BMTH live in Jakarta 2024

Image
This time around Ravel gets it right and BMTH (Bring Me The Horizon) are headlining the Nexfest festival in Jakarta which also features Babymetal. In this format there is no seating - which makes for a much more intimate experience - although you do have to arrive really early if you want to pick a spot right up close to the stage.  We arrived about six hours before BMTH were scheduled to start their performance and bought plenty of drinks to stay hydrated in the tropical afternoon heat (mind you, some of those were Iceland vodka mix!) This was a gig I had long been looking forward to - especially after the debacle last year. Not everyone likes BMTH of course. For deathcore fans the band sold out. For metal heads the band is not purist enough. And for the wider mainstream audience, the band is too heavy. You can't please everyone of course but there are few bands in the rock world which can match the sheer emotional velocity of BMTH. To bring metal and even aspects of metalcore t
Post a Comment

The Rough Guide to Jakarta (2): Recreational/fun parks

On Jakarta's North coast lies Ancol Dreamland, a huge marine recreational resort, which kids, especially, will love. There is a 40-lane bowling alley; an 18-hole golf course; an amusement park with fearsome rides like the big dipper; and a huge swimming pool complex called Atlanta which used to be great but is now rather decrepit and rundown.

If you go to Ancol, don’t miss the chance to witness the diversity of Indonesia’s marine life at Seaworld, home to one of the largest aquariums in all of South East Asia.

Seaworld Indonesia

Teenagers like to come to Ancol - especially at the weekends when there is often live outdoor music. This also explains why you can often see parked cars "moving" whilst parked by the side of the road in the evening.

On the other side of town in South Jakarta, Taman Mini Indonesia Recreation Park should be on every tourist’s agenda. Here, full sized replica traditional houses from all of Indonesia’s provinces have been constructed to show off the incredible diversity of this vast nation.

Taman Mini Indonesia

Each house acts as a mini-museum, with many fascinating artifacts on show inside. The park is also home to many other attractions, including the Keong Mas Theatre which shows IMAX films focusing on Indonesian culture and nature; the huge bird park; and the wildlife and natural history museums.

Like Ancol, Taman Mini also has a water park, the rather incongruously named Snowbay. Avoid the crowds and go during the week. Unless you enjoy standing for hours in queues that is!

By far the best water park in Jakarta is the aptly named Waterbom in Pantai Indah Kapuk, North Jakarta. It’s a touch on the pricey side, but not so crowed and has the best slides.

Monas or the National Monument is one of those phallic type structures that lies smack bang in the center of Jakarta. The monument is located on a huge plot of land which could be considered the nearest thing that Jakarta has to a real park. Even so, the few deer who used to roam around here weren’t so impressed – they all fell sick and had to be taken to the nearby hillside town of Bogor!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The 10 best plus plus massage spas in Jakarta

Image
UPDATE 12/10/2018: due to the large number of hits this page has been receiving of late, readers should note that two of the spas on the list are, alas, no longer with us. They are: 1) Hotel Alexis , which was closed down for political reasons by the new Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan and 2) Illigals , which was "closed" and promptly reopened with a new name due to its reputation as a drugs den. In place of Hotel Alexis, therefore, I would instead put Classic Hotel on the list - a real humdinger of a joint in this madcap city! A list of the top ten plus plus spas in Jakarta? Okay, without further ado (or should that be aduh!!!) here it is: 10. Malioboro Spa . Over cynical and commercial yet fun if you stick with it – a bit like watching Chelsea on one of their better days. Hey that’s a point – even Torres could score here! Hahaha! Wallet damage: Rp1million ++ 9. Emporium Spa . Overpriced but the facilities are pretty good. Go for the “one hour special package” if yo
Read more

20 things you should know about Indonesian women

Image
1. Unlike Western women who can’t drive to save their lives, Indonesian women are the best drivers in the world. I know this because my woman overtakes other cars at 130kms/hr on the inside safety lane of the Jakarta-Bandung toll road while, at the same time, keying in SMS text messages. 2. Indonesian woman love shopping. Indonesian woman love shopping. Indonesian woman love shopping. 3. According to the Indonesia Bureau of Statistics, 43 percent of 18- to 34-year-old Indonesian women live with their parents. So be very very careful if she invites you back to her place or you might get much more than you bargained for. 4. Indonesian women think dark skin is bad, but they still adore Anggun . 5. Thirty-two percent of women in Jakarta now color their hair, according to Estee Lauder (who are obviously hoping they can peer-pressure the other 68 percent). 6. Jakarta women can't live without tension. Every once in a while she's gonna pick a nasty fight with you for no reason whatsoev
Read more

The comfort zone (Jakarta hotel and spa)

Image
Yet another Indonesia WTF moment. And this time on the net. What are these girls employed as? - “Guest relations” officers - Tour guides - Personal financial advisors - Therapists - Security consultants Well, I’d have put my house on “guest relations” officers myself, but I’d be wrong. Cos these girls are, in fact, therapists . So if you fancy a difficult afternoon with one of these girls - who will undoubtedly do her utmost to delve deeply into the furthermost recesses of your mind - then you might like to pay a visit to one of the spas owned by the Comfort Group . But why the hell they have 65 therapists on their payroll is way beyond me! Services offered include both traditional and Shiatsu Massage, refleksi (foot massage), a hot and cold water pool, sauna and steam room and a mini bar and lounge. So why not finish your tiring day with a happy ending?!!!   Also see: The 10 best plus plus spas in Jakarta Contact details for the spas managed by the Comfort Group, undoubtedly some
Read more