Di Jakarta, Lagi
In Jakarta, again, for work.
I was sent to attend the writing and photography workshop organized by the EU Delegation to Indonesia / Mission to ASEAN that was conducted on 29 January 2020 at Le Meridien. Aside from this, my other agenda in Jakarta is to bring home stuff from the ASEAN Foundation, a partner of AFA in implementing AFOSP. I can now add to my resume–international lalamove/personal FedEx. Charot.
Traveling amid the novel coronavirus threat? Of course, I did worry a bit. I even overthought my seating strategy on the plane. 😏 True enough, you can feel the panic at the airport where almost everyone was wearing a protective mask. I chose a direct flight with Philippine Airlines to save time, but what do you know, my flights to and from were both delayed.
I arrived in Jakarta at past four in the afternoon. Spent another hour at the airport waiting for a ride to my hotel because I couldn't book a grab. (Later on, I'd learn that that was because I pinned the wrong location.) In the end, I took the Grab electric, Grab's new fleet of energy-efficient cars. They offer a flat rate of IDR 200K plus toll fees. According to the grab staff at the airport, it is still much cheaper compared to airport taxis. They convinced me to just take Grab instead of the airport taxi. They had a hard time locating my hotel in their app, but were still very helpful and accommodating. However, I had to request for the receipt. The driver did not have it because he was not the one that booked the ride, but he did really sent it to me a couple of hours later. Terima kasih!
I stayed at Ana Hotel. I was instantly charmed by its well-decorated lobby. It's a small hotel but you really get your money's worth. The room I stayed in is clean and cozy.
Just one thing, their breakfast buffet does not have that many varieties of food to choose from.
All over the capital, I saw these people wearing mascots and asking for donations. Maybe it's a celebration of something. Not gonna lie though, they creeped me out. I literally crossed the road immediately after snapping this photo because I was afraid the person is walking towards me. Maybe it's the oversized costume that creeps me out.
After our workshop session, on the way to the ASEAN Foundation's office, my colleague dropped by this coffee shop called kalakopi and had me try their milk coffee. She says it is currently all the rage in Jakarta, and indeed it was so good!
I arrived in Jakarta at past four in the afternoon. Spent another hour at the airport waiting for a ride to my hotel because I couldn't book a grab. (Later on, I'd learn that that was because I pinned the wrong location.) In the end, I took the Grab electric, Grab's new fleet of energy-efficient cars. They offer a flat rate of IDR 200K plus toll fees. According to the grab staff at the airport, it is still much cheaper compared to airport taxis. They convinced me to just take Grab instead of the airport taxi. They had a hard time locating my hotel in their app, but were still very helpful and accommodating. However, I had to request for the receipt. The driver did not have it because he was not the one that booked the ride, but he did really sent it to me a couple of hours later. Terima kasih!
I stayed at Ana Hotel. I was instantly charmed by its well-decorated lobby. It's a small hotel but you really get your money's worth. The room I stayed in is clean and cozy.
Just one thing, their breakfast buffet does not have that many varieties of food to choose from.
All over the capital, I saw these people wearing mascots and asking for donations. Maybe it's a celebration of something. Not gonna lie though, they creeped me out. I literally crossed the road immediately after snapping this photo because I was afraid the person is walking towards me. Maybe it's the oversized costume that creeps me out.
After our workshop session, on the way to the ASEAN Foundation's office, my colleague dropped by this coffee shop called kalakopi and had me try their milk coffee. She says it is currently all the rage in Jakarta, and indeed it was so good!
