T17:35:00.000+07:002006-05-18T20:24:11.160+07:00

Years back we had the priviledge to meet one remarkable woman, and we would like you to know her too.Meet Ibu Murni. A single mother, with one teenage son. Her husband left her not long after the son was born, and she never heard of him since.Raising a kid on her own, she worked 3 jobs: Cleaning lady during the day, selling food to night-shift factory workers at night, and in the middle of those,

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1146044395430560062006-04-26T16:16:00.000+07:002006-09-14T17:53:38.820+07:00

One day, two colleagues, call them A and B, went for a reflexology massage right after work. The place is in a walking distance from our building. It's a popular place for office workers seeking some relaxation after a hard day at work. Except that day -- The place was empty and A and B were the only clients around.But not for long. As the masseuse started working, one man came in. Thick

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1145362537723569692006-04-18T18:33:00.000+07:002006-05-03T03:23:48.333+07:00

Crossed a street in Jakarta lately? It's impossible, isn't it?Everytime you cross the street, even at a zebra-cross, you pretty much roll your dice. Giving your guardian angel a hard time.Nobody bothers to slow down to give way to pedestrians. Even at pedestrian crossings, which are there to protect us mere mortals.Indcoup rightfully likened our traffic condition to a 'warzone' [1]. It is, in a

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1144054414952883562006-04-03T15:44:00.000+07:002006-04-11T20:54:55.423+07:00

Last week Jakartass wrote about product-packaging and how it generates an incredible amount of trash [1].There is a link to an article that asked: "One family, one month, 50kg of packaging. Why?" [2]."it was inevitable that the 4.6m tonnes of packaging waste we throw away each year, adding around £480 a year to the average food bill, and considered by many consumers to be beyond the pale in

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1143534740507302102006-03-28T15:29:00.000+07:002006-04-19T23:21:03.060+07:00

We won't call ourselves 'road warriors', but we do travel a lot. Understandably, when it comes to picking a topic for small-talks during coffee-breaks or luncheons, airlines is the easiest pick. Nobody in our industry seems to mind us rubbishing the airlines. Topics on cancellations, delays, missing luggage or double-booked seat are always popular.One time the hottest topic was the Southwest

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1143015262588118762006-03-22T15:11:00.000+07:002006-06-16T13:38:09.886+07:00

We unfortunately are too busy slaving away again. But we love to blog, so let's have a short one.The other day a colleague showed us the Jakarta Post's reader's profile [1]. Have you seen it?It's interesting.Apparently, if you are a reader of the Jakarta Post, chances are :You are an Indonesian man, married, and above 50 years of age. You have the newspaper delivered to your home, and you read it

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1142271002051374402006-03-13T23:40:00.000+07:002006-04-05T15:38:09.873+07:00

We here at IA of course are in favor of equality for women. But the following is not good news:There is one area where women have almost reached equality with men: Smoking."Women in former generations smoked at a rate lower than men. Men smoked much more than women in the decades of the 40s and 50s... Now women smoke almost as much as men.[1]"This of course concerns us, because while the IA male

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1141727678741523642006-03-07T17:22:00.000+07:002006-11-23T02:47:01.816+07:00

We here at IA often claimed that we are a bunch of (somewhat) educated folks, and we don't really believe in (black) magic or any other superstitious mumbo-jumbo.We believe most of you, our beloved readers, would think the same.But read this: A while back Gus Dur, our former president, had a ruwatan, a ritual held to get rid of the country's bad luck. For the ritual, offerings are prepared (we

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1141043663652707652006-02-27T19:20:00.000+07:002006-03-06T09:34:02.740+07:00

As part of our work (the 16-hour-day that we have been doing for the past few weeks), we needed to recruit some people to work for the new project we setup. This is a supervisory position, where the selected individuals would oversee a team of 10-25 people, so understandably we are looking for people with some experience in managing people. We of course did not do the recruiting on our own. We

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1139829028723221512006-02-13T17:59:00.000+07:002006-05-17T14:20:02.060+07:00

One day we arrived too early for a meeting. Bored waiting for the rest to arrive, we flipped through some old magazines laying around in the meeting room, hoping to find something interesting.One article in the old Economist got us talking: To be more effective in the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, the American army has created a huge training ground for battle simulations. It's a 200,000 acres of

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1139216895742578992006-02-06T15:53:00.000+07:002006-02-08T15:56:41.913+07:00

First of all, we would like to thank some of you who have left comments on our last blog which discussed bajaj drivers and how their profession may cause damage to their hearing. (If you don't know what we are talking about, maybe you'd want to click here first). There are some suggestions coming from Maya, Agus Set and Nad, while Jakartass has kindly dedicated one posting to offer a sensible

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1138614571293917352006-01-30T16:33:00.000+07:002006-02-09T22:52:18.296+07:00

One of our colleagues has a maid at home to help with her cleaning, cooking and occasional grocery shopping. Since the supermarket is quite a distance away from home, the maid would take the Jakarta's beloved bajaj, the orange three-wheeler.One day, the maid went on her regular shopping trip and didn't make it home in time. When she finally got home, she complained about the bajaj driver.

