Je suis Ahmed

Hai2,

I'm in the mood to write a post so... Let's start.

We're already in the second half of January. Time flies. Wow.

I have no internet connection here... A bummer. Big, big, bummer. Probably just gonna terminate the current one and gonna go look for other brand which can hopefully work nicely, at least better than the current one.

I just found out (well.. Not really "I just found out", more like "I have heard of it for several times but never really tried it until very recently.") that I can use my iPhone as an internet connection source, thing.. Don't really know what the technical term is.. Is is tethering? Who knows.

So if I need to access the Internet from me lappy or me iPod, I can use this thing. Just gotta make sure that I have enough Internet quota... :/

Other news, Paris Terror Attacks January 2015. (Jan 7th - Jan 9th)

The three-day terror was quite an important event in our recent history. It actually touched many, many issues. Islamophobia, immigration, terrorism, extremism, freedom of expression, counter-terror laws, more control over citizens... For conspiracy theorists, "False Flag"?

These issues are some of the many issues which define our generation. Other issues, like climate change, are important to us all, and they define our generation. They show our main concerns and how people live during the early decades of the 21st century. The way we deal with these issues today, will define ourselves in the future. The way we treat these issues will affect our future, this planet's future.

Anyway, I made several tweets on the 7th of January, in response to the attack... And in response to how the world responded. Just gonna quote it here:

"We should condemn the act of killing.. But then again, how far should we defend "freedom of expression"..? If someone expresses his/her opinion and it hurts the feelings of billions of people from around the globe... Should those billions of people stay idle? They too have their own opinions. But then again, murder is simply bad. It is certainly not the right way for those people to "express" their opinion in this modern society. 

Why can't people from different backgrounds, from across the globe, engage in fair discussions, in which we'd all respect each other.. The key is to respect and understand one another... But the thing is, we all have different interests and concerns. Different ideas on how this world should work, how it should look like. Anyway, we are not living in cloud cuckoo land. So yeah. Condolences to families and friends of the victims."

It is simply bad that this kind of thing still happens in today's society. Personally, I was a bit sad, because it happened in a city which has a special place within me. I've experienced living amongst dem French people, amongst its Muslim community. And to see Paris in that kind of state, with maximum security level, is heart-wrenching.

I don't know whether it was a false flag or not. And I don't know whether those extremist groups, who act bearing the name of Islam and the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), are "puppets" of another higher authority or not... But these acts are just wrong and bad.

Using the name of Islam, or Allah (SAW), or the Prophet (pbuh), or using passages from the Qur'an in order to justify such acts. It's just heart-wrenching. Islam is a religion of peace, with billions of followers. It has lasted for over 1400 years, and so there's got to be a reason behind why 'Islam is truly a religion, a guide, instead of a mad man from the Arabian desert babbling nonsense, taken from Judaism, Christianity, and Greek philosophy, in order to corrupt and control other people'.

If people spread terror using the name of Islam, or if anyone, who consider themselves as a Muslim, behave or act badly, mistreating other people, hurting other people... We have to bear in mind that it is not the religion that is bad, it is people who are corrupt, who are bad. 

People are not perfect. Humans are not perfect.

We have needs, we have desires, earthly desires... Probably heavenly desire for some of those who've had enough of living...? But these kind of people, they need to know that we exist here for a reason/ some reasons...

Human beings have this tendency to commit bad things. To disobey, to insult others, to harm others in order to achieve what we crave. Some people are greedy, some are lustful, some are just too lazy... All those sins including the so called seven deadly sins. :p

But human beings, according to what I believe anyway, also have the capacity to love. To love one another, the environment, animals, plants. We have the capacity to respect one another, to help each other out. We have the capacity to do great things, to achieve great things which can benefit us all, the human race...

Lol wtf was that, sounds like a utopian thingy. :p

Where was I... Ah.

Yeah, human beings have tendencies to commit harmful things, but we also have the capacity to do great things. It's just that the way we are raised, the way our society works, these kind of things really affect ourselves... Sometimes, people think that there's no other way, that the only way is that we have to do something bad in order to achieve our goal. In cloud cuckoo land, everyone wouldn't even dare to think of bad thoughts... Sadly, the Earth is not cloud cuckoo land.

The thing is, as I said in my tweet, we have different concerns and interests. Some of us are desperate to have food and shelter. Some of us crave luxury. Some of us crave power. Some of us do bad things in order to ensure themselves to be adored, to be liked by others. Some of us do unacceptable things in order to protect their loved ones, securing a brighter future for their family without considering the effect of their doings.

We can't enforce our own ideals into everyone, that's why we have to accept the fact that people are different. We have different ideas on how this world should work. Some ideas may clash, but that does not mean that we have the right to force other people into submission, into agreeing. 

Instead of the use of force, as I said, why can't we have discussions...? Human beings have the intellectual capacity... Well, some of us do anyway. Some people are just too thick or too hot-headed to have a proper discussion with...

But I believe, for many of us, if the right reasons have been presented, then they can think for themselves which would be better, which are the right things to do, which are the things that should be, how things should work out in our society, ideally.

Well, I doubt this can work though... Dialogues and discussions... :/ Similar to "Ibadat Khana", in which people had interfaith dialogues. There need to be transparency, good regulation, respect between participants, understanding, and willingness to respect, understand, and willingness to improve humanity.

Wow I clearly went way way way off tangent there...

Back to the Paris terror.

I was a bit disgusted by how the media and the social media responded to this event.

Don't get me wrong, as I said, I condemn the act of killing such as what happened.

But the way people brought up the phrase "Freedom of Expression"... Is just. I don't know.

Here, take a look at this:

The way how people want to protect "Freedom of Speech" or "Freedom of Expression". Those people just don't think, don't they?

I support freedom of expression, because without it, we wouldn't be here. I wouldn't be writing this. But I believe there should, obviously, be limits.

One of the things that I really love about Indonesia, is that many of us are aware that there should be respect and tolerance towards each other, especially in terms of dealing with various religious faiths and beliefs.

Charlie Hebdo makes satirical cartoons. They probably just want to "entertain" other people, or give critics on current affairs. They were attacked previously on several occasions, I believe... Molotov or something. Anyway, they make cartoons not just about Islam or the Prophet (pbuh). They also "attacked" the Vatican, other religious figures, and various political figures.

But the thing is, when you've insulted someone, whom billions of people adore very much. Whom billions of people respect and love... Shouldn't there be limits? Just take a look at the picture that I've posted up there...

And here is a video:

I mean come on, look at the recent conflict between Palestine and Israel. Yes, quite a lot of support for Palestine... But then, take a look at how many people shouting at other people being "anti-Semitic", just because they expressed their pro-peace, anti-Israel views... For example when someone posted a photo saying "Nazi Germany = Israel", just take a look at the comment section and you'd see people labelling others as being "anti-Semitic".

So much for being fair and just.

Well, yeah, those people on the Internet did not go out and kill those whom they considered as "anti-Semitic". Certainly a better way of "opposing" the so-called "Freedom of Speech" than killing.

Anyway, yeah. Limits. Just as the Prophet (pbuh) said, moderation in all things. You can't just promote hatred.

Speaking about promoting hatred... Three videos:

Russell Brand is amazing :p

Wtf Fox News :p :p :p Hilarious.


Anyway, back to the events at Paris...

Yeah. I would accept cartoons which criticises extremist groups or other acts of terrorism bearing the name of Islam, without trying to insult the Prophet (pbuh), Allah, or Islam itself.

And if their objective is to criticise and to entertain, instead of to attack other people, surely it'd be alright.

But as I said, they should not hurt billions of people by insulting a person whom they love so much.

I am sure the cartoonists are aware of what they're doing, aware of the consequences...

And so it happened.

After the 7th January attack, there were several hostage situations and more killings... Heart-wrenching.

It seems that the French government is trying to tell that the attacks that happened did not represent Islam. Hollande is also trying to reassure others that even Muslims feel unsafe after the attacks. Lots of Muslims in France, in Paris... Including Indonesian Muslims. Anyway, yeah, Hollande is trying to say that the enemy is not Islam itself, it is terrorism... Cool. Hopefully he is being sincere about it, and hopefully the French people are willing to agree to this view. I mean, Muslims have been part of France, of its community, for decades... They have lived alongside each other for so long, surely there's some sort of understanding going on between French Muslims and the French people in general.



