my first..

Pondok Bambu,

It's been a while I didn't post, so hiiiiii !! :)

I went actually to another town to do something sooo interesting I've never ever done in life. CLIMBING ! I didn't have any idea before that I would do that activity without any preparation: preparing important things (sleeping bag, hiking shoes, etc), and jogging !! Gosh I didn't realize when my friend said to me "But you have to jog or run at least 3 days before the D day, okay?" And I did something stupid I didn't even sleep the night before the climbing day and of course I didn't make any exercise! -.-'

This climbing idea came from a friend. Actually she asked me to go to beach together with her friends in 2 two weeks ahead. And she told me to climb a mountain without any consideration to invite me about her plan in that weekend because she did once and I refused it. I didn't know what crossed in my mind but I said to her directly: "Can I go with you?? "

Eccomi !! In a town called Wonosobo in the Central of Java island. I arrived a day before and slept in my friend's grandparents' house. The morning after my friend and I went to meet other friends in the bus station. We rented a bus to go to the foothill. The mountain called Sindoro and located in Central Java. Its height is about 3000 m above sea level. I don't have idea whether it's a great mountain or no. I had only an 'ambition' to do it in my head. ^^

So we were 17 persons started our day to reach the top of the mountain. We started at 10 am and arrived 6 hours later more or less. I can say overall I climbed without much big obstacles. It was tiring but it was okay. At least for me the beginner one. ;D

 

When  I arrived on the top. All I can say is it was like a p a r a d i s e (if it exists and its image is just like people always think). The clouds are so close to us. It was like we can reach them with our hands and sleep on them. Or in my deepest imagination it looked like cotton candies !! The sunset was amazing plus we could see four mountains in Central Java altogether around it.

 

In the night we could see a very very beautiful sky. A thousand stars above us!! I've never seen so many stars like that in my life even in planetariums.

We stayed in tents and we did have fun together. It's always a great experience for me to know new persons (I knew only 1 person among 16 people by the way). I spent time in other friends' tent. When I came back to my tent I saw that my sleeping bag (I rented it in the end -,-) was already used by a friend. So I looked for a sleeping bag which wasn't used. I found it but it was so thin !! I slept inside it anyway because I was so tired and there was no more sleeping bag. In the morning I woke up at 5:30 am and I missed the sunrise but it was okay because the 'rest' of that beautiful sunrise still could be seen for a couple of minutes.

It was so freaking cold !! I felt already that I was a little bit sick. I think the weather got me down. :(

We went down at 8 am. After walked down for about 500 m I felt down because of the slippery soil. It was so sandy ( I used Converse by the way because I didn't have any climbing shoes).

After that first "falling down" moment I can't remember anymore how many times I did it again and again. I thought I could never go down in that day because once I felt down and could not stand up anymore. My legs couldn't do it. Thanks to all the people on the mountain I met and gave me helps. But a super duper big thanks to 2 persons who helped me until the end to reach the base camp : Imam and Hendra. :') It is so touchy when people help you even though you barely know them. Something I learned is people on mountain are so friendly with others and faithful. ^______^

It took 5 days before my friend's and also my legs became normal. But I don't know for how long we have to wait until our sunburn healed !! My skin still has not quit peeling off until now (I'm still peeling it off my self). Ouff !!

Anyhoooo I'm happy to do my first climbing experience. One day I would like to do it again. With better preps of course ! ;)

Happy  Journey !

Siem Reap

is the capital of Siem Reap province. It’s located in northwest Cambodia. In the past Siem Reap was touristless but thank to courageous backpackers who wanted to ‘fight’ with the tortuous road from the Thai border on the tailgate of a local pick-up truck to reach that city, it becomes now the major tourist destination in Cambodia. Besides due to its proximity to the world famous temples of Angkor , people from all over the world come to Siem Reap for exploring  the world famous heritage site of the Angkor temples.

