Bangkok Trip: The Preparation

Actually, this is my second time to Bangkok. 

The first time was when I attended The 1st Knowledge Management Forum organized by World Vision International last year. 

This time it is due to the Asia Pacific Horizon Learning and Implementation Planning Event, still related to my work in World Vision. It is on 6-10 August 2012. But.. since I wanna meet several friends of mine in Bangkok, I plan to arrive earlier and return later. So I booked my flight, with Garuda Indonesia, for 4 August 2012 with returning date at 12 August 2012.

So I have two weekends at hand. Unfortunately my Thai friend is away in Norway so I can't stay at her apartment. I will stay there on the 2nd weekend. The options for the first weekend are either book a hotel or find a couch to surf (www.couchsurfing.com) . I go for the latter since it's gonna add new experience for me, compared to just staying in a hotel as usual. I'm gonna post about the couchsurfing experience later.

By the way, if you want to find a good hotel instead, you can try agoda.com. There is a vast range of hotels there, which you can choose based on review of other travelers or location or rating or price, etc.

Quick Note : Thai currency is Baht. As of August 2012, $1 is about 30 Baht and 1 Baht is about Rp.300,- 

If you received coins in Thai, check again. It could be 1, 5 or 10 Baht. But it could also be a smaller amount since 1 Baht = 100 Satang. 

Another Note: during this blog series, I will switch between English and Bahasa Indonesia. I will write in Bahasa Indonesia if I want to specifically address Indonesian reader, for example on how to use the BTS in Bangkok. It is available elsewhere in English, but none that I know of in Bahasa Indonesia. 

So, till the next post! Sawadee Khab!  :D

Do You Know ...? Oh, Let Me Check My Blog

Harold, a friend from Ecuador, messaged me yesterday in Facebook. He  asked about the name of the hostel in which we stayed when we were in Prague in February 2008. He wanted to know because he is going to go to Prague again with some friends for a vacation. That hostel was indeed good and had a decent price.

I honestly could not remember the name, but then I remembered I've wrote about it in here, my blog. Did a quick search and voila, this entry came up: Prague : The Hostel. The name of the hostel was revealed, along with its address and website link.

Ahh, the beauty of taking notes (blogging) :D

Mandala Promo Fare

TERBANG UNTUK BER 2 SEMUA RUTE RP. 33.000 FARE---

Periode Booking : 23-26 JANUARI 2009
Periode Terbang : 1 MARET- 31 MEI 2009

Syarat & Ketentuan Promo:

* Promo ini hanya berlaku selama periode promo diatas (tanggal 23 s/d 26 Jan 09) untuk periode perjalanan diatas ( 1Mar - 31May 2009 ).
* Beberapa tanggal dalam periode terbang diatas tidak diikutsertakan dalam promo ini.
* Tempat duduk terbatas. Berlaku untuk semua rute.
* Tiket promo tidak dapat ditransfer ke penerbangan lainnya dan tidak dapat diuangkan.
* Tarif dasar berbeda untuk masing-masing durasi penerbangan ke seluruh rute penerbangan.


JAKARTA-SEMARANG OR VV
JAKARTA-PANGKALPINANG OR VV

Mulai 199.000 ( Nett ) sudah termasuk tax dan fuel surcharge

Promotion Details:
Periode Promo : 19 - 31 January, 2009
Travel period : 19 - 31 January, 2009

Syarat & Ketentuan Promo:

* Tarif mulai Rp. 210,000 untuk Route JKT- SRG pp Tarif mulai Rp.199,000 untuk rute JKT-PGK pp adalah tarif untuk satu kali perjalanan, satu orang, SUDAH termasuk fuel surcharge, biaya lainnya dan pajak
* Promo ini hanya berlaku selama periode promo diatas (tanggal 19 - 20 Januari 2009) untuk periode perjalanan diatas (tanggal 19 - 31 Januari 2009)
* Tiket promo tidak dapat ditransfer ke penerbangan lainnya dan tidak dapat diuangkan.

Untuk Info lebih lanjut hubungi:
TRAVELE TOUR
Jl. Sarimanah I No. 35 Sarijadi - Bandung
Telp / Fax : 022 2015101
Mobile : 022 76203200
Email : traveletour@gmail.com atau email/YM: teti_888@yahoo.com

Travelling and Accomodation

Since my last travel to Spain and Italy last summer, I haven’t done any travelling. I would love too, but my courses’ assignments and other works are very time consuming. PPI Delft actually planned a travelling activity “PPI Delft goes to Berlin” but since only very few people responded to the registration, it was cancelled.

Hmm, Mai is still in Zurich for her exchange program. I would like to visit her (and force her to be my guide off course, hahaha). I should do that before January though, otherwise she’ll already be back in Delft.

Talking about travelling, I’m sure that new students (Vel? Ron? Niss? Mel? hehehe) might want to do that, probably as cheap as possible :D Accommodation contributes to the expense greatly, but the cheapest alternative is not necessarily the one you’re satisfied with. Let me share some useful information on that.

Couchsurfing.com might be your first alternative to find accommodation. Mai is the one introducing the website to me when we planned our trip to Leuven and Brussels last year. She contacted some members who offer a couch or a room to sleep in the cities we’re interested in. We got the rooms but we needed to bring our own sleeping bags (there were four of us). The rooms were free of charge (that’s the beauty of the couchsurfing concept) but we, as nice people (yes, we are :D), prepared dinner for our hosts. It was an interesting experience. It might not be easy to get room though. Mai needed to contact many people before getting the offers (probably also because she’s been well reviewed by other members from her previous couchsurfing).

Last January, when I travelled to Prague with some classmates, we found accommodation through hostelworld.com. The prices of the hostels were cheap (probably because it’s Prague). The first hostel we booked was okay, but crappy in its service. We checked out on the second day and found another hostel that was slightly more expensive, but superb in its service. You can read the rest of the story in my previous post.

If you prefer hotel to hostels, you can try finding good rates through hotelscombined.com. My Dutch friend once told me he used this website to find accommodation for his travel to Indonesia. He went there with his family. It can help comparing hotels in one go. That’s helpful, I would say. I tried to search for hotels in Bandung, and it shows me an impressive list of hotels to choose from :D Perfect for planning a honeymoon, hehehe.