Now, how should Muslims respond to such attacks or insults? What'd be the best way?

We have to make people understand that the Prophet is a highly-respected figure, whom billions of Muslims love very much. We have to make them understand that depicting the Prophet in such ways is not acceptable. 

If they say that we are ignorant, following some sort of teaching of an "imaginary desert fairy", then show them compassion.

There's no harm in believing in something, as long as you don't go out forcing your beliefs to others, in harmful or inappropriate ways.

The best way to promote Islam, is to show compassion. Show all the good things in Islam. Behave appropriately. The best way to defend the honour of the Prophet, is to act like him.

We have to think. What would the Prophet do in this situation? I mean, man, he was insulted and attacked in his time. People threw rocks at him, insulted him, attacked him... And he showed compassion in return. And that is the beauty of him. It is also the beauty of Islam.

Instead of insulting them back, or revenge, or attacking them... Show mercy and compassion. Promote love. God has given us the capacity to think and to love. So we have to use our intellect to do great things, to help others. We also have to show compassion and promote peace.

Instead of mocking back those who mocked our Prophet, show them how he is the best of mankind. How he was one of the best men who have walked this planet. How he is the best of role model. Use reasoning if they need it, because we are able to give them reasons on why Muhammad (pbuh) is the best example of human.



On Wednesday the 14th of January, I believe it was in response to the new issue of Charlie Hebdo, a hash-tag #WhoIsMuhammad was trending worldwide for some time on Twitter. Alongside the hash-tag, people celebrated the life of Prophet Muhammad by either quoting his sunnah, or by typing his advices and ideas, or simply by typing the ways he lived his life, how he had lived, the story of his life. Emotionally, I was touched. This is how it's supposed to be. By people promoting peaceful thoughts and ideas. 



Do not waste water.

So, so, so much more can be said around the topic of religion, and Islam itself. Save it for another time :)



Right after the attack, people use the phrase, "Je suis Charlie", or "I am Charlie", as an act of solidarity. I somehow feel that this phrase alienates some people... Muslims.. Well, those who love and respect the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) anyway... Because we can't "be Charlie". We can't identify ourselves as a group of people who insulted the Prophet.

Well, je ne suis pas Charlie. :/ Mais, je suis Ahmed. Ahmed, as in the name of one of the police officers who was killed during the attack. He was a French Muslim. Also, Ahmed, as in "Muhammad", the name of our beloved Prophet.

May there be peace.

Cheers.

Assalamu'alaikum. Peace be upon you. :)

Public Transport! (Mainly about Commuter Line)

Hai2,

(Yg gw tulis di bawah ini berdasarkan observasi personal + research dikit2 :p, so kalo ada yg ternyata salah, let me know.)

Hari kedua di bulan Januari, somehow, gw tiba2 pengen naik Commuter Line Jabodetabek...

Saking bosennya sampe kyk gini... :p Well, not exactly.

Emang lagi liburan gini sih, awalnya pengen nyoba naik dari Lenteng Agung (stasiun terdekat) ke Kota, trus strolling sekitar Museum Fatahillah/Museum Sejarah Jakarta, trus pulang naik TransJakarta, janjian di Senayan. Tapi, karena akhir2 ini lagi suka hujan deras, akhirnya ga jadi ke Kota.

Instead, gw mampir ke rumah temen deket Stasiun Tebet (thankfully lumayan deket, jalan 10 menitan gitu), trus lanjut dari Tebet ke Manggarai, ganti kereta ke Sudirman, TransJakarta/Busway dari Dukuh Atas ke Bundaran Senayan.

:/

Ini bukan pertama kali gw naik Commuter Jabodetabek... Biasanya naik Commuter dari Lenteng ke UI. Pernah juga dari Pasar Minggu ke UI. Dari yang orang2 bilang, Commuter Line sekarang udah jauh lebih baik. And yes, dari yg dulu gw inget2, walaupun ga pernah naik, kereta Jabodetabek emang beda bgt. Gw inget dulu banyak yg naik2 atap kereta gitu...

Sekarang, dibanding yg dulu, jauh lebih nyaman dan bersih, dan kyknya lebih aman juga deh... Jarang naik Commuter sih, ga pernah pas rush hour pas penuh bgt gitu..

Tapi masih ada beberapa hal yg bisa ditingkatkan... Tapi sebelum gw kasih tau beberapa hal yg bisa ditingkatkan itu, ini alasan2 kenapa tadi gw tiba2 pengen naik commuter:

- Di rumah ga ngapa2in, itung2 olahraga jalan kaki :p

- Pengen nyobain aktivasi kartu eMoney: Temen gw pas itu bilang aktivasi cuma bisa di stasiun besar, makanya gw plan ke Manggarai. Tapi ternyata (I think) di tiap stasiun ada... Cari deket loket ato lorong yg dilewatin orang2 sekitar loket, ada tempat ngetap kartu gitu bentuknya kotak, ukuran kecil/sedeng, warna merah, nempel di dinding. Ini kartu yg gw pake gw dapetin untuk TransJakarta Koridor 1, yg full e-ticketing, dan kartunya bisa dipake juga untuk Commuter Line. Lumayan ga harus ngantri2 beli tiket dan nuker tiket :)

- Pengen ngecek seberapa jauh rumah temen gw dari stasiun Tebet kalo jalan kaki :p

- Pengen "survey" stasiun titik potong/persimpangan/intersection/transit: Gw selama naik Commuter sebelum hari ini, ga pernah lewatin stasiun besar yg dilewatin bbrp jalur yg bercabang, kyk Manggarai. Curious aja stasiun besar untuk kereta di sini itu bakal kyk gimana... Itung2 research kalo jadi bikin post ttg public transport di sini :p

- Pengen liat stasiun Sudirman: Ini stasiun gw cuma pernah liat dari luar. Stasiun yg criss-cross sama Koridor 1 TransJakarta, yg terletak di jalan utama di Jakarta.. It'd be interesting.

Yep. Itu beberapa alasan kenapa gw tiba2 pengen jalan nyobain Commuter... Tryin'a fix public transport around here. Potensinya besar banget. Warga Jabodetabek butuh, butuh banget transportasi umum yang baik. Yakin akan banyak yg pake. Sekarang aja banyak keluarga yg pake. 

Commuter Line sama Transjakarta itu ga begitu pricey kok... Reasonable harganya. Commuter Line kalo gasalah Rp2000,00 kalo turun di 5 stasiun pertama dari stasiun departure, ekstra Rp500,00 untuk tiap 3 stasiun setelahnya. Sampai tadi, gw pake tiket single-trip yg kalo udah ditap keluar, kartunya bisa dikembaliin ke loket. Tiket kyk gini bayar ekstra Rp5000,00, tapi kalo udah sampe tujuan, ditukerin ke loket, bisa dapet Rp5000,00 nya balik. Namanya "THB" (Tiket Harian Berjamin). Rp5000,00-nya itu sebagai jaminan, I think.

Untuk TransJakarta, Rp3500,00 most of the time... Kalo gasalah lebih murah di rush hour pagi.

For comparison (post-BBM naik, yang late-2014): 
- Metro Mini: Rp4000,00 jauh-dekat.
- Angkot: Kalo Angkot tergantung jarak sih, cuma dari yg gw sering naikin, say... Pondok Labu ke Lenteng Agung (S02), ujung ke ujungnya kalo gasalah Rp6000,00 , probably more.

Iya, MetroMini sama Angkot bisa berhenti almost anywhere yg dilewatin jalurnya, sementara Commuter sama TransJakarta harus turun di stasiun2/halte2 yg udah ditentukan, yg emang tempat turun.