The name of the city has meaning ‘Siamese defeated’, Siam is now Thailand. It was named referring to the victory of the Khmer Empire over the army of the Thai kingdom in the 17^th century. Cambodia as a country had a huge spectre of the brutal Khmer Rouge Regime (this regime is remembered for the large number of deaths through execution, torture, starvation and forced labor). Cambodia began to rise up from the ‘ashes’ in the mid-1990’s after Pol Pot’s death (a leader of Khmer Rouge) in 1998. Nowadays hotels, guesthouses, budget hotels, bars, pubs, cyber cafes, and all kind of nightlife stuffs have mushroomed in Siam Reap.

It took me much enough time to decide whether I would go to Cambodia or no. I wasn’t that certain to go there, my head was filled up with a thought about how dangerous that country is. Honestly I cannot say much about Cambodia in general because I only visited one of its cities. But I can tell you (based on my days spent there) that Siem Reap is such a cool city.
Before arrived there I worried about several things:

Money? - I know it's not easy to get Cambodian currency. Even in my country (mine is also located in Southeast Asia) I couldn’t find any money changers or banks where I can change Rupiah (Indonesian) into Riel (Cambodian). Don’t worry !! You can always pay for everything in U. S. Dollars in Siem Reap.

Language? - In Seam Reap you can speak English with almost every local people. From kids to grannies. ^_^ As long as you don’t look like them physically (like I do), they won’t speak to you in Cambodian.

Climate? - Cool season (Nov-Mar / 23-29 °C) Hot season (Mar-May / 27-37 °C) Rainy season (May-Oct / 24-33 °C).

Transportation? - You can move around town on foot, motorbikes, or by Tuk-Tuk. Those two are the common and less expensive transportation modes.

our tuk-tuk driver who speaks english so well and a really friendly person

Visa? - Visitors are now able to obtain the Cambodian visa upon arrival at the airport (Pochentong Airport - Phnompenh, Siem Reap Airport - Angkor Wat Region). It is no longer necessary to get the visa stamp at the Cambodian Embassy before our visit (except for those who come from  Afghanistan, Algeria, Arab Saudi, Bangladesh, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Sri Langka, Sudan, and Nigeria).
We only need prepare these following requirements:

• a passport photocopy
• 1 photo (3x4)
• USD 20 + USD 5 (processing charge) cash for tourist fee (paid directly to the immigration).

Or by land through Aranyapathet-Poipet Border and Trat-Koh Kong (border of Thailand) and Moc Bai - Bavet (border of Vietnam).

Cambodia have signed such agreements on visa exemption with most of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) members:

Brunei (not yet)

Cambodia

Indonesia

Laos

Malaysia

Myanmar (not yet)

Philippines

Singapore

Thailand (not yet)

Vietnam

I can say Siem Reap is a nice small gateway and worth a visit town. Fortunately even though that city has transformed itself into a major tourist hub. Siem Reap and its people have conserved much of the town’s image, culture, and tradition.

Happy  Journey !

Info for visa : http://www.mfaic.gov.kh/evisa/

a short quality time

Nangrek,

Say W for wohooo.. Finally I do my first trip with two of my girls, Nabila and Anggi even though it's only a short trip.

Now we're heading to Pangandaran to reach our final destination Batukaras. It's a small village located in West Java. There they have a beach that's quite famous within surfers' community because it has nice waves almost through all over year. I was there once to see my friend Ficka. She's a talented girl, a person with combination of artistic and sporty sides. She's a tatoo artist and also a surfer girl..

We still have to hit the road for 6 hours before arriving to Pangandaran.. Hope everything goes well and we arrive safely there..


Pangandaran,


Yey, we arrived here.. but accidentaly we ran out of food so we went to the nearest warung (all-you-can-find shop) from Ficka's place.

