Alterity | Jakarta and Bali

A short while back I wrote that some people should simply not be allowed to procreate . In that particular case I was referring to a foul-mouthed, tab-smoking four-year old from Surabaya – or rather his moronic parents – who provoked my not inconsiderable ire. Look we certainly don’t have to hurt people. And we don’t even have to lock them up. A simple state-funded operation will do – hell, a free holiday for recuperation purposes could even be thrown in as part of the package as well - just to be extra nice. Snip, snip, snip. It would be one of the best investments the state could ever make. Don’t agree with me? John The Baptist Brown?!!!!! WTF! >>>> Link

I am an antichrist I am an anarchist.   The most memorial opening lines of a rock song ever are arguably those of the classic Sex Pistols’ Anarchy In The UK, the group's debut recording on 26 November 1976 (hell, was it really that long ago?!!)    I was too young to recall its release but one of my earliest childhood memories was attending a London street party to celebrate the Silver Jubilee of “Her Majesty”. My cousin busted his teeth as I remember (falling off a skateboard), but generally it was all good fun and there were lots of bright balloons and jelly.  But trouble was brewing. I was too young to know what but there was something in the air that didn’t smell quite right. And it wasn’t just the fumes of the glue that youngsters were sniffing at the time.   Anyway, I got home and heard it. The Pistol’s rip-roaring “God Save the Queen”. Basically, the UK was screwed. If it had been a car you would have had it scrapped. Hell, in 1977 Old Blighty wa...

Hell, this is tragic. One of Indonesia’s most voluptuous starlets sentenced to four years in jail for drugs offences: Pengadilan Negeri Jakarta Barat menjatuhkan hukuman 4 tahun penjara kepada pemain sinetron pendatang baru Jennifer Dunn. Jenn terbukti bersalah menyimpan 7 butir ekstasi. Yes, that’s right – four years just for 7 pills. Now if my mathematics is right that’s more than six months for each of the little pills! And besides that she has also been fined Rp150 million (about US$15,000) "Hakim memberikan putusan 4 tahun penjara dikurangi masa tahanan dan denda sebesar Rp 150 juta kepada Jennifer Dunn," kata ketua majelis hakim Martinus Bala. So that’s Rp21 million for each pill! Bloody expensive huh? Oh well. She still looks fine. So let’s just hope the prison wardens don’t ask for any special favours ;)

What is Indonesia’s best destination for nightlife? Well, many would say Jakarta. From its sophisticated wine bars and ultra-hip clubs to its massage parlors and billiard halls – there is something for everyone to enjoy in the Big Durian. Others however might cite Bali’s Kuta for its low key and unpretentious Australian surfer culture. Beach, Bintangs and babes. What more could a young man want? (don’t answer that: it’s a rhetorical question, obviously!) Less known, but equally alluring are Bandung - where the women are said to prowl like tigers during the night - and Surabaya with its multitude of attractions for the adventurous hedonist. And then there’s Puncak. Puncak?!! You mean that hilly area just out of Jakarta, where the capital city’s stressed out professionals venture at weekends to spend most of the time gazing at tea plantations in soul crushing traffic jams - which of course just makes them even more stressed out?!!! Yep that Puncak. And it’s currently one of Indonesia’s...

As is often the case with mob rule, the innocent get rounded up with the guilty - especially when guilt is not clearly defined. Babies get thrown out with the bath water. It’s not a pretty sight and the non-participants - who usually seek praise and honor - make grandiose speeches of reconciliation. Link

It’s not only Jupe ( Julia Perez ) who has political aspirations. So too does Maria Eva - a sexy dangdut singer and one-time actress in a skin flick with a Golkar politician. You are on camera: smile please! But her efforts to canvass support from public figures in the East Java town of Sidoarjo doesn’t seem to have impressed too many political parties. And according to Detik, Partai Amanat Nasional (PAN) is also not interested in choosing her as the party’s candidate: Sidoarjo - Sama dengan halnya Partai Demokrat, Partai Amanat Nasional (PAN) juga tak akan mengusung Maria Eva dalam pemilihan Bupati Sidoarjo, Juli 2010 mendatang. Alasannya, mereka sudah punya calon sendiri yang diusung dari partai. "Sudah pasti tidak akan mengusung Maria Eva. Kita sudah punya calon sendiri yang saat ini sedang digodok di DPW dan DPP," kata Sekretaris DPW PAN Jatim, Sunartoyo, saat berbincang dengan detiksurabaya.com, Selasa (13/4/2010). Oh well. Maria Eva needn’t feel disheartened. There are...

There is much to be said in favour of modern journalism. By giving us the opinions of the uneducated, it keeps us in touch with the ignorance of the community.” >Oscar Wilde Indy Rahmawati is one of the early morning angels to appear on Indonesian TV and her quick wit and attractive appearance has won her many fans. But now her name is being dragged through the mud and that’s very sad. TVOne has found itself in a very embarrassing situation and is having to eat its words after a man claimed that the station paid him to pose as a case broker for an interview. According to reports, the man claims that he was given Rp 1.5 million ($165) by TV anchor Indy Rahmawati to “pretend to be a former case broker at the National Police on her show”. Now I don’t believe this is true. How could it be? TV stations making payments for TV interviews? What a ridiculous idea that would be!