Tapi ngeliat transportasi umum di Jakarta yg udah ada... Lumayan sih. It works, somehow. But we really need an underground network. Soalnya overground, kalo pake angkot, metromini, kopaja, TransJakarta, bisa ttp kena macet. Kalo underground, insyaAllah bebas macet... Who knows. :p

Makanya gw lumayan suka sama Commuter, so far. Lebih bebas macet. Itu alesannya. Dan kalo pergi jarak jauh nyaman2 aja. Dan cukup murah.

Nah, tapi seperti yg gw bilang di awal, ada beberapa hal yg perlu diperbaikin/ditingkatkan... Ada juga hal2 yg gw sayangin yg mungkin udah gabisa diganti. 


Ini beberapa hal yg bisa gw inget/omongin:


1. Informasi/Penanda kereta mana di peron/platform yg mana

Kalo orang yg udah sering naik sih kayaknya ga masalah. Gw gatau ini aturan umumnya ato engga, tapi lajur kereta itu kebalikannya lajur mobil/jalan raya. Di jalanan di Indonesia kita nyetir di lajur kiri, sementara kereta di sini itu di lajur kanan. Jadi kalo jalur Bogor-Kota, yg run South-North, kereta ke arah Kota (utara) itu di lajur sebelah timur, sementara kereta  ke arah Bogor (selatan) itu di lajur sebelah barat.

Nah, tapi bagi yg gatau ttg aturan ini, lokasi kereta mana di peron mana, bisa rada awkward. Good thing, sering/selalu ada yg jaga di stasiun, jadi bisa nanya mereka. Atau bisa juga nanya2 orang sih.

Oke, tadi di stasiun Manggarai, yg merupakan stasiun intersection/transit/persimpangan, gw agak bingung. Gw mau lanjut ke Sudirman, yg arahnya itu ke Tanah Abang... Kereta yg gw naikin itu ke arah lain, yaitu Kota. Nah, berarti gw harus ganti kereta kan... Pfft, obviously.

Masalahnya, gw gatau kereta mana yg ke arah Tanah Abang... Iya, ada mas2/mbak2 yg ngasih pengumuman lewat speaker. Tapi masa kita harus nunggu pengumuman lewat gitu?

Iya, bisa nanya orang, bisa nanya petugas2 yg jaga.

Well... Mungkin ga pasang info kereta yg mana ada di peron yg mana itu ada baiknya juga... At least kita, manusia kota, jadi "diwajibkan" untuk berinteraksi dengan orang lain :p No problemo, just ask the guard..

Well... Dari yg gw liat, ada orang2 nanya gitu entah ke orang lain entah ke petugas. Pas nanya ke orang lain ada aja yg ga jawab, ato gatau, karena arahnya beda. Nanya ke petugas sih bisa dijawab, cuma beberapa ada yg agak dingin gitu. 

Gimana gw akhirnya bisa menemukan kereta yg bener? Tiba2 denger orang lain ada yg nanya ke Tanah Abang... Well, I got all the time in the world, dan gw awalnya rencana untuk duduk2 setengah jam, observasi, merhatiin how it all works around here, sekalian dengerin pengumuman. Tapi akhirnya kedengeran orang nanya, jadi tau juga lumayan cepet.

Nah, gw menuju kereta yg akan lewat Sudirman. Untuk konfirmasi, gw nanya ke petugas yg ada di keretanya. Itu btw yg dari tadi gw sebut 'petugas' itu more like penjaga keamanan yg pake helm putih itu. Gatau exact namenya apa... Anyway, petugas yg gw tanyain itu jawabnya rada dingin dan agak cepet, jadi ga jelas...

Gw sih personally ga masalah. Cuma gw mikirin, kalo Indonesia eventually didatengin banyak foreigners, entah workers ato tourists ato students, yaa susah juga kalo info ga jelas atau petugas gabisa jawab dgn... agak warmer.

Sebenernya masalah sama petugas itu ga akan jadi masalah besar kalo ada papan info atau TV gitu yg jelas ngasitauin kereta mana di peron mana, direction mana, jam berapa berangkatnya. Soalnya pengguna Commuter bisa langsung cari tau sendiri, dengan ngeliat papan info/TV.

Petugas2 kyk gitu kan fungi utamanya emang menjaga kemanan, yaa dikit2 bolehlah orang nanya2. Cuma kalo kebanyakan orang nanya ke petugas, maybe mereka bakal rada annoyed juga? Mungkin ga sih mereka jadi annoyed? :p

Gw sadar sih, petugas2 kyk gitu di luar juga ada. Tapi biasanya kalo lg ada acara besar, crowded, dan busy gitu. Dan mereka kalo ditanya2in gitu sama orang juga... Biasa aja sih.

Well, mungkin petugas di sini juga biasa2 aja kalo ditanya2in. Cuma ya balik ke yg tadi lagi. Kalo ada papan info/TV, tugas penjaga2 di stasiun bisa lebih ringan lah...

Another plus side, pergerakan orang2 bisa jadi lebih cepet kalo ga nanya2 ke petugas/orang lain. Kalo lg ada yg mau buru2 gitu misalnya...

Tadi di stasiun Manggarai, yg merupakan stasiun intersection, gw ga liat papan info yg jelas. Peron tempat gw turun itu nandain bahwa peron ini itu untuk kereta ke arah Tanah Abang juga... Tapi ternyata ada kereta di peron lain yg lagi nunggu berangkat, dan itu ke arah Tanah Abang... Kalo tadi ga denger orang/ga nanya... Yaa kemungkinan gatau ada kereta itu di peron lain.

Nah, di stasiun Sudirman... Gara2 lokasinya di daerah skyscrapers, pusat, "premium"... Maybe... Jadi ada TV gitu yg ngeliatin kereta ke arah mana dan jam berangkatnya... I think. Gw di situ buru2 jadi ga merhatiin bener. Tapi sekilas, yg gw liat itu ya kereta yg ke mana, sama ada jamnya. Which is... Cool.

Kalo di Sudirman bisa pasang ginian, kenapa di stasiun lain engga? Khususnya stasiun intersection gitu... Soalnya mengandalkan pengumuman lewat speaker, kadang suka ga kedengeran. Nanya orang bisa lama.

Conclusion: Pasang TV yg isinya info jam berapa sekarang, jam berapa keretanya akan datang/berangkat, tujuan kereta itu, dan di peron yg mana lokasi kereta itu. Insya Allah orang2 bisa lebih jelas dapetin info, jadi pergerakan orang bisa lebih cepet.

2. Rain

Hal kecil aja sih, kalo lagi musim hujan itu masih suka ada yg bocor... Which is alright kalo dikit2, soalnya di luar juga masih ada, so... Acceptable. Cuma yg perlu diperhatiin itu genangan air. Di luar juga masih ada sih... Cuma dari yg tadi gw perhatiin, genangan air di sini itu lumayan gede2.. Itu aja sih... Pastiin ga licin, dan nyaman untuk orang2 jalan. Jadi gaperlu loncatin (yg bisa bahaya), dan gaperlu menghindar (yg bisa bikin macet)... Genangan air kalo gede annoying juga soalnya... :p Wet socks and shoes.

3. Fasilitas pejalan kaki sekitar stasiun

Pastiin aja sih trotoarnya ada, aman, dan nyaman. Pastiin ada tempat untuk orang2 nyebrang. Sayang juga kalo ada yg rumahnya sebenernya deket, bisa jalan kaki ke stasiun, tapi tetep pake motor gitu ke situ.. Ini nyambung ke masalah trotoar di Jakarta in general sih. Kadang pejalan kaki harus turun ke jalanan karena gaada trotoar, jadi bisa bahaya. Apalagi kalo musim hujan ada genangan besar, di jalanan yg gaada trotoarnya. Cobain sendiri aja... Gaada trotoar tuh bahaya. Yg nyebelin kalo udah ada trotoar, tapi gabisa dipake karena kehalangan orang parkir/mangkal/jualan/ngapain... Kapan2 gw bahas ttg fasilitas pejalan kaki :p

4. Warning sama Pegangan

Sejauh ini, dari yg gw perhatiin, pintu kereta itu ditutup setelah petugas2 di ujung kereta kasih aba2. Bener ga sih? Soalnya durasi pintu kebuka itu ga tentu, kadang bisa cepet bgt kalo emang gaada yg naik/turun. Cuma masalahnya, kalo ada yg tiba2 mau turun, tiba2 kejepit? Kalo mau naik sih kyknya lebih aman, soalnya keliatan di luar... Cuma orang turun kan dari dalem kereta, yang ga keliatan sama petugas ujung2.

