Mandarin Oriental Jakarta

Could you imagine a nice night out in Jakarta with some casual cute western guys? Well I do , so that's the story. We where hanging out, went to Kemang to have some proper dinner in an indonesian restaurant called "payon", but they where closed due to private matters. So we went next door to Kemang food fest to catch up a portion of Nasi Goreng and a Bintang- good combo. Afterwards we thought of leaving back home, but while in taxi I remembered that MO Bar might be open this night. I called our Concierge at Le Meridien to make sure that the Bar gonna be open. They wasn't really sure, but said they might be open tonight. When we reached the Mandarin Oriental we realized a lot of very posh cars in line to drove up to lobby level. The crowd looked very sophisticated and not casual at all. It was our turn to get off our very cheap looking taxi. Taxi stopped at front door, they tried to open the doors, I advised the driver to go further. He stopped again a few meters ahead, staff followed, I opened the window and asked one of the female staff, if the Bar is open already. She was kind of confused as the ongoing party was the Grand Opening of MObar Jakarta! So we jumped out of the taxi, left our Bintang cans, I even went in without security check. So here we are- two casual cute western guys joining the most sophisticated event of the night in Jakarta. The elegant crowd consist of the Who is Who of Jakarta's society. A little boring and old, but free flow of Champagne and any other drink you might wish. We ended up directly in the middle of the bar, watching people and people watching us. To be honest I liked the old style of the bar more, but the staff is indeed amazing. Very professional, stylish and beautiful at all and at its best they where chatting with us which turns into flirting..lol.
When we left, a women waiting in line for a taxi with us, asked us where we are from and why we joined the party cause we looking so casual. I said we are casual indeed and even without invitation card, people are waiting for us!

Stay tuned for more in depth reports on Jakarta nightlife!

Shanghai

As I mentioned already Shanghai is simply an amazing City and I would rather say a must for a smart traveler nowadays. But go ahead and try yourself. Trust me its worth it.
Travel:
This time I flow in from Europe- so I would recommend to use Swiss for your flight as it is still the best option, even they use the "old version" of their C Class.
You will arrive in Pudong International Airport, which is a fairly huge and modern airport. Nothing special, but they do offer free Wifi in public areas. Keep in mind that some sites are not visible while you are in Chine- you will need a special program to enter some of the blocked sites. Before entering China you need to apply for a Visa back in your home country. There is no Visa on arrival service at the moment. The Airport is located far outside of the city, but there is the Maglev, a high speed train running between Pudong Airport the city within a couple of minutes, depending on how fast your train runs. Check schedules to speed up, but at least train will run with 300km per hour. Keep in mind that you have to change for the Metro or Taxi to reach you final destination. Travel between airport and city center will be at all around 1 hour, depending on traffic. Taxis are cheap and go on the meter. A taxi between the airport and the city is about 150 Yuan, depending on traffic and your loction. The Maglev is about 40 Yuan plus subway fare.

Place to stay:
As always in fairly huge cities you should choose your hotel, depending on where you need to go. In shanghai you have to deside if you wanna stay on Pudong side or in the city center in Puxi ( Bund area ). Pudong is the modern high rise building area, which is more the business district. nevertheless there are some very nice hotels around. First of all you should consider the Park Hyatt located in the highest building at time of writing. The hotel is top notch and the view over Shanghai is best. Next to it, in second highest building, the Jin Moa Tower is the Grand Hyatt located. For sure also an alternative if Park Hyatt is fully booked. On Puxi side I can recommend fairly priced Swissotel located in Jing an district, next to famous Jing An temple and to a subway station ( line number two connecting to Maglev train ).
Enjoy:
Shanghai do offer so much place you should consider to visit. As most of us lacking time I will give just a few hints.
Most of the action is on Puxi side- so came over for a long night out or start your evening with a drink in Park Hyatt's bar on 89th floor- well worth it!
Later you should consider Logo, Dada for a few drinks and even a good party and for dancing all night one of the Muse Clubs.
If you wanna hang out on the Bund you can drop in all time favorite Bar Rouge, but to be honest, I guess it is boring.