Sunday, 4 August 2013
LIFT Vlog episode 5: a car accident in Indonesia
OK guys, sorry for my absence, here is episode 5 of my vlog about my car accident in Indonesia. As you can tell, yes I was very frustrated and angry about the whole episode. I had thought that my ability to speak some Bahasa Indonesia could have helped with the situation... but oh well, please watch the video, cheers and thanks.
Update: Whilst I was in Singapore, I actually witnessed something terrible which made me grateful that no one got hurt in the accident I was involved in (in Indonesia). I went to Zouk on National Day Eve and left Zouk at 3:45 am, which meant that I got into a taxi around 3:50 or 3:55 am. As my taxi made its way up the CTE on the way to Ang Mo Kio, I actually saw the aftermath of the accident that made the headlines. I didn't actually see the accident happen, but saw the aftermath just as the ambulance arrived (but before they could cover up the bodies). I will spare you the gory details, but what I saw will haunt me for the rest of my life I swear. As I read about the details of the accident the papers the next day, I couldn't help but cry. It was incredibly sad and tragic.
Hi LIFT, That sounded like a harrowing & unsettling encounter but you ought to feel proud to have taken on half the village (didnt even occur to you to be scared) and gotten away with it almost scot free, with bragging rights to boot.
ReplyDeleteI do have one question though, why did you then still go to the police after everything was already settled?
P.S. The lighting in that room you were using to film your vlog was good, it made you look very young, your skin is great, and it really brings out your bone structure. Do keep vlogging under those lighting conditions!
Hello. Let me explain, I certainly did NOT go to the police after the matter was settled. The fines that I had incurred were in Bali, not Java and they were totally unrelated. The rule in Indonesia even amongst the locals is that you should always always avoid any contact with any kind of authority, the police, the government, even the military lest you encounter someone who would want a bribe in order to 'help' you resolve the situation. It seems that in Bali, the rental cars have certain stickers and markings that identify them easily as rental cars to the police, so the police know whom to stop along the road since they are particularly targeting foreigners in rental cars. So naturally, as a foreigner in a rental car in Bali, I felt like a target for all kinds of trouble and the sense of panic whenever we drove by a police station or even saw a police car... I was made to feel like some kind of criminal for being foreign, I am not even that rich but they know they can extort money out of me since I am in their country.
DeleteI did manage to speak to a Chinese Indonesian in Singapore who did tell me that I was mad to drive in Bali and that the police are ridiculously corrupt there, but if it makes me feel better, the police there extort money from the local Indonesians as well, not just the tourists, it is just the very culture of corruption that makes Indonesia such a bloody rotten country.
Limpeh, I would have done the same thing. I'd have tried to reason with them using legalese. However, I myself often find that with these people, the law does not apply. Same thing in India. Idiots! BTW, you'd look much better if shave your whole head rather than leave the front longer. Have you lost weight on this trip? Looking good.
ReplyDeleteHey Limpeh, your blog has been silent for 10 days already. Are you still travelling or are you experiencing writer's block? ;)
ReplyDeleteLook forward to hearing from you again!
Hi there, I am currently in transit in Muscat airport awaiting my flight back to London. My parents live in the dark ages and don't have wifi hence I couldn't blog when I was at their's - I am going to start uploading my latest vlog episode now and it should be online hopefully in an hour or so. I have also another vlog piece to edit which I shall do whilst waiting for my connection - 13 hour stopover in Muscat but hey, surprise surprise, I found one of ten deck chairs and slept for 8 hours so I am actually feeling fairly okay. I also have another draft on the way .... it'll be so much easier once I am back home in London later today.
DeleteAaaah. Youtube won't let me upload anything whilst in Oman, I am not going to pull my hair (what little there is left of it) over this and just wait till I get back to London as I have to board my plane in less than 2 hours anyway. You'll just have to wait. Sorry!
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