Kalo ada suara warning pintu mau ditutup gitu, itu udah enak bgt. Jadi orang yg tiba2 mau keluar bisa tau dan hati2. Gw pernah sekali, pas baru pertama naik Commuter, nongolin kepala :p dan karena biasanya dapet suara warning gitu kalo pintu mau ditutup, gw ga ngeh... Engga, kepala gw engga kejepit. Tapi gw lumayan kaget, kepala gw nongol gitu tiba2 pintu udah gerak nutup... Ishh.

So yeah... Kita butuh suara warning pintu ditutup.

Sementara masalah pegangan... Ini applies ke TransJakarta juga sih, tapi bahas kapan2 yg spesifik TJ. Pegangan bagi orang yg berdiri itu sebenernya ada sih di kereta2... Mainly pegangan tangan yg dangling gitu dari atas. Masalahnya, ini terbatas. Ada juga sih pegangan besi gitu di atas ato di pinggir2 tempat duduk. Yaa, untuk yg berdiri di antara dua sisi tempat duduk sih gpp... Cuma bagi yg berdiri di tengah (depan pintu kereta), pegangannya minim.

Di luar lumayan enak, soalnya ada tiang di tengah2 space yg cukup gede itu, space depan pintu kereta. Tiangnya tengahnya bercabang tiga, jadi bisa banyak orang yg pegangan. Considering kereta2 Commuter Line itu lebih bumpy dari Métro/RER, gw rasa kita butuh pegangan di tengah2 itu... Kalo lagi banyak orang soalnya, itu useful bgt. Kalo banyak orang ga dapet pegangan, suka awkward gitu ada yg miring2 mau jatoh :p Yg masalah pegangan sih ga terlalu masalah, cuma bakal lebih nyaman aja gw rasa.... Gatau sih kalo kereta2 gini bisa dimodif custom ato harus terima dari desain awalnya..

5. Street Musicians

Nah, yg ini agak dodgy. Soalnya kalo mau nambah street artists, perlu ada regulasi, pengawasan yg ketat. Pastiin yg dateng itu entertaining, pastiin mereka ga ganggu, pastiin ga maksa2 masuk kalo lg penuh.

Gw rasa, kyk di Paris, gpp ada pemusik jalanan yg ngamen. Di sana sih masih ada aja tunawisma yg minta2 di dalem Métro... Which can be quite disturbing. Ga jarang ada orang minta2 yg mabok, ato yg bau bgt, gabisa mandi berbulan2... Ga bermaksud menjelek2an.. Gw prihatin sama kondisi mereka, kenapa masih ada orang2 yg hidup kyk gini... Apa mereka yg mau...? Di mana peran pemerintah....? Itu yg gw tanya2in pas masih di sana.

Anyway, yeah. Street Musicians... Why not? Mereka bisa entertaining kok. Tapi kalo mau yg bagus, yg bisa ga mengurangi kenyamanan pengguna kereta, perlu ada pengawasan. How..? Gw sempet denger pengamen di Métro sama kereta sekitar Paris itu "diaudisi" dulu... Gatau bener ato engga, tapi itu lumayan keren kalo bener.

Gatau deh di sini bisa diterapin ato engga. Selain mastiin mereka entertaining dan ga mengganggu kenyamanan, pastiin petugas2 yg ngawasin disiplin, ga ngebiarin sembarang orang ngamen... Misal ada A sama B. Si A boleh ngamen, sementara B punya tendency untuk mengurangi kenyamanan. Jangan sampe gara2 A temenan sama B, jadi B dibolehin masuk... Gitu.

Intinya untuk yg ini, selektif. Semoga aja kalo ada aturan ini, street musicians di Indonesia bisa lebih diapresiasi lagi, dan mereka sendiri bisa keliatan lebih baik, jadi pribadi yg lebih baik gara2 bisa ikut aturan. Dan semoga, makin banyak ide2 kreatif yg muncul dan ditampilkan oleh musisi2 jalanan :)

Gw ga bilang pengamen2 Jakarta itu ga baik. Gw bisa ngusulin poin ini karena sejauh ini, ga sedikit pengamen2 yg gw temuin di Metro Mini ato angkot yang bisa entertaining, yg suaranya bagus, yg mainnya bagus. Sayangnya masih ada yg kesannya malak, ato yg ngamennya males2an... :/

And yes, gw yakin kebanyakan dari musisi jalanan ga mau hidup terus2an kyk gitu... Cuma, at the very least, kalo para artis jalanan ini menjalankan tugasnya dengan baik, dengan cara menghibur, semoga bisa jadi berkah dan ibadah tersendiri. :)


6. Ini yg udah susah diganti, dan penutup

Commuter Line itu udah cukup nyaman untuk digunakan. Tergolong cukup murah juga. Selain beberapa masalah di atas, no big problem. Di dalemnya adem, sepoi2 pake kipas angin... Kursinya juga cukup nyaman, dan dalem keretanya bersih.

Kalo bisa gw bandingin Commuter Line Jabodetabek sama public transport yg di Paris, Commuter Line ini sebanding sama RER Île-de-France :)

Sama2 kereta yg ditujukan mainly untuk pekerja, commuters yang tinggal di suburbs dan perlu ke tengah kota. Jarak antar stasiun sama2 cukup jauh, dan jalur2nya itu keluar Jakarta ke daerah2 suburbsnya Jakarta, sama kyk RER yg dari Paris sampe ke ujung2 Île-de-France.

Nah, yg gw sayangkan... Misal orang mau dari Depok, or say Lenteng Agung, yg masih bagian dari Jakarta, mau ke stasiun Kebayoran... Kita harus ke utara dulu, ke Manggarai, trus ambil yang ke Tanah Abang, baru balik ke selatan, ke Kebayoran... Gaada jalur yg East-West di selatan... :(

Kalo ada, it'd save time. Masalahnya, udah kebanyakan perumahan penduduk. Gw blm tau sejarahnya kenapa jalur2 kereta di sini itu kyk gini... But yeah. Sayang bgt harus ke tengah dulu kyk gitu...

Semoga aja di kedepannya, MRT Jakarta bisa bikin sambungan2 East-West ato sambungan apapun yg kalo mau pindah/transit ga harus ke tengah2 dulu.



Makasih! Sori kalo rada blabbering... Kalo ada topik2 yg nyambung nanti coba gw bahas lain waktu ya.

Stay safe.

2015: Start

Hi again!

Before we begin, I would like to express my condolences and offer my thoughts and prayers... For those who are affected by the Klewer Market Fire, and for those who have lost their loved ones in the disastrous AirAsia QZ8501 crash.

It was the right thing to do for the government, national or regional, to ask, and to encourage Indonesians to celebrate this year's New Year's Eve moderately, in order to respect those who have just suffered and are still suffering from the recent disasters that happened here in this country.

It was the right thing to do, to encourage people to pray rather than celebrating with fireworks.

May Allah guide us through these tough times, give us strength, and patience. Amen.

So, UTC+7 have just entered 2015... Pretty cool.

Happy New Year all.

So basically, I spent this NYE playing Cities in Motion 2 while listening to people talking on YouTube.... Yeah. Quite educational, if you're willing to believe :p

At 23:50, I went outside with my iPod, took a video and some pictures, fireworks everywhere, loud bangs, glorious. Fireworks are always mesmerizing.

00:10, I went back inside.

:p

I don't know why but I just didn't feel like going out. Partly because I wasn't in the mood, partly because I caught a cold fever just recently, partly because I went out earlier already during the day (31/12/14), partly because I was curious to try to make a city in Cities in Motion 2... :p And partly because I wanted to accompany my parents... Though actually they went to bed early, so.. Yeah, not sure about that.

