Kota Termahal dan Terkaya di Dunia (2006-2007)

Melanjutkan diskusi dari ulasan saya yang ini, di sini saya posting lagi daftar kota termahal di dunia, berdasarkan survei dari Swiss Bank-UBS, Mercer Consulting, dan The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), berikut metodologinya.

Sebagai penutup, saya tampilkan pula daftar kota terkaya di dunia tahun 2006, dan Jakarta ternyata masuk urutan ke-68, lho!

******

The world's most expensive cities in 2006

6 March 2007: Deciding on which is the world’s most expensive city is a little bit like choosing between the merits of various world heavy weight boxing champions. Until a year ago the choice has been between Tokyo and London. But in its 2007 ‘Worldwide cost of living survey’ the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) says four European cities had overtaken Tokyo as the world’s costliest city. However, Mercer Consulting says Moscow was the most expensive city in the world, with Oslo ranked 10th. Meanwhile, Swiss Bank UBS puts London in first place, followed by Oslo, New York and Tokyo.

The problem with all three surveys is that they convert local prices into US dollars, which means that any changes are as much the result of currency fluctuations as of price inflation. For example according to all three surveys, the cost of living in European cities becomes more expensive if the dollar weakens even when local prices remain unchanged.

Swiss Bank-UBS survey

 

Rank	Cities	Index (incl rents)
1	London	105.5
2	New York	100.0
3	Oslo	94.6
4	Tokyo	93.4
5	Zurich	87.3
6	Copenhagen	86.3
7	Geneva	85.8
8	Dublin	84.3
9	Chicago	82.2
10	Los Angeles	80.6
11	Paris	78.1
12	Helsinki	77.3
13	Luxembourg	76.6
14	Stockholm	75.8
15	Vienna	74.0
16	Seoul	73.9
17	Amsterdam	73.0
18	Hong Kong	73.0
19	Toronto	71.4
20	Munich	71.2
21	Montreal	71.2
22	Miami	70.5
23	Frankfurt	69.3
24	Sydney	69.0
25	Brussels	68.5
26	Milan	68.5
27	Rome	67.6
28	Madrid	66.2
29	Nicosia	66.2
30	Dubai	66.1
31	Lyon	66.0
32	Barcelona	65.6
33	Berlin	64.4
34	Singapore	62.9
35	Lisbon	62.1
36	Istanbul	61.6
37	Mexico	60.7
38	Auckland	60.6
39	Athens	57.4
40	Taipei	57.2
41	Moscow	56.8
42	Tel Aviv	55.2
43	Rio de Janeiro	55.1
44	Manama	54.8
45	Santiago de Chile	54.3
46	Sao Paulo	53.6
47	Caracas	52.8
48	Warsaw	49.5
49	Ljubljana	48.7
50	Tallinn	48.6
51	Johannesburg	47.2
52	Budapest	46.7
53	Jakarta	44.4
54	Bucharest	43.3
55	Prague	42.6
56	Bogotá	42.3
57	Buenos	41.9
58	Mumbai	41.5
59	Bangkok	41.0
60	Kiev	40.6
61	Riga	40.2
62	Sofia	40.0
63	Nairobi	39.7
64	Bratislava	39.6
65	Beijing	39.6
66	Shanghai	39.3
67	Vilnius	37.7
68	Lima	35.9
69	Manila	35.2
70	Delhi	34.6
71	Kuala Lumpur	28.2

Methodology: The cost of a weighted shopping basket geared to Western european consumer habits, containing 122 goods and services. New York = 100.