Batukaras, July 15 

This couple

makes almost everything looks easy.. even for 'gluing' their surfboards on  their car

I am here with my girlfriends.. Today we woke up late sooo we couldn't be tanned like the way we want -_-'

anyhooo.. we did have fun ! Yesterday a Pangandaran I tasted a new drink called 'Cihui'. It's fermentation of sugar palm. For me it's a lil bit sweet but I convince you it makes us fuddled so quickly !! If you find it one day just give it a try. :)

cihui

Gilang (Ficka's Brother) played guitar and we sang altogether

Today my friends and I went to the beach, we tried to surf (nah, it was more like lying down on surfboard actually) and we were on boat as well. It was totally fun except for the wind and cold weather. I don't know yet what we are going to do tonight maybe just calm down, grab some drinks, go to the beach, stay there and look up high. I am (sometimes) sort of romantic person who becomes melancholic only by looking upon the stars. ^_^  Today is fullmoon !!

we had fullmoon

Last night we spent our time on the beach. We did have fun.. Singing, chitchatting, drinking, playing UNO card, and laid down on the beach. I met some people that I’ve already known from my first visit to Batukaras and a few new people who come from Jakarta like my friends and I. Maybe I cannot say that It was exactly the dolce far niente like Italian proverb says but yeah it was sort of I guess. 

Tomorrow we'll go back to Pangandaran and stay at Ficka's. In the morning we planned to go to Citumang (hopefully we will not that drunk and wake up late again !!). There will be a beach party at night and we think to attend that party and have some fun before going back to Jakarta. :)

But I'd like to think like the way local people think. Sooo.. I'll just go with the flow and do their motto 'just relax and take everything easy'. ;)

Pondok Bambu, July 22

I am home.. I arrived in July 20 by bus after a long haul and I did it alone because I stayed 2 days more than my friends and I had planned. 

Hemmmm.. I obviously hibernated for a whole 2 days.. Now I'm continuing to write down my stories then :) 

After Batukaras time we went back to Pangandaran and we arrived in the morning. We went to Batu Hiu and saw also turtles in captivity which is located nearby. 

baby turtles

the prettiest one

We arrived late to the beach party and sadly it was over. So we went to Jacko’s Bar. And we spent (again) our time on the beach because the bar is just in front of the beach. That bar makes bonfire every night on the beach. 

You can say in that kind of situation I am melancholic one but I’d like to say that I am soulful person instead. -__-

The next day we went to Citumang, a small and tranquil flowing river in the north west of Pangandaran. We swam in the river for a while and decided to jump freely from Citumang waterfall. It was awesome !!

It isn’t that high just a little bit scary because I’ve never did it in my life. We had more courage to jump from a big branch which is 4 meters above the river more or less after. My friend said to me the highest one is about 12 meters and he 'kindly' asked me if I’d like to jump from that point. Okay, I like challenges but that number is too much for me. Next time hopefully I’ll do it.. :)  

Happy  Journey !

Cám Ơn Sài Gòn

Pondok Bambu

Beberapa hari yang lalu saya baru kembali dari 'penjelajahan' singkat di beberapa tempat di Asia Tenggara bersama tiga orang teman (Siska, Adit dan Eka). Destinasi pertama kami adalah Ho Chi Minh atau dahulu lebih dikenal dengan nama Saigon.

Kota ini terletak di bagian selatan negara Vietnam. 

Dengan menggunakan pesawat Air Asia (oh yeah, the cheapest one of course! ^^) yang kami booked satu semester sebelum keberangkatan, sampailah kami di kota Uncle Ho ini.

Setelah bersepakat menggunakan jasa taksi bertarif 10 USD, kami tiba di penginapan yang sebelumnya di booked oleh Hang, cewek Vietnam yang saya kenal melalui dunia maya (jejejeje, who says that we waste our time by sitting in front of computer and being online?! v(''و))

Me Them and Breakfast: 203 Pham Ngu Lao St. District 1

Kami sampai sekitar 10:30 malam, setelah menyelesaikan biaya administrasi dan sedikit ramah tamah, kami segera menuju kamar kami untu mencek ricek keadaan lapangan. Wawww, it was more than our expectation before. 6 USD/ person and you get a nice room with aircon, and  also water heater at the bathroom. parfait! :)

Setelah proses 'perkenalan' dengan kamar kami selesai, kami bersiap-siap keluar untuk mencari makan malam. 

