My First Time In JAKARTA, Indonesia (New York or Asia??) 🇮🇩

Harry’s first day in Jakarta, arriving from Bali, and the video is structured as a correction of his own expectations. He rides the MRT, comes up into the central business district, and spends a minute simply surprised at it — the skyscrapers, he says, are better designed than England’s.

The rest of the day is food. A café where the menu comes by QR code and has no photographs, so he orders blind; a street stall of siomay and batagor under satay sauce; and an es doger dessert mixed in front of him. He haggles a fake backpack out of a market stall, then walks to the National Monument with fellow creator Luke Damant (@LukeDamant), who is filming with him.

Key moments

• [00:00] Jakarta at over 10 million, and Indonesia at over 270 million.
• [01:03] English is thin here, unlike Bali where he says it’s perfect — which he treats as a reason to learn some Bahasa.
• [01:37] The claim the whole day rests on: Indonesian street food is often as good as or better than the restaurant food.
• [02:42] Buying an MRT card at Block M, topping it up, and through the gates.
• [05:04] His verdict on the train — the most spacious metro he’s ridden, clean, modern, good air conditioning, and signed in English.
• [05:34] The skyline, and the comparison to New York.
• [06:07] ONE FIFTEENTH coffee shop, ordered by QR code from the table.
• [06:46] No pictures on the menu, so he orders something he can’t identify.
• [07:17] Hot coffee poured over ice cream.
• [07:50] The mystery dish turns out to be pempek, a fish cake from Sumatra, served with a vinegar he declines.
• [09:04] $16 for two meals and two coffees.
• [10:28] Street food: batagor, at ten thousand.
• [11:39] Steamed and fried, mixed, with tofu and chicken.
• [12:11] Satay sauce, which he rates unbelievable.
• [13:52] The chilli arrives about thirty seconds late.
• [15:05] Es doger — ice cream, coloured jellies, fruit and chocolate mixed to order.
• [18:19] A green layer he has to dig for that tastes like cake.
• [18:19] Football opens the conversation: everyone he meets supports Manchester United.
• [18:55] Fake goods on the next row: bags, caps.
• [19:27] A backpack asked at 200.
• [20:28] The negotiation lands around 150.
• [21:09] He hands over his old bag as part of the trade and transfers his belongings.
• [21:45] Rows of food stalls opposite rows of electronics and counterfeits — and Luke’s point that these places don’t show up on Google Maps.
• [22:16] First impressions: very developed, modern districts alongside local ones.
• [22:48] How many islands Indonesia has — the government says around 18,000 and more are still being found.
• [23:18] Jakarta is sinking, and a new capital is being built at a cost of billions, with people having to move.
• [23:49] His rule for Southeast Asia: ask a security guard for directions. They’re consistently helpful and polite.
• [24:23] A statue of a hero of the Betawi, the people native to Jakarta, and a loud protest with heavy police presence beside it.
• [24:56] The National Monument — an obelisk of 127 metres, for the independence struggle against the Dutch, finished in the 1970s. He flags both figures as needing checking.
• [25:31] Istiqlal Mosque, which he’s told is the sixth largest in the world.
• [25:31] He can’t go in: shorts, no sarong, and it closes around three.
• [26:03] The top of the monument is sold out.
• [27:12] The lower viewpoint, four flights up, and the panorama.
• [29:34] His closing verdict: greener, bigger and more developed than he expected.

Extracted pages

• Person: Luke Damant

• Place: Jakarta

• Country: Indonesia