The End of an Era

Security everywhere in Jakarta is especially tight today because it is the day. The area where my office is located is coincidentally called the World Trade Centre too; so you can imagine the paranoia.

When September 11 happened two years ago, I was in Taipei on a business trip. I had just arrived on an evening flight from HK and checked into Shangrila's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel when I heard the news over CNN. The hotel room had a small television set inside the bathroom; it was a strange feeling watching the two towers collapse while I was taking my shower.

My American colleague Brian who was with me on that trip was so distraught by it. He had a tough time getting a flight back to Chicago.

That day closed a chapter in many of our lives. Things sort of fell apart after that. It also gave a definite end to the dot-com and telco boom which was already going downhill then. It was the end of an era; an era of unbridled optimism, hype and excess.

My long-time colleague Chua from KL has been here in Jakarta with me these past few days. We spend our days sipping wine at the Regent Club, reliving those good and bad old days. We recall all the opportunists and conmen who were trying to make a killing during the goldrush. We laugh at the naivete of some customers who were desperately trying to "dot-com" themselves, not really understanding what they were getting into. It was so easy for us to sell then.

Now we stare ahead into a wasteland of desolation and pessimism. Those days are gone. We all have to reinvent ourselves. I think September 11 was a necessary wake up call for many of us.

I woke up, and I have never been more alive than ever.