So, if you’re on a tight budget and want to experience something new, you could try couchsurfing.com (but you should be careful in choosing the prospective hosts). If you’re looking for student accommodation, try hostelworld.com (not necessarily the cheapest and you have to make sure it’s comfortable enough). If you’re looking for a good hotel and need to compare for the best value for your money, try hotelscombined.com. These could spare you the trouble of searching the accommodation manually.

Keukenhof

Tanggal 26 April yang lalu, dari TU Delft ada rombongan 250 orang international student yang berangkat ke Keukenhof. Soalnya ada tiket gratis dari International Office, hehehe :D

Deskripsi Keukenhof berdasarkan websitenya sbb(malas ngetik lagi):

Welcome to Keukenhof! Nowhere else in the world are the flowers and colours of the spring as glorious as at Keukenhof. Here you can find endless inspiration while you relax in the beautiful surroundings of the park. Keukenhof offers you the opportunity to see millions of bulbs in flower, fantastic flower shows and the largest sculpture park in the Netherlands and is the most photographed place in the world. Enjoy the spring!
Come to Keukenhof above all don’t forget to bring your camera!

Nah, gitu ceunah.. Dan Keukenhof ini juga cuma buka beberapa minggu doang pas saatnya bunga2 bermekaran.

Dan di situ betul-betul penuh dengan bunga-bunga yang lagi mekar (ya klo ngga, berarti kena diboongin :p). Manusia-manusia yang mengunjunginya juga banyak banget, numpuk di pintu masuk. Untungnya makin ke dalam, makin lega. Keukenhofnya luas banget.

Untuk orang-orang yang ga segitu ingin taunya dengan detail bunga, sebaiknya ga usah maksain untuk ngeliat seluruh areanya klo ga punya banyak waktu. Soalnya di beberapa bagian isinya bunga2 yang sama, hanya bentuk kebunnya bervariasi (Mesti diliat dr langit, ada yang bentuk naga segala). Lebih baik bersantai di salah satu area, sambil piknik sama teman-teman misalnya. Daerah sisi danau lebih baik. Tapi ada juga area yang ada hewan-hewannya (keledai, babi, makhluk kayak ayam, kelinci, dll), maze, wigmam Indian, rumah kaca, windmill, dll.

Sayang waktu kunjungan dr TU Delft-nya terlalu singkat. Jam 1an-4 sore. Ga jadi liat parade bunga (yang katanya bakal ada hari itu).

Si makhluk gendut, lucu, dan enak, huehuehuehe..

Chest X-Ray

A: Ehh, mo kemana? Kok dandanannya keren banget?
B: Kan mo foto bo
A: Emangnya foto apa?
B: X-Ray
A: ??!!

Heahaha, jadul bgt ga sih ini joke-nya.. :p

Beberapa hari lalu ada surat dr TU Delft yang nyuruh mahasiswa2 internasional yang (dicurigai :p) penyakitan untuk ikut Chest X-Ray lagi. 6 bulan lalu sih udah, tapi emang disuruhnya rutin. Ketat banget ya..

Udah nempel suratnya di board di kamar, udah ngingetin teman dr Thailand untuk ga lupa bawa passport jg tgl 19 Maret.

Pagi ini dengan santainya, ngangkut cucian kayak mbok2 ke tepi sungai.. eh, ke lantai bawah :D Lewatlah si Alex, bocah Ethiopia.

"Andy, aren't you going to take the Chest X-Ray?"
"Eh, mangnya tanggal brapa skrg? Arrgh.. tanggal 19!!" *panik*

Untung cuciannya udah kelar dan ketemu Alex sekitar 45 menit sblom jadwal check-nya abis. Ngangkut cucian ke kamar, dan brangkat ke kampus. 10 menit perjalanan ke kampus naik sepeda, checknya beberapa detik di GGD van dekat Aula, pulang lagi 10 menit. Untung rumah dekat,hehehe..

Layanannya cepat, ga tau kenapa anak2 internasionalnya ga banyak yg nongol. Kata si ibu petugas, dr 200 yg ditunggu yg muncul baru 50an. Daripada harus ke Den Haag untuk ikut check susulan, mendingan ikut jadwal di kampus, hehehe :D

Prague: The Hostels

Now that we have arrived in Prague (hey, surprisingly the immigration in Prague did not check the travelling documents too strictly. Good for me) we need a place to stay.

We have booked Hostel Centrum II for three days via the internet. The price per day per person was just 7 euro. That's cheap. At first it looked quite okay for the price.. The room's somewhat clean. We had to use shared bathroom but since no one else staying in the same area of our storey, that's fine. It's also very close to Wenceslas Square, only 5 minutes walking..

Later on we found out that this hostel was crappy. We had to pay using local currency (Czech Crown or Koruna) for the room while it was never stated so before. We had to pay 2 euro(right, in euro contrary to the room payment previously) for the breakfast while it was stated in the website that it was free. There was no free internet because it broke down, they said. The receptionist was unfriendly and unhelpful. The bedroom and the toilet was as hot as hell (we knew it's cold outside but couldn't it be just warm inside, not extremely the opposite of outside).

My advice is never stay in that hostel! Though it's cheap, it's not worth your precious holiday time.

After 3 days living in hell, err.. Hostel Centrum II, I and Harold decided to move out. Mai and Bart had left for Delft at the same day for office work and Economics re-exam. Our decision was strongly because the receptionist increased the price of the room to 300 Korunas per person per night (around 12 euro) since we didn't booked it via the internet (what the..).

After walking around a bit around the Old Town Square, Harold and I found Residence Bene. At first we're attracted by the announcement on the glass wall saying room was available starting from 9 euro. Unfortunately their building that had that kinda room was outta town. The receptionist offered to give us the rate of 11 euro per night per person instead of the normal rate of 12 euro. We agreed. It turned out that it's the best decision we made in Prague.

The receptionists were all friendly and very helpful. They received payment in Euro. We could buy metro/bus/train ticket at the reception desk. The location was perfect, it was in the Old Town itself, only 10 minutes walking to get to the Astronomical Clock, 5 minutes to Palladium, 10 minutes to Wenceslas Square. The bedroom was very clean, big, and nice. There's one big bed and one small bed, a cupboard, a fridge, and a TV. The temperature was perfect. The bathroom was a private one, and it's large with bathtub. There were real free-breakfast (and the food's great, far beyond basic paid-breakfast in Hostel Centrum II and real free-internet. Have I mentioned they provided porn channel? hehehe..

