The seats of the Jakarta Bajajs are just a few centimeters bigger those trishaws found in Melaka town. These motorized three wheeler are found a plenty in the busy streets of Jakarta. Looking at their size, they are obviously meant to ferry petite and medium sized passengers from point A to point B. Most of the times these destinations are not far from the other.
Hah..ni dia Ibuk-ibuk yag mau naik Bajaj...Similar to those tuk-tuks in Bangkok, the Jakarta Bajajs comfortably sit at most two passengers at one time. Ahh, that’s what most people think (and what we thought so too)!!! Contradictory to our earlier anticipation, these machines could actually take MORE than just small sized people. All three of us, Muni , Jupe and yours truly, sized XL and bigger got into these diesel powered locally chauffeured motor vehicle. And very much to our amazement, it went super fast and got us to our destination in a nick of time.
What’s the trick?? No rocket science really. Hail down those eager Bajaj drivers and get into the vehicle slowly. Adjust your sitting position, alternating one in and one out. Ahh..you may even have just one bum seated, but never mind, that’s the thrill part and something you’ll laugh out loud when you relate the story to friends and family back home later. But do be sure to have the little machine well balanced. Makna nya yang passenger yang size besar tu, bagi duduk in the middle. You wouldn’t want a lop-sided Bajaj traveling dangerously all that 3 kms to your shopping destination, would you? And yes, don’t forget to inform the driver to wait for you to close the Bajaj door. Otherwise off he’d go speeding away, while you struggle to get the door shut. (Muni could attest to doing this stunt, not for the weak heart definitely) Heh..heh…
View from Bajaj...road side tv sales
Back alley ironworks
From the Bajaj you could see many things. In fact, the best way to come up close and personal with the Jakarta street life could be done while on these Bajaj rides. It takes you thru those back alleys, and it is able to squeeze in so darn close between the moving vehicles both on your left and right. As Ustaz Akhil Hayy puts it, in Mat Rempit term “sepadi” jarak nyer!!
Never mind the heat, or fumes from the rest of the traffic, after all your destination is just meters away. There was one time Muni even managed to check her schedule on the O2!!! Wah, gaya wanita-wanita korporat naik Bajaj!!! Sempat check email and hantar text messages to anak-anak buah di office. Beloved Boss tetap akan meng-check kerja mu, walaupun squeezed in a Bajaj!!
See how close are these vehicles One other thing to remember when traveling in the Bajaj, is to never ever stick your head out!! What ever pictures you wanna take, snap it from inside the vehicle. And try to also get a driver who is still “ganteng”. Jangan lah like us, one time tu, got into one pakcik tua’s Bajaj. Poor ole man, how he had to press hard on the accelerator to get his machine going. Iyer lah, Ibuk tiga ini, waduh kok besar banget size nya…LOL!!!
Of course we could have gone into the Silverbird taxis. But tak thrill lah kan….plus when taking the Bajaj, you need not worry about the infamous Jakarta machet (traffic jam) coz these Bajaj drivers are all pros at the art of cilok mencilok.
So, if ever you are in Jakarta and if ever you wanna try to be extra adventurous, go ahead, hail down a Bajaj. Sit back, relax, enjoy your ride…(for we surely enjoyed ours, the stunts, the fumes and the sweat, everything!!!)
22 comments:
seriously kak.. bajaj ni memang horror.. tapi beratus2 gambar, takde lak kitorang amik gamba bajaj. and guess what? FOUR of us where stuffed into the bajaj mase nak balik from tanah abang to the hotel.. sheesh.. memang ngeri laa.. terjerit2 macam banshee haaa kat dalam tu...
a bajaj??? Without the pictures, I would have thought that it is akin to onion bajia (Sp)
If only I had such exciting times during my short visit to Indonesia some years ago!
Iron butterfly,
For IDRD10,000..ok what!! You get to stuff 4 people and all the belian-belian dari Tanah Abang tu. We kecut perut gak, but so very game to try. By the third day, dah jadik ala-ala the locals..heh..heh!!
Kak Teh,
The Pak driver bajaj in the pic tu was so vain when I snapped his pic. With his misai melintang and senyum senget, he gave that pose. I told him, you gonna be famous..heh..heh.
If you get to go again, oh..do try riding on it. Remember to hang on tight.
Komen Pak Malim, kucing ray yg alim.
Ya, gambar-gambar yg Puan paparkan, menggamit memori nostalgia ketika saya berada di Indonesia, kata Pak Malim yg masih memeluk bohsia. Sebenarnya saya bukan alim betul, kata Pak Malim sambil meminum susu botol. Jadi suka-suka saja boleh peluk bohsia, kata Pak Malim sambil naik Air Asia.
Wahai Pak Malim kucing ray yang alim,
Indonesia negara jiran
Cowok nya ganteng cewek nya cukup makan
Kempen Air Asia hebat sakan
Hah apa lagi Pak, jom gi jalan-jalan
Malaysia pula negara sendiri
Tempat bertapak berakar umbi
Nak jalan-jalan kat sini dah tawar hati
Tol, petrol ongkos nya aduh tinggi sekali
Begitulah lebih kurang perasaan yang diluahkan oleh teman-teman, sambil melihat bunga di taman.
