After more than one year I was craving a return to Indonesia and finally, alone this time, I returned.
When you move from one area to a different one, in a huge metropolis like Jakarta, it's like to make a travel inside a travel, thus Pancoran was a real new experience in a real new "world" compared to Sudirman. As usual I gradually started to roam around the alleys and roads of the area, discovering small mosques, tiny eateries, high standard kindegarten and luxurious villas.
Pancoran is not a charming place but has its good sides maybe negligible but made my walks very nice: a couple fruit seller with delicious guava, sweet rambutan, tasty red dragon fruit or amazing dukuh who made my breakfast just a dream of healthy morning meal or thanks to a buttery avocadoes a great ingredient for my dinner salads.
But above all, in Jalan Raya Kalibata, an easy 30 minute walk from my place, from 7pm there was not only a small area with good and cheap food vendors but also so many Durian vendors, selling so many types of this stinky but delicious fruit coming from every corner of Indonesia but also from Thailand.
Another good reason to appreciate Pancoran, was the Duren Kalibata train station which allowed me to travel around Jakarta in a very fast, safe and efficient way but also to meet so many locals, from students to english teachers, from lawyers to housewives, all of the extremely friendly toward this solo bule traveller. It was so relaxing to travel by train, crossing the city in a different way, stopping at unknown stations, mingling in this huge warm humanity, no matter how crowded it could be, every trip was fine, every station a nice stop, even if a rain downpouring was ravaging outside.
What else made living in Panchoran fine??? maybe the small Kalibata Mall despite I am not a fan of Mall lifestyle, or even the poor, modest but cheap and genuine PGC.
Let's see where I will stay next time, because there will be a next time in Jakarta...insy-Allah.
When you move from one area to a different one, in a huge metropolis like Jakarta, it's like to make a travel inside a travel, thus Pancoran was a real new experience in a real new "world" compared to Sudirman. As usual I gradually started to roam around the alleys and roads of the area, discovering small mosques, tiny eateries, high standard kindegarten and luxurious villas.
Pancoran is not a charming place but has its good sides maybe negligible but made my walks very nice: a couple fruit seller with delicious guava, sweet rambutan, tasty red dragon fruit or amazing dukuh who made my breakfast just a dream of healthy morning meal or thanks to a buttery avocadoes a great ingredient for my dinner salads.
But above all, in Jalan Raya Kalibata, an easy 30 minute walk from my place, from 7pm there was not only a small area with good and cheap food vendors but also so many Durian vendors, selling so many types of this stinky but delicious fruit coming from every corner of Indonesia but also from Thailand.
Another good reason to appreciate Pancoran, was the Duren Kalibata train station which allowed me to travel around Jakarta in a very fast, safe and efficient way but also to meet so many locals, from students to english teachers, from lawyers to housewives, all of the extremely friendly toward this solo bule traveller. It was so relaxing to travel by train, crossing the city in a different way, stopping at unknown stations, mingling in this huge warm humanity, no matter how crowded it could be, every trip was fine, every station a nice stop, even if a rain downpouring was ravaging outside.
What else made living in Panchoran fine??? maybe the small Kalibata Mall despite I am not a fan of Mall lifestyle, or even the poor, modest but cheap and genuine PGC.
Let's see where I will stay next time, because there will be a next time in Jakarta...insy-Allah.