Overall, Residence Bene is my recommendation for other travellers.. :D

Residence Bene (http://www.goldencity.cz/)
Praha 1 - Staré Mesto, Dlouhá 48/721 - 110 00 Prague
Email: bene@goldencity.cz



PS: I need to sleep now. I'll write some more later.. :D

Prague: The Problems

No no.. Not the one with me getting too tired after the concert as I feared before.
Also not the one with Harold getting drunk the night before and woke up the next morning, hastily grabbed all things he could find and stuffed it in his bag. Lucky he didn't forget his passport and could come on time to the Delft Central Station.

The problem is MY STATUS!!
*Sayup2 terdengar: "Heyy, There's nothing wrong about being single"*

Err, that's not the case actually,khekhekhe..

The scene:

*Credo at the airport, confidently approaching the immigration counter, giving his passport and verblijfsdocument to the lady behind the glass*
*The lady opened up the passport, checking my identity and the visa. Found out that the visa was already expired. Switched to the verblijf, looked confused and alarmed*

The Lady: "Mr.Sibuea.." *fixing her eyes to my verblijf again*
Credo: "Ya.." *started wondering*
The Lady: "You are ILLEGAL."
Credo: "Excuse me..?" *shockingly screaming inside: WHAATT?!!*
The Lady: "Based on what I see here in your residence permit, you are illegal." *showing me my verblijf with the text: geldig tot 31-08-07*
Credo: "Wait, but that's not possible. I just came last August. I got the verblijf last September. It can't be expired last August." *checking the bloody verblijf in disbelief.*

Shoot, I should've recognized that long ago. I have checked it once I received it but I thought everything was fine (the text's printed in Dutch btw). How am I supposed to suspect that the they've printed it wrongly. I thought they printed 31-08-07 as the date of application (now come to think of it, I was too naive not to suspect it as an expiration date, d'oh. Moron!)

The Lady: "Well, it is indeed strange. Because the expiration date is before the issued date of this verblijf. You need to go with my colleague to another room for them to do a check."

*Credo exited the scene and followed an officer to other room. Mai accompanied me. Duh, masa harus ga jadi berangkat gara2 ini..*

That officer checked on the system in his room while I was waiting with Mai in other room. We spent time eating some of our butter cakes btw, khekhekhe.. That guy came, oh no.. He asked some questions such as when I came to Netherlands, what my intention of coming, if I worked or not, my address, etc. Finally he said, "There is indeed a misprint in your verblijf. You just have to fixed it as soon as you return from Czech Republic."

Dank je wel then Mr. Officer :) I was happy I could still continue the trip.

Actually, there's a problem again at the gate before entering the plane. The lady officer wouldn't let me get into the plane before she got confirmation from her supervisor about my verblijf problem. But that's allright, I got reason already.

(Soundtrack:"I'm flying.. I'm flying.. I'm flying.." *fade out* --Happy Face by Destiny's Child)
(Photo: the sky of Prague. )

Prague: The Beginning

This should have been an entry in my blog since late January or early February, but I was kinda shocked with the new quarter of my study. It started on 4 Febuary, but there's a course which required me to do assignment 0 (zero), a preparation assignment before the start of the course. Kinda consuming my time (It added up to my lazyness to write I guess, I gotta admit it :p).

So.. I went to Prague on 26-31 January with some of my classmates: Mai(Thailand), Harold(Ecuador), Doudou(China), Dirk(Belgium). The same bunch as the ones who I went to Belgium with (Eh, come to think of it, I haven't post anything about the Belgium trip yet :p It was last year, Omaigaaa...). Bart (Dutch. Mai's boyfriend) came along as well.

Doudou came up with the idea, since we have spent so much time working together as a group in many courses of the last quarter (Let me think: Human Resource Management, Financial Planning & Report, High Tech Marketing, and Design of Technological System, pheww that's a lot).

Ohh, I have blabbered out of topic too much again. I should really be aware of that *sigh*

Where were we? Owh, we have booked room in Prague for three days, because we were not sure yet where to go on the last 2 days. We were thinking about going to Cesky Krumlov and Kutna Hora, as they are UNESCO World Heritage Sites, but might also just stayed in Prague instead.

I really had to be prepared for the trip in advance, since the flight was early morning after my Integration Moment Assessment and 2nd-day concert with Krashna Musika.

First Concert With Krashna Musika

Haaa, the Brahm's Ein Deutsches Requiem that we have rehearsed since September 2007 will be presented for the first time to public tonight.

My music score, checked. My suits, checked. My Vocal cord, still there, checked :D I just need to fill my stomach now, hehe. I cook Chicken Rendang for today. Hmm, I wonder if it will be okay for my throat. But whatever, I need a decent food after this 2 weeks full of Integration Moment assignments.

Tomorrow will be the last day of Integration Moment, which is the day of assessment by doing a business game/simulation. The whole knowledge from all courses that we learned from this semester will be tested there (well, if we did learn them). I hope I can still read some of the materials after the concert tonight.

And right after the assessment tomorrow, I will be rushing again to the concert venue, which is in Den Haag. 15 minutes by train from Delft and some more time (I don't know yet) to the exact building. I hope I can make it. Otherwise I will miss the warm-up, which I badly need for singing the Brahm's Requiem.

Wish me luck for tonight!

Company Visit: Shell

Hari ini sejak jam 12.30 ngumpul di Delft Central Station sama anak2 MoT. Janjian untuk bersepeda bareng ke Shell (emang disuruh ke sana untuk acara Company Visit). Materi presentasinya masuk bahan ujian sih, jadi semuanya mau2 aja datang, hehehe..

Ada skitar 15an orang yg bersepeda. Sisanya pake mobil ato bus. Tapi asyiknya, jadi kayak tur bersepeda,heheh.. Lucu aja anak2 S2 kayak gerombolan bersepeda di jalanan..

At the begining..

Yeah... I'm at a new begining.. Starting my new life as a student again in TU Delft, Netherlands.. A new life in Delft, a small yet very nice city. A new life in learning Management of Technology.

