Jakarta Part II

I arrived safe and sound in Jakarta this morning (returning February 24) after two days of travel from DC to Chicago, Hong Kong, Singapore (for an overnight) and on to Jakarta. Singapore to Jakarta is only about two hours but for some reason United doesn't fly direct--I wonder if Singapore is restricting travel in order to maintain its position as a "hub" in the region, but I need to confirm that...

It's nice to have a feeling of familiarity about everything here from my trip last November--the lines and processing to get a visa in the airport and the intense heavy heat and haze of the city. The traffic from the airport wasn't too bad this time either, as I arrived on the Muslim new year and most people took the day off from work. Jakarta is one of those cities that has become paralyzed by traffic and it can take over an hour to go the 18 miles from airport to hotel on a weekday. Everyone here wonders how long it can go on getting worse before it is wall to wall gridlock and no one can get anywhere at all...

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