I have been riding a motorcycle for more than ten years since my early university days. Back then I was reckless and I’ve had my share of accidents. It was nothing serious usually, just some cuts and bruises. The worst thing that happened to me was a dislocated finger. It hurts so much and I still had to ride several kilometers to get to the hospital,

Anyway, I tried to ride carefully now knowing how dangerous it is to ride a motorcycle recklessly, but I realized that there are other dangers besides riding recklessly. One of those dangers is the polluted air in and around Jakarta, especially during the morning and evening rush hours. Read the rest of this entry »

I don’t really know but I feel like this is not the first time I use that sentence as a base for a blog post’s title. Anyway, the weather is really strange lately. It rained daily early this week, although these last two days is quite dry. I remember it rained so heavily last Wednesday there are traffic jams everywhere because some parts of Jakarta got flooded.

I remember that it took me around 1 and a half hour to get home from the office where it usually took just around 40 minutes. Some of my friends even said that it took them more than 3 hours to get home. I don’t find it that surprising anymore because I experienced the traffic jams and the flooded areas myself. Read the rest of this entry »

I have been using a motorcycle to get to my destination for more than 12 years. I rarely goes by public transport anymore unless I really have to. Even in the weekend, I rarely drive my car around unless I can’t reasonably reach my destination either because of bad weather or because the distance was just too far away.

Of course it would be a different matter if I went with my family, but most of the time my motorcycle is my preferred mean of transportation throughout Jakarta. There are several things though, that makes riding a motorcycle a nuisance, such as extreme weather, the traffic and also the pollution.

The pollution is quite bad here, especially during the morning and evening rush hour, although based on my experience, the evening rush hour is the worst. I recalled being almost unable to breathe and my lungs feels like it was on fire because there is almost no oxygen left to breathe. Read the rest of this entry »

The holiday officially ended last Thursday, although most people usually extend their leave. Even though I can’t extend mine for a reason, I enjoyed the trip to the office because the streets were less crowded than usual. It took around 15 minutes to the office when it usually takes 30.

It only happened once or twice during a year, so I enjoyed it as long as I could. The air feels fresher, no sense of hurry, it just feels nice. Too bad it will all disappear next Monday because the traffic will return to normal, although gradually. No more fresh air, a lot of headache and hurrying, at least until next year. Read the rest of this entry »

At least for this week only. Usually during the Eid ul-Fitr holiday, many people from Jakarta went and visit their families. Usually their families lives quite far from Jakarta and it could took hours or even days to go and visit them. Since many people in Jakarta come from rural areas.

I enjoyed the air because it feels and looks more fresh and clear than usual. It is a joy to go for a ride or a drive on your motorcycle or car because the streets are mostly empty or at least free from the usual traffic jam that’s been plaguing this city for so long. Read the rest of this entry »