Some friends and I left Jakarta on August 24, 2007 around 15.00 WIB using Cathay Pasific. The flight was nice. Transited in Hong Kong for about an hour and left for Heathrow, London using Cathay Pasific as well. The flight attendants were from Europe and it turned out that they're not as nice as those from Asia.

Arrived in Heathrow (btw, Heathrow is such a huge airport..) and went through a strict check up.. We could only bring one cabin baggage no bigger than 56 cm x 45 cm x 25 cm (more info). There's a dimension checker (I don't really know its name, but it's some kind of construction where you could put your bag in if the dimension fits). We had to open our shoes/sandals and socks as well.

Passed the check up crew, we need to get my boarding pass of British Airways. It took a small plane to take the passengers to Schipol Airport, in Amsterdam.

We arrived around 9 am local time on August 25. When claiming the baggage, it turned out that most of the baggages of my friends were missing.. There were about 11 people in my group and only 2 got their luggages. Fortunately they were Richo and I. The others got their luggages somehow left in Heathrow (later we learned that this was not uncommon for British Airways flight from Heathrow to Schipol. Actually I had that kind of bad experience in this trip).

Out of the baggage claim area, we were greeted by some guys from PPI Netherlands: Rizli, Andy, Chris, Baqir, Anggara, Ahmad (my fellow for taking care of Depkominfo's requirements. Arrived earlier) and some others I couldn't remember (sorry).

Anggara took some of us to our temporary staying house (because the housing from DUWO was not available yet, until August 27). I stayed at Andrew and B'Tigor's room (thanks a lot, pals ) for 2 days at Hugo de Grootplein, near Delft Central Station.

I felt really sorry for leaving Bandung and all those great activities I've joined. I couldn't finished the rehearsal for Magnificat Church Choir Studio's Nelson Mass concert until the concert itself on September (Aarrgh.. There's "Credo" song there.. hehehe). I couldn't join GII Dago's 1st Choir Festival which will involve a Choir Master from Singapore. I couldn't join ITB Choir's Brahm and Mendelssohn concert. I couldn't continue my work with Alfie for Elechant's product. Fortunately I could do the home concert with Cherubim Choir on July.

I know, I have found comfort in Bandung. I love the city and all things in it very much. I once thought that I would spend most of my life in Bandung. I know I would miss the city and the activities a lot. Especially all my beloved friends there. But there's a certain point when I knew I have to move on. I have to leave Bandung for now. But I will certainly come back.. Either for staying or for only visiting..

So, welcome my new life..!

Trip to Hanoi

Trip to Hanoi - eBdesk Mission 6 May 2007

I wrote down the details of my journey to Hanoi in my notebook. More to my use later if I ever visit Hanoi again, or for those who want to go Hanoi.

In Indonesia:
1. Went to Soekarno-Hatta airport in Cengkareng, using XTrans at 02.00 (yes, in the morning) at the cost of Rp.100.000,-. It was the price at that time, but it's already Rp.80.000,- for the same route now. Lucky this service was available. The one with Cipaganti, reserved by the office, came too early to my area while I was still on my way home (at 1 o'clock in the morning, from the office, if I'm not very much mistaken).

2. Arrived at 04.00 (amazing 2 hours from Bandung) at terminal D & E in Cengkareng. I've got my Economy Class ticket of Singapore Airlines in hand.

3. Checked in at Desk 4, delivering my passport, printed-online ticket, and my luggage. Paid Rp.100.000,- for the airport tax and received 2 boarding-passes: Cengkareng to Changi, and Changi to Hanoi (forget what its airport name is).

4. Paid the fiscal of Rp.1.000.000,- on behalf of eBdesk Technology and delivered my passport & boarding pass. Got a payment receipt in return. Kept it for Teh Enung later

5. Caught glimpse of a noticement, all LAG (Liquid And Gas? I forgot ) going to be brought in cabin must be in containers containing not more than 100ml and they should be placed in a transparent plastic bag(got it from the security officer). More than that amount is prohibited to be brought into the cabin.

6. Got my boarding pass checked for fiscal payment before entering the immigration area.

7. Checking of passport, departure & arrival card, and boarding pass
8. Went on toward the boarding gate.
9. Checking of hand carry bag for LAG before entering the boarding room.
10. Boarding.

In Singapore:
1. Continued to the transit gate
2. Check In
3. Waiting in the boarding room and filling in the forms
4. Boarding

In Vietnam:
1. Headed to Immigration Area
2. Gathered my luggage

3. Met some people from Indonesia who are coming to Hanoi for official meetings. From IPB, if I'm not mistaken.

4. Bought local currency at the money changer in the airport. There were some of them, compared their rate. Conversed my $30 with the rate $1= VND 16.051 (VND=Vietnam Dong). It's suggested that we keep sufficient amount of Dong and more amount of dollar in hand. It is not easy to convert Dong to Dollar.

5. Ordered a taxi to the hotel. They charged $12. Don't mistake locals pronunciation of 'twelve' to 'ten'. That's what I did I paid $10 + VND30.000, as the driver did not have change for another $10.

6. Arrived at the hotel:
ASEAN International Hotel
Address: 6-8 Chua Boc St., Dong Da Dist., Hanoi
Telp: +84-4-8529110, +84-4-8529108
Fax: +84-4-8529111

The rate was $60 nett/day.

I'm getting tired of writing details, hehehe

So, I stayed at this ASEAN Hotel. It was near the HTMobile office, the client I had to visit. I bought a local SIM Card. I thought it would be much cheaper to communicate to Indonesia based on the experience once I was assigned to a client in Malaysia. It turned out to be not so much cheaper. Around VND4000 or Rp.2300 per sms. Well, at least I could receive a call (not able to get a call using ProXL internationally).

I was once wondering what day that day was. As I was entering the lift, I suddenly realize it was on the floormat. The name of the day I mean. There was 'Wednesday' written on the floormat. Neat!

Using taxi in Hanoi is somewhat affordable. The fare is comparable to a Blue Bird in Indonesia, I guess. The prices of daily goods are also pretty much like those in Indonesia, if not cheaper.

