Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with indonesia

Call it "Tailor Tourism"

rileyray3000 — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:52:19 -0800

I'm thinking about taking a suit holiday. As in, going to a country where not only can I have a fun vacation, but I can get a bunch of suits made for a good price. Where should I go? When I was teaching in Korea back in 2001 I got a few suits made for me on a lark. Some were the kitschy kind of fun suits that you get made when they're 70 bucks American and you think "what the hell." In my case that was one red satin number and five iridescent sharkskin suits in colors ranging from blue to yellow to brown - all as shiny as a marine's dress shoes.

Goodfellas was one of the only American movies I saw over there. I think it left a mark.

But in addition to those suits I also got one charcoal gray suit made and one light brown one. Those two have been my standby suits ever since. I get compliments every time I wear them, they fit me perfectly and I worry about the day they finally fall apart.

Thus I've been considering a "Suit Holiday." Something where I go somewhere like South Korea, have an exotic trip, and get a bunch of suits made to take home and last me another decade.

But I'm wondering if South Korea IS the way to go here. Maybe Hong Kong? Or Taiwan? Or the Philippines? Or Indonesia? I'm totally open.

Where is the place I can get the best bang for my buck and get 5 or ten suits made to take home with me? Where would YOU go on a Suit Holiday?

Things to do/see/eat/avoid/meet in these countries, on my first RTW trip?

avocade — Sun, 17 May 2009 14:48:47 -0800

Things to do/see/eat/avoid/meet in these countries, on my first RTW trip? Finally heading out on a very unplanned RTW trip with one of those Star Alliance tickets. These are the flight routes I have set at the moment (three weeks before heading out, so still malleable) * Stockholm-San Francisco (June 6th, for Apple's Developer Conference, WWDC, et al.)
* SF-NYC (more work-related stuff...)
* NYC-Auckland, NZ (around July 12th; I'm a bit hesitant on NZ in the middle of winter, though)
* Christchurch, NZ-Tokyo (just staying a short while in NZ if at all)
* Tokyo-Singapore (staying a couple weeks in Tokyo)
** Local airlines within Indonesia, to Jakarta, Bali, Gilli Islands/Lombak, Komodo Island (seemingly very good weather in July/August)
* Bali (Denpasar)-Chennai (seemingly extremely _bad_ weather in July/August, monsoon period)
* Mumbai-Gothenburg (home) around Sept 3d

So, I reach out to the Hive to come up with opinions on both the rough outline of the trip itself, but more importantly, as mentioned in the rubric, what (and who) to do/see/eat/avoid/meet in those locations. As you can see, this trip is heavily compressed, and if I could have put it somewhere else during the year (let's say during our terrible Swedish winter...) things would probably have matched a lot better, and more time would have been available. All in all, probably around 3 months total.

(Astute readers may have noted I completely passed over the "main attraction" of the East, namely China. I've decided it's just too much for this trip, and in any way the weather is awful in Shanghai until October, so I'll do a separate one-month:er sometime this Winter. )

For interest, I will try to stay with couchsurfing.com members wherever I can, both as a measure to lower the cost, but more important to connect with people on the ground, and get a richer experience, as well as hopefully friends for life. Profile here (I know, nice couch):

http://www.couchsurfing.org/people/avocade/

PS. I can change the dates for any flight up to 24 hour before for free, but a route change costs $125 IIRC.

More info, and a nice (and time-eating) RTW planner, here:

http://www.staralliance.com/en/travellers/fare_products/round_the_world_fare_faq.html
http://802.flightlookup.com/rtw/rtw_1.php?region=AP0

A Starbucks Gift Card Should Work, Right?

PhatLobley — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 19:19:47 -0800

What was awesome to have when you lived in the jungle? My sister is going to do research on orangutans in Indonesia sometime next year. Her birthday is in November and I'd like to get her something incredibly useful for her trip. From what I understand she'll be living, quite literally, in the jungle, without electricity or running water. Have you or has someone you know done something like this before? What one item, that can be purchased by a poor law student for $50 or less, were you SO glad you had? I was thinking of a really nice raincoat, but good ones are a little bit out of my price range. Having never lived in the jungle, I'm a little stumped. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!

Make me want to go to Asia.

djstig — Mon, 03 Sep 2007 08:18:35 -0800

Make me want to go to Asia. Next summer I will be heading off to Singapore for a really good friends wedding, however it is only for a couple of days. The vague problem is that most of the other friends of the wedding party are planning on travelling around that part of the world for a few weeks afterwards.

