MetroBatavia

Apply for Asia's Next Topmodel.

photograph by Akif Hakan

If you girls are interested in becoming Asia's Next Topmodel you should apply here! America's Next Topmodel with Tyra Banks or Germany's Next Topmodel with Heidi Klum are already very successful. Now Asia is next. The show will be on TV in September 2012. One of the judges will be model and actress Nadya Hutagalung. You'll find more infos on http://www.asiasnexttopmodel.tv

One of the featured photographers who may shoot you will be Akif Hakan from Turkey who is based in Hong Kong right now. Check out his stunning fashion-street-erotic portfolio on his fanpage.

When does a tourist become a traveler?

 

This is a nice video by surf film director John Lynch who documents his travel and experiences through Indonesia. When John visited Sumatra he met Alex a travelling surfer. Alex doesn't just surf - he also supports the kids and people around him. 

Through his short film "Abroad", Lynch seeks an answer to his question, "When does a tourist become a traveler?". Check it out.

Camel Active travels Indonesia.

Great campaign by lifestyle brand Camel Active from Germany. This years spring / summer collection is called "New Explorers". The models have been photographed all over Indonesia. The travel destinations vary from major tourist sites Yogya, Bromo, Komodo Islands to rather unknown places like Kalong and Poten. It is worth to visit the website - even if you don't understand the German language. The website looks like a travel book with great pictures and some videos. Check it out!

 

Porsche Macan - the Indonesian tiger.

Great news for Indonesian car fans. Porsche just announced that the newest family member will be called Macan. Macan means in Indonesian tiger. The Porsche Macan will be the little brother of the big SUV Cayenne. Btw, powdered chilli is called Cayenne. The Macan will be technological similar to Audi's Q5. The price (in Germany) will start at 50,000 Euro and in 2013 the tiger will be available.

Record order by Lion Air.

Indonesian Lion Air just orded 230 (!) aircrafts by Boing. The contract has already been signed. This is the largest order for Boing ever. The contract is worth 23 billion USD. Buyer with such huge orders usually receive discounts though. Last November during Barack Obamas visit Boing and Lion Air already signed a pre-contract.

photo by Hangga Hari Kriswanto

Lion Air ordered 201 aircrafts of the new Boeing 737 Max with fuel-saving engines and 29 models of the larger version 737-900. The first of these aircrafts will be delivered in 2017.

Merah Putih ranks 146 in the world.

Well, the good news is that the Indonesian soccer team is ahead of countries like Singapore (148), Malaysia (153) or East-Timor (204). The bad news is that Merah Putih lost 3 postistions in the current FIFA world ranking and is still far away from the midfield. Number 1 in the world is Spain, followed by Germany, The Netherlands, Uruguay, and England. Best Asian team is Japan at position 30.

Listen to Anggun's Echo (You and I).

 

Finally released! It's not the official video - but it's Anggun's official song for France for the Eurovision Song Contest. You can also download the song on iTunes.

Anggun represents France during the Eurovision Song Contest.

Great news for France and for all fans of Anggun! Anggun is the artist who will represent France during the Eurovision Song Contest in Baku, Azerbaijan in May this year! She will compete against solo singer and groups from all over Europe. Her contest song is called "Echo (You and I)". On January, the 29th an exclusive preview of the song will be broadcastet on france3.fr. "Echo (You and I)" was written by Anggun and William Rousseau to music by Jean-Pierre Pilot.

Perhaps the Eurovision Song Contest will boost her international carreer. In 1994 Anggun left Indonesia to pursue an global way. Well, it's been quite a long time (1997) when her greatest hit "Snow in the Sahara" was played around the globe. We'll see how "Echo" will perform ... 

Agnes Monica for BlueBerry phones!?

Why is an Indonesian superstar like Agnes Monica a testimonial for the cheap BlueBerry brand? Before we answer this question we have to start with the Indonesians affinity for BlackBerry. 

Upvalue: Indonesian artist & actress Agnes Monica - with a LV scarf - for cheap mobile phone brand BlueBerry

Yes, Indonesia is the BlackBerry nation number one in the world. That's why other manufacturer want a piece of this blackberry-cake, too. Malyasian company CSL (Commitment, Service, Loyality) is one of those who offer mobile phones - made in China - for the Indonesian market which look very very similar to the high end phones of BlackBerry or Nokia. Not only the designs are imitated - even the brand names. CSL offers a range that is called BlueBerry with a figurative mark that comes also very close to the one of BlackBerry. In European countries or the USA manufactures like RIM (BlackBerry) could sue imitators which use very similar designs, word or figurative marks. The question is - why not in Indonesia? Maybe they don't fear those low level competitors which offer phones - for 1/10 of their prices. The BlueBerry i6200 for example can be bought in Jakarta's tech malls for only 300.000 Rp (about 30 USD). However, the display, the menu, and the quality are far away from the original phones. 

csl-mobile.com

That was one aspect. The other incomprehensible fact is why an Indonesian superstar like Agnes Monica is a testimonial for cheap brand CSL / BlueBerry? Well, apparently  it is just about the $$$. But can you imagine Beyoncé as a testimonial for a low quality mobile phone brand? It doesn't fit to her superior image! Agnes Monica was one of the hosts of the American Music Awards. That's why she or her management should work together with originial brands. BlueBerry is just a me-too-brand, an imitation. We can't imagine Agnes Monica wants to be seen as the me-to-version of someone else...

Rediscovered species in Kalimantan.

photo: Eric Fell

Actually, the researchers set up photo traps to capture leopards and orang-utans in the region Whae in the east of Kalimantan. But then they discovered on their images a group of monkeys that they never been seen before. So far, only drawings existed of the langurs. Therefore, in the beginning it was difficult to scientifically classifiy the monkeys. But the rediscovered monkeys are a supspecies of the surilis.

Katy Perry rocked the stage...

...and kissed a boy. Adri, 21, was the lucky guy who was allowed to climbed the stage at Sentul International Convention Center near Bogor after Katy promissed that “the first boy to take their shirt off to get up on stage.” The pop queen gave him a kiss on the cheek, and later Adri kissed her back while taking their picture with the camera on his mobile phone. After that, she sang her smash hit "I kissed a girl".

It was Katy Perry's first gig in Indonesia. “You guys have been waiting for so long, it feels like a lifetime,” she said. She assured fans that it was exciting to finally be in Indonesia, and added that she was “enjoying Jakarta but I’m sunburned.”

Endangered birds at Pramuka bird market.

Today we've been to Jakarta's most popular bird market at Jl. Pramuka. It's an interesting location to visit. However, it makes us upset to find even endangered species to be traded. One species is the critically endangered Bali starling - Bali's regional mascot.

The Bali starling (Leucopsar rothschildi) is one of the rarest birds in the world and relatively new to science being first described in 1912 by Walter Rothschild, from whom the bird gains its specific name. This medium-large starling is almost entirely white apart from black wing- and tail-tips and the striking, bare blue skin around the eye. 

The 1st price without bargaining was IDR 18 Mio. / USD 2,000 for both birds... Sounds alot - but birds like the Bali starling should be kept in cages waiting for a buyer.

Hacker attacks local Indonesian sites.

Various local Indonesian websites have been hacked lately. This time Indonesian owner are effected such as wedding photographer Freddy Wijaya, the Indonesian tech-related site wheeqo.web.id or tenda-jaya.com. 

What is the hacker's goal? We don't know who "w0LF Gh4m3d" / Abu Ryan is, but maybe he/she/they want(s) money for un-hacking the websites. 

The last time international companies like Sony became a target for hacker attacks.