It's nice though, I'm feeling a bit tired already, planning to finish Jules Verne's Around the World in Eighty Days.

And so.

To start 2015.

Here is a list of things to look forward to in 2015...

That I look forward to anyway...

Probably some interesting things are being left out.. Who nose.

• Broadchurch 2! Soon!
• Fifty Shades movie :/
• Insurgent!
• PAPER TOWNS!!!
• STAR WARS :D :D :D :D
• Hearts of Iron IV!
• Cities: Skylines!
• Doctor Who Series 9!!!!
• Doctor Who 10th Anniversary of Nu Who... Probably gonna be something.
• Once Upon A Time S04 second half!
• ASEAN Economic Community
• ManUtd back in the Champions League :)

Plus

Hopefully, getting some work experience before...

Univ. exam...

And hopefully... Finally... Get to study in a university.

Meet new people, new friends.

Build new connections.

Be more productive, more active.

Here's for 2015. Bismillah.

2014

Hi!

So in a few hours time, we are gonna enter 2015. Well, it's already 2015 in Australia and a few other places to the east of Indonesia... I guess. Can't really be bothered looking at the map. :p

Anyway. I'm kinda in the mood right now to write about 2014. It has been quite an interesting year for me personally, and probably for many people in this planet.

I spent last year's New Year's Eve in London with me sister and me sister's friends. Quite awesome, though I had to stand for around (I think) two or three hours straight. It was so crowded. Fortunately, we sort of got a nice spot, somewhere opposite the London Eye. The waiting was long and a bit boring. It was windy and drizzling.

When the fireworks started though. Ufff... Yes, it lasted only for a few minutes, but it was good. It was memorable. Glad to have spent a New Year's Eve at least once at a famous NYE location.

Anyway, I remember in that particular night... When the countdown started, I said to myself, 

"This is it man, 2014, the year in which you'll finally finish school after 12 years, in which you'll start a new stage in your life. Where will you be in a few months time?"

And then, this:

The vibration. People cheering, and recording, and taking pictures with their mobiles, or cameras, or vidcams. The vibration right at the end there, uff. It was nice.

Anyway, right after the fireworks, people were started to sing. One of the songs: 'Auld Lang Syne', of course. People were sharing drinks and toasting at each other. Personally, I was quite amazed. It was really the first time I've ever been in a crowd filled with strangers, celebrating NYE.

So yeah. That happened. A year ago today, in a few hours time.

And that's how 2014 started for me. Not with a whimper, but with a bang. Quite a loud one there, right at the end.



Many things have happened since then. 2014 has been a roller-coaster for me, emotionally, and physically. Mostly emotional. Not so much on the physical aspect. :p

I started blogging again, did quite well on my IELTS early in the year, did two uni interviews and failed both of them, passed the IB, didn't go to uni this year, finished my twelve years of formal education, graduated, went to prom (a memorable one, Uruguay got beaten 3-1 that night by Costa Rica :D :D), finally went up the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame with my friends, "visited" places in Paris with me friends, last stroll around Paris by myself, learned to let go of things while packing my stuffs, finally went back to Jakarta (alone), got used to taking public transports here in Jakarta, started taking Indonesian uni prep course, met new amazing friends and people, met old friends, saw a disaster happened with my very own eyes, started learning how to drive a car... 

I also learned to finally let go. And I made a strong decision of where to go next, of what to do in the future, my future. Hopefully this time, this time it'd be the right one, the most suitable one, the best one. 

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim. Here's for 2015.

Simply Can't Write + School Subjects

Hi.

So, I've been trying to write a couple of posts but... I just, simply, cannot finish dem posts.

Dem posts dem posts. Both of them are continuations from the umm, "Things I miss from Paris" thingy post thingy. Yg satu ttg Jum'atan, satu lagi ttg Strolling.

STROLLING. Which is so close to PUBLIC TRANSPORT. It's coming.

Masih pengen banget parah lanjut nulis ttg topik itu, tapi entah kenapa pas itu nulisnya kebanyakan dan lumayan banyak marahnya... Dan rasanya masih harus belajar lebih banyak lagi kalo mau nulis ttg ini.. Somehow.

Anyway.

Lebih mood cerita random, sekarang. And life update(s), probably.

Life's alright. Alhamdulillah.

That's it.

Damn.

Oh2, akhir2 ini gw kepikiran sesuatu. Suatu kebiasaan yg gw punya, kira2 dimulai sekitar 2 tahun yang lalu, yaitu: Ngomong ke diri gw sendiri, sendirian, tanpa ada orang lain.

Is it normal? Fuck, I'm weird. Atau diem2 semua orang punya kebiasaan ini... :O :O :O

Who knows? Who. Nose.

Di samping itu, kebiasaan lain yaitu... Random quotes dari film2/speech2 orang2 gitu, just randomly popping out inside me head.

Kayak yg barusan, "Who knows?" itu dari 50th Anniversary-nya Doctor Who, dari Tom Baker.

Man.

Bahkan "Man." ini pun diambil dari Gordon Ramsay...

Aw man, identity crisis. Jadi selama beberapa bulan/tahun belakangan ini, isi kepala gw itu, basically, omongan orang lain. Kalo perkataan2 gw itu semuanya diambil dari orang lain, then... what?

Meh.

Oke, kembali ke ngomong sendiri.

Semoga aja case yg satu ini engga sama kyk yg di Doctor Who, Series 8 Episode... 4? Judulnya "Listen."


"Listen."

"Question. Why do we talk, out loud, when we know... we're alone? Conjecture. Because we know we're not.

Evolution perfects survival skills. There are perfect hunters. There is perfect defence.

Question. Why is there no such thing, as perfect hiding? 

Answer. How would you know? Logically, if evolution were to perfect a creature whose primary skill were to hide from view, how could you know it existed? 

It could be with us every second and we would never know. How would you detect it? Even sense it.

Except, in those moments, when for no clear reason, you chose to speak aloud. 

What would such a creature want? What would it do? Well?"

So... Yeah.

But hey, I'm quite enjoying this... Weird habit. Which is weird, but, it makes me feel less lonely. 

"A silent companion" they call it.

So yeah, dua hal di atas... Normal ato engga? Ato mungkin ada yang tau berapa persen orang di dunia melakukan hal2 di atas...? :p

Moving on.



INTERNET AKHIRNYA DIPASAANG :D :D :D

Masih lambat, tapi better than nothing, eh?

Oh, oh, let's talk about pelajaran2 yang lagi gw pelajarin, dan maybe bandingin sama yg gw belajar pas di sana... Some of them anyway.

Yeh, I know. School is boring. Apalagi belajar.

Well, gatau kenapa, tapi untuk pelajaran2 yg emang bagi gw menarik, belajar itu quite enjoyable.

And yes. Untuk jadi manusia yg bisa berguna bagi nusa, bangsa, agama, etc2., belajar di sekolah itu ga cukup.

Beberapa waktu lalu ada yg ngomong ttg "Pendidikan" vs. "Sekolah". Contoh yg simpel: Ada aja orang yg sekolahnya tinggi2, gelar sampe Ph.D., tapi perilakunya ga baik, berarti pendidikan orang itu rendah.

Intinya, cari pengalaman, dan jadi orang yang berpendidikan tinggi, ga hanya sekolahnya tinggi.

And so yeah, akademik bukan segala2nya.

Tapi, mumpung gw dikasih "bonus" setahun belajar a la sekolah di sini... Dan mumpung yg lagi gw alamin ini cukup menarik (for me anyway)... Let's talk about it.

Oh God, I'm so boring. Talking about school subjects.

1. Maths
Mulai dari matematika. Matematika di sini itu... Gara2 di sini gw ngambil IPS, mungkin... Masih normal2 aja. Ada beberapa yg gw belajar di sana dan ternyata di sini, untuk anak IPS, ga diajarin. Contohnya, "Volumes of Revolution".

Tapi maths di sini itu, yaa namanya Asian Maths, tetep aja itung2annya cukup sangat tricky bagi gw. Apalagi di sini itu gaboleh pake kalkulator, ga kyk di sana. Man.

