Food for Thought
In this 21st century, Bali is rarely referred to as a paradise. Aldous Huxley in the mid-20th century wrote a...
Observations
Beep Beep
Last night I had the experience of a lifetime as far as taxi drivers go. I stepped into a taxi...
Traffic Sense: The Right-Turn Phobia
Have you been frustrated lately sitting in your car and not moving? I’m sure you have as these endless traffic...
Gotong Royong
“The success of Homo Sapiens rests primarily with our capacity for empathy and our urge to understand and appreciate others”...
Joko Widodo and the Importance of Being There
With a reputation for hands on leadership, in less than a decade Joko Widodo has risen to become Indonesia’s most...
Politics
Politics as a science is defined as the regulation and government of a nation or state, the preservation of its...
I Made Mangku Pastika: A Governor of the People
The story goes that when I Made Mangku Pastika was a young boy, a neighbour hung himself over his gambling...
Jakarta’s Real People
I don’t know about others, but for me one of the joys of living in Indonesia is its people. Not...
Left Side, Right Side
Well if you heard it once, you’ve heard it a thousand times before, as the saying goes. So get ready,...
Anita Scheeres: Independent Bookseller in Bali
Anita Scheeres fell into bookselling. Each time she would visit her family in Sydney, she would lug books back to...
Legal Realities of Indonesian Expatriates – Family Matters
The purpose of this article is to explain some of the main family law related topics in the context of...
Finding Love in Bali
Finding true love anywhere these days is difficult or it seems maintaining the love buzz is more of the...
The Un-Laws
Every so often the local English language media throws out a story so lacking in credibility no one could ever...
Jokowi’s Resolution: Must Reduce Traffic
During the 2nd half of 2012, the whole of Jakarta was plastered with banners and posters of potential candidates all...
Ten Traffic Rules for School Kids – 2012 Style!
At school, seven-year-old kids in Bali learn about the rules of the road; like to walk on the left side...
Mystery, Magic and Ghosts
Was it a coincidence or something more? Our Editor emailed me with a list of upcoming themes and said that...
Are Mobile Phones Killing Ghosts?
Sightings of ghosts have plummeted in number over the past decade. Are mobile phones responsible for their demise? It may...
How to Know If a Scam Is a Scam Before You Are Scammed
As I sat in my Jogja hostel after another long day of slaving away in front of empty Word documents...
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Green is not just another colour, these days everyone’s talking green; not US Dollar-green but green as a synonym for...
Bule Yogya
8 months ago, after my controversial column about Bali, I received some very nice emails from you guys. Thanks a...