Friday, September 23, 2011

Broken Door Lock

One of the automatic door locks on our Kijang stopped working yesterday.  My driver said he would take it in to have it fixed.  I asked him how much he thought it would cost.  He said maybe somewhere between 100,000 and 200,000 Rupiah.  I gave him 200,000 Rupiah.  A couple of hours later, he was back, the door was fixed, and the total cost: 150,000 Rupiah (less than US $20 dollars).  In the U.S., just for the shop to take apart the door to look at the problem would have been US $200.  Plus, I probably would have had to leave my car at the shop for at least a day.  I wish I could have my car serviced so quickly and so inexpensively in the US.  This is something I will definitely miss when we go home. 

This is where my driver took our car:

DELTA
Auto Accessories & Air Conditioner Service

Jl. Ampera Raya No. 1
Jakarta, Selatan (Pejaten Barat)
Tel: (021) 78835304 -78847028
Fax: (021) 78847029

Monday, September 19, 2011

The Playground

The birthday party on saturday was at a place called The Playground in Kemang.  The kids played for awhile at the wet playground where there are some water slides (big and small), a splash pad, and a ball game.  After drying off, we had lunch at the small cafe and then the kids played some more on the dry playground where there were slides, jungle gyms, and even a zip line.  The food was actually quite good.  The kids had chicken nuggets and fries and cheese pizza.  There was a variety of choices.  DH had nasi goreng.  The seating area had both adult and child-sized tables and chairs.  The entrance fee to The Playground is 65,000 rupiah per child.  The kids had a great time at the party.

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The Playground is tucked away in a neighborhood down some small streets so it can be difficult to find although there are small signs with arrows that direct you there.
Jl. Kemang Dalam IIIB no. 6
Tel: 021 719 6962
Open: 08:00-18:00 daily

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Lollipops-Gandaria City Mall

The day after we arrived in Jakarta, some new friends took us to Lollipops at Senayan City Mall.  The kids had such a great time that they have been asking to go back ever since.  I don’t really have any pictures of the Lollipops at Senayan City Mall.  The first time we went I was severely jet-lagged.  The second time we went I only had my phone which takes very low resolution pictures.   On top of that, I can’t seem to find those pictures.  So, I’ll have to post pictures of the Lollipops at Senayan City Mall another time.  I’m sure we will go again at some point.

The kids loved the Lollipops at Gandaria City Mall.  The prices were 15,000 Rupiah for a parent/adult and 85,000 Rupiah for kids 2 and up on week days.  The price for toddlers ages 12-23 months is 25,000 Rupiah.  On weekends and holidays, the price goes up to 110,000 Rupiah for kids 2 and up and 35,000 Rupiah for toddlers 12-23 months.

We were going to stay for just a few hours.  We arrived shortly after Lollipops opened at 10am.  I was going to take the kids home just after lunch so my 2 year old could take her afternoon nap.  We ended up staying til 4:30pm!  The kids just did not want to leave.  I guess they were having too much fun! Lollipops stays open until 10pm.  I wonder how many kids are actually there playing so late in the evening?

My personal impressions are that the Lollipops at Gandaria City Mall is less crowded and therefore less noisy overall compared to the Lollipops at Senayan City Mall although they do play kids songs the whole time.  I don’t t remember cheesy music at the Lollipops at Senayan City Mall. My kids really like the bungee jumping and the longer and more inclined zip line at the Lollipops in Senayan City Mall, but other than that, they loved the new Lollipops just as well.

I bought the kids lunch at Lollipops and was not very impressed.  The fried chicken was cold and super greasy and dark like it had been refried one too many times. My friend had come with us and she bought the fried rice.  She said her fried rice tasted okay but was also super greasy.  There are lots of food options inside the mall so I would probably opt for bringing the kids lunch next time or eating elsewhere.

On the positive side, the kids loved the cotton candy that was available for purchase.  It was also nice to have a place to readily buy drinks since the kids got very hot and thirsty while they were running around having a great time. I thought the prices on food and drinks was very reasonable.

So, here are some pictures of our fun day at Lollipops!


Here you can see part of the obstacle course above, huge play gym in the background, large slides, and part of the car/tricycle track.
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My youngest spent lots of time sliding down and bouncing on this inflatable playground.
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My 4-year old loved the obstacle course and going down the zipline.  There are two sides to the course, one for ages four and up and the other for ages 7 and up. My daughter can’t wait to turn seven! Unfortunately for her, it will be a few years.
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My 6-year old loved the obstacle course too!
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The car track was a favorite.  My kids, especially the youngest, rode around and around the track.  It’s not that big, but apparently it’s loads of fun!
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My youngest also enjoyed the toddler play area.
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The fishing pond is always fun for the kids although I do feel sorry for the poor stressed out fish.  We were able to bring home 6 fish…2 for each child.  Unfortunately,  2 died shortly after we brought them home. 
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The kids also enjoyed all the rides and games.
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Lollipops is located on the second floor of Gandaria City Mall.  If you haven’t already, check it out.  It is loads of fun for the kids.

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Queen Restaurant


We took a trip out to Pelabuhan Ratu back in May when DH’s brother was in town visiting us. We left Jakarta early in the morning and it was lunch time by the time we arrived in Pelabuhan Ratu.  We decided we wanted Chinese food and happened to stop at Queen Restaurant.  This ended up being a great choice.  The Lonely Planet Indonesia Guidebook has this restaurant listed as the best in town with a great selection of delicious seafood dishes.  The dishes were all very reasonably priced too and the food was indeed delicious!
There is a small sign outside the restaurant that says Queen Restaurant.  I didn’t even see it until we were getting ready to leave the restaurant.  What caught our eye initially were the words Chinese Food in large blue letters on the outside of the restaurant. 

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The kids liked the large saltwater tank inside the restaurant although this lion fish may have been the only fish in the tank.

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And here we are enjoying a spectacular lunch…all for around 300,000 rupiah! 

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From the Lonely Planet Guidebook:
Queen Restaurant is located on the western end of the harbourfront in Pelabuhan Ratu. 
Jl. Kidang Kencana
Tel: 431 229