Belajar maths di sini jadi tau banyak shortcut2 gitu. Di sana itu diliatin, gimana cara dapetin suatu rumus. Di sini, langsung dikasih, langsung diliatin cara makenya. Done. Not that simple though.

Yg gw notice di sini itu adalah... Hitung2annya yg bener2 dites. Selain gapake kalkulator itu tadi, kita juga harus familiar sama faktorisasi segala macem, dan nyari mana aja yg bisa dicoret2 ato disederhanakan.. Etc2. Yang intinya, bisa bantu kita untuk hemat waktu.

Ga jarang, konsepnya kita udah kenal bgt, tapi giliran ngerjain soal, stuck gara2 hitung2annya. Gatau harus dibagi, kali, tambah, kurang, akarin, kuadratin, pindahin...

2. Bahasa Indonesia
Selanjutnya, Bahasa Indonesia. Well. Ini kayaknya yg paling gw ga bisa saat ini. Tiga tahun ga belajar Bahasa Indonesia, cuma pake Bahasa Indonesia untuk bicara sehari2 di rumah, sama kalo baca berita, ato dengerin debat Pilpres 2014.

I'm so screwed. Sejauh ini yg baru gw pelajarin itu adalah EYD atau Ejaan Yang Disempurnakan. Kalo diliat dari tes yg nanti bakal gw jalanin, gw harus bener2 ngerti bentuk2 kalimat, mana aja yg subjek, predikat, objek. Induk kalimat. Inti kalimat. Dll2.

Apalagi ya... Oh, shoot. Baru sadar sesuatu. Kalau mau kuliah di sini, apalagi hukum, berarti Bahasa Indonesia gw harus gw perbaiki... Semoga aja. Satu tahun. Should be enough.

3. English
English. Beda banget sama di sana. Of course. Di sini itu kyk bener2 belajar grammars, grammars, grammars, vocabs. Di sana... Grade 10 masih belajar grammars sih dikit2, soalnya gw masuk di kelas English as Second Language. English gw sucks, back then. And yes, it still is. Kyknya pernah gw mention deh, I'm suck at grammar. Dan pernah gw mention juga, native speakers itu kalo ditanyain grammar suka ga tau. Liat aja orang Indonesia masih ada aja yg bikin kesalahan2 kalo nulis :p

And btw... Kata "Jalan" itu gaboleh disingkat jadi "Jl." atau "Jln.", which means KTP semua orang salah :o :o :o

Ok, English. Grade 11 and 12 gw termasuk di kelas Inggris yg first language. Dan, itu lumayan. Essay2 gitu lumayan juga sih, dapet nilai 5-7 out of 7. Which was amazing, considering back in 2011 my English was still, shite. Real shite. Selama Gr. 11-12 itu jarang bgt atau kyknya ga pernah belajar grammar. Kebanyakan itu malah diskusi, ngobrol ttg culture, media, sama literature. Good times.

Belajar English di sini tapi cukup menarik. Lumayan juga setelah beberapa tahun belajar pake English dengan banyak grammatical errors kalo bikin essays, sekarang "dikasih kesempatan" untuk mantepin dose grammers. So, good2.

Always be positive, eh?

Well. Ada takut juga sih, dikit. Takut Englishnya ngilang. Apalagi writingnya. Thankfully, essay2 lama gw ada di laptop, so. Good2.

4. Geografi
Geografi sejauh ini, seru2 aja. Jadi anak IPS, enak juga sih ada IPA2 nya dikit. Dulu pas SMP, satu2nya hal dari Geografi yg gw suka itu adalah peta. Nope. Bukan skala. Bukan all those unsur2 peta. Tapi peta dunia, capital cities, borders, shapes. Dan itu kyknya satu2nya pelajaran di Geografi yg gw suka pas di SMP.

Sekarang tapi entah kenapa jadi lebih banyak yg menarik. Apalagi yg nyambung ke gimana cara kota, masyarakat, desa, industri, dkk. bekerja. Sumber Daya Alam, etc2. Cool.

5. Sosiologi
Sosiologi juga lumayan menarik. Dulu pas SMP kalo gasalah beberapa jam Geografi dipake untuk Sosiologi dan, jujur, pas SMP menurut gw Sosiologi itu cukup ngebosenin.

Btw, kepikiran sesuatu, Bahasa Indonesia yg ga baku itu diajarin juga ga sih? "Ngebosenin" insted of "membosankan"... I mean. It's part of our language. Gatau di daerah lain gimana, apa ini di Jakarta doang ato gimana. Tapi kyknya proper2 aja deh kalo dimasukkin ke pelajaran, belajar hubungan budaya sama bahasa. Bahasa yg dipake sehari2.

Lanjut. Iya, Sosiologi dulu bosen. Sekarang, ga terlalu bosen. Kyknya emang pas SMA di luar otak gw jadi lebih IPS entah kenapa. Tertarik ke kehidupan orang, negara, hubungan internasional, all those things that people do everyday, yg berpengaruh terhadap kehidupan kita sehari2, yg berpengaruh ke masa depan.v

Sosiologi. Belajar tentang interaksi antarmasyarakat, antarmanusia, unsur2 di masyarakat, dll2. So far so good.

6. Ekonomi + 7. Sejarah
Sebagai murid sejarah dimana pas SMA diajarin kebanyakan ttg Nazi Germany, Soviet Union, Peronist Argentina, Francoist Spain, Fascist Italy... Ekonomi itu, bukan forte gw.

Selama di SMA gw belajar History, gadapet Ekonomi. Well, I say gadapet, sebenernya gw milih History rather than Economics. Pas SMP, gw mostly ga ngerti dan ga tertarik dengan ekonomi. Meanwhile, back then, gw juga gaterlalu bagus di sejarah. Sejarah Indonesia, that is. Sejarah dunia kyk WWII gitu... Man. Gw lumayan tertarik.

Nah, gw pas Gr. 10 dikasi pilihan, Economics ato History. So of course gw milih History. Mikir2 bahwa di sekolah internasional, gw bakal belajar Sejarah Dunia, bukan sejarah Indonesia. :)

Back to Economics. Di sana itu Economics adalah bagian dari History. Just a way, to understand history better. Belajar sistem ekonomi sama economic policies di negara2 dictatorship sama authoritarian di atas, juga belajar... Other, economics. Kenapa hyperinflation di Weimar Republic bisa terjadi... Cuma sebatas itu. Tapi keren juga sih. Jadi ada some sort of, extra perspectives gitu towards economics.

Nah, karena kebanyakan topiknya ngebahas ttg single-party states or authoritarian government or dictatorship, yaaa ujung2nya economic policiesnya itu yaa yg model2 "guided", "socialist", "communist", thingy policies thingy. Kea Lenin's NEP or Stalin's FYPs or Hitler's or Peron's. Sebatas itu2 aja.

Nah, pas gw belajar ekonomi di sini itu... Gw masih noob. All those itung2an dan pembukuan (yg sebenernya gw belajar pas SMP). Tapi, sama casenya w/ geografi sama sosiologi, gw jadi lebih tertarik untuk belajar ekonomi, soalnya ini berpengaruh terhadap kehidupan orang banyak.

It's like, I want to know how these things work, you know? Dan ini yg bikin gw cukup semangat untuk terus belajar walaupun gw udah lulus high school. Weird. I know. But, hey, curiosity.

Yg paling menarik di ekonomi itu, sejauh ini, yg berhubungan sama pemerintahan. Pajak, APBN, fiscal policy (yg gw temuin di artikel yg jadi bahan preparation uni interview dan gw sama sekali gatau apa artinya), monetary policy, inflation, etc2.

Dan setelah belajar sejarah 3 tahun, gw ngeliat ekonomi, like, in a whole new fucking way. So exciting. Ada banyak faktor, ekonomi itu berputar, satu hal kecil bisa berdampak besar... Lumayan mirip sama cara gw ngeliat sejarah pas di sana... Lanjut ke yg terakhir.

Cara gw ngeliat sejarah pas SMP beda sama pas gw belajar di sana. Banyak faktor, dan hal terkecil pun bisa berdampak besar.