If you see outside the hotel, you wouldn't miss a great deal of motorcycles and bikes on the road. Yea, it seems that their main transportation are those vehicles. You might also see many motorcycles carry not only 2, but 3 people. I could say the Hanoi people are pretty reckless on driving. See them on a crossroad and you'll understand what I'm saying. I also once saw this person on a bike took his time indifferently on the road. It would not be so interesting to me if a bus was not behind it, couldn't go faster than the bike. On my last day, on the way to the airport, my taxi was terserempet-serempet and kejeduk-kejeduk by several motorcycle, but the driver seemed to be OK with it, surprisingly. Even more shocking, there were these two car, one after another. I didn't know why, but the last car bumped into the one in front of it. Both drivers stopped and got out. In Jakarta, or Pekanbaru, or Bandung, you would see both checking their own car, arguing, or even instantly start a fight. But these two only checked their own car, shook hand, and left

I noticed that the people were still clinging to old tradition. While I was strolling along the street, I saw families who own a restaurant, or a shop attached to their house (like ruko, that's how I could see them) were circling their tables for a dinner together. Aww, that's a sweet sight. Or maybe it was because I was strolling alone far away from home? Hehehe..

The appearance of the city is like an old area in Pekanbaru, my home town, or let's say most of the older area in developing city in Indonesia. I couldn't hold my laugh when I saw an advertisement neonbox showing "Salonpas Gel"! There, in Hanoi.. Now, that made me feel like home, really. Heahahaha...

Owh, one more thing. I think people's recklesness in driving are also supported by a non condusive driving environtment. See the following figure.

It is a two way street with a blockade along the center of the street. With such long blockade along the street, people will find it easier to reach a place by taking a cross they are not allowed to. I don't know why they build such long blockade and not some shorter ones to allow more sensible U turns.

Unfortunately, I could not visit some lakes that is well known for their beauty. No time for shopping too. This one's a tough mission . Well, maybe next time (when precisely, Andy? )

Trip To Bali : Leaving Bali, The Delay, and More Trouble To Come

Senin, 9 Juli 2007
Sesudah sarapan pagi di hotel, yang terdiri dari menu pilihan: Nasi/Mie goreng, Omelet/Telor mata sapi, Jus Jeruk/ salad buah, Kopi/Teh, kami memperpanjang waktu check out hotel. Yang mestinya jam 12.00 jadi jam 20.00. Hal tersebuit dikarenakan (aiyaahh) aku jg dapat SMS cinta dari AirAsia yang bilang flightku jam 23.00 didelay ke jam 1 dini hari, grrrr.. Mo sampe jam berapa di Jakarta hoiii..

Keluarga Hendro pergi belanja di sekitar Kuta. Aku dan Hendro pergi main lagi ke pantai dan mengambil berjuta foto dan video lagi, hehehe. Abis itu kami balik ke hotel dengan menyusuri jalan Poppies Lane II. Di dekat hotel kami terpana ngeliat ada rumah makan yang memajang tulisan All You Can Eat Rp.13.000,-. All You Can Eat macam apa itu ya? Hehehe. Si Buluk dan keluarganya mau pergi lagi ke daerah.. mana ya? Gianyar kali ya.. Sama sekalian mo beli kacang manalagi untuk oleh-oleh. Aku malas pergi-pergi lagi dan mau istirahat di kamar aja. Untuk makan siang, aku tiba-tiba ingat tempat makan All You Can Eat itu. Ternyata masakannya, masakan rumahan yang halal. Emang bisa ambil sebanyak apapun, tapi cuma boleh sekali ambil, ga boleh bolak-balik. Jadinya ya, sesanggupnya piring kita nampung gunung makanan. Enak juga kok masakannya :D Recommended deh..

Setelah telpon customer service AirAsia, aku boleh pindah ke flight jam 23.15 dan boleh juga coba go show jam 17.45. Aku pilih jam 23.15 malam karena masih sempat mempertimbangkan mau liat sunset di Kuta dulu. Tapi pas Buluk sekeluarga mau ke bandara, aku putuskan untuk ikutan aja nyoba go show. Males kan sampe di bandara Jakarta lewat tengah malam dan mesti nyari cara kembali ke Bandung. Sesudah nunggu sampe detik-detik akhir check in, aku dikasi tau klo aku bisa ikut flight jam 17.45.

Sampai di Cengkareng sekitar jam 8 malam WIB, di depan baggage claim aku terdiam. Mana ini koperku ga muncul-muncul.. Sampe si ban berjalan ga lagi berjalan.. Uh oh. Sialan, mana koperku. Lapor ke orang AirAsia, dia ngecek-ngecek di PCnya. Ceunah mungkin aja ada kesalahan dan koperku terikut di flight AirAsia berikutnya, yang akan sampe jam 9 malam, karena nomor keberangkatanku adalah nomor-nomor akhir karena go show. Hwaaa... Masa aku mesti nunggu lagi. Dan gimana klo sebenarnya hilang? Di dalamnya ada kutipan akte kelahiranku yang terbaru untuk urusan S2 yang baru dikirimkan dari Pekanbaru. Si orang AirAsia ga bisa mastiin koperku ada di flight berikutnya. Huuu, gimana sih. Ya udah akumesan Xtrans ke bandung jam 21.30 dan nunggu kayak orang ogeb di area baggage claim. Syukurlah koperku ternyata ada di flight berikutnya dan aku bisa segera ke Bandung.

Sesampainya di bandung tengah malam, clean up my body, dan tiduuuur! Bangun pagi keesokan harinya dan kembali ke kehidupan nyata, huehehe :D

Trip To Bali : Leaving Singaraja For Kuta

Minggu, 8 Juli 2007
Minggu pagi, Bli Kadek udah memanggilkan 2 andong yang ditarik kuda (kali aja ada yang mengira ditarik kerbau, hehe). Aku, ST, Windu, Mbok Wi, dan Lowlyetha (anjingnya.. Gaya banget ya namanya, hehe) diajak jalan-jalan naik andong keliling kota Singaraja sampai ke Pantai Lovina. Mestinya di Lovina ini bisa pergi naik kapal ngeliat lumba-lumba. Tapi karena ga sempat, ga jadi. Dari Lovina kita pulang ke rumah dan lanjut lagi pergi ke Pemandian Air Panas Banjar (Holy Hot Spring). Air panasnya sih enak. Aroma belerangnya juga ga terlalu menyengat. Hanya aja kain putih yang dipake berendam di situ bisa jadi kekuning-kuningan. Di perjalanan pulang ke rumah Windu, mampir sebentar di sebuah rumah makan untuk nyicipin Sio Bak. Hmm, masakan babi yang ini ga gitu cocok dengan seleraku, manis sih.

