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

The Sunda Kelapa Harbor, Jakarta

Being a really difficult place to get to, very few people make it to the Sunda Kelapa Harbor in North Jakarta. The problem is that the port is located a long way from the center of the city and unless you ask the taxi driver to take the toll road, you will probably be driven up Jakarta’s main thoroughfare and through Chinatown on one of Indonesia’s – and no doubt the world’s – most congested streets. Not much fun at all. 

Perhaps the best way to reach the harbor then is to use the busway – which starts in Blok M – and follows the long route north until its last stop at Taman Fatahillah where Jakarta’s oldest building, now a museum, is located. From here you can either walk – or take a ride on a bicycle taxi (a truly unique experience) or in a more comfortable bajaj (a three-wheeled motor vehicle with a seat behind the driver) – to the harbor which is about 2 kms to the north. 

On the way you will pass the Jalan Kali Besar Street, now rather dilapidated but once – well 250 years ago – a swank residential area for the Dutch well to do. Stop for drinks at the now renovated “Company’s Shipyard” which dates from the early 17th century. 

Entry to the harbor is not free but a ticket will not exactly break the bank – Rp1,000 (10 US cents) for people entering on foot and Rp5,000 (50 US cents) for taxis and cars! 

Dating from the 12th century – although there are no visible signs that this is so - traditional sailing vessels from all over the Indonesian archipelago dock here. 

Most famous are the Bugis Pinisi from South Sulawesi, which are made from tough “iron wood”. Modern port regulations do not apply and there are no cranes whatsoever: all cargoes are loaded and unloaded by coolies who do the backbreaking work under the hot tropical sun.

Workers queing at Sunda Kelapa 

And to add to the fun, little kids from the nearby kampong will entertain you by jumping from high up on the boats and into Jakarta’s murky seawaters. Just for a small tip of course!

Pushed 
 
All in all, an interesting experience. And if you are feeling really adventurous you might like to know that it is not that difficult to negotiate a trip on one of these boats back to its homeport. Just don’t forget to bring your lifejacket!

Sunda Kelapa, Jakarta (2)

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The 10 best plus plus massage spas in Jakarta

20 things you should know about Indonesian women

The comfort zone (Jakarta hotel and spa)