Job Discussion Forums

[Jaz10]

Hey,

Just accepted a job offer with EF East Jakarta...I've read pretty much all EF posts the bad and good. So I don't need more negative comments under this one thanks...BUT I would like to know how easy it is to get away from the city at the weekends?

Thanks!

[malu]

If you have money - very easy. A speedboat will take you directly to the resorts of the Thousand Islands. If you like small aircraft there is a daily service from Halim airport to Pangandaran on the S Java coast. Otherwise head for the main international airport at Cengkareng for flights all over the archipelago.

If you don't have money... prepare to spend hours in a crowded bus slowly bumping along congested, potholed roads along with the entire car-owning population of Jakarta. There aren't many places within day-trip range of Jakarta that are actually worth going to.

[basiltherat]

malu, i couldn't have said it better.

alternatively, offer to work on a few weekends first so you can save up days to make getting out of the metroplis more worthwhile. once you have saved up, say, a week, there is bali to go to (leaving on a weekday). The mickey mouse airlines will offer you a good deal if you book early; that's if yopu want to fly. Then there is singapore, of course.

another option is to get a motorcycle and zigzag through the chaos on the roads. Thjere is still not much of any intetrest within weekend-strriking distance unless you like a crowded botonical garden (bogor) among the people you were trying to get away from half an hour earlier.

best
basil

[Ozindo]

Yes, that's the glass-half-empty view. Alternatively, you can seek out places to go for day/weekend trips that are quite pleasant. Depending on your interests, there are other botanical experiences, historic buildings, theme parks (including animal sanctuaries, a safari park), relics of WW2 (including cemeteries), sporting pursuits and more. There's traffic, admittedly, but you'll find traffic close to most Asian cities (and even Western ones).
And, if it's all too daunting for you, there are lots of interesting places to explore in Jakarta, which has a rich and colourful history.
Try to have a glass-half-full attitude and enjoy the adventure/

[travelNteach]

you can hit pelabahan ratu beach on the weekends. lots of surfers head there for the weekend. if u leave in the wee hours of the morning, the ride is not too bad. See if u can hook up with a group of them as it really cuts down on transportation costs.

ozindo........ the op was talking about getting out of town at the weekend, not things to do and see while in the city.

i dont think most language schools will let u "save up days" and take them as a holiday. they usually just pay you overtime if you are over your teaching hours that week, or nothing if u havent reached the maximum numbers.

if anyone has been to bandung during the weekend the last couple of years, they can see the gridlock ..... with the majority of cars having B (jakarta) plates

tons of things to do and see here in indonesia but usually takes more then a weekend. travelling during 3 day weekends or other indonesian holidays such as idul fitri, is a nightmare. travelling during non-peak times is rewarding and worthwhile

[malu]

If you can get time off other than weekends and national holidays then the problems mentioned above by me and others can be overcome. I still maintain that if you want to get away during a weekend (as was the OP) having money helps. Maybe I'm getting old, but I don't call setting off before dawn or sitting for hours in traffic relaxing.

[travelNteach]

i agree, i hate traffic and like to go to bed at 4am not wake up and drive somewhere at 4am. and weekend trips are hardly worth the effort. after spending all that time and effort to get somewhere, u dont even have time to relax before time to fight your way home.having said that, i do fly to bali just for the weekend a coupe of time s a year. luckily i get 14+ weeks holiday each year, leaving me plenty of time to travel overseas and domestically.