Dari rumah Windu pamitan sama Bapaknya Windu, karena kami mau balik ke Kuta dan ST mau pulang ke Jakarta malamnya.

Sebelum sampai Denpasar, kami mampir dulu ke Bedugul. Di situ ada Pura Ulun Danu dan Danau Beratan. Danau dan Pura ini dijadikan gambar di uang pecahan Rp.50.000,- kita. Kami berperahu sebentar di danau itu. Tarif perahunya (dengan orang yg mendayungkan tentu saja) Rp.45.000,- selama 1/2 jam untuk 5 orang. Ada pilihan juga untuk naik speedboat. Tapi ga asyik ahh.. Lebih enak berperahu dengan santai di situ. Bisa parasailing juga disitu, tapi di sisi lain danau dari tempat yang kami kunjungi. Sempat beli souvenir2 lagi untuk oleh2, lumayan bisa nawar murah juga di sini.

Sesudah ngantarin Mbok Wi ke penginapan trainingnya, ST ke bandara dan ngantarin aku ke Hotel Bakung Sari, Windu dan Ibunya pulang ke Singaraja. Thanks banget ya Ndut! :D Hendro dan keluarganya lagi pergi keluar. Jadi setelah naro barang di kamar, aku pergi cari makan malam dan jalan-jalan. Ehh, nemu satu tempat gede yang jual kalung, gelang, tas, sandal, dan souvenir lainnya. Dan karena di tempat yang agak sepi dan jauh dari keramaian, harganya muraaah banget. Dan udah harga pas ga bisa ditawar lagi, bahkan kalau beli banyak sekalipun. Kata si Bapak penjual, orang lain emang sering beli dari dia untuk dijual lagi. Dia emang ga jual mahal karena emang bukan di tempat keramaian. Malahan dia bilang orang dari provinsi lain sering pesan ke dia untuk dijual lagi. Hmm, aku pun meminta kartu namanya, kali aja mau buka counter penjualan souvenir Bali di Bandung, huehehehee..

Abis itu pergi jalan-jalan ke Kuta lagi sendirian. Jalan kaki aja dari hotel. Lumayan jauh sih, 15 menit jalan kaki lah, tapi bisa sambil liat2 barang dagangan. Emang dasar lagi jalan sendirian, di sepanjang jalan itu beberapa kali aku ditawarin "massage". Biasanya dengan diawali,

Dia: "Ojek Mas..?"
Aku: "Ngga Mas"
Dia: "Kalau pijat aja mau..?" (lahh.. dia profesi ganda ya?)
Dia: "Cantik-cantik lho. Bisa dipilih" *pasang muka mesum* (lohhh.. makin menjurus)
Aku: "Ngga Mas"
Dia: "Atau mau yang ganteng?"
Aku: "Hahh?" *Kabur*

Malam-malam di Kuta tetap aja rame. Sayang banget ga sempat liat sunset di Kuta. Ahh, tak papalah. Ntar aja kapan-kapan (kapan lagi emangnya, yeey..).

Pulang ke hotel, si Buluk dah dalam posisi tidur. Trus dia bilang kalo tadinya dia naik taxi dari hotel ke Kuta seharga Rp.50.000,-. Yah, emang klo sendirian bisa enak jalan kaki exploring the area. Dia kan bareng kakak, adek, dan tante, jadinya mesti memperhatikan tingkat kenyamanan tertentu bagi wanita. Katanya juga, tarif internet di daerah situ Rp.15.000,- per jam. Malahan ada yang tarifnya Rp.300,- per menit alias Rp.18.000,- per jam. Males deeeh..

Oh iya, Hendro nerima sms yang bilang flight AirAsianya yang jam 1 siang besoknya di delay sampe jam 17.45. Gubraak deeh. Lama banget delaynya.

Trip To Bali : The Temple, The Lake, and The Shoppings

Sabtu, 7 Juli 2007
Di tanggal cantik yang jadi incaran para pasangan yang hendak menikah ini (07/07/07), Windu sekeluarga dan umat Hindu lainnya melakukan sembahyang untuk Perayaan Kuningan. Sembahyang pertama dilakukan di pura keluarga yang ada di halaman rumah. Di Hari Raya Kuningan ini, hidangan makanannya adalah nasi kuning dengan lauk pauknya.

Di rumah Windu jg bisa liat berbagai binatang peliharaannya. Mulai dari anjing, burung-burung, angsa, landak, sampe kelelawar. Emang kebun binatang deh itu, hehe :D

Sehabis upacara, kita berangkat ke sebuah pura. Sebelum masuk ke pura, kita harus berpakaian sopan. Jadi kami yang pake celana2 pendek dan jeans dipakaikan sarung Bali (yang dibawa dari rumah). Kalau ga bawa sarung, ada sarung yang disewakan untuk turis. Pedagang2 di sini cukup gigih juga, jadi turis juga perlu cukup gigih mengelak dan menghindar kalau emang ga mau beli. ST dan Hendro sekeluarga mungkin pantas dikira turis asing dan diajak ngobrol dalam bahasa Inggris, Mandarin, atau Korea, hehehe. Tapi ntah kenapa aku juga tetap disapa, "Where are you from, Sir?" Whaat?? Kayaknya tampangku Indonesia pisan deh.. Ato mereka mengira dari daerah Afrika ato Asia terpencil sana? Grrr..
Di dalam area pura, ada sebuah wihara. Ternyata memang dari dulu Budhisme dan Hinduisme berkembang bersama di Bali. Jadi selagi Windu dan keluarganya sembahyang di pura, Hendro dan keluarganya sembahyang di Wihara itu; dan aku sama ST foto-foto (teteeeup!! :D)