However I have had very little interest in looking to travel in that part of the world. As in Malaysia, Burma, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia etc. So I am asking the Uncle Travelling Matt types of AskMe to sell Asia to me.

Interests include walking, swimming, historic sites, food that kind of thing. All of which I know are plentiful around those parts, but because I've not ever fancied Asia then I'm kind of clueless.

Two questions about the 2004 Tsunami

np312 — Sat, 14 Apr 2007 10:40:45 -0800

Tsunami-filter: I have a two part question about the Boxing Day Tsunami of 2004. One involves the BBC/HBO miniseries "Tsunami: The Aftermath," and the other involves the guerilla warfare going on in Indonesia at the time. Okay, first question: In the BBC/HBO miniseries "Tsunami: The Aftermath" there is a scientist character named Dr. Pravat Meeko who supposedly wrote a report in 1993 which predicted the coastline's vulnerability to a tsunami, but his report was ignored due to developers' connections in office. Is this character based on a real person/real report? And if so, where can I find more information?

The second part of this question is: have there been any articles about the Free Aceh movement and the guerilla fighting/civil war in Indonesia who (at least temporarily) laid down their weapons following the Tsunami? I'm looking for in-depth articles about specific people involved, fighters, politicians, etc. My google-fu has failed me.

Any help would be much appreciated! Thanks.

Spider web soup or suit

tellurian — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 15:26:50 -0800

In the book 'Big Snake' by Robert Twigger, there are a couple of passages about collecting spider webs either to be eaten or to make clothes. At one stage he is told that the webs are used to make soup. Another time, for research into some sort of high tensile material for clothing. I can find no evidence for either on the web. Did the author just make it up? Can anyone point me to something?

Chocolate glazed: permissible?

mdonley — Fri, 11 Aug 2006 04:48:22 -0800

Why are my Indonesian bottled water and donut labeled "halal" when there don't seem to be any questionably non-halal/haram processes or ingredients involved in the making of either product? I was enjoying a donut from Dunkin Donuts today (yes, they really are everywhere...) when I noticed the "halal" label on the donut bag AND my accompanying bottle of water.

On most food here, meat and non-meat, there's usually a little seal with (I think) the Arabic word "halal," plus an official registration number from "MUI", the Majelis Ulama Indonesia, which seems to be a sort of national watchdog for Islamic issues (could be wrong there, too), but clicking on their website's link for "halal food information" takes me to the website for Indofood (a company that holds the record for creating the world's largest packet of...instant noodles).

A cursory examination of Wikipedia's "halal" article tells me that forbidden foods include "pork, alcohol/intoxicants, gelatin, blood, carrion, fanged beasts of prey, and any animal not slaughtered in the name of Allah."

Since I don't think any of those ingredients/processes are in play here, does the halal seal extend to a whole company's practices, not just the food/drink inside a particular container? Does anyone have experience with halal certification who can shed some light on this?

Who speaks Indonesian?

FearAndLoathingInLJ — Sat, 22 Jul 2006 01:48:16 -0800

Does any one speak Javanese? I need a Javanese or Indonesian translation of a couple of words for a Tsunami Relief Concert. In the upcoming weeks, I am promoting a tsunami relief concert for the Indonesian Red Cross to help rebuild after the terrible incident last Monday. We have yet to name this benefit concert, and we were looking for an authentic Javanese word that translated to something along the lines of "help" or "survive" or "benefit," whichever has the best ring to it.

If no here speaks Javanese, we'd settle for an Indonesian tranlation as well. Any other words that might be appropriate, in either of those languages, are welcomed as suggestions as well.

Indonesia?

0bvious — Sun, 18 Jun 2006 18:13:41 -0800

Indonesia: Should I go? How long for and where? What about a visa? 18,000 islands await me... Following up on these past two askmefi questions, I have decided to fly to Bali come August.

The visa situation sounds quite complicated. Can I really only get a 30 day pass without leaving and re-entering the country?

If I arrive and find some likely travel companions I hope to go East through the more remote islands. If I arrive and find myself travelling alone I will likely go West and up towards Malaysia.

All advice gladly accepted. Anyone wanna join me :) ?