Lelah mengitari daerah District 1, Pham Ngu Lao St. and De Tham St., kami memutuskan untuk mencoba noodle beef ala kaki lima seharga 20000 VND atau sekitar 10000 IDR. 

Bon appetit a tous!

Setelah selesai makan kami memutuskan untuk membeli durian sebagai dessert (hal duren menduren ini terprovokasi oleh Pak. Bambang yang entah kenapa seolah selalu bersama kami sepanjang perjalanan, mulai dari pesawat yang sama hingga tempat makan yang sama, what a coincidence huh? ^^)

Keesokan paginya kami berwisata menjelajahi kota HCMC, dimulai dengan kunjungan ke taman kota di mana terdapat patung Paman Ho sedang menimang bayi. Patung ini sangat terkenal dan menjadi simbol kota HCMC. Since we are tourists, we took some pics here as well. :9

Perjalanan dilanjutkan menuju Notre Dame de Saigon atau dalam bahasa Vietnam Vương cung thánh đường Đức Bà Sài Gòn or Nhà thờ Đức Bà Sài Gòn. ;) Panjang nian namanya!

Destinasi berikutnya adalah War Remnants Museum. Tapi sebelumnya kita berfoto-foto ria untuk menghilangkan jenuh dan panas (ya iya kali ngaruh) dan tidak ketinggalan mencoba kopi Vietnam asliiii ala kaki lima. Wiiiii.. rasanya juara!! Dengan harga 10000 VND per gelas.

Simbol Vietnam: Bendera merah berbintang kuning dan SEPEDA MOTOR! :9

Akhirnya sampai di War Remnant Museum HCMC

Di tempat ini masih banyak persenjataan perang yang tersisa dari perang antara pasukan AS dan Vietnam.

Si al amor, no a la guerra

Menunggu Eka dan hujan. Sebel banget seharian ujan melulu. :(

Adit: Niat hati ingin makan di resto Melayu-Arab (yang ternyata tutup, iyalah ya kita ga sadar aja kalo saat itu kan bulan puasa!), ujung-ujungnya mengganjal perut dengan sandwich andalan 7eleven.

sampai sempet foto-foto beribu ekspresi sankin lama dan bosan menunggu hujan reda

Tujuan terakhir kami adalah Ben Tham Market, pasar yang menurut blog-blog murah meriah. Tetapi seperti pasar manapun, tawarlah barang yang Anda inginkan setega-teganya sebelum membeli. Khususnya di sini, karena harga awal yang diberikan benar-benar sesuka jiwa pedagangnya. Dan entah kenapa orang-orang lokal negeri ini mukenye sepet-sepet banget a.k.a jarang yang suka melempar senyum. Jadi bersabarlah Anda jika mendapat lirikan 'maut' di HCMC ini. X)

Pasar Ben Tham ini konsepnya kayak pasar tradisional di Indonesia, mulai dari ikan sampai pakaian jadi ada. Bedanya pasar ini bersihhhhh banget. Lantai untuk ikan segarnya aja berkeramik. Jadi mau belanja juga seneng kalo ke pasar kayak gini. :)

Setelah selesai menawar sana sini dan memperoleh barang yang diinginkan kami kembali ke rumah dan bertemu dengan dua teman baru kami, Hang dan Nga. Dua cewek Vietnam ini bener-bener tipe rumahan, jadi mereka juga kurang tahu banyak mengenai tempat-tempat must be visited di Saigon ini. jejejeje.. Tapi kita tetep bisa happy happy (hemmmm.. it rings a bell hein? :9 )

Makan bersama dengan Hang dan Nga: semua menu adalah makan khas Vietnam

itadakimasu!

Ditutup oleh kembang api yang merupakan rangkaian perayaan hari kemerdekaan Vietnam yang jatuh pada tanggal 2 September.

Cám Ơn  Sài Gòn! 

  Happy  Journey !