Gi mana potongannya bohsia Garuda Land tu ya pak? Apa iras-iras Mbak Rossa atau Mulan Jamila - Mahluk Tuhan Paling Seksi (so she claims lah kan)?
Hahahhaa...that part on sitting on one bum really had me! Kalau Wlily satu keluarga masuk kat dalam bajaj tu, memang SAH lah Wlily yang kena duduk tengah!! hahaha...
Went to Jakarta couple of times in the past 2 years tapi tak pernah naik bajaj. (i) ada anak kecik (ii) ramai sangat daa...5 orang termasuk kekanak tak muat kut.
Good entry Kay!
Salam perkenalan Kay,
My first time leaving trail although it's not my first time dropping by.
Hv been to Jakarta before but too scared to try out the bajaj (teringat masa bergayut/berconer-baring dlm bas mini KL zaman dolu2 :D). But after reading your entry, must try the bajaj lah the next time I am in Jakarta.
NJ
Komen Pak Malim, kucing ray yg alim.
Terima kasih, terima kasih
Kata Pak Malim sambil memegang daun selasih
Kerana sudi mengajak saya bersiar-siar
Kata Pak Malim sambil memeluk bohsia.
Tapi saya takde passport
Kata Pak Malim yg tua kerepot
Boleh tak masukkan saya dlm kargo
Kata Pak Malim sambil menari ago go.
Kay
Nobody will dare to take the bajaj if she is alone travelling. Even if in group, I think they would beter think twice. But not in your case cos the pak supir will definitely mistook the three of you for bouncers dari Malaysia.
Hi Kay,
I've been to Jakarta numerous times for work tapi not once I pernah dare to board a bajaj. Even here in Dhaka we have a 3-wheeler motor-taxi tapi eeee....takutnya naik. The drivers are known to be quite notorious - accomplices to robbers and kidnappers!
Kay! Aaahh the famous bajaj!! I missed the ride when I was there...and I must say I kinda regret it! Kay, I can imagine the 3 of you seated in the bajaj, laughing hilariously and shrieking on top of your voices when the bajaj decided on its stunt acts!! Ngeri, tapi sukanya lah kan??
Dear Waterlily,
Syokkk you naik bajaj!! By the time we came out of the vehicle each one of us lencun with sweat. Hilang 2kg of the nasi padang lunch :-)
But if you have kids et all, I'd advice taking the cabs. You'd scare the daylights out of them, for sure.
NJ,
Oooo...those mini bus ride days?? How could one forget yah?? My advice is if you want to try it next time you are in Jakarta, do tengok-tengok dulu muka Pak supir nyer tu. If ader yg ala-ala "pecah rumah" tu, eeerrr scrap the idea, take the cab.
We were luckily coz ours were pleasant and trustworthy. But at all times, be alert and keep watch of the routes they take you to.
TM,
Bouncers from Mesia?? Yezzaa, ada gak advantage nyer being oversized ni eh :-)
I think even the pak supirs were surprised that we could do the balancing act in the bajaj. They must be thinking, these there ladies, dun mess with them huh :))
Madam Tai Tai,
Welcome back from your hols!! All recharged??
Yar lorr, between the three of us we kept watch of what the driver did. Should he act funny, we were all ready to fend for ourselves (not that we knew judo or karate ker). We figured a hard hit on the head would be good enough. Or perhaps, we'd goyang-goyang his bajaj and that powerful jerk would force him to stop the machine.
Ms Hart,
Ini lah one of the thrills we got when we do this all girls (no hubbies) trip. But happy, happy jugak. At all times have to keep watch of each other.
It was a good trip that time when we were in Jakarta. More stories coming up.
Pak Malim kucing ray yang alim,
Alah..gi lah buat pasport, tunggu lama-lama memang lah kerepot.
Tak lama beratur di Imigresen, kata Kay membelik majalah fesyen.
Siap sehari pasport nya, lepas tu boleh lah jalan-jalan saantero dunia.
Hi Kay, I really enjoyed your eloquent posting re these bajajs. I am 6'1", weighing 196 pounds, boleh masuk duduk? Ha ha.
I would love to sit in one, but will get an older driver, not too keen on a Michael Shumacher wannabe roaring thru the streets of Jakarta while I worry about meeting my ancestors, ha ha.
Can imagine you all had fun then.
Have a nice day and best regards, Lee.
This reminds me of my experience riding a tuk-tuk in Bangkok. Sama je lah, but I think the tuk-tuk's condition was slightly better than the bajaj (am I right?). It went very fast! I felt my hair macam nak tercabut! Hee.. hee...! But syiok!
Uncle Lee,
You are so tall!!! You'd still be able to fit into those bajajs, though it maybe a bit uncomfortable.
Oooo yess, Schumacher wannabes are a plenty on those Jakarta strees. Watch them fly into the winds...
MrsNordin,
Bajaj in Jakarta almost equal to tuk-tuk in Bangkok. The three of us rode in tuk-tuks during our Bangkok trip. But rasa nya yg in Bangkok tu, idak ler perlu sit on one bum!! Either the tuk-tuks were bigger or our bums have grown wider. (I think the latter is more true..sigh)
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