Selama di SMP, gw ngeliat bahwa sejarah itu cuma hapalan. Ngapain juga sih belajar sejarah?

But, oh man, thank God. Tiga tahun di luar itu worth it, for me anyway. Gw jadi ngeliat "belajar" in a whole new way, especially belajar sejarah. Semua itu bukan cuma hafalan. Tapi kita harus bikin koneksi2nya sama yg lain.

Itu yg selalu diingetin sama guru Biologi gw pas di sana. Bikin koneksinya, bikin hubungan2nya. Kyk sistem2 di tubuh kita, semuanya bisa kerjasama dengan cukup baik agar kita bisa tetep hidup.

Humans are so intricate. Very detailed. Pasti ada yg desain. ;)

Anyway.

Sejarah. Di sini itu, gw masih tertarik. Sama kyk pelajaran2 IPS lainnya, gw develop interest di sejarah pas SMA. Dan anehnya, pas di sana itu, gw malah jadi lebih tertarik sama sejarah Indonesia... 

Like. Ini 20th century Europe kayak gini... Pada saat yg sama, di Indonesia lagi kyk gimana ya?

Pas SMP gw belajar kata2 kyk "Komunisme", "Uni Soviet", yg akhirnya gw "temui" pas SMA. Dan gw bangun koneksinya, antara yg gw pelajarin di sana, sama sejarah Indonesia. Dan segalanya jadi, very interesting indeed.

Sejarah itu sangat luas. Scopenya besar bgt. Dari ekonomi, sosiologi, geografi, even biologi, fisika, kimia, astronomi, semuanya bisa dimasukkin ke sejarah. Karena, sejarah itu... Belajar dari masa lalu. Ngeliat all those webs and connections yg berujung ke, diri kita, sekarang, dan dunia ini, saat ini.

Boom.

Sejarah di sini sih pelajarannya ya beda. Ga cuma yg diajarin (sejarah Indonesia kebanyakan), tapi juga "apa aja" yg diajarin. Di sini emang lebih berasa menghafal. Kyk belajar fakta2 some sort of trivia gitu. Cara ngajarnya sih masih seru. Tapi yaa kyk ada yg kurang. Like, di sana itu kita kyk didorong untuk mikir, untuk bikin koneksi2nya, kenapa gara2 hal A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, dst., X bisa terjadi. Dan ga segampang itu, pasti ada grey areanya. Kalo di sini itu. Kerasa sih ada cause to effect, tapi entah simpel X ke Y, atau ga dijelasin kenapa X berpengaruh kenapa Y. Kalo dijelasin pun yaa simpel banget. Sangat simpel. Padahal selama 3 tahun gw belajar di sana, X ke Y itu ga sesimpel itu. Banyak hal2 lain, faktor2 lain, dan lots of grey area.

Fyuh.

I think that's that.

:)

Btw kalo ada yg mikir pelajaran yg diajarin di sana itu jauh lebih bagus, then... Engga juga kok. Segala2nya ada baik buruknya. Ada hal2 di sistem pendidikan di sini yg perlu diberesin. Tapi sekolah yg gw ambil di sana itu far, far from perfect. Beberapa hal di sini itu far, far better dibandingin yg di high school gw.

And so life goes on.

Cheers. :)

Update Bulan Pertama, Kebabs, Climate + Winter!

Hi all!

Udah sebulan plus beberapa hari gw tinggal di Jakarta. And so far, so good. Well, Internet masih belom dipasang di rumah. Apparently modemnya lagi out of stock. Tapi selain itu, no problemo. No big problemo at least.

Sebulan pertama, bimbel, ketemu temen beberapa kali, nengokin eyang. :) Wut else. Nothing much, really. 2 minggu terakhir jarang ke luar gara2 ada TryOut, and other stuffs

Sebulan cepet juga ya. Well, 3 tahun aja cepet. 17 tahun aja cepet. Is it gonna get slower..?

Ok, mungkin skrg mau share aja, apa aja yg gw kangenin dari Paris, setelah sebulan gw pulang. Beberapa hal aja sih, seinget2 gw aja yaa.

1. KEBAB

Damn. Parisian Kebab is the best. Kangen parah.

Ok, kalo ada diantara kalian yang bakal jalan2 ke Paris, beli kebab. Like, seriously. Selain beli Crêpes, beli kebab karena 1.) Dibandingin makanan lain, kebab itu lumayan murah dan sangat mengenyangkan, 2.) Cocok sama lidah Indonesia dan 3.) Halal, bagi kalian yang nyari makanan halal.

Like, uhhh maan, kangen parah.

Kadang namanya bisa kebab, kadang juga "grec"... Trus ada yg pake roti, ada yg pake "galette" ato roti pipih/tipis gitu (ini kyknya yang paling mirip sama kebab2 yg ada di Indo), bisa juga pake bulgur, semacam nasinya gitu. Bisa pake "frites" juga ato french fries... Intinya puas. Mereka biasanya juga nyediain saos2 kyk saos tomat sama mayo. Yg biasa gw pesen itu mayo + Algerien. Man... Tapi, kalo makan jangan lupa pake sayurnya yaa. ;) You know lah... Greasy and all.

Kebanyakan tempat kebab tuh yaa enak2 aja sih. Intinya kalo liat tempatnya bagus/gede/rame, yaa berarti dijamin enak lah.

Beberapa tempat yg sering gw datengin di Paris/Courbevoie:

1. Maison de Gyros, St. Michel, Paris

Click Here this is not a dodgy advert ;3

2. Sandwicherie Grec, sekitar 66 rue Brancion, Paris

Ini yg paling sering gw datengin... Soalnya deket sekolah :p

Dan kebab di sini kyknya yang paling enak. Like, seriously.

This link is legit. Swer.

3. Dehliz Restaurant, sekitar 1 rue Carnot, Courbevoie

Kalo ini gw baru datengin deket2 mau pulang. Deket apartemen gw dulu. Kenyang, enak.

Clicky clickerooney

Wut else for kebabs... Harganya sendiri sekitar 5 - 12 euroan, tergantung pake apa aja. Trus kalo yg ke tempat rame turis biasanya diladenin pake bahasa Inggris sih... Dikit2. Kalo yg jarang ada turis yaaa gatau deh. Kadang bisa2 aja, kadang engga. Just prepare your basic French or bring someone Frenchy with you.

Oh... Di sini sih kebab yaa ada2 aja. Tapi ga appealing enough gitu. Kea... Looks artificial... Dunno, maybe someday I'll give it a try.

Unless kalo ada yg buka Parisian Kebab di Jakarta... Mungkin gw..? Who knows? 

Dan satu hal lagi, untuk orang2 yg udah pernah nyobain kebab Turki dan kebab Paris, mereka lebih prefer kebab Paris. Somehow. Lebih enak... So yeah :q

2. Météo + Climate

Ya, walaupun di Indonesia cuma ada 2 kemungkinan (hujan/cerah), gw kangen aja sama akurasi météo / weather forecast pas gw tinggal di sana. Di sini, kalo liat forecast lewat apple, suka salah2... Well. Suhunya yaa ga beda2 lah sepanjang tahunnya, but still.

Untuk cuacanya sendiri di sini yaa, seperti yg gw bilang, 2 kemungkinan. Tapi, yang bikin agak males tuh kalo harus jalan kaki + naik transport umum, sementara tujuannya itu tempat indoor yg cukup dingin.

Di luar, panas, keringetan, pengap... Giliran di dalem, kalo bajunya ketipisan, bisa lumayan dingin. Jadinya kan harus bawa jaket atau pake baju agak dobel like, kemeja + kaos dalem. Kalo bawa2 jaket lumayan repot + tambah beban. Kalo dobel yaa gampang panas aja kalo saltum, apalagi kalo naik apa gitu, say, Metro Mini, dan macet, which means gaada angin... Apalagi kalo penuh, beuuh... Dan sebenernya poin ini bakal nyambung ke poin selanjutnya... But let's finish this mothatrucka first.