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1138004448145505842006-01-23T15:18:00.000+07:002006-01-30T18:14:50.543+07:00

Jakartans love to honk. Yes we do. We love the blaring sound of our car's horn.Don't want to admit it? Here's the proof.For the past two weeks we have done a little research to answer this one question:On our way from home to work everyday, how many times on average do we hear people honking?So we equipped ourselves with a counter, and when we drove from home to work, we clicked the counter

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1135782008718681732005-12-28T21:36:00.000+07:002006-01-09T10:21:28.593+07:00

During this holiday break, we have more time to catch up with our readings. And some of us were intrigued by a little article in the year-end edition of the Economist.It's about Somalia and its mobile telecommunication business.It is mentioned that a call from a Somali mobile phone is generally cheaper and clearer than a call from anywhere else in Africa [1]. Great! Sounds like a success story

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1134989616898307402005-12-19T17:36:00.000+07:002005-12-23T07:16:42.616+07:00

We are not trying to be cynical or deluding ourselves at the same time when we say this: Jakarta motorists are both the worst and the best drivers. The worst because you know why, and the best because despite all the chaos, we seem to manage to arrive at our destination in one piece.Well, not all the time, apparently.According to Suara Merdeka, 90.000 people were killed in traffic accident in

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1134482551116724382005-12-13T20:54:00.000+07:002005-12-15T14:45:16.966+07:00

Christmas and new year is coming. And the police is busy: 17.000 police will secure Jakarta for this Christmas and new year [1]. With 23 churches in Jakarta are vulnerable from bomb attack [2], 3 policemen will be assigned to each church [3]. Even so, the police cannot guarantee there will be no terror attack during Christmas [4].Ah, there is nothing like Jakarta's living-on the-edge holiday

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1133960346380426022005-12-07T19:45:00.000+07:002005-12-13T18:32:53.870+07:00

You don't by any chance know the Idup family, do you? Well, we don't either. We just read about them in Kompas.com. It is mentioned there that Idup, Selih and their 4 children are so poor they can only eat once every other day. After the fuel price hike they cannot even afford to boil water to drink [1]. (for those who don't know, water in the most part of Indonesia is not potable).So? whatelse

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1133359648895840642005-11-30T20:53:00.000+07:002005-12-01T19:42:23.460+07:00

So we all read about Probosutedjo, a business tycoon and the half-brother of former president Soeharto. About his court case and now about his new address in East Jakarta:The Cipinang penitentiary [1].Well, we are not going to comment about law, or politics, or corruption or anything like that. It's just kind of a bit passé at this point.We just thought, what a bummer it must be for a billionaire

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1133257333279954172005-11-29T16:28:00.000+07:002006-02-02T05:50:46.286+07:00

Recently, we received an email from MH. No, no. Not Michael Howard, the British politician. But close enough. MH is a UK national living in Jakarta. He/she wrote us in response to our blog here.We like the email so much we thought we should share it with you. So here it is in its entirety, with our comment here and there to explain to you why we find this email interesting.Dear Indonesia Anonymus

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1132912855807492952005-11-25T16:38:00.000+07:002005-12-15T04:57:24.053+07:00

Since Jakartass wrote about us on November 22, more of you have visited - and hopefully read - our blog. (we therefore thank you, Jakartass, for spreading the words). And since then too, we receive more and more comments from you. They are all great. We love them.Some emails came in response to our blog "They wear suits" (if you do not know what we are talking about, maybe you should read it

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1132588395841541612005-11-21T22:50:00.000+07:002006-02-23T07:59:32.463+07:00

In our job we regularly exchange documents with our counterparts' offices located along Jakarta's Sudirman street. Joni, one of our office assistants, is the person in charge of delivering these documents. (at other places Joni will be called an 'office boy'. We prefer the term 'office assistants' because their duty mainly is to assist us in doing something that we are too stupid to do, such as

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1132221050854248632005-11-17T16:47:00.000+07:002006-01-26T20:34:49.623+07:00

We were reading The Jakarta Post.com the other day and came across this news: Jakarta administration will launch a large-scale crackdown on unskilled migrants entering the city after Ied holiday [1]. The migrants are blamed to be the source of many urban problems. The Jakarta Post also wrote that such crackdown "could be in violation of the Constitution".We cannot agree more. We are all

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1131966856983044272005-11-14T18:11:00.000+07:002005-11-17T17:18:09.593+07:00

Last week a bunch of us were fortunate enough to get a chance to fly to Vienna Austria for a work meeting.It was a pleasant short visit, and the city is as stunning as you see in travel photos.But this is not a travel blog, so we won't go on about that.What we will tell you instead is our encounter with a grocery storekeeper Daniela.Daniela works at a small grocery store around the corner of

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18861785.post-1131697573220813852005-11-11T14:45:00.000+07:002005-11-11T19:31:59.676+07:00

Yesterday we came across a gossip column at detik.com about an alleged affair between one of Indonesian ex President's son and a (somewhat) famous singer [1]. Does this news surprise you ? No.To add more to it, there are some photos supporting the allegation. Is this a surprise then? Still a big no.All right, how about this: among those photos, there is one picture of them kissing, and one with

Indonesia Anonymushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08082457164468524565noreply@blogger.com