Fred went a wandering.

He electrocutes the fish so they're really easy to catch.

so is this cheating then

They've finally closed the road to that duff bridge.

Whaaaay..about time too!! They must have read and saw your pics on this forum to take it seriously!

At least now it can be rebuit and put in safe order. I hope they wont take short cuts and complete it in express mode

mas fred, thanks for the update, - lets wait for the outcome..

Jaz

jazzy851 wrote:

At least now it can be rebuit and put in safe order. I hope they wont take short cuts and complete it in express mode

This is Indonesia.
I posted photos of a building site last year where shortcuts and terrible working practices cost four lives.
I'll keep snapping.

I posted photos of a building site last year where shortcuts and terrible working practices cost four lives.

Hope this bridge will be in safe order after its done.

J

I mentioned we went to a safari park.
It's called Taman safari and is just outside Bogor, about two hours or less from Jakarta.
If you have kids, make a point of visiting this place - It's great.
Michelle absolutely loved the place. Even now she wants to see the photos and videos I took of the park.
I have to admit, I loved it myself. Really up close and personal with the animals.
A wonderful day out.

Tip. Buy at least six bunches of carrots from the roadside stands on the way to the park.

I selected just four photos from the place but I hope it gives you the idea.

Back to our beloved bridge.
This shows the way they're building the thing. Thick layers of concrete and loads of rebar.
Should be pretty strong.





The road is now laid but they still have to make the sides.

Health and safety revisited.

A tall load on a small truck has to clear overhead obstructions.
Best way - tell a kid to climb up and push things out of the way.





Good job the electricity cables were that high.

This isn't cruelty to animals as such, it's a lack of education and the cash to do the job properly.
Not that I support doing it, just understand it.

Sorry the photos are poor quality. I had to chase the bike, overtake, park, get out the camera and snap so only a second to aim and shoot.
The second was taken at long range.

When you don't have a lot of money, no chance of an earner is left alone.
These guys would carry this thing a long way rather than leave potential cash for someone else.

Back to our beloved bridge.
This shows the way they're building the thing. Thick layers of concrete and loads of rebar.
Should be pretty strong.

Glad to see the job has been done properly - relief
Let see the end result - thanks for posting the progress on this bridge mas Fred..

Would be interesting to see once completed, how long it will last for. As in the past gathering by the pics, alot of traffic goes over this bridge, especially the heavy trucks..

The bridge is coming along nicely.



Of course, the road is still closed but people have found another route.



I've walked on that bridge - No way I would take a bike on it, much less a queue of them.

Pedestrians are using the bridge again.



This shows a common construction technique out here.
You add the metal re-enforcements, box them in and pour the concrete to form the correct shape.
The same method is used on many far larger projects.

The bridge is close to complete.
The guys are painting one side so it looks like the other.

Saturday was the first day of fasting for most Indonesians.
Lots of things happen in Ramadan.
First thing - many restaurants close during the day. Solid business sense in areas where most people are Muslims as hardly anyone will at there anyway so it' a waste of time bothering.
They open in the evenings.
In places with a more diverse population, restaurants tend to cover up.



As in many places, we have a group of people who take things a tad further than suit my opinions regarding right and wrong.
Indonesia is no exception.
A group known who I won't bother naming, have taken it upon themselves to smash up restaurants and other places they dislike during Ramadan

This year, the cops have ordered a few types of places close down.
One of those groups is massage parlours.
As in the UK, massage often means prostitution so I'm not really complaining at the loss of such places.
Apart from not wanting to catch a nasty social disease, I'm really pissed off because I want a massage but can't find a place without 'extra' services.
Suggestions for non prostitute in BSD/Bintaro area would be most welcome.

Anyway, they're all closed.

Other than that, life goes on as normal.

Poorer people still do what they can to make a living.







I'll be buying from this bloke in the near future,

The bridge is looking good.



Motorbikes are using it again.



But something is wrong at the far end

Oops



The damaged post, looks like a truck hit it, has left the wires hanging really low.
The mini bus gets through..... just

The electricity company have been quick with this one.
They're started on the job of replacing the damaged post.



What you don't see in the photo is the team of guys with clipboards working out where all the wires go.
I'll try to pass later and see how far they've got with it.

I went looking for one of the bread delivery people after shopping yesterday afternoon. I found a bakery.



It's a common belief here that Chinese Indonesians are rich business people.
Of course, as with all stereotypes, it's not actually true but it is true for a lot of these guys. There is a general tendency to work like crazy at a business until they ruddy well make it successful.
A really nice work ethic.

Another stereotype is Indonesians are pure danger when they're in charge of any road vehicle.
Perhaps this stereotype is closer to the truth.

Mas Fred,this is great,you really capture the place!I love it though, and i make 3 trips a year.

psb43 wrote:

Mas Fred,this is great,you really capture the place!I love it though, and i make 3 trips a year.

Excellent stuff.
Thanks for your comments and I'm happy you enjoy your trips to Indonesia.
I've been here for five years and I love the place.

The bridge is looking good.

- Good work - safety at last!

