Passing the Time in Jakarta – Part A, Shopping Malls and Book Stores

I have been reading a lot lately. Actually for a couple of years now, I have been reading again. It had been a long time. There was a long period where I didn't read much, mostly because I couldn't look away from the windows in a moving vehicle without getting motion sick. Then that passed about 2 years ago, and I was able to read in buses and subway cars. So I have been reading a lot again. Since I will be in Jakarta for a week, I decided that I would need some more to read. I remembered from last time I was here that books were quite a reasonable price here, pretty much on a par level with book prices in North America. It certainly beats Australia where literacy is such a dear pastime. I don't know how anyone can afford to be literate there. A single paperback book costs 25 and 30 dollars. (I think I have mentioned this before, but it still astounds me.) Even used books are often more than the price of new books in Canada. So it's nice to be back here where books can be had reasonably cheap. But the used book shops around here don't have much of interest, so I decided to see if there were any good English bookstores in Jakarta. There are apparently a few, and one of the biggest and best is located somewhat south on the Busway Korridor that passes near the area where I am staying. So I hopped on and off I went. And I discovered that SCTV really does exist. I don't imagine John Candy and the rest ever worked around here, though.

Later, I went into another mall and there is one floor with lots of stuff to entertain children. There is a little gymnasium, and there were some kind of classes going on. The kids take the classes and the parents can have coffee outside the gym area. There was a recreation area. And I noticed these tracks on the floor. While I was looking at them, wondering if they were just for something entertaining to look at...

...I almost got run over.

I was amazed at how like north American malls these were. And it struck me how rich and opulent the malls here are, while just outside there are sagging buildings and shanties. It occurred to me again just how much of a disparity there is here and how easy it is to observe.