Give me your modals, your prepositions, your phrasal verbs yearning to breathe free

mdonley — Fri, 02 Jun 2006 10:15:09 -0800

How do I teach 10 or so Indonesian academics and postgraduate students how to "ace" their US Embassy visa interviews and "prep" for life in the US? Personal experiences with the US immigration process? What are some interview strategies you can pass on to my students? I am three months into my first year as a (CELTA-certified) TEFL teacher, and this assignment seems an order of magnitude or five more difficult than what I've done so far - I've never *designed* a class from *nothing.*

I don't know who these people are aside from what's in the original question, how well they know each other, what their English abilities are, what they're researching, how long they'll be there, if they plan to move there permanently, if any of them have been there before, or where in the US they'll be going.

They *may* all attend the same university; none of them need TOEFL assistance (perhaps because it's not required for their programs, or perhaps because they have an existing score). Why these people need our school's extra help when (I hope) they've got perfectly legitimate reasons to go to the States and their institutions working for them is a mystery.

Worst of all, I have no idea what they expect or how this "class" was sold to them. "American Culture 101," "Brush Up Your English Conversation," "Learn to Fool American Visa Officers"?

The root of the question is this: how do I create a class that accomplishes the dual goals of getting them through the stress of obtaining the visa itself *and* making them confident (lingusitically, culturally, socially) enough to start a new life abroad?

Finally, I would be so grateful if anyone shared their personal experiences about navigating the US visa process - something I've never done as a US citizen.

Thank you so much!

Backpacker Nirvana?

0bvious — Mon, 29 May 2006 22:43:58 -0800

Know any good travelling websites? Most specifically for backpacking in Asia... I am going to hit up SE Asia this August, hopefully for a few months, and am looking for some great resources for planning my trip.

A backpackers message board / forum would also be great, specifically one which hooks up lone travellers into potential groups.

Any SE Asia hints in general will be gladly accepted (I am travelling starting in Japan - see previous MeFi-question)

Get the Bali rolling

mdonley — Mon, 01 May 2006 03:09:28 -0800

I'd like some personal recommendations for villas, little hotels, or guesthouses in (on?) Bali, near Gunung Bromo, and/or Yogyakarta/Borobudur/Prambanan, and any other advice you'd like to provide about these areas. I'm researching a trip my mom, 16-year-old brother, and I will be making to these areas in December or January. I realize that's a busy time of year in Bali, but we don't want to stay in Kuta or lie on a beach for days on end - we're more snorkeling, volcano-climbing, temple-visiting kind of people, real go-getters when we're on vacation. The northern side of the island seems more like what we're looking for, but I have no idea, really.

We'd like to spend less than $30-50 a night if possible, we'll be renting cars, and we'll be flying between Bali, Surabaya (for Bromo), and Yogya. We don't camp.

I live in Indonesia currently and while my Bahasa Indonesia is appalling, I have friends who can help me book rooms and the like.

The Lonely Planet Guide for Indonesia I've got was published in 2002, so I'm assuming most of the info in there will have changed, and the Lonely Planet Thorntree is a nightmare to wade through. I live in Bandung.

Terima kasih!

Guilt versus greed - how much do I pay this woman?

mdonley — Thu, 30 Mar 2006 07:13:24 -0800

What percentage of my take-home pay should go to someone who does my laundry and cleans my house twice a week? All sorts of complexity and intrigue inside. I'm an American living and working in Indonesia, and I rent a house that's a little too large for me but which was all that was available when I was looking around. I think my landlord's daughter, the only one in the family who speaks English, is trying to screw me on the cost of her mom's housekeeping services.

Now, I never would have had a housekeeper, but she offered her services at the time of the lease-signing while her whole family was sitting there, and from the second I started looking at moving into this community, local women approached me with *laminated* references from previous expat tenants and children in tow. It was a very stressful and competitive situation and I made the decision to go with the landlord's wife because it meant that I could save face in the community and claim my hands were tied, which has mostly worked - a bunch of Westerners have moved in in the last few months and there's been a lot of discontent about all the locals, especially the women, sharing whatever new wealth becomes available.

The problem is that I'm not rich by any means, and while I get paid a comparatively good local wage, the amount she's asking is, I think, rather large (about 10% of my take-home pay every month). I'd like to pay her 60 or 70% of what she's asking - which I know from asking my colleagues is the fair, going rate for someone who does what she does as often as she does - but I don't really even know if she's the one who's asking, or if her daughter is the one who's orchestrating the whole thing. I do know she's not the primary wage-earner for her household.

A foul-up here could mean that my requests for, say, window screens, or perhaps some assistance fixing my roof in the rainy season coming up this fall could be ignored or deprioritized. This isn't some gated community with armed guards and Land Rovers and all the trappings of expathood - it's a house in the middle of a kampung, which is basically a village or neighborhood area that's very, very cohesive.