Mercer Consulting survey

Rank (2007)	Rank (2006)	City	Country
1	1	Moscow	Russia
2	5	London	United Kingdom
3	2	Seoul	South Korea
4	3	Tokyo	Japan
5	4	Hong Kong	China
6	8	Copenhagen	Denmark
7	7	Geneva	Switzerland
8	6	Osaka	Japan
9	9	Zurich	Switzerland
10	10	Oslo	Norway
11	13	Milan	Italy
12	12	St Petersburg	Russia
13	15	Paris	France
14	17	Singapore	Singapore
15	10	New York City	USA
16	18	Dublin	Ireland
17	24	Tel Aviv	Israel
18	21	Rome	Italy
19	21	Vienna	Austria
20	14	Beijing	China
21	19	Sydney	Australia
22	25	Helsinki	Finland
23	36	Stockholm	Sweden
24	27	Douala	Cameroon
25	41	Amsterdam	Netherlands
=26	53	Madrid	Spain
=26	20	Shanghai	China
28	21	Kiev	Ukraine
29	59	Athens	Greece
30	52	Almaty	Kazakhstan
=31	56	Barcelona	Spain
=31	48	Bratislava	Slovak Republic
33	45	Dakar	Senegal
34	25	Dubai	United Arab Emirates
35	45	Abidjan	Côte d'Ivorie
36	60	Glasgow	UK
37	31	Lagos	Nigeria
38	15	istanbul	Turkey
39	65	Munich	Germany
40	61	Frankfurt	Germany
41	69	Birmingham	UK
42	29	Los Angeles	USA
43	46	Luxembourg	Luxembourg
44	70	Brussels	Belgium
=45	30	Abu Dhabi	United Arab Emirates
=45	72	Berlin	Germany
=45	62	Düsseldorf	Germany
48	-	Taipei	Taiwan
49	50	Prague	Czech Republic
50	51	Algiers	Algeria

Notes:
The figures for Mercer’s cost of living comparisons are based on a survey conducted in March 2007. The 2007 comparisons are based on a similar survey conducted in March 2006. The information is used by governments and major companies to protect the purchasing power of their employees when transferred abroad. The choice of cities surveyed is based on the demand for corresponding data from companies and governmental organizations. Exchange rates used in attached table of cost comparisons: 1 GBP = 1.944390 USD; 1 GBP = 1.476181 EUR. Harare are been excluded from this year’s rankings because the severe economic crisis in Zimbabwe has rendered costs there incomparable.

EIU survey

The 10 most expensive cities in the world in 2007, with 2006 positions in brackets

Rank	City
1 (1)	Oslo
2 (4)	Paris
3 (6)	Copenhagen
4 (7)	London
5 (2)	Tokyo
=6 (3)	Reykjavik
=6 (8)	Zurich
8 (4)	Osaka
=9 (-)	Frankfurt
=9 (10)	Helsinki

Jakarta in Indonesia saw its relative cost of living jump 12 percentage points and 27 places in the ranking to 73rd.

The world’s richest cities in 2006 (A report by UBS)

Rank	Cities	Wage index
1	Zurich	124.2
2	Geneva	115.4
3	Oslo	110.8
4	Dublin	104.6
5	New York	100.0
6	Luxembourg	98.1
7	Los Angeles	97.0
8	London	96.0
9	Copenhagen	95.7
10	Chicago	94.7
11	Helsinki	89.1
12	Tokyo	87.4
13	Frankfurt	85.5
14	Munich	84.5
15	Berlin	82.1
16	Vienna	81.2
17	Toronto	80.4
18	Sydney	79.6
19	Brussels	78.2
20	Montreal	77.3
21	Stockholm	77.0
22	Miami	74.0
23	Auckland	73.4
24	Amsterdam	72.7
25	Lyon	70.5
26	Nicosia	69.5
27	Paris	68.8
28	Barcelona	66.6
29	Madrid	64.3
30	Milan	59.9
31	Dubai	57.8
32	Rome	49.7
33	Athens	48.6
34	Seoul	48.2
35	Taipei	43.3
36	Singapore	38.9
37	Lisbon	38.6
38	Johannesburg	37.3
39	Manama	36.6
40	Hong Kong	34.9
41	Sao Paulo	29.0
42	Ljubljana	28.3
43	Istanbul	25.9
44	Prague	25.8
45	Moscow	25.4
46	Santiago de Chile	24.3
47	Tallinn	22.1
48	Rio de Janeiro	21.2
49	Budapest	20.0
50	Bratislava	18.7
51	Caracas	18.7
52	Warsaw	18.4
53	Buenos Aires	18.0
54	Lima	15.8
55	Kuala	15.7
56	Vilnius	15.4
57	Riga	15.3
58	Bucharest	13.2
59	Shanghai	13.1
60	Bogotá	13.0
61	Kiev	11.6
62	Nairobi	11.1
63	Mexico	10.9
64	Beijing	10.9
65	Bangkok	10.9
66	Sofia	10.2
67	Mumbai	8.7
68	Jakarta	8.2
69	Manila	7.8
70	Delhi	7.8

Methodology: Effective hourly wages for 14 professions, weighted according to distributions. Net after deduction of taxes and social security constributions.

