Indonesia Getting Around
Getting Around in a Becak
Last night I was at a get-together of University colleagues and during a conversation about Java one man said “I’m going there next month. It will be my first time. I want to try a bisak” I mulled this over in my thought and eventually had to ask what he meant by ‘bisak’. Of course I laughed when I realised he in fact meant ‘becak’, the very popular and cheap form of transport on a lot of the islands in the archipelago. Becaks are a three-wheeled bicycle, two wheels in the front and one at the rear, and you sit quite uncomfortably on the padded wooden seats in the front. This form of transport is literally king-of-the-road and all other manner of transport is obliged to give way to them on the roads. Becak drivers are usually lean in stature with strong-muscled legs and area mine of information should you decide to use them to get around the city you are visiting, but, ensure you bargain the price for the journey well beforehand.
Date: September 4th, 2008 |
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Garuda Indonesia Flights to India
Travelling to Indonesia could become much easier next month, when the country’s national airline Garuda’s maiden flight between Chennai and Medan is set to take off. Indonesia’s acting ambassador to India Rizali W. Indrakesuma told Chennai businessmen on Friday that the new flight would strengthen trade and tourism ties between the two regions. Speaking on the sidelines of an interactive session with city Chambers of Commerce, Mr. Indrakesuma explained that this would be the first Garuda flight to India since the economic crisis of the late 1990s forced the airline to cut its earlier flight to Mumbai according to the Hindu Times. Asked why the resumption of flights is starting with Chennai, Mr. Indrakesuma said that one factor was the demographic make-up of Medan, in northern Sumatra, which is home to a large number of ethnic south Indians with links to Chennai. Increasing economic relationships with southern India could also be a factor.
Date: May 16th, 2008 |
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Garuda to Organize `Discover Indonesia`
The Indonesian consulate general in Sydney and national flag carrier Garuda Indonesia will jointly organize a tourism promotion event called “Discover Indonesia” for Australian tourism operators and mass media. Intended to support the Visit Indonesia 2008 program, the promotional event would be held for two weeks starting late July 2008. Representatives of 20 Australian travel bureaus and a number of newspaper and television reporters would be invited to take part in the program.
They would be given the opportunity to visit and see some of Indonesia`s eco-tourism potentials outside Bali, especially on Java, Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Papua islands. Garuda would among other things fly them to the Bunaken marine park in North Sulawesi, the centre for orangutan protection in Kalimantan, and Toba Lake in North Sumatra.
Date: April 11th, 2008 |
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Mandala Airlines Targets Increase in Passengers
New Airbus airplanes will help Mandala Airlines reach its goal of carrying 25 percent more passengers this year. Mandala Airlines head Diono Nurjadin said from 2009 the airline would operate with only two types of Airbus — the A-320, capable of carrying 180 passengers, and the A-319, capable of carrying 144 passengers. The “new generation” airplanes are expected to improve airline efficiency. The airline has switched from using the Boeing 737-200, which served the airline for 25 years. The number of low-cost flights in the Asia-Pacific region has jumped from 3,900 in 2001 to …
Date: April 7th, 2008 |
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Adam Air Banned from Flying
It had to happen eventually. Adam Air has finally been grounded after numerous incidents, the latest being Adam Air Plane with 175 people on board skidding off the runway in foul weather in Batam last week. Sources in the Transporrt Ministry quoted that they decided to revoke Adam Air’s operational specification, effective 12:00 am Wednesday and All of its planes must be automatically grounded. Quarterly safety evaluation found it made violations that could put passengers’ safety at risk. The airline would be grounded until it was evaluated again in another three months, …
Date: March 19th, 2008 |
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Zipping around in Jakarta: West Java
As anyone one would know that has visited Indonesia’s capital city, Jakarta, it is absolute mayhem in the traffic not to mention the pollution being pumped out of all the exhaust pipes of cars, buses and motorbikes as well as Bajaj. Sometimes as a visitor it is a nightmare to get around the massive city, but, take heart. Starting next month, you will be able to hop on to a sleek Piaggio scooter equipped with GPS systems and wireless communication that will weave their way through the city’s continual …
Date: July 23rd, 2008 |
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Garuda Indonesia to Fly Jakarta to Pontianak
In what is seen as a boost to tourism in Kalimantan, Garuda Indonesia will fly from Jakarta to Pontianak three times a day to cater to rising demand for air services. Currently, Garuda serves the route once per day. Garuda had filed an application to the operator of Supadio Airport in Pontianak for an increase in the number of its flights from Jakarta to Pontianak or vice versa. It is expected that Garuda would be able to compete with other airlines which offered low-cost flights.
Date: April 20th, 2008 |
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AirAsia Launches New Service between Jakarta and Kuching
AirAsia has reported that it has officially launched its new service between Jakarta, Indonesia and Kuching, Malaysia. The new service is expected to operate three times a week. AirAsia has also announced that it will also introduce daily flights to Macau and Penang, starting May 15, 2008 according to Datamonitor. Dato Tony Fernandes, group CEO of AirAsia Berhad, said: “AirAsia has helped to bring Kuching closer to other parts of the region by opening more entry points for foreign visitors to get into Sarawak. Thus the inclusion of its international network to Jakarta from …
Date: April 11th, 2008 |
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Surabaya-Madura Bridge Finished by December
The completion of a bridge connecting Surabaya and Madura Island had reached 87 percent and was expected to finish by December 2008. The construction of the bridge, popularly known as “Suramadu” — for Surabaya-Madura — had lapsed over the country’s five presidencies, from the late former president Soeharto to the current Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and had spent about Rp 4.5 trillion (about US$490.7 million). The government would charge fees for motorists passing through the bridge which would be used to cover maintenance and operational costs.
Date: April 6th, 2008 |
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Bali Travellers Warned on Dengue Fever Risk
Western Australian’s are being urged to take precautions against mosquitoes when travelling to Bali following a sharp outbreak of Dengue fever among travellers returning from the popular holiday island. Acting Director of Communicable Disease Control Dr Gary Dowse said 54 WA travellers contracted the disease last year, three to four times the usual number. The trend has continued in 2008 with a further 16 cases reported in January. Almost 60 per cent of cases reported between January 2007 and February 2008 were associated with travel to Indonesia, with 76 per cent of these being infected in Bali. Smaller numbers of cases were reported among people who travelled to Thailand, Singapore, India, Vietnam, the Phillipines and other South East Asian countries. Dengue fever is an acute mosquito-borne viral infection that can occur 3-14 days after being bitten.
Date: March 18th, 2008 |
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