Yeah. Panas, pengap, polusi, dan di dalem bisa lumayan dingin. Kalo naik Kopaja AC ato TransJakarta ato Commuter Line gitu sih lumayan, soalnya dalemnya udah dingin jadi udah penyesuaian. Tapi yaa... Bisa diapain. Lokasi Jakarta emang di deket ekuator, which actually can be quite beneficial but...

Hmmm... Bener ga sih.. Gara2 cuaca di sini yang panas, pengap, dan intinya tropis+polusi, jadi banyak Mall... Orang2 sini lebih prefer jalan+nongkrong di mall2 ato tempat2 ber-AC... Welp.

Intinya, panas.

Kalo di sana... Well, sebenernya ada suka dukanya juga.

Summer: Suhu 25+

Terik parah jadinya panas parah. Di apartemen gaada AC gaada kipas angin, dan dikit banget tempat2 yang berAC. Kalo lagi panas banget, keluar males parah, di dalem rumah juga gabisa ngapa2in gara2 bener2 panaas. Hwaaawawawa. Kalo buka jendela, yang ada udara panas masuk. Serba salah.

Autumn: Suhu dari 20an - 10an

Transisi dari summer ke autumn itu yang paling enak. Daun2 udah mulai berguguran. *Autumn Leaves*.... Udah mulai2 mendung dan hujan, walaupun masih jarang. Yang enak kalo cerah... Soalnya cukup berangin, tapi anginnya ga kenceng2 banget. Man... Best times. Kalo udah mulai dingin gitu biasanya (selalu) nyalain heater kalo lagi indoor.

Dari autumn ke winter... Pohon udah 80+% naked. Dan walaupun suhunya masih bearable (belasan gitu), anginnya yang lumayan kenceng tuh bikin suhunya berasa beberapa °C lebih rendah. Brrrr. Hampir tiap hari ujan, dan tiap hari udah mendung gitu, cerahnya jarang banget sampe spring nanti. Intinya, chilly. Suka ada hujan es kadang2.

Winter: Suhu dibawah 10... Mungkin dibawah 8... I Forgot.

Chilly snowy chilly snowy. Jujur agak lupa winter soalnya winter terakhir di sana gaada salju..... :'' Jadi kerasa kyk perpanjangan autumn yang suhunya lumayan rendah. Sering hujan, dan karena suhu rendah jadii suka hujan es gitu. Pas ada salju sih.... Uff. Man. Best, best, best.

Gw inget pertama kali gw ngeliat salju turun. Pas itu malem2, Desember 2011 ato Januari 2012... Lupa... Intinya gw amazed bgt. Like, Subhanallah. Speechless. Bener2 cantik pas salju lagi turun. Apa lagi kalo semua udah dilapisin salju, trus ada salju turun...

Gw inget. Pagi harinya, setelah gw pertama kali liat salju turun, gw liat hamparan putih bersih, dimana-mana. Beberapa bulan sebelumnya yang gelap karena mendung, berubah terang benderang. Hanya dalam satu malam. Segala2nya yang bisa dilapisin salju, dilapisin salju. Yang bikin gw amazed tuh bagaimana salju yg turun ga beraturan, bisa membentuk suatu kesatuan yang indah. Ada kursi di balkon apartemen gw, dan lapisan salju yg terbentuk di atas kursinya tuh... like.. perfect. Smooth and symmetrical.

Pagi itu, gw bangun tidur, langsung buka jendela. Tanpa pakai alas kaki, tanpa jaket, tanpa baju hangat. Musim dingin pertama, salju pertama. Gw memutuskan untuk menyentuh salju pertama kali tanpa sarung tangan. Gw memutuskan untuk berjalan di atas lapisan salju yg baru itu dengan telanjang kaki. Gw memutuskan untuk keluar ke balkon, menikmati salju tanpa baju hangat. Lalu gw lihat pemandangan sekeliling.

Di balkon gw, di mana-mana, pagi itu... Salju yang masih "perawan"... Ini sebutan diantara gw sama temen2 gw disana untuk salju yg masih belom diinjek-injek, untuk lapisan salju yg belum disentuh. One of the best feelings in the world: Berjalan diatas salju baru, salju yang masih "perawan". Man. You have to try it at least once in your life.

Salju yang turun melapisi hampir segala2nya. Bahkan rel kereta yang kelihatan dari balkon gw pun tertutup salju. Atap rumah, tanaman, lapangan, mobil2. Man.

Beberapa jam berlalu, mulai terdengar suara mobil dan kereta. Mobil dan kereta untuk membersihkan salju dari jalanan atau rel. Orang2 juga mulai keliatan, dan lama kelamaan... Spot virgin snownya berkurang... :/

One thing about virgin snow: Kalo jalan keluar gitu pas setelah salju, gw pasti nyari2 sisi jalan ato tempat jalan di mana belom ada orang yg lewat situ. Seneng banget kalo setelah sekian lama jalan, masih ada aja salju yg belom diinjek2 :D

Setelah beberapa jam, beberapa hari, saljunya berubah jadi salju hitam karena diinjak2. Untuk salju di trotoar, kebanyakan dipinggirin. Gw juga liat banyak petugas nebarin garam di trotoar.

Kalo winter sih dingin kan ya. Ada heater sih iya, ada baju thermal iya... Tapi kalo keluar rumah kan pake all those winter gear... Giliran pergi ke mana gitu, di tempatnya malah nyalain heater jadi panas bgt... Serba salah. :p

Good thing tho, 3x winter disana gw progress. Winter 1 pake thermal, pake glove, pake beanie, pake jaket, pake scarf. Winter 2 lepas glove. Winter 3 lepas beanie dan scarf:D

Tapi inget banget gw pas winter 1, glove, beanie, sama scarf bantu banget dan emang perlu biar di luar ga dingin. As most of my friends said: "Yang bikin dingin tuh anginnya, bukan udaranya." Yaa semua itu + jaket bantu tahan angin. Kalo lagi berangin banget, pake scarf panjang untuk nutupin sampe hidung, trus pake beanie nutupin kuping sama tutup sampe alis.

Seru! And awesome! Mau lagi. Insya Allah bisa nanti. Aamiin.

So yeah... Itu tadi cerita ttg salju dan winter, more or less. Very unorganised yes I know.

;(

Winter. Intinya, snow. Snowy snowy, I miss snow. Tapi kalo gaada salju, biasanya kalo dingin banget tuh suka aja ada salju tipis yang beberapa jam hilang. Ato salju tipis yg entah kenapa cuma muncul di atas mobil... Yep. Winter. Snow. Have to experience it again.

Spring: Suhu dari 10an - 20an

Spring, spwing, spwingy spwing spwing. Masuk Februari, Maret, sisa-sisa salju kotor udah ilang. Spring. Gw lupa detailnya. More or less ya kebalikannya autumn. Daun bertumbuhan, bunga dimana-mana, kalo udah April-Mei, bunga2 berubah jadi kyk buah gitu. Dude... Biology. Like, Ovules and all Angiosperms and all. Spring.

Banyak yg suka kena some sort of Spring fever/flu gitu, I forgot the name. Trus deket2 summer makin panas gitu. Spring entah kenapa lebih terik dibanding autumn...

Welp. Pfffttt. That's that.

Intinya kalo di luar itu yaa terasa lebih interesting aja. Lebih ga monoton kyk di sini. Dan man, salju.. Uff.. Salju. Ga enaknya di luar paling yaa pas musim panas you can't really escape the heat. Kalo pas musim dingin yaa dingin. Dan giliran ke tempat lain jadi kepanasan. Serba salah :p

3. Others including Métro, Bus, RER, Feet (a.k.a. Walking), shops, tourist sites, museums, street artists incl. street singers, and maybe moar who knows ;) (like, no seating plan at cinemas, and how people greet each other inside lift/elevator (depends on whether you are British or American)).

Coming soon! Like, soon. Gw ngantuk XD 

Ga nyangka bakal nulis panjaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang bgt ttg salju dan musim dingin. Like, gw kangen salju dan berharap bisa hidup di antara salju lagi... Insya Allah.

Ini AC jadi kerasa dingin gitu... Brrr.

Okay shutting up.

See you soon! :D

Cheers.