 

(From Here)

 

Kota Termahal di Dunia

Rating:	★★★
Category:	Other

Terakhir yang kutahu, London adalah kota termahal di dunia, diikuti oleh Tokyo. Ternyata posisi terakhir sudah banyak berubah, seperti di bawah ini, walaupun tetep aja, Tokyo masuk 5 besar, di no. 4:P.
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Moscow ranks as world's priciest city


By JACKIE FARWELL, AP Business Writer Mon Jun 18, 5:11 PM ET

NEW YORK - Moscow is the world's most expensive city for the second year in a row, thanks to an appreciating ruble and rising housing costs, a new survey reports.

The cost of living for expatriates in the Russian capital is nearly 35 percent higher than in New York, which served as the base city for the survey released Monday.

London, estimated at 26 percent more expensive than New York, climbed three spots to second place on a strengthening British pound and steep rental prices.

South Korea's Seoul ranked third, followed closely by Tokyo at No. 4.

The survey by Mercer Human Resource Consulting ranked 143 cities around the world, measuring the comparative cost of more than 200 areas such as housing, transportation and food. The findings are designed to help multinational employers determine compensation for their expatriate workers.

In Moscow, a luxury two-bedroom apartment will cost an expat $4,000 a month; a CD rings up at $24.83; one copy of an international daily newspaper is $6.30; and a fast-food hamburger meal totals $4.80.

A strengthening euro boosted 30 European cities to top spots on the 2007 list — Copenhagen, Geneva, Zurich and Oslo, respectively, placed among the top 10.

Eight Asian cities made the top 50, though Taipei, Taiwan, plunged 20 places to No. 48.

New York and Los Angeles were the only two North American cities to rank among the highest 50, though both fell in the rankings due to a depreciating U.S. dollar, Mercer reported.

The Big Apple dropped five places to No. 15, while Los Angeles fell to No. 42 from No. 29 in 2006.

Ranking as the least expensive city for the fifth year in a row was Paraguay's capital of Asuncion, where the cost of living is half that of New York, Mercer estimated.

(From Here )

Iron Rich Foods for Iron Deficiency Anemia

Buat yang lagi kena anemia
---------------------------------
For iron deficiency anemia in women, a diet with iron rich foods along with iron supplements is often recommended. Absorption of iron from food is influenced by multiple factors. One important factor being the form of the iron. Heme Iron, found in animal sources, is highly available for absorption. Non-heme iron on the other hand, found in vegetable sources, is less available. Iron rich foods of an iron rich diet are listed below: 

Iron Rich Foods containing Heme Iron

	Excellent Sources		Good Sources
	Clams Pork Liver Oysters Chicken Liver Mussels Beef Liver		Beef Shrimp Sardines Turkey

Iron Rich Foods containing Non-Heme Iron

	Excellent Sources		Good Sources
	Enriched breakfast cereals Cooked beans and lentils Pumpkin seeds Blackstrap Molasses		Canned beans Baked potato with skin Enriched pasta Canned asparagus

Warning: Pregnant women should not eat liver because of its very high Vitamin A content. Large amounts of Vitamin A can be harmful to the baby.

The absorption of Non-heme iron can be improved when a source of heme iron is consumed in the same meal. In addition, the iron absorption-enhancing foods can also increase the absorption of non-heme iron. While some food items can enhance iron absorption, some can inhibit or interfere iron absorption. Avoid eating them with the iron-rich foods to maximize iron absorption.

