There is a steady stream of rats and cockroaches roaming inside our residence, but today one of them was unfortunate enough to taste a snack specially prepared for its purpose, and was partly paralysed when picked up. The neighbor’s cats (they are plentiful) – if they show up here (and they often do) – are also targeted by these special meals.
A young rat (or just mouse?)
On 30 August I went on a, now rather, usual business trip to Manila (Philippines), and Chung-Li and Hsinchu (Taiwan).
30 Aug: Flew from Balikpapan to Jakarta on Lion Air, stayed in Margot Hotel in Jl Jaksa (that hotel now costs Rp 220,000 per night).
31 Aug: Flew from Jakarta to Manila via Singapore on Singapore Airlines. Checked into Makati Shangri-La (I’m happy I don’t have to pay that hotel bill myself!)
1-2 Sep: Factory visit at Amkor Philippines, Laguna Technopark, south of Manila.
3 Sep: Flew from Manila to Taipei, Taiwan, on EVA Airways. Checked into Hotel Kuva Chateau in Chung-Li, half an hour drive from the airport, south of Taipei.
4 Sep: Factory visit at ASECL, Chung-Li.
5 Sep: Factory visit at TSMC, Hsinchu, one hour drive south of Chung-Li.
6 Sep: Flew from Taipei to Singapore on EVA Airways. Catched a ferry to Batam. Checked into Hotel Hallo Batam.
7 Sep: Flew from Batam to Jakarta on Lion Air.
9 Sep: Flew from Jakarta to Balikpapan on Lion Air. Flat tire on the way to the airport.
I think I got all the dates correct.
Outside the airport in Manila.
Hotel Hallo Batam.
“Golden Taxi”: Flat tire on the way to the airport in Jakarta.
It is now exactly one year since I left Norway, and in connection to this event I have constructed a map showing all locations where I have spent the nights since then (except nights spent aboard planes of course). I think I have included all places, except for a guest house in Phnom Penh (I forgot to mark it with my GPS).
These locations are downloaded from my GPS and overlaid on a Google map, which can be zoomed in and out. It is possible to switch to satellitte view too. For example try to zoom into my residence in Balikpapan when in satellitte view, since the satellitte resolution in this region is much better than the map resolution.
I am now in Balikpapan again. I flew in here this morning from Jakarta with AirAsia.
My Indonesian visa is good for another two days, but I chose to make the Visa run today, by flying to Singapore and spend a couple of hours there before returning to Jakarta again. I will enter on a 30 days tourist visa this time.
I am now sitting in Changi airport in Singapore with free wireless internet access. The internet speed is slower here compared to Indonesia (using my Indosat modem).