What are transportation options and challenges in Jakarta?

Jakarta is the largest city in Indonesia and same as with any other big city, traffic jams are common although manageable. Apartment rent is affordable for expatriates looking for cheaper options, you can search for a guest house (in Indonesia we call it “kost-kost an”).

Jakarta is the capital of Indonesia, considered as the center of everything. Business, yes. Showbiz, yes. Government, yes. Since the local pop culture does embrace my beloved city as a place that turns poor people into rich, it drives many people from other province (like states in U. S) to come to Jakarta to pursue their Indonesian Dreams. As city that slightly larger than Singapore, Jakarta is way too crowded. It is a home for approximately 10 million people. Ten million. That’s double the size of entire Singapore’s population.

See, Jakarta technically has a very few things that can count as “historic” or “beautiful” or “touristy”. There is an Art Deco train station. There is an old drawing bridge. People may mention the old colonial quarter, the fish market, and the Chinese temple. You can see all this in half a day, but if you miss it it’s just as fine. Nothing you cannot have thrice as good elsewhere.

Jakarta is hard to access. Where cities like Bangkok or Singapore open up to the tourist, Jakarta closes. If you do not know people on the ground or are super unlucky, you will end up in a backpacker trap somewhere on Jalan Jaksa; if you are very lucky in Kemang. Foods are the best for Jakartans, and never bored.

The city is massive, it was a Dutch colony and we can see lot of its influence in the city’s architecture. Traffic in Jakarta is really bad and one needs to consider that before traveling to one place to another within the city. The petrol price in Jakarta is very cheap.

One thing they should know is if they can handle spice, during my travels to various countries around the world, I’ve learned that their spice are usually comparatively mundane so anyone who isn’t used to spice should learn to avoid the tell-tale signs of spicy food here. Another thing they should know is some form of the Indonesian language, although some Indonesians can indeed speak in English, they are in the minority as most aren’t fluent in it. Finally, you should get used to riding cars, usually, locations are not within walking distance and the infrastructure for walking isn’t exactly up to par nor safe when traveling alone especially at night.

Jakarta is a well developed city in Indonesia. You can find numerous amount of skyscraper and easily meet new people here and around. The people here are very kind and generous, they will help you with everything that you need. The living cost here is also cheap as we are at Southeast Asia. Last but not least, there are different kinds of public transportation that can help you everyday, from day to night.

Jakarta is quite a dense city as a result the most important thing to know is traffic can get horrendous. you need to have a lot of patience. it is a wonderful city in the amazing country called Indonesia. The people are really friendly and caring, they love to help and are very polite.

It’s very hot during the day. In Jakarta, you can find street foods mostly everywhere. Traffic jams here are frequent; it’s very common that people are late for meetings.

Jakarta is a city that never sleeps. You can find almost anything in this vast and busy city from bars, cafes, traditional markets, shopping malls, to beggars begging for food in traffic lights. Although the public transportation system is poorly managed, however, you can easily commute with the famous online “ojek”. Despite the hustle and bustle Jakarta offers, it is still a good place and feel how the Jakartans have to survive traffic jam during working hours and how they spend their weekends, hanging out with their friends.