It's a very complex situation power-wise, as I'm probably more advantaged monetarily, but the community's linked by a common language and years, maybe generations of living together and knowing each other, and will almost certainly try to defend this poor woman caught between what they'd see as my violent and unkind cheapness and their relative poverty.

My Indonesian is abysmally poor, though I do try, but my housekeeper's English is basically non-existent, so "just talking to her" is difficult (and, often, side-splittingly hilarious when one of us realizes we have no idea what the other is saying).

In short, I'm having trouble thinking of ways to say I'd like to pay less without devaluing her as a person. I'm also reluctant to criticize her work as a reason for paying less, as there haven't been any problems with it.

Could I just leave a lower amount in an envelope labeled with the Indonesian for "Mrs. Landlord, thanks so much for your work this month!" and they'd assume it was settled? Other ideas? Payday is probably in the second week of April.

Traveling too light?

mdonley — Sat, 25 Feb 2006 00:52:38 -0800

Should I be packing more for a year or more of teaching English in Indonesia? I'll be living in Bandung, population 2 million-ish, teaching English at a private school. So far, I'm bringing money, some work and casual clothes, a jump drive (no laptop) with some portable apps, and some teaching-methodology and Indonesian-learning books. This seems, I dunno, kind of skimpy.

Most of the expat resources I've found have focused on professional/executive-level people from big corporations moving their families/possessions/lives abroad, often to remote areas, which is not me - this is my first real job and I don't own anything of irreplacable substance. I'm probably going to take one larger checked suitcase and a smaller carry-on over-the-shoulder satchel, but I'd love to take less.

Indonesia-related/teaching-English-abroad Mefites: other pearls of wisdom to share? I leave Tuesday.

Terima kasih!

South Seas Scuba

ambrosia — Tue, 12 Apr 2005 11:30:31 -0800

Divers of Metafilter, help us plan our honeymoon! We are taking three weeks this summer and plan to spend part of that time scuba diving, perhaps on a live-aboard. We are thinking South Pacific and/or Indonesia, but haven't managed to narrow it down any further than that. Tips, suggestions, and warnings welcomed. We are both certified open water divers, but we've never done a live-aboard before. Can anyone share their experiences? Thumbs-up or thumbs down for a particular location or dive operator? Any tips for life on a live-aboard? (Motion sickness has been an issue for me on smaller launches, but I'm hoping it will be less of an issue on a larger boat.) Suggestions for land-based dive operators/sites or surface time things to see and do would be great also.

Jakarta: Break it down for me.

cosmonik — Wed, 23 Feb 2005 19:42:16 -0800

With a move to Jakarta, Indonesia on the horizon for me, I'm wondering if any MeFites can recommend particularly good web resources? I'm looking for sites, forums, articles, anything really. Detailed street-level maps, places to eat, places to be entertained, a break down of the city. The full brief.

Yoga in Ubud

tellurian — Sun, 02 Jan 2005 20:08:50 -0800

Yoga classes in Ubud. [more inside] I'm currently on holiday in Ubud on Bali. I have 4-5 days here. I'll be checking out Antonio Blanco's house this afternoon but any other recommendations would be appreciated. stavrosthewonderchicken maybe?

In Thailand? Help me contact my brother after the earthquake.

blockhead — Sun, 26 Dec 2004 14:22:48 -0800

I'm sure you've all heard the news that thousands are dead in Asia after a massive earthquake struck near Indonesia. My brother is among the missing and we're desperately trying to find out if he's OK. If you're in the region or have experience with contacting loved ones after an event like this, please read on. I need your help Here's what we know: He was supposed to travel from Bangkok to the Island of Phangan sometime within the past 48 hours. We suspect that he was in route when the earthquake struck because the hotel, Phangan Cabana Resort, was not able to confirm that he had checked in. We've tried contacting him by cell phone but service has been sporadic since the beginning of his trip. We've been unable to reach anyone at the Canadian Consulates in Thailand or via the Canadian consulate emergency 800 number. We've been similarly unsuccessful at reaching the Thai Red Cross society. We're at a loss as to how to proceed and we're very concerned for his safety. If there's anyone on the ground there that can advise us of where survivors might be and how we can reach them, please post here. I won't post my brother's name but if you're on the ground in Thailand and would be willing to help, I'll email his name and photo. Thanks...