You want yourselves some fried frogs to go with them greasy chips? Well, Shame on you! “No frogs’ legs!” croak the hopping mad animal rights protestors in Sunderland (one of them even dressed in a bloody frog costume – hahaha!)  Demonstrators from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) stood outside Katie Mac's Fish Bar at Pennywell shopping centre, to try to persuade the shop's owners to stop selling the unusual treat. Peta claims that the majority of frogs' legs sold in the UK come from Indonesia , where they say villagers snatch the amphibians from swamps before cramming them into sacks and killing them in a cruel manner. "I think more and more people are starting to realize that it's a barbaric thing to do,” said the group's special projects co-ordinator, Terry Yaki.   Barbaric? Well I wouldn’t say so. Cos let’s face it: killing frogs may not be the sort of thing that Buddhist monks would get up to at the weekend but - at the same time - ...

Julia Perez would make a great DJ. And here’s a very funny joke for you: DJ: "Hey! This is Ed on Jakarta-FM. Have you ever heard of 'Mate Match'?" Contestant: (laughing) "Yes, I have." DJ: "Great! Then you know we're giving away a trip to Bali if you win. What is your name? First only please." Contestant: "Budi." DJ: "Budi, are you married or what?" Budi: (laughing nervously) "Yes, I am married." DJ: "Thank you. Now, what is your wife's name? First only please." Budi: "Ayu." DJ: "Is Ayu at work, Budi?" Budi: "She is gonna kill me." DJ: "Stay with me here, Budi! Is she at work?" Budi: (laughing) "Yes, she's at work." DJ: "Okay, first question - when was the last time you had sex?" Budi: "About 8 o'clock this morning." DJ: "Atta boy, Budi." Budi: (laughing sheepishly) "Well..." DJ: "Question #2 - How l...

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com — Meskipun menegaskan bahwa Anji "Drive" bukan urusannya lagi, Rini "Idol" mengatakan, jika memang bayi Sheila Marcia merupakan anak kandung Anji, maka Anji harus bertanggung jawab. Although explaining that she had nothing anymore to do with Anji "Drive", Rini "Idol" said that he MUST be responsible if he is the father. If he made her pregnant, says Rini, I would expect him to be RESPONSIBLE. But is Anji really the father? Well, Sheila. Please tell  Otherwise we can only guess… Who is the father of Sheila Marcia’s baby? A politician Tiger Woods Bule (tourist) Anji "Drive John Terry Other Free polls from Pollhost.com

You know the economy is picking up when works of art start to sell for record breaking prices:  A 1960s oil painting of Balinese villagers by Indonesia’s Lee Man Fong fetched a record HK$25.3 million ($3.3 million) in Hong Kong, the top lot at an Asian art auction marked by signs of return to pre-credit-crisis prices. Lee’s 2-meter-long “Bali Life” depicts a rustic scene of the islanders at rest.  Source: Bloomberg Lee Man Fong painted classic Bali scenes and was - for obvious reasons - one of Sukarno’s favorite painters.   And the buyer of “Bali Life”? An unidentified Asian private collector, according to Sotheby’s (let’s just hope he’s not an employee of the Indonesian tax office).  Interestingly, 78 of the 145 artworks at the auction were done by Indonesian artists. They include Affandi’s “Cuenca,” I Nyoman Masriadi’s “I’m Still Lucky” and Agus Suwage’s studies of human psychology, “I See, I Hear, I Feel” and “Don’t Be Amazed, Don’t Be Entitled.”  Affa...

It’s a steep final ascent. Every step now is a struggle in the deep volcanic ash and you have to draw deep to keep going. Hell. How much longer is it going to be before you finally reach the crater’s rim? Physically you are shattered. Your thighs burn like buggery and your Achilles tendon feels as if it could snap at any moment like an over tensioned guitar string. And your throat is so parched you can’t even swallow - let alone talk.  But at last you reach the rim! You peer over the edge, breathless and in awe of the breathtaking spectacle that greets you, but then… you lose your footing… slip … and tumble forwards into the great crater - never to be seen again …  And that’s pretty much what happened to Daniel Fetersan , a 25-year-old Swedish tourist, who tragically plunged to his death into the active Mount Batur volcano in Bali.    Volcanoes are the connection between the inner earth and the world we live in, so it’s not surprising that many people are fascinate...

It’s officially the silly season (*) in Indonesia and all sorts of nonsense is being reported in the media. One of the most bizarre stories surrounds Sandi Wedhus – a four-year old kid who smokes tabs and swears like a trooper! The little kid shot to stardom after someone posted a video of the fag-puffing toddler up on YouTube. In the video, our young hero – who comes from Surabaya - is seen taking a drag on a fag and making a well known gesture with his other hand: And when young Sandi hasn’t got a fag in his gob he certainly knows how to gab: "Duite digawe...? (What do you spend your money on..?)," they asked. "Mba... (Girls)," he sniggered. "Nang endi? (from where?)," they asked " Dolly (Indonesia’s largest red light district: Ed)," he replied. He then takes a huge drag on the fag and blows an impressive O shaped smoke circle! "Ayo bikin yang bentuk kotak!" (but can you make one in a square shape?)”, says someone taking the piss. Bu...

An 18-year-old girl bought herself a very tiny and sexy bikini. She went home and put it on, then asked her mother how she looked in it. She asked, "What do you think mum?" Her mother replied, "I think that if I had worn that when I was your age, you'd be five years older!" And here's Tika Putri. In a bikini, naturally.