A stinky, great place to live

Like blue cheese, Jakarta is an acquired taste. Love at first sight? With high poverty and crime rates, pollution, bad city planning, lack of decent and cheap public transportation, daily traffic jams, omnipresent shopping malls, minimal greenery and yearly floods, even longtime dwellers like me were not that quick to form an affection.

The city does not have the glam factor of her neighbors Singapore and Bangkok. Nor catchy initials like KL. And while full of designer-hungry fashionistas (and fashion victims), she is outdone every time by London, Paris, Milan, New York, Hong Kong and Tokyo.

Some time ago, somebody named the capital "The Big Durian". Perfect! Like the oval fruit, the stench is unbearable, it's not for everyone and the shell is prickly. Though, judging from the blank looks on the faces of most Indonesians I know, and a smattering of expats, when I use this name, it is yet to catch on. Still, it does have more bounce to it than plain old Jakarta. I'm surprised Sutiyoso hasn't cottoned on and used the name in his campaigns

And even after you've grown to love her, Jakarta proves to be a difficult mistress. Every Jakarta resident has a love-hate relationship with the city. She tests your patience -- this morning I spent two hours in Casablanca traffic -- yet, sticking around, has its own rewards. Skeptics would probably want to slap me silly for such enthusiasm, but its nooks and crannies hold endless possibilities.

First of all, I like the fact that everything comes to you. The shoe-repair man, the grocery man, the fried rice man and the woman selling traditional sweets -- all pass the neighborhood every morning. No time to pop by the supermarket? Just ask the maid and she'll holler "Sayur (vegetables)" and stock the kitchen with all the grocery man has on offer. Which brings me to another good thing about the city. The abundance of relatively cheap labor means you can have a maid, nanny, driver, security guard and cook all taking care of your household -- although hiring the wrong person is a headache in itself. Arguably this makes us a precious, pampered lot, but then again, who does not want to be treated like royalty?

Then there's the fact that many stores are open every day of the year. Not to mention the long opening hours. 24-hour restaurants? Check. And a wonderfully diverse range of food and wares. Of course, people continue to complain that imported goods are overpriced, but I am not convinced as the price tags of fashion and luxury items are more or less the same in Singapore, KL and Dubai. We also get certain goods (like digital cameras) cheaper, even compared to Hong Kong.

To those who think that Jakarta has nothing to offer culture buffs, my advice is, look closer. Granted, we do not have world-class museums or Broadway, but foreign cultural centers often hold interesting exhibitions and performances and usually for free. Yearly movie festivals are thriving, with cheap or free tickets available. Local groups like the Utan Kayu Community and Sahabat Museum offer regular events and activities. Utan Kayu screens movies and holds cultural talks among other things, while Sahabat Museum organizes dirt-cheap yet informative walking tours of the city's heritage areas. Small galleries, such as Artnivora, provide struggling artists with a place to show their work.

Yet, unquestionably the best things about Jakarta are the raw energy and the people. Although, it might look like we're all selfish bastards, it's hard to be lonely in this city. There's always a friendly face in the crowd. To other Indonesians, Jakartans are an ambitious bunch who love to party hard. Well, why not? It's just a great place to live! Happy birthday, Jakarta!

--Krabbe K. Piting