Dari situ kita berangkat ke Kintamani. Dari dataran tinggi itu kita bisa melihat Gunung Batur yang masih aktif dengan sisa-sisa lahar berupa tanah kehitaman di kaki gunungnya. Di sebelahnya ada Danau Batur. Tempat kami berdiri di Kintamani itu sebenarnya adalah punggung gunung Batur Tua. Setelah gunung tua meletus, terbentuklah Danau Batur dan sebuah anak gunung, yang jadi Gunung Batur baru. Kalau kita menyeberangi Danau Batur, kita bisa mengunjungi Trunyan, tempat jenazah-jenazah tidak dikuburkan tapi diletakkan saja dan bisa awet tanpa pengawet buatan manusia. Tapi kami ga ke Trunyan, karena ga cukup waktu. Kalau ke Kintamani ini, bersiaplah diserbu para pedagang. Dari yang nawarin kaos, gelang, kalung, kartu pos, lukisan, ukiran, dan lain-lain. Kalau emang mau beli, lakukanlah tawar-menawar yang agak kejam. Harga barang dagangan itu bisa turun sampai seperlimanya :D Kaos yang harganya pertama Rp.35.000,- sebuah bisa menjadi Rp.50.000 dapat 6. Bahkan ada seorang ibu yang diam-diam berbisik, mau ngasih Rp.50.000,- untuk 8 kaos :D Tapi harus hati-hati aja, supaya jumlah barang yang dikasih betul2 sesuai dengan yang dijanjikan. Cek dulu kualitas barang yang kita beli dan cek lagi jumlah barangnya seblom mereka bungkuskan.

Dari Kintamani, kita mengunjungi Pura Besakih, pura terbesar di Bali. Di area pura ini ada pura-pura lebih kecil milik keluarga-keluarga raja/ksatria jaman dulu. Puranya emang besar dan megah banget. Kami mendaki tangga yang lumayan banyak untuk mengunjungi Pura keluarga Kesiman (keluarganya Windu). Nama yang tertera adalah Pedharman Arya Kenceng. Pedharman itu tempat sembahyangnya dan Arya Kenceng itu nama leluhurnya Windu. Di tempat ini, Windu sekeluarga sembahyang lagi. Sehabis itu, kami berpindah ke area pura utama. Di situ, Windu sekeluarga sembahyang lagi.

Dari Pura Besakih, kita menuju Pasar Sukowati. Pasar ini rame banget. Di sini banyak benda2 seni maupun pakaian2 yang bisa dijadikan oleh-oleh. Tentunya di tempat ini tawar-menawar mesti lebih kenceng :D Contohnya celana pendek yg harga awalnya Rp.45.000,- akhirnya bisa dibeli dengan harga Rp.15.000,-. Di sini aku jg beli 2 udeng lagi yang mirip dengan 2 udengku yang pertama. Hanya aja yang baru kubeli warnanya ungu dan merah terang. Udeng jenis itu biasanya ditawarin Rp.15.000,- sampe Rp.20.000,-. Tapi aku udah pernah bisa menawarnya Rp.10.000,- di tempat lain. Sambil liat2 barang lain, aku ngeliat ada seorang pembeli yang nampaknya udah borong banyak, lagi nawar2 udeng yang tadi kuincar. Segala pujian dah dikeluarkan penjual sama mbak itu. "Duhh, cantiknya.. Lihat cantik sekali dengan make kain ini." Aku dan Windu ketawa2 aja dengarnya. Akhirnya mbak itu berhasil menawar udeng itu seharga Rp.12.500,- 2 buah. Mungkin karena dia dah borong banyak kali ya. Dengan ga menyia-nyiakan kesempatan, aku ikutan bilang ke penjual itu klo aku juga mau udeng itu 2 buah seharga Rp.12.500,- (setelah si mbak itu pergi) :p Heahahaha, sukses besar! Di pasar ini juga ada yang nawarin bikin tato temporer.. Bisa dapat Rp.5000,-. Jauh banget harganya dibandingkan waktu di Kuta. Tapi ya bedalah ya.. Di Kuta gitu lhoo.. Harga2 lebih mahal.

Abis dari Sukowati, kita ngantar Buluk kembali ke Hotel Bakung Sari sementara aku dan ST ikut Windu kembali ke Singaraja.

PS: Foto-fotonya nyusul yeah..

Trip To Bali : The Beach, The Monument, and The Artcraft

Jumat, 6 Juli 2007
Menu breakfast di penginapan Cempaka II itu agak ajaib juga nama2nya: Banana Jaffle, Choco Banana Jaffle, dan Jaffle2 lainnya, ntah apapun Jaffle itu. Kami sih cuma ngetawain aja menu itu Tapi begitu breakfastnya datang, ternyata berwujud 2 potong roti bakar dengan isi selai, pisang, dan coklat. Ditemani potongan2 pisang, semangka, dan segelas susu. Lumayan juga. Eh, tapi ternyata Mbok Wi juga udah sempat beli nasi ayam (Yang dulu bernama Nasi Jinggo karena harganya Rp.1000,-. Berhubung harganya dah ngga segitu, jadinya disebut nasi ayam aja). Nasinya dibungkus berbentuk kerucut seperti tumpeng. Nasi ayamnya enak.

Jemput Hendro dkk di Bakung Sari dan lanjut ke Pantai Kuta. Ternyata gayanya si Windu klo cerita tentang Bali emang layak dipercaya Oh iya, itu emang termasuk salah satu misi perjalanan kali ini, membuktikan kata-kata si Ndut yang nyombong2in Bali. Tapi setelah kami bilang misi itu, dia malah panik sendiri dan buru2 sok merendah, hehehe. Tapi emang terbukti kok kata2nya, what a beautiful island.

Standar kenarsisan manusia, di pantai itu tentu ga luput dari acara foto2 (Ya iyalah bo'. Gila aja lu ga foto2 di pantai itu [Turis Mode: ON]). Di situ juga si Buluk sama kakak adiknya (Erna & Diana) bikin tato. Setelah tawar-menawar, mereka sepakat dengan harga Rp.30.000,- per tato. Di pantai ini kita juga bisa ngepang-ngepang rambut. Humm, brapa ya harganya kmaren ini Klo ga salah Rp.30.000,- untuk rambut Erna yang panjang dan Rp.15.000,- untuk rambut Diana yang pendek. Pedagang kalung dan gelang juga banyak. Mbok Wi dan ST beli kalung lucu yang setelah ditawar jadi dapat Rp.10.000,- satunya. Tapi pas lagi ngepang2 itu, ada pedagang lain yang nawarin kalung yang mirip dengan harga Rp.5000,- hehehe. Tapi biasanya mereka berpesan,"Saya kasi harga segini, tapi jangan bilang-bilang ke yang lain ya" Anta (a.k.a. Nengock) yang kerja di Denpasar ikut bergabung dengan kami sambil bawa Wisnu, pacarnya (Wisnu itu cewek lho ). Aku, ST, dan Hendro beli gelang kembaran dengan harga Rp.10.000,- 3 buah (mode turis banget ga sehh, hehehe). Sayang si ibu penjual ga mau ngasih Rp.10.000,- 4 buah. Klo ga, kan bisa berempat dengan Windu.