Iron Absorption Enhancers

Iron Absorption Inhibitors

Meat/fish/poultry Fruits: Orange, Orange Juice, cantaloupe, strawberries, grapefruit etc Vegetables: Broccoli, brussels sprouts, tomato, tomato juice, potato, green & red peppers White wine

Red Wine, Coffee & Tea Vegetables: Spinach, chard, beet greens, rhubarb and sweet potato Whole grains and bran Soy products

Written by: Gloria Tsang, RD
(From here)

Salah Kelas

Hari ini aku ke kampus dengan penuh semangat, pengen ikutan belajar bikin kaligrafi Jepang. Kelas ini sebetulnya sudah beberapa kali dilaksanakan, tapi selama ini selalu bentrok dengan kuliah atau jadwal pertemuanku dengan dosen pembimbing. Akibatnya, baru hari inilah aku sempat mengikutinya.

Sesuai pengumuman, pk. 13.20 aku sudah di kelas ini, hanya berbekal sebuah bolpoin, karena kertas dan pena pasti disiapkan oleh Sensei, sebagaimana yang kudengar dari peserta kelas2 sebelumnya. Sepi, tak ada siapa pun, hanya ada sebuah tas tergeletak di meja paling belakang.

‘Tumben telat, biasanya orang Jepang’kan on time,’ pikirku. ‘Wah, jangan2 aku salah masuk kelas,’ pikirku lagi, kemudian keluar kelas untuk melihat nama ruangan itu. Ruang D, tepat seperti yang tercantum di pengumuman. Akhirnya kuputuskan untuk melihat2 peta Jepang yang tergantung di depan kelas, sambil menunggu yang lainnya.

Lima menit kemudian, beberapa siswa dan Sensei (=dosen) yang ditunggu pun datang. Bingung juga ngeliat si Ibu yang nggak bawa perlengkapan kaligrafi apa pun, malah hanya menenteng beberapa buku, kartu, dan sebuah mainan seperti piano.

Pelajaran dibuka dengan pertanyaan standar dalam kelas Bhs. Jepang: “Kemarin pergi ke mana?” Selanjutnya kami bergiliran menjawab, dan diakhiri dengan perintah Sensei kepada kami untuk menanyainya. Kelas langsung riuh begitu mendengar jawaban Sensei,” Kino Disneyland he ikimashita…”.

Selanjutnya Sensei menempelkan tabel huruf Hiragana di whiteboard, dan kami diminta untuk membaca semuanya, dari ‘a’ sampai ‘n’, diselingi dengan pertanyaan arti beberapa kata yang mengandung huruf tersebut.

Sementara itu, aku sudah bolak-balik melirik jam dinding di kelas, yang tergantung tepat di atas whiteboard. ‘Kapan nulisnya, nih?’ pikirku. ‘Hmm, mungkin abis ini kelar,’ pikirku lagi menenangkan diri. Tapi di dalam hati udah mulai ngerasa ada yang nggak beres juga, sih! Seingatku, yang namanya kaligrafi itu di kelas2 sebelumnya menggunakan huruf Kanji, bukan Hiragana.

Akhirnya Sensei bilang,” Ok, kita sudah selesai dengan Hiragana. Sekarang, untuk mengingat lagi Hiragana ini, saya punya 3 cara: pertama, main kartu huruf; kedua, membaca buku; dan yang terakhir, pakai mainan, tapi ini cuma satu. Silahkan pilih, mana yang kalian sukai.”

‘Lho, bikin kaligrafinya kapan?’ pikirku bengong. Tapi melihat reaksi yang lain biasa saja, aku semakin yakin kalau perkiraanku yang salah. Awalnya, aku ingin ikutan yang baca buku, buat sekalian ngelancarin, soalnya kemampuan baca Hiragana-ku sekarang udah lebih rendah dari anak SD Jepang, alias ngejanya lama banget. Tapi karena siswa di sampingku (bukunya satu untuk berdua) memilih untuk membaca tulisan Romaji-nya keras2 (lah, kalo baca Romaji terus, kapan hafal Hiragananya dong?), jadinya aku pindah ke kelompok kartu, yang keliatannya lebih seru.

