Take an ambitious businessman drunk on being so close to power, a media baron who uses his political acquaintances to strengthen his own newspaper’s position, the highly idealistic radical who talks of empathy with the common worker with his middle class friends all the while telling said workers their leaders know best, and a civil [...]

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My wife Srie and I, normally resident in Indonesia, recently spent four months in Sydney where our son is studying. I’m British, and this was my fifth visit to Sydney and my seventh to Australia. My first reaction this time was “This is a nation of FOODIES!”. What a contrast to my first visit in [...]

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During one period of my years in living in Jakarta, a favorite activity was my weekly visit to Pak Trisno, an elderly antiques dealer and former journalist with a prodigious knowledge born of a long lifetime of reading in several languages. On one occasion, during Ramadan, I dropped by about an hour before sunset. When [...]

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Indonesia’s Most Loved Beer and the History Behind the Label A holiday spent in Indonesia most likely revolves around a bottle of Bintang. It is a household name and the perfect thirst-quencher to help one survive the tropical heat of this archipelago. For years now Bintang has always been a favourite amongst locals and foreigners, [...]

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The Indonesian government claims that its high taxes on alcoholic beverages discourage heavy drinking but the reality is that many people are turning to illicitly produced liquor, sometimes with deadly consequences. Every year, dozens of people across the archipelago are killed by consuming drinks adulterated with toxic substances, especially methyl alcohol, which is normally used [...]

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First Published on Latitudes.nu Picture the scene : You’re riding your bicycle along a dirt road near Prolit village near Siem Reap when a tuktuk flies by. Nothing new in this part of the world, right? Until you notice the driver is dressed as Fred Flintstone. Another one bumps along in your rearview mirror. This [...]

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My Indonesian language skills have never been that good. I struggle to put three or four words together and when I can manage that there is no guarantee I can repeat the feat with the same words minutes later. Since I discovered the Benny and Mice comic books my wife says my language skills have [...]

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A general awareness of green buildings in Indonesia, especially Jakarta is still not well organized due to people’s assumptions of green being expensive and not good looking, but green buildings are improving rapidly amongst a few building designs. The integrated approach towards construction and design of modern green structures is improving and this has encouraged [...]

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It’s hard to put your finger on what makes Ben Hil (short for Bendungan Hilir), right at the heart of the city, the go-to spot for street food. Maybe it’s the atmosphere—the perpetually wet streets, the howl of the bemo, the ubiquitous banci whose Adam’s apple bobs as she points her chin at you and [...]

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“Order in! One Ceasar Salad, one onion soup. Followed by one Salmon, pink, one Angus Tenderloin, medium rare, truffle mash.” There has always been some form of excitement hearing the busy bustling sounds of the Chef calling out the orders, with their crew hustling after every order. Being able to hear your order being called [...]

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