Puncak is Jakarta's weekend getaway, so the capital has exported a certain amount of urban sprawl here. The main road running through the Puncak Pass is clogged with buses and motorbikes, and all the little villages along the way are growing into one long strip of hotels, restaurants, noodle carts, mini-marts, etc.
You may be stuck in traffic for a while, but at least you can get your shopping done. We were offered sliced mangoes, cubes of deep-fried tofu, cigarettes, peanuts, candy, cold Strawberry Fanta, aluminum bowls, vinyl belts, and an elementary English-Arabic textbook.
We arrived in the afternoon and went straight to the lovely botanical garden, which is much bigger (and cleaner!) than the one in Bogor. It's probably worth a weekend of its own. The air was clean and almost cool enough for a sweater, which was pretty exciting after the prolonged dry/hot season we've been having in Jakarta.
6 comments:
the gardens look beautiful, but did you buy anything when you were stuck in traffic?
because I'm pretty sure you left all your vinyl belts back in the states.
Au contraire! I brought the white one, for golfing.
We did buy the Arabic/English book, from which we are learning such useful English sayings as, and I quote: "What which annoy your heart, don't do it for the others."
This looks like a postcard!
I think this saying is telling you that your white vinyl belt will annoy everyone it comes in contact with.
maybe that's why they sell the phrase book alongside the belts on the train. they're like companion gifts.
Golfing?
Actually, Jim, we did go hit some golf balls the other day at the driving range near us. It was kinda fun ...
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