Cara mainnya begini: Sensei nyebutin satu huruf, terus kita cepet2an nyari kartu yang memuat huruf itu, sambil bilang,”Hai!” Berhubung kartunya ada 2 set, jadi kami ber-8 dibagi dalam 2 kelompok. Aku pilih kelompok kedua, karena di situ ada 2 orang temenku seruangan (dari Vietnam dan Bangladesh) yang suka ngocol dan diskusi bareng.

Pas si Vietnam ini dan aku udah dapet 2 kartu, eh… tiba2 si Vietnam ini ngomong,”Fit, ngapain kamu di sini ikutan main? Mestinya kamu ngajarin kita, ‘kan Jepangmu udah bagus!” “Yee, nggak lagi, wong aku udah banyak yang lupa juga, kok! Lagian ‘kan aku pengen maen juga, rame,” sahutku sambil melihat2 hamparan kartu di depan kami. “Iya, bener, kamu jadi sensei kita aja, “timpal si Bangladesh. Aku tersenyum jail sambil bilang,” Emang gak boleh, ya…maen sama kalian? ’Kan aku baru dapet 2 kartu, nih!” “Yah, udah itu aja. Kamu gak boleh dapet lagi,” kata si Bangladesh sambil nyengir bandel. Yah, mereka ini emang kompak banget sih, maklum seangkatan, setahun di bawahku!

Eh, ternyata obrolan kita bertiga itu cukup keras, sehingga terdengar oleh Sensei, yang sedang berada di kelompok lainnya. “Eh, kamu hafal Hiragana, ‘kan? Bisa nggak, bantu saya mimpin kelompok ini, jadi saya bisa ngajarin kelompok lainnya…,” kata Sensei padaku. Aku menolak halus, tapi kedua temenku ini maksa terus, ditambah pula anggota kelompok lainnya yang mulai terpengaruh dengan kampanye gratisan mereka.

Hiks, wong pengen belajar kaligrafi, kok malah disuruh ngajar Hiragana, sih! Sampe akhirnya si Sensei bilang,” Yoroshiku onegaishimasu,” terpaksa deh, aku udah gak bisa nolak lagi, dan disuruh berdiri oleh Sensei, nerusin permainan ini. Tadinya kupikir cuman di kelompokku, eh ternyata si Sensei minta keduanya, walah…ya sudahlah!

Beberapa kartu pertama, aku berada di 2 kelompok, tapi kemudian si Vietnam ini bilang dengan wajah tanpa dosa, “Fit, kamu konsen di situ aja, biar yang sini aku ajarin.” Biyuuh, ternyata dia lebih jago dari aku! Kena, deh…aku dikerjain, huhuhu! Tapi gak papa, lah...itung2 belajar lagi, hehehe! Walaupun sempat mengheningkan cipta sebentar, pas nentuin mana huruf ‘me’ dan ‘nu’, soalnya aku sendiri juga sering ketuker.

Walhasil, jadilah kali ini aku salah kelas dengan sukses! Oya, tahu nggak, kenapa awalnya aku mikir ini kelas Kaligrafi? Soalnya judul kelasnya adalah: Japanese Letter Lesson! Salah nggak, sih…persepsi awalku? Biasanya mengenal huruf ‘kan di kelas Japanese Language, gitu lho!

***

Matsudo, 5 Juni 2007 (03.04 JST)

(Hari yang membingungkan)

(Dari sini)

Stephen R. Covey

http://covey.ru/en/index.html
Pernah denger tentang Stephen R. Covey, Si pengarang "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" yang fenomenal itu, 'kan?
Nah, ini website resminya. Ada ringkasan buku2nya, juga lho! Buat yang belum sempet beli buku2:
* The 8th Habit,
* Principle Centered Leadership,
* First Things First;
silahkan dibaca2 aja ringkasannya di sini:D

Seven Habits of Highly Ineffective People

Yes, you read it right.  It's not a misprint.  In this article, I will discuss the seven habits of highly ineffective people.  It is as important to know about the habits that can make us ineffective as it is to know the ones that make us effective.  