Motorbikes are using it again.

- some people are just impatient !

Thanks for the progress on this bridge! I never thought it would get fixed!

was that boy holding big crabs

haggishunter wrote:

was that boy holding big crabs

yes, he was:rolleyes:

haggishunter wrote:

was that boy holding big crabs

He was but he's not there today so he may have gone to see the doctor about them.

The now famous bridge seems to be finished but is still closed to all except bikes.
I suspect the locals like it that way so aren't making any effort to shift the debris.

haggishunter wrote:

was that boy holding big crabs

He was but he's not there today so he may have gone to see the doctor about them.

These crabs were large! I wonder what they feed on to become so large!

mas Fred, if you see this dude next time, can you ask him if these are from the sea or from a farm?

Good to see the bridge is fixed and safe! Well done to the workers who made this possible..

The 21st of September 2008 was a funny date.
It saw me start a blog of sorts on another forum. It stayed as the written word until page 47 when I started posting photos regularly.
The photos were taken with an old mobile phone and the camera wasn't that great.

The first was this strange fruit that I never really remembered the name of.



A lot were way too poor quality to bother with now but I did get the odd interesting snap.



I started to look around for interesting bits and bobs.



Jogjakarta is a tourist city.
The road signs are in Indonesian and javanese.




53

Food can be interesting out here.



Borobudur temple in Java is amazing

Kids in government schools tidy their own classrooms.



A bus



Repairing a motorcycle inner tube



Safety first at a petrol station.
Sticky tape is an acceptable way to sort out a leaking hose on a petrol pump.

A pretty typical village shop.



Roadside food sales.
Sate (pro. Sattay) is very nice. It's whatever meat on a stick, BBQed.





A guy on a bike.

Shops get built wherever someone can.



Bamboo is available free by just popping into the jungle with an axe so off they went.

Sambal is crushed chilli with a few bits and bobs added.
Very popular in Indonesia.



Poverty is pretty common here.
Yes - this is a house.



I used to live here

Note.
I sort of regret selling that house. The village was a wonderful place to live.

Bakso is as popular as it is rubbish.
Anything and everything goes into the stuff. No way will I eat it.

Fat, entrails and almonds.



then grind it up



After that, it's rolled into little balls and sold as a meat product. Yuk

Chips (fries) are nice

Wet and dry season sees big changes.



and then....



Eid is party time for Muslims.
In the villages, everyone goes round to as many houses as possible where they eat little snacks and be nice to everyone.



Kids commonly shake hands with teachers here.



97

Transport can be anything from a large bus to.....



These things are local taxis in Wonosobo, Central Java.

Another taxi

In bus entertainment.
Buskers work the buses to try to get a bit of cash. They usually manage some but really bug a lot of passengers.



The 'conductor' hangs out of the door trying to get more passengers.



English is a fashion out here. Sad as it may be, a greater understanding is often needed.

Prambanen temples. Seriously old temple still standing but suffered a lot of damage in a big earthquake.





I had heard of the old train station in the middle of Purwokerto but never seen it.



I had to have an explore but didn't quite expect what I found.



The old station is half intact down to the tracks and a few carriages.
That much I had heard about. What I did not expect was to find that these had been converted into makeshift homes for people who had no house.

I like walking. You see so much more that most people do or even want to.

Dec 2009


We found a dining table but the price was too high.
That means the painful art of negotiation. As anywhere that means having the price you want to pay + half the price they want you to pay.
The wimp out ot cave in money must not be visible to the seller.
First is the saying you don't much care or have yet to make up your mind to see if they cave in. Next, that failing, is to offer the price you want to pay.
If they don't accept you have to walk out and say you are going to look around town.
Most times that works but not this morning.
I buggered off for an ice lolly and a coke then wandered back past but not into the shop. The boss saw me but just waved rather than waved me in so I knew I was not going to get much discount.
Last was heading back in and telling him Sulis had set the maximum price I could pay. That took a few minutes to sort but we now have a solid wood dining table with six chairs and I don't have 167 quid.

All the stuff is made on site by there own people.





Michelle, my daughter, decided she wanted to sit down elsewhere.

I think I've mentioned a couple of times before, are nothing like UK schools.
From first starting the kids have to learn how to take part in the Monday morning flag raising. First thing on a Monday morning all government building raise the nation flag, the merah, putih (red and white - see my name bit on the left for a peek at the flag).
As they progress through the school they must all learn to march and take part.
Only the best end up as the main flag group and, the best of the best, as the flag bearer with two escorts.
It's considered a serious honour and all the kids want to be the one who actually raises the flag so they take parade practice very seriously.
This is an SD, infants/junior school.



Anything and everything is sold from bikes (OK - Trikes) out here.

Tea anyone?



Health and safety are a joke.
Would you go up this ladder?

A radio station in Purwokerto, Central Java.



Another bike.



Next up. Aircraft museum in Yogyakarta.

Jogjakarta (or Yogyakarta) has an aircraft museum.
Unlike most museums, you can get up to the aircraft and even in a few.

Aircraft buffs are going to love these photos.