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Jakarta floods 2009

While December was quite sunny and pleasant, the New Year has brought angry torrential downpours, massive cracks of frequent lightening, and of course, annual flooding. As some of you may know, I live in the north of Jakarta; within 3km of the ocean. Our area is at or below sea level, and therefore one of the first in Jakarta to flood if heavy rains occur. It’s one thing to hear or read of global warming, deforestation, and rising sea levels,Read more

Further perspectives on the flooding (via Ian's blog)

My friend, Ian, has shared his flooding experience on his blog. He had a bit of a different situation than I did, as he waited around another day before leaving Kelapa Gading – in the relative safety of a military truck versus the manure hauler we cruised in. Several of our friends houses and cars were damaged and we were inconvenienced somewhat but 1000’s of people lost everything – and as is typical in the developing world – it isRead more
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Bule Behavior Defined.

My gym is on the second level of a newly constructed urban jungle called “The Piazza”. To get to that second level, I have two options: the stairs or this hi-tech tunnel with a flashy escalator. I almost always opt for the escalator as it’s closer to the parking area (ok and it’s got the Knight Rider feel). A couple months ago, the escalator stopped running for no reason. They didn’t attempt to put any kind of “Under Repair” signRead more