The credit for identifying the seven habits of ineffective people goes to John Covey, the brother of Steven Covey who is the celebrated author of the book, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.  Incidentally, I smell some sibling rivalry there, don't you? 

At any rate, the first habit that really holds the master key to the treasury of failures is, "Be reactive.  Always doubt yourself and blame others."   By being reactive you don't have to take a preventive action, entertain a forethought or plan for anything in advance.  You can avoid decisions forever by continuing to doubt yourself.  If you don't take a decision in the first place, how can you blame yourself.  This way, you also reserve the right to blame others for the inconveniences and difficulties.  

The second habit is to "work without any clear end in mind."  Then whichever way it ends, look at it philosophically, "That's the way things sometimes happen. "  The fact that the outcome didn't turn out to be so great is nobody's fault and certainly not yours.  

The third habit is to "do only what is urgent."  You will have the satisfaction of doing the urgent thing while avoiding crises until things catch up with you.  

The fourth habit is to think in win/lose terms, that is, "I should win and they should lose" as the basic orientation to all negotiations and collaborations.  Sometime, this may offer you a big ego trip and when you lose, you may even get some sympathy. 

The fifth habit is to "seek first to be understood."  Don't try to understand them until they understand you and that way you can be even with them. 

The sixth habit is to follow the dictum, "If you can't win, compromise."  This will help you to secretly admire yourself for being so adaptable and having "one up on them."

The seventh habit is to "fear change and put off improvement."  When you spend all your energy in maintaining the status quo, many of your coworkers will become your bosom buddies.    

 Foster these seven habits and you shall rank very highly among the highly ineffective people.

(Vijai P. Sharma, Ph.D)

Terima Kasih, Allah

Terima kasih ya Muta’aliy,

telah jadikanku sebagai buah hati,

dari seorang pria sholeh yang tegar,

serta wanita sholehah dan sabar.

Terima kasih ya Bariy,

t'lah berikanku kakak adik,

yang saling sayang dan mengasihi,

walau sering berkelahi saat kami cilik.

Terima kasih ya Ghafuur,

t’lah berikan sanak dan kerabat,

yang senantiasa membantu dan menghibur,

saat kami hadapi masalah berat.

Terima kasih ya Haiy,

‘tuk pertemukan pada bibi yang luar biasa,

yang berjuang dengan keringat sendiri,

dalam menghidupi ke-13 orang adiknya.

Terima kasih ya Nafi,

atas banyaknya sahabat dan teman,

yang slalu saling tegur dan menguatkan,

berjuang di jalan yang Kau-ridhoi.

Terima kasih ya Fattah,

yang selalu mengampuni bila aku salah,

serta berikan petunjuk dan kekuatan,

untuk kembali pada kebenaran.

Terima kasih ya Ghaniy,

atas rejeki dan kesehatan,

yang senantiasa Kau-limpahkan,

sedari dulu hingga kini.

Terima kasih ya Rasyid,

‘tuk ijinkan aku menuntut ilmu,

hingga ke negeri di sebrang lautan.

tanpa ijin-Mu ini hanya khayalan,

dari keluarga sederhanaku,

‘tuk gapai cita setinggi langit.

Maafkan aku ya Ghaffar,

yang senantiasa khilaf dan tak sabar,

lupa mensyukuri nikmat yang ada,

sering mengeluh pada cobaan yang menimpa.

*Matsudo, 3 Januari 2006 (17.31 JST)*

Renungan di awal tahun…(Gambar dari sini)

Selamat Idul Adha 1427 Hijriyah,
mohon dimaafkan segala khilaf dan salah,
semoga Allah SWT senantiasa melindungi kita,
jadikan hamba-Nya yang beriman dan bertakwa.

Selamat Tahun Baru 2007,
semoga jalan yang akan ditempuh,
berikan kebahagiaan dan manfaat,
bagi pribadi dan masyarakat.

Matsudo, 22 Desember 2006 (12.58 JST).
*mulai bersiap untuk ujian,yang menumpuk di awal tahun depan*

(Foto dari sini)