Dari Pantai Kuta, kita pergi mengunjungi Monumen Bom Bali I di Legian. Foto-foto bentar dan lanjut ke Garuda Wisnu Kencana (GWK) Cultural Park. Katanya tempat ini sering dipake buat pertunjukan-pertunjukan gede. Ada biaya masuk, Rp.10.000,- per orang dan Rp.5000,- per mobil. Tempatnya emang luas banget, dengan pemandangan tebing-tebing cadas yang dibentuk seperti dinding-dinding raksasa. Di area ini dibangun patung Garuda dan patung Wisnu. Ceunah sih belum selesai patung-patungnya. Misalnya patung Wisnunya, masih belum utuh tangannya. Tapi udah nampak keren banget deh, patung-patungnya. Untuk mendekati patung-patung itu, kita mesti mendaki tangga di bukit-bukitnya. Dengan tetap berfoto-foto tentunya.

Lucunya, ada beberapa pria, turis dari Cina tampaknya, yang minta foto bareng ST dekat patung Garuda. Mungkin mereka agak takjub juga melihat di Indonesia ada gadis Chinese nu geulis dan bisa bahasa Mandarin kayak ST, huehehe. ST gitu loooh.. Para pria kesepian nan malang itu tampak bersuka cita sesudah foto bareng ST, huehehe. Pas pindah ke lokasi patung Wisnu, ketemu lagi sama mereka. Lagi-lagi ST diajak ngobrol, dan kali ini diminta foto bareng juga dengan Hendro, Erna, Diana, dan Tante. Tampaknya mau reuni turis Tiong Hoa, hehehe.

Dari GWK, kita mau makan siang di Pantai Jimbaran. Nengock yang meng-guide kita, naik motor bareng Wisnu. Kita diajak ke rumah makan (apa ya namanya). Setelah nerima welcome drink (huff, jus jeruk dingin emang pas banget untuk cuaca panas di Pantai Jimbaran siang-siang. Liat pasir pantai aja silau). Di situ kita pesan 2 Ikan bakar, 1 ikan goreng, dan cumi goreng tepung (Ikannya Rp.9000,- per 100 gram). Service-nya termasuk tumis sayuran dan buah untuk dessert. Oh iya, ada bonus 100 gram masakan kerang dari orang rumah makannya. Huff, enak juga. Malahan sampe berlebih.. Belum jago nih perhitungan porsi makannya

Dari Pantai Jimbaran, kita bisa liat pemandangan laut dengan sejumlah kapal nelayan yang lagi nge-tem di tepi laut. Tapi yang paling keren itu ngeliat pesawat-pesawat yang akan landing di bandara, hwii.. Pantai Jimbaran ini lebih sepi daripada Pantai Kuta. Jadi kalau mau bersantai dengan tenang, pantai ini adalah pilihan yang bagus. Di pantai tempat kami makan siang ada rombongan pengamen. Kami udah liat mereka ngamen di pantai restoran sebelah. Mereka bawain lagu-lagu kayak lagu2 Amerika Latin gitu di depan bule2 yang lagi santai. Pas sampe di tempat kami, mereka minta ijin ngamen dan mulai bawain lagu-lagu mandarin, huahahaha.. Mungkin karena ngeliat ST dan Hendro sekeluarga Trus mereka pindah ke restoran sebelah lagi, dan nyanyiin lagu pop biasa, hehehee. Hebat juga pengamennya. Udah customized terhadap aneka ragam turis

Abis makan siang, kita mengunjungi Pasar Kesenian Bali yang kebetulan lagi ada. Di sini Hendro, aku, dan Windu beli udeng Bali. Aku dah punya 2 udeng sebenernya. Satu warna merah yang dipake waktu ICT ke Choir Olympic di Bremen dan satu lagi warna hijau oleh-oleh dari Windu pas jaman kuliah. Banyak udeng siap pakai, tapi aku ga suka motif2nya (Klo ga terlalu heboh, ya terlalu ngampung, ato terlalu motif Jawa) dan aku nyari yang masih bentuk lembaran kain, ga mau yang siap pakai. Akhirnya aku beli yang warna putih dengan motif sederhana dan ga terlalu mencolok seharga Rp.15.000,- dari tawaran semula Rp.45.000,-.

Dari PKB, rencananya kita mau singgah ke Bedugul dulu seblom ke Singaraja, tapi ga jadi karena kemalaman. Dari Denpasar ke Singaraja makan waktu skitar 2 jam. Katanya dulu pusatnya Bali itu adalah Singaraja, sebelum dipindahkan ke Denpasar. Di Singaraja ada patung Singa Ambararaja (temannya Sisingamangaraja kali ya, hehehe). Singa ini jadi simbolnya Singaraja. Gosip dari Windu (memang dia biang gosip), kalau malam-malam patung itu jadi hidup dan singa bersayap itu terbang malam-malam.

Di Singaraja, aku dan ST nginap di rumah Dekndu. Hendro nemanin keluarganya dulu di Hotel di Singaraja, baru nyusul nginap di rumah Ndu. Makan malamnya membuat kami akhirnya mencicipi masakan babinya Bali. Ada yang namanya Tum, daging babi dibungkus daun pisang seperti pepes. Rasanya gurih, menurutku mirip sangsang-nya Batak. Ada Sate Babi, rasanya manis. Kata Windu masakan Bali emang biasa manis. Trus ada abon daging babi, berwujud daging babi disuir-suir dan digoreng kering. Aku suka banget yang ini Sambil ngobrol dengan Bapak dan Ibu Windu, sambil ngemil Kacang Manalagi dan Salak Bali. Buseet itu kacang emang bikin ga bisa brenti ngambil dan ngambil lagi..

Sepanjang perjalanan dan sepanjang malam, pastinja ga lepas dari gosip-gosip terbaru dan cela-mencela tentang masa kuliah dan masa bekerja, huehehehe.. Miss that a lot pals!