Gangs fighting using SWORDS??? OK, so I literally laughed out loud when I read that. That is just bizzarre. Gotta hand it to them for creativity though.

On to another question: Does Indonesia still charge the dreaded, punitively high "fiskal" for Indo citizens leaving the country for holiday (specifically through CGK)?

Yup.

When were there last "gang" conflicts at Stadium? Although it was during mid-May, I went there a couple of times and noticed nothing blatantly violent, nor did I see more than two other foreigners present, but anyways...

is anyone familiar with the club "Golden Crown?" I also went there during May, and that was probably one of the top five crowded places I've ever seen. Sure, I had a good time, but if someone shouted "api" (fire) at 2 AM, I know that I'd be in trouble...but if you do know of the place, please remind me of where it is, my memory says Glodok, but I can't remember

CGK to DPS
 

FT-ers:
A question about getting to Bali (DPS) from Jakarta (CGK).
1) Does any other airline besides Garuda service this sector?
2) What should I expect to pay for a round trip (I'll be in Jakarta in August for two weeks and I was planning on going to Bali in between for Sat/Sun).
3) Finally, are flights usually on time or will I spend half of Sat and half of Sun waiting at the airport?

Thanks for your help!

1) Lion Air (JT) also flies the route. www.lionair.co.id
2) If you buy the ticket in Indonesia, they should cost between 150-200 USD in Economy depending on the subclass available.
3) 30 minutes delay is not uncommon but shouldn't get too much longer.

Hope you enjoy your stay! :)

Sorry for the confusion. We fly into CGK, but by JKT I meant Jakarta as the city in general, not as an airport code. My apologies. I appreciate the advice and will look into bluebird if we can't arrange transportation with local friends. Anyway, it is our first trip through Jakarta, and I must admit that we aren't there for a long layover by choice, but necessity for a cheap ticket from Medan to Bali. It helps that there are people in Jakarta that we can meet.

For the poster wondering about airline transport between CGK and DPS, we are traveling on AirAsia (www.airasia.com), and I think they have relatively cheap flights on that route with 3 flights a day. I'll let everyone know my experience with them as it'll be the first time flying them, and perhaps what I discover will be helpful for people traveling between CGK and MES/DPS.

Indo carriers
 

Back in November , I took Air Asia from DPS to CGK , they have increased frequency of flights now. There are 2 a day . Air Asia looks good compared to other Indo carriers , but the bar is not set too high . ( Lion air , Merepati ,Bouraq .) there are a few more prob

Garuda ,( is the best of the INDO carriers) does offer several more flights and tremendous flexibility . prob at least 10 a day
also changes dont inccurr any extra $$ fees . the day or time

Unfortunately Air Asia , has limited suppy of planes , so delays have been known to happen .
air asia can be RT had for as low as 55(if booked early enuff) $ Merpat and Lion are almost as low as AAsia / maybe 80 $ rtrip .
Garuda , rtrip maybe as low as 130 $ us ,
use a travel agent , I have found cheaper price than going directly to carrier

and I would probably use Garuda , from now on , because of flexibility . they all seem to have limits on weight of bags . but like everything in Indo its negotiable $$ , 100 k rupiah to right person gets it on

Yes , Indo's are charged $$ to leave still
 

I guess they figure if your 'rich' enuff to go somewheres with passport , you can pay the fiscal , I think its 800 k rupiah , or about 85-90 $ us . or very close .

i guess it makes up for the differences in prices us Bule have to pay in Indo , @ tourist sights .

"On to another question: Does Indonesia still charge the dreaded, punitively high "fiskal" for Indo citizens leaving the country for holiday (specifically through CGK)?[/QUOTE]

"Fiskals" are still in effect, unless the Indo passport holder has a permanent residency abroad. This is usually indicated by a foreign address noted on the last page of the passport.

Thank you to all who answered about fiskal. Its actually quite expensive for residents of Indonesia, as their per-capita income is so low.

I wasn't aware of this 'Fiskal' until recently. That is outrageous for a country with a high per-capita income, let alone Indonesia. I was grumbling about the $25 ripoff for a visa-on-arrival, plus the 100k Rp exit fee.

rbrenton88: I think Rp. 100k is the airport tax.

flooding near Mangga Dua
 

this is going to be a bit difficult to describe, but whenever I was in a taksi or bajaj going south of Ancol near the Carrefour at Mangga Dua(since my hotel was either on Jalan Gunung Sahari or in Mangga Dua), there was this one particular section of the street that was flooded. always. does anyone know why that is? it was always a surprise just because every other part of the road around that area was dry. just curious if that is common around the city or I am just hallucinating...

It is the airport tax.

Funny, we were in an hour long (to move 1 km) traffic jam there as the flooding was worse than usual...and it seems to be the norm...not sure of the reason...

Thought our Honda was not gonna make it...I was sure the exhaust was under water..