Fred went a wandering.

awesome - great photos

selmap wrote:

awesome - great photos

Thank you for your kind words, but I'm just some dude with a camera, snapping away in the hope of the odd reasonable shot.

The roads are always good for a photo.
Young kids riding a motorbike is pretty much normal here.

Tyre repair shops are common here;they have a good trade for reasons that will become clear before you finish reading this post.



The dude fixes the puncture



but how come these places get so much trade?
Ah, that explains it.



Lack of cash and lack of any clue as to road safety means tyres are used until it's totally impossible to use them.
I still follow British rules, changing the tyre as the tread gets low, but my old ones get sold on and used.

As you may be aware, I'm the proud owner of a car.
You probably know, I really love my gadgets, preferably things too many other people don't have.
What can I say? I'm a show off.
Anyway, I'd just been looking at in car fridges for my cans of coca cola, but I had to scrap the idea.
I dislike copying other people's ideas.

Fred don't give up on your dream---maybe he is the show off and the box is empty--haha

The roads always give me something to snap.

It's nice to see old cars on the roads.
This Mini Moke would be unusual in England, I was pretty shocked to see it out here.



VW vans are quite common - they even have rallies for old VW stuff.

I've seen several old British bikes, this is one of the best so far.

Indonesia is mostly hot so you need a hat when you're outside.
If you're in the sun for a very long time, say whilst painting a fence, you need a really good hat that'll protect your neck.

Something looks broken



Electricity can be fun

What do you figure that 1955 Norton is worth Fred?

Ubudian wrote:

What do you figure that 1955 Norton is worth Fred?

I'm unsure, but in that condition, it won't come cheap.

Yes.

Students are normally polite to teachers.
This is pretty much average in the schools I've visited.

Many people see Indonesia as a third world country, and some of it probably is, but we also have top quality, bang up to date shopping malls, as good as, or better, than anything in the UK or America.
This one is SMS, South Tangerang; the bottom floor, outside, is all restaurants and bars, so it's become a bit of a hangout for foreigners and better off Indonesians.
It also has a very nice multi screen cinema and, get this, a place on the top floor that does great doner kebabs.

The exit from another, smaller mall can be interesting.
This is BSD plaza, also in South Tangerang, where there is an excellent shop called, Glodok electronics. If you need electronic goodies without going up into Glodok or Mangga dua, take a look in there.
You can buy TVs.



Sorry, only had my mobile phone and very little time to get the shot, so the picture isn't great.

Road safety is extremely important in Indonesia.
You see all sorts on the minor roads, but on main roads such as this very busy junction in Bintaro, things are done by the book, with every point of road law being observed and stuck to like glue.

Fred and Ubudian in the usa today that es2 1955  a very good year by the way would go for between $7000 to $10000.

Indonesia has one really big problem - the roads and most of the stuff on them.
One of the biggest of these problems is smashed roads.
This lovely mess is at the north end of BSD, near Alam Sutera.
Yes, it is a main road, not some mud track.

It's Ramadan, a time when most Muslims fast, but not all.
Some don't because they don't fancy it, some because they aren't allowed to , and some for medical reasons. Christians and other religions also eat as normal.
The vast majority of restaurants remain open as normal, but they put screens up so those following the fast don't feel hungry at the sight of people eating.

I often hang around at roadsides - such interesting places.

A truck (ish)



Going the wrong way, no one cares.



Seatbelts must be worn at all times



Two little boys, sorry, girls (and Rolf song are probably less than popular at the moment)



No comment

It's almost election day in Indonesia, the time that will decide Indonesia's new president - and it's immediate future.
I'll leave aside my political opinion, but there are some concerns in some quarters regarding at least one candidate.

Banners are everywhere.







For some people, the outcome is unlikely to matter.

Parkir are people that look after your car or motorcycle when you park it and generally help you get back into traffic.
The street ones are usually unofficial but no one complains as they're so useful.



They don't do it for charity, so out goes the hand for some cash, usually 1 or 2 thousand rupiah.

A street family.
These people do what they can to earn a little money and, as I saw last night on my way home, they live in the cart, putting a plastic sheet over the top to protect them from the rain. Sadly, there was no way I could get a photo, but maybe in time.



Where are the little kids going?



Ah, to talk to their big brother.



Who's teaching them to beg from customers leaving a McD



In Indonesia, it's illegal to give them money - would you?

I don't think they intend to be cruel, seriously unhygienic and stupid, just they're uneducated.

A lady, walking



A man, selling



A village shop



Tempe and tofu are popular food. Loads of protein, made in filthy conditions but tastes good. Well, I dislike the tofu, but the tempe is great.



But you don't need to go to a shop to buy things, carts are pushed around every village and estate. We buy most of our veggie from carts like this.

It was the presidential election here on 9 July, 2015.
I visited 10 polling stations in the BSD and Bintaro areas, all seemed totally clean of corruption, all had witnesses from the village/estate and all had witnesses from the election officials.
Before I went too close to each one, I observed from distance, looking to see if any dodgy blokes were hanging around, trying to bribe voters - I saw nothing out of place.
The procedure a all the stations was strict, and in my small experience of the day, followed to the letter. I saw one man turned away from a station because his ID was not in order, but I understand he'd just gone to the wrong station as he'd moved house but had yet to update his ID card.
They all had the correct posters and general information.



Polling stations were ...... Indonesian.

Oh, forgot the tiny one, just outside a village mosque.

The police had people wandering from station to station, watching out for trouble.
It's highly unlikely there would be problems at these stations, or many others, as the local village head system means the officials and observers know every voter personally.

Last on the election; the voting process.

The voter enters and has his identity checked with his ID card, and ticked off the list of eligible voters for that station.



Once he's checked off, he's given a voting card, and wanders over to a private booth where he may choose the canditate he wished to vote for.



After this, he pops his card into the ballot box.



Once he's voted, he must dip his little finger in ink so there is no chance he can claim he has yet to vote.





As you may guess from these photos, this gentleman kindly allowed me to follow his voting process, so I'm able to show you.

My thanks for his help, and the help given to me by the people in charge of that polling station.

Elections, presidents, governments - not a lot of good to some people.
No pensions for poor people can be a disaster.

Housing estates are commonly closed and guarded. This isn't just for rich expats, but from the middle classes, upwards.
This estate, near Bintaro, south of Jakarta, is pretty typical.

Labour in Indonesia is cheap, so people are used to make what would otherwise be expensive.
These are the steal re-enforcing frames for concrete supports.



All hand made.

These guys look like they're freeing a line or something.



Safety lines and such are minor considerations.

Hello, Fred! I am a newbie in this site. Somehow I really enjoyed your posts here. Keep up the good work 

Today I risked life and limb, all in the cause of free bananas.
OK, I lied, the banana plant could be reached from the upstairs window, but there were free.



Pushbikes - Push bikes

If you look at the little kid's foot, the one in the red shirt, driving the motorbike, you'll notice he's pushing the long bike.



Another kid pushing a bike.
Working from a young age, probably until he's too old to carry on, then he will have to hope family look after him.

Lots of people have gone 'home' for the holidays, leaving Jakarta very quiet.
There's still traffic about, but nothing compared to the usual mess.
Businesses are still running.



Even the ones next to railway tracks.

A new life, very likely to be not much of a life.
Mostly because the baby's chances